Confederate Flag Banned From CMA Music Fest In Commitment To Make Event More Inclusive

Her final rose! Tia Booth got engaged to Taylor Mock during Bachelor Live on Stage, but she didn’t meet him on TV.

Carrie Underwood marked Father's Day with a sweet tribute to her husband, Mike Fisher, sharing a photo from a fun family day.MORE: Carrie Underwood shares rare photo of son from family beach tripThe shot featured a rare glimpse at her sons, Jacob, three, and Isaiah, seven, although their privacy was maintained through the magic of costumes.VIDEO: Carrie Underwood supported by son after armadillo invades Nashville homeThe picture was from their Halloween night out, with Isaiah dressed as a scary clown, Jacob as what looked like a flaming power ranger, and Mike as a cowboy.The adorable family snapshot captured the love that the hockey player had for his two young sons, and Carrie couldn't have agreed more.MORE: Carrie Underwood returns to Opry for special tribute show"Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there! Our boys are lucky to have you," she captioned her post, immediately getting inundated with heart emojis and more wishes for Mike."So nice to see the mom and dad part of your life. Precious kiddos," one fan wrote and another commented: "God Bless you and your sweet family," with a few distracted by how genuinely scary Isaiah's costume looked with his mask on.

Two members of American rock band Orleans have sued Warner Music over a common gripe in the artist community: record companies allowing their foreign subsidiaries to make deductions on digital income and then calculating the artist royalty based on what is received by the label in the artist’s home country after those deductions.In a lawsuit filed with the courts in Nashville, John Hall and Lance Hoppen criticise the major both for making those international deductions in the first place and for failing to clearly communicate that was happening on their royalty statements.As a result of the bad communication, they add, they’d previously assumed their artist royalty on streams was being calculated based on ‘at-source income’, ie what the major was paid by the streaming service, not what was received by the home label after the foreign subsidiaries had taken their cut.The legal filing, which seeks class action status, says: “Fees to foreign affiliates are a relic of the days when the collection of revenues from foreign record sales entailed significant labour, as opposed to the relatively frictionless methodology by which digital service providers can compensate rightsholders for the use of their services across multiple territories”.“In such instances”, it adds, “the costs of foreign collection are negligible, and the grossly deficient payment of foreign streaming royalties by defendants simply reflects their ability to manipulate their foreign affiliate practices with no commercial justification beyond self-enrichment”.Regarding Warner’s alleged failure to communicate the international deductions, the lawsuit adds: “Defendants purposefully and knowingly withhold and fail to inform plaintiffs and the class members of the

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticThe Black Music Action Coalition has issued a report on representation for Blacks and other people of color in mainstream country music, and, probably unsurprisingly to anyone who has followed the genre and some of its attendant racial controversies, the picture painted isn’t a pretty one.The BMAC issued the damning report Thursday in advance of hosting a panel discussion Saturday at Soho House Nashville, at which point the organization will detail some of the specific changes it is asking for in the industry.“For over 100 years, this country and industry have excluded and marginalized Black people’s contributions to this genre,” said Willie “Prophet” Stiggers, co-founder/co-chair of BMAC, in a statement. “It is our intention with this report to create a truth and reconciliation opportunity for our industry.

Luke Bryan has added six more dates to his Las Vegas residency.MORE: Luke Bryan’s wife shares inspiring message with fans after 'wonderful' Mother's DayThe country star has faced overwhelming demand for his show at Resorts World Theatre, and after already adding one new set of dates, he has now confirmed he will perform six additional dates in November and December.WATCH: Luke Bryan calls on fans to help him after ‘losing money’ in Las VegasTickets will go on sale on 20 June 2022 at 10am PT, and the dates have been confirmed as 30 November 2022, and 2, 3, 7, 9 and 10 December 2022.The American Idol judge kicked off his Las Vegas residency on Friday 11 February and before he hit the stage he posted the video which saw him tell fans he was "checking out the Vegas merch".MORE: Luke Bryan delivers wonderful family news that 'made Mother's Day'He then joked: "Please buy it because I've lost money on the blackjack table."Fans were more than willing to help Luke out, with many calling on him to put the merchandise online for those who couldn't make it to a tour date.

Murray Bartlett has been acting for 35 years, but it wasn’t until his turn as smiling and spiraling hotel manager Armond in HBO’s “The White Lotus” that Hollywood started buzzing about its new “breakout star.”“In the last year since ‘White Lotus,’ I’ve had more choice and more work than I’ve ever had,” the Australian actor tells Variety.The role earned him an Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts prize and Critics’ Choice Award, but Bartlett’s career hasn’t always been a smooth journey. “There have been times where I haven’t worked much — sometimes long periods,” he says.

Sticking together. Todd and Julie Chrisley are taking things one day at a time after their conviction for tax evasion and fraud.

MORE: Tim McGraw reveals he was left concussed by wife Faith Hill – details"Last fall I was diagnosed with stomach cancer. I've spent the last 6 months receiving chemo, radiation and surgery.

Toby Keith, a seven-time Grammy nominee who was recognized as entertainer of the year by the Academy of Country Music two years in a row in 2002 and 2003, revealed Sunday he has stomach cancer.

A surprise tribute. As country singer Carly Pearce took the stage at Nashville’s annual CMA Fest, she enlisted Wynonna Judd to sing an unexpected duet to honor the legacy of the late Naomi Judd.

Carrie Underwood has shared that she would "never leave her house" if it wasn't for her husband Mike Fisher.MORE: Carrie Underwood shares rare personal photo as she reveals sentimental anniversaryThe country superstar revealed that she is a homebody who "gets nervous" in group settings, despite being a multi-award winning singer who has toured the world.WATCH: Carrie Underwood supported by son after armadillo invades Nashville home"I don't want to go to restaurants, I don't want to travel. I don't want to go anywhere," she shared with fans during an appearance on Today's Country Radio With Kelleigh Bannen on Apple Music Country.She continued: "I love being at home.

Rita Wilson is getting her Nashville groove on.

Carrie Underwood is sharing some rare comments about her husband, ex-NHL star Mike Fisher.

Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas Is You is one of the most popular Christmas songs of all time. Whether you willingly played the song for your holiday festivities, or if you have ever once entered any store between the months of November and January, you’ve definitely heard it. The song boasts over a billion streams on Spotify, but a new lawsuit alleges the Queen of Christmas should not be the one getting all that revenue!

Mariah Carey is known as the Queen of Christmas, but a lawsuit alleges there's a less-than-idyllic backstory to the inception of her iconic holiday jam, «All I Want For Christmas Is You.» Carey is being sued for copyright infringement by songwriter Andy Stone for allegedly taking inspiration from a song he wrote and recorded — by the same name — years before she released the mega-hit in 1994. According to CBS News, Stone filed a civil lawsuit in the Eastern District of Louisiana on Friday against Carey, song co-writer Walter Afanasieff and the Sony music group over alleged «copyright infringement and unjust enrichment» among other reasons, over a song he wrote with the same title five years before Carey's hit was released. Known artistically as Vince Vance and the Valiants, Stone co-wrote and recorded the song in Nashville in 1989 and claims his version of the song got «extensive airplay» and made it to the Billboard charts during the 1993 Christmas season.Stone alleges that Carey and Afanasieff «never sought or obtained permission» for the use of the title «All I Want for Christmas Is You,» and that Stone never gave permission, consent or a license to use the title. The court filing claims that Stone's lawyers first reached out to Carey and the other defendants in April 2021 in regard to «the unauthorized use of the song,» and after «not being able to come to an agreement» about the usage, Stone personally requested to send a cease and desist letter.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticAnyone who wants to foster the tandem promotion of racism and sedition will have to do it somewhere other than the CMA Festival. The annual gathering has declared that Confederate flag imagery will be banned at the biggest country music festival in the world, which will take place in Nashville June 9-14.The CMA Festival becomes the second large country music festival to institute such a ban, following the Stagecoach Festival April 29-May 1, which also made headlines for putting the flag and associated racially charged imagery on the nixed list.As in that earlier instance, promoters of the CMA Festival did not make an announcement about the ban, but rather it was publicized by journalists looking through the fine print of a list of prohibited items on the festival website, where “Confederate flag imagery of any kind” is listed alphabetically right under “Cameras with a detachable lens longer than 6″.” In a statement given to the Tennessean (which called the move “an under-the-radar decision”), the Country Music Association confirmed the new policy, and pointed out that it had been on the website since that page went up in April.“This year’s CMA Fest is our first major fan-facing event in nearly three years,” said the CMA’s statement.

Mariah Carey to have a bad Christmas. It was reported Friday by TMZ that the singer is being sued for at least $20 million for copyright infringement by Andy Stone for her famous song “All I want for Christmas.” The songwriter claims he co-wrote and recorded a song called “All I Want For Christmas Is You” before Carey released her song under the same name that would go down in history.