Jon Pardi Shares the Best Part of Newlywed Life and Touring With Wife Summer (Exclusive)

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic When Fox’s “Monarch” premiered to strong ratings following an NFL game on Sept. 11, there was a big sort-of-maybe cliffhanger: Can the Susan Sarandon character, touted as a series lead, really be as dead as she appeared to be at the end of the pilot? But there were other questions, too. Like: Will this be a series in which the characters are portrayed as having originated a lot of the big hits of country and pop, from “Family Tradition” to “Man! I Feel Like a Woman” to “Born This Way”? Will the middle American audience be completely down with a story that has an out lesbian character vying to become a country superstar? Do parallels with Naomi Judd’s story feel as eerie as we think they do? And did the pilot make all those millions of viewers want to come back when there’s no NFL lead-in?

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic “I’ve never talked about this publicly before,” said Taylor Swift, teasing the audience as she accepted an award in Nashville Tuesday night, leading at least some of the attendees to be on the edge of their seats. And because it was an audience mostly of songwriters, they stayed there, even when the secret to be revealed turned out to have to with classifications of different types of lyrics she has kept in her head for years. She went on to say that “it’s dorky. But I also have, in my mind, secretly, established genres categories for lyrics I write. Three of them, to be exact: They are affectionately titled Quill Lyrics, Fountain Pen Lyrics and Glitter Gel Pen Lyrics. … I came up with these categories based on what writing tool I imagine having in my hand when I scribbled it down — figuratively. I don’t actually have a quill. Anymore. I broke it once when I was mad.”

Thania Garcia The Recording Academy‘s Black Music Collective (BMC) has added new members to its honorary chairs and leadership council. Together, the group is committed to the “inclusion, recognition and advancement of Black music and its creators and professionals within the Recording Academy and music industry at-large,” according to the BMC. Yolanda Adams, Valeisha Butterfield Jones, Ethiopia Habtemariam and Yvette Noel-Schure will be joining returning honorary chairs Jeff Harleston, Jimmy Jam, Quincy Jones, and John Legend. New on the leadership council are Prince Charles Alexander, Jimmie Allen, Denzel Baptiste and David Biral (Take a Daytrip), Jennifer Goicoechea, Mickey Guyton, Claudine Joseph, Ledisi, Herb Trawick, Ebonie Ward and Yola.

Thony De La Rosa (Elodie Yung), a former Cambodian-Filipino doctor who has been working as a cleaning service worker in Las Vegas while seeking medical treatment for her son. Soon, she becomes entangled with mobster Arman (Adan Canto), and she becomes a cleaner and a doctor on his payroll. Hudson co-stars as Garrett Miller, an FBI agent who goes after Thony in an effort to bring down Arman.

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor Though she’s just 22, Noah Cyrus has seen some stuff. As Miley’s younger sister, her music and acting careers launched early — at 16 and 2 (!), respectively — and she released several pop-leaning singles and EPs during her teens, opened an arena tour for Katy Perry in 2017 and was even nominated for a Best New Artist Grammy in 2021. On the less positive side, there was substance abuse, a bad relationship and lockdown isolation — but she overcame all of it, and that battle informs nearly every song on “The Hardest Part,” her long-percolating debut album, which sees her truly finding her voice in a way that her previous recordings only hinted at. Surprisingly or no, the Nashville native did it by returning home, musically speaking. Although her main collaborators here are Northern Irish producer Mike Crossey (Arctic Monkeys, the 1975) and Australian songwriter PJ Harding (Chromeo, Ruel), the sound is country-leaning, heavy on harmonies, organic instrumentation and Music Row-friendly melodies; its big, stacked harmonies recall everything from the Chicks to Boygenius.

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor Michelle Branch appeared on the “Tamron Hall Show” Thursday to address her recent martial problems with her husband, the Black Keyes’ Patrick Carney, which saw her arrested for domestic disturbance. “They are not allegations,” she told Hall, according to Rolling Stone. “Violence — I don’t condone violence. I slapped my husband. Not the finest moment of my life.” The singer said several factors contributed to the incident, including postpartum depression and having had “a few drinks” at a friend’s birthday party. Branch, 39, and Carney, 42, married in 2019; their son was born the previous year and their daughter this past February. Branch filed for divorce on Aug. 12, citing irreconcilable differences.

Loving dad life! Sam Hunt gushed about how his baby daughter with wife Hannah Lee Fowler has shifted his perspective.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic On the eve of AmericanaFest in Nashville, Lucinda Williams was celebrated at BMI’s headquarters as the recipient of the performing rights organization’s annual Troubadour Award, where an invitation-only crowd heard Williams’ songs covered by Jason Isbell, Angel Olsen, ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons, Amos Lee and Madeline Edwards. Other artists saluted Williams via taped congratulations, like Robert Plant and Dwight Yoakam, who called giving Williams the lifetime achievement award “long overdue.” Maybe it wasn’t that long overdue: Williams is only the fourth artist to get the Troubadour honor since it was instituted in 2017, following in the footsteps of John Prine, John Hiatt and Robert Earl Keen.

Vince Gill's wife, Amy Grant, was unable to attend the red carpet and taping of  in Nashville on Monday following the bike accident which left her hospitalized in July, he was accompanied by his two daughters, Corrina and Jenny. Vince spoke to ET's Brooke Anderson, and gave an update on how Amy is doing following the scary incident.«She's doing great,» he said.

Blake Shelton is trying on for size. The country star and noted flannel enthusiast is lending his name to a new fall and holiday collection of apparel for men, women, children and even pets, with designs and colors inspired by a six-string guitar, blue skies and amber brews. «For me, it's always simple stuff,» Shelton tells ET's Cassie DiLaura. «That's what I have on now, and I'm comfortable in it and I love it.» The Lands' End x Blake Shelton collection is available now with a portion of sales being donated to Habitat for Humanity. «They know that what they do is fashion and they know that's the last thing I do,» Shelton tells ET of the partnership.

Carrie Underwood has shared a cheeky video in which she admits she is no longer "young hip and carefree".SEE: Carrie Underwood looks phenomenal in plunging see-through dress – sparks reactionThe mom-of-two has long been a fan of gardening and curating her vegetable patch at her Nashville home, and on Saturday she took to Instagram to share a video of the veggies she has grown including beans, tomatoes and squash. WATCH: Carrie Underwood jokes she is no longer 'young and carefree' "One minute you're young hip and carefree and the next minute you're photographing vegetables in your garden," the voiceover intoned but she jokingly claimed in the caption that she was "not sure I was ever young, hip and carefree"."#GardenLife #IWetMyPlants #RefusesToBuyProduce #yum," she added, revealing that she doesn't buy produce from the grocery store and only uses what she grows.SEE: Carrie Underwood's sprawling $3million forever home is so unexpected"Growing your own food is so rewarding!! Awesome looking produce!!" commented one fan as others shared their laughter with her over the implications of the video.The country music singer has proven over the years that she doesn't mind getting her hands dirty, which is a good thing considering she lives on a huge ranch in Tennessee, with her family.

“House of the Dragon” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” are currently battling it out for supremacy, the autumn months will bring a slew of offerings across all genres. Here are some of the hot new fall shows.Based on the 1980 Paul Schrader film starring Richard Gere, this series follows Julian Kaye (Jon Bernthal), a former gigolo who spent 15 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit. After his release, he struggles to find his footing and reconnect with his lost love Michelle (Gretchen Mol) — while also looking for the truth about why he was framed and sent to prison in the first place. Where to watch: Showtime (Sept.

EXCLUSIVE: Fivel Stewart (Umma) will exec produce and star in the horror-thriller Wake, from directors Tom Arizmendi and Austin Parks Stewart.

Jason Aldean is parting ways with his publicity firm, The GreenRoom.

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor Jason Aldean’s publicity firm of 17 years, Nashville-based outfit the GreenRoom, has resigned following comments posted by Aldean’s wife, Brittany, that many have considered to be transphobic. According to a report in Billboard, GreenRoom co-owner Tyne Parrish did not say Brittany Aldean’s comments were the reason for the split, the timing does not seem coincidental. “Music has always been and remains The GreenRoom’s core focus, so we had to make the difficult decision after 17 years to step away from representing Jason,” Parrish said in a statement to the publication. “We aren’t the best people for the gig anymore, but will always be big fans of his music — he is one of the greatest live entertainers in country music.”

Jason Aldean's no longer got the backing of Nashville's powerhouse publicity firm. The GreenRoom dropped him as a client after nearly two decades. In a statement to, GreenRoom co-owner Tyne Parrish said the time has come for it to part ways with the country star despite remaining big fans of his work. «Music has always been and remains TheGreenRoom's core focus, so we had to make the difficult decision after 17 years to step away from representing Jason,» Parrish told.

Guy Lodge Film Critic “Gigi & Nate” begins with two leaps. The first is out of terror, when Gigi, a capuchin monkey at a sad-sack roadside petting zoo, tries to steer clear of her “caretaker.” The second is the sweet leap of boy-joy that 17-year-old Nate Gibson takes off a rocky ledge and into a pond. In this amiable, if unnecessarily manipulative, movie about the human-animal bond — as well as the different forms resilience can take — that fateful second leap will lead the young man and the monkey to each other.Gigi is rescued by a woman who works for an organization that provides service animals to people with disabilities.

Jem Aswad Senior Music Editor After a grueling, hard-fought and ultimately victorious legal battle over streaming rates for the years 2018-22, the National Music Publishers’ Association, the Nashville Songwriters Association International, and the Digital Media Association today have announced a settlement with streaming services for certain mechanical streaming rates in the U.S. for the years 2023-2027: 15.35%. The announcement comes as a surprise, as the NMPA has been saying for months that it would push for a 20% rate for the forthcoming period. However, sources tell Variety that concessions were made on both sides, likely in the form of modifications that reach beyond the headline rate, such as the way that “bundles” — such as discounted streaming subscription rates for family and student plans — and per-subscriber minimums are treated.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic The lineup of performers for the 2023 Americana Honors and Awards has been revealed, with Brandi Carlile, Lucinda Williams, Allison Russell, the Indigo Girls, Chris Isaak and Lukas Nelson among those set to take the stage Sept. 14 at Nashville’s storied Ryman Auditorium. The roster includes mostly artists who are either up for the annual awards or achieving lifetime achievement honors. Other set to perform include Adia Victoria, the McCrary Sisters, James McMurtry, Sierra Farrell, the War and Treaty, Morgan Wade, Neal Francis and Phosphorescent. The longtime band leader for the annual awards show, Buddy Miller, will be back with a crew of musicians that includes the aforementioned McCrary Sisters, Don Was, Larry Campbell, Brady Blade, Jen Gunderman, Jim Hoke, Rob Burger and Lorenzo Molina.