Ashley McBryde's set to play her latest hit, "What If We Don't," Wednesday on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. You can tune in to watch at 11:35 p.m. ET on NBC.
ERNEST's new track, "Time Is a Thief," features Lukas Nelson. It's from the singer/songwriter's third studio album, Deep Blue, which arrives May 1.
Jessie Murph has been added to the Thursday, May 28, lineup at the 14th annual Gulf Coast Jam. She'll take the stage in Panama City Beach, Florida, just before headliner Keith Urban.
Ella Langley's "Choosin' Texas" is proving to have incredible staying power, hanging on atop the Billboard Hot 100 for its seventh week.
At the same time, her follow-up radio single, "Be Her," is coming on strong, checking in at #4 on the all-genre tally, making the Alabama native the first female country artist ever to have two songs in the top five simultaneously.
Ella's finding similar success on Billboard's Country Airplay chart, with "Texas" at #3 and "Her" at #10. That makes her the first woman ever to have two solo songs in the top 10 at the same time.
Make no mistake, Ella's done it before, she just had some help from Riley Green. Starting in December, their duet "Don't Mind If I Do" spent five weeks together with "Texas" in the top 10.
Lainey Wilson's also had two songs in the top 10 twice before, but each time one was a duet. First was "Heart Like a Truck" and "wait in the truck" with HARDY, followed by "Watermelon Moonshine" and "Save Me" with Jelly Roll, all in 2023.
CMA Fest will take a trip back to the '90s, as Clay Walker, Jo Dee Messina, Rhett Akins and Sara Evans open the nightly concerts June 4-7 at Nashville's Nissan Stadium.
Rising stars Vincent Mason, Zach John King, Emily Ann Roberts, The Jack Wharff Band, Kaitlin Butts, Kat Luna, Laci Kaye Booth, Maggie Antone, Scoot Teasley and Willow Avalon will also get the chance to play the Platform Stage at the home of the Tennessee Titans.
Caylee Hammack is set to sing "The Star-Spangled Banner" on Thursday night.
Christian singer and country collaborator Brandon Lake is also confirmed to lead Cowboy Church on Sunday morning on the Riverfront Stage.
You can access complete info about the lineup and tickets at CMAFest.com.
Kenny Chesney is about to "Carry On" with his first new music in more than two years, as his new track arrives May 8.
“It felt great in the studio,” he says of the song he co-produced with longtime collaborator Buddy Cannon. “Sometimes when you’re running down a song, it all just falls into place because it just feels good."
"‘Carry On’ was fun," he continues, "because of all the different genres we drew from. Plus, I love a chorus that throws life wide open – and reminds you how to find the light no matter what’s happening.”
“Carry on karaoke, it don’t matter if you can’t carry a tune in a bucket anyways," Kenny sings. "Carry on, who cares what the naysayers say. If it’s Saturday night get carried away. Carry on, carry on, you can’t carry nothing with you and it won’t be long 'til it’s six carrying you home. 'Til then you gotta carry on."
Described as reminiscent of hits like “American Kids,” “Save It for a Rainy Day” and “Get Along,” "Carry On" is the first taste of the new studio album Kenny's busy mixing now.
Lee Brice's new album, Sunriser, won't come out June 5 as planned, he explains in a statement.
“Y’all, I’ve got some good news and some bad news," he says. "The good news is, even after finishing Sunriser, I just kept writing and now I’ve got a whole lot more songs I can’t wait to share with you. The bad news is, we’re gonna have to push the album release back so we can finish it the right way including a Sunriser (All Nighter) deluxe."
"New date for both albums is October 2nd," he continues. "I appreciate y’all being patient with me and we’re not gonna leave you hanging - more new music is coming your way this summer! Can’t wait for y’all to hear all these songs!”
Lee's next piece of new music, "Truck Bed Mixtape," will arrive May 1.
The regular edition of Sunriser features 16 tracks, while Sunriser (All Nighter) doubles that number to a mammoth 32 songs.
Shania Twain will host the upcoming Academy of Country Music Awards, as the show returns to MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, May 17.
“I’m thrilled to be hosting the 61st ACM Awards in Las Vegas, a place that feels like home," Shania says. “It’s such an honor to be part of this incredible night celebrating country music’s biggest stars, especially with so many talented women leading nominations this year. I can’t wait to welcome all of the fans and artists out for this unforgettable night.”
The Canadian pop/country superstar took home the coveted entertainer of the year trophy at the 35th ACMs, later picking up the ACM poet's award for her songwriting, as well.
Cody Johnson, Kacey Musgraves, Lainey Wilson, Little Big Town, Miranda Lambert and Riley Green are already set to perform on the show, which will stream live on Prime Video.
Look for more performers to be added in the days to come.
George Birge (Scott Dudelson/Getty Images for Stagecoach)
As country fans count down to the kickoff of Stagecoach Friday in Indio, California, George Birge can't help but remember his surprise main stage debut during the 2025 festival.
"One of the crazier things that I've ever gotten to do was playing 'Cowboy Songs' with Lana Del Rey at Stagecoach," he tells ABC Audio. "I got an email from her asking me if I would come play and feature in her set and [it was] just the wildest series of events."
"But that's as big and as insane of a crowd as I've ever played for and it was definitely a like, 'How did we get here?' moment," he recalls.
Though a surprise appearance by the "Ride Ride Ride" hitmaker seems unlikely this year since George is set to play shows in Ohio and Michigan Friday and Saturday, he does seem to be open on Sunday.
Cody Johnson, Lainey Wilson and Post Malone are the 2026 Stagecoach headliners. You'll be able to stream the performances live via Amazon Music.
You can check out the music video for Kip Moore's new track, "Faith in the Wind," on YouTube. It follows "Levee," the first release from his new album, Reason to Believe, which drops May 29.
Ingrid Andress drops her new track, "Tattoos," on Friday, ahead of the launch of her six-stop Low-Key Sessions tour, which kicks off May 8 in the Cincinnati area.
Ethan Calway is the first-ever recipient of the Keith Urban Rising Star Scholarship, a partnership with the Tamworth Country Music Festival to help break an up-and-coming Australian artist internationally. As part of the prize, Calway will come to Nashville to record in Keith's studio, The Sound. You can watch the superstar surprise him with the news on Instagram.
Midland's "Drinkin' Dark Whiskey" (Blue Highway Records)
You can find out what it sounds like when Midland covers Chris Stapleton on their latest track, one the ACM male artist of the year co-wrote with his SteelDrivers bandmate Mike Henderson.
“‘Drinkin’ Dark Whiskey’ is a seminal honky tonk up tempo classic that Stapleton wrote and fine artists like Gary Allan and The SteelDrivers have cut and performed,” lead singer Mark Wystrach says. “We liked the song as it provided us with an opportunity to do a bluegrass arrangement on the chorus that really soars!"
"It’s catchy as hell, up tempo and a lot of fun to play and sing," he adds.
"Drinkin' Dark Whiskey" follows "Marlboro Man," which came out in January.
Look for Midland to sing both when they play the American Championship Rodeo Weekend May 22 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, ahead of their European tour in June.
Megan Moroney slides into Dolly Parton's 1974 cover of the Jolene album for PEOPLE's new World's Most Beautiful Issue.
Sporting a blue-striped pajama-esque outfit with white sleeves, Megan steps into the graphics for the classic album and assumes the same position as Dolly in a moment you can only see on the PEOPLE website.
The "Beautiful" hitmaker can't remember a time the global superstar wasn't part of her life.
“I must have learned the songs in the womb,” she told PEOPLE. “I don't remember an age where I learned these songs; I feel like I was born and I knew them. So I blame my mom for playing a lot of Dolly Parton in the car. I grew up in a household where it was like, ‘In this house, we respect Dolly Parton.’”
Beyond smashes like "I Will Always Love You," which appears on the Jolene album, Megan's influenced by Dolly's fashion.
“I think Dolly has inspired my style because she's always thought more is more, and I'm right there with you, girl — I love dressing up,” Megan says. “She's always been super confident, knows exactly who she is; she's kind and gracious, talented, over-the-top in some ways, but she really embraces it, so that's always been inspiring to me.”
While Megan often wears hair extensions, she admits it took multiple wigs pinned and braided together to achieve Dolly's mega-hairstyle from the mid-'70s.
Cody Johnson & Jay Buchanan's "Rabbit Gets the Gun" (Amazon)
Cody Johnson is ready to rock ahead of his headlining set Friday at Stagecoach.
His new Amazon Music Original, "Rabbit Gets the Gun," features Jay Buchanan, lead singer of Rival Sons.
“Rival Sons has always been my favorite rock band,” Cody says. “I loved the chance to write with Jay, and being in the studio with him was an out-of-this-world experience."
"He has so much soul and grit, and an unmistakable voice," Cody continues. "We are so excited about our recording and want to get it out as soon as possible. Maybe I’ll add it to my Stagecoach set list.”
If you want to check out Cody's set, you can watch via Amazon Music, the exclusive livestream destination for Stagecoach.
You can access the feed starting at 3 p.m. PT Friday through Sunday via Prime Video, Twitch or the Amazon Music app.
Morgan Wallen (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for SiriusXM)
Morgan Wallen's planning to give $1.2 million to his alma mater to revamp its baseball field, according to ABC's Knoxville affiliate, WATE.
The 2011 graduate of Gibbs High School in Corryton, Tennessee, was on the baseball team when it made it to the national championship in 2010. In 2025, the school renamed the field after the "Don't We" hitmaker.
The money would be used to transform Morgan Wallen Field into a "versatile, state-of-the-art multi-use athletic field," with plans to build a softball hitting and pitching facility on campus, as well.
Morgan's previously made donations to the band program, basketball, Gibbs Youth Sports and Jefferson City Little League.
Next up, the Knox County Commission just needs to approve the donation from the Morgan Wallen Foundation at its upcoming April meeting.
Dylan Scott secures the seventh #1 of his career, as "What He'll Never Have" tops the Mediabase country airplay chart.
This is the first one co-written by his brother, Logan Robinson, alongside Ricky Rowton and Robbie Gatlin.
“Grateful to notch another No. 1 in the belt," Dylan says. "Country radio and the country music fans have been too good to me. To the kid who grew up in Bastrop, Louisiana that dreamed of having a No. 1 plaque on his wall, we got seven now buddy!”
Dylan grabbed his first #1 with "My Girl" in July 2017, followed by "Nobody," "New Truck," "Can't Have Mine (Find You a Girl)," "Boys Back Home" with Dylan Marlowe and "This Town's Been Too Good to Us," which made it to the top in April 2025.
On Friday, he'll release his first new music of 2026 with "Slow Down Ol' Son," a song inspired by something his mom used to say to him.
Currently on his Till I Can't I Will Tour, Dylan will hit Chicago, Fort Worth and Las Vegas before he wraps May 30 in Texas.
Darius Rucker hasn't put out a new album since 2023's Carolyn's Boy, but there's new music on the way, he revealed at the recent #1 party for Scotty McCreery and Hootie & the Blowfish's "Bottle Rockets."
"I['ve] got a single coming out soon, as soon as we figure out what it is," he told reporters. "We have a couple of songs we love. So we're trying to figure out which one [will be first], how we're gonna go one and two."
Scotty and Darius share a producer, which led to the American Idol winner accidentally revealing the Hootie frontman — who's been living in London of late — has been in the legendary studio associated with The Beatles.
"Frank [Rogers] and I recorded some stuff at Abbey Road, and it was great," Darius confirmed, before going on to answer a question about his October 2025 engagement to Emily Deahl.
"I'll be married probably by the end of the year," he said. "We're just gonna do it. We're not gonna have a big thing. We're just gonna go do it. So I'm sure by the end of the year, I'll be married."
Vincent Mason's new track, "Don't Ask Me," is out now. The ACM new male artist of the year nominee currently has a top-20 hit with his debut single, "Wish You Well."
The Bellamy Brothers are celebrating five decades of hits like "Let Your Love Flow" with their new song and video, "50 Years On."
You can check out ACM new female artist of the year nominee Dasha's performance of "She's So Gone" from The Kelly Clarkson Show on YouTube. It's from Disney's new Main Street Country EP.
Disney is the parent company of ABC News and Walt Disney Records.
Bailey Zimmerman: Live in Las Vegas (Live Nation/Caesars Entertainment)
Bailey Zimmerman will park his metaphorical "Chevy Silverado" in Sin City for one night during the 2026 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo week.
The "Rock and a Hard Place" hitmaker will bring his show to PH Live at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas on Saturday, Dec. 5.
Presales are underway now, with tickets becoming available to the public on Friday.
Next up on Bailey's concert agenda is a Friday stop at Stagecoach, before he resumes his Different Night Same Rodeo trek April 30 in Huntsville, Alabama.
His latest single from the DNSR album, "Chevy Silverado," is currently a top-20 hit.
Shaboozey's 'The Outlaw Cherie Lee & Other Western Tales' (American Dogwood/EMPIRE)
Shaboozey will preview his new album, The Outlaw Cherie Lee & Other Western Tales, with a "pop-up saloon experience" starting Friday at Stagecoach.
The fourth record from the "A Bar Song (Tipsy)" superstar is a concept album that is set to arrive July 31.
"It’s a western about revenge told continuously through every song, centered on the character Cherie Lee," he explains. "It explores so many themes, as many timeless westerns have: revenge, redemption, and romance, through the eyes of a protagonist looking to challenge everything she once thought true about her world."
"I poured all of myself into this," Shaboozey continues, "and I hope people become as immersed in the world and the journey as I have. This album was a promise to myself and something, no matter what, I had to keep. It pushed my songwriting and storytelling to new heights, and I couldn’t be more proud to say it’s done and almost yours.”
We'll get our first taste of the album Friday with the arrival of "Born to Die," which he's set to perform on the Today show plaza in New York City.
You can also check out the trailer for The Outlaw Cherie Lee & Other Western Tales on YouTube.
Riley Green & Carly Pearce (Jason Kempin/Getty Images for ABA)
Riley Green rode home with three sell-outs on the first weekend of his Cowboy As It Gets Tour, with stops in Southaven, Mississippi; Louisville, Kentucky; and Nashville, Tennessee.
Carly Pearce and Jamey Johnson both surprised the crowd at the Bridgestone Arena show in Music City. Carly and Riley recreated their new duet, "If I Don't Leave I'm Gonna Stay," while Jamey delivered his hit "In Color," plus "Where Corn Don't Grow."
The fellow Alabama native was also around to raise money following the second annual Riley Green & Friends golf tournament, playing an acoustic show in Gadsden alongside Drake White. In all, it brought in $650,000 for the Buford Bonds Foundation, which is named after his grandfathers.
Riley made his acting debut on CBS' Marshals Sunday. His character, Garrett, is set to perform his new song, "My Way," on the April 26 episode.
The next show for the "Change My Mind" hitmaker is Saturday at Stagecoach.
Morgan Wallen & Ella Langley (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for SiriusXM)
If you've been trying to figure out what the "ICLYA" license plate at the end of the "Choosin' Texas" video means, it seems Ella Langley's just answered the question: "I Can't Love You Anymore" is the name of her new duet with Morgan Wallen.
“Ella wrote this song and sent it me about a month ago and I loved it,” Morgan told Saturday's crowd in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, before the pair debuted the song, according to Billboard.
"Sweet home & I Can’t Love You Anymore with @morganwallen out Friday!" Ella later confirmed on her socials, adding photos from her home state stop on Morgan's Still the Problem tour.
The two will have plenty of chances to perform together again, with Ella set to join Morgan for eight more stops on the trek.
Meanwhile, Ella has another reason to celebrate: Her sophomore album, Dandelion, debuts at #1 on the all-genre Billboard 200, having moved 169,000 equivalent album units in its first week.
Miranda Lambert is laying the groundwork for new music, and this time, it'll be on MCA.
As part of the announcement, label mate Reba McEntire presented Miranda with the belt buckle the company gave her when she signed with MCA in 1975.
“Throughout my life and career, I have found that the common thread in every chapter is finding the right people – songwriters, musicians, collaborators and team members – to match the moment,” Miranda says in a news release. “I am honored to join a roster and a team with such a rich history of championing artistry. I look forward to sharing this new music with the world under their banner.”
2024's Postcards from Texas was a partnership with Republic/Big Loud, following Miranda's two-decade, career-launching relationship with Sony. She'll continue her involvement with Big Loud Texas, which she founded.
To date, Miranda has seven #1 albums and 10 #1 singles to her credit, and is the most-awarded artist in the history of the Academy of Country Music.
She has 8 nominations at May's 61st ACMs, second only to Megan Moroney's nine.
