Chris Young

[Kim]

Chris Young Will Share a 'Piece of Home' With Troops in Iraq


Apr 11th 2011
by Donna Hughes
theboot.com


Donn Jones, AP


Chris Young is packed and ready to travel overseas to perform for the U.S. servicemen and women stationed in Iraq. The 'Tomorrow' singer is taking along several folks on the trek, which they've dubbed the Piece of Home tour.

"I've been to Iraq before. The last time I went was a year-and-a-half ago with Craig Morgan, and it was acoustic," Chris tells The Boot. "The marked difference this time is that it's me and my band. I get to take the whole band over there. A bunch of them have never had the chance to go over there before. If you ask people, you never know what somebody's going to say if they want to do it or not. It was 100 percent consensus that they want to go. It'll be something special."

Chris will serve U.S. troops in both Iraq and Kuwait with as much music as they can handle from April 13 to April 17, performing five shows. The singer is sure of one thing -- it'll be a memorable experience for all involved. "Stars for Stripes is doing it, and it's going to be a lot of fun," says the singer. "Just knowing from the last time I went over there, that may be the only real entertainment some of those people get for a year or more, depending on where they are. It's a really, really humbling and gratifying experience to go over there to play. I'm excited for me, and I'm excited for my band."

In other news, the Tennessee native recently announced via Twitter that he'll be an uncle soon. His sister, Dot, who recently completed boot camp for the Marine Corps, is expectant mother.

When Chris returns from his Piece of Home tour, he's scheduled to perform a show in Bakersfield, Calif., on April 27.

[Mallrat]

Chris Young retires hat, readies album and tour

By Vernell Hackett | Reuters – Fri, 8 Jul, 2011.. .
.
NASHVILLE, Tenn (Reuters) - Chris Young is shedding his signature black cowboy hat so audiences can see the singer behind a string of country music hits.

"The biggest reason I decided to stop wearing it during my concerts is so people can see my face. I thought I'd try it for one show, and found that I enjoy going without it," the 26-year-old Grammy-nominated singer said.

"The response has been really positive."

Later this week, Young hits the road with headliner Jason Aldean, one of country's hottest young stars, for the "My Kinda Party Tour" that continues through October.

And on July 12 Young releases his third album, "Neon," that features the fastest-rising single of his career, "Tomorrow," which has been downloaded more than 500,000 times.

"I enjoy pushing myself vocally, and some of the new songs have me doing that," Young told Reuters in an interview.

"They are vocally powerful, and it's been fun to put them in a set. Of course we're doing the single ('Tomorrow'), along with 'You,' 'I Can Take It From There' and 'Save Water, Drink Beer.'"

The vocals on his new album were more challenging than on his previous efforts, Young said.

"I don't think we went in saying we were gonna make it the hardest album I've ever had to sing, but the way we wrote the songs and the songs that I picked made it that way."

Young wrote "Tomorrow" with Anthony Smith and Frank Myers, with the idea that "everyone has been in a relationship that you know is bad for you, but you stay anyway."

REPEAT FEAT

Young's previous album, "The Man I Want To Be," produced three No. 1 singles, including "Gettin' You Home," and he admitted feeling pressure to repeat the feat.

"I think there could have been a lot more pressure if this first single hadn't taken off," he said. "The success of the single is exciting and it feels like we are continuing the momentum from the last album."

Young described the opening track, "I Can Take It From There," as a transitional song from the previous album. "It is a sexy love song, and I just thought it was a cool way to start this record to let people know that even though there is some stuff that is different, we're not going off in a completely new direction."

"Neon" is one tune on the album that Young did not write, but that he chose as the title cut.

"It is cool and different, and it's real country. I love that I can do a song like 'She's Got This Thing About Her,' and then turn around and do this one with twin fiddles."

"This Thing About Her" is the final track on the album, which features soaring vocals but is stripped down musically.

"I actually had this song longer than anything we recorded," Chris said. "I wrote it with Kent Blazy and Cory Batten, who co-wrote 'Gettin' You Home' with me. We usually write on guitar, but that day Cory said, 'I think this would sound better on piano.' He went over to the piano and started playing and Kent and I started coming up with the lyrics."

Young said he looked forward to being the middle act on the tour, sandwiched between Thompson Square and Aldean. Previously he toured with Rascal Flatts and Alan Jackson.

"I think we'll work well with Jason. He is country rock and that's not necessarily who I am, but live we're all over the stage. We have a good time. I'm gonna love being out there, and hopefully we can get them riled up for Jason."

Young will promote his tour and album with appearances this month on ABC's "Good Morning America" and "The Jimmy Kimmel Show". The tour kicks off July 8 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

(Editing by Andrew Stern) [/b][/font]

[grg_straitfan]

The Nashville Palm Honors Chris Young With Caricature Unveiling



Pictured with Chris Young is Paige Dixon, sales manager for The Nashville Palm.
Photo credit: Landin King

February 23, 2012...Nashville, TN- Chris Young gave a very special autograph on the evening of February 22, 2012, when he signed his name beside a caricature of himself on the wall of The Nashville Palm. His likeness will be a permanent addition to The Palm’s collection of caricatures, which line the walls of the restaurant.

“Chris is a great addition to our wall since he has participated in several fundraising events at The Palm for Make a Wish Foundation of Middle Tennessee as well as Stars for Stripes ,” said Paige Dixon, sales manager for The Palm. “We’re honored that Chris could stop by in the midst of CRS week and his national tour. We’re proud that he’ll be a permanent fixture here.”

The caricature tradition originated when Pio Bozzi and John Ganzi opened The Palm Restaurant in 1926. They had no money to decorate, and offered meals in exchange for cartoon work by artists. Today, all Palm locations feature a variety of caricatures of celebrities, politicians, athletes, regular customers and people of note, as well as classic cartoons.

“The Palm is such a mainstay in this city and in the music community,” says Young. “It’s pretty cool to be part of this Nashville institution!”

About The Palm
When Pio Bozzi and John Ganzi opened The Palm Restaurant in 1926, they had no money to decorate. Luckily, their location on Manhattan’s Second Avenue was in close proximity to the headquarters of King Features Syndicate and attracted a large clientele of cartoonists. In exchange for their meals, artists would often draw their own creations on the walls of The Palm. Since then, the flagship Palm has become a living museum of cartoons and caricatures featuring such famous faces as Popeye, Batman, Beetle Bailey, Hagar the Horrible, and characters from “The Family Circus.” To preserve these legendary hand-drawn sketches – many of which were drawn in charcoal and pastels – the Palm’s walls were professionally restored in 1995. Over the years, the tradition of decorating our locations with caricatures has continued as we’ve expanded across the country and internationally. Before a new restaurant opens, 200 to 300 local notables’ likenesses are placed on the walls, and new caricatures of regulars and celebrities are added regularly. Not surprisingly, the most in-demand wall space is at the original Second Avenue location, where only five caricatures are added each year due to space constraints.

The Nashville Palm, which celebrated 11 years in Nashville in 2011, is located at 140 Fifth Avenue South at the Nashville Hilton Downtown, across the street from the Bridgestone Arena. Reservations are available by calling 615.742.7256. The restaurant serves lunch Monday – Friday and dinner seven days a week. Hours of operation are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for lunch, and 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. for dinner Monday through Friday. Hours of operation on Saturday are 5 p.m. to 11 p.m., and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Sunday.

About Chris Young
2011 was an amazing year for Chris Young, with nominations including CMA New Artist of the Year and his first GRAMMY® nod. He won Breakthrough Artist of the Year and Single of the Year at the American Country Awards and made six national TV appearances. 2012 has started with a bang with ACM nominations for Male Vocalist Of The Year and Single Record of the Year for “Tomorrow”. With his rich, warm baritone and penchant for writing relatable, slice-of-life songs, Young has emerged as both a critic and fan favorite. In the last few months, Young has celebrated GOLD selling status for his sophomore album The Man I Want To Be, and #1s "Voices," "Tomorrow," and most recently, "You." He has scored five consecutive #1s at country radio. Young spent much of last year on Jason Aldean’s “My Kinda Party Tour”. Miranda Lambert has selected Chris as her special guest for her tour “On Fire” which kicked off last month. For tour dates and all the latest information on Chris Young, visit www.chrisyoungcountry.com and follow him on Twitter @chrisyoungmusic.

[Kim]

Miranda Lambert Reveals Chris Young’s Hidden Talent: Breakdancing


CBS


Miranda Lambert and Chris Young sat down at the table with the ladies of CBS’ ‘The Talk’ on Thursday morning, and Lambert decided to offer up a little nugget of trivia about the 26-year-old country crooner joining her on the show. “I have a secret that I know,” she began, pausing. “About him — but you’re not going to expect what I’m about to say.”

Of course the hosts loved the thought of a little juicy gossip, and after they egged the ‘Hell on Heels’ singer on for a minute, Young finally interjected, “Just go ahead.” With permission, Lambert proudly offered up, “This dude can breakdance. You can’t believe it. It’s amazing!”

“She texts me like right before she walks out,” Young chimed in, “and she goes, ‘I’m saying something about it.’ That’s all she said, and I knew exactly what she was talking about.” Well, of course a table of women on a show called ‘The Talk’ can’t just hear a surprising fact like that without having a little display to back it up. And of course, the audience was 100 percent in favor of an impromptu breakdance performance from the country star because, truly, who would have expected it?

As the whole table of women started cheering “Bust a move!” the audience quickly joined the cheer, and Young was left to do the only thing he could do in that situation: bust a move — without busing his fitted jeans. Walking over to an open space of wood floor, Young conceded, “The worst thing ever is if I do this and like bust my pants on national television.”

Thankfully, he didn’t, and while he might not win any awards for breakdancing, for a country star in tight jeans with no music, he truly did a commendable job under pressure, as the rest of the room chanted his name.

In addition to offering up his unconventional dance skills, Young also took the stage on the morning show to bring a live version of his current single ‘You,’ wielding an acoustic guitar and backed by two more acoustic guitars. In the end, the ACM Male Vocalist of the Year nominee could feel proud of his surprising talent, and Lambert could feel proud of her ability to get it out in the open.

Watch Chris Young Breakdance on ‘The Talk’

youtu.be/JxpJP0M_YOw

[Kim]

Chris Young to debut ‘Save Water, Drink Beer’ at ACM Awards


LAS VEGAS -- Chris Young is set to debut a new song from his current Neon album on the Academy of Country Music Awards Sunday night, and it’s one he says he has no problem getting behind – “Save Water, Drink Beer.”

“I’m really excited to be performing that song,” says Young backstage after rehearsals for the awards show. “It’s what we open our show with and it’s a whole lot of fun. It’s just a straight-up fast tempo song and it’s the first time I’ve gotten to perform one of those on one of these stages, something that’s fast and fun and kind of a party song. It will get everybody riled up.”

Fans that want to catch this performance and a host of their other favorite country stars should make sure to tune in on time.

“People don’t want to miss the beginning of this show,” Young says. “There’s Zac Brown, there’s Carrie Underwood, there’s me, The Band Perry, Reba, there’s Blake Shelton and all these people that people don’t want to miss. They need to make sure they are at home in front of the TV.”

[Kim]

Chris Young - A pretty normal guy with a really cool job!


Chris Young might not yet be a household name in the country music world. But he’s coming, and he’s coming fast.

The Tennessee native, who shares the stage on Miranda Lambert’s “On Fire” tour, which stops in Hershey on Friday night, has quietly racked up five consecutive No. 1 singles. His current hit — “You” — just went to No. 1 at the beginning of this month.
The smooth-sounding, deep-voiced 26-year-old got his break in 2006 when he won the “Nashville Star” singing competition on USA Network.

His first No. 1 hit came in 2009 with “Gettin’ You Home (The Black Dress Song)” off his second album, “The Man I Want to be.” The title track quickly became his second No. 1, followed by “Voices,” which took a unique path to the top.

Young originally released “Voices” in 2008, and it barely cracked the Top 40. The re-release in 2010 went to the top and earned him an American Country Award for single of the year.

His latest album, “Neon,” produced “Tomorrow,” his fourth No. 1 single.

Young took time to talk by phone while out on tour.

Q: You toured some with Jason Aldean last year. Now you’re with Miranda. How have they been different?

A: There’s always a little bit of a learning curve, learning how different artists’ camps do things. But for the most part, everybody’s really cool. They’re always willing to share the stage. Probably the biggest thing about this tour is I already knew Miranda and her crew and Jerrod and his guys, so it was pretty easy. We just said, “Let’s go play.”

Q: How much of an impact did winning “Nashville Star” have on getting your career to where it is?

A: I think the biggest thing it did for me was it got me my record deal. I was always really grateful to anybody who watched that show because it put me at RCA, and from Day One, it’s been my home. I love everything about it. I’m really happy to end up there.

Q: Four No. 1 hits. Those are your babies. But do you have a favorite song?

A: Yeah, and not just stuff off the new album, too. Off the “Neon,” obviously, the title track is something I really love playing. I love the way it was written. It’s one of the few songs on this album that I did not co-write. A song called “That Makes Me” off the “Man I Want to be” album, I really like playing that one because it’s such a cool tempo.

Q: There are so many guys out there now in your category — Jake Owen, Rodney Adkins, Luke Bryan and Justin Moore. Do you find it hard to compete when you’re not a group or a duo or have some type of unique sound or style that separates you?

A: I think everybody has to do that. Obviously, there are more solo male artists. I think everybody kind of creates your own sound. Regardless of what your makeup is, what category they put you under, you always have to make sure you stand out and make people go, “Oh, I have to buy this.” Every time I go into the studio to make a new record we have a blank page, and hopefully it falls in line with what people want to hear.

Q: You seem to have a more traditional country sound. Kind of like a next-generation George Strait. Is that a fair assessment?

A: When I describe my stuff ... it is what it is. I guess that’s part of what people see in my show. We do a lot of live tempo. The stuff that I cut is representative of who I am. We do have stuff like “Neon” that is a more classical song. But we also have some different stuff like the song we open with, “Save Water, Drink Beer.”

Q: In a nutshell, what’s Chris Young all about? What are your hobbies, likes, dislikes. What are you a fan of?

A: I’m a huge sports fan. It doesn’t really matter what the sport is whether it’s football, baseball, basketball or hockey. I’m a Texas Longhorn fan. That perpetually throws everybody off because I’m from Tennessee. I’m a Titans fan, being from Tennessee, and a Cowboys fan, too. I’m a gamer. I get into video games on the road. Me and Miranda’s crew already talked about playing “Call of Duty” between the buses. I’m really a fan of where I’m at, real close with my mom and dad and my sister. I’m a pretty normal guy. I just have a really cool job.

Q: What’s on your iPod. Do you listen to a lot of country or do you like to get away from it?

A: I don’t really have to get away from it. I just love it. My iPod is predominately country music, but I listen to everything from Ludicrous to Aerosmith to Tony Bennett.

blog.pennlive.com/go/2012/02/chris_young_a_pretty_normal_gu.html

[Kim]

Country star is enjoying hit single streak


When asked what he'll be performing Saturday at the Covelli Centre when he opens for Miranda Lambert, Chris Young said, ''Obviously, the five No. 1s. And by the way, it never gets old saying that.''

Yes, Young is on a roll, one that the tour's headliner nor most country artists can match.

Last month ''You'' became Young's fifth consecutive single to top the Billboard country chart. What makes the run all the more satisfying is that it didn't come easily for the 26-year-old Tennessee native.

Like Miranda Lambert before him, Young used the reality series ''Nashville Star'' to propel his career, winning the country singing competition in 2006. The win included a recording deal with RCA Records Nashville, which released his debut album the same year.

The first single, ''Drinkin' Me Lonely,'' barely cracked the top 40, stalling at no. 37, Young said. The follow up, ''You're Gonna Love Me,'' did even worse, peaking at No. 48.

''That was depressing,'' Young said during a telephone interview from Oklahoma City, where he was playing a headlining show last week during a short break from touring with Lambert and Jerrod Niemann. ''One of the really weird things about my career is I sold enough records, I guess, that I'd shown the label enough that they wanted to keep me and do another record. That just doesn't happen anymore. In some cases, they don't even give you a record, they just give you a single (to succeed).''

Young recorded his second album, ''The Man I Want to Be,'' in 2008, and the same pattern started to emerge. The first single, ''Voices,'' stalled at No. 37.

''At this point, I really started hating the No. 37,'' Young said.

Instead of giving up, the label sent him out on another radio tour to shake hands with DJs and programming directors, this time with a new single: ''Gettin' You Home (The Black Dress Song).'' The sexy ode sung by a husband looking forward to getting his wife alone after a fancy night out had a slow build - it didn't break into the top 40 until week 20 - but once it made the chart it climbed all the way to the top. The title track make a quicker ascent to No. 1.

Then, at the insistence of RCA Nashville promotions VP Keith Gale, ''Voices'' was resubmitted to country radio as a single. It became his third No. 1, and Young became the first singer since Randy Travis 25 years ago to go to No. 1 with the re-release of the same recording.

''They really stuck their neck out on that song,'' Young said. ''I've had a lot of luck with everyone from the label believing in me.''

Despite the success of ''Voices,'' Young said he doesn't wonder about what might happen if those singles from his first record got a second chance.

''I don't think, 'Oh my God, people missed that,' because the people that heard it loved it,'' he said.

Lambert, by comparison, only has had two No. 1 country hits, but Young said there is no disputing who is the star on their current tour.

''She is so cool,'' he said. ''She's proof it doesn't take No. 1s to be a huge artist. Obviously, she commands more drawing power and more record sales. I'm still building to be the headliner.

''To be on a tour like this with her is really exciting. Jerrod is different from me, and I'm obviously different from her, which makes it a fun package to watch from start to finish.''

In addition to Lambert, Young in recent years has opened for Jason Aldean, Rascal Flatts and Alan Jackson.

''That's a good mix of people to learn from,'' he said.

Young co-wrote seven of the 10 songs on his latest release''Neon,'' and he has a songwriting credit on four of his five No. 1 hits. Young said he recently tweeted that he'd written what he thought was one of his best songs ever, but he regretted sharing the information because fans probably won't get to hear that song for another 18 months, because he expects ''Neon'' to shine for awhile.

''There's several singles left on this album before we go on to another one.''

www.tribtoday.com/page/content.detail/id/567995/Chris-Young.html?nav=5026

[Kim]

February 23, 2012...Nashville, TN- Chris Young gave a very special autograph on the evening of February 22, 2012, when he signed his name beside a caricature of himself on the wall of The Nashville Palm. His likeness will be a permanent addition to The Palm’s collection of caricatures, which line the walls of the restaurant.

“Chris is a great addition to our wall since he has participated in several fundraising events at The Palm for Make a Wish Foundation of Middle Tennessee as well as Stars for Stripes ,” said Paige Dixon, sales manager for The Palm. “We’re honored that Chris could stop by in the midst of CRS week and his national tour. We’re proud that he’ll be a permanent fixture here.”

The caricature tradition originated when Pio Bozzi and John Ganzi opened The Palm Restaurant in 1926. They had no money to decorate, and offered meals in exchange for cartoon work by artists. Today, all Palm locations feature a variety of caricatures of celebrities, politicians, athletes, regular customers and people of note, as well as classic cartoons.

“The Palm is such a mainstay in this city and in the music community,” says Young. “It’s pretty cool to be part of this Nashville institution!”

[Kim]

Chris Young, ‘Neon’ – Song Review


Be careful listening to ‘Neon,’ Chris Young‘s new single. It’s dangerously easy to get lost listening to this singer, who is one of the truly great male vocalists in modern country music. In this song, he plays with notes high and low like a cat plays with a ball of yarn, sort of batting them back and forth, always in control.
“The sky in Cheyenne, Wyoming / Is just about as blue as it gets / And if you ain’t seen a Santa Fe sunset / You ain’t seen red,” Young sings to begin the song.

When you listen to singers on reality television shows, they’re forever trying to show all that they’re capable of in one 90-second audition and it’s usually to their detriment. The range Young so effortlessly shows in ‘Neon’ is what they’re aiming for. The title track from his most recent album is a little sleepy and not as instantly memorable as some others, but the song is long on talent and imagery.

The chorus goes, “My favorite color is neon / the light they always leave on / A weekend on the rocks / And an old school jukebox / With a little Johnny Lee on.”

Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne and Trevor Rosen’s subject matter will leave some listeners out in the cold, but Young can’t be blamed for wanting to show that he’s more than just a country romancer. “A few thousand volts / To cut through the smoke / The windows are tinted / That’s why they invented / Neon.”

As far as love letters to bars go, ‘Neon’ is amongst the best — but that’s a genre that collects fans less quickly than love letters to members of the opposite sex. Had Young released another traditional love song, however — ‘Lost’ is amongst the best of the rest on ‘Neon’ — he’d be in danger of being pigeonholed as the guy who can only sing sweet and sexy mood-setters. That would be a very unfortunate mis-characterization, as he’s proven to be much more than that on his last two full-length albums.

4 STARS

tasteofcountry.com/chris-young-neon-single/?fb_comment_id=fbc_10150558563983204_21362914_10150559175303204#fdcdbea0ffb208

[Kim]

Country Weeky Dedicates The Stars Up Close page to Chris!


"Ok, ok, we give up--we're overun with submissions of fan photos featuring Chris Young. That guy has to be doing something really right, since we get sent more photos of him than any other country artist, and by a good sized margin. In order to catch up, and not keep all these submitters waiting any longer, here's our first Chris Young catch up page, which demonstrates that this star's appeal knows no age limits!

If you sent in a Chris Young fan photo that met our requirements for publication, and you haven't seen ut yet, please be patient--we're working on it!"

[Kim]

Chris Young Excited About Beating Kenny Chesney on the Charts


By: Brittany Joy Cooper
tasteofcountry.com/chris-young-kenny-chesney-charts/


In 2006, Chris Young was just another contestant on ¡®Nashville Star.¡¯ Later that year, he was just the kid releasing a debut album in hopes that people would pick it up and give it a spin. In 2009, he was the guy dropping his second studio album with RCA Records, and after that, he became the country star who has been watching his songs claim the No.1 spot on the Billboard charts ¡ª over and over again.

Now, Young is riding a wave of not one, but five No.1 hits in a row. With ¡®Gettin¡¯ You Home (The Black Dress Song),¡¯ ¡®The Man I Want to Be,¡¯ ¡®Voices,¡¯ ¡®Tomorrow¡¯ and ¡®You,¡¯ it seems that the young Nashville talent couldn¡¯t miss the top of the chart if he tried. At a recent Chicago, Ill. show, the generally humble Young stepped out of his traditional role for a minute to come clean about what it feels like to encounter that kind of success.

¡°To put this in perspective, Kenny Chesney has never had five consecutive No. 1¡äs,¡± he said of one of the most esteemed country acts of late, according to CMT. Before that show, he spoke even more candidly about his recent success, seemingly still trying to grasp onto it himself. ¡±Right now, Blake Shelton and I are the only solo artists with an active streak of No. 1¡äs,¡± he said.

¡°There¡¯s always good stuff at the top of charts. And we¡¯ve always had our songs peak when there are these other massive songs. So I get excited and proud that my stuff is breaking through that. It¡¯s a good feeling when you know people are not only hearing it but actually want to go out and buy it.¡±

[Kim]

Chris Young Flips the Switch on New Single


As Chris Young prepares to release the title track from his third album, Neon, to country radio, the Academy of Country Music Awards Male Vocalist of the Year nominee is finding it difficult to sidestep talk of his five consecutive No. 1 hits.

“Everyone keeps asking me, ‘So are you going for No. 6?’And I’m like, ‘Let’s just see if people like the song before we make that prediction,’” says Chris, who nonetheless admits there is a particularly strong wave of support behind “Neon.” “There is so much momentum on this one. We already have stations that have added it.”

Written by Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne and Trevor Rosen, “Neon” possesses a distinctly retro feel. It’s a vintage vibe that Chris says certainly appealed to him. “It’s been a while since I’ve put out a single that I wasn’t a writer on, but I fell in love with the song. It has a timeless country sound to it,” he tells CountryWeekly.com, comparing it to his last two No. 1s. “‘Tomorrow’ was more like a power ballad, and ‘You’ was kind of R&B country. So I was especially excited to [release] this song.”

He’s also psyched to perform on the ACM Awards. “There are not many times you can say you went out and performed [before a national audience], but this is one of those times," Chris says. "You get that extra pop from a lot of people seeing you."

So what will he be performing? “I don’t know yet,” he says coyly. “But it might be something that’ll take people by surprise.”

The ACMs air April 1 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.

www.countryweekly.com/news/chris-young-flips-switch-new-single

[Kim]

OFFSTAGE: Chris Young: "Nomination Blindsided Me"

"If you look at that category for male vocalist, it really doesn't change from year to year," Chris Young told me when he was in Chicago a few weeks ago. We were talking about his two nominations for the upcoming Academy of Country Music Awards -- for male vocalist of the year and single record of the year ("Tomorrow"). He's honored to be in both categories, but he's surprised to be in the male vocalist field with Jason Aldean, Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley and Blake Shelton. "The male vocalist nomination blindsided me because I am just now out of range for being in the new artist category," he said. "So I'm the only one in there who's never been nominated for male vocalist before. And it's something kinda special for me. I've always gone out of my way to sound live exactly like I sound on my records, and I don't think that gets old. Anybody that does what we do for a living has stood in front of their mirror and practiced playing guitar and looked like complete idiot. But this is really all I ever wanted to do. So this is gonna make it a lot of fun to be at ACMs this year."

www.cmt.com/news/cmt-offstage/1681848/offstage-chris-young-nomination-blindsided-me.jhtml

[Kim]

Chris Young to debut ‘Save Water, Drink Beer’ at ACM Awards


LAS VEGAS -- Chris Young is set to debut a new song from his current Neon album on the Academy of Country Music Awards Sunday night, and it’s one he says he has no problem getting behind – “Save Water, Drink Beer.”

“I’m really excited to be performing that song,” says Young backstage after rehearsals for the awards show. “It’s what we open our show with and it’s a whole lot of fun. It’s just a straight-up fast tempo song and it’s the first time I’ve gotten to perform one of those on one of these stages, something that’s fast and fun and kind of a party song. It will get everybody riled up.”

Fans that want to catch this performance and a host of their other favorite country stars should make sure to tune in on time.

“People don’t want to miss the beginning of this show,” Young says. “There’s Zac Brown, there’s Carrie Underwood, there’s me, The Band Perry, Reba, there’s Blake Shelton and all these people that people don’t want to miss. They need to make sure they are at home in front of the TV.”

[Kim]

Chris Young on ‘Neon’: ‘It’s Just Dirt Country’!


Country music hitmaker Chris Young is following up his five consecutive No.1 hits with the title track of his latest album, Neon.

One of the many reasons Young likes the song “Neon” so much is because he feels like it’s a song the “King” of country music could have cut.

“Honestly, I’m surprised George Strait didn’t cut this first. I really am,” Young says. “I think this is a song that, if he’d got a hold of, he would’ve cut it. And it’s one of the reasons I love it so much.”

“It’s just dirt country,” he continues. “I mean, you put this on, you know this is a country song. It just puts it out there.”

Another thing that drew Young to the song is “that it mentions that there’s the ‘little Johnny Lee on,’” he says with a laugh.

“There’s so much about this song that I love. I don’t know if I could pick just one thing and go, ‘That’s why I cut it.’ It’s like, the melody’s great, the lyrics are great, the feel’s awesome. It’s perfect.”

Will “Neon” become Young’s sixth consecutive No.1? We’re thinking so!
Fans can catch Chris on the road this spring with Miranda Lambert on her “On Fire” Tour. Click HERE for a list of Young’s upcoming tour dates.

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