Category Archives: Friday Five

Country Music, Friday Five, Music

Friday Five: FarmBorough Festival Day 2 Preview

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We’ve been counting down the days since FarmBorough Festival was announced in October, but we’re finally just one week away from the big day!   Last week we took a look at what artists to catch on opening day.  Here are our must-see acts for Day 2, Saturday, June 27th when NYC goes Country!

1) Mickey Guyton – Main Stage – 3:00 PM
Mickey is one of country’s hottest young stars, and has been compared to LeAnn Rimes.  She just released her first EP to rave reviews, and is currently on tour with Brad Paisley.

2)  Brandy Clark – Main Stage – 3:50 PM
Brandy has written hits for nearly all of the big names in Nashville, including “Mama’s Broken Heart” with Kacey Musgraves.  She was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2015 Grammy Awards for her stellar solo debut.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knhsbosT7ao

3) Striking Matches – Next From Nashville Stage – 4:15 PM
We were first struck by Striking Matches’ talent when they opened for Hunter Hayes a couple of years ago.  We’re glad the duo is finding success after the release of their debut album earlier this year and can’t wait to see them again!

4) Charlie Worsham – Main Stage – 5:00 PM
Charlie has been working on his second album, a follow up to 2013’s “Rubberband.”  We hope to hear some of what he’s been working on at the Festival!

5) Sturgill Simpson – Next From Nashville Stage – 7 PM
Sturgill has been making the festival rounds this year, already playing at Coachella, Stagecoach, Bonnaroo and Governor’s Ball, he knows how to win over any crowd.

Country Music, Friday Five, Music

The Friday Five: FarmBorough Festival Day 1 Preview

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Only two more weeks until NYC Goes Country!  FarmBorough Festival, the city’s first ever country music festival is coming to Randall’s Island June 26-28, with an outstanding lineup of exciting new faces and familiar acts alike. We’ll be previewing the schedule for each day of the Festival leading up to the event.  Up first: Day 1, Friday, June 26th!

1. Canaan Smith – Main Stage 3:00pm
Canaan is kicking the festival off, just days after the release of his debut album “Bronco.”  We are so excited to see Canaan again and finally be able to sing along to every word (guitar solos included!) You don’t want to miss this set.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvCRNwPjOhM

2. The Cadillac Three – Next From Nashville Stage 4:55pm
These guys know how to ROCK and will definitely get the party started.  For a band that only has three members, The Cadillac Three sure know how to cause a raucous!

3. Maddie & Tae – Main Stage 5:00pm
Maddie & Tae are two tomatoes that certainly turned country music head over heels with their single “Girl In A Country Song” earlier this year.  This duo is poised to fly right to the top of everyone’s “Must See” lists when this festival wraps up!

4. Chris Stapleton – Next From Nashville Stage 5:50pm
Chris has written some of the biggest recent hits to come out of Nashville and his soulful debut album is an instant classic!  Chris gets rave reviews for his live performance as well, and we can’t wait to check it out.

5. Dierks Bentley – Main Stage 9:20pm
5-1-5-0 we’re going to go loco for Dierks’ headlining set!  Country People’s Hottest Guy In Country is sure to heat up the stage as the sun sets on Farmborough’s inaugural evening.  We can’t wait for the sure to be epic festival wide sing-along to “Drunk On A Plane.”

Tickets for the Festival are on sale now!

90s, Country Music, Friday Five, Music, On Tour

The Friday Five: Rock This Country With Shania Twain

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It’s no secret that everyone loves Shania Twain.  She’s gorgeous, talented, smart, and still one of the top reigning women in pop-country cross over!  Picking just five of her live videos for this list was difficult(as always) but we’ve narrowed it down to Shania’s best live performances from her touring years.  We can’t wait to Rock This Country with Shania this Summer!  The tour kicks off tonight in Seattle.

1. “Man! I Feel Like A Woman”
Live from Las Vegas

2. “That Don’t Impress Me Much”
Live from Las Vegas

3. “Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under”
Live from Chicago

4. “Gonna Getcha Good”
Live from Chicago

5. “Any Man Of Mine”
Live from Washington

Artist to Watch, Country Music, Friday Five, Music, On Tour

The Friday Five: Country Groups

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It’s officially Summer, y’all!  Now that the weather is heating up, Summer tours are underway (our first is Lady Antebellum at Jones Beach!) we can’t stop listening to country-not that we want to.  It was difficult to pick just five this week but these are our picks for up and coming-fresh faced country groups that are ready to storm the charts with their perfect harmonies and wild on stage energy!

1. Old Dominion
We were lucky enough to catch Old Dominion at Joe’s Pub in NYC a few weeks ago and we were blown away with how good they are to their fans.  They’ve written for so many other country artists but these guys are ready to break out on their own and show the world what they can do!

2. The Railers
The Railers are one of the most fun groups we’ve seen both acoustically and plugged in! They really bring down the house with on stage energy every time we’ve seen them.  The Railers are taking their show on the road with tour dates around the US including NYC’s first ever Farmborough Festival!

3. A Thousand Horses
NashFM called A Thousand Horses “one of the tallest bands in country” and after catching their private show in NYC, we know why.  Between the height, the luscious hair, and the insane talent, these guys are revving up their engines- ready to kick it into overdrive before Summer is over!

4. The Cadillac Three
The band may be called Cadillac Three but these guys turn their set all the way up to 11! Loud, raucous, and ready to party, this group blend classic rock with country that will be the soundtrack to getting’ your Southern on this summer.

5. Natalie Stovall And The Drive
Natalie has been fiddlin’ around in music since she was ten years old, her on stage arena ready energy is what is getting this group noticed.  Natalie was recently named one of CMT’s “Next Women Of Country” and it’s a no-brainer – Natalie Stovall and The Drive are here to stay!

Album Release, Friday Five, Music

The Friday Five: Summer Albums

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It’s Memorial Day Weekend which mean’s it’s officially Summer!  We’re looking forward to all of the outdoor concerts, BBQs, and of course some new music!  Here are some of the albums dropping this Summer we can’t wait for!

1. Canaan Smith – “Bronco” out June 23
We’ve had Canaan’s EP playing nonstop, and earlier this week we got to hear more tracks off of the album at a show in NYC.  This album is going to be GOOD.
Pre-Order a signed copy of “Bronco”

2. Kacey Musgraves – “Pageant Material” out June 23
Kacey is serving up her sophomore album in style
Pre-Order “Pageant Material”

3. Hilary Duff – “Breathe In, Breathe Out” out June 15
We’re so excited about a new album from Hilary that we too have to breathe in, breathe out and keep calm.  Fingers crossed a tour is to follow!
Pre-Order “Breathe In, Breathe Out” on Amazon

4. Thomas Rhett – Title and Date TBD
While we don’t have any official info yet, Thomas is expected to drop his new album later this Summer.  We love what we’ve heard so far, with the funky lead single “Crash and Burn” and also tracks that he’s been playing live, like “South Side” and the beautiful “Die A Happy Man.”
Buy “Crash and Burn” on iTunes

5. Cody Simpson – “Free” out June 23
This will be Cody’s first album he’s done entirely on his own, free to create the music he’s wanted to all along.  Cody and his music are pretty much the definition of a laid back Summer by the beach.
Pre-Order “Free” on iTunes

Friday Five, Movies, Music

The Friday Five: The Lonely Island

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The Lonely Island just started production on their new movie, a mockumentary about a boyband reunion and parody of fluffy music documentaries, produced by Judd Apatow.  This sounds amazing, and we can’t help but hope that Samberg’s BFF Justin Timberlake will make an appearance along with some of his former bandmates!  After all, Lance and Joey are actors, too (see the 2001 masterpiece “On The Line.”).  And Justin is a respected actor and all now, but never forget where he got his acting start – “Model Behavior” playing a teen heartthrob.   From the superficial stars to the real ones.

Here are some of our favorite tracks by The Lonely Island (excluding the ones featuring JT because duh.)

1. “Throw It On The Ground”
This ain’t my Dad, this is a cell phone!

2. “YOLO” featuring Adam Levine & Kendrick Lamar
You Oughta Look Out!

3. “I’m On A Boat” featuring T-Pain
If you claim to not sing this every time you’re on/near a boat, you’re lying.

4. “Jack Sparrow” featuring Michael Bolton
We’d be okay with Michael Bolton making an appearance in the movie, too.

5. “The Creep” featuring Nicki Minaj
They’ve got the boyband dance moves nailed.

Friday Five, Music, NKOTB, On Tour, Show Review

The Friday Five: Summer 2015 Tours

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Livenation kicked of the summer concert season with a huge show in NYC on National Concert Day, May 5th and that got us super excited about all of the huge tours we’re going to!   This week, we’re bringing you our five summer tours we’re the MOST excited about.

1. “The Main Event Tour” ft. NKOTB, TLC, & Nelly
This tour deserves the name “The Main Event” with three huge acts on one stage, one night, the night of a lifetime!  Yahoo!Screen is also streaming the show next Thursday, May 14th at 10pm EST for 24 hours only – if you can resist tuning in, we salute you.

2. “The Wheels Up Tour” ft. Lady Antebellum, Hunter Hayes, & Sam Hunt
If you are a regular reader you know we’ll go pretty much anywhere to see Hunter or Sam.  We were so excited when this tour was announced we literally screamed in a French restaurant.   Tickets for this tour went on sale in waves which drove us nuts waiting for the email with our dates in it but once it arrived, it was wheels up, baby!  If you can score tickets to this tour, you’ll be treated to some extra special in flight entertainment all night long.  After all, we don’t have to go home we can leave the night on.

3. “Rock This Country! Tour” ft. Shania Twain
Shania announced a brand new tour on the heels of her Las Vegas residency coming to a close but she made sure we knew this was her last tour – EVER!  Put on your cowboy boots and get ready to rock this country with Shania!

4. “Dazed & Confused Tour” ft. Jake Miller
When our bae Jake Miller just released his brand new single “Dazed & Confused” and he announced a tour with the same name, we knew we had to be there to see those arms in person – and hear his angelic voice obviously!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GBhOUutFxA

5. The Vamps USA Tour
It’s been entirely too long since The Vamps last US invasion and we can’t wait for their first headlining tour here this Summer!  They’re bringing Before You Exit along for what’s sure to be a memorable evening.    We have high hopes that you’ll be lovestruck and will shout about it for weeks to come.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7rRSqkO1kc

 

90s, Friday Five, Music

The Friday Five: Mariah Carey’s #1s

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Few artists have had as much chart topping success as Mariah Carey. She ranks in second place in the most #1 singles of any artist, just behind The Beatles. She just announced her upcoming second full album of her 18 #1 hits, named “#1 to Infinity.”   Here are our all time favorite Mariah #1s and music videos!

1. “Fantasy”

This video is basically our Summer outfit and activity goals.

2. “One Sweet Day” featuring Boyz II Men

Why aren’t there more boyband/pop star duets? We need an *NSYNC/Britney single. The closest we have is Hannah Montana and Jonas Brothers “We Got The Party”

3. “Heartbreaker” featuring Jay-Z

Definitely one of the greatest music videos of the TRL era (RIP). We’d still vote for it today.

4. “Honey”

We love that this video is a mini Bond movie.  They just don’t make music videos like this anymore!

5. “Always Be My Baby”

Mariah will always be our #1

Country Music, Friday Five

The Friday Five: FarmBorough Festival Playlist

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We’re not sure what’s happened to Spring in New York, so we’re dreaming about Summer concerts.  It’ll warm up someday, right?  We’re about two months away from the inaugural FarmBorough Festival – NYC’s first Country fest.  We can’t wait for a weekend listening to our favorite Country artists under the stars on warm Summer night on Randall’s Island.    Of course we’ll be singing along to hits like Luke Bryan’s “Play It Again” and Dierks Bentley’s “Drunk On A Plane,” but we’re also excited to see some of Country’s newer acts.  Here’s our Playlist for the up and comers we can’t wait to check out at FarmBorough Fest!

FarmBorough Festival
June 26-28 2015
Randall’s Island, NYC
Buy Tickets

1. Canaan Smith – “Hole In A Bottle”
We had so much fun during Canaan’s energetic set on the “Where It All Began Tour” with Dan + Shay.  He got the crowd going from the start, opening with this fun track from his EP that is sure to be a hit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvCRNwPjOhM

2. The Railers – “Ray Bans”
The Railers have a sunny outlook on life and their music is just as fun as they are during a live show.  “Ray Bans” is a great display of how well their voices harmonize together as well as blending their influences.

3. Chris Stapleton – “Traveller”
Chris has written hits like Luke Bryan’s “Drink A Beer” and Thomas Rhett’s new single, “Crash and Burn.”  He’s about to release his first solo album, “Traveller,” in early May.   His album release show at the Mercury Lounge in NYC sold out, so we can’t wait to see his set at FarmBorough!

4. The Cadillac Three – “I’m Southern” 
The Cadillac Three’s new single “White Lightening” is super mellow compared to previous songs from these Southern boys.  Their live shows are not to be missed – they definitely bring some rock n roll to country.

5. Maddie & Tae – “Girl In A Country Song”
The duo crashed onto the scene with their anti-bro country anthem last year.  They also released one of our favorite music videos of the year.

Country Music, Dan+Shay, Friday Five, Music, Sam Hunt, Thomas Rhett

The Friday Five: ACM Award Nominees

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The 50th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards air this Sunday, April 19th, on CBS! We’re especially excited about this year’s group of Best New Artist nominees, along with some more familiar faces. Don’t forget you can vote for Best New Artist and Entertainer of the Year at VoteACM.com up until the start of the show! Here are our favorite tracks from some of this year’s ACM Award Nominees.

1. Thomas Rhett – “Front Porch Junkies”
Nominated for Best New Artist
We fell for Thomas’ funky country style, and after seeing him live he is one of our favorite performers, ever. We love all the Best New Artist nominees (really, you can’t go wrong), but we can’t help but root for the Home Team.

2. Dan + Shay – “What You Do To Me”
Nominated for Vocal Duo of the Year
This is one of our favorite songs of all time, of any genre, and quickly made its way to the top of our most played tracks. We can’t wait to see Dan + Shay + Nick (Jonas) perform at this year’s show!

3. Cole Swindell – “Let Me See Ya Girl”
Nominated for Best New Artist
Cole has written hit after hit for artists like Luke Bryan, Thomas Rhett, Florida Georiga Line, and more. His debut album has had 3 #1 singles and counting. It’s one of those albums where every song is your jam.

4. Sam Hunt – “Breakup In A Small Town”
Nominated for Best New Artist
We. Are. Obsessed. With. This. Song. The perfect representation of Sam’s R&B / country mashup. Sam has been dominating the charts lately since “Montevallo” was released late last year, and we wouldn’t be surprised if he pulled off a win.

5. Kacey Musgraves – “Biscuits”
Nominated for Song of the Year and Female Vocalist of the Year
Kacy’s throwback music and sartorial style (she and her band are always on point) is a refreshing change. We can’t wait for Kacey’s upcoming album!