Kid Rock Co-Hosting Country Countdown USA

Tune in to the Country Countdown USA w/ Lon Helton this week where he'll be joined by co-host Kid Rock. Kid Rock's single "All Summer Long" is currently in the top 5 on the charts and still climbing. He'll talk about his friendship with many country stars including Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, Gretchen Wilson, George Strait, and John Rich, and he'll also chat with Lon about his wedding at Tootsie's Orchid Lounge to Pamela Anderson.

You can hear audio clips of the show here.

Keep tuning in to the show - Kellie Pickler will co-host next weekend followed by Kenny Chesney the weekend after that!

Ashton Shepherd

Country newcomer Ashton Shepherd is hitting the road with Sugarland this fall. The 22 year old wrote 7 of the 11 songs on her debut album, Sounds So Good, which is in stores now. To be honest, we weren't big fans of her first single, "Takin' Off This Pain," we thought it sounded a lot like a bad version of Gretchen Wilson and well, we just didn't dig it, but we like her new single, "Sounds So Good." You can check out her current video here at CMT.com.

When she's not touring, Ashton is spending time with her 3 year old son and husband in their hometown that's about 5 1/2 hours from Nashville. When asked if she'd ever move to Nashville, Ashton said, "It's just not me. I just can't. When I get back home and then I go to a big place, I just don't know how people stand the noise and the busyness. I like being out of the way. I have to drive 5½ hours home every time from Nashville...That's sort of like my little sanctuary." Even if she doesn't move to Nashville, we're sure she'll be spending a lot of time there!

Want to see more? You can also watch Ashton Shepherd on CMT's Unplugged at Studio 330 HERE.

Stars Honor Bradley Family

Jerry Bradley, Connie Bradley and Patsy Bradley and Harold Bradley (above)

Nashville's most famous music family, the Bradley's, were honored last night in Music City. Kenny Chesney, Ronnie Milsap, Kellie Pickler, Le Ann Womack, and Gretchen Wilson were all on hand to perform and watch as the family was presented with the Dale Franklin Leadership Award, which is presented in recognition of "the highest quality of leadership and leading by example."

Members of the Bradley family include two members of the Country Music Hall of Fame, Owen (pictured above, left, working with Patsy Cline) & Harold Bradley. The brothers opened the very first recording studio on what is now known as Music Row. Owen, who passed away in 1998 and was a legendary producer in the country music business, and his brother, Harold, a session musician, worked with the likes of Patsy Cline, Conway Twitty, Loretta Lynn, and many, many others. Their roots continue on in the Nashville music industry...Owen's daughter, Patsy, is the former Assistant Vice President of BMI, and his son, Jerry, had a long career as an executive at RCA and the Opryland Music Group/Acuff-Rose Music Publishing. Jerry's wife, Connie, is the current Senior Vice President at ASCAP.
The event was held at the Loews Vanderbilt Hotel and was hosted by Brenda Lee.

Country Music Goes Republican

Well we already knew that John Rich is a John McCain supporter, but now other country acts have seemingly jumped on the Republican bandwagon...or maybe they just view it as a good opportunity to get some exposure! Either way, Gretchen Wilson, Clay Walker, LeAnn Rimes, and Cowboy Troy will join Rich and perform at events surrounding the Republican National Convention next month.

What do you guys think? We're not saying that these acts are necessarily for Republicans...it could just be a fluke that they're performing in the same area surrounding the event at the same time...but we definitely think music and politics should be kept SEPARATE!

Gretchen Wilson Joins Fight Against Obesity

Gretchen Wilson recently teamed up with "Country Bands Together," an obesity health education campaign, to help raise obesity awareness across the country. Gretchen will, for the first time, tell her story about helping a loved one battle obesity and will encourage the public to become more educated about the obesity epidemic. Click HERE to learn more about the organization and to see how YOU can help others fight their battle against the disease.

Gretchen Wilson vs. Black Crowes

Gretchen Wilson may have found herself in a little bit of hot water. Highly successful rock band, The Black Crowes, have accused Gretchen of Copyright Infringement on her song "Work Hard, Play Harder." The Crowes believe the song is based partly on their 1991 hit, "Jealous Again"…so strongly are the similarities, the Black Crowes manager says "We find the musical verses of Wilson's song to be such an obvious example of copyright infringement that I expect all parties to reach a relatively quick resolution to avoid litigation." A spokesman for team Gretchen said that the singer has no comment. The song was written by Gretchen Wilson, John Rich and Vicky McGehee and is currently being used in ads on the TNT television network for their show, Saving Grace. Sony BMG and J. Money Music were also recipients of copyright infringement notices regarding the song.

New Music From Pat

Pat Green's new single, "Let Me" is now available online at the iTunes store and other major online music outlets. You can also hear the song here on his MySpace. What do you think? It's a different side of him, but we like it!! If you like the song, call and request it at your local radio stations!

The man is HUGE in Texas. He's also toured with other big acts such as Keith Urban, Gretchen Wilson, and Kenny Chesney. We just realized it's our first time mentioning Pat Green! Don't worry PG fans, it won't be our last!

On a side note: One year ago TODAY, we saw Pat at the Kenny Chesney show in Saratoga, NY. He ROCKED! Oh, and he played our request of "Baby Doll!" That's one of our all time favorite Pat Green songs!!!

Want To Chat With Gretchen Wilson?

(Photo Courtesy of Gretchen Wilson's MySpace)
Gretchen Wilson will be taking questions from fans on ESPN.com TODAY, July 11th, at 1pm (EST). Here is where you can post your questions for the "Redneck Woman!"