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Pete Seeger, champion of folk music as a catalyst for change, has died in New York age 94. According to his grandson he passed away at a New York hospital after a short illness. Seeger rose to fame as member of The Weavers, formed in 1948. He continued to perform in his own right for many years, in a career spanning six decades. Seeger’s hits include If I Had a Hammer, Turn, Turn, Turn, Where Have All the Flowers Gone and Kisses Sweeter Than Wine. Pete Seeger will be remembered for his courageous protest songs which saw him blacklisted by the US Government in the 1950s for his left wing stance – even quizzed by the Un-American Activities Committee in 1955, which he greatly resented. During these years he was denied broadcast exposure and charged with contempt of Congress. The sentence was overturned and Seeger was able to return to television in the late 1960s. He had never given up on his ethos though, and spent this time touring US college campuses spreading his music and his ideas, a job that Seeger himself described as the most important of his career. This skinny framed, bearded, banjo-playing musician became an iconic bearer for political causes ranging from nuclear disarmament to the Occupy Wall Street movement in 2011. He was closely identified with the sixties civil rights movement and was an enduring champion of the folk community and its social activism. Seeger performed with Woody Guthrie in his early years, and went on to have an effect on the protest music of later artists including Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Joan Baez. His influence continued through the decades and was inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996. In 2006, Springsteen recorded an album of songs originally sung by Seeger. On his 90th birthday, Seeger was feted by artists including Springsteen, Eddie Vedder and Dave Matthews in New York’s Madison Square Garden. Springsteen called him “a living archive of America’s music and conscience, a testament of the power of song and culture to nudge history along.

Since 1995, the annual Kicker Country Stampede has been offering the best of country music’s live acts to fans in Kansas. Held on the last full weekend in June, the four day festival offers mulitple stages, interactive exhibits, a saloon for the adults, camping at Tuttle Creek State Park and great food and drink. This year’s line-up was announced last weekend. Country fans will be treated to some of the biggest names in the genre. Main Stage: 6 Degrees West, Charlie Worsham, Chris Young, Dustin Lynch, Easton Corbin, Eric Church, Joe Diffie, Joe Nichols, Jon Pardi, Lee Brice, Logan Mize, Luke Bryan, Randy Houser, Sarah Darling, The Railers, Thomas Rhett, Tyler Farr and Will Hoge. Kite’s Grille & Bar Tuttleville Stage: County Road 5, Jared Daniels Band, Livewire, Rusty Reirson, Tim Zach & The Whiskey Bent and Travis Marvin. Nashville Songwriters Association International Songwriters Tent: Amanda Williams, Colin Lockey, County Road 5, Johnny Bangs, Laura Wisdom, Rusty Rierson, Stewart Ray and Tony Ramey More artists will be announced on a regular basis www.countrystampede.com

Three months ago, American icon Kenny Rogers was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. And now he has picked up another career achievement, but this time it’s in recognition of his other talent and passion—photography. Rogers received an honorary master of photography degree from Professional Photographers of America (PPA) at its annual conference, Imaging USA, during the PPA Award & Degree ceremony, January 14, at Symphony Hall in Phoenix, where more than 145 award and degree recipients were honoured. Prior to the ceremony, he gave an exclusive live Q&A with convention-goers, discussing his life and work. Rogers also shared photos from his forthcoming photography book, Places I’ve Been, Things I’ve Seen. Imaging USA is the longest-running photography convention and expo in the nation. Up to 10,000 photographers attended, seeking education, inspiration, networking, exclusive parties and one of the nation’s largest photography trade shows to help boost their business for the year ahead. “We could see in his work that Mr. Rogers is an accomplished photographer, but when we approached him about the honorary master’s degree, we were immediately impressed with his enthusiasm for photography,” said PPA president, Ralph Romaguera Sr., M.Photog.Cr., CPP, API, F-ASP. “He’s obviously well-known as an entertainer, but he truly is a remarkably talented photographer.” “You start off doing something because you really love it, and it gives you great pleasure,” Rogers remarked. “With any luck at all, you get better. It was special to receive the highest honour that my photography has to offer. I felt a little intimidated but very flattered and somehow undeserving. What a thrill!”

Billboard.com released its highly sought after list of “Top 10 Country Artists to Watch in 2014” and selected Minneapolis rising talent GB Leighton among its honorees. Leighton, managed by Average Joe’s Rusty Harmon (Hootie & the Blowfish, the LACS and Jason Michael Carroll), is praised for his originality by journalist Chuck Dauphin who describes his songs as “deep, introspective, and moving.” This list places Leighton among great company like “Pretty Little Liars” star Lucy Hale. To view the full list, click here. “I’ve been hitting the Midwest tour scene and traveling to Nashville for several years, but it’s great to see the industry getting behind our newest project” says GB Leighton. “2014 seems to be lining itself up to be a great year.” Leighton is at country radio with his debut national release and title track to his project “Get Up.” He was recently in Nashville shooting a video for the single which will be premiering in February. ­­To stay updated on GB Leighton including the latest news and tour information, visit www.gbleighton.com. Leighton has already made a huge impact on his home state of Minnesota and the rest of the Midwest – packing out venues and having fans post pictures of inked lyrics across his social media platforms. One would expect to find his “heartland country” on iPod menus, but this father of two boys is truly serving up a taste of country at GB Leighton’s Pickle Park in Fridley, MN. “It was a bar that I had played for years and when it fell into the current owner’s hands, he told me he was going to name it after me and my songs. How cool is it to walk into restaurant and see food named after your tunes!”

Iconic singer, songwriter, musician, actress, philanthropist, and 2014 Grammy nominee, DOLLY PARTON, is set to kick off her “Blue Smoke World Tour” this Friday, January 24, in Rancho Mirage, California. In addition this past Friday, Parton announced shows in Tamworth and Cairns being added to the Australian leg of the tour, both shows are already sold out! “It’s always great to perform at home in the good ol’ USA. We’re kicking off our Blue Smoke World Tour right here at home. I love traveling all over the world; but it’s true, there’s nothing like home,” says Dolly Parton. After a widely successful tour of Australia in 2011, Parton will head down under for her first visit to New Zealand in over three decades as well as a return visit to Australia. “Australia, here I come again. We have a lot of new and exciting things for the show and can’t wait to share it with you. I love my fans in that part of the world. You’ve been so very good to me for so many years, I’m really, really excited to be coming back to New Zealand again after 30 years or so. And I know that we’re gonna have a wonderful time. It’s a long way from home in your part of the world, but I always feel like I’m right at home. So Australia, New Zealand, I’m coming home. Wait up!” After returning home from Australia and New Zealand, there is no slowing down for Dolly. In May, Dolly will, once again, hit a few more markets in America before heading across the pond for June concerts in Europe as well as a return to the O2 Arena in London, the venue where Dolly recorded and filmed An Evening With…Dolly (Dolly Records), her widely praised DVD/CD set that was certified GOLD by the RIAA. “Every time I come to Europe I’m just as excited as I was my very first time, which was many, many years ago. I love that part of the world and I especially love the fans,” adds Parton. “We always have such a good time and I’ve put together a lot of things for this show that I think the fans will love. We had not planned to come back so soon, but we got so much fan mail and such a great reaction that I thought ‘Well, why not. If they’re having a good time and we always do, let’s just do it’.” In 2011, Dolly continued to receive accolades for what was her most successful European and Australian tour of her 45-plus year career—The Better Day Tour! During the 2011 tour, Dolly performed for record-breaking attendances in both Europe and Australia, surpassing her previous attendance records. In 2008, Dolly performed 17 European shows to over 170,000 fans, surpassing her then-best 2007 European tour, where she played 21 shows for over 140,000 people. Each of these treks grossed in the tens of millions of dollars and established Dolly as Europe’s favorite and most successful country artist. Tour dates and venues are below, for ticket and on-sale information please check with your local market. US Dates Jan 24th Rancho Mirage, CA – Agua Caliente Casino Jan 25th Primm, NV – Star of the Desert Arena Jan 26th Reno, NV – Reno Events Center Jan 28th Phoenix, AZ – Comerica Theater NEW ZEALAND/AUSTRALIA Dates Feb 7th New Zealand, Auckland – Vector Arena Feb 8th New Zealand, Auckland – Vector Arena **2nd Show Feb 11th Australia, Melbourne – Rod Laver Arena Feb 12th Australia, Melbourne – Rod Laver Arena Feb 13th Australia, Adelaide – Entertainment Centre Feb 15th Australia, NSW, Hunter Valley – Hope Estate Feb 16th Australia, Tamworth – TRECC Feb 18th Australia, Sydney – Entertainment Centre Feb 19th Australia, Sydney – Entertainment Centre Feb 21st Australia, Brisbane – Entertainment Centre Feb 22nd Australia, Brisbane – Entertainment Centre Feb 24th Australia, Cairns – Cairns Convention Center Feb 27th Australia, Perth – Perth Arena US Dates: May 22nd Tulsa, OK – Hard Rock Casino May 23rd Tulsa, OK – Hard Rock Casino May 25th Cherokee, NC – Harrah’s Cherokee Casino May 27th Richmond, KY – EKU Center For The Arts (St. Mark’s Evening Among Friends) May 28th Knoxville, TN – University of Tennessee (Benefiting Dolly’s Imagination Library) May 30th Thackerville, OK – Winstar Casino May 31st Thackerville, OK – Winstar Casino UK & EUROPE Dates: Jun 8th England, Liverpool – Echo Arena Jun 10th Northern Ireland, Belfast – Odyssey Arena Jun 11th Ireland, Dublin – O2 Arena Jun 12th Ireland, Cork – Live At The Marquee Jun 14th England, Newcastle – Metro Radio Arena Jun 15th Scotland, Aberdeen – GE Arena Jun 17th Scotland, Glasgow – SSE Hydro Arena Jun 18th Scotland, Glasgow – SSE Hydro Arena Jun 20th England, Leeds – First Direct Arena Jun 21st England, Manchester – Phones 4U Arena Jun 22nd England, Birmingham – LG Arena Jun 24th Wales, Cardiff – Motorpoint Arena Jun 25th Wales, Cardiff – Motorpoint Arena Jun 27th England, London – O2 Arena Jun 28th England, London – O2 Arena July 2nd England, Nottingham – Capital FM Arena July 5th Germany, Cologne – LANXESS Arena July 6th Germany, Berlin – o2 World July 8th Denmark, Copenhagen – Forum July 9th Norway, Oslo – Spektrum July 11th Sweden, Stockholm – THE GLOBE For all the latest tour, VIP Experience and ticketing information please visit http://www.dollypartonmusic.net

Lucinda Williams will headline the 4th annual Americana Spring Celebration, to be held March 21-22, 2014 at Blackberry Farm, a world-class luxury resort breathtakingly situated in the Great Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee. This year’s musical experience will feature Americana icon Williams along with songstress and SiriusXM “Apron Strings” host Elizabeth Cook playing before the inspiring backdrop of Blackberry Farm to benefit the not-for-profit artist advocacy group. “We are so excited to be returning to Blackberry Farm this spring,” said Jed Hilly, Executive Director of the Americana Music Association. “A chance to see Lucinda and Elizabeth at this venue is truly a once in a lifetime experience.” Lucinda Williams added, “The Americana Music Association gets it; they advocate for the artist and I’m proud to advocate for them! I’m excited see some friends at Blackberry Farm and be part of this fundraising weekend.”

Country superstar Darius Rucker is starting the new year off right, earning a GRAMMY nod for Best Country Solo Performance on his number one hit Wagon Wheel and selling out stops in Enid, Okla. and Verona, New York for his 2014 True Believers Tour. “The greater Enid community has shown a lot of excitement surrounding the highly-anticipated Darius Rucker concert in March, purchasing tickets at an unprecedented level,” commented Keller Taylor, General Manager for Global Spectrum at Enid Event Centre and Convention Hall in Enid, Okla. “We are excited to announce a sell-out show for the Darius Rucker concert in Enid Event Centre. We appreciate the support from all the fans, our partner businesses and the City of Enid for their continued support.”

In its 58th week on sale, Florida Georgia Line’s, HERE’S TO THE GOOD TIMES stands at number one on Billboard’s Country Album chart. Florida Georgia Line is an American country pop duo composed of Brian Kelley and Tyler Hubbard who have already broken records with their 2013 single Cruise, which spent 24 weeks at number one on Billboard’s Country Chart. The duo’s new single, Stay, is enjoying its fourth week atop the country airplay list. Kelley and Hubbard have also recently been nominated with 7 other new artists for New Artist of the Year honours at the 2014 Taste of Country Awards. The other nominees are up and coming stars: Cassadee Pope, Danielle Bradbery, Jana Kramer, Kacey Musgraves, Thomas Rhett, Tyler Farr and Parmalee.

The Americana Music Association will be holding a Pre Grammy Salute and Tribute to The Everly Brothers, remembering Phil Everly who recently passed away. The AMA has invited friends of the community to come together to perform Everly Brothers songs and to play a few of their own in West Hollywood, California, January 25. Attendees can expect to see some nominees in the American Roots music categories and other great Americana artists to perform on this special night. The lineup is a surprise that you won’t want to miss! Space is limited and Americana Music Association Member RSVPs will be accepted on a first come, first served basis. They are unable to accommodate plus ones (+1), but you are welcome to purchase tickets for anyone you would like to bring. Visit www.americanamusic.org to RSVP.

APA Nashville has signed singer/songwriter Maggie Rose, it was announced today by Steve Hauser, SVP of APA Nashville. Rose, whose new CUT TO IMPRESS CD from iconic producers James Stroud and Blake Chancey includes the two Top 30 Mediabase singles I Ain’t Your Mama and Better, was named one of the four best Country albums of 2013 by Amazon.com. Her new single, Looking Back Now, from RPM Entertainment will be released on January 21. “Maggie is an amazing young woman with a wealth of talent,” commented Hauser in making the announcement. Her song-writing is top-drawer and her live show is remarkable. We are thrilled to have her join our APA family.” Inspired by a diverse list of artists such as Bonnie Raitt, Tracy Chapman, The Beatles and The Dixie Chicks, Rose’s music is an intriguing mix of sass and simplicity that displays an endless range of emotion and depth. “I think that everything I do as an artist now should be with a purpose,” she notes. “I believe my writing should reflect intent – just like my decision to sign with RPME and APA represents my consideration of what’s best for me as an artist. I’m excited to see what the future brings.”