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In a rare public interview, Willie Nelson has revealed that he has stopped smoking weed after realising that his vice “almost killed” him. The 86-year-old’s past tendencies have gone down in country music folklore, but they have also had a different impact as they have inspired many others within the genre to feel that they could sing about the vice without being ridiculed. Speaking to KSAT TV in Houston, Texas, Nelson reflected back on his past and believes that his current respiratory issues are probably down to his old habits, before opening up on his path to marijuana and how it has almost proved fatal. “I have abused my lungs quite a bit in the past, so breathing is a little more difficult these days and I have to be careful,” Nelson said. “I started smoking cedar bark, went from that to cigarettes to whatever…and that almost killed me. “I don’t smoke anymore. I take better care of myself.” However, when pressed about his general health and how he was faring, Nelson responded in typical outlaw fashion before revealing that he believes he’s just fortunate to be walking the planet. “I don’t give a f***. I’m here and I’m glad to be here. I’m lucky to be here.” Nelson has had a very busy 2019, with the legendary artist releasing a new album in ‘Road I Call Home’ – of which, the title track subsequently received a Grammy nomination for Best Country Solo Performance – and also appearing at the CMA Awards for a duet with Kacey Musgraves. The pair sung Rainbow Connection from ‘The Muppet Movie’.

The Spotlight Stage artists for C2C 2020 have been revealed for the London dates, with Willie Jones and Kassi Ashton pencilled in for London and Glasgow. The Spotlight Stage artists for London will include Mitchell Tenpenny, Niko Moon, Caylee Hammack, Gabby Barrett, Twinnie, Kyle Daniel and Noah Schnacky, while Seaforth will be a Glasgow exclusive. The Spotlight Stage is a key component of C2C, as the platform offers artists a 15 minute slot inside the Main Arena in-between the Main Stage acts. Tenpenny, Daniel and Barrett will be in London on the Friday for when Eric Church headlines, Moon, Ashton and Twinnie will be performing on Saturday night when Darius Rucker tops the bill and Jones, Hammack and Schnacky are pencilled in for when Luke Combs closes the festival. By contract, Jones will be in Glasgow on the Friday, Seaforth will be performing on the Saturday and Ashton will be at the Hydro on the Sunday. In addition to the Spotlight Stage announcements, C2C have also revealed that the Aftershow Parties will also be taking place at C2C 2020, located in the indigo only this year, as opposed to All Bar One at The O2 as well. For the Aftershow Parties, Tenpenny will be there on the Friday, Ashton on the Saturday and Jones on the Sunday. In addition to these three, Nashville’s DJ High will also be behind the decks spinning songs. You can buy tickets for C2C 2020 here.

Upcoming UK artist Roisin O’Hagan has released the video for her most recent single Living in the Dark, which came out on May 31. You can watch the video below. [wpdevart_youtube]_XdxiDdl_qc[/wpdevart_youtube] The Essex based artist has had a very busy 2019, performing a number of gigs – including one in Nashville – while also working on new music. O’Hagan has also been busy supporting other artists, including Chris Shiflett, Pete Murray, Angel Snow, The Luck and The Black Feathers this year. Speaking about the song, O’Hagan said that firstly the track itself is about not only making yourself aware of any issues, but battling them all the same and that she wanted the video to represent that – which added extra impetus to the colours that were used for the shooting. “Living In The Dark is about acknowledging whatever demons you have and admitting that you are still fighting them,” O’Hagan said. “It’s about not quite being out of the woods yet – whatever the scenario. “I wanted the video to portray this and to leave room for people to fit their own narrative to it. The colour, smoke and overall chaos is meant to represent that side of someone, a side that is angry, lost and alone, in contrast to how normal things might seem on the surface.” It remains to be seen whether Roisin O’Hagan will continue releasing singles or put out an EP in 2020, but it seems very likely that there will be new music arriving in the new year, in addition to more gigs.    

Megan McKenna will be continuing her country music journey by physically releasing her debut album ‘Story of Me’ for the first time on December 6. You can pre-order the album here. Former reality TV star McKenna has just made headlines across the UK for winning the celebrity edition of The X Factor by quite some distance, with the Essex based artist taking over 46% of the final vote– meaning that she topped the public vote every single week. ‘Story of Me’ was actually released in December 2018, with the album going straight to Number One on the UK Country Album Chart, so hopes are high in the Megan McKenna camp that this will translate into performing well amongst physical sales. Speaking at the time of its release, McKenna said that the album was hugely personal to her and that being able to put her feelings and thoughts into her music has really helped her move on from tough times. “It’s very personal to me and expresses my heartbreaks, ups and downs in my life and the pain and hurt I’ve been through,”McKenna said. “Music is my therapy and writing my feelings down in my songs has really helped me through.” McKenna’s recent single This, which doesn’t feature on the album as it’s a newer song, is in contention to be the Christmas Number One following her success on The X Factor,

Lauren Alaina has released a video for her single Getting Good less than 24 hours after she finished fourth on ‘Dancing With the Stars’ in America. You can watch the video below. [wpdevart_youtube]AkNc0-7ierw[/wpdevart_youtube] The video shows Alaina dancing with her partner on the show, Gleb Savchenko, with the Georgia born artist revealing the video live on Good Morning America on November 26. The song is about living in the moment and comes at a time where a lot has happened with Alaina, with a lot going on in her personal life before she entered the show. Just two weeks before she was due to appear on the show, Alaina broke up with John Crist while earlier this year, she broke off her engagement with Alex Hopkins. She has also endured grief this year, with her stepdad passing. Looking ahead to next year, Lauren Alaina will be touring America in the first half of the year, with a number of dates pencilled in between January and March. Alaina also has a number of shows in the second part of the year, including a few festivals. At this moment in time, it is unsure as to whether Alaina will be in the UK next year, but it does seem likely that she will have an album or an EP to promote and tour, especially given that a video has just been released.

UK artist Becky Lawrence has shared her first piece of music since her 2017 EP ‘What It Takes’ in the shape of her latest single Now. You can listen to the track here. The Isle of Man born artist, now residing in the south-west of England, has been keeping busy this year with frequent gigs, but has marked the two-year anniversary of ‘What It Takes’ being released by dropping Now on the same date. Speaking about the song, Lawrence said that it one of the most open tracks that she has penned in her career and that it represents a change in her persona, as well as adding some insight into the overall meaning of the song. “From the heart, in the moment – this is one of the most honest tracks I have written to date,” Lawrence said. “I wanted this song to stand out from the others I have previously released and signify a change not only in my music style, but in myself. “I wanted to focus on reminding everyone that sometimes you need to just stop, take a breath and appreciate where you are right in that present moment, Now.” Looking ahead to 2020, Lawrence already has some dates booked in the diary in terms of live performances, while the addition of new music is very likely to lead to more dates being announced. Becky Lawrence is playing: June 12 – The Tap Beer & Spirits House, Derby, England September 5 – Country Music Festival at Tuckers Grave, Wiltshire, England

Una Healy has announced her comeback with a stripped down cover of N-Trance’s Set You Free, while original track Wild Grasses will be released on December 26. You can listen to Healy’s cover here. Healy has largely spent her year writing new music in addition to presenting the Saturday morning show on radio station Country Hits, but has now given fans a glimpse of what she’s been working on. The first piece of new music is a cover of 90s club classic Set You Free, which has been slowed down and stripped back. This is done deliberately, with Healy wanting to convey the meaning of the song in her eyes to everyone else – especially at this time of the year. “I stripped the song down completely to bring out the deep emotion behind the song and bring to life what it means to me,” Healy said. “The song reminds me of the unconditional love that surrounds us in all areas of our lives, not necessarily in a romantic sense, but the love of family and friends that keeps us strong through all of life’s adversities. “Leading up to Christmas, it’s a message that I personally need to remind myself and hope everyone can find comfort in”. As for Wild Grasses, the song was written with Eric Brazilian and is seemingly written about staying in touch with people who have departed, with Healy explaining how it was constructed. “I had a melody in my head for weeks and met with Eric and started humming it and the first words just came out and it flowed from there,” Healy added. “It has a real celtic folk sound to it too. It is a very comforting song for anyone who has lost someone close to know that their spirit will always be there with them.”

American act Midland have been forced to postpone their UK tour that was due to start on December 4 following a serious medical emergency relating to the recent birth of lead singer Mark Wystrach’s child. As is to be expected following a personal matter such as this, details are being kept to a total minimum while the band understandably focus on the matter at hand, with Wystrach promising to share information as and when it becomes available. In a statement, the band stated that they are all “incredibly saddened to delay their tour,” however they are “working hard to reschedule for 2020.” Midland were due to play four dates in the UK – the O2 Ritz in Manchester, the O2 Institute in Birmingham, The Leadmill in Sheffield and the iconic Roundhouse in London. It’s worth noting that the tour hasn’t been cancelled and presumably, tickets will still be valid for the rescheduled show as and when they spring up. Refund details will also be released in due course for those who will be unable to attend to new dates. Midland – made up of Wystrach, Jess Carson and Cameron Duddy – were set to return to the UK following a tour earlier on this year, which saw them headline O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire in London amongst other venues. The group were also nominated for Vocal Group of the Year and New Artist of the Year at the recent CMA Awards, losing out to Old Dominion and Ashley McBryde respectively. Also this year, the trio released their second album ‘Let It Roll’, which hit the shelves on August 23.

Robert Vincent has shared the video for his most recent single This Town, which is his first release since he released ‘I’ll Make the Most of My Sins’ in 2017. You can see the video below. [wpdevart_youtube]cIN400JakjI[/wpdevart_youtube] Liverpool resident Vincent – who won the inaugural Emerging Artist Award from Bob Harris at the UK Americana Awards – has been busy writing new music in the aftermath of releasing ‘I’ll Make the Most of My Sins’ and has now signed with the label Thirty Tigers. Speaking about the song, Vincent said that the video represents part of his childhood as he wanted to try and capture that in detail, while also offered an insight into the style of music that will be featured on his new album. “The underlying sentiment to This Town’s video is that of my childhood,” Vincent said. “I was keen to capture some of where I grew up as part of the narrative, but also where life had taken me. “I’ve spent time in the US towns and cities, Nashville and Memphis, mainly and more recently Texas, Lubbock home of Buddy Holly, who as a musician has been an inspiring chapter in my life. So, we used some of these locations as a backdrop for This Town. I have been connected to these places by music, history and films, even before I had visited. “I wanted to use The Plaza cinema, a beautiful Art Deco building built in 1939 situated just outside of Liverpool, in my hometown of Crosby. It was an important part of the video, because it was my escape as a child. I used to go alone, avoiding my friends interrupting the films. “That building meant as much to me as anything from my childhood, more than iconic films and first dates I had there. I added my son to the video to illustrate how I felt about those more laid back days. The innocence of those times compared to now is a world apart, but is something I seek and try to paint within the music on my upcoming new album”. Vincent is currently on tour and has a handful of dates left in 2019, including dates in Scotland, a London gig and a final performance of the year in his home city of Liverpool. Robert Vincent is playing: November 29 – The Blue Lamp, Aberdeen, Scotland November 30 – Wee Bear Cafe, Angus, Scotland December 1 – Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Scotland December 2 – String Theory, Hawick, Scotland December 6 – Mycenae House, London, England December 13 – Heaven’s Gate, Liverpool, England

The Cadillac Three have released the next single from their upcoming album ‘Country Fuzz’ in the shape of Slow Rollin’, which also has a video. You can see the video below. [wpdevart_youtube]LHnBbBvXZoM[/wpdevart_youtube] The group, who have been announced for C2C 2020 as a Main Stage act, will be releasing their fourth album on February 7 and Slow Rollin’ is the second single to be released from the upcoming record, following in the footsteps of Crackin’ Cold Ones with the Boys. Speaking about the album, frontman Jaren Johnston has said that the album is has been in the works for a quarter of a decade, while also stating that the album name epitomises the band’s sound on both the record and in general. “We’ve spent the last two-and-a-half years working on this album,” Johnston said. “But our sound even since high school has always been the epitome of Country Fuzz – Country, rock and just a little bit of funk.” In addition to playing C2C 2020 in the UK, the trio – made up of Johnston, Neil Mason and Kelby Ray – will be doing C2C in both Germany and the Netherlands, playing in Berlin and Amsterdam respectively. Their UK performances at C2C will see them perform on the night that Eric Church is headlining, which is coincidental as the two have toured together on several occasions down the years. The Cadillac Three are playing: March 6 – Verti Music Hall, Berlin, Germany March 8 – AFAC Live, Amsterdam, Netherlands March 13 – O2 Arena, London, England March 14 – SSE Hydro Arena, Glasgow, Scotland March 15 – 3Arena, Dublin, Republic of Ireland