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Luke Combs Returns with Highly Anticipated New Single “Back In The Saddle”

Multi-platinum global superstar Luke Combs’ highly anticipated new single, ‘Back in the Saddle,’ is out now.

The song’s official music video also debuts today, which was directed by Tyler Adams and features NASCAR legends Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Richard Petty.

“So much work goes into making these songs, so much time we spend making them, from the studio writing them to the videos. I got to make the video with Dale Jr. and Richard Petty, which is a total dream come true. My grandpa would be rolling over in his grave in a good way if he knew that I got to hang out with Richard Petty and Dale Jr,” says Combs about the song he wrote with Dan Isbell and Jonathan Singleton.

Produced by Combs, Singleton and Chip Matthews, the new release adds to another monumental year for Combs, who is in the midst of an extensive festival run, headlining major all-genre events through this fall. Following historic sets at festivals such as Bonnaroo and New Orleans JazzFest, Combs will perform at Newport Folk Festival, Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits this year, making him the first country artist ever to headline both Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza.

A Grand Ole Opry member and 11x CMA, 4x ACM, 6x Billboard Music Award-winner from Asheville, NC, Combs continues to enjoy a historic career. He recently became the second most RIAA certified country artist of all time (155.5 million RIAA certified units), was inducted into the Music City Walk of Fame, became the first country artist to have two songs reach a billion streams on Spotify and the first with four singles certified RIAA Diamond.

Furthermore, Combs’ Grammy-nominated single, ‘Ain’t No Love in Oklahoma,’ reached #1 at country radio, leading him to spend 53 cumulative weeks atop the Billboard Country Airplay chart throughout his career. These achievements follow Combs’ latest album, Fathers & Sons, which reflects on his own experiences as a dad and the unique bond between parents and their children.

Released to critical acclaim, NPR Music praises, “he’s going beyond the country realm now and really has become a pop star, a global popstar,” while The Wall Street Journal declares, “filled with unexpected warmth and vulnerability…a perfect match for Mr. Combs’s warm and engaging style.”

Combs has also recently collaborated with artists such as Post Malone (‘Guy For That’ + ‘Missin’ You Like This’), Bailey Zimmerman (‘Backup Plan,’ the official anthem for the 2025 SEC Network season) and Jon Bellion (‘WHY’) and partnered with Opry Entertainment Group to open Category 10—a multi-level entertainment complex in downtown Nashville.

Combs also performed an unforgettable duet of ‘Fast Car’ with Tracy Chapman at last year’s Grammy Awards and joined forces with Eric Church, Billy Strings and James Taylor to headline Concert for Carolina, a special benefit show at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium, which raised over $24.5 million for Hurricane Helene relief efforts.

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Trace Nixon Unveils “Secondhand Hold On Me” Debut Video

The debut music video by Trace Nixon, “Secondhand Hold On Me,” premiered this week, showcasing the neo-traditionalist talents of the driving force behind the Richmond, Virginia-based band Gone Country.

Filmed primarily at The Station Inn (Nashville) and directed by William Gawley, the clip was produced by Michelle Robertson. Director of photography Wayne Taylor caught the camera’s love for the 6’2” singer/songwriter and captured his ease on stage.

Trace has an honest voice with a touch of vulnerability that lays the groundwork for playful glances and bashful smiles as he leads the band on stage and connects with one special audience member.

Heartbreaking reflections are captured as dream-like close ups highlight love lost. Intimate shots, moody lighting and drone footage are utilised to offer a fitting introduction to one of Country’s most impressive newcomers.

Written by Trace and his fiancée Ashley Grant (who plays his love interest in the video), the idea for the song came from a line in the movie Forrest Gump.

“I saw a Facebook clip of the New Year’s Eve scene from the movie,” Nixon says. “Gump says, ‘she tasted like cigarettes,’ and I started thinking how funny it would be if Forrest was into that. Inspired by some of my wilder days, the song came together pretty quickly. I’ve always been a big fan of wordplay and lines with double meanings, so it was a fun one to write.”

The video is a companion to his “Secondhand Hold On Me” single, released in June for Charlotte Avenue Entertainment. The track will be on Trace’s upcoming EP, due this Fall.

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Zac Brown Band Announce Additional ‘Love & Fear’ Tour Dates

Multi-platinum, 3x GRAMMY Award-winning group, Zac Brown Band have announced two additional Sphere shows scheduled for Friday, January 9^th and Saturday, January 10^th as part of their limited engagement.

These newly added shows mark a highly anticipated extension of their original run, giving fans additional opportunities to catch the band’s one-of-a-kind performance at the groundbreaking Sphere venue. The new dates reflect the overwhelming fan demand and further amplify the band’s status as one of the most versatile live acts in the industry.

Tickets to Love & Fear are available to the general public beginning Friday, July 25 at 10am PT at ZacBrownBand.com. Travel VIP packages, which include a concert ticket and two-night stay at The Venetian Resort Las Vegas, the resort connected to Sphere.

The limited engagement will celebrate the release of Love & Fear, Zac Brown Band’s seventh full-length studio album and their most personal to date. Blending their signature harmonies and musicianship with raw emotion and introspection, the project explores duality, healing, and the human experience – themes that come to life in powerful new ways within Sphere’s fully immersive environment. The 13-track album features special guests Snoop Dogg, Dolly Parton, and Marcus King and will be available at all DSPs and streaming services on Friday, December 5.

To commemorate Fenway Music Hall of Fame inductee Zac Brown Band’s incredible legacy of concerts at Fenway Park, including 14 sellouts and the record for most tickets sold in Fenway Concert history, and to celebrate their monumental Sphere Las Vegas announcement, Zac made a surprise appearance today at the historic venue during an exclusive tour of the facility. Brown thrilled fans and with an intimate acoustic performance and meet & greet.

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Nashville Artist Kat Velasco Launches New Single “Breaking My Own Heart”

Nashville country-pop artist Kat Velasco has released her new single. “Breaking My Own Heart”, billed as a melancholic, emotionally raw track about the fear of things falling apart, even when they seem perfect.

The single blends wistful acoustic guitar with rich vocals to explore the tension between hope and heartbreak.

Co-written with Claire Douglas, Hannah Ellis, and Jason Massey, “Breaking My Own Heart” is about that gut-deep anxiety of waiting for the other shoe to drop. It’s vulnerable, self-aware, and painfully relatable for anyone who’s ever felt like their own worst enemy.

“Many of us can be self-sabotaging… existing somewhere in between hope and heartbreak,” Velasco says.

Velasco has opened for acts like Love and Theft and BRELAND.

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Josh Ross Earns First U.S. Country Radio #1 “Single Again”

Hot on the heels of announcing his full-length debut album, Later Tonight, due September 19, global country force Josh Ross has even more to celebrate, earning his first-ever #1 at U.S. country radio last week with “Single Again.”

Topping the Mediabase Country chart after a 71-week trek, the historic chart-topper puts Ross in elite territory, making him the first Canadian male to king the chart in nearly 30 years, and joining Paul Brandt and Hank Snow as the only three Canadian men to ever reign atop the U.S. country radio charts. Ross has achieved three #1 singles at Canadian Country radio: “Single Again,” “Ain’t Doin’ Jack,” and “Trouble.”

“Possibly the biggest news to date in my career – I woke up having the #1 song at U.S. country radio,” Ross shared on his socials last night. “I started coming to Nashville in 2018 with a dream of writing songs and maybe hearing some of my own on the radio one day. Today it’s the most played song in the country.”

“I can’t thank Brad Rempel and Joe Fox enough for writing this hungover idea with me,” he continued, “Matt Geroux for crushing the production, and all my team members at The Core, MCA / Mercury, UMC, The Neal Agency, Feldman Agency, Damon Moberly and his incredible promotion team, Warner Chappell Music, and many more – it takes a village. We all work so dang hard. To the fans, love y’all. This is just fuel being added to the fire.”

Adding to over 1 billion global career streams, the success of “Single Again” at country radio paves the way for a batch of fresh hits out Sept. 19 via Ross’ full-length debut album, Later Tonight. The 15-track collection promises to double down on the emotive, rock-tinged country that has defined Josh’s worldwide ascent.

Last week, Ross also earned six 2025 Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) Awards nominations, tied with Cameron Whitcomb as this year’s most-nominated artist.