The Country Music Association announced its first round of performers for the 53rd annual CMA Awards: Eric Church, Luke Combs, Miranda Lambert, Reba McEntire, Maren Morris, Dolly Parton with for King & Country and Zach Williams, Pink and Chris Stapleton, Carrie Underwood, and Keith Urban.
Hosted by Carrie Underwood with special guests Reba McEntire and Dolly Parton, the CMA Awards will air live from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. CT on ABC.
Ready for a good scare? I mean a really good scare?
McKamey Manor in Summertown, Tennessee is billed as the scariest haunted house in the…WORLD!
Before you go inside you have to sign a 40-page waiver, pass a physical, undergo a background check, provide proof you have health insurance, and watch a 2-hour video called “And Then There Were None”, which features footage of every visitor quitting before the end of the experience. All the people in the video say, “You really don’t want to do this”. The people at McKamey say the key to scaring everyone is a mind game that relies on hypnotism. They also record each visitor, so that when they go to the police and say that crime has been committed, they play the video to prove it was just their imagination.
If you dare, check out their website here: McKamey Manor
Maren Morris and Ryan Hurd announced via social media that they are expecting their first child–a baby boy–in March 2020.
“The irony is just too rich that after a year of living in the GIRL headspace, the universe would give us a baby boy to even things out. See you in 2020, little one,” said Maren via Instagram, alongside a photo of hubby Ryan.
In my opinion, their seems to be a lot of good music coming out as of late. One of those songs is from Michael Ray, “Her World Or Mine”. The song and video has some real life connection to Michael, as he had parents that divorced and a beloved grandmother that passed away when he was younger.
The video for “Her World Or Mine” has a familiar face in it as well. Chad Michael Murray of “One Tree Hill” fame stars in the video. Take a look at the powerful video below. -EK
Craig Morgan stopped by The Kelly Clarkson Show on Oct. 17 for a sit-down chat and performance of his new single, “The Father, My Son and the Holy Ghost.”
The new tune, which Craig penned and produced, honors his late son, Jerry Greer, who passed away after a boating accident in July 2016 at the age of 19.
The touching performance brought tears to the eyes of the titular host, as well as guests Blake Shelton and Eva Mendes.
After Blake Shelton spearheaded a successful viral campaign to get the new tune to No. 1 on the all-genre iTunes Songs chart on Sept. 12, “The Father, My Son & the Holy Ghost” was released to country radio as an official single on Oct. 7 with major-label support from Broken Bow Records, Craig’s label home for six years in the 2000s.
Domino’s Pizza in Japan has introduced a new game called Halloween Pizza Roulette. It’s sort of like Russian roulette, only with pizza. The pizza includes one slice sprinkled with ghost pepper, which is the eighth hottest chili in the world with a rating of more than 1 million Scoville Heat Units. To put that in perspective, it’s 400 times hotter than Tabasco sauce. Gather your friends, choose a slice and take your chances!
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) — It was a moment Casey O’Brien dreamed about, but thought would never occur.
The Minnesota walk-on, a four-time cancer survivor, made his first collegiate appearance Saturday in the Golden Gophers’ 42-7 victory over Rutgers. O’Brien was the holder on three successful PAT’s for No. 20 Minnesota (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten).
He was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a rare bone cancer, when he was a freshman in high school. With Saturday’s outcome well in hand, Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck called O’Brien’s No. 14 to hold for the point after for the Golden Gophers’ fourth extra point of the game.
O’Brien had nine months of chemotherapy and reconstructive knee surgery that lasted more than eight hours after his freshman year of high school. He convinced his doctors to convert from quarterback to placeholder.
Not only has George Strait’s face been immortalized on a bronze plaque in the Country Music Hall of Fame, but now his likeness has been captured on the choicest of Halloween media: a pumpkin.
In honor of George’s Las Vegas Residency, AXS Studios commissioned artists Jon Neill to carve the King of Country’s face into a pumpkin–complete with his trademark cowboy hat–while George’s hits played in the background, including “We Really Shouldn’t Be Doing This” and “Write This Down.”
Watch the pumpkin transform into George in the 60-second clip below.
Happy Birthday to Da’ Coach Mike Ditka turning 80 today! Check out some classic Ditka below….
Towards the end of Ditka’s stint with the Bears, he and quaterback Jim Harbaugh did not see eye to eye. See them blow up at each other during(start video at 3:10) a game against the Vikings.
Looks like it might be kinda snowy around these parts come winter. The National Weather Service came out with its winter outlook earlier today, take a look at their forecast and map for precipitation below.
Wetter-than-average conditions are most likely in Alaska and Hawaii this winter, along with portions of the Northern Plains, Upper Mississippi Valley, the Great Lakes and parts of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.
Drier-than-average conditions are most likely for Louisiana, parts of Texas, Mississippi, Arkansas and Oklahoma as well areas of northern and central California.
The remainder of the U.S. falls into the category of equal chances for below-, near-, or above-average precipitation.
Temps for the winter look to be around average.
The greatest likelihood for warmer-than-normal conditions are in Alaska and Hawaii, with more modest probabilities for above-average temperatures spanning large parts of the remaining lower 48 from the West across the South and up the eastern seaboard.
The Northern Plains, Upper Mississippi Valley, and the western Great Lakes have equal chances for below-, near- or above-average temperatures.
No part of the U.S. is favored to have below-average temperatures this winter.
The Canadian Pacific Holiday train will be in Northeast Iowa this December.
The train will make it’s way to Charles City, Ossian, Clinton, and Davenport on December 7th. On December 8th it will chug it’s way to Marquette, Lansing and New Albin. Each stop will feature a musical performance by Meghan Patrick, Tanika Charles, and Kelly Prescott. Since 1999 the Canadian Pacific Holiday Train has raised millions of dollars and millions of pounds of food for food banks in North America.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Organizers of the popular summer bike ride across Iowa are cutting ties with its longtime sponsor, the Des Moines Register, amid backlash over the newspaper’s handling of a story.
The four staff members who work full-time running the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa resigned on Tuesday.
The group immediately launched a competing event, called Iowa’s Ride, that will be held next July during the same week that the Register’s ride had been scheduled.
It wasn’t immediately clear if the Register’s ride, known as RAGBRAI, would continue. The weeklong event draws thousands of cyclists from around the country and had been founded by Register employees in the 1970s.
A Gannett spokeswoman didn’t immediately respond to inquiries.
Carson King, the all around good guy who delivered a $3 million check to University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital last week is getting his own bobblehead. The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame is working with Carson King to sell the bobbleheads for $25. Five dollars from each sale with be donated to the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital. The bobbleheads will be shipped to buyers in January.
If clowns creep you out, you can probably relate to Arizona weather forecaster April Warnecke. April was giving the weather forecast on “Good Morning Arizona” last Monday when a clown walked onto the set with donuts. April walked away from the weather set and its green screen and onto the news set, followed by the clown, who couldn’t get April to face him, even though he had a box of donuts.
How about this for the ultimate best contest of all time? The great people at Smithfield Bacon are offering up a chance to get in on a one-million slice giveaway.
If Aric Almirola, who drives the number 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing, places first at Talladega Superspeedway next month, 10 lucky grand prize winners will receive 100,000 slices of Smithfield Bacon. That’s 6,250 packages per person. Works for me! You can register here: Free Bacon
Erik & Kathy had a chance to visit with 80’s hit maker and TV star Lousie Mandrell! She has a new album in stores now called “Playing Favorites”.
Here are a few details about the project.
(Nashville, TN) -There’s something magical about the musical marriage of a timeless song and a compelling voice, and nowhere is that more evident than on Louise Mandrell’s new album Playing Favorites. The 15-song collection includes her take on such well-loved country classics as “Crazy Arms,” “He Thinks I Still Care,” “You Don’t Know Me,” “Tennessee Waltz” and “Today I Started Loving You Again.” Produced by Nashville legend Buddy Cannon.
Playing Favorites is a return to the spotlight for Mandrell, who hasn’t released a new album in over 30 years. “A lot of people have asked if I’ve retired and I’d say, ‘No, I’ve been on hiatus’ because with my family if you say retired, they expect you to stay that way,” says the vivacious brunette, who became an international star working with siblings Barbara and Irlene on the television variety show “Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters.”
Longtime friend Clint Higham encouraged her to record the new album. With Playing Favorites, Mandrell brings a lifetime of experience to the project, infusing each song with a unique blend of passion and professionalism cultivated by years in the spotlight. With one listen, it is obvious her voice has retained all of its sultry warmth, and the relationship she has with these classic songs imbues the project with a soulfulness and emotional weight that resonates with listeners.
Working on this album was a labor of love for Mandrell because these songs are old friends with warm memories attached. Among the standards Mandrell puts her stamp on are the Conway Twitty classic “Hello Darlin'” and Johnny Cash’s staple “Ring of Fire.” Her friendships with both men and with other artists represented on the album make each song that much more special.
These days, Mandrell is enjoying a unique moment in her career. She’s both an established veteran with a wealth of experience and yet she also feels like a giddy new artist excited about the future. “I’m having a good time again. I’m extremely happy to be back,” she says with excitement.
Listen to the conversation below.
Hope you enjoyed the interview with Louise Mandrell! Enjoy a clip of the classic variety show Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell sisters!
A man took to Reddit to ask for advice after he says his wife called it a “disgusting idea” after he offered to pay his 22-year-old daughter $15 an hour to go to the gym. “My wife thinks this is a ‘disgusting idea,’ he wrote, “but I think I am helping her by replacing her shifts at her job with ‘shifts’ at the gym — and financially compensating this.” He says he made the offer because he has become “increasingly worried” by his daughter’s weight.
Former Iowa Hawkeye running back Derrick Mitchell Jr. died on Tuesday after sustaining major injuries in a car crash last Friday night in St. Louis. Mitchell Jr. was 24 years old. Hawkeye Coach Kirk Ferentz addressed the media yesterday, see the video below.
Winneshiek County Celebration of Life will be hosting the Corey Farley Band on Saturday Oct 26th at the Inwood Ballroom in Spillville!!! Doors open at 6pm, Cory will on stage at 8pm!. It’s a $30.00 donation to get in the door – your can get your tickets the night of the show!
Winneshiek County Celebration of Life will also be selling raffle tickets which can be purchased from Winneshiek County Celebration of Life committee members Tickets are $5.00 per ticket or get 6 for $20.00!
Cory Farley Band Concert & Dance Raffle Packages are as listed below!
Name: Welcome Friends Package
Iowa Rotocast Plastics – Grizzly 40 Cooler
Firemen’s Inn – Gift Certificates
Polashek’s Locker – Gift Certificate
Pulpit Rock Brewing Company – etched glasses & t-shirts
PIVO Brewery – Growler
Name: Family Togetherness Package
U-2 BBQ & Catering – your “choice of meat” roaster
Joyce Meyer – 11×14 Sunflower photo
Appearances Salon & Spa – gift basket and Airbnb weekend stay at Springer Shadyrest on Broadway
Blepta Studios – jewelry
Name: Ladies Spa Package
Hammel Jewelers – Diamond ring
Eclips Salon and Day Spa – “Bless Your Heart” facial with lip & hand treatment
Iowa Skin Care Medical Spa – “Med Spa” gift certificate
Hotel Winneshiek – gift certificates
Name: Cory Farley Signed Guitar
Washburn acoustic guitar — Played at event and signed by Cory Farley
TICKET locations:
Fidelity Bank & Trust – Calmar
Fidelity Bank & Trust – Ossian
PIVO Brewery & Blepta Studios – Calmar
Hovden Oil – Ridgeway
Margaret’s – Decorah
Eclips Salon & Day Spa – Decorah
Appearances Salon & Spa – Decorah
Hammel Jewelers – Decorah
Modish – Decorah
Viking Bank & Trust – Decorah
WCCOL Board members
WCCOL Friends
Winneshiek County Celebration of Life provides funding for mammogram screenings for non-insured or under-insured women in our area. They also have added fuel/food cards for community men and women who are in active treatment for cancer. Over the years they have helped THOUSANDS of your friends, family and neighbors!
CMT will be the home of a new game show, Nashville Squares, which will be hosted by Bob Saget and feature a bevy of country stars, including Tanya Tucker, Deana Carter, Jimmie Allen, Mitchell Tenpenny and more.
The tic-tac-toe series is a reboot of VH1’s Hip Hop Squares, which is a reboot of the iconic game show, Hollywood Squares. The paradigm of the trivia show consist of two contestants who utilizes advice from a panelist of celebrities to win a game of tic-tac-toe.
Celebrity contestants and squares include Bill Engvall, Caroline Rhea, Carson Cressley, Chris Sullivan, Deana Carter, Devin Dawson, Fortune Feimster, Gary Busey, Jana Kramer & Mike Caussin, Jimmie Allen, Kenya Moore, Kyle Busch, Mark Ballas & BC Jean, Marie Osmond, Melissa Peterman, Mickey Guyton, Mitchell Tenpenny, Sara Evans, Tanya Tucker and Ty Pennington.
CMT?s Nashville Squares will kick off with a two-episode premiere on Nov. 1 at 7 p.m. CT.
According to a new survey, 51 percent of Americans currently have duct tape holding something together in their house — and 37 percent are using it to patch up something on or in their car.
The survey also found that the average American is using duct tape right now as a temporary fix for seven things in their home — and admit that they will leave duct tape on that thing for eight full days before having it repaired the right way.
I’ve used duct tape to fix numerous things, including the door handle on my Grand Am which I had for many years. I used the standard gray initially, but my cousin in-law Jason put red on their to match the paint finish…Take a look! Duct tape gets it done!!
The Minnesota Vikings have struggled at times this year, especially their high priced QB Kirk Cousins. Fans are getting a little anxious, and want to see a big win involving the high priced Cousins. Some fans are so frustrated they are trying to sell Kirk Cousins social media sites! Check out the one listing below from a guy who is trying to sell Kirk on Facebook Marketplace.
Some of Kirk’s struggles may have been predicted this year….Check out the gender reveal video Kirk and his wife put on social media over the off season. He barley hits the target….
Halloween is coming up at the end of the month and if you’re helping your kids with costumes, superheroes and princesses are popular again this year. The National Retail Federation has released their annual list of the most popular costumes, with Spider-Man and Batman being the most popular superheroes, while princesses, including Frozen’s Elsa and Anna, will once again be big with girls. Of course, if you’re a traditionalist, they say witches, ghosts, vampires and pirates will also be popular again this year.
At our house, we don’t have our costumes on yet, but we are gearing up for Halloween! -EK
Check out this video from Chicago’s O’Hare Airport! An out of control catering truck goes around in circles! Quick thinking employees get it to stop before it hits a plane or someone. Take a look below!
Before his concert in Pittsburgh on Friday, TOBY KEITH presented wounded veteran Brandon Rumbaugh with a $16,000 all-terrain wheelchair. While serving in Afghanistan, Rumbaugh stepped on an I.E.D. as he was carrying a Marine to safety and lost both of his legs. Toby also gave Rumbaugh backstage passes to the show.
Reba McEntire will be honored with the Artist of a Lifetime award at the CMT Artists of the Year celebration on Oct. 16 at Nashville’s Schermerhorn Symphony Center.
“I have loved entertaining people since I was a little girl and after being in the music business more than 40 years, I’m still having so much fun,” says Reba. “For CMT to recognize me as the Artist of a Lifetime is pretty special.”
This year’s Artists of the Year celebration will honor five artists–Carrie Underwood, Dan + Shay, Kane Brown, Luke Combs and Thomas Rhett–and will feature surprise musical pairings and guests.
Merle Haggard received the inaugural Artist of a Lifetime award in 2014, followed by Kenny Rogers (2015), Shania Twain (2016) and Loretta Lynn (2018).
The Artists of the Year celebration will air on CMT on Oct. 16 at 7 p.m. CST.
GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP) — Areas of the northern Rocky Mountains looked more like mid-winter rather than early fall on Sunday as a snowstorm dumped record amounts of wind-driven snow that caused hazardous travel conditions and scattered power outages.
Winter storm warnings were posted for parts of western Montana, northern Idaho and northeast Washington. Snow also was forecast for areas in Wyoming, Utah, Oregon, Nevada and California.
The brunt of the storm hit Montana where up to 2 feet (61 centimeters) of snow fell Saturday in the mountains and a record 14 inches (35.5 centimeters) fell in Great Falls with snow still falling Sunday.
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock declared an emergency Sunday, allowing the state to mobilize resources to help affected areas.
“With an unprecedented winter storm throwing our state a surprise in September, state and local governments are working closely together to protect the health and safety of Montanans and our top priority is making sure that happens,” Bullock said in a statement. “Montanans should heed all warnings from state and local officials, travel safely, and be cautious during this time.”
Major interstates and highways remained open, but snow and ice covered many stretches of roadway in western Montana.
The storm was expected to wind down late Sunday and early Monday.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A Des Moines Register reporter who wrote about racist tweets posted years ago by an Iowa security guard is no longer employed by the Iowa newspaper because he also made offensive comments on social media.
Editor Carol Hunter wrote in a column posted online Thursday night that reporter Aaron Calvin “is no longer with the Register.”
The Register began investigating comments made by Calvin on Twitter after his story about Iowa security guard Carson King sparked outrage. The story profiled King, who gained national fame after he held a sign seeking beer money during an ESPN show and then promised to donate the more than $1 million that poured in to a children’s hospital.
In the story, Calvin noted King had posted two racist tweets more than seven years ago, when he was a teenager. People angered by the story found old tweets from Calvin that made offensive comments about race, gay marriage and other topics.
Calvin couldn’t be reached for comment. His Twitter account is no longer open to the public.
If you plan to go see Joaquin Phoenix’s upcoming “Joker” movie, better save the costumes for Halloween. A number of movie theater chains have banned people from attending the movie dressed as the Joker. Some have said that the film may have the potential to incite troubled individuals to commit mass shootings. Taking it a step further, the Aurora, Colorado theater where the mass shooting took place during the movie “The Dark Knight Rises” says it won’t be showing the movie at all.
Listen for the “Breakfast Rooster” between 6:00-7:00 AM, when he does his thing, be caller #5 and win a FREE Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Biscuit from our friends at Hardees!
We have a lot to giveaway! Wake up early and win from Hardees and KNEI Bluff Country!
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds made the declaration yesterday in Des Moines. Carson King has raised over a $1 Million for the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital.
King has come under heat over old tweets dug up by the Des Moines Register.
Carson King, who has helped raise over $1 million for the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital after his sign at the Cyclone-Hawkeye football game went viral, has apologized after a controversial tweets from 2011 were discovered. Anheuser-Busch has decided to cut ties with Carson King after the tweets were discovered. Anheuser-Busch released a statement yesterday you can see below. They are still going to honor their donation to the children’s hospital.
The Des Moines Register dug up the tweets during a routine back ground check while they were doing a story on Carson King. You can see their statement below.
Disney celebrated the first day of fall Monday (9/23) by releasing the new trailer for its upcoming animated film, “Frozen 2.”
This is the first full-length trailer for the anticipated sequel and reveals much more details about film’s plot.
“Frozen 2” will delve into how Elsa got her powers, following her through “enchanted forests and dark seas beyond Arendelle” as she seeks the answers.
The film’s description reads, in part, “The answers are calling her but also threatening her kingdom. Together with Anna, Kristoff, Olaf and Sven, she’ll face a dangerous but remarkable journey. In ‘Frozen,’ Elsa feared her powers were too much for the world. In ‘Frozen 2,’ she must hope they are enough.”
See the trailer below!
Parents get ready, “Frozen 2” will be in theaters November 22.
It was 19 years ago that the movie Remember The Titans was released. It’s probably one of the better football based movies. It starred Denzel Washington, Will Patton, and a young Hayden Panettiere. Whenever we had a movie day in one of my high school classes, this was always one of the choices. Enjoy some of clips of the movie below! -EK
A bus carrying the road crew for country singer Josh Turner crashed late Wednesday night in Shandon leaving one dead and seven injured. The bus was traveling eastbound on Highway 46 in San Luis Obispo County after finishing up a concert in Paso Robles and heading to a concert scheduled for tomorrow in Washington. Turner and his band were not on the passenger bus.
Firefighters said the driver left the roadway and went down an embankment. Cause of the accident not known at this time.
