Free Republic

Kris Kristofferson, an accomplished singer and songwriter who starred in A Star Is Born, has died at the age of 88. The multitalented entertainer, who was a country singer-songwriter and actor, died Saturday at his Maui, Hawaii home, his rep told People. The Why Me artist 'peacefully' passed away surrounded by relatives, his rep told the outlet. 'It is with a heavy heart that we share the news our husband/father/grandfather, Kris Kristofferson, passed away peacefully on Saturday, September 28 at home,' his family said in a statement, the outlet reported. 'We're all so blessed for our time with him. 'Thank...

Kris Kristofferson, who attained success as both a groundbreaking country music singer-songwriter and a Hollywood film and TV star, died Saturday at home in Maui, Hawaii. No cause of death was given, but he was described as passing away peacefully while surrounded by family. He was 88.

Although fans tend to remember bands and singers, there is an entire team behind each song, helping the musicians bring it to life. For stars like Kenny Rogers, Kenny Chesney, The Chicks, and The Marshall Tucker Band, they all have engineer Billy Sherrill to thank as he helped propel their careers into the spotlight. A legendary music engineer in Nashville, the music lover sadly passed away on September 10th at 77 years old. While born in Tennessee, Sherrill watched as his life took him to Kentucky as a young boy. Seeming to always have a love for music, the engineer...

The great country institution finally lost patience with the wayward star after his no-show of August 9, 1952.Hank Williams had been on thin ice with the organizers of Nashville’s already-fabled concert and broadcast institution, The Grand Ole Opry, when he pushed his luck too far on August 9, 1952. Williams was still a major recording star, but his wayward personal life and unreliable behavior were now leading to serious career recriminations. With his alcohol abuse sometimes getting the better of him, he had missed many appearances at the Opry before, as well as other concert engagements. In June, his movie...

Right wing protest song. Great production values.

The music community is mourning the loss of versatile singer, songwriter, and record producer James E. “Buzz” Cason, who passed away on Sunday at the age of 84. Known for crossing musical genres effortlessly, the founder of Nashville's original rock act, the Casuals, Cason's influence extended from the stage to the studio, stretching across a distinguished 60-year career. As reported by WSMV, Cason is hailed for his pivotal role in shaping the sound of Nashville, a feat acknowledged by Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum CEO Kyle Young. Young, paying tribute to the late artist's expansive career, said, "Buzz...

Country music icon Morgan Wallen was allegedly arrested and charged with three felony counts early Monday morning after an incident at Eric Church’s Nashville bar. Wallen, 30, was reportedly arrested in downtown Nashville after witnesses say he threw a chair off the sixth-story roof of Church’s Broadway-based Chief’s Bar, according to Billboard. Wallen’s attorney, Worrick Robinson allegedly confirmed his client’s arrest, saying that “At 10:53p Sunday evening Morgan Wallen was arrested in downtown Nashville for reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct. He is cooperating fully with authorities.” Two Metro Nashville Police Department officers were standing on the street below the bar...

March 17, 1973: A special evening with country music legend Merle Haggard in the East Room of the White House on St. Patrick's Day, 1973. Includes performances and a reading of a poem Haggard wrote for First Lady Pat Nixon on the occasion of her birthday. The program was filmed and produced by the Naval Photographic Center. The Naval Photographic Center White House Motion Film Unit Collection consists of motion film coverage of selected official activities of President Nixon filmed between 1969 and 1974.

On March 8, 1965, U.S. Marines landed on the beaches of Da Nang, sparking the first official engagement of American involvement in the Vietnam War. As the military presence escalated, hundreds of thousands of Americans protested. As television brought home images of war, a counterculture began to emerge. Just as the Beat Generation, or Beatniks, had rejected the prevailing social norms, this new breed, the hippy, saw themselves as “freaks” and were open to drugs and free love. Time magazine reported in July 1967 the hippie movement was “blooming in every major U.S. city from Boston to Seattle, from Detroit...

On this day fifty years ago, November 10th, 1973, Stringbean Akeman frailed his final phrases on a Vega #9 five-string banjo, did his signature hand wave and hat flip one last time, and stepped off the Opry stage and into the history books in what would come to signal a change for the Opry itself, country music as an industry, and even country music as an institution. Before the night was out, Stringbean Akeman and his wife Estelle (Stanfill) were shot by two 23-year old cousins who’d come to know of Stringbean’s habit of keeping large amounts of cash on...

Patsy Cline was born on the 8th of September, 1932, in Winchester, Virginia. As her words attest, she is a country music great: “You want me to act like we’ve never kissed, you want to forget; pretend we’ve never met , and I’ve tried and I’ve tried, but I haven’t yet… You walk by, and I fall to pieces.” “I’m gonna walk a little bit of dog.” “Oh, I offended you with my opinion? You should hear the the ones I keep to myself.” “Carnegie Hall was real fabulous, but you know, it ain’t as big as the Grand Ole...

Country music often expresses the heart of America. The left hates the heart of America ("the fruited plain," as Rush Limbaugh used to call it), so the left hates most country music. The woke mob's attacks against Jason Aldean and his hit song "Try That in a Small Town," as country superstar Lee Greenwood has noted, have "struck directly through the heart of country music." Greenwood added: "Cancel culture mob attacked Jason Aldean. They came for 'God Bless the USA.' But they can't cancel all of us."Jason's song has been denounced as "racist" by the progressive elites. The New York...

A new blue-collar political anthem is taking the Internet by storm just days after hitting the web. Virginia native Oliver Anthony's song, "Rich Men North of Richmond," is a twangy, soulful bluegrass song detailing the frustration of a blue-collar man fed up with the leadership in Washington.

The addictive track would become Williams’ first hit soon after it was released in June 1947.There are a lot of moments packed into Hank Williams’ too-brief career when the singer and songwriter would change country music forever. But the first, the one that divides the genre (and American music history) into its pre- and post-Hank eras, took place on April 21, 1947, when Williams recorded “Move It On Over,” his debut single for MGM. The addictive track, which seamlessly blended a velvety Western swing with the visceral Deep South blues that formed Williams’ musical backbone, would become Williams’ first hit...

A pivotal album for Bobbie Gentry, ‘Fancy’ caused controversy but found the country icon reconnecting with her songwriting muse.The year is 1969. Rick Hall, maverick record producer and owner of the FAME studio in Muscle Shoals, is working with Bobbie Gentry for the first time. He asks her: could she write a song for this new album – which would be released, in April 1970, as Fancy – to compare with “Ode To Billie Joe”? “I don’t know, Rick, but I’ll try,” Bobbie replies. Two weeks later, she presented “Fancy” to him. It certainly did live up to “Ode To...

Country singer Kelsea Ballerini opened the CMT Music Awards with a tribute to victims of a school shooting while sharing in that community’s grief, then danced alongside drag artists as states across the country consider legally limiting drag show performances.

Country singer Maren Morris joined a host of Tennessee drag queens Monday night in Nashville to protest recent state legislation aimed at barring children from drag shows. Morris used the occasion to dare local authorities to arrest her, saying she took her toddler to meet some drag queens earlier that day.

Love him or loathe him, country music superstar Morgan Wallen has a dedicated following, and with the recent release of his new album, One Thing at a Time, his fans have made their devotion known. The album, which has a whopping 36 tracks, debuted at the top of the Billboard 200 album charts, and Wallen set a record with every single one of the 36 tracks appearing on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.To put it in perspective, the previous record holder, rapper Drake, placed 27 songs on the chart at once in 2018, while Taylor Swift had 26 songs on...

The track and its crossover brought him to a whole new level of fame and influence.Perhaps Hank Williams’ most covered song, “Cold, Cold Heart” also brought the singer/songwriter huge success soon after it was released in early 1951. The plaintive ballad didn’t take long to become a cross-genre hit, in spite of its unabashedly folksy style: a young Tony Bennett released a plush, orchestral take on the tune the same year that nearly matched the original in reach and acclaim, prompting everyone from Louis Armstrong to (much later) Norah Jones to follow suit. Williams’ ode to his wife Audrey and...

Maren Morris got emotional Friday after fulfilling her “decade-long dream” of appearing as a guest on “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and apologized for the way the country music world treated the LGBTQ community, according to the Hollywood Reporter. “I’ve done some cool s–t. #DragRace is rivaling it all. Getting my jacket framed next to my Grammy. It is DONE,” tweeted the star. In the post-episode “Untucked” clip, Morris, 32, got teary as she spoke to the contestants of the reality show. “Coming from country music and its relationship with LGBTQ+ members, I just want to say I’m sorry,” said Morris. “And...