The July 25-26 festival is no longer mentioned at the festival’s website. What happened? Continue reading…The Boot – Country Music News, Music Videos and Songs
Month: February 2026
The July 25-26 festival is no longer mentioned at the festival’s website. What happened? Continue reading…Country Music News – Taste of Country
Astoria, Queens, is home to a diverse and thriving food scene. Here are some favorite eateries chosen by someone from the historic New York City neighborhood.
Mashed – Fast Food, Celebrity Chefs, Grocery, Reviews
Ashland Craft has released a new duet version of her heartfelt track “Momma Don’t Pray Like She Used To” with Chase Rice. Originally featured on her 2025 Dive Bar Beauty Queen album, the song now gains a fresh perspective with Rice joining in on the reflective country ballad.
The songstress tells Country Now that after years of touring together, collaborating with the North Carolina native on this track felt like a natural next step.
“I’d spent so many miles on the road with Chase over the years, but this song gave us the chance to slow down and really connect over where we come from and how those early chapters shape who we are. Having Chase bring his voice and perspective to ‘Momma Don’t Pray Like She Used To’ felt incredibly natural,” Craft shared.
They each draw from their upbringing and the people who shaped them, coming together through a shared understanding of their backgrounds, something they’ve bonded over while on the road. With Chase Rice’s voice complementing Craft’s warm and rich vocals, the duet feels like a look into two journeys that have intertwined on the road and in life.
“Between the stories, the shared Carolina roots, and his honest approach to songwriting, he brought a depth that made this version feel both familiar and brand new,” she added.
The song, penned by Craft with Jess Grommet, Willie Morrison and Corey Elizabeth Grogan, is a tender reflection on the quiet ways a mother cares and prays for her children. Craft first takes listeners back in time, describing how her own mother would read Bible verses every night and pray hard for the safety of her child.
Rice joins in to lead the third verse where he adds to the perspective of a grown adult who has come to realize that their mother’s concern during her child’s upbringing has shifted to more “Thank You’s” rather than seeking support and guidance in her prayers.
“These days it’s a little more “Thank you, Lord”/ That she asked you for some help/ ‘Cause these days I’m a little more put together, Lord/ ‘Stead of putting her through hell/ Every night it’s still “Amen” ’cause that’s what mommas do/ Oh, that’s what mommas do/ Oh, but momma don’t pray like she used to, no,” they deliver on the chorus.
Regardless, they still recognize that a mother’s guidance and prayers remain steady through all walks of life. “Momma Don’t Pray Like She Used To” is full of gratitude and warmth. Rice and Craft effortlessly take the heartfelt story to the next level as their voices blend together, capturing the evolving bond between a mother and child.
Today’s release was accompanied by a music video starring Ashland Craft, Chase Rice, and Rice’s beloved dog, Jack. The trio relaxes in a retro-style living room, flipping through old photo albums, sharing laughs, and swapping memories that bring the song’s heartfelt message to life. Click above to watch.
The post Ashland Craft and Chase Rice Team Up for Emotional Reworking of ‘Momma Don’t Pray Like She Used To’ appeared first on Country Now.
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The NFL presented its major awards for the 2025 season on Thursday night, and I was honored to again be part of the 50-member panel chosen by the Associated Press to vote on its All-Pro team and season awards. I’ve been able to do this for the last four years, and the ballot has expanded in that time to now have us voting for a top five on each of the eight major awards: MVP, Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year, Coach of the Year, Assistant Coach of the Year, Comeback Player of the Year and Defensive Rookie of the Year. I like the idea of transparency in these kinds of awards votes, so I’m sharing my ballot publicly here and trying to explain my rationale for voting as I did. As usual, there were some awards where my voting closely mirrored the overall top five, and others where I was more of an outlier than I’d probably like to be. Any time you’re judging players at multiple positions across a broad spectrum of successful and not-so-successful teams, you’ll get a wide range of interpretations regarding who the best players and coaches are. It’s also important to note these are regular-season awards. Ballots were submitted the day after the season ended, so playoff success has no bearing. MVP: Rams QB Matthew Stafford Top five in voting: Stafford, Drake Maye, Josh Allen, Christian McCaffrey, Trevor LawrenceMy ballot: Stafford, Maye, Myles Garrett, Jared Goff, Jaxon Smith-Njigba A few things here. First, I continue to be confused that a voting panel of the same 50 people on All-Pro and awards ballots can have decidedly different takes on who is the best between those two. For first-team All-Pro quarterback, Stafford beat Maye by a 31-18 margin. For this MVP, the same panel voted Stafford over Maye 24-23. A year ago, this panel voted Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson as first-team All-Pro at quarterback while Buffalo’s Josh Allen as the MVP. I just think the two awards are too close to have different outcomes. If Player A is the better quarterback in direct competition, it’s hard to say Player B was a more valuable player. “Valuable” leaves it open to some interpretation, so some will take valuable as “more integral to the team’s success.” Some argued that Stafford, with elite receivers in Puka Nacua and Davante Adams and a smart offensive head coach in Sean McVay, had a stronger supporting cast than Maye, but those factors contribute to the QB decision the same as MVP, in my opinion. I see both sides of the overall debate, as I laid out in my All-Pro ballot last month. Stafford had 12 more touchdown passes than any other quarterback, the largest such margin since Peyton Manning threw for 55 in 2013. Also, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels was the NFL Assistant Coach of the Year, so Maye had good help there. In our voting system, a first-place vote for MVP carries 10 points and a second-place vote gets five, so the first-place votes really matter. Stafford won the voting points by a 366-361 margin, which means a single outlier first-place vote like the one for Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert could shift the final outcome – and did! As for my top five, I wanted to make it clear it shouldn’t be “the top five quarterbacks,” so after the top two, I made sure to include my pick for Defensive Player of the Year, who really should be in yearly consideration for the overall MVP. Offensive Player of the Year: Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba Top five in voting: Smith-Njigba, McCaffrey, Nacua, Bijan Robinson, MayeMy ballot: Smith-Njigba, Nacua, Robinson, James Cook, McCaffrey With the MVP becoming mostly a quarterback award, voters have offset that by seemingly reserving this one for the best non-quarterback. It’s not written that way anywhere, but the voting plays out like that. The voting was divided enough here that no player got more than 14 votes out of 50, and I thought Smith-Njigba was the clear choice, the best at his position and contributing hugely to a top-five offense. I have McCaffrey lower than most voters. While he kept the 49ers winning when everything around him seemed to be injured, I thought his production statistically wasn’t as good as the two backs I had ahead of him. Not only did Robinson lead the NFL in yards from scrimmage and finish with 172 more yards than McCaffrey, but he did it on 47 fewer touches. Defensive Player of the Year: Browns EDGE Myles Garrett Top five in voting: Garrett, Will Anderson, Micah Parsons, Nik Bonitto, Aidan HutchinsonMy ballot: Garrett, Anderson, Parsons, Burns, Hutchinson This was the opposite of OPOY, a unanimous and easy selection since Garrett set the NFL record with 23 sacks. I was pleased to have four of my top five make the actual top five, in nearly the correct order. Choosing Burns over Bonitto was largely on production since Burns had 2.5 more sacks and eight more tackles for loss, with one more forced fumble and one more fumble recovery. Those two were close enough that you can make a case for either, and obviously, Bonitto contributed to a greater team success in Denver than Burns did in New York. Coach of the Year: Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel Top five in voting: Vrabel, Liam Coen, Mike Macdonald, Ben Johnson, Kyle ShanahanMy ballot: Coen, Shanahan, Vrabel, McDonald, Johnson. Again, it’s cool to have my top five as the top five. Vrabel edged Coen 19-16 in terms of first-place votes. This award is generally seen as “success above expectation,” and both were stellar in that aspect. I valued what Coen was able to do as a first-time head coach more than what Vrabel did as someone in his first year with a new team, but with considerable head coaching experience. Both flipped the script on the identity of their franchises in a single season, never an easy thing to do. I think what Shanahan did to win consistently despite losing so many key players to injury throughout the season was commendable. [Related: Takeaways from NFL Honors] Assistant Coach of the Year: Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels Top five in voting: McDaniels, Broncos DC Vance Joseph, Vikings DC Brian Flores, Seahawks OC Klint Kubiak, Eagles DC Vic FangioMy ballot: McDaniels, Rams DC Chris Shula, Kubiak, Flores, 49ers DC Robert Saleh. This closely mirrored the head coach voting, with the New England guy winning 17-10 on first-place votes here. I thought the Patriots’ and Maye’s emergence on offense was a huge story, so this is well-deserved. I dinged Denver’s defense a bit for tying for the fourth-fewest takeaways in the NFL, but Joseph had a top-five defense in most other respects. You almost always see these honors go to coordinators, so I’m a little amused/impressed to see a vote cast for Bills offensive line coach Aaron Kromer. (Buffalo did have the league’s No. 1 rushing attack, but also finished 21st in sack percentage.) Comeback Player of the Year: 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey Top five in voting: McCaffrey, Hutchinson, Dak Prescott, Trevor Lawrence, Stefon DiggsMy ballot: McCaffrey, Hutchinson, Prescott, Diggs, Chris Olave. Another easy call with McCaffrey getting 31 of 50 votes. The AP last year added the stipulation that this award is essentially intended to reward a player coming back from missing games due to injury, rather than their own mediocrity. It’s not just a most improved award. In retrospect, Lawrence missed seven games in 2024 and had a great year in leading the Jaguars to a division title, so he should be on my ballot somewhere. Offensive Rookie of the Year: Panthers WR Tetairoa McMillan Top five in voting: McMillan, Tyler Shough, TreVeyon Henderson, Jaxson Dart, Emeka Egbuka.My ballot: Dart, Henderson, McMillan, Shough, Egbuka So, it turns out I was the only voter out of 50 to have Dart first here. I wasn’t expecting that, but I simply thought Dart’s overall season, with 24 total touchdowns despite losing his best receiver and back for much of the year, put him ahead of Shough. McMillan had a great season for Carolina, helping them to a surprise division title, but his yards (1,014) would have ranked fifth in 2024 and his touchdowns (seven) would have tied for fourth, so it seemed less remarkable beyond edging Egbuka for best rookie receiver. Defensive Rookie of the Year: Browns LB Carson Schwesinger Top five in voting: Schwesinger, Nick Emmanwori, James Pearce, Xavier Watts, Abdul CarterMy ballot: Pearce, Schwesinger, Watts, Carter, Nik Scourton Here I go again, as one of just two voters to have Pearce at the top of my ballot. Pearce’s 10.5 sacks were five more than any other rookie and a huge part of Atlanta’s defense taking a big step forward. Schwesinger is deserving with 50 more tackles than any other rookie, 2.5 sacks and two interceptions – a little of everything. It was a close call for me. I’m more disappointed in leaving Emmanwori out, which is a clear oversight given all he did for Seattle’s defense.Latest Sports News from FOX Sports
The Rock the Country festival stop in Anderson, South Carolina has been canceled due to “unforeseen circumstances,” coming on the heels of co-headliner Shinedown pulling out of the event.
On Friday morning, Shinedown shared a statement across their official social media accounts:
“Shinedown is everyone’s band. We feel that we have been given a platform to bring all people together through the power of music and song. We have one boss, and it is everyone in the audience. Our band’s purpose is to unite, not divide. With that in mind, we have made the decision that we will not be playing the Rock the Country Festival.”
“We know that this decision will create difference of opinion. But we do not want to participate in something we believe will create further division. And to our fans, thank you for supporting and believing in us. We love and appreciate you always.”
Following Shinedown’s departure, the festival reportedly emailed ticketholders notifying them of the cancellation and offering the option to transfer tickets to a different Rock the Country date or receive a full refund.
Shinedown is now the fourth act to withdraw from the festival, joining Ludacris, whose team clarified to Rolling Stone that “lines got crossed and he wasn’t supposed to be on there,” as well as Carter Faith and Morgan Wade, who pulled out without issuing formal statements.
Despite the Anderson cancellation, Rock the Country is still scheduled to make stops in seven cities across the U.S.:
- Bellville, TX — Austin County Fairgrounds, May 1–2, 2026
- Bloomingdale, GA — Ottawa Farms, May 29–30, 2026
- Sioux Falls, SD — W.H. Lyon Fairgrounds, June 27–28, 2026
- Ashland, KY — Boyd County Fairgrounds, July 10–11, 2026
- Hastings, MI — Barry Expo Center, August 8–9, 2026
- Ocala, FL — Florida Horse Park, August 28–29, 2026
- Hamburg, NY — Erie County Fairgrounds, September 11–12, 2026
Lineups vary by city and feature artists such as Kid Rock (co-founder of the festival), Jelly Roll, Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton, Creed, Brooks & Dunn, Riley Green, Miranda Lambert, Hank Williams Jr., Jon Pardi, Ella Langley, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Brantley Gilbert, Treaty Oak Revival, Gavin Adcock, Nelly, and more.
“It’s this simple. Rock The Country isn’t just a music festival; it’s a movement,” Kid Rock said in a previous statement. “In 2026, as America celebrates its 250th anniversary, this is a place for hard-working, God-fearing patriots to gather as one and celebrate freedom, music, and the party of the year.”
“Rock The Country was built to honor the communities that don’t always get the spotlight, but show up with heart every single time,” Nathan Baugh, CEO and Partner of Peachtree Entertainment, added. “As we look ahead to 2026 and America’s 250th anniversary, we are raising the bar across the entire tour with bigger lineups, more intentional fan experiences, and meaningful investments in comfort and production,” added Shane Quick, President of Live Events. “This is not just a tour. It is a celebration of the people, places, and music that define this country.”
The post Fourth Artist Backs Out Of Rock the Country Tour, Anderson Festival Canceled appeared first on Country Now.
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Remember how the lyrics of “Opalite” took shots at Travis Kelce’s ex?
Well, the music video takes things even further.
Taylor Swift dropped the star-studded video, telling an unusual love story.
“Garbage is still garbage” is about more than just his ex. She’s putting her own ex on blast, too.
The ‘Opalite’ music video is out!
On Friday, February 6, Taylor released her music video for “Opalite.”
Though The Life of a Showgirl received mixed reviews, we would argue that “Opalite” was one of the better tracks on the album. (It was also apparently Travis’ favorite)
Now, before you go searching YouTube for the music video, this is a little different from almost every music video release from the past 20 years.
Taylor released the “Opalite” music video on Spotify and on Apple Music. Those are both relatively popular music streaming options, but seldom anyone’s first stop for music videos.
Whatever her reason, the music video is out there — and, to the delight of Swifties, it’s full of messages.
Taylor Swift has released the music video for ‘Opalite’ on Spotify and Apple Music.
— Pop Base (@popbase.tv) February 6, 2026 at 8:11 AM
The video is filled with 1990s imagery, including sad ’80s cabinetry, colorful ’90s retail stores, and some painful fashion.
Taylor shares the screen with actor Domhnall Gleeson. He’s not the only familiar face who shows up, however.
The two are living out a love story, but are looking for love in all of the wrong places.
Taylor pairs herself with a large rock, and we do not mean a diamond ring. Domhnall’s character matches up with a small cactus.
If this sounds like deliberate shade at Taylor and Travis’ respective exes (Joe Alwyn and Kayla Nicole), you’re in good company. Just about everyone believes this to be the case.
Garbage is still garbage.
— the7wivesofRH⸆⸉ ❤️🔥 (@the7wivesofrh.bsky.social) February 6, 2026 at 8:48 AM
‘Garbage is still garbage’ OUCH!
Ultimately, the music video for “Opalite” shows Taylor and Domhnall get together.
“Rock and Cactus married in a small, intimate ceremony after meeting through Opalite,” a message explains on the screen.
More quotably, the screen then warns: “Garbage is still garbage.”
That is true! Though it’s not a particularly nice way to refer to a cactus.
It is also not a nice way to refer to human beings. But that seems to be the point.
Additional appearances in the “Opalite” music video should sound familiar to Swifties.
Graham Norton, Cillian Murphy, Greta Lee, Jodie Turner-Smith, and Lewis Capaldi all have a part to play.
Why? Because, in October 2025, Domhnall boldly asked to be in a music video. They were all there, seated in a row, for a Graham Norton interview at the time.
(He has been in three Star Wars films, one of which was pretty good, in an evil woman’s wizard book film adaptations, and on one of the best episodes of Black Mirror)
You miss 100% of the shots that you don’t take. Taylor not only granted his wish, but included everyone else.
It’s all (well, mostly) about Travis
In addition to being Travis’ favorite track from the album, “Opalite” appears to have been about Travis all along.
Opal is his birthstone. Opalite can be made by humans — just like happiness itself.
(You could really stretch and connect it to “Wood,” given that opalized wood exists, but … that is probably not intentional)
Honestly, it’s pretty normal to love someone so much that the exes who hurt them feel like your own personal enemies.
Most of us just don’t have Taylor’s platform or power. That’s probably a good thing.
Taylor Swift ‘Opalite’ Video Destroys Travis Kelce’s Ex (And … was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.
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His departure really changed the band. Continue reading…Country Music News – Taste of Country
That brings the total number of artists who’ve dropped out of the eight-date festival series to four. Continue reading…The Boot – Country Music News, Music Videos and Songs
That brings the total number of artists who’ve dropped out of the eight-date festival series to four. Continue reading…Country Music News – Taste of Country