Tucker Wetmore celebrated his third consecutive chart-topping single, “Brunette,” on Tuesday afternoon in Nashville, surrounded by the songwriters behind the hit.
Written by Chase McGill, Josh Miller, Blake Pendergrass and Chris LaCorte, who also produced the track, “Brunette” marks Wetmore’s third No. 1 at country radio, following “Wind Up Missin’ You” and “3,2,1.” LaCorte was unable to make it back to Nashville for the celebration due to travel issues, but he was there in spirit.
Ahead of the No. 1 celebration at BMI’s Nashville office, Wetmore opened up about his first reaction to “Brunette,” while the songwriters reflected on the track’s creation and how it ultimately made its way to Wetmore.
Photo Back Row L-R: MCA’s Damon Moberly, BMI’s Leslie Roberts, UMPG’s Missy Roberts, Hang Your Hat’s Jake Gear, Studio Bank’s Kari Barnhart, Back Blocks Music’s Rakiyah Marshall, Concord’s Matt Turner; Front Row L-R: Chase McGill (BMI), Josh Miller (BMI), Tucker Wetmore (BMI), Blake Pendergrass (BMI); Photo Credit Katie Mathis for BMI
“I love this song because it was weird, honestly. It was different. I’ve never heard anything like it. And right off the bat, I was like immediately I have to have this,” Wetmore shared.
“And I mean, I relate to it in a sense of the hair color thing,” he added with a laugh, “but I’ll let them talk about the creation process and where their minds were.”
McGill, Miller and Pendergrass explained that “Brunette” was born out of their desire to break the rules and experiment with something they hadn’t tried before. They challenged themselves to see if they could create a hit around a 220 BPM bluegrass-inspired sound, cycling through dozens of ideas before returning to the “Brunette” title. The song began to take shape when McGill played the distinctive riff that became a defining element of the track.
From there, the writers said the song came together quickly, becoming the fastest song they had ever written. While they had no idea what would ultimately happen with the song when they wrote it, they were thrilled to see it land with Wetmore.
As members of their teams, publishers, Wetmore’s record label, friends and family gathered inside for the official celebration and No.1 presentation, Wemore reflected on his journey in Nashville and thanked everyone for being with him on this ride.
“Music is a weird thing. It’s a crazy thing. It’s a beautiful thing,” he stated. “I think there should be no rules behind what we are able to create or what we think is good when we’re alone in our truck or what we get excited to share with our buddies. There should be no parameters on music. And I think this song is a huge testament of that exactly.”
Tucker Wetmore; Photo by Chase Foster
Addressing the songwriters, Wetmore continued, “Y’all are so good. Some of the best in Nashville. I moved here in 2020. I didn’t know anybody. I didn’t know anything. And the fact that I’m sitting on the stage with this amount of talent… it’s just a blessing. You guys, not only are just good songwriters, great songwriters, but you guys are better humans…Thank you for trusting me with this song.”
Wetmore is in the midst of his Brunette World Tour and will return to the road on Aug. 13.
In the days leading up to Alaska’s primary election, two super PACs have poured nearly $2 million into the U.S. Senate race.
The twist: Alaska’s unusual election format is likely to negate the spending campaigns’ efforts to tear support away from the front-runners.
With Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan and Democratic former Rep. Mary Peltola comfortably leading in both fundraising and polls ahead of the Aug. 18 primary, outside groups are directing much of their cash toward secondary candidates in an apparent attempt to manipulate Alaska’s top-four ranked-choice system before the general election in November.
“People are kind of trying to pull the wool over their eyes,” said Deb Otis, the senior director of research and policy at FairVote, a nonprofit that advocates for ranked-choice voting and proportional representation.
Outside groups have become “pretty sophisticated” in the level of “gamesmanship” they deploy, she said. While those tactics often work in states with conventional election formats, Alaska’s system is built differently and may be harder to exploit.
“In most elections around the country, it really is effective,” Otis told OpenSecrets. “If you can prop up a lesser known candidate, they really can take away votes and deny the election to a front-runner. But with ranked-choice voting, when voters get a backup choice, the possibility to alter the outcomes is much narrower, so I think they’ll be disappointed with the impact here.”
All of the spending by the two super PACs took place in July and August, after the Federal Election Commission’s pre-primary reporting cutoff. And because Alaska’s anti-dark-money law doesn’t apply to federal races, voters won’t learn the original sources of most of that money until well after ballots are cast – if ever.
Fair Deal Alaska formed July 28 and within days began spending, dumping more than $768,000 into the race through Aug. 8. Most was spent in support of two frequent candidates from out of state: the Green Party’s Richard Grayson – who told OpenSecrets that running for public office is merely a “hobby” – and Democrat Carol Hafner.
Another super PAC, Right For Alaska, poured $1.2 million into the race between July 30 and Aug. 7, with much of it backing two other minor candidates.
“I think it’s a waste of money,” said Grayson, the beneficiary of more than $300,000 in outside spending by Fair Deal Alaska. Citing rules that prevent super PACs and candidates from coordinating, he added, “I can’t call them and tell them to stop it.”
In a clear sign of their broader strategic motives, Fair Deal Alaska also spent nearly $152,000 on negative ads opposing Peltola while Right For Alaska spent nearly $574,000 to oppose Sullivan. The race, which Democrats view as central to their aim of claiming control of the Senate, is rated as a toss-up by the Cook Political Report.
“I wonder if these tactics are just being carried over from organizations that have worked in other states, where this is a more well-established tactic,” Otis said.
None of the candidates supported by those super PACs reported any significant fundraising activity to the FEC. That leaves the money race dominated by the two heavyweights: Peltola raised $18.5 million and held $4.6 million in cash on hand, while Sullivan took in $11.7 million with a war chest of nearly $7.3 million, according to pre-primary filings through July 29.
How top-four voting complicates super PAC strategy
Alaska operates under a nonpartisan top-four system, placing all primary candidates on a single ballot regardless of party affiliation. The top four advance to the general election, which uses ranked-choice voting. In that system, voters rank candidates by preference. If no candidate earns an immediate majority, the lowest-performing candidate is eliminated and that person’s votes are redistributed to the voters’ next choice until a candidate clears the majority threshold.
The super PAC surge is intended to foster strategic vote-splitting. The more candidates on the ballot who appeal to the same ideological base, the greater the potential to dilute a front-runner’s support.
“The Republicans – I don’t guess, I know – they would like to see Sen. Sullivan on the ballot with Mary Peltola and two Democrats or two liberals,” Grayson said.
Such a maneuver typically doesn’t work as well in a ranked-choice system, Otis said.
“If one of these lesser-known candidates makes it into the top-four candidates and goes on to the general election, it looks like the hope here is that those lesser-known candidates will siphon votes away from one of the front-runners,” she said.
But, Otis continued, voters who place an underdog No. 1 on their ballots tend to favor a more prominent candidate as a second or third choice.
“Even if you do get your candidate into the general election, and you get some substantial share of voters to vote for them, most of those voters will rank a front-runner as a backup choice,” she added. “You’re not taking votes away in the same way that gamers can do in other states.”
Late spending keeps donors hidden
That hasn’t stopped the super PACs from pouring in big bucks in a relatively short period of time: During the 10-day window between July 30 and Aug. 8, Fair Deal Alaska and Right For Alaska combined to spend nearly $2 million.
Fair Deal Alaska began its spending spree two days after it formed as a quarterly filer with the Federal Election Commission. That timeline matters. Under FEC rules, quarterly filers must submit a pre-primary report covering spending through the 20th day before the primary that wasn’t included in the previous quarterly report.
For the Aug. 18 Alaska primary, the 20-day cutoff was July 29 – the day before the group’s first expenditure. While the super PAC must file 24-hour reports for its independent expenditures that aggregate $1,000 or more after that day, it will not have to identify its funders until well after the election.
And while state law requires disclosure of the “true source” of contributions greater than $2,000 within 24 hours, that requirement does not apply to federal races, which operate under FEC rules.
“It certainly is [timed] so they don’t have to release their donors ahead of the election,” Otis said.
Fair Deal Alaska is headquartered in a Wasilla office building that also houses a gun shop and two medical training facilities. A sign in a window visible on Google Street View advertises virtual office and mail services. OpenSecrets reached out to the super PAC’s treasurer and custodian of records, Sam Praytor, but did not immediately receive a response.
A bit more information exists about the money behind the other super PAC spending heavily on the race’s underdogs: Right For Alaska formed March 23 and is based in Hudson, Wisconsin. Its only disclosed contribution so far is a $100,000 donation on March 30 from William Harris, a retiree in Lexington, Mass. The address Harris listed in FEC records matches one used by the William H. Harris Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports higher education and medical research and disbursed $3.6 million in 2024, IRS filings show. OpenSecrets reached out to the super PAC’s treasurer, Thomas Datwyler, and to the email address listed in the foundation’s IRS filing for comment but did not immediately receive responses from either. Datwyler has served in a similar role for numerous other political entities, has been finedthousands of dollars for breaking FEC rules and was accused of being the “shadow treasurer” for the re-election bid for former Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.). FEC records also show a Thomas Datwyler of Hudson, Wisconsin, as a frequent donor to Republican-aligned groups.
Of Right For Alaska’s $1.2 million in spending through Aug. 7, nearly $574,000 went to oppose Sullivan with $410,000 backing Republican Gerald Heikes and nearly $219,000 to support Earl “Skip” Southworth of the Alaskan Party – the successor to the right-leaning Alaskan Independence Party. An Earl Southworth of Dutch Harbor, Alaska, donated to Democratic nominee Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign in 2024 and to Democratic state Sen. Forrest Dunbar a decade earlier, FEC records show. OpenSecrets reached out to Heikes and Southworth but did not immediately receive responses from either.
Fair Deal Alaska started spending on July 30, pouring roughly $17,000 into mailers supporting Grayson and Hafner along with $34,000 into those opposing Peltola. Its largest expenditures came the next day: a $275,000 investment in media placement and production that consisted of $137,500 to back both Grayson and Hafner. In a statement to OpenSecrets, Hafner said she was “totally unaware” of any super PAC interest in her candidacy prior to the spending, adding that she has no involvement in its messaging, which she hypothesized was taken from her website without her knowledge.
Grayson said he has fielded calls from residents blaming him for mailers sent by Fair Deal Alaska, with one leaving a voicemail demanding removal from his mailing list “because my postcard has lies in it.”
He also shared a video ad to YouTube produced by the group that includes an image of him with Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) alongside text saying he “will stand with Bernie and AOC” followed by an image of a red X covering President Donald Trump’s face. He characterized it as a “bizarre AI video ad” from a “mysterious” super PAC.
“There’s no false claims in it,” Grayson said. “The ad was not false advertising. I guess it’s the kind of advertising I would put if I were a serious candidate and had money.”
This article was originally published by OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that tracks money in politics. View the original article.
Mailers from Fair Deal Alaska, a PAC that is spending to promote U.S. Senate candidate Carol Hafner over former congresswoman Mary Peltola, are showing up in Alaskans’ mailboxes in August 2026. (Photo by Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)
In the days leading up to Alaska’s primary election, two super PACs have poured nearly $2 million into the U.S. Senate race.
The twist: Alaska’s unusual election format is likely to negate the spending campaigns’ efforts to tear support away from the front-runners.
With Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan and Democratic former Rep. Mary Peltola comfortably leading in both fundraising and polls ahead of the Aug. 18 primary, outside groups are directing much of their cash toward secondary candidates in an apparent attempt to manipulate Alaska’s top-four ranked-choice system before the general election in November.
“People are kind of trying to pull the wool over their eyes,” said Deb Otis, the senior director of research and policy at FairVote, a nonprofit that advocates for ranked-choice voting and proportional representation.
Outside groups have become “pretty sophisticated” in the level of “gamesmanship” they deploy, she said. While those tactics often work in states with conventional election formats, Alaska’s system is built differently and may be harder to exploit.
“In most elections around the country, it really is effective,” Otis told OpenSecrets. “If you can prop up a lesser known candidate, they really can take away votes and deny the election to a front-runner. But with ranked-choice voting, when voters get a backup choice, the possibility to alter the outcomes is much narrower, so I think they’ll be disappointed with the impact here.”
All of the spending by the two super PACs took place in July and August, after the Federal Election Commission’s pre-primary reporting cutoff. And because Alaska’s anti-dark-money law doesn’t apply to federal races, voters won’t learn the original sources of most of that money until well after ballots are cast – if ever.
Fair Deal Alaska formed July 28 and within days began spending, dumping more than $768,000 into the race through Aug. 8. Most was spent in support of two frequent candidates from out of state: the Green Party’s Richard Grayson – who told OpenSecrets that running for public office is merely a “hobby” – and Democrat Carol Hafner.
Another super PAC, Right For Alaska, poured $1.2 million into the race between July 30 and Aug. 7, with much of it backing two other minor candidates.
“I think it’s a waste of money,” said Grayson, the beneficiary of more than $300,000 in outside spending by Fair Deal Alaska. Citing rules that prevent super PACs and candidates from coordinating, he added, “I can’t call them and tell them to stop it.”
In a clear sign of their broader strategic motives, Fair Deal Alaska also spent nearly $152,000 on negative ads opposing Peltola while Right For Alaska spent nearly $574,000 to oppose Sullivan. The race, which Democrats view as central to their aim of claiming control of the Senate, is rated as a toss-up by the Cook Political Report.
“I wonder if these tactics are just being carried over from organizations that have worked in other states, where this is a more well-established tactic,” Otis said.
None of the candidates supported by those super PACs reported any significant fundraising activity to the FEC. That leaves the money race dominated by the two heavyweights: Peltola raised $18.5 million and held $4.6 million in cash on hand, while Sullivan took in $11.7 million with a war chest of nearly $7.3 million, according to pre-primary filings through July 29.
How top-four voting complicates super PAC strategy
Alaska operates under a nonpartisan top-four system, placing all primary candidates on a single ballot regardless of party affiliation. The top four advance to the general election, which uses ranked-choice voting. In that system, voters rank candidates by preference. If no candidate earns an immediate majority, the lowest-performing candidate is eliminated and that person’s votes are redistributed to the voters’ next choice until a candidate clears the majority threshold.
The super PAC surge is intended to foster strategic vote-splitting. The more candidates on the ballot who appeal to the same ideological base, the greater the potential to dilute a front-runner’s support.
“The Republicans – I don’t guess, I know – they would like to see Sen. Sullivan on the ballot with Mary Peltola and two Democrats or two liberals,” Grayson said.
Such a maneuver typically doesn’t work as well in a ranked-choice system, Otis said.
“If one of these lesser-known candidates makes it into the top-four candidates and goes on to the general election, it looks like the hope here is that those lesser-known candidates will siphon votes away from one of the front-runners,” she said.
But, Otis continued, voters who place an underdog No. 1 on their ballots tend to favor a more prominent candidate as a second or third choice.
“Even if you do get your candidate into the general election, and you get some substantial share of voters to vote for them, most of those voters will rank a front-runner as a backup choice,” she added. “You’re not taking votes away in the same way that gamers can do in other states.”
Late spending keeps donors hidden
That hasn’t stopped the super PACs from pouring in big bucks in a relatively short period of time: During the 10-day window between July 30 and Aug. 8, Fair Deal Alaska and Right For Alaska combined to spend nearly $2 million.
Fair Deal Alaska began its spending spree two days after it formed as a quarterly filer with the Federal Election Commission. That timeline matters. Under FEC rules, quarterly filers must submit a pre-primary report covering spending through the 20th day before the primary that wasn’t included in the previous quarterly report.
For the Aug. 18 Alaska primary, the 20-day cutoff was July 29 – the day before the group’s first expenditure. While the super PAC must file 24-hour reports for its independent expenditures that aggregate $1,000 or more after that day, it will not have to identify its funders until well after the election.
And while state law requires disclosure of the “true source” of contributions greater than $2,000 within 24 hours, that requirement does not apply to federal races, which operate under FEC rules.
“It certainly is [timed] so they don’t have to release their donors ahead of the election,” Otis said.
Fair Deal Alaska is headquartered in a Wasilla office building that also houses a gun shop and two medical training facilities. A sign in a window visible on Google Street View advertises virtual office and mail services. OpenSecrets reached out to the super PAC’s treasurer and custodian of records, Sam Praytor, but did not immediately receive a response.
A bit more information exists about the money behind the other super PAC spending heavily on the race’s underdogs: Right For Alaska formed March 23 and is based in Hudson, Wisconsin. Its only disclosed contribution so far is a $100,000 donation on March 30 from William Harris, a retiree in Lexington, Mass. The address Harris listed in FEC records matches one used by the William H. Harris Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports higher education and medical research and disbursed $3.6 million in 2024, IRS filings show. OpenSecrets reached out to the super PAC’s treasurer, Thomas Datwyler, and to the email address listed in the foundation’s IRS filing for comment but did not immediately receive responses from either. Datwyler has served in a similar role for numerous other political entities, has been finedthousands of dollars for breaking FEC rules and was accused of being the “shadow treasurer” for the re-election bid for former Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.). FEC records also show a Thomas Datwyler of Hudson, Wisconsin, as a frequent donor to Republican-aligned groups.
Of Right For Alaska’s $1.2 million in spending through Aug. 7, nearly $574,000 went to oppose Sullivan with $410,000 backing Republican Gerald Heikes and nearly $219,000 to support Earl “Skip” Southworth of the Alaskan Party – the successor to the right-leaning Alaskan Independence Party. An Earl Southworth of Dutch Harbor, Alaska, donated to Democratic nominee Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign in 2024 and to Democratic state Sen. Forrest Dunbar a decade earlier, FEC records show. OpenSecrets reached out to Heikes and Southworth but did not immediately receive responses from either.
Fair Deal Alaska started spending on July 30, pouring roughly $17,000 into mailers supporting Grayson and Hafner along with $34,000 into those opposing Peltola. Its largest expenditures came the next day: a $275,000 investment in media placement and production that consisted of $137,500 to back both Grayson and Hafner. In a statement to OpenSecrets, Hafner said she was “totally unaware” of any super PAC interest in her candidacy prior to the spending, adding that she has no involvement in its messaging, which she hypothesized was taken from her website without her knowledge.
Grayson said he has fielded calls from residents blaming him for mailers sent by Fair Deal Alaska, with one leaving a voicemail demanding removal from his mailing list “because my postcard has lies in it.”
He also shared a video ad to YouTube produced by the group that includes an image of him with Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) alongside text saying he “will stand with Bernie and AOC” followed by an image of a red X covering President Donald Trump’s face. He characterized it as a “bizarre AI video ad” from a “mysterious” super PAC.
“There’s no false claims in it,” Grayson said. “The ad was not false advertising. I guess it’s the kind of advertising I would put if I were a serious candidate and had money.”
Jason Aldean’s wife, Brittany Aldean, called it an “emotional Tuesday” as the couple experienced several major family milestones all in the same day.
In an Instagram post shared early Wednesday, Brittany recapped the eventful day with her followers, revealing that their children, Memphis and Navy, headed back to school. Photos showed the siblings dressed in their school uniforms and posing for pictures before starting second and third grade.
“Tears were flowing this morning,” Brittany wrote. “Can’t believe we have a 2nd and 3rd grader.”
Brittany Aldean, Instagram Story
The emotions continued as Brittany revealed they also “sent one off to college,” referring to Jason’s second-oldest daughter, Kendyl. She shared a photo of Kendyl driving away, along with a sweet moment that showed Navy running down the driveway after her older sister and photos capturing their final hugs before Kendyl began her college journey.
But the big moments didn’t stop there. Brittany and Jason also “checked on the new house,” sharing a glimpse of the property, which appeared to be an active construction site with dirt covering the land.
They wrapped up the busy day with a “brunch date,” where Brittany jokingly pointed out that Jason chose biscuits and gravy “over everything.”
Comments poured in on the post, with followers offering words of encouragement and support as Brittany navigates those bittersweet moments of watching her children grow up right before her eyes.
After the emotional day, things will quickly get back to business for the Aldean family, with Jason Aldean’s Songs About Us Tour resuming on August 14 in Wheatland, California. The platinum-selling star will then head to Fresno on August 15 before joining Luke Bryan for a show on their Double Down Tour in San Diego on August 16.
Jason Aldean; Photo by Spidey Smith
On the music front, Aldean recently followed his 32nd No. 1 at country radio with “Anytime Soon,” the latest single from his album Songs About Us. The song made an immediate impact at country radio, earning the most adds last week.
Additionally, Aldean is celebrating a new wave of RIAA certifications, including the 6X Platinum certification of his My Kinda Party album, further cementing his status as one of country music’s best-selling artists. The newly certified releases include My Kinda Party (6X Platinum), “My Kinda Party” (5X Platinum), “Fly Over States” (4X Platinum), “Any Ol’ Barstool” (3X Platinum), “Amarillo Sky” (3X Platinum), “Don’t You Wanna Stay” with Kelly Clarkson (2X Platinum), “Tattoos On This Town” (2X Platinum), “Hicktown” (2X Platinum), “Why” (2X Platinum), “Lights Come On” (2X Platinum), “Little More Summertime” (Platinum) and They Don’t Know (Platinum).
The Oscar winner casually offered up that revelation in an interview with Esquire, but from the reaction on social media, you’d think he announced it at a press conference.
Lots of people are not thrilled with the fact that Brad is drinking again, which makes sense, given his alleged history of being a very problematic drunk (more on that later).
Brad Pitt attends the “F1: The Movie” European Premiere at Cineworld Leicester Square on June 23, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Pictures)
Perhaps in response to the criticism, a source close to Brad issued a statement:
“This is a very personal decision that’s unique to Brad and his own circumstances,” the insider told Page Six, adding that he’s had “a lot of time to reflect” on his drinking.
“Over time, his life changed and he reached a point where he felt comfortable making a different choice,” the source explained, adding:
“For him, that means moderation and being very conscious of his limits. He knows what those limits are and understands that drinking in moderation requires a level of discipline and self-awareness.”
The insider (who is obviously a rep for Pitt), added that the decision “doesn’t take away from the years he spent sober or what he learned during that time.”
(Conor McGregor, X)
“This is simply the decision he feels is right for him at this point in his life, and he’s committed to being responsible about it.”
But while lots of folks are criticizing Brad’s decision, others are drawing inspiration from it.
Take Conor McGregor, for example! The MMA legend got sober for his hilariously brief fight against Max Holloway, but he announced this week that he’s back off the wagon in solidarity with Brad.
McGregor tweeted that he would be downing some pints in support of his “fellow actor,” before urging Pitt to “take it easy.”
He later shared a video of a pint being poured in which he quipped, “This one’s for you, Mucker!”
Beginning in late November 2021, when then-Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley jumped ship to Los Angeles to become USC’s head coach, the Trojans have operated under various themes to help explain why their rebuild always seems to unfold at such a leisurely pace. The various talking points throughout Riley’s high-priced, pressure-packed tenure have looked something like this: As the Riley era enters its fifth season in L.A., and with the Trojans having failed to reach double-digit wins since he took over in 2022, many of these points have produced equal and opposite reactions. The early roster construction missteps prompted Riley to hire Notre Dame general manager Chad Bowden for the same role at USC, whose pivot back toward local recruiting secured the No. 1 high school class in the country. The culture that Riley said desperately needed fixing is now anchored by the Bloom Football Performance Center, a $225 million facility that opened over the summer. And when Lynn left USC to become defensive coordinator at Penn State, his alma mater, Riley responded with the splashy addition of former TCU head coach Gary Patterson, an inductee to the College Football Hall of Fame. “When I think about our football program right now going into this fifth year, going into this season, I think about our alignment and the momentum behind our program,” Riley said at Big Ten media days last month. “Kind of watching us through the last few years taking on some of the different challenges and changes that we’ve had — a new coaching staff, a new president, a new AD, a new conference, most recently moving into the [new] facility about 10 days ago — we’ve had so much change. Right now, I feel like our alignment is as strong as it’s ever been.” From an Xs and Os perspective, the burgeoning football alignment revolves largely around what Riley believes will be his most successful defensive coordinator hire yet — an ideal complement to the Trojans’ high-flying offense. Patterson, 66, came out of retirement in January to chase one of the few things his uniquely impressive résumé is still missing: a national championship. To get there would require USC to reach the College Football Playoff for the first time in program history, which might also be the minimum for Riley to keep his job beyond this season. A decades-long track record compiled by Patterson is more than enough to inspire legitimate confidence. The two-time Big 12 coach of the year won 181 games with a .696 winning percentage in 21 seasons as the Horned Frogs’ head coach from 2000-21. The winning stretch also won him six conference championships across Conference USA, the Mountain West and the Big 12. His squads finished among the top nine in the final AP Poll six times from 2008-17 alone, which also included an undefeated season in 2010 by upending No. 4 Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl. More specifically, Patterson’s previous defensive exploits offer the excitement that radiated from Riley to the trio of players he brought to Chicago for Big Ten media days. Star quarterback Jayden Maiava described “Coach GP” as a “great addition.” TCU led the nation in total defense five times during Patterson’s tenure as head coach by leaning into the same 4-2-5 system he’s now installing for the Trojans. And in doing so, the Horned Frogs became just the third team in college football history to finish atop that category for three consecutive seasons. Thirty of his defensive players were chosen in the NFL Draft. “Coach Patterson is one of one,” Riley said at Big Ten media days. “I’ve told people I’ve had a chance throughout my career, calling plays for a little while now, to call plays against a lot of the people that you would say these are the greatest minds of this last era of college football, greatest defensive minds. I’ve never coached against somebody that I thought was more unique and tougher to go against than Gary Patterson. “I think we’re certainly feeling his impact defensively. I’m certainly feeling his impact of just having a fellow head coach in the building, right, somebody else that has sat in this chair and made some of these decisions. You can’t replace that type of expertise and experience that he brings to the table. He’s incredibly motivated. He wouldn’t have done this without that. I think he senses the opportunity — even for a guy that’s accomplished just about everything you can in this game — [that] there’s a few other things left out there. He knows he can do that here.” Riley’s original choice for defensive coordinator, Alex Grinch, oversaw units that ranked 106th in total defense for 2022 and 119th in 2023. With Lynn’s arrival, he helped elevate USC’s group to 77th in total defense in 2024 and 49th in 2025 — noteworthy improvements that shouldn’t be ignored — but even last year’s group failed to finish among the top 10 in the conference for scoring defense after surrendering 23 points per game. That number ballooned to 35 points per game in the Trojans’ four losses to Illinois, Notre Dame, Oregon and TCU. Now, Patterson has inherited a unit that only returns five starters and must replace star safety Bishop Fitzgerald, a consensus All-American and first-team All-Big Ten performer last year who’s now with the Tennessee Titans. But Riley and Bowden infused the roster with several impact players from the transfer portal in nose tackle Alex VanSumeren from Michigan State, edge rusher Zuriah Fisher from Penn State and cornerback Jontez Williams from Iowa State. The Trojans’ vaunted 2026 high school recruiting class, which edged Alabama, Oregon and Ohio State to finish No. 1 in the country, also includes two five-star defensive prospects in edge rusher Luke Wafle and defensive tackle Jaimeon Winfield. To push himself and USC over that hump, Patterson is tasked with expanding on the progress his predecessor, Lynn, began to make before joining Penn State late last year. And with more talent available to him than ever before, the prolonged USC rebuild will finally reach its completion. “I’m proud of the progress we’ve made on that side of the ball,” Riley said at Big Ten media days. “But my expectations are for us to be just as good defensively as we are offensively as we are on special teams. I want to see it across the board. There’s no reason at a place like this, you know, why that can’t happen. It’s my job to acquit our program to be great there, and I think the moves that we’ve made in recruiting, in retention, bringing in Gary [Patterson] in — I think all of that gets us closer. “So I’m bullish on how good that group can be.”Latest Sports News from FOX Sports
Tyler Braden is entering an exciting new chapter in his career, and there’s no shortage of momentum behind him. With a new project on the horizon and a packed international touring schedule ahead, Braden is taking his music to audiences around the world while continuing to grow as an artist.
Speaking with Country Now, Braden opened up about preparing for his first-ever headline run across Canada, as well as upcoming shows in Australia, the UK and Europe. The singer will first head to Australia this fall for the Wild At Heart Tour before launching his seven-date The Days Of Gold Tour in Canada on October 27 in Toronto. He’ll then kick off 2027 with a run of shows across the UK and Europe beginning in February.
Braden reflected on some of his favorite moments on the road so far this year, including hearing thousands of fans sing his songs back to him, and shared how he approaches changing up his setlist as he prepares to bring his show to different audiences around the world.
Photo Courtesy of Tyler Braden
Fans have already received three new songs from Braden in 2026: “Horseshoes & Hand Grenades, “My Americana” and “Dry County.” With another new release titled “Quick Fix” dropping August 21, he will be one step closer to sharing a bigger project. The rising country act teased what to expect from his next record and explained how he’s allowing the songs to naturally shape the direction of the music while continuing to build on the sound he’s developed over the years.
And, of course, he shared his excitement for his upcoming rooftop show at 27Live Powered by Country Now and what makes an intimate performance so special to him. The show will take place above downtown Nashville on August 18. RSVP for free HERE.
Keep reading to hear Tyler Braden talk about his upcoming tours, new music and what’s next in this exciting chapter of his career.
We are so excited to have you perform at the rooftop of the Westin Nashville for 27Live Powered by Country Now. What do you enjoy most about performing in a more intimate setting where you can really interact with the fans?
I do love stuff like that when we can just kind of have this closed setting that doesn’t feel. ..It feels more approachable and it feels like they’re just there kind of hanging out with you. I think that’s really cool for the fans. And it’s definitely cool to be able to literally just talk, not just with the person right in front of you.
Can we expect to hear some new music from you that night?
We’ve got a lot of new stuff coming over the next six, eight months, so we’ll probably throw in a few of those unreleased songs. Obviously some stuff that’ll be new as of this year or the last couple months. And then we’ve got a song coming out that weekend on the 21st, so right after the show. So we’ll be playing that one for sure.
You have a busy second half of the year, starting with the Canadian leg of the Days of Gold Tour this October. How does it feel to be heading out in your first ever headline run across the country?
The tour we had this year was amazing with Devil And a Prayer Tour. That was our first time ever touring an album. As we go into these tours or we get to go into other countries and do those, it’s amazing and scary at the same time. We’re excited to see if people in another country are singing along to different songs or how it’s different and how they act because we played festivals a lot and we’ve done the odd headliner here and there, but just seeing how the whole experience goes is going to be really fun.
Fans can also catch you at shows across Australia, the UK and Europe. How does it feel to know that your music has reached a global audience?
I mean, it’s exciting. And it is cool because obviously the radio and the DSPs, the streaming networks and all, they push different songs. Different songs get big in different parts of the world. So that’s exciting to see the songs they’re excited for when I’m getting messages on social media. They’re asking for different songs than other areas of the world. That’s really cool to kind of just be able to take a different type of show there…It’s really exciting and you don’t know what to expect. Australia, they put us in rooms, pretty big rooms, that I was very nervous for. Brisbane, the city we’ve been to before for a festival, it sold out in like 48 hours, like 1500 people. It was pretty exciting. I know they’re going to go crazy. The festivals there are amazing. Same for the UK. We’ve had a lot of great ticket sales there and we’ve played a lot of festivals over there. It’s really fun to take our own show.
How often are you switching up your set list for these different audiences?
We build our set kind of in sections, maybe like two to four song sections and we’ll move sections around. It makes for a comfort on stage at the same time as being able to mix it up from time to time. And we’re definitely playing some new stuff probably starting in Australia, just when we’ve got a little bit of time off between now and then to try to change stuff up. That’s the hardest part is it takes time off to be able to change a lot of it. But it’s always fun to switch it up a little bit from time to time.
What would you say has been one of your favorites moments in the shows you’ve had so far this year?
Just hearing the singalongs. “God & Guns N’ Roses” has been a really big one for us for hearing the crowd sing back. Specifically in Australia, we played a festival in Australia in March. And so we got to play the main stage. But the night before we played main stage, we played an after party for the first day’s Main Stage. And it was around 4,000 people inside this big tent. And they were so loud singing the songs back. And obviously, like I said, you don’t know what to expect going that far from home. That’s a moment that’s lived with me for a long time.
You posted a cover of ROLE MODEL’s viral hit “Sally, When The Wine Runs Out” that really resonated with fans online. What was it like getting to put your own spin on it?
My wife listens to ROLE MODEL, so I got to hear that song a lot in the car and I really liked it. But as a songwriter, I’ve always loved the approach of taking sad lyrics and putting them to unhappy Sound Or vice versa. And that song really does that. I mean, you listen to that song, this guy’s nervous about rejection or like being led on. And putting that sound to a sound that actually fits it or fits the emotions of the lyrics was a fun process.
You’ve released several new songs this year already. Are these leading up to a bigger project?
It definitely is. That is the goal for sure. We’re hoping for something next year. Like I said, we’ve got another song called “Quick Fix” coming out August 21st. It’s actually been funny, you talk about going overseas and the new music, “Dry County” that came out in January, I’ve learned doing interviews for the shows overseas that obviously they don’t know what a county is for one thing. When we look at the county, they don’t know what a dry county is. So that’s confusing. And in Australia, the people that I interviewed with have never heard the term “horseshoes and hand grenades.” I put out three songs this year and two of them don’t make any sense, but it’s been funny just to just kind of be able to explain these things. Once you hear it, it’s like a light bulb moment.
Photo Courtesy of Tyler Braden
What can you share your upcoming release “Quick Fix”?
It’s a subject matter that I haven’t done a whole lot of songs about, kind of like a bar meeting situation, which “God & Guns N’ Roses” kind of is, but just from a different angle. And it’s an approach that I’m excited to take. It’s like guy meets a girl in a bar, but it’s more of a self-aware thing. “If I’m bugging you, kind of let me know.” And you’ll hear that in the lyric side. But I think it’s a fun song. We’ve been playing it live all year long. So it’s been really fun live. It’s very upbeat. And so I’m excited for people to hear it.
Do you have a vision for this next project or are you letting the songs dictate the direction it will go in?
I have a sound that we’re always going for, like writing, it develops over the years and we definitely have a sound that we go for last couple years of writing. And some of it showed up on our last album, Devil And A Prayer. But as for subject matter and the album as a whole in that vein, that one kind of develops slowly. As you get more songs, you start to find where the connections are between the songs and lean into that. And just kind of allow it to develop organically. At least that’s the way I do it.
Miranda Lambert turned up the energy at the Full Throttle Saloon on Tuesday night, August 11, when she surprised fans by bringing up two fellow country stars during the 86th annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota.
The Texas born country star headlined the iconic night, delivering a set filled with career-spanning hits before welcoming Gretchen Wilson and Lainey Wilson to the stage for a few special performances.
Lainey Wilson, Miranda Lambert, Gretchen Wilson; Photo via Instagram-Lainey Wilson, Miranda Lambert, Gretchen Wilson; Photo via TikTok
The trio teamed up for a rowdy rendition of Gretchen Wilson’s 2004 smash hit “Redneck Woman,” with Wilson taking the lead vocal while Lambert and Lainey joined in on the harmonies. During the performance, Gretchen even gave her fellow artist a special shoutout by changing one of the lyrics to, “I know all the words to every Lainey Wilson song.”
The three singers later joined forces on Lambert’s popular anthem, “Drunk (And I Don’t Wanna Go Home),” giving the crowd another unforgettable all-female moment to remember.
In addition to coming together as a trio, Gretchen Wilson had the chance to warm up the crowd with another early hit, “When It Rains,” while Lambert and Lainey Wilson performed their collaboration “Good Horses,” which appears on Wilson’s Whirlwind album. This wasn’t the first time the artists have come together to perform the track live for fans, but it’s safe to say that their Sturgis, SD reunion was a special one.
This star-powered night took place a few days after Lambert offered another look into her 10th studio album, Crisco, with the arrival of her new track, “Sunset Marquis.” The dreamy, retro track was inspired by the iconic West Hollywood hotel that has served as a longtime creative escape for the singer and countless other artists.
“I’ve been staying at the Sunset Marquis for close to 20 years,” shares Lambert. “Every time I’m there, you never know who you’re going to run into or what kind of memories you’re going to make. It has this timeless energy that feels like stepping into another era. When we wrote this song, I wanted listeners to be able to close their eyes and feel like they were there with us – to see it, smell it and experience the magic that’s made the Sunset Marquis such a special place for so many years.”
“Sunset Marquis” joins the album’s previously released title track, “Till The Going’s Gone” and the GRAMMY-nominated collaboration “A Song To Sing” with Chris Stapleton. Produced by Lambert and Frasure, Crisco will feature 12 tracks that explore the many sides of country music while blending its traditional roots with disco influences.
She will celebrate the new project’s October 2 release with a special home state album release show at Billy Bob’s on October 6.
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