As fans count down the days until CMA Fest, the Country Music Association has unveiled even more performers for the already star-studded lineup.
CMA Fest Runs June 4-7, 2026
Newly announced additions include Emily Ann Roberts, The Jack Wharff Band, Kaitlin Butts, Kat Luna, Laci Kaye Booth, Maggie Antone, Scoot Teasley, Vincent Mason, Willow Avalon, and Zach John King, all of whom will take the stage inside Nissan Stadium on the Platform Stage.
In addition, country favorites Clay Walker, Jo Dee Messina, Rhett Akins, and Sara Evans are set to open the nightly shows at Nissan Stadium, while Caylee Hammack will perform the national anthem on Thursday.
The crowd at Nissan Stadium on Sunday, June 8, 2025, during CMA Fest presented by SoFi in downtown Nashville; Photo Courtesy CMA
CMA Fest’s free daytime stages are also getting bigger, with a new wave of performers added to the lineup. CeCe will launch Thursday’s festivities at the Chevy Riverfront Stage with the national anthem. The Dr Pepper Amp Stage will spotlight Filmore on Friday and Gabriella Rose and Nappy Roots on Sunday.
Over at the Chevy Vibes Stage, MŌRIAH performs Thursday, followed by Love and Theft on Sunday. The Wrangler Remix Stage keeps the party going with Omer Netzer on Saturday and MORGXN on Sunday. Sunday morning will also bring the return of Cowboy Church, as Brandon Lake leads a high-energy, uplifting gathering at the Chevy Riverfront Stage.
Brandon Lake performs at the Chevy Riverfront Stage on Sunday, June 8, 2025, during CMA Fest presented by SoFi in downtown Nashville; Photo by Hunter Berry/CMA
Previously announced performers for the nightly shows at Nissan Stadium include Bailey Zimmerman, Blake Shelton, Carly Pearce, Cody Johnson, Deana Carter, Ella Langley, Gretchen Wilson, HARDY, Jason Aldean, Jordan Davis, Keith Urban, Luke Bryan, The Red Clay Strays, Riley Green, Russell Dickerson, Shaboozey, Tim McGraw, Tucker Wetmore, and Zach Top. Fans can view the full lineups for the remaining stages HERE.
Tickets
While the outdoor stages around downtown Nashville are free, there are a variety of paid options for the festival, including four-night stadium passes, single-night stadium tickets, VIP access to the Chevy Riverfront Stage, Dr Pepper Amp Stage and Chevy Vibes Stage via Riverside Retreat, access to Fan Fair X, and VIP Packages. More info HERE.
Nissan Stadium during the 2025 CMA Fest presented by SoFi in downtown Nashville; Photo by John Russell/CMA
CMA Fest continues to make an impact on the community through its charitable efforts. A portion of proceeds from the event supports the CMA Foundation’s music education initiatives nationwide. More information can be found at CMAfoundation.org.
As in years past, CMA Fest will once again be filmed for a nationally televised special set to air later this summer on ABC and Hulu. Robert Deaton will serve as executive producer and writer, with Alan Carter directing the broadcast.
In one of the final interviews of his life, Hulk Hogan opens up about the shocking amount of fentanyl he was prescribed toward the end of his wrestling career. Continue reading…The Boot – Country Music News, Music Videos and Songs
In one of the final interviews of his life, Hulk Hogan opens up about the shocking amount of fentanyl he was prescribed toward the end of his wrestling career. Continue reading…Country Music News – Taste of Country
The oven is a pivotal piece of machinery in most every kitchen, but if you aren’t cleaning it as often as you should, it isn’t only messy but a hazard.
But if you were looking forward to Sweeney’s cameo — playing herself — resign yourself to reality now.
After multiple controversies over the past year, she’s been cut from the final film. Why?
Sydney Sweeney attends the Los Angeles premiere of Lionsgate’s “The Housemaid” at TCL Chinese Theatre on December 15, 2025. (Photo Credit: Monica Schipper/Getty Images)
She would have portrayed herself for a three-minute scene
Originally, Sweeney would have portrayed herself in The Devil Wears Prada 2.
The scene would have lasted just a few minutes, featuring her being styled by Emily Blunt’s character, Emily Charlton.
Some celebrity cameos are tongue-in-cheek, sometimes involving a bit of humorous self-mockery.
Others are very straightforward — an actor or singer portraying themselves earnestly.
We may never get to know what Sweeney’s scene would have looked like. Because it’s gone.
Though Sweeney filmed the scene, Entertainment Weekly reports that its removal from the final cut was a “creative decision.”
Ultimately, the scene did not work structurally for the overall film.
Anyone who has worked in any creative storytelling field can attest that, sometimes, you have to exclude scenes, events, or even entire characters for the sake of the overall story.
In a film, time is extremely valuable, and any error can create painful pacing issues.
The team behind The Devil wears Prada 2 is reportedly grateful for Sweeney’s participation in the project, and were reluctant to cut the scene from the final product.
But what about the elephant (or eagle) in the room?
It’s probably not a sign of hard feelings or whatever that Sweeney didn’t attend the premiere on Monday, April 20.
Even if she’d still appeared in the final cut, she would have been a cameo, not a lead. And she didn’t even appear in that.
(Few films seek to draw attention to what-might-have-been alternate cuts unless there are serious creative differences, like between a director and a studio.)
But Sweeney filmed her scene last summer. She was, to be blunt, a much less polarizing figure at the time.
Following her not-actually-that-controversial American Eagle add, she’s avoided rejecting Donald Trump’s approval, she’s gone public with dating Scooter Braun, and unconfirmed Zendaya feud rumors have only mounted.
To be clear, Sweeney has not actually made public statements to cater to bad guys who seem to want to be her biggest fans.
But critics argue that her reluctance to distance herself from them by simply outright rejecting endorsements from the worst and weirdest people alive is damning in and of itself.
(Should she? Yes. But we can fully understand that she’s been put in a no-win scenario as people continue to make up their own stories about who she is and what her values are.)
For now, any time that she is cast in something or not cast in something, invited or disinvited, people are going to read more into it than is probably there.
People are unable to be normal about Sweeney. That’s fuel for her career, but it also feels like her own personal hell.
Sen. Matt Claman, D-Anchorage, speaks Wednesday, April 23, 2025, on the floor of the Alaska Senate. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
With only four weeks left of the legislative session, the Senate Judiciary Committee has merged several bills into a wide-ranging omnibus crime bill. Even with the tight timeline, some lawmakers are optimistic about its chances for passage before the end of the session.
The new draft omnibus crime package combines ten bills ranging from raising the age of consent to increasing criminal penalties for AI-generated child sexual abuse material into one large bill supporters hope will have the momentum to pass both the House and the Senate in the next 28 days.
The Senate Judiciary Committee chair Sen. Matt Claman, D-Anchorage, introduced the 55-page omnibus bill on Friday, saying the bills have a stronger prospect as a package.
“I think that increases the likelihood we’ll be able to pass it,” he said in an interview on Monday.
With one month to go in the second year of the two-year legislative cycle, this is the last opportunity for bills to be passed by the 34th Legislature.
The draft omnibus crime bill was added to House Bill 239, sponsored by House Majority Leader Rep. Chuck Kopp, R-Anchorage, who spoke in support at the hearing on Friday.
“This bill has grown, it’s gone from the sports car to the school bus” he said. “Policies I all support as a bill sponsor.”
Gov. Mike Dunleavy sponsored two bills included in the omnibus package, but did not respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
The bills included are in various stages. Some have passed the House, while others are being considered by various committees in the House and Senate. Several lawmakers who sponsored bills now included in the omnibus package agreed that politically it could increase chances of passage by May 20.
Rep. Sarah Vance, R-Homer, sponsored a bill that would create state felony penalties for AI-generated child sexual abuse material. It unanimously passed the House last month.
“I’m excited that it’s included in the omnibus bill, because that shows intent by the Senate to pass the bill,” Vance said on Monday. “So I have great confidence that it will cross the finish line.”
But Claman, who is running for governor, has drawn public criticism for the process of how the omnibus crime bill was put together this session.
Advocates for raising the age of consent — along with the Anchorage Daily News editorial board — criticized Claman for holding a bill to raise the age of consent to 18 in the Senate Judiciary Committee, which passed unanimously by the House last year, in order to be included in the omnibus bill. Critics urged Claman and the committee to pass the bill and allow it to move forward as a stand alone bill toward a full Senate vote and final passage.
Claman has argued that despite limited time left in the session, the bills included have been vetted and the combination package will garner more support among legislators and the governor to pass in the last few weeks of the session.
“I’ve been in the Legislature now since 2015, and so in the last 11 years, we’ve passed 11 different bills relating to public safety,” he said. “So I think there are ten different measures that we put into the bill, and if we tried to do them all individually, probably wouldn’t get them all passed.”
Claman pointed to an omnibus crime bill, House Bill 66, enacted in 2024, with support from Gov. Mike Dunleavy and across political affiliations. “That’s certainly, I think, the best example,” he said. “So I do have confidence we’ll get it passed.”
Rep. Andrew Gray, D-Anchorage, speaks Friday, April 26, 2024, on the floor of the Alaska House of Representatives. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
Rep. Andrew Gray, D-Anchorage, sponsored House Bill 101, the bill that would raise the age of consent from 16 to 18 years old. Backed by advocates for sexual violence prevention, he said the change in law is essential for protecting teens from sexual exploitation and abuse. Under current law, it’s legal for an adult to have sex with a 16 or 17 year old. But when they are assaulted, teens must prove that they did not consent.
Despite previous disagreement and pushing for a stand alone bill, Gray said Monday he will back the omnibus crime bill in order to see the law changed.
“If that happens, inside an omnibus crime package that has other bills that are also worthy of passage, I’m fine with that,” he said. “I just want the policy to change.”
The draft omnibus crime bill now contains ten bills that previously stood alone:
House Bill 239 — would increase criminal penalties for hit and run incidents so that drivers that cause a death and knowingly failing to stop and render assistance, and establishes mandatory sentencing of four to seven years for a first hit and run felony conviction
House Bill 101 — would raise the age of consent from 16 to 18 years old, with provisions to allow consent to sex with someone up to six years older than them. The draft bill also allows 16 and 17 year olds to consensually exchange sexual or explicit messages within the six year close-in-age gap without penalties.
Senate Bill 247 — would create state criminal penalties for creating AI-generated images or video that depicts sexually explicit or obscene content involving anyone under 18 years old
House Bill 62 — Sponsored by Gov. Mike Dunleavy, the bill would establish a statewide tracking system for sexual assault examination kits, expedite processing times, and ensure that survivors can privately monitor the status of their own kit.
Senate Bill 100 — Also sponsored by the governor, and would establish the crime of organized theft, including mail theft and medical record theft
House Bill 242— would redefine criminal law to prohibit any sexual contact or assault by a health care worker during professional treatment, changing the current law which only applies to patients being unaware of sexual contact or assault for criminal charges to apply.
Senate Bill 17 — would establish the crime of airbag fraud for knowingly selling, installing or manufacturing a counterfeit airbag in a vehicle
House Bill 81 — would establish minor marijuana related convictions to remain confidential on individuals personal records, under certain criteria
House Bill 384— would expand confidentiality agreements between victims and service providers by updating the definition of “victim counseling center” to include tribal organizations
Senate Bill 233 — would reassign the Controlled Substances Advisory Committee from being administered by the Department of Law to the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development.
The new version of Vance’s bill focused on AI-generated child sexual abuse material included in the bill is closer to her initial proposal. Social media controls for minors added by the House were stripped out of the Senate version. Vance said she supports the amended version given First Amendment protections around social media.
“I think that was a wise decision right now, because Alaskans are very mixed on how they feel that we should address social media,” Vance said.
Rep. Sara Hannan, D-Juneau, is the sponsor of House Bill 242, and said she supports her bill being included in the Senate omnibus, but she is still pushing to advance her standalone bill in the House.
Rep. Sara Hannan, D-Juneau, speaks on the House floor on Apr. 13, 2026. (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon)
“I need people who didn’t serve on the two committees that heard it in the House to understand it,” she said, as the Senate draft will come back to the House for a concurrence vote. “It still helps to educate on the issue.”
Hannan’s legislation follows a high profile case in Juneau last year where the court dropped several charges against a chiropractor because under current law part of the legal definition of sexual assault by a medical provider requires the alleged victim to be unaware the assault is happening.
“Right now, the victim needs to be unaware, and the perpetrator needs to know that they are unaware,” Hannan said Tuesday. “So to change that in statute, I think is an important policy statement for us to make.”
Hannan said significant policy bills typically take several years to get through the Legislature, with public input, debate and support gathering. But she expressed confidence in the support for the omnibus crime bill in the weeks ahead.
“We’re running the clock down,” she added. “The only downside, from my perspective, is the advocates and the victims that were directly involved in the case that inspired this bill. You know, they get more acknowledgement when it’s the standalone bill… But in the end, if the goal is to change the policy, there’s no downside to it.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee will continue to hold hearings on the crime bill this week and its members have until Friday to introduce amendments before it advances to the Senate floor for a vote. Claman said he expects that to be in the last week of April.
The country megastar has been enjoying a resurgence in popularity in recent years, and a new generation of fans is curious about her past.
Given how many of her classic ballads touch on the topic of heartbreak, we suppose it’s no surprise that yes, Shania is divorced.
Shania Twain performs during the opening ceremony on Day One of the 2017 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on August 28, 2017 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
And in the style of sad country songs everywhere, her first marriage ended because of an affair.
Shania Twain Divorced Mutt Lange After She Caught Him Cheating
Yes, Shania parted ways with legendary music producer Mutt Lange after she caught him having an affair with her best friend, Marie-Anne Thiébaud.
Bur Shania had the last laugh, as she’s currently married to Marie-Anne’s former husband, Frederic Thiébaud.
Shania Twain and her husband Frederic Thiebaud attend the “Who you gonna call” photocall during the 16th Zurich Film Festival at Kino Corso on September 26, 2020 in Zurich, Switzerland. (Photo by Andreas Rentz/Getty Images for ZFF)
“Forgiveness is in the family of letting go. But forgiveness, more specifically for me anyway, is not about forgetting necessarily,” she said.
“It’s about understanding the other person, and that might mean that they’re wrong … Maybe you believe forever that whatever they did was wrong,” Shania continued, adding:
“Do I hate my ex-husband for making a mistake? No. It’s his mistake. Not my mistake.”
Shania Twain performs during halftime of Super Bowl XXXVII between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Oakland Raiders on January 26, 2003 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
Shania Twain Says She’s Moved On From Painful First Marriage
“So sad for him that he made such a great mistake that he has to live with. And I don’t know what that is, but it’s not … That’s not my weight,” she continued.
“My father’s a better example, OK, because this is someone that I totally forgive.”
Shania has spoken previously about the abuse she endured as a child and her long journey toward forgiving her stepfather.
Shania Twain attends the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women Red Dress Collection 2020 at Hammerstein Ballroom on February 05, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images for American Heart Association)
In an earlier interview on the “Armchair Expert” podcast, Shania said that when they both learned their spouses had cheated, her now-husband handled the news much better than she did.
“He was so thoughtful about it all … It was not cool with him, but he was smarter about it,” she said.
“I was uncontrollably fragile over it, which I had never felt before ever because I thought for once I was stable,” Shania added.
Shania Twain and her husband Frederic Thiebaud attend the “Who you gonna call” photocall during the 16th Zurich Film Festival at Kino Corso on September 26, 2020 in Zurich, Switzerland. (Photo by Thomas Niedermueller/Getty Images for ZFF)
“I really believe that I’m safe. So that really devastated me I think more than any other instability I’ve ever felt,” Twain added at the time.
Fortunately, Shania found her happy ending, and she and Frederic are still going strong.
To paraphrase one of Twain’s best-known songs, Frederic is clearly still the one!
Now, a controversial Netflix documentary is revealing new information about the wrestling legend’s final days.
In his final interview, which is just now being made public, Hogan — whose real name was Terry Bollea — revealed that at one point, he was consuming a potentially lethal amount of fentanyl on a daily basis.
Hulk Hogan’s final interview has finally been made public. (Netflix/YouTube)
“I was taking 80 milligram fentanyls, two in the morning, stuffing them under my gums…I had two 300-milligram patches of fentanyl on my legs, and they gave me six 1,500 milligram fentanyl lollipops to eat,” Hulk says in the doc, which is currently available for streaming.
“You should be dead. We have never seen a human being take this much fentanyl,” a pharmacist told the wrestler at one point.
The heavy drug consumption began in 2009 when Hogan began competing for the TNA wrestling organization.
His divorce from wife Linda Hogan had financially devastated Hulk and left him with little choice but to step back into the ring.
Unfortunately, he was in his late fifties by then, and he quickly realized that his body could no longer sustain the sort of grueling workouts and performances that he has endured in his younger days.
“His back was in so much pain,” Hogan’s friend and former manager Eric Bischoff recalls in the documentary.
“I would literally have to go to his hotel, help him get out of bed, get into the shower,” to get ready to appear at events, “that he was contractually obligated to do.”
In interviews that took place just weeks before his death at the age of 71, Hogan revealed that he was still in a tremendous amount of pain.
“I feel okay but it’s a pain,” he says about his health. “I have my son take the tops off water bottles for me, because I can’t turn them.”
He explained in the documentary that the situation is “kind of embarrassing,” but it “keeps me humble.”
As with much of his life, Hogan’s final days were defined by personal strife, with his daughter, Brooke Hogan, being written out of his will and later revealing that she and her father were unable to heal their fractured relationship ahead of his death.
Hulk Hogan: Real American is currently available on Netflix.
