When it comes to deciding country music awards show nominees, there’s a new king. Continue reading…Country Music News – Taste of Country
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When it comes to deciding country music awards show nominees, there’s a new king. Continue reading…The Boot – Country Music News, Music Videos and Songs
Max McNown is opening up about life, love, and new music in the latest Country Now Pupdate, where he also gets in some puppy playtime with three adorable dogs from Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue.
A dog lover through and through, McNown instantly lit up when the three puppies were unleashed onto the set. As they played and gobbled up treats, McNown recalled where his love for dogs first began: when he was six years old during a camping trip with family, when he fell in love with a dog named Jake. When he returned home, he convinced his parents to get a dog, and his first pup, Bear, a Rottweiler lab retriever mix, entered his life.
Now, McNown is a proud dog dad to the “sweetest in the world” German Shepherd Pit Bull mix.
“Her name is Astoria, but we call her Story. We named her after one of my favorite beaches in Oregon, right on the border to Washington. And we’re actually training her right now because someday I want her to be a road dog with me and take her on the bus,” he revealed. “So we’re getting her nice and trained up. And maybe at some point, if we can get her trained up, we might even have her on stage.”
The 24-year-old Oregon native has seen his fair share of stages in recent months, thanks in part to the success of his now double Platinum hit “Better Me For You (Brown Eyes).” The song has fueled his meteoric rise with over 455 million worldwide streams and charting across multiple formats.
What’s wild is that the song almost wasn’t a single. McNown revealed that his manager, who also happens to be his uncle, is who encouraged him to release it. Putting his trust in him, McNown released the song and says watching its journey has been truly “amazing.”
“It’s just slowly grown. The consistency and the slow burn is really, really good for long-term success. There are a lot of songs that can have kind of an initial explosion and then fizzle hard, but it’s been going strong and increasing ever since it came out,” he pointed out.
Watch Max McNown on the Pupdate
Following the release of his 2025 sophomore album Night Diving (The Cost of Growing Up), McNown continues to feed fans’ desire for new music, and after writing five to six days a week in recent months, he kicked off 2026 with a steady stream of new releases, including “World Change Me,” “Done For,” and his latest track, “Standstill (My, My, My).”
After making a statement with “World Change Me” about “standing your ground and standing up for what you believe in and not falling for the pull that the world often temps you with,” McNown got personal with “Done For,” which explores falling deeply and unexpectedly in love with someone and choosing a lifelong commitment, despite outside pressure to stay free and not settle down. This mirrors his personal life, as he got married last fall.
The Story Behind “Done For”
“‘Done For’ is a song that kind of acknowledges and affirms my choice to start my life with the person I love early and just bet on the future and kind of choose this one person very early in my career,” he explained.
McNown said people questioned his decision to settle down and get married at a young age.
“As simple as it gets, I fell in love and I’m never looking back and I don’t really want to test the waters anywhere else. Love is something that you work for every day and I want to work for it every day. And so the first line of ‘Done For,’ …’They say you’re only young once. You don’t want forever, boy, you better sleep around while you can.’ And so that’s very specifically what I was told. And this song is basically, screw that, I want to give you a lifetime.”
With “Standstill (My, My, My),” McNown took a different approach.
“That is one of those songs that’s just designed to be a feel good, windows down, belted out song. It’s not as much of a statement like ‘World Change Me’ and ‘Done For’ is, but I think there’s a place for those songs as well as a place for the statement songs. And every album should have its unique messages behind each song. And so I kind of tried to switch it up. It doesn’t always have to be so serious.”
Since the release of his 2023 debut EP and his 2024 full-length Wandering, Max McNown’s life has changed dramatically. He said he tries to soak it all in because he knows it could be gone in an instant.
“To see what my life looks like now, I mean, it’s the cliche, but if you would’ve told me even just a year and a half ago that I would be doing what I’m doing in the places I’m doing it right now, I would’ve called you a liar, not because I didn’t trust you, but because I didn’t believe in myself. And so it’s really just a blessing that I can’t even comprehend right now. And I try to journal and I try to really take it in because I know that it can be gone real quick.”
Just Announced: The Summer Vacation Tour
Fans can catch Max McNown on tour throughout the summer. Following back-to-back sold-out shows at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium as part of the ongoing The Cost of Growing Up Tour, the hitmaker has also unveiled plans for The Summer Vacation Tour, bringing his headlining show to cities across North America throughout July and August. Tickets and VIP info can be found HERE.
Adopt Molasses
One of these sweet pups, Molasses, is still looking for his forever home. Those interested in adopting should contact Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue, a foster-based 501(c)(3) charitable organization based in Middle Tennessee and run primarily by volunteers. Proverbs is fully dedicated to the care and well-being of every animal they rescue. To learn more or make a donation, click HERE.
The post Max McNown Talks Life, Love & New Music While Reflecting on His Meteoric Rise on The Pupdate appeared first on Country Now.
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Alex Bowman, who has missed the last four NASCAR Cup Series races because of vertigo, will return to the Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 car this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway. Bowman spent Tuesday in a street car turning laps on the Ten Tenths road course that is next to Charlotte Motor Speedway. He participated in pit-stop practice and did laps in a simulator Wednesday and was medically cleared to race. “I’m grateful for the support I’ve had from Hendrick Motorsports, my sponsor Ally, our fans and the medical team throughout this process,” Bowman said in a news release. “It’s been tough being out of the car, but we all wanted to make sure I was 100 percent ready before returning. I feel really good, and I’m excited about being at the track with my team and getting back to racing.” Bowman, who couldn’t complete the race at Circuit of the Americas because of the onset of vertigo, had a rough start in his first three races. He is 144 points out of 16th in the standings so it is unlikely he could rally over the next 19 races to qualify for the Chase. He would need a waiver to be eligible for the title because of the rule requiring a driver to compete in all races. He is expected to receive one. Bowman was replaced by Anthony Alfredo for Phoenix and then Justin Allgaier for the last three races. “We’re proud of Alex and the way he’s handled this situation,” said HMS President Jeff Andrews said in a news release. “He’s put a lot of work into his recovery and followed the medical team’s plan every step of the way. “From the outset, our goal was to prioritize his health and have him return when he was fully recovered and medically cleared. We’re looking forward to seeing Alex back in his race car this weekend.” Bowman is used to dealing with injury. He missed five races in 2022 because of a concussion and three races in 2023 because of a broken back suffered in a sprint-car accident.Latest Sports News from FOX Sports
Flory Bidunga could anchor the next championship defense. After playing two seasons at Kansas, Bidunga entered the transfer portal, and will look for another suitor for his junior season. At 6-foot-9, 220-pounds, Bidunga’s a versatile forward who can switch out onto the perimeter and protect the paint. He averaged a Big 12-best 2.6 blocks last season, while improving his offensive game as well. Here are the three best transfer portal fits for Bidunga, who has two years of NCAA eligibility remaining and will at least explore the NBA Draft, per ESPN. St. John’s The Red Storm fell to Duke in the Sweet 16, a season-ending loss that was star center Zuby Ejiofor’s final college game. With Ejiofor graduating, there’s a gaping hole in the center of St. John’s team on both sides of the ball. With his endless motor, Bidunga would bring a similar energy to Ejiofor, and could protect the rim at the same – or even better – level. Following in Ejiofor’s footsteps would be very fitting as he transferred to St. John’s from Kansas back in 2023, before Red Storm head coach Rick Pitino helped develop him into a two-way star. Bidunga has the defensive side of the ball down, and Pitino has proven he can improve a big man’s offensive game. Bidunga is one of the top players in the portal and will be looking for a place where he is featured. St. John’s offers the platform, coach and has a need at its position. The Red Storm are also reportedly one of Bidunga’s final choices, per The Field of 68. Michigan Another one of the programs Bidunga is considering is the defending national champions. The Wolverines will likely lose all three starting frontcourt members — Aday Mara, Morez Johnson Jr. and Yaxel Lendeborg — to the NBA Draft. Bidunga would be one of the replacements for those departures, and help Michigan recreate the No. 1 rated defense in KenPom’s rankings. He would also be a great lob partner for point guard Elliot Cadeau, who is entering his senior year. Head coach Dusty May has a history of winning with elite big men, but Bidunga doesn’t match the build of players May has coached. Mara and former Wolverines’ center Vladislav Goldin are both taller than 7 feet, while Bidunga is more of an undersized athletic freak. That said, there’s no reason to doubt May’s ability to adapt and build a defense around a forward who, despite his differing stature, is as capable of a rim-protector – if not a better one – than Mara and Goldin. Duke The Blue Devils are also a top choice that Bidunga is weighing. Duke offered Bidunga a scholarship during the summer of 2022 before he chose Kansas, so there was prior interest. The Blue Devils will likely lose forwards Patrick Ngongba, Cameron Boozer and Maliq Brown to the NBA Draft, so Bidunga would be a solid and necessary replacement. Duke, however, did not have a transfer on their roster last season, and only had one in reserve forward Mason Gillis, last year. Maybe it’s against coach Jon Scheyer’s best interest to follow his peers and dip into the portal. But after a second consecutive season enduring a devastating tournament-ending loss, will Scheyer snap his trend in sight of a breakthrough? It seems that could be the case as the Blue Devils were also a reported finalist for Bidunga according to The Field of 68.Latest Sports News from FOX Sports
There’s no such thing as a perfect Costco, but your shopping experience will vary by location. Customers living near this warehouse tell a cautionary tale.
Mashed – Fast Food, Celebrity Chefs, Grocery, Reviews
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When Trace Adkins Appeared on a Soap Opera
Remember his soap opera days? Continue reading…Country Music News – Taste of Country
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All along, Diddy has been hoping to knock time off of his prison sentence.
His attorneys are trying their hardest as they argue before the appeals court.
One of their arguments is that the judge sentenced him improperly.
More interestingly, they argue that his very narrow conviction is Unconstitutional — because “freak-off” parties are First Amendment expression.
Could he get out even earlier than scheduled?
TMZ reports that the disgraced rapper’s legal team is presenting an oddly compelling argument before a federal appeals court.
The argument is, in essence, pretty simple: that the few charges on which Diddy was convicted, the “freak-offs,” are Constitutionally protected activities.
Remember, the jury failed to convict him of the actual crimes — like racketeering conspiracy.
His convictions were for transporting sex workers “for purposes of prosecution.” That is a crime under teh Mann Act.
Diddy’s attorneys are saying that the law doesn’t apply, because the “freak-offs” were transformative works of art.
“Freak-offs and hotel nights were highly choreographed sexual performances involving the use of costumes, role play, and staged lighting,” his attorneys arue.
According to the attorneys, these were events “which were filmed so Combs and his girlfriends could watch this amateur pornography later.”
His legal team notes: “Pornography production and viewing of this sort is protected by the First Amendment.”
The argument continues: “And thus cannot constitutionally be prosecuted.”
Prosecutors are calling these claims “meritless,” but the appeals court may find it a compelling case.
His team is also complaining about his sentence
Despite the horrors presented in court, Diddy only received a 50-month sentence. That is because he was only convicted of the least of these charges.
His attorneys say that a typical sentence for transporting people for sex work is 15 months.
(This is not the case on which to argue it but, obviously, sex work must be decriminalized.)
As such, his team says that his sentence is excessive.
To date, he has served 19 months. Scary to think that, even if the appeals court doesn’t bite, he could be out in less than two years!
According to the rapper’s defense team, the judge’s sentence was out of line.
Why?
They say that the judge considered evidence from Diddy’s much more serious charges in issuing the sentence.
Like it or not — and, really, who other than the man himself likes it — the jury acquitted him of racketeering and trafficking.
Team Diddy doesn’t like the idea that the judge considered anything, including the horrific video of Diddy’s violent attack against Cassie Ventura, when sentencing their client.
What will the appeals court decide?
As we said earlier, sex work absolutely must be decriminalized. The government should not, and must not, tell people what to do with their own bodies.
And porn — whether it’s high art or just filmed on a phone (or somehow both) — is Constitutionally protected, and must remain so.
The appeals court will have to determine whether Diddy’s “freak-off” parties qualify.
One helpful tip may be that Constitutionally protected performance art does not generally have victims. At least, it isn’t supposed to.
But the rapper wasn’t convicted for anything involving a victim. The jury gave him a pass for every charge where he allegedly had a victim who was a woman or a sex worker. Only time will tell how he court will rule.
Diddy Argues ‘Freak-Off’ Parties Are Constitutionally Protected Art, Seeks to … was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.
The Hollywood Gossip
By: Yereth Rosen, Alaska Beacon
The U.S. Coast Guard said it has seized 5.4 metric tons of allegedly unreported pollock roe and discovered several significant fishing violations aboard one of the biggest factory trawlers operating in the Bering Sea off Alaska.
The enforcement action, announced by the Coast Guard on Monday, is against the Northern Eagle, a catcher-processor owned and operated by Seattle-based American Seafoods. The company disputes the allegation.
A team from the cutter Waesche boarded the Northern Eagle on March 26 when the trawler was about 15 nautical miles north of Dutch Harbor, the Coast Guard said in a statement. The action followed an alert from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement about discrepancies between the vessel’s production reports and electronic logbook.
“The integrity of fisheries data is paramount for the sustainability of our nation’s living marine resources,” Captain Tyson Scofield, commanding officer of the Waesche, said in the Coast Guard statement. “This seizure highlights the Coast Guard’s commitment to enforcing federal law with our partner agencies to ensure a level playing field for all fishermen who follow the rules.”
Pollock roe is considered a delicacy in some Asian nations; Japan and Korea are the main markets for it.
The unreported roe aboard the Northern Eagle was worth $65,000, the Coast Guard said.
The Coast Guard team remained with the Northern Eagle as it sailed to Dutch Harbor, and the team observed and documented the crew offloading 11,524 boxes of pollock roe, the statement said. That was 241 more boxes than what had been declared in the Northern Eagle’s log.
The investigation also uncovered evidence indicating that the Northern Eagle crew, in a previous voyage, had underreported about 12.4 metric tons of pollock roe worth an estimated $150,000, the Coast Guard said.
American Seafoods on Tuesday disputed the Coast Guard’s characterization of events and issued a statement “to correct the public record, address inaccurate narratives, and clarify the nature of this regulatory inquiry.”
The company said the issue is a simple paperwork discrepancy arising from different methodologies rather than deliberate misreporting. The discrepancy was the result of minor and routine differences between estimated daily numbers and final reconciled numbers, the company said in the statement.
“We strongly reject any narrative that portrays a discrepancy in daily estimated production as an intentional breach of conservation measures that protect our fishery,” Inge Andreassen, American Seafoods’ president, said in the statement. “There is no economic motive to report anything other than exactly what we produce.”
American Seafoods is one of the major harvesters of Bering Sea pollock. The company has a fleet of seven vessels, five of which are engaged in the pollock fishery. The Northern Eagle, at 341 feet and with space for 143 crew members, is American Seafoods’ longest vessel, according to the company’s website.
Roe is collected from Bering Sea pollock in the early part of the year. The annual Bering Sea pollock harvest is divided into two parts. A winter-spring “A Season” is conducted in the first half the year, usually from January to April, and targets fish when they are spawning and the females are carrying eggs. A subsequent “B Season” starts in June and runs through the fall, usually resulting in a total harvest of higher quantity but focused more on fish fillets and products that are made from them.
By: Corinne Smith, Alaska Beacon
The House State Affairs committee advanced a governor’s appointee for a public seat on the Alaska Police Standards Council with some skepticism on Tuesday.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy appointed Veronica Lambertsen to serve in one of four public seats on the 13-member Alaska Police Standards Council, which oversees law enforcement standards across the state.
The council is charged with setting and enforcing standards for law enforcement certification, as well as training and retention for all police, probation, parole and correctional officers. Members are also tasked with adopting state regulations and investigating police misconduct, like officer discipline and use-of-force.
Lambertsen is a small business owner, and since 2001 has operated the Bird Creek Motel in Bird Creek, a small unincorporated area south of Anchorage, according to her resume. She has volunteered on the Turnagain Arm Community Council since 2023, which serves the communities of Bird Creek, Indian and Rainbow.
Lambertsen’s resume lists no formal educational or professional training experience, and describes her education as “homeschooled.”
Lawmakers seemed skeptical of her qualifications, and asked Lambertsen about her connection with law enforcement or public safety issues at a confirmation hearing on Tuesday.
Rep. Steve St. Clair, R-Wasilla asked if she had law enforcement experience.
“Not active duty or anything,” said Lambertsen by phone. “But being a small business owner, and in reflection of owning a cafe and a motel, I’ve had a lot of experience with law enforcement, and yes, there’s a lot of incidents that have happened regularly, and there’s been a relationship.”
The council has 11 seats reserved for members in leadership positions with law enforcement or corrections, and four seats for members of the public, including two from communities of 2,500 population or less.
Rep. Rebecca Himschoot, I-Sitka asked Lambertson what perspective she would bring to the statewide council. “How will you help make this a better council?” she asked.
Lambertsen told lawmakers she would bring a “public perspective” and said she’s interested in working on standards for training.
Committee members were unsure on Tuesday if police training is required for appointees to the Council. Lambert said it was not, but added that members have the opportunity to take police standards classes.
Officials with the Alaska Department of Public Safety confirmed Wednesday public members of the council do not need to have any law enforcement connection.
Lambertsen serves as the volunteer secretary for the Anchorage chapter of Moms for Liberty, according to her resume, a far-right national group that advocates for parental rights, and is known for its advocacy against school curricula that includes LGBTQ rights. Some chapters advocate for book bans.
The group has been deemed an “antigovernment” group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, a civil rights organization, and has known ties to other extremist or hate groups.
Lawmakers did not ask about Lambertsen’s affiliation with the group, or how it would affect her role on the Alaska Police Standards Council.
Lambertsen responded to questions about her affiliation with the group by email on Wednesday, saying that her position with Moms for Liberty “had nothing to do with anti-student inclusion.”
“My understanding of Moms for Liberty was asking for curriculum being provided by teachers to educate children to be age appropriate, especially for Early Childhood Learning to 6th Grade Learning, for parents to ask questions about curriculum of the School Districts and not allow “soft porn books” in schools and libraries for children of all ages to have access to,” she said. “Certain books should be available in older age sections with accessibility to that age group.”
Lambertsen did not respond to questions about how her political views would influence her role on the council.
In an interview Wednesday, Rep. Ashley Carrick, D-Fairbanks, chair of the House State Affairs Committee, said the committee’s review process is “like a job interview” and a procedural step before a full vote before a joint session of the Legislature. But she said she has concerns about partisan conservative nominees appointed by Dunleavy, including Lambertsen, across state boards.
“It really leads to a lean of our state boards and commissions and those decision making services towards potentially a partisan flavor,” she said. “And I think after eight years of this administration, we are seeing some of the impacts of that.”
Carrick said each lawmaker does their own research on nominees for a final vote in a joint session of the Legislature. She said she prefers to contact nominees privately with concerns, rather in the committee process, and also relies on public input.
“I think at this point I would really need to hear from folks around the state if they’re also concerned,” she said. “And hopefully the hearing just brought just a little bit of attention to this appointee and what she’s being appointed for.”