Month: February 2023

Brandi Carlile and The Black Keys were announced as headliners for the inaugural Evolution Festival, set to take place in St. Louis, Missouri on August 26th and 27th at Forest Park. Other performers on the lineup include Ice Cube, The Black Crowes, Ben Harper, Modern English, Morgan Wade, and Brittany Howard.

Tickets are on sale now via EvolutionFestival.com. Weekend general admission tickets start at $99.50 per person, with three levels of Weekend VIP experiences starting at $199.50 per person, all-inclusive hotel packages and a limited number of premium cabanas. A portion of the ticket sales will be donated to the non-profit Forest Park Forever and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital’s Music Gives campaign to raise money in the fight against childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases.

Editorial credit: Featureflash Photo Agency / Shutterstock.com

Kelsea Ballerini appeared on the Feb. 22 episode of the “Call Her Daddy” podcast and opened up about the end of her 5 year marriage to Morgan Evans. Ballerini recalled first meeting Evans in March 2016 and that things moved fast, with Evans proposing in December of that same year after just nine months of dating. Ballerini said she swore she would never get married because of her parents’ “nasty” divorce, but the pair wed one year after their engagement in December 2017. Ballerini said things began falling apart when she felt Evans wasn’t prioritizing her, and “there was such a sense of disconnection” between them.

Ballerini noted that she and Evans had a “really beautiful conversation” about their divorce in August 2022, but they haven’t spoken again after their split. Said Kelsea: “I was just really honest. I just said, like, I’ve loved what this has brought in my life and I respect you and I respect me, and because of that I can no longer be in this marriage And I really want to do this together and I really want to, like, honor the good that we’ve experienced by doing this the right way. It was beautiful. We cried. We hugged. It was sweet … And then something changed and … I haven’t talked to him since.” Ballerini admitted that when Evans released his song “Over For You” within weeks after that conversation, it made her “livid.” On Valentine’s Day 2023, Ballerini released her “Rolling Up the Welcome Mat” EP, which chronicles her side of the break-up. Ballerini also said during the podcast interview that she was ready to date again, and confirmed that she is not single, saying she is having “fun” and “just vibing” with “Outer Banks” actor Chase Stokes.

Following Ballerini’s podcast interview, Evans posted a statement to Instagram saying: “It’s really sad for me to see this person, who I spent so much of my life with, and loved with all my heart, saying things that aren’t reality and that leave out what really happened. She knows I’m not the type of guy to speak on those things publicly If this is what she needs to heal, I hope it helps. All I ask is that if you’re on my pages, please don’t be mean. Don’t be mean to Kelsea, don’t be mean to each other. Life’s too short.”

Editorial credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com

Luke Bryan has announced the addition of six new 2023 dates to his Luke Bryan: Vegas residency at Resorts World Theatre inside Resorts World Las Vegas. Bryan will perform August 30, September 2, 3, 6, 8 and 9th, and are in addition to the previously announced spring dates for March and April.

The announcement follows the enormous success of Bryan’s first year of Vegas shows at Resorts World Theatre which began in February 2022. Each performance from Bryan features a shifting stage that seamlessly lifts the country superstar and his band to the rhythms of his hit songs as well as a catwalk that descends from the ceiling and elevates Bryan to eye-level with audience members in the mezzanine.

Bryan will also launch the 36-city Country On Tour, kicking off June 15th in Syracuse, New York. Special guests throughout the tour include many of up-and-coming artists in country music, including Chayce Beckham, Tyler Braden, Ashley Cooke, Jackson Dean, Jon Langston, Conner Smith, Alana Springsteen, Hailey Whitters, and DJ Rock.

Tickets for the newly announced Vegas residency dates are on sale now at rwlasvegas.com.

Editorial credit: Jaguar PS / Shutterstock.com

Jelly Roll has announced the 44-city “Backroad Baptism Tour,” kicking off this summer on July 28 at Bank Plus Amphitheater in Southaven, Mississippi. Ashley McBryde, Elle King, Chase Rice, Caitlynne Curtis, Merkules, Struggle Jennings, Three 6 Mafia, Yelawolf and Josh Adam Meyers will open on select dates throughout the tour. Along with his new tour, Jelly Roll will also open on several dates as direct support for Eric Church.

Jelly Roll scored his first No. 1 on country radio with his debut single “Son Of A Sinner,” which broke the record for most weeks spent at No. 1 on Billboard’s Emerging Artist chart.  Jelly Roll also just released “She” as well as his current radio hit, “Need A Favor” from his forthcoming album.

The Backroad Baptism Tour will make stops in Milwaukee, Bakersfield, Houston, Lexington, Salt Lake City and more before wrapping in Tampa on Oct. 14. Tickets go on sale starting this Friday, Feb. 24 at 10 a.m. local time on Ticketmaster.com.

Editorial credit: Virrage Images / Shutterstock.com