The Boot

Ben Gallaher triumphed when he made his national television debut in May, but in a new interview, he reveals that his performance was still very much up in the air just hours before the taping. The singer-songwriter and guitarist made his national TV debut on The Kelly Clarkson Show on May 6, 2026. The Taste of Country RISERS: 2026 Artists to Watch artist tells Taste of Country that he got so sick prior to his appearance that he could barely talk, much less sing.

There's a saying floating around the nostalgia corners of social media: you don't actually miss a place — you miss a time you can't get back to. Turns out that if you want to time travel (in lieu of an actual time machine), your best bet is food. One bite and you're not just remembering dinner; you're back at the chunky oak table and chairs, sitting under a Pizza Hut-style hanging light with the rest of your ragtag nuclear family.

Thomas Rhett took some time out of his show on Friday night (Aug. 14) to pay tribute to his sister-in-law, who he says is "cancer-free" after battling the disease since just after the turn of the year. She has been.

Dolly Parton was supposed to be at Dollywood on Friday, but her doctor told her she needed to stay put. The country music icon was scheduled to appear in person at the Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, theme park for the opening ceremony of its new NightFlight Expedition roller coaster. Instead, Parton joined the celebration virtually from Nashville, where she explained why she couldn't make the trip. I'm still in Nashville, and I'm sorry about that. I'm supposed to be there in person, like we planned.

There's something pretty cool about hearing an artist talk about a song they wrote years ago and knowing it still holds up for them. That's exactly how Tyler Hubbard feels about a No. 1 single for Jason Aldean that he helped write, alongside Brian Kelley, Morgan Wallen, and Jordan Schmidt.

Trisha Yearwood got honest about what her marriage to Garth Brooks is really like — and no, it's not perfect behind closed doors, although it looks to always be that way when the doors are open. The couple has been married for nearly 21 years, and while they clearly have a tremendous amount of love and respect for each other, Yearwood says they're still two independent people who don't always see things the same way.

A North Carolina man is now facing assault charges after he was accused of urinating on a family, including an 8-year-old girl, at Morgan Wallen's July 18 show in Baltimore, Md. Jayson Reed, 33,  is charged with four counts of second-degree assault, plus public urination and other related offenses, per NBC affiliate WBALTV. He was arrested in connection with those charges on Wednesday (Aug. 12.) Reed was arrested in North Carolina, and will be extradited to Maryland.

Randy Travis admits he and Alan Jackson were a lot of things, but friends? It's hard to argue otherwise. The two country icons spent a lot of time together in the 1980s and 1990s. Both were enjoying hard-fought success with a career trajectory pointing toward the Hall of Fame. Typically, that means you only get to see your friends at festivals and awards shows. "Their personalities are so different," Randy Travis' wife Mary tells Taste of Country as the singer nods in agreement.

On Wednesday (Aug. 12), Neil Perry torched sister Kimberly Perry with a harsh rebuke for her version of how the Band Perry has evolved.. Among his claims were that he was fired from the family band and that he's lost his financial interest and access to fans he spent his 20s building. He also indicated there were deep fractures even before this latest drama began to unfold in 2024, and certainly before he talked about it. It was about much more than the Band Perry's lineup, he says.

It shouldn't be a surprise to anyone that Garth Brooks — the artist who seems to exclusively reveal news through his website, and who exclusively streams his music through Amazon and keeps it off mainstream platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music — chose an unconventional roll-out plan for the dates on his 2026 Blame It All On My Roots Arena Tour.