The Daily Star - Stay Tuned
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coverstory Blake Shelton and Luke Bryan co-host The 48th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards The Daily Star, Oneonta, N.Y., Friday, April 5, 2013 By Kyla Brewer TV Media P op artists and rockers have been attracting frenzied fans since the '60s, but few music lovers are as loyal as country fans. And, it seems, there are more and more of them all the time. Today's country music fan doesn't have to wear cowboy boots and drive a pickup truck -- they're everywhere. While its roots may be anchored in the American South, country music is reaching far and wide these days, far beyond rural regions and into big cities where fans pack stadiums and arenas to see their favorites in action. "The Voice's" Blake Shelton and singer-songwriter Luke Bryan bring that action into living rooms across the nation as they host The 48th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards, airing Sunday, April 7, on CBS. This year's ceremony takes the countryfried fun to Las Vegas, where it will be broadcast from the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Both hosts are up for Entertainer of the Year at the awards that honor the work of country music artists over the past 12 months. Featuring an iconic "hat" trophy, the ACM Awards was the first country music award ceremony of its kind, inaugurated in 1966. So many industries have been struggling in the wake of the economic downturn, but the country music industry has been gaining in popularity over the past several years, thanks to such artists as Miranda Lambert, Taylor Swift and Lady Antebellum. It's no surprise that all of them have been nominated for awards this year, but they aren't the biggest fish in the ACMA pond. Eric Church leads the pack Last year's Vocal Group of the Year winner Lady Antebellum will perform at the ACM Awards with seven nominations, including Male Vocalist of the Year, Album of the Year ("Chief") and Song of the Year for his hit "Springsteen." Church faces stiff competition from the night's co-hosts, Shelton and Bryan, in the Vocalist category, along with Jason Aldean and Toby Keith. However, Swift presents his biggest challenge as the country music sweetheart is also up for Album of the Year for her effort "Red." Bryan ("Tailgates & Tanlines"), Carrie Underwood ("Blown Away") and Little Big Town ("Tornado") round out that category. Song of the Year nominees include Lee Brice's "A Woman Like You," Eli Young Band's "Even if it Breaks Your Heart," Lambert's "Over You" (written with husband Shelton!) and Hunter Hayes' "Wanted." Country music wunderkind Hayes -- the youngest member ever inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame -- has snagged six nominations. He's up for the coveted New Male Vocalist of the Year category, which also includes Lee Brice and Brantley Gilbert. Hayes could also walk away with Single Record of the Year for "Wanted," but he'll have to beat out the likes of Eli Young Band ("Even if it Breaks Your Heart"), Lambert ("Over You"), Little Big Town ("Pontoon") and Church ("Spring- steen"). Lambert and Swift have each earned five nominations, and will, of course, face each other in the Female Vocalist of the Year category. Former American Idol Underwood, country music veteran Martina McBride and newcomer Kacey Musgraves will give them a run for their money, though. Musgraves joins the ranks of Bryan and Little Big Town with four nominations each. Some of the industry's biggest names appear in this year's Vocal Event of the Year. Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw's duet "Feel Like a Rock Star" will take on Kelly Clarkson and Vince Gill's "Don't Rush," Rascal Flatts and Natasha Bedingfield's "Easy," David Nail and Sarah Buxton's "Let It Rain, and Aldean and Bryan's "The Only Way I Know." As far as groups go, country music legends Big & Rich face newcomers Florida Georgia Line, as well as Love and Theft, Sugarland and Thompson Square in the Vocal Duo of the Year category. The Vocal Group of the Year could go to The Band Perry, Eli Young Band, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town or Zac Brown Band. The most highly anticipated category is traditionally Entertainer of the Year, which this year includes the aforementioned Shelton and Bryan. Interestingly, it also includes Shelton's wife Lambert, Swift and Aldean. For a full list of nominees, visit acmcountry.com. Just as country fans are faithful to their favorites, country music artists aren't quick to forget their fans. In addition to performances by the two co-hosts, Underwood, Clarkson, The Band Perry and Artist of the Decade (2000s) George Straight are among those scheduled to perform at this year's ceremony. But that isn't all. While Shelton, Bryan and the rest of the gang are entertaining the star-studded audience at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, superstar Brad Paisley hosts the third annual ACM Fan Jam at the Orleans Arena across town. Paisley and other chart toppers will perform throughout the three-hour awards ceremony broadcast, joining the fray remotely to let viewers at home in on the fun. The best part is, it's a fans-only concert and it will continue after the awards show wraps up. Paisley will be joined by such artists as Dierks Bentley, Hayes, Gilbert, Jana Kramer and Florida Georgia Line. What's more, the prized ACM New Artist of the Year Presented by Kohl's Award will be presented on the Fan Jam stage. Fans have been invited to vote for one of the three nominees -- Kramer, Gilbert or Florida Georgia Line -- at www.VoteACM.com beginning March 25 and ending just moments before the broadcast. Chirstopher's Coins 2x2 hollywoodQ&A By Adam Thomlison TV Media Q: When will "Sherlock" be back? It is coming back, right? A: It is most definitely coming back. If it wasn't, all the filming they're doing right now would be for nothing. The third season -- if you can call it that, since the seasons are more like three-episode miniseries -- reportedly began filming in late March. The new episodes are slated to air early next year. That's a long break (the Season 2 finale debuted in May 2012), which was to accommodate the busy schedules of the show's two leads, Benedict Cumberbatch (playing the legendary sleuth Sherlock Holmes) and Martin Freeman (Dr. Watson), whose popularity has grown with that of the series. Freeman was busy filming the sprawling "Hobbit" trilogy, of which he is the star, while Cumberbatch has done a number of films, including most notably this summer's likely blockbuster "Star Trek Into Darkness." Their schedules will actually necessitate a second break, midway through filming the third season this summer. Producer Sue Vertue told fansite Sherlockology.com that there was no way around it, but that fans would agree it is worth the inconvenience. Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town. Personal replies will not be provided. A/Krazy Tom's B/State FarmMelisa Manikas 2x3