Brett Eldredge, a.k.a. Mr. Christmas, has a new Christmas album coming on September 27th. Merry Christmas (Welcome to the Family) features all original songs and a duet with Kelly Clarkson called "Sweet December." "After I finished the Glow Tour last year, I immediately dove into writing an album full of original Christmas songs that will hopefully become classics in your hearts and minds," Brett wrote on social media. "We recorded this album trying to encapsulate the classic Christmas sounds I've always loved and put my own soulful and jazz-like spin on it."

Jelly Roll will be the musical guest for Saturday Night Live on September 28th. That is the premiere night for the show's 50th season. Jean Smart will be the guest host. "BRB going to cry for a few hours and call every family member I have," Jelly Roll wrote on social media. "Bringing therapeutic music to my favourite show ever. God is Good." Saturday Night Live airs on NBC starting at 11:30pm.

Randy Travis has lined up new More Life Tour dates beginning in January. Due to his stroke in 2013, which left him unable to sing, Randy doesn't sing during the shows. A vocalist named James Dupré performs with Randy's original touring band, while Randy and his wife Mary are onstage interacting with fans and enjoying the music together. "The More Life Tour celebrates so much more than a musical moment in time," Randy says in a statement. "It's a gift to me to spend time with my fans, and my band, as James Dupré perfectly presents the songs that best define my career." The tour is named after a documentary about Randy's personal life and career that came out in 2022.

Kelsea Ballerini and Shania Twain are both featured in a trailer for the new ABC drama Doctor Odyssey. The show stars Joshua Jackson as Dr. Max Bankman. Kelsea describes her role as "guest star," which means that she is probably playing herself. Shania can be seen twirling around with Don Johnson. The show, which explores how doctors and nurses aboard a cruise ship navigate their professional and personal lives, premieres September 26th on ABC.

Last week, Darius Rucker pleaded no contest to a charge of simple possession of a controlled substance. He was arrested in February 2024, but the traffic stop that led to the charges happened a year before. During the stop, Darius was caught with a THC pen, a small marijuana joint and 14 purple pills that were later identified as Psilocin, an ingredient in magic mushrooms. He was originally pulled over February 19, 2023 for a traffic violation, and the officer smelled marijuana from the car. Darius admitted he's smoked weed in that vehicle but not that night. When the officer found the pills, Darius told him that his girlfriend at the time gave them to him and he didn't know what they were. The officer let him go and then a year later he got a phone call from a buddy saying that he just saw an arrest warrant for Darius. So, he turned himself in. He initially was charged with two misdemeanor possession charges and driving with expired tags. One possession charge and the expired tags charge were dismissed. Darius pleaded no contest to the other charge and accepted a sentence of 11 months and 29 days probation. If he completes the probation, the charges will be expunged.

Brooks & Dunn are once again teaming up with a number of artists for their new album Reboot II. It's the follow up to 2019's Reboot. "The fun part was we weren't chasing the original recordings or arrangements or our versions," Ronnie Dunn explains to Billboard. "We turned them loose to do whatever they wanted to do and, I'm biased, but it's really refreshing." They also warned their fans that the new batch of songs are experimental. Here's the tracklist for Reboot II:

1. "Play Something Country" with Lainey Wilson

2. "Neon Moon" with Morgan Wallen

3. "Rock My World (Little Country Girl) with Marcus King

4. "Ain't Nothing 'Bout You with Megan Moroney

5. "Brand New Man" with Warren Zeiders

6. "Believe" with Jelly Roll

7. "She Used To Be Mine" with Riley Green

8. "She Likes to Get Out of Town" with The Cadillac Three

9. "Boot Scootin' Boogie" with Halestorm

10. "Ain't No Way to Go" with Mitchell Tenpenny

11. "How Long Gone" with the Earls of Leicester

12. "I'll Never Forgive My Heart" with Jake Worthington

13. "She's Not The Cheatin' Kind" with Hailey Whitters

14. "Hard Workin' Man" with Christone "Kingfish" Ingram

15. "Hillbilly Deluxe" with Hardy

16. "Indian Summer" with Ernest

17. "Drop In the Bucket" with Thousand Horses

18. "Only In America" with Corey Kent

 

Little Big Town's first-ever Christmas album, The Christmas Record, will be released October 4th. "Ever since we started as a band, we have dreamed of making a Christmas record. We all love the traditions of the season and treasure the memories with our families," shares Jimi Westbrook. "For our 25th year together, we finally made that record. We wrote several original songs for the project, and also recorded some of our favourites we've been singing together for years. We're so proud of how it came together and hope the fans love it as much as we do." The project features 11 tracks full of renditions of country classics and festive originals.

Garth Brooks is wrapping up his residency at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. He has just announced the dates for the final three weekends in February and March. March 9th will be his final show at the venue.