Recently Brett Eldredge and Meghan Trainor were the ones to sing each others’ songs (and on of Kenny and Dolly’s) on CMT Crossroads, and it was really good! Now, you might think that since they’re both superstar entertainers, all they had to do was show up and sing and everything worked out, but no. There was actually a lot of rehearsal time put into making that show great, and even a little tweaking of harmonies the day before.

Also the outfit Meghan planned to wear for the show didn’t show up. She didn’t panic, and in fact called on the spirit of Oprah to remind herself that there was nothing she could do to change it, so she was just going to roll with flow.

Do take note of her slippers, too. You think these artists wear their heels all the time? Oh, girl. No. That would hurt.

Check out the behind-the-scenes video here:

I’ve said from the beginning that there’s more to the story than the sensational stuff we’ve been told about Gretchen Wilson’s arrest a couple of weeks ago in Connecticut. Authorities called it a “minor disturbance” she was involved in on a flight, and when she landed and had to talk to cops on the jetway, they called her “belligerent” and arrested her for breach of peace. While I’m not best friends with Gretchen, I’ve met her several times, and what I’ve seen her be is assertive and direct, and she doesn’t take anybody’s crap. If you’re a woman, you know how THAT translates. Belligerent? What they probably meant is that she didn’t back down from her convictions.

Gretchen gave her first interview since her arrest to Taste of Country, and while she can’t talk about any of the details while it’s an active case, she did say that what we’ve been reading is all wrong.  And she’s frustrated by not being able to set the record straight while attorneys are doing their attorney things. But she says she’s sure everything will get sorted out and the truth will prevail.

Oooh… she’s writing a song about it. I can’t wait to hear it!

You may know Vicky chose artist, Nick Marra, for the job after seeing the sculpture Nick did for Anton Yelchin's gravesite at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.

And you also may know that the unveiling of the statue was pushed back to October 7th, in response to pleas from fans that they too could be present for the ceremony to honor Cornell. Here's the thing, I have yet to seen any articles focusing on how fans feel about the statue? Sure we could sift thru Facebook comments but it seems odd there haven't been any proper articles on fan reaction. Positive or negative.  Has the media mysteriously omitted fan feels? Or is my overactive imagination in high gear again?  Either way, I wanted to find out how living, breathing Soundgarden fans feel...so I asked 4 legit fans who also happen to be legit friends:

"Honestly, I don't give a sh*t. Of course I love Chris, his music and legacy. The artist looks extremely talented and I'm sure a generation from now we will have moving/talking video replications of people and their voices that will make this statue obsolete. I understand why people do things like this, I just have a hard time playing along and pretending a statue means anything." - Jeff, Soundgarden devotee since a fateful night in 1993, when he saw the video for "Rusty Cage" on MTV while probably wearing some LL Bean bullsh*t.

"I'm struggling with the peekaboo pics - it looks like a chocolate statue of Weird Al... I pray the delay is because someone else saw it that way and plans to fix it. Oh, and so glad VK always gets her self-promotion in there." - Ashley, Soundgarden devotee since a fateful night in 1991, when she heard "Outshined"  at The A Bar in Dallas.

"It makes me mad."  - Sara, life-long Seattleite and sometime Soundgarden fan since she finally got around to seeing Singles in 1994.

"I think it's wonderful to see the city embracing the memory of Chris Cornell. His music put Seattle on the map and paved the way for so many bands. He is missed every day so the statue is a nice way to honor his legacy." - Kendra, Soundgarden devotee since a fateful night in 1993, when she heard "Jesus Christ Pose" in her older sister's boyfriend's garage in Seattle.

It's important to note that the band's twitter account looks to be supportive and MoPop is a genuinely great space. I've seen many exhibitions there over the years and while it may not be ideal to some Soundgarden fans, it is a solid location.

* I'd also like to add that Ashley is right about the chocolate part. So much so, what do you think about chocolate statues with his likeness that can be given out as souvenirs at the unveiling? If that sounds inappropriate, please know I'm incredibly hungry right now.

After performing their brand of synth-funk for indie music fans for over a decade, Chromeo are ready to break into the world of pop music with their new record, "White Women." We sat down with Dave 1 and P-Thugg to create a radio station featuring their favorite artists, stories, and songs. From A Tribe Called Quest to Phoenix, this is "Chromeo: I Am The DJ."

Remember Nina Nesbitt? She scored a hit early this year with the song “Somebody Special”, and now she’s trying to follow it up with something a little edgier.

In this video for Rolling Stone, Nina says the song was inspired by 90’s R&B and that she actually wrote it as a piece of advice for a friend. She explains “this is a song about all the symptoms that you will find when you fear you may be dating a f***boi.”

There are an awful lot of songs lately about women who just don’t want to put up with men’s bs. Maybe we should create an entire Slacker station around the concept? Let me know what you think, and what other songs I just have to include – chat with @parkeronslacker on Twitter!

There are a lot of stereotypes about those of us who listen to country music. Of course, we don’t all live in trailers, go to NASCAR races, or cry into our Bud Lights while driving pickup trucks. Nothing wrong with it if you do, I’m just saying we don’t all do that.

But I feel like Brad Paisley has really hit the nail on the head with the so far unreleased song he played for Jimmy Fallon on the Tonight Show. After talking about his pre-show dodge ball ritual with his band, the real  reason for Blake Shelton’s arm injury, and finding material for the CMA Awards, which he’s hosting with Carrie Underwood in November, you’ll hear this song about a first… uh… love.

Man, I can’t wait until he releases this one as a single so we can play it on Slacker’s Nashville Now!

Camila Cabello is on the road with Taylor Swift now, but she just wrapped up her very first headlining tour in Europe, and just released a video tour diary of that time. The mini-doc takes us behind the scenes of her tour, alternating between fan interviews & shots from the stage, with Camila narrating her experience.

"I feel like the never be the same tour has changed my life because this has been my first time really talking to a crowd… really like telling my story & opening up & being vulnerable. And talking about what these songs are about, who I am, how I feel, how I felt before in my life. How I react to heartbreak & hurt. I think it’s the most vulnerable I’ve ever been, and I’ve always been, like, even though it doesn’t seem like it, when it comes to public speaking & talking to people I’ve always been really really painfully shy… I think that this has changed my life in the sense that I feel so safe in this environment. I feel so loved with the people that I love all around me – my fans all around me – that it does feel like when I’m talking to the crowd, I’m talking to my friends."

Check out the clip above to get a feel for Camila, and tune in to the MTV VMAs tonight (Monday, August 20th) to see if she takes home the Artist of The Year moonman!

You can prep for the awards with Slacker’s The Twenty: MTV VMAs station!

Today we say goodbye to a musical legend. On the anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death, Aretha Franklin has joined him in that rock ‘n’ roll band we know must be jamming in heaven.

Aretha’s music influenced artists of every genre – and has even made appearances at country music industry events. Like that time in 1988 when then-three time consecutive female vocalist of the year Reba McEntire performed “Respect” at the CMA Awards. Reba said it was controversial, but she said the song connected with her mental outlook at the time.

Country artists have been paying their respects (no pun intended) on social media today, including Reba, who also shared a video of her 1988 performance.

Rest in peace, Queen. Thank you for the music. – Jess Wright

The reigning and undisputed “Queen Of Soul” has created an amazing legacy that spans an incredible six decades, from her first recording as a teenage gospel star to a stunning string of seminal R&B, Pop and Soul classics. Take a deep dive into her music, her collaborators, her inspirations and the many who site her as an inspiration.

Bebe Rexha is one of those artists who puts it ALL out there – whether she’s spilling the dirt on her breakthrough track with Eminem (you know, the one where she was replaced by Rihanna) or discussing how she failed, big time, and got dropped from her first record deal.

2018 is FINALLY the year of Bebe, and she sat down with Rolling Stone to talk about all these experiences, plus what it’s like to sing about her own anxieties and going to therapy.