Thomas Rhett joins Katie Neal for the Superstar Power Hour.

Photo: Jason Kempin/Getty Images

Sam Hunt talks with Katie Neal backstage at the 2024 CMA Awards.

Photo: Alysse Gafkjen

Bailey Zimmerman talks with Katie Neal backstage at the 2024 CMA Awards.

Photo: Chris Ashlee

It’s a big week for Riley Green who is a first-time nominee at this week’s 58th Annual CMA Awards. Ahead of Wednesday’s show, Green took time to catch up with Audacy’s Katie Neal to catch up on all the week’s festivities including his very first fashion show experience, upcoming CMA performance and more.

Touching quickly on the Boot Barn fashion show that both he and Katie attended Monday night, Riley says he “felt like everybody there was looking at me for my reaction… it was like not laughing in church, you know? It was fun,” he adds. “But, I was like, right there and a lady came out doing splits, interpretive dance, and they were all staring a hole through me when they were walking down. I didn't know where to look.”

Although it was his first fashion show, Riley says, “It won't be the last... I enjoyed it. I wished it lasted about 3 hours and I was drinking. That would have been fun. Here's what was tough: When it started and that girl was doing that dance thing where she was spinning on her head and stuff and it was real quiet. I wanted to clap. Miranda [Lambert] stopped me, because I was like, ‘You don't clap? That was awesome what she did.’”

Getting back to business, Riley shared he's looking forward to his own performance during this year’s CMA Awards. The 36-year-old Riley is scheduled to take the stage with Ella Langley to perform their hit single, “You Look Like You Love Me,” which is also up for Musical Event of the Year.

“This song is proof that I don't know what's a hit because, I mean, it was very organic how it happened" he shared. "[It] has been like [that] a lot of the collaborations I've done. I took Thomas Rhett duck hunting and we came out with ‘Half Of Me,’ and I was on tour with Luke Combs and played him ‘Different 'Round Here,’ and that ended up being a big hit for me. So, Ella was out on tour with me, heard the song -- I don't think they really knew what they were gonna do with it... I said, 'Well, I wonder… What if I wrote it from the guy's perspective? We did it and they liked it… I thought the talking verses were probably a little too traditional, but how awesome is it to see a song that's that Country, that's really that big of a hit.”

“I've never had a viral hit, I guess,” Riley admits, “and that was like kind of an overnight thing… you picked your phone up the next day and you couldn't get away from it. It was on everything, you know, so it's cool to see that. I'm super happy for her success with it too, it's been awesome to watch.”

This year’s ceremony will be Riley’s very first time on the CMAs stage, and although he’s feeling confident about the upcoming performance, there is one person he’ll be avoiding eye contact with. “Well, I didn't even think about that until you said it, I feel like Dierks Bentley,” he laughs. “I saw where everybody's sitting at. If I look at him [I'll laugh]”

Finally, discussing his current single “Damn Good Day To Leave,” Riley describes it as “a fun breakup song if there is such a thing. I love the thought of, you know, the girl left and you're sad, but the fish are biting, and the beer's cold, so it'll be all right.”

“It's a fun song, and it makes you wanna roll the window down and turn it up, so I love to sing that song," he says, "and it's always great when a song's climbing the chart because you get to watch the crowd sing it louder every week.”

Fans can catch Riley on his Damn Country Music Tour along with Ella Langley kicking off next year.

Listen to Katie's full chat with Riley Green above.

Don't miss the 58th Annual CMA Awards, hosted by Luke Bryan, Peyton Manning, and Lainey Wilson on Wednesday, November 20 at 8/7c on ABC, and available the next day on Hulu. Find more of Audacy's CMA Awards coverage at audacy.com/cma.

Words by Joe Cingrana, Interview by Katie Neal

Photo: Jeremy Cowart

It’s a big week for Luke Bryan who is returning to host the CMA Awards for a fourth year. A seasoned pro at leading the festivities by now, the Georgia native says he’s not nervous about much before the big night… except one thing.

“I’m not really nervous about anything,” he told Audacy’s Katie Neal ahead of Wednesday night’s show. “The main thing is, how will I look?” While Luke might have a few jitters about his appearance, he’s not second-guessing for a moment that fans will be entertained and laugh a lot.

“It’s got us laughing,” Bryan said after sharing he’s already run through the script a couple times over Zoom with Manning and Wilson. “Pretty sure the people at home are going to laugh too.”

While the CMA Awards are only once a year, fans can plan on seeing Bryan a lot more on their television screens come Spring as he returns to host another season of IDOL on ABC. The new season will premiere March 2025 and feature Bryan alongside fellow returning judge, Lionel Richie and new judge, Carrie Underwood as they search across America for the next American Idol.

“We’re doing auditions on Idol,” Bryan shared before detailing how Underwood is fitting into the already tight-knit judging crew. “Carrie’s doing great and she’s not requesting for my removal from the show yet,” he laughed. “No HR flags or anything… so, we’re doing good. She’s had to learn a lot on the fly, it’s a lot to process.”

He continued, “What I’ve learned from her is she’s just got the best heart in the world. When she talks to these kids — it’s hard when you’ve gotta tell ‘em no and she’s learning you just gotta say no, but she’s doing great.”

Hear more about Idol, his hosting duties and new single by checking out Luke’s entire interview with Audacy’s Katie Neal above.

The 58th Annual CMA Awards, hosted by Lainey Wilson, Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning, will broadcast live from Nashville's Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, November 20 at 8pm ET/7pm CT on ABC and stream the next day on Hulu.

Words by Monica Rivera, Interview by Katie Neal

Photo: Jim Wright

It’s CMA Week and while Luke Combs is up for some of the most prestigious awards come Wednesday night’s broadcast, he’s busy celebrating a different kind of win to start the week.

On Monday (11/18), Combs was crowned PEOPLE’s, “Sexiest 34-Year-Old Man on the Planet.” The award is a branch off the publication's Sexiest Man Alive title, which went to actor, John Krasinski, this year. While Krasinski won the overall title, PEOPLE decided to break it down even further this year by crowing the sexiest man of each age from 20-41.

“1990, [a] down year when it came to sexy guys, but still proud to be at the top of the pile,” Combs laughed before sharing he was “very heavily surprised,” by his new title. “Maybe we’re re-defining sexy,” he laughed. “Guys’ [with] shirts that don’t fit that good, they fall asleep watching football —if that’s sexy, I’m your guy!”

No need to worry about Combs’ ego getting too big from the new title as he shared his young sons currently keep him humble making him watch shows like, Stinky and Dirty, while playing with dinosaurs and tractors.

“We’re into tractors and we’re into dinosaurs and we’re into the pool, we’re into swimming a lot,” Combs responded when asked how his sons, Tex (2) and Beau (1) are doing. “My kid has all the dinosaurs drive the tractors and stuff — that’s what’s going on right now.”

Combs and his wife, Nicole, will have the night off from playing dinosaurs on Wednesday as they attend the 58th Annual CMA Awards where Luke is up for multiple awards including Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, and Album Of the Year for his project, Fathers & Sons. Additionally, Combs will take the stage to perform his hit, “Ain’t No Love In Oklahoma.”

“It’s gonna be sick,” he said of his plans for the performance. “We’ve got all the crazy effects and everything, which we’ve never done. We’ve never done fire and smoke and all that… We’re doing that this time because I feel like the song warrants it. Usually, I’m like, ‘Let the song speak for itself,’ but this time, I feel like the song would just be better with a bunch of cool fire and stuff, which is usually is not the case.”

Hear additional details about Combs’ performance, plus who he is most excited to see at the show, what fellow artist was an extra in his “Beer Never Broke My Heart” video and so much more by checking out his entire conversation with Audacy’s Katie Neal above.

The 58th Annual CMA Awards, hosted by Lainey Wilson, Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning, will broadcast live from Nashville's Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, November 20 at 8pm ET/7pm CT on ABC and stream next day on Hulu.

Words by Monica Rivera, Interview by Katie Neal

Photo: Zack Massey

Catching up backstage during the lead-up to the 2024 Country Music Association awards ceremony taking place on Wednesday, November 20, Audacy's Katie Neal spoke with Blake Shelton about being "fired up" about new music and more.

Of course, Blake is super-excited to see his good friend Luke Bryan on stage as one of this year's hosts, joking that he likely got the gig again, "I think because people love to watch a train wreck on the TV.

“I'm excited about Lainey [Wilson], I think she's incredible, I'm a huge fan of hers,” he adds, “and of course Peyton [Manning] is so funny… and Luke's funny too. I gotta give it to him. They got the right combination there.”

Touching on his own new music, Shelton says he's been thoroughly enjoying all of the fan reactions to his latest single, "Texas." “I was nervous, you know. It's been a while since I've released any new music,” he admits. “When I retired from ‘The Voice,’ I just kind of like went away… 23 seasons I was on that show, so I was happy to get a break.”

““This spring,” he explains, “Post Malone reached out to me and asked if I would be on the record with him, and then that thing took off and now here I am making my own music again and, I'm fired up about it -- I really am. I’m just trying to take it all in this time around. The first chapter of my career, which I think goes from 2001 to probably 2021 or 22 is kind of a blur to me, and to be able to kind of relaunch again, and know how hard it is in this business to have success, and to have a hit song -- and I really enjoy slowing down this time and taking it in, and enjoying these moments for what they are because not a lot of people get to experience it.”

Getting a chance to work with Malone, he says, reinvigorated his love for making music. “I feel like I'd kind of gotten lazy, you know, and I'd kind of taken for granted what I do because I've been staying on the hamster wheel for so long that you just kind of forget… When I was a kid, my only dream was being on the radio, and I mean, a very small, lottery winning percentage of people get to do this. But being around Post, it was like, ‘Look at this kid, man, he's the biggest star in the world.’ He couldn't be more excited about what he does, and what am I doing?”

“I really do credit him for firing me up about it again,” says Blake, “and wanting to make some more music. As long as people want it, and want to at least hear it and give me a chance -- it's actually literally stupid not to do it.”

Looking ahead, Shelton says “I probably have an album's worth of music that recorded that I have. I don't think it's there yet. I'm gonna keep recording and looking for songs until they tell me they gotta start printing albums and I need to turn something in.”

Listen to Katie's full chat with Blake Shelton above.

Don't miss the 58th Annual CMA Awards, hosted by Luke Bryan, Peyton Manning, and Lainey Wilson on Wednesday, November 20 at 8/7c on ABC, and available the next day on Hulu. Find more of Audacy's CMA Awards coverage at audacy.com/cma.

Words by Joe Cingrana, Interview by Katie Neal

Photo: Jason Kempin/Getty Images

After raising nearly $25 million for Hurricane Helene relief efforts in Western North Carolina with Concert for Carolina featuring Luke Combs, James Taylor, Billy Strings and himself, Eric Church says the fight following such devastation in his home state is far from over.

“I realized pretty quick with the funds that we had raised that the biggest problem that we have in this country [is] — we do a pretty good job with the immediate 911 need of food and water and diapers — what we don’t do as well is keeping people in the community from a housing perspective,” he shared ahead of performing at the 58th Annual CMA Awards. “We committed to putting 100 homes in Avery county, which is one of the counties hardest hit. That’s been the big focal point.”

On top of all the efforts he’s shown thus far towards relief, Church has also committed to giving to back “forever” by handing his song, “Darkest Hour,” to the state of North Carolina. This means 100% of the proceeds go to the state and towards those in need.

“‘Darkest Hour’ has helped raise the awareness and keep the attention going,” Church said of the song he released following the hurricane which hit in September 2024. “We tend to move on as a society and those people are going to need help for a long time,” he continued. “It’s more of an anthem and part of the reason I’m doing it on the CMAs is to keep the focal point on those people [that] still need help… There’s still so much need there.”

With a lot of work still left to do, Church continues to be inspired by the impact already made and the strong community within his home state which was ever-present during Concert for Carolina.

“That was just a special night to see all the people — especially being in Charlotte and being in my home state,” Church said reflecting on the night. “I live half my year in Western North Carolina and those mountains mean so much to me creatively, but also as a person. To be there and see that togetherness that happened — to have James Taylor and Luke [Combs] and myself and Billy Strings — it was a special moment.”

Hear more about Church’s efforts towards relief by checking out his entire conversation with Katie Neal above and be sure to catch his performance Wednesday night on the 58th Annual CMA Awards.

The 58th Annual CMA Awards, hosted by Lainey Wilson, Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning, will broadcast live from Nashville's Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, November 20 at 8pm ET/7pm CT on ABC and stream next day on Hulu.

Words by Monica Rivera, Interview by Katie Neal

Photo: Robby Klein