Kid Rock: 'Festival bosses lied about real reason for scrapped show'

Kid Rock has slammed a British rock festival for telling fans he cancelled his scheduled headlining appearance because he was suffering from dehydration.

Details emerged stating Kid Rock was suffering from stomach cramps and dehydration and was kept in hospital overnight for observation.

But Rock, real name Rob (BOB) ert Ritchie, has denounced festival bosses' statements as lies - insisting he pulled the show after promoters failed to provide his band with adequate backstage perks.

He tells Daily Star newspaper, "They (festival bosses) treated me like (edit: crud). There was just one trailer for my whole band. We had no water, no bathroom, no rider. The final straw was when they wouldn't give my crew any food or drinks vouchers."

Blake and Miranda Take the Leap

... Not that one! GAC REPORTS: Neither Blake Shelton nor Miranda Lambert has headlined a mid-sized arena tour before, but the couple is hoping their collective track record will be enough to make a road show of that magnitude succeed this fall.

No dates have been announced yet, but the plan thus far would yield two-and-a-half hours of music. They took a test run with the concept a month ago, playing their first show together at a fair in Toledo, Ohio.

"It's exciting, and it's really scary for me at the same time — not so much for her," Blake says. "She's really somebody that came out of the box and just has been kickin' ass since day one, you know? And my career's been a slower build than that. But I'm finally gonna take the step, and she's gonna do it with me. We're gonna go out, and we're gonna play arenas this fall. And that is just creepin' me out — 4,000- and 5,000-seat arenas, and I'm not openin' for Rascal Flatts anymore or Toby [Keith]. You gotta hope that I'm enough and that she's enough. We finally feel like we're there."

Kenny Set for New CD

Kenny Chesney is set to release his next album, Lucky Old Sun, on Oct. 14.
Kenny is already enjoying his beach-fun-sounding hit single from the album, “Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven,” Kenny says -- “We’ve been on a real creative jag.”

Taylor a "Grey's Fan"

GAC Reports: Fall is just around the corner, and it means two things this year: the release of Taylor Swift’s sophomore album and the start of the new TV season. One show in particular brings the artist and the tube together.

"I am obsessed with ‘Grey's Anatomy’," Taylor confesses. "It's my life goal to get a guest spot on that show. My love of ‘Grey's Anatomy’ has never wavered. It's my longest relationship to date."

Her other shorter relationships merely lead to hit songs, and then to videos. Taylor directed her recent "I’m Only Me When I’m With You" video, which she sees as an extension of her musical efforts.

"It's one of my favorite things to do, because it's so creative," she enthuses. "It's a lot like songwriting, in that it's like a puzzle. And if you get the edits exactly right in movie-making, you can make something magical. It's just like lyrics and melody structure when you're writing. If you get it right, it can really be something."

Taylor’s next album, Fearless, comes out Nov. 11, but it can be pre-ordered at TheTaylorNation.com. Fans can choose three different options, ranging from the basic $13.88 CD to a $75 deluxe collector’s box that includes a whole range of extra goodies.

She's a Dance Machine That's For Sure!!!!

Julianne Hough pulls double duty in the near future as she heads back to "Dancing With The Stars" for a new season, which finds her partnering with the youngest competitor ever, 18-year-old Cody Linley.

Cody may not be familiar to a lot of adults, but he’s certainly known by plenty of young women as a former "Hannah Montana" actor: He played one of the boyfriends of the series’ lead character, portrayed by Miley Cyrus. Among the other "Dancing" contestants are NFL lineman Warren Sapp, Olympic volleyball star Misty May-Treanor, soap opera actor Susan Lucci, R&B singer Toni Braxton and former ‘N Sync member Lance Bass.

ABC’s "Dancing" has become a perennial hit, which makes sense to Julianne.

"Everybody loves to dance," she told Dial-Global. "I don't care who you are, how old you are, if you're a horrible dancer, if you're a great dancer... There's just hidden passions for that. So, to see celebrities who people think so highly of and think don't ever have any flaws, you know, you get to see them and their personalities come out and see them totally out of their element — mess up and get frustrated and look silly. You know, they're human. I think people like that."

Sugarland's Green Sunday

PEOPLE reports: It was a very earthy opening: On the eve of the Democratic National Convention's kick-off, Sheryl Crow, Sugarland and the Dave Matthews Band drew some 8,000 fans and environmental activists to their "Green Sunday."

"What better place to spend this incredible weekend!" said Crow amid the magnificent natural rock formations of the Red Rocks Amphitheatre outside Denver.

Opening the concert, Crow performed, among other tunes, "God Bless This Mess."

In the first of several messages, Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles told the crowd: "Reach your hand out and pat yourself on the back for being such great people and caring about this environment."

Matthews, whose saxophonist LeRoi Moore died last week from injuries sustained in an all-terrain vehicle accident, admitted to being a man of few words – on stage, at least.

"Nice to be in a place where a lot of people are talking with a whole lot of sense," he said.

Sugarland's Green Sunday

PEOPLE reports: It was a very earthy opening: On the eve of the Democratic National Convention's kick-off, Sheryl Crow, Sugarland and the Dave Matthews Band drew some 8,000 fans and environmental activists to their "Green Sunday."

"What better place to spend this incredible weekend!" said Crow amid the magnificent natural rock formations of the Red Rocks Amphitheatre outside Denver.

Opening the concert, Crow performed, among other tunes, "God Bless This Mess."

In the first of several messages, Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles told the crowd: "Reach your hand out and pat yourself on the back for being such great people and caring about this environment."

Matthews, whose saxophonist LeRoi Moore died last week from injuries sustained in an all-terrain vehicle accident, admitted to being a man of few words – on stage, at least.

"Nice to be in a place where a lot of people are talking with a whole lot of sense," he said.

Darius Rucker... IS Thinking About It!

Darius Rucker reached the Top 10 on the country singles chart this week for the first time, taking a hefty jump from No. 13 to No. 8 with "Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It."

The single’s success is particularly rewarding for Darius because he basically called the shots on the single. When the Hootie + The Blowfish singer signed with the country division of Capitol Records, he found himself in disagreement with the label head over "Don’t Think," and he ultimately had to take a stand over releasing it to radio.

"I said, 'Dude, this is it. This is what we want,'" Darius explained "I said, 'It's not the best song on the record, but this is the song that could get us in the door and, you know, that's what we want.' We went round and round about it, and finally, I guess for lack of any other reason, they put it out, and it worked for us. I love that song! Somebody told me the other day, 'You know, you're gonna be playin' that song for the rest of your life.' I've been playin' 'Let Her Cry' for 22 years, and I'm okay with that. So I'll be okay with [this]."

Taylor's FEARLESS

Given that her MySpace page played a huge role in building her career, it should come as no surprise that the title song from Taylor Swift’s second album is already getting buzz on the Internet — even though no one can hear the recorded version of the song yet.

The album, titled Fearless, doesn’t come out until Nov. 11, but Taylor gave a performance of the title song to fans on her tour bus last year, and a radio station put the audio online. A bunch of her fans found it, and now YouTube has close to 100 versions posted of people singing "Fearless."

It caused a bit of a problem. It is, in absolute terms, copyright infringement, though her record company figures it’s better to have fans excited about her new music than have them frustrated by legalities. So the label isn’t doing anything to stop it — other than counseling Taylor that debuting new music as she did on the bus is not such a good idea in the digital age.

"I wasn’t allowed to play new music for people after that," Taylor told USA Today.

For her part, Taylor is upbeat about the exposure for "Fearless."

"If you know that somebody's passionate enough about a song to want to sing it, that's a really good indicator that it's going to do well," she said.

Miranda The Gamer

Miranda Lambert is this month’s Artist of the Month at Xbox!

Tomorrow, August 23rd, she and a bandmate will be hopping onto Xbox Live to play some Halo 3 from 4:00pm to 6:00pm --- Look for the gamertags Miranda GWF or crazyXgirlfrnd and send off a game invite!

Miley Cyrus wants fans to help her celebrate her Sweet 16 — for a little green.

You know who your TRUE friends are... when they pay to come to your bithday party....

According to Entertainment Tonight, the teen queen — who earned $18.2 million last year — is selling a limited number of $250 tickets to her bash, set to take place at Disneyland. (She turns the big 1-6 on November 23.)

Tickets for "Miley's Sweet 16 -- Share the Celebration" go on sale August 30.

"It's gonna be an awesome party with more than 7 things I like," she tells ET. "It's gonna be totally awesome. I hope it's a great time."

She wouldn't dish more, but said, "I love roller coasters. So this is my ultimate birthday."

What's on her birthday wish list?

"A car," she has said. "I will let you know when I'm on the road so you get off the road!”

Jess VS Carrie?

Carrie says that Tony Romo still calls her sometimes... even though he's dating Jessica Simpson -- Jess says, NOT TRUE.

"I looked at his call log," she Jessica said.

Of Romo, Underwood tells September's Allure: "The phone will ring and it'll be him, and I'll maybe not answer."

"Tony and I both laughed at that," Simpson said. "We got a chuckle out of it."

She went on, "If Tony wanted to call her and be with her, he would."

She also said she wasn't dissing Underwood, a vegetarian, when she wore a shirt that read "Real Girls Eat Meat."

Toby Leaning To The Left?

Isn't there a tower that does that... the leaning tower of pizza. Mmmm, pizza... that can't be right... but sounds good.

GAC REPORTS: Toby Keith has previously said he hasn’t made up his mind about who to vote for in November, and he’s also suggested that both Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain are likely a step forward.

But he might well be in step with Obama when it comes time to pull the lever in the booth this fall. Toby is a major supporter of the U.S. military, and the candidate’s recent trip to the Middle East suggested to Toby that Obama does, in fact, understand what’s happening overseas.

"There's a big part of America that really believes that there is a war on terrorism, and that we need to finish up," Toby told the Associated Press. "So I thought it was beautiful the other day when Obama went to Afghanistan and got educated about Afghanistan and Iraq. He came back and said some really nice things."

Now Toby is saying even more nice things about Obama: "I think he's the best Democratic candidate we've had since Bill Clinton. And that's coming from a Democrat."

Jessica Simpson... and beer

**** UPDATE ***** THE AD IS OUT NOW, CLICK ON THE IMAGE TO ENLARGE.

Jessica Simpson and beer commercials: Why hasn't this happened sooner?

"She's the face of the brand now," said Lawrence Schwartz, Stampede's president and chief executive, who says sales have more than doubled in the past year.
Stampede's marketing is focused on its vitamin content, which it describes as "functional additives."

"As an entrepreneur, I am always looking for ways to diversify my portfolio with good ideas and good people," Ms. Simpson said in a statement. "Yes, I work out and take care of myself, but I also like a cold beer once in a while."

Jessica Simpson... The face of Vitamin enhanced beer???? Wow, this makes that whole "Is chicken of the sea chicken or tuna" thing... make sense.

Pat Green... ANYONE GOT A COLD ONE? ... AHHH!

TMZ.com Reports... Pat Green wanted a beer on stage the other night -- he got one, all right.

Green was singin' after a NASCAR race Saturday when he asked all his rowdy friends, "Anyone got a beer?" Well, someone delivered a full unopened can -- right between his eyes. Michigan state troopers say he was knocked out cold.

Juilanne Hough and Chuck Wicks... Dating!

Chuck and Julianne sitting in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G!

With her hectic life, Hough told PEOPLE, "It's very difficult to date – I just got kind of lucky!" Indeed, she got to know Wicks this summer when the two joined Brad Paisley on tour.

"He's just a great guy! He's awesome and really, really talented," Hough says of the "Stealing Cinderella" singer. "I'm having a great time getting to know him."

Hough, 20, whose debut country album, Julianne Hough, hit No. 1 on the country charts when it was released in May, says she and Wicks, 29, have been work-out buddies on the road.

"When we play amphitheaters, we'll run up and down the stairs," she says. "And all of us – all the bands – bought bikes and we go mountain biking and we'll go to amusements parks and things like that."

Wicks broke up with his long-term girlfriend earlier this year, before the start of the Paisley tour, and Hough ended her engagement to former dancer Zach Wilson last year.

With the start of DWTS – Hough went to L.A. Tuesday to meet her new partner – she had to bid goodbye to Wicks, who will remain on tour.

But she's confident they can survive the distance. Says Hough: "That's what's cool about being with an independent person."

500,000 People At The PAISLEY PARTY!

Who brought cake? Brad Paisley will celebrate another milestone Friday night at his sold-out show in St. Paul: his 500,000th ticket for 2008.

The combination of the final leg of The Bonfires and Amplifiers Tour and The Paisley Party has made 56 stops around the country and selling over 502,000 tickets January to August 2008.

The Paisley Party includes tour mates Jewel, Chuck Wicks and Julianne Hough.

“This number means more to me this year than ever knowing how strapped people are economically these days,” says Paisley.

“The fact that fans are willing to both buy tickets and the gasoline necessary to come to a show is the ultimate compliment and I am so thankful.”

... Again. Cake?

Ahhh, Tim McGraw, and look at the back, it's a Hallmark!!! Awwww, how sweet!

Tim McGraw, Rascal Flatts and a dozen or so other country artists are reaching new fans through "sound cards" designed, licensed and distributed by the Hallmark greeting card company.

Each card carries a 30-second snippet from one of the participating artist's hit records, along with a Hallmark-composed greeting that matches the song's theme. The names of the song's writers and publishers are listed on the backs of the cards.

The "Use Tim McGraw" and "Use Rascal Flatts" lines are racked in displays that hold six different cards and envelopes. A photo of the artist tops each display but does not appear on the cards.

GAC Talks With Jimmy Wayne About TIMING

"Time," the Rolling Stones once sang, "is on my side." And Jimmy Wayne seems to believe it’s also in his corner as he prepares for the release next Tuesday of his sophomore album, Do You Believe Me Now.

His debut CD arrived in 2003, meaning he’s had to wait five years to put out his second project. That certainly tested his patience, but he’s convinced that it also made for a better product in the long run.

"I really do believe in divine timing," he says, "and looking back, if this album had come out soon after my first album in 2003, there are so many songs that would not have been written and so many experiences would not have been had. If I had not gone through the waiting and the trials that I went through in the past few years, songs like ‘Where You’re Going’ and ‘Kerosene Kid’ would not have been written. I did a lot of reflection on my past and where I am now during the downtime, and all of that is reflected on this album."

It features guest vocal appearances by Patty Loveless and by pop singer John Oates, of the Philadelphia duo Hall & Oates. And the timing is indeed very good: The title track is currently in country music’s Top 10.

Insert Foot... In Mouth

This story probably ends with John Rich saying... "Oops".

Rosanne Cash, daughter of the late country legend Johnny Cash, has released a reply to John Rich of Big & Rich in response to a comment Rich made about her father.

During a campaign stop in Florida for John McCain, Rich said “Somebody’s got to walk the line in the country. They’ve got to walk it unapologetically. And I’m sure Johnny Cash would have been a John McCain supporter if he was still around.”

In a statement on her web site blog, Cash wrote:

“It is appalling to me that people still want to invoke my father’s name, five years after his death, to ascribe beliefs, ideals, values and loyalties to him that cannot possibly be determined, and to try to further their own agendas by doing so. I knew my father pretty well, at least better than some of those who entitle themselves to his legacy and his supposed ideals, and even I would not presume to say publicly what I ‘know’ he thought or felt. This is especially dangerous in the case of political affiliation.

“It is unfair and presumptuous to use him to bolster any platform. I would ask that my father not be co-opted in this election for either side, since he is clearly not here to defend or state his own allegiance.”