The Music Universe Podcast The Music Universe Podcast

McBride & The Ride celebrates its 35th anniversary with a new live EP this fall. The album's first single, "Amarillo Sky," is available now and may be familiar to country fans as it was made famous by Jason Aldean although Terry McBride & Co had recorded it years before Aldean.

"We've never recorded a live album, record or anything," McBride shares with us. "A lot of people have always asked us about live music. Our live show has a lot of energy that wasn't always captured in the studio, especially way back in the day when we were cutting a lot of ballads for radio. We just thought it was a great way for people who are fans or maybe never heard us to maybe get an idea of who we are live."

2024 also marks the 30th anniversary of the blockbuster film 8 Seconds, starring Luke Perry as bull rider Lane Frost. The band appeared in the film and contributed "No More Cryin'" to its soundtrack.

When they first began releasing music in 1989, McBride & The Ride released three acclaimed albums Burnin’ Up The Road, Sacred Ground, and Hurry Sundown, with hit singles like "Love on the Loose, Heart on the Run," “Sacred Ground,” "Going Out of My Mind," and many more. In the spring of 2021, they announced they were reuniting and going back in the studio to record new music. Though the band has been on and off over the past 30 years, its members have thrived through their careers.

Ray Herndon has been Lyle Lovett’s lead guitarist since 1985 and has had songs cut by Kenny Chesney, Aaron Tippin, Lee Greenwood, Linda Davis, and more, he continues to operate his family’s historic club, Handlebar J, in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Terry McBride has had quite a fruitful career, writing major hits for Brooks & Dunn, Reba McEntire, Easton Corbin, Cody Johnson, and more. He toured with Brooks & Dunn through most of their biggest years playing bass and writing songs.

Billy Thomas moved to Nashville from Los Angeles in 1987 and immediately started working with Vince Gill along with many other country stars, including Emmylou Harris, Patty Loveless, Steve Wariner & Earl Scruggs. He’s been Gill’s drummer on the road and in the studio ever since, adding background vocals to his many hits, as well as joining him as a member of The Time Jumpers, one of Nashville’s favorite bands.

The trio’s previous EP, Marlboros & Avon, produced by all three members, was released in 2023.

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Australian indie pop group Sheppard has returned with Zora, its fourth studio album, available now via Universal Music Group. The highly-anticipated project sees siblings Amy, Emma, and George Sheppard sharing their thoughts during uncertain times.

"We started writing it pretty much the day after we released Kaleidoscope Eyes," George says of the group's third album released during COVID. "We sorta started channeling those frustrations into a new album. We just kinda got back to work and a lot of this album was out of trying to give ourselves some hope of what was to come."

The album was written in Brisbane, LA, and Stockholm and is dedicated to their grandmother Zora.

The project is available on CD, and a limited edition double yellow vinyl and cassette.

The trio recently relocated to Nashville from their native Australia. They chat with Matt Bailey at a recent tour stop in Washington, DC about the project and how the move has affected their career.

Be sure to subscribe to The Music Universe Podcast wherever you get your podcasts. Select episodes now streaming on Canyon Star TV.

Become a supporter and support this podcast with a small monthly donation to help sustain future episodes.


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Capitol Nashville's Caylee Hammack has released her newest single, “The Hill,” laying the groundwork for her next creative chapter, pairing her with Celtic influences. The song opens a new spin sonically that pays homage to her transformative time in Scotland and Ireland as well as her sad surrender to a love that can no longer survive. Known as a deeply personal artist, Hammock vulnerably shares the internal battle of when to wave the white flag in a relationship.

Hammack co-wrote the song with singer/songwriter Tenille Townes, and songwriter Logan Wall, with John Osborne (of the country music duo Brothers Osborne) serving as a producer.

Hammack has carved a place for herself in country music, releasing her debut record If It Wasn't For You in 2020 with writer and producer credits for the entire project. She tapped Chris Stapleton, Alan Jackson, and Reba McEntire for collaborations on the project.

In this episode, the rising country star talks to us about her new music and what gave her the courage to ask three country superstars to guest on her debut which was recorded largely independently before signing with UMG Nashville.

Be sure to subscribe to The Music Universe Podcast wherever you get your podcasts. Select episodes now streaming on Canyon Star TV.

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Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/themusicuni/support

Grammy Award honoree, Songwriters Hall of Fame member, and BBC Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Don McLean released his most recent album, American Boys, earlier this month via BFD/Audium Nashville and distributed exclusively through The Orchard. Paying tribute to his rock and roll heroes, McLean's new single honors those who paved the way.

"American boys invented rock and roll. That's the idea," McLean tells us. "It's really the high school version of 'American Pie' which is the college version, but it's not complicated at all, it's just a simple homage, but they invented rock and roll. That's the thing I want to get across to people that America has invented a lot of different kinds of music. It comes from the soil. It comes from the south. It comes from Memphis, and Nashville, the Texas Panhandle, Louisiana, Arkansas, all over. It doesn't come from New England. It does not come from the West. It comes from these places."

Last week, McLean was a guest at The White House State Dinner for President Ruto of Kenya. 

The legendary and still active singer/songwriter has had a significant career, selling over 50 million albums worldwide. Among other things, Don McLean received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2021, was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame in 2022, received a star on the Las Vegas Walk of Fame in 2019 and the Music City Walk of Fame in 2023, and was recently the focus of a Paramount+ documentary The Day The Music Died.

Be sure to subscribe to The Music Universe Podcast wherever you get your podcasts. Select episodes now streaming on Canyon Star TV.

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Texas country singer-songwriter Wade Bowen recently released his new album, Flyin, through his Bowen Sounds via Thirty Tigers/The Orchard. The 12-track record features a curated track listing with diverse songs ranging from old-fashioned honky-tonk country to gut-wrenching ballads, classic rock and even a love song to his home state for shaping him who he is today.

As the second project that Bowen has produced fully himself, Flyin came together over a year and provides listeners with an unexpected array of songs that will keep them on their toes and take them through a unique, musical journey. With this album, Bowen explores the individuality of each song and takes a deep dive into his creativity through songwriting and storytelling.

"Having a new album is always fun. It's always exciting. I really believe in this record and like I've been telling people, an artist, you know, a songwriter always says their most recent song they wrote is always their favorite and the artist always says their most recent album is always their favorite. So I'm trying really hard not to say that this time because I know that's the most cliche answer, but even though I do believe it's my favorite, but I do believe there's an energy to this record that I've never had before," Bowen tells us.

He continues, "This is the second record that I produced on my own of mine. And I believe that as I listen through to it, I think there's an energy to this thing that I've never had. Something that I could carry over into my live shows and something that we have carried over into my live show that has really amped things up and really given like, spirit to things that I've never had something that this really crank things up a little bit and just shown and it really is not it's not just about the tempo it's just this this energy this spirit this this this this this this fun and and happiness and just showing that that I'm having more fun than I've ever had and I feel like I'm at the top of my game right now this far into my career that feels really good to hear all of that in this record and I hope people hear that when they hear this record."

We chat about the new album, teaming up with good friend Miranda Lambert for the first time for a limited Texas run May 24-26 in his hometown of New Braunfels, his Bowen Family Foundation, and performing the National Anthem for the 2024 Texas Rangers Opening Day game.

Be sure to subscribe to The Music Universe Podcast wherever you get your podcasts. Select episodes now streaming on Canyon Star TV.

Become a supporter and support this podcast with a small monthly donation to help sustain future episodes.


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Parker McCollum knows how to “Burn it Down,” but does he know the secret sauce for creating the perfect Raising Cane’s Box Combo? Award-winning country music singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist McCollum, the “Gold Chain Cowboy,” avoided the “Young Man's Blues” with a tour of the brand’s Dallas-Area Restaurant Support Office on Thursday (May 16th) with founder and owner Todd Graves.

McCollum – who won New Male Artist of the Year at the 2022 Academy of Country Music Awards (ACM Awards) and Breakthrough Video of the Year at the 2022 Country Music Television Awards (CMT Awards) – spent the morning with his good friend Graves ahead of playing the 59th ACM Awards at the nearby Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas. No stranger to the spotlight or ACM recognition, McCollum just won Visual Media of the Year during a pre-awards show event and was nominated for Single of the Year for “Burn it Down.” McCollum recently announced 13 additional tour stops for his now 53-stop Burn it Down Tour, which kicked off in January.

Before McCollum donning his Cane’s-cowboy best at the Dallas-Area Restaurant Support Office, he hosted a star-studded night at ACM Lifting Lives Live: Parker McCollum and Friends at Topgolf at the Colony, Texas alongside Graves and fellow country music stars Old Dominion, Jordan Davis, Ashley Cooke and Kameron Marlowe. Also in attendance were Kane Brown, Miranda Lambert, and numerous other stars. During the show, McCollum and Graves were joined by good friend and country music sensation Koe Wetzel, who performed “Love” with McCollum on stage. The event benefitted ACM Lifting Lives, the philanthropic partner of the ACMs dedicated to improving lives through the power of music.

Later in the night, Graves and Doug Kindy, president of Lucchese, joined McCollum on stage to match McCollum’s $10,000 donation to ACM Lifting Lives, contributing to the more than $700,000 raised. After the concert, Graves and McCollum went outside to serve hungry fans from the Raising Cane’s food truck, which was on-site at the request of McCollum to help the charitable cause. McCollum sported a Cane’s hat and his signature gold chains while serving up chicken fingers to the masses.

“It was great spending the night with Parker at his show and having him here at the office this morning to see some fun mementos of our history. Parker and I have been good friends for a while and it’s been amazing turning that friendship into something more meaningful,” Graves shares. “I’m also glad we had the opportunity to come together last night and make an impact on ACM Lifting Lives. It was heartwarming seeing Koe and everyone enjoying a fun night that benefits an amazing charity.”

During the morning's tour of Cane’s three-story Dallas-Area Support Center, McCollum got an inside look at the celebrity “Hall of Fame,” where McCollum is featured working a “shift” at his hometown Raising Cane’s in Conroe, Texas, before headlining the 2023 Houston Rodeo. Graves – who built the first Raising Cane’s, “The Mothership,” across from the North Gates at LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in 1996 – gave McCollum an exclusive look into the chicken finger magic that made Raising Cane’s a household name.

“Todd is a family man, which helped our friendship develop naturally before we got into business together. When people see that Raising Cane’s sponsors me, they know Todd only partners with people who are genuine and hardworking – both characteristics that he embodies himself,” McCollum adds. “Having Raising Cane’s on my eighteen-wheeler is so exciting and I always have enough food on the bus after my shows to feed a small village.”

We were on-site following the tour to talk to McCollum in a press conference at the facility with a one-on-one conversation between our Matt Bailey and Graves.


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