The album, filled with songs from prestigious Nashville songwriters, will be an eclectic mix of country tunes.

Scotty McCreery hasn’t had much time off in the last few months since becoming the Season 10 winner of ‘American Idol.’ Busy touring with the American Idols Live! tour, he’s also working on his debut album — making it a challenging schedule for any artist, let alone a 17 year old. But the North Carolina native says he is doing everything possible to make sure his album gets into the hands of his eager fans sooner rather than later.

“We got a good head start and we are really moving along,” he tells Billboard. “We laid down the tracks in Nashville before the tour, so now pretty much any pit stop we have we are going to the nearest studio and laying down vocals for it and hopefully getting it done as quickly as possible while still making it just right. On the days off, we’re working hard. It’s definitely a full day in the studio every time I go in.”

The album, filled with songs from prestigious Nashville songwriters, will be an eclectic mix of country tunes. “It’s got different vibes on each song,” Scotty explains. “We’re trying not to make it all ballad-y or all up-tempos. We’re getting a good mix of everything in there. It’s got a good ol’ country feeling on some songs, and it’s got a contemporary feel in some songs. It’s kind of showing what you saw me do all season on (‘Idol’). We’re trying to find the right mix between the two.”

The former grocery store clerk, who has been very vocal about his admiration for former ‘AI’ champ, Carrie Underwood, is using the producer of her albums, Mark Bright, to sit at the helm of his own recording sessions. It is, according to the singer, a providential occurrence.

“[The 'Idol' producers] thought [Mark] would be a good fit for me, and we clicked right off the bat,” he notes. “I wore an I Am Second bracelet throughout the whole competition, meaning God and others are first and I’m second, and it just so happens that [Mark] is the I Am Second Ambassador in Nashville, so it’s just those little things that seem to fit the puzzle right now.”

In addition to his newly-minted superstar status, Scotty is also still a high school student. Getting ready to enter his senior year in a couple months, he acknowledges he is still undecided about whether to return to Garner, N.C. to finish his education.

“There’s a lot of options out there for us that we’re looking at,” he reveals. “I’m still a kid. This is a huge thing for me, this ‘Idol’ thing and starting my career early, but I don’t want to miss out on all those memories that everybody has from senior [year]. So hopefully I can get back from some high school football games and have a little bit of fun.”

Significantly younger than some of his musical heroes, the ‘I Love You This Big’ singer understands he may have to work harder than his peers. “Teen males have never really made it in country music, so it’s going to be tough for me,” he acknowledges to The Boot. “I’ve talked to people who’ve laid out a game plan, but there’s no formula for me. We can’t go by what other guys are doing who are 40 years old in this industry. We have to go by something totally new and hope it works. I’m looking forward to seeing how the country world embraces a teen male country singer.”

The American Idol Live! tour plays two shows in Scotty’s home state of North Carolina tonight and tomorrow night (July 27 and 28), followed by shows in Tennessee and Missouri. Keep track of the tour’s dates and cities here.

via theboot.com

Mr. Long & Lanky's Red River Blue bullets to the top of both the Billboard country and all-genres album rankings this week.

Just when you thought Blake Shelton’s life couldn’t get any sunnier, here he comes with a No. 1 album.

That’s right, folks and focus groups, Mr. Long & Lanky’s Red River Blue bullets to the top of both the Billboard country and all-genres album rankings this week on Nielsen SoundScan-confirmed sales of 116,402 units.

It’s lose one, win one for perennial chart champ Jason Aldean. While his My Kinda Party withers for the moment under Shelton’s bold assault, his current single, “Dirt Road Anthem,” has just become the nation’s most-played country song.

But wait, there’s more! Chris Young must be swilling champagne, too. His bright new collection, Neon, debuts as the week’s No. 2 country album. Its first-period sales total: 72,830 copies.

Be honest: Can you stand the excitement?

The other new albums are Ashton Shepherd’s Where Country Grows, blooming at No. 11, and Kasey Chambers’ Little Bird, hitting the perch at No. 32.

Lee Brice’s Love Like Crazy and Luke Bryan’s EP, Spring Break 3: It’s a Shore Thing, return to the chart at No. 69 and No. 75, respectively.

There are four new songs: Shepherd’s “Where Country Grows” at No. 57 (Nice convergence, eh?), Glen Templeton’s “I Could Be the One” (No. 58), Montgomery Gentry’s “Where I Come From ” (No. 59) and Ash Bowers’ “I Still Believe in That” (No. 60).

Following Shelton and Young in the Top 5 albums cluster are Aldean’s My Kinda Party, Justin Moore’s Outlaws Like Me and Brad Paisley’s This Is Country Music, in that order.

The No. 2 through No. 5 songs are Young’s “Tomorrow,” Shelton’s “Honey Bee,” the Zac Brown Band’s “Knee Deep” (featuring Jimmy Buffett) and Moore’s “If Heaven Wasn’t So Far Away” (last week’s No. 1).

Now let’s all adjourn to the bar. First round’s on you.

Just one week after money was stolen from Toby Keith's BelMar Golf Club in Norman, Okla., the club's pool house was destroyed by fire.

Talk about adding insult to injury. Just one week after money was stolen from Toby Keith’s BelMar Golf Club in Norman, Okla., the club’s pool house was destroyed by fire. According to the Oklahoman newspaper, flames could be seen from a mile away as fire engulfed the building early Wednesday morning, July 20. Luckily, no one was injured, but firefighters estimate the blaze caused about $75,000 worth of damage.

The cause of the fire is not yet known, but investigators suspect it started in the pump filter of the pool house. BelMar’s golf course is open for business today, but the pool will be closed for a few days for investigation and clean-up.

Just last Wednesday, July 13, inside the BelMar Golf Club, a man approached an unattended cash register behind a bar and stole an undisclosed amount of cash. He was caught on surveillance video, but his identity is not yet known. Toby is offering a reward for information leading to the burglar’s arrest. “He is angry. Toby is very angry,” BelMar membership director Jenni Kennedy tells Oklahoma’s News 9. “He wants to make sure that people are held responsible for bad behavior.”

The theft happened in broad daylight during club hours, prompting the staff to question just how exactly he went unnoticed.

“We are concerned that this individual came in the middle of the day for an opportunity of easy money, and we wanted to get the word out that there is no such thing as easy money here at BelMar Golf Club,” Kennedy adds. “Our goal is to find this person, prosecute him and convict him.”

The BelMar Golf Club opened in 2002 and is co-owned by Toby and legendary Oklahoma Sooners football coach Barry Switzer.

via theboot.com

The singer-songwriter has a brush with death to thank for his own musical path as well.

Brantley Gilbert is fast becoming one of the most renowned songwriters in country music. The tunesmith already has several hits to his credit, including Jason Aldean’s ‘Dirt Road Anthem’ and ‘My Kinda Party.’ But the Georgia native, who is enjoying his own blossoming career as a country artist, counts the title track of his debut CD, ‘A Modern Day Prodigal Son,’ as one of the most life-changing songs of his career, thanks to an e-mail from a fan who was permanently impacted by the tune.

“It was about this guy who told me he was gonna commit suicide and listened to ‘Prodigal Son,’ put the gun down, got in his truck and went to his mama’s house,” Brantley tells GAC. “And like a total 360 [he's] doing great now.” The fortuitous e-mail, which came on what Brantley describes as “one of the worst days” of his own life, quickly put his own problems into perspective.

“[It made] all my problems seem way, way, way smaller than what I thought they were,” he notes.

The singer-songwriter has a brush with death to thank for his own musical path as well. A serious car accident he was involved in at 19 proved a pivotal moment in helping him determine his future career.

“When I had my wreck, it really just put everything into perspective and really opened my eyes,” he tells The Boot. “I’ve always been one of those guys that thought ‘it will never happen to me.’ After that, everything really flipped on me. When I realized that it could, I wanted to do what made me the happiest with the time I had. I didn’t know how long I had anymore. It put everything into perspective and kind of motivated me.”

Brantley recently wrapped up traveling on Willie Nelson’s Country Throwdown tour and has now embarked on his own shows, with stops in Kentucky and Illinois this weekend. Keep track of his concert schedule here.

via theboot.com