Awesome New Video From Reba McEntire!

You've got to take a look a this new video from Reba McEntire, "Pray For Peace"

Post by Reba McEntire.

Sadness In Ireland

There are lots of broken hearts in Ireland today. Garth Brooks has officially cancelled his concert stint set for Dublin. After the final decision was made by the Irish government that Garth Brooks' five sold out shows in Dublin scheduled for the end of this month could not go on, Garth released this statement through his Los Angeles based publicist:

"I have always been advised to NEVER send a message in "the moment." It is said it is best to take a walk, wait awhile, and think about it. With that said, I just received the news the Dublin City Council cannot change their earlier ruling to not allow the licenses for all five shows. To say I am crushed is an understatement. All I see is my mother’s face and I hear her voice. She always said things happen for a reason and for the right reason. As hard as I try, I cannot see the light on this one. So it is with a broken heart, I announce the ticket refunds for the event will go as posted by TicketMaster.

I want to thank the Irish authorities for going the distance for all of us who wanted to share songs and dance together. I really want to thank all the people around the world that continued to think good thoughts that this would actually happen. Most of all, to Peter Aiken and those 400,000 people who believed enough to go through what they have been through to get to this point…I love you, always have, always will. I encourage any and all of them that can come see the show, at some point around the world, to bring your Irish flags and wave them proudly at the concerts. I will be looking for you… Garth."

The good news is that he wil be touring the United States. Although we don't know when, we do know the first stop will be Chicago. More details will reportedly be released today on the date and venue, and KICKS 106.3 will have the info as soon as it's released!

Before and After

John here-- Thought I'd share the before and after photos of the trees we had removed form our yard yesterday. Both of the twin maples in front of our house had started to split and lose limbs in the storms that have been rolling through the area the last few weeks, and they were just not safe anymore. We had to do it, but it just made us sick to see these beautiful trees come down. They were especially awesome in the fall when they would turn bright red. Now the planning begins for what we should replace them with! Any ideas? Drop me an email: johnandjacklyn@kicks1063.com

Before:

After:

End of the Road

Usually, news of celebrity divorces doesn't register much of a blip on my radar.  It's become commonplace, to be perfectly honest, however this latest news of a split seemingly came out of nowhere.  Singer,  Jewel and her championship cowboy, Ty Murray are calling it quits.

According to a post on the singer's website, the couple has been quietly trying to find reconciliation, but have decided to go ahead with a divorce.  It's really quite interesting reading.  There are some undertones that are reminiscent of Gwyneth Paltrow's referencing of an "uncoupling" with her marriage to Coldplay lead singer, Chris Martin.  I found the term to be a bit ridiculous.  The way that Jewel wrote about her and Ty coming to the conclusion is in that similar vein, but not as cheesy to me for some reason; probably because she actually wrote more to explain why things are going down the way they are.

Either way, divorce sucks--particularly when there are children involved.  (Jewel and Ty have a little boy, Kase.)  I often wondered how hard it is to hold a family together when both parents have careers that thrust them into the spotlight and eat so much of their time.  It can't be easy.  You almost always have to be "on," because there are fans who expect you to be that bubbly person all of the time, and you really don't have much for privacy to work "normal" challenges out with each other.  It takes a special understanding to work through problems in the public eye.  Not every celebrity couple can climb that mountain and come down the other side intact.

It does make one stop and appreciate the love and understanding that celebrity couples who HAVE successfully weathered the storms of life and kept their ship righted and moving ahead in life.  Couples like Tim McGraw and Faith Hill come to mind.  There have been rumors swirling for years that they were on the outs.  And perhaps they were having challenges, as ANY married couple does, but they are seemingly holding it together.  It makes me have an even greater appreciation for them both.  And it certainly allows each of them to bring real emotion to their craft.  Marriage and family provides plenty of material for music.  Not that we'd want to be hearing any songs about dirty diapers on the airwaves, but without a doubt, relationships--the good, the bad, and the ugly provide a plethora of material for music.