Nashville, TN. (Top40 Charts/ By Tiffany Shipp/ Ken
Sunshine Consultants) - On Monday, April 16, Big Machine recording artist,
Jack Ingram accepted CMT's 'Wide Open Country Video of the Year' award for 'Love You,' one of the hit songs featured on his breakthrough album, THIS IS IT. It was Ingram's first CMT nomination and no award could be more appropriate than the one celebrating artists and music that 'stretch the boundaries of mainstream country music'. In his acceptance speech, Ingram noted the honor being included in the same category as Johnny Cash, Sheryl Crow/Sting, and Jimmy Buffett, then thanked the fans who took time to vote for him.
'It's humbling to me that there are people who care enough about the music to get online and vote,' Ingram said later that evening. 'I've traveled a long road over the past ten years just believing in this music – getting an award directly from country music fans is the ultimate high-five.'
The award comes just three weeks after Ingram's breakthrough album, THIS IS IT landed at No 4 on the Country Album Chart behind multi-platinum artists Tim McGraw, Carrie Underwood, and Alabama. Now, as he prepares to hit the road with Brad Paisley on the 'Bonfires & Amplifiers' tour on April 26, Ingram makes his debut performance on The Ellen Degeneres Show on Thursday, April 19, 2007. Ingram's own AOL Sessions goes live on April 20th.
Industry insiders began predicting Ingram's transition from Country Rock cult hero to bona fide Country star last summer, when his expansive and emotional single 'Wherever You Are,' and the tongue-in-cheek 'Love You,' (No 1 and Top Ten hits, respectively) took over radio, CMT: Country Music Television, and GAC. Ingram's rendition of 'Lips of an Angel' completes the trifecta of hits included on THIS IS IT – with no end in sight. The album's second single, 'Measure of a Man' hits radio on Monday 4/23 and has been singled out in album reviews, as was Ingram's rocker of a ballad with Sheryl Crow, titled 'Hold On.'
Ingram splits the difference between old-school outlaws like Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson and American rockers like Tom Petty. He's recorded and/or toured with Willie Nelson, Sheryl Crow, Brooks & Dunn, Pat Green, Gary Allan – always changing lanes between country and rock. The former major label artist finds more success the more renegade he goes. Although Ingram spent the past decade as a sought-after live performer with a solid fan base, it was independent label, Big Machine Records led by Scott Borchetta, the management of George Couri from Austin's powerhouse Capital Sports & Entertainment, and the constant focus on his own Texas rock sound that has led to Ingram's current rise.
Critics echo the consensus that THIS IS IT for Jack Ingram:
ESQUIRE – names Jack this year's "Best Country Artist," says THIS IS IT is "loaded with smartly spun sing-along anthems."
USA TODAY - "the songs you haven't heard are every bit as good, or better, than the ones you have."
BILLBOARD - 'While his last album went a long way in making Jack Ingram a star outside his native Texas, "This Is It" will likely advance his rise even further."
ASSOCIATED PRESS - 'Jack Ingram has finally crossed over, and deservedly so, from alt-country to mainstream Nashville.'
NEWSDAY - 'If you can't find something to like on Jack Ingram's new "This Is It" album, you don't like country music.'
Bonfires & Amplifiers Tour dates:
4-26 Chattanooga, TN UTC McKenzie Arena
4-27 Statesboro, GA Paulson Stadium
4-28 Columbus, GA Columbus Civic Center
5-3 Evansville, IL Roberts Stadium
5-4 Moline, IL The Mark of the Quad Cities
5-6 Champaign, IL Assembly Hall
5-10 St Louis, MO UMB Bank Pavilion
5-11 Kansas City, MO Verizon Wireless Arena
5-12 Dallas, TX Smirnoff Music Center
5-17 Bakersfield, CA Rabobank Arena
5-18 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amphitheater
5-19 Sacramento, CA Sleep Train Amphitheatre
5-20 Fresno, CA Save Mart
5-22 Vancouver, BC GM Place
5-24 Spokane, WA Spokane Arena
5-25 Portland, OR Clark County Amphitheatre
5-26 Seattle, WA White River Amphitheatre
6- 7 Indianapolis, IN Verizon Wireless Arena
6-8 Cleveland, OH Blossom Music Center
6-9 Boston, MA Tweeter Center
6-10 Darien Lakes, NY Darien Lakes PAC
6-22 Grand Junction, CO Country Jam USA
6-23 Greeley, CO Greeley Stampede
6-24 Albuquerque, NM Journal Pavilion
7-19 St Clairsville, OH Jamboree in the Hills
7-20 Raleigh, NC Alltel Pavilion
7-21 Charlotte, NC Verizon Wireless Arena
7-27 Uncasville, CT Mohegan Sun Arena
7-28 Hershey, PA Giant Center
7-29 Bethel, NY Bethel Woods PAC
8-2 Orlando, FL Orlando Centroplex
8-3 Jacksonville, FL Jacksonville Arena
8-4 Atlanta, GA Hi Fi Buys Amphitheater
8-9 Biloxi, MS Mississippi Coast Coliseum
8-10 Birmingham, AL Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
8-11 Nashville, TN Starwood Amphitheatre
8-23 St Paul, MN MN State Fairgrounds
