Category: Entertainment

Time Wellness Tennessee Launches Residential Treatment Facility in Taft, Now Accepting Clients

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A bright room with large windows and a circle of modern chairs arranged along the walls

by Allie Hinchman   Taft, TENNESSEE – Time Wellness Tennessee has officially opened its state-of-the-art residential treatment facility in Taft. Designed to offer a structured and supportive environment, the center provides comprehensive care for individuals seeking recovery and personal growth. Since its launch earlier this year, the facility has begun accepting clients, marking a significant step forward in providing innovative, client-focused treatment solutions in the region. Time Wellness Tennessee’s Comprehensive Approach to Recovery Time Wellness Tennessee’s residential treatment facility offers a unique approach to recovery by combining compassionate care, structured support, and innovative therapies. Designed to provide a safe and personalized environment, the center focuses on helping clients achieve lasting recovery through evidence-based methods and holistic practices. 24/7 Medical Care and Support Around-the-clock medical care forms the backbone of recovery at Time Wellness Tennessee. Clients benefit from constant access to skilled professionals who address their physical and emotional needs. The medical team works closely with each individual to guide them through every stage of recovery, helping them stay on track and build confidence in their progress. Having medical support available day and night gives clients peace of mind. It also allows them to focus fully on their recovery journey without…

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Music Spotlight: Wendy Moten

Bethany Bowman
Wendy Moten

Not long after I started writing my Music Spotlight column, I came across one of the greatest voices I’d ever heard in Nashville, Wendy Moten. I even gave her a shoutout when Heidi Newfield released her Barfly Sessions record in 2020.

After Moten rose to fame as the runner-up on NBC’s The Voice in 2021, the rest of the world saw how fabulous she was, and I knew getting an interview would be more of a challenge.

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2024 (Mostly) Country Christmas Roundup

Bethany Bowman

Various artists release new Christmas music every year, hoping one might “stick” and be replayed year after year. Many of the songs I have included in this article are from my Music Spotlight artists. Some covers are unique in their own right, but I am particularly drawn to the never-before-heard originals. For those on Spotify, here is my playlist with all the songs mentioned included. The songs are in random order.

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Preston James Releases Debut EP

Bethany Bowman
Preston James

Preston James was the second person I ever interviewed for my Music Spotlight column. I saw him open for the iconic Tim Akers and The Smoking Section when he was just 15 years old at 3rd and Lindsley. I interviewed him when he was 16 years old and then featured him again when Preston James’ Band opened for Brian Seltzer in December of 2017.

My writing “hobby” has become a job, and I have interviewed over 500 artists. James is 24 years old, and I had no idea it had been seven years since I had followed up with him. We had to catch up before I could talk about his music.

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Music Spotlight Artists Shine at the Josie Awards

Bethany Bowman
Josie Awards

The Josie Music Awards 2024 winners were announced on October 27 at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee. Click here for the complete list of winners.

The Josie Music Awards is the largest music award show in the independent music industry. It recognizes and celebrates excellence globally. The awards ceremony brings together thousands of industry professionals and artists from around the globe to celebrate their achievements.

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Woke Cumulus Media, NewsChannel 5 Refuse to Air Trump-Inspired Ads for Tennessee Retailer DT McCall’s

Tom Pappert
Donald Trump ad

Tennessee retailer D.T. McCall and Sons told The Tennessee Star on Monday that Cumulus Media refused to broadcast advertisements inspired by former President Donald Trump on the company’s Nashville radio station, SuperTalk 99.7 WTN, even after a disclaimer was added to the ads.

The offending ads feature a narrator performing an impression of the former president while extolling the virtues of D.T. McCall & Sons and excoriating nameless competitors at “the lumber yards.”

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Music Spotlight: Kelli Belles

Bethany Bowman
Kelli Belles

Rising country artist Kelli Belles, known by her stage moniker Belles, is hitting the road this fall on her highly anticipated Trust Issues Tour. The tour kicked off on October 11th in Nashville, Tennessee, at The Basement and marked the beginning of a series of performances that will span the country, including stops in Houston, Los Angeles, New York City, and more.

Belles comes from a musical family. Her grandmother, Geraldine A. “Jeri” Rizzuto, was a renowned jazz singer who performed in Chicago and throughout the Midwest. She also had a stint with the well-known Paul Moorhead Orchestra.

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Volleyball Team Risks Forfeiting a Championship to Stand for the ‘Future of Women’s Sports’

The Daily Signal
Nevada Wolf Pack

The women of the University of Nevada at Reno volleyball team plan to defy their school by refusing to compete against a team with a biological male player.

“We are risking our main goal, which is a Mountain West championship,” University of Nevada women’s volleyball team captain and outside hitter Sia Liilii told The Daily Signal. “A team is a group that bands together to reach a common goal, and that is the purpose of our spot-on the team. No one wants to lose and put that at risk, but this is bigger than wins and losses.”

“It is the future of women’s sports,” she explained.

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Music Spotlight: Emmy Moyen

Bethany Bowman

When independent artist Emmy Moyen contacted me, I was unfamiliar with the name, but I was intrigued when I heard her music. She had just the right balance of sweetness and sass, and I wanted to learn more.

Moyen was born in Kentucky but raised in Starkville, Mississippi. Many from her Kentucky family have a background in bluegrass music, which has always been a part of her life.

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Music Spotlight: Cali Tucker

Bethany Bowman
Cali Tucker

When I saw the music video for Cali Tucker’s “Country Couture,” it was evident that she was a natural-born entertainer. My assumptions were correct. Cali Tucker is LaCosta Tucker’s daughter and Tanya Tucker’s niece.

She recalls growing up backstage and touring on the bus. She explained, “At the end of the show, they’d invite us to come out on stage and wave at the crowd. That’s what really hooked me- the energy. It was the life, the happiness, the joy. It was very intoxicating at a young age.”

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Music Spotlight: Sarah Hardwig

Bethany Bowman
Sarah Hardwig

Sarah Hardwig is not unlike many of the females I interview. She moved to Nashville to attend Belmont University and study songwriting and music business.

And she sings at local venues when she can. Her voice is strong and clear, and she credits Patsy Cline and Carrie Underwood as singing inspirations. However, the difference is that Hardwig is blind, which has been the case for her entire life.

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Chase Rice Releases ‘Go Down Singin’

Bethany Bowman
Chase Rice

I featured Chase Rice in 2018 when he celebrated achieving number-one status with his blockbuster hit, “Eyes On You.” Early on, Chase Rice was a fixture in the bro-country scene with other megahits like “Ready Set Roll,” “Ride,” “Lonely If You Are,” and “Gonna Wanna Tonight,” to name a few.

But something shifted in the artist recently, who splits his time between Montana and Nashville when, in 2023, he released I Hate Cowboys & All Dogs Go to Hell. Even by the retro picture of his hero, his dad, Daniel (Danny) Rice, on the album cover, you knew this record would be different. For anyone anticipating the usual new country vibe, boy, were they in for a surprise. With unexpected songs like “Bench Seat” and “Key West & Colorado,” Billboard Magazine called it “one of 2023’s most unexpected artistic pivots” across all genres last year.

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Music Spotlight: Kassi Ashton

Bethany Bowman

I have wanted to interview country singer/songwriter Kassi Ashton for over six years. When I first heard her singing “California, Missouri” on Sirius XM in 2018, her music was so unique that it made her more memorable than most rising artists. Then, when I saw her open at the Budweiser Showcase and later open for Keith Urban, I knew Ashton was one to watch.

Ashton is from the tiny town of California, Missouri. By age five, she split her time performing and doing the pageant circuit with her mother while riding dirt bikes and shooting muzzleloaders with her father.

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Music Spotlight: Andrea Vasquez

Bethany Bowman
Andrea Vasquez

Since country music isn’t about a place or demographic but about a mindset, I try to portray a wide range of what country music is and encompasses.

Someone who has been on my radar for a few years is a petite singer/songwriter with powerhouse vocals and an unstoppable attitude that combines to make the complete package known as Andrea Vasquez. The Cali native has blended her love of modern country and Latin-American roots to create a refreshing sound within the genre, with her newest song, “Solo,” out this week.

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Dennis Quaid’s ‘Reagan’ Shatters Records with a 98 Percent Fan Score: ‘The Biggest Challenge Was Not Doing an Impersonation’

Bethany Bowman

While exceeding all viewing and monetary expectations, Dennis Quaid’s Reagan continues to outperform all competitors.

When I learned that moviegoers gave the film an “A” CinemaScore and a 98 percent on Rotten Tomatoes – in sharp contrast to its critics’ score, which stood at 18 percent the last time I checked – I knew immediately that I wanted to see the movie. That 80 percent difference chasm makes it the film with the greatest gap between critics and fans in Hollywood theatrical films’ history, surpassing the record of 65 percent held by The Boondock Saints.

Dennis Quaid is known for playing iconic characters such as Doc Holliday in Wyatt Earp, Jimmy Morris in The Rookie, and Jerry Lee Lewis in Great Balls of Fire to name a few. But playing Ronald Reagan is at the top of his list and may just be the pinnacle character of his storied career.

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Exclusive: Madelyn Rose Releases New EP, ‘Cowboys’

Bethany Bowman
Madelyn Rose

At just 17 years old, the teen country sensation has released her second EP, Cowboys, a collection of three significant songs that cements her insightful music on the country music landscape. This follows her first EP, Teenage Heartbreak which was released at age 16.

I wanted to know how one so young got into singing and songwriting at such an early age. She said, “My parents bought me this old Casio keyboard at a garage sale when I was three or four, not the nicest thing, just something to get me into a hobby.”

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Thomas Rhett Releases Seventh Studio Album, ‘About A Woman’

Bethany Bowman
Thomas Rhett

One of the conundrums that singer/songwriters face is “Do you write songs for the radio or songs that are personal and meaningful?” It is often tricky to do both simultaneously, but Thomas Rhett Akins can do it, and he is one of the best in the business. He relies on anecdotes from his personal life and family to provide heart-pumping, danceable tunes that make him a favorite on country radio.

His main muse in songwriting is naturally his beautiful wife, Lauren, along with their four precious daughters. Songs like the massive number one “Die A Happy Man,” “Star of the Show,” “Unforgettable,” and “Look What God Gave Her” are just a fraction of the hits he has written about his wife.

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Amanda Kate Ferris’ New Album, ‘Rope the Wind,’ Is Out Now

Bethany Bowman

Music Spotlight and 2X Texas radio chart-topping artist Amanda Kate Ferris has released her sophomore album, Rope the Wind, and it is available now.

Produced by Jimmy Ritchey, the 10-track project features songs by numerous acclaimed writers and artists, including GRAMMY-winners Hillary Lindsey, Liz Rose, and Lori McKenna, as well as ACM and CMA Entertainer of the Year Lainey Wilson and others.

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Music Spotlight: Walker Montgomery

Bethany Bowman
Walker Montgomery

Country music is part of Walker Montgomery’s DNA. Even though he is the son of John Michael Montgomery and the nephew of Montgomery Gentry’s Eddie Montgomery, he is often mistaken for Chris Young. However, the emerging star was raised away from the spotlight in Nicholasville, Kentucky, a small town outside Lexington.

He had a pretty ordinary childhood, except that his dad worked weekends instead of weekdays. When he would see his dad in concert, it was the equivalent of “Bring Your Kid to Work” day.

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DeSantis Grants $8 Million for Infrastructure at Miami Soccer Complex

The Center Square
Miami Freedom Park

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says that he is against using state money to fund the construction of sports stadiums.

DeSantis, however, announced Thursday that he and the state will grant $8 million from the Governors’ Job Growth Grant Fund toward road infrastructure around the new construction of Miami Freedom Park by the Inter Miami soccer club’s ownership.

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Rhonda Vincent Releases ‘Destinations and Fun Places’

Bethany Bowman
Rhonda Vincent

Rhonda Vincent is one of my favorite Opry performers, whom I had the privilege to interview back in 2021. Not only is our “Queen of Bluegrass” full of energy and light, but she is exceptionally talented and can play any stringed instrument, especially her beloved mandolin, like nobody’s business. And when she is surrounded by her amazingly gifted band, The Rage, you have one of the best performances at the Opry if you are lucky enough to attend on the evening they are playing.

Right before the pandemic in February 2020, Vincent was asked to join the Opry by long-time mentor and friend Jeannie Seely. She knew that 20 years ago, Seely had written a song about her called “I Miss Missouri,” which is where Vincent and her talented family are from. The only problem was when the great Nashville flood of 2010 hit, the song and lyrics were lost because Seely’s house was on the Cumberland River.

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Music Spotlight: Taylor Sanders

Bethany Bowman
Taylor Sanders

When I met singer/producer Terran “T-RAN” Gilbert of 22Visionz Entertainment last year, he mentioned a remarkable artist he worked with, Taylor Sanders. It took nearly a year, but I finally had the opportunity to interview this powerful artist.

Sanders has been performing most of her life. Since age five, she has been involved in singing, piano, dance, and gymnastics. She loves anything related to the performing arts.

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T. Graham Brown Releases ‘From Memphis to Muscle Shoals’

Bethany Bowman
T Graham Brown

You may remember the legendary T. Graham Brown and Opry member who has recorded 15 studio albums and charted more than 20 singles on the Billboard charts. He has had multiple No.1 hits in country, gospel, and blues. Though released well before streaming was a thing, hits such as “Wine Into Water,” “If You Could See Me Now,” and “Hell and High Water” have had millions of views and plays.

But you may not know that Brown got his start in R&B. He and his buddy would play on his college campus, where they had quite the student following.

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Author Spotlight: Cleo Childs

Bethany Bowman
Cleo Childs

Not too far removed from singers/songwriters are poets. Songs are just poetry set to music. Author Cleo Childs debuted her first spoken word project in May. The work entitled Moving With is a collection of 14 poems set to music. It was written throughout her personal, emotional journey as she witnessed her mother’s brave struggle through the stages of Alzheimer’s.

Childs’ mother passed in 2021 from early onset Alzheimer’s when she was just 28 and it sent her into a deep depression. She tried to “intellectually” get over it by learning everything she could about grief.

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