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Brooks and Dunn
Country Music Superstars Brooks & Dunn
Selected as Recipients of The Academy of Country Music (R)/The Home
Depot (R) Humanitarian Award
Award Presented During the 42nd Annual
Academy of Country Music Awards To Air Live From MGM Grand in Las Vegas
Tuesday, May 15 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CBS
The Academy of Country Music (R) and The
Home Depot (R) announced today that country music superstars Kix Brooks
and Ronnie Dunn of multi-platinum BROOKS & DUNN will be the 2007
recipients of the Academy of Country Music/The Home Depot Humanitarian
Award, to be presented during the 42nd ANNUAL ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS
ceremony honoring country music's top talent as well as the industry's
hottest emerging talent, will be broadcast LIVE from the MGM Grand
Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Tuesday, May 15, 2007 at 8:00 PM live
ET/delayed PT on the CBS Television Network.
In its sixth year, the Humanitarian Award recognizes artists who
serve others, have a generous spirit and help build the dreams of those
in need. BROOKS & DUNN, the Academy of Country Music Awards
all-time trophy leaders, were selected by a special blue-ribbon
committee comprised of executives in the country music industry as well
as local and national philanthropic leaders for their ongoing community
service and charitable giving of their time and talent.
"Over the years, Kix and Ronnie have done so much to help
others. But what strikes me about them is that they do it with joy and
laughter," said Gayle Holcomb, chairman of the board of directors. "The
Academy often uses the phrase 'Party for a Cause (TM)'. These two guys
take a party wherever they go and others feel their burdens are lighter
because of it."
As the recipient of the Humanitarian Award, BROOKS & DUNN
will receive a beautiful crystal trophy designed by Tiffany & Co.
during the live CBS telecast. They will also be honored with a
playground donated by The Home Depot and the company's national
nonprofit partner KaBOOM!, which envisions a great place to play within
walking distance of every child in America. The playground will be built
by The Home Depot volunteers and community members in the city of
BROOKS & DUNN's choice. Past recipients of the Humanitarian Award
include Vince Gill, Lonestar, Martina McBride, Neal McCoy and Reba
McEntire.
"Philanthropy and giving back are embedded in The Home Depot
culture and are at the core of the Humanitarian Award," said Roger
Adams, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of The Home
Depot. "Through their charitable giving and community service, Kix and
Ronnie truly exemplify the values represented by both The Home Depot and
the Academy of Country Music. We are proud to recognize them for their
contributions and impact on improving our local communities."
"In our career, Ronnie and I have done things we could have only
dreamed of, but the most rewarding has been when we've made a
difference for someone else," said Brooks.
"We appreciate The Home Depot and the Academy giving us this
award, but what makes it even better is that a bunch of kids will get a
new playground," added Dunn.
THE RECIPIENTS
Brooks & Dunn have worked with so many charities, some of
which have included Hurricane Katrina relief, Vanderbilt Children's
Hospital, Habitat for Humanity, Ronald McDonald House and Laughter for
the Children that benefits a Nashville children's home.
They also hold the distinction of being the
top- selling country duo in history, selling 30 million albums that have
yielded a whopping 23 #1 singles and 40 Top 10 songs. Their tours
continually rank as some of the top grossing in any musical genre.
THE HOME DEPOT
The Home Depot (R) is the world's largest home improvement
specialty retailer, with more than 2,163 retail stores in all 50 states,
the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, 10 Canadian
provinces, Mexico and China.
Through its HD Supply (SM) businesses, The
Home Depot is also one of the largest diversified wholesale distributors
in the United States, with nearly 1,000 locations in the United States
and Canada offering products and services for building, improving and
maintaining homes, businesses and municipal infrastructures.
In fiscal 2006, The Home Depot had sales of
$90.8 billion and earnings of $5.8 billion. The Company employs
approximately 355,000 associates and has been recognized by FORTUNE
magazine as the No. 1 Most Admired Specialty Retailer and the No. 13
Most Admired Corporation in America for 2006. The Home Depot's stock is
traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE:HD) and is included in the
Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor's 500 index.
ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC
The ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC, an artist and industry-driven
organization, exists to produce a world-class network television awards
show, and its associated events, to provide the financial resources to
ensure the on-going philanthropic work of its Charitable Fund. Academy
of Country Music Charitable Fund promotes and supports music education
and humanitarian programs that transform the human spirit.
Through its charitable donations, the ACMCF
works towards two main goals: encouraging Learning Through Music and
Healing Through Music. The Academy, which is comprised of more than
4,500 professional members and more than 40,000 associate members, was
established in 1964 and is headquartered in Encino, Calif. More on the Academy of COuntry Music Awards.
ENCINO, Calif., March 5, 2007 /PRNewswire/ --
2007 EMOL.org Music Entertainment Magazine. All rights reserved.
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Music Entertainment Magazine
"Hillbilly Deluxe"
Brooks & Dunn
"Boot Scootin' Boogie"
zoomed Brooks & Dunn to the top of the country line-dance craze in
1992, and one could hardly blame them for riding the crest, even if it
left them in a rut of shallow, preening dance ditties. They began
showing greater depth in the late '90s, with albums like If You See Her
and Steers and Stripes. While Hillbilly Deluxe is musically consistent,
Tony Brown's production sharp and focused throughout, the themes here
revert to the same old same old: empty, shallow stompers with lyrics
that occasionally sound dated. "Play Something Country," another Ronnie
Dunn collaboration with Terry McBride, duly name-drops current Nashville
stars as well as P. Diddy and Patsy Cline. Things don't improve with
the blustery "She Likes to Get Out of Town"; "Just Another Neon Night,"
with its painfully clichéd line "turn off that rap, boys, play me some
Haggard"; or "Building Bridges," a "vocal event" with superfluous input
from Vince Gill and Sheryl Crow. Only the moving story-song "Believe,"
brimming with heart and honesty, reminds of their potential when they
think beyond the boot. --Rich Kienzle
Product Description:Since bursting onto the roiling
country music horizon with "Brand New Man," Ronnie Dunn and Kix Brooks
have made breaking new ground, pushing the honky tonk envelope and
having too much fun doing it their total mandate. And on August 30,
2005, the hardcore musicians return with Hillbilly Deluxe, an album that
merges classic jukebox country with Brooks & Dunn's jacked-up take
on modern sounds in honky'n'rocking music. Produced by the legendary
Tony Brown (Steve Earle, George Strait, Lyle Lovett, and Patty Loveless,
in addition to being a member of the multiple-Grammy-nominated
Notorious Cherry Bombs with Rodney Crowell and Vince Gill), Hillbilly
Deluxe is a slightly ragged, fairly organic take on just how power and
accessibility can merge for an intoxicating take on what Saturday night
is made of.
"You never wanna rest on what you've done," says Dunn.
"Working with Tony, it's pure music--front and center every time. He was
part of that country scene that was Emmylou and the Hot Band, which was
always just one match away from blowing the music apart it was so good,
so intense, but also so raw. If you're gonna play country, you wanna
strip away a lot of the stuff, get down to the heart of the matter--and
find songs that dig a little deeper into the way these folks live their
lives. I mean, Hillbilly Deluxe is IT: it's about how it really is, not
the way the media paints it--that notion of taking the life as far out
as we know these good ole boys and girls do."
Certainly "Play Something Country," the raving new single
which is B&D's fastest moving ever, is a siren's song of want,
release and what matters to the core on a night on the town, while the
down-low title track with its funky pocket, Rolling Stones background
wailing and stop-start rhythms portrays the essence of modern day "big
timing in a small town." Brooks celebrates female independence with the
road-tripping go-git-it-girl romp "She Likes to Get Out of Town" and
Dunn invokes a classic tears-for-a-quarter country of classic vintage
with "She's About as Lonely as I'm Going to Let Her Get."
"With Red Dirt Road, I think we started heading back to
what got us here... meaning our roots," confesses Brooks with a wry
grin. "There are so many ways to make music, but sometimes just plugging
straight into your inspirations is the very best way to go--so you'll
hear 'em, ALL of 'EM: the Stones, Jones, Haggard, Tom Petty, a nod even
to Rod Stewart's folkie stuff, the soul that made soul music, but came
out of the churches. It may be the broadest record we've ever done--and
it sure was fun."
• Audio CD (August 30, 2005)
• Original Release Date: August 30, 2005
• Label: Arista Nashville/RLG
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