Ronnie Dunn is a pro, doing it for over 40 years, and he tried to power through a Brooks & Dunn concert for the fans Friday night. But because he’s a pro, he knew he had to wave the white flag. Fans knew something was up with the singer…as he was struggling to hit some notes and seemed “winded” at times. But Dunn soldiered on, until halfway through the encore (“Boot Scootin’ Boogie”) when he finally had to call it quits. He signaled to his guitar player that he was done, gesturing to the crowd before walking off the stage. When you’re a touring musician, there’s not much time to really recuperate. Last month B&D played the Houston Rodeo and Ronnie admitted at the time he was still recovering from both COVID-19 and strep throat. Despite all this, Brooks & Dunn reportedly played Saturday night’s show in Peoria, Illinois with no issues.

@maloneradio Feel better, Ronnie!!! Thanks for giving us all you could!! #brooksanddunn #concert #country #countrymusic ♬ original sound – Matt Malone

For the first time ever, “American Idol” will be doing a three-hour Easter special, with a faith-based theme and a strong country presence. The special “Songs of Faith” episode will center on the holiday, with performances from “American Idol” judges Luke Bryan and Carrie Underwood (as well as Lionel Richie), “Artist In Residence” Jelly Roll, contemporary Christian singer Brandon Lake, gospel legend CeCe Winans and more. The episode airs Easter Sunday, April 20th, starting at 8PM Eastern on ABC.

He’s losing all the weight, but how? Jelly Roll has been very public about his health journey, from his 5K club, to his daily hoops game with his band and crew, but he just revealed what he eats that’s helping him drop major poundage. In an Instagram clip, his personal dietician, Chef Ian Larios, gives a quick run down of what a day’s menu looks like for the singer. “I only eat two meals a day and one snack,” Jelly says. Here’s what an average day looks like:

• The first meal: A “healthy breakfast bowl,” or as Larios called it, a ”Waffle House Bowl, healthy rendition.” Larios explained that he makes his own hash browns, cooked in Wagyu beef tallow, and uses chicken sausage, bell peppers and bone broth, which he says is “packed with protein.” He air fries the potatoes before mixing them in sauerkraut. Jelly explains it’s very close to his favorite Waffle House order.
• The mid-day snack: A peanut butter dough cookie bite with sliced bananas. “It’s one snack a day so this is something he really looks forward to,” Larios explained.
• The second Meal: A dairy-free poutine, made with cashew cheese curds, which Larios says is “almost cheese-like.” Larios cooks chicken thighs in bone broth, adds homemade French fries and makes gravy with caramelized peppers in some bone broth. He also adds chicken sausage and rice flour to their gravy.

It seems to be working. Jelly Roll was north of 500 pounds when he first started this journey, but has dropped more than 140 pounds since then.

He’s been called “the real deal” by fans (and stars) of throwback 90’s country, and if this performance in front of a sold-out crowd at the Grand Ole Opry is any indication, the description is dead on. Zach Top released a video yesterday of his live performance of the hit single “I Never Lie.” The performance was recorded at Top’s sold-out headline debut at the Ryman earlier this year and the crowd is with him from the very first notes.

Hard to believe, but Reba McEntire is 70 years old! Over the weekend, on her birthday, the legend performed in Uncasville, Connecticut and the crowd serenaded her with a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday.” Part of that crowd, unbeknownst to Reba, were several family members, including her son Shelby Blackstock and daughter-in-law Marissa Blackstock. Reba had no clue they were there until she came backstage after the show and saw them in the green room, where they once again sang “Happy Birthday” to an emotional McEntire.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Marissa Blackstock (@rissablackstock)