Martina McBride 'wakes up laughing' in Grand Rapids

GRAND RAPIDS –
Country music superstar Martina McBride will begin 2008 by continuing the success of "Waking Up Laughing," her nationwide arena tour, which stops on Jan. 20 at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids.
McBride kicks off her latest string of shows on Jan. 18 in Evansville, Ind., for what continues to be the most exciting tour of her career. Several new faces join the show in 2008. Rising-star Jack Ingram and much buzzed-about newcomers Lady Antebellum will help Martina wow the crowds.
McBride added to her successful career in 2007 with the release of "Waking Up Laughing," a top-earning tour with award-winners Little Big Town and Rodney Atkins, and numerous television appearances. "Waking Up Laughing" has given country music the smash hit "Anyway" and the upbeat "How I Feel." Destined to become yet another McBride classic, "Anyway" has garnered CMA award nominations for "Single of the Year," "Song of the Year" and "Video of the Year." Martina is also nominated for "Top Female Vocalist" at the 2007 CMA Awards. She currently shares the record with Reba McEntire for most wins in the category, claiming "Top Female Vocalist" four times.
McBride's powerhouse voice has earned her more than 16 million in CD sales, garnering six number ones and 22 top-10 singles, including her signature hits "Independence Day," "Wild Angels," "A Broken Wing" and "This One's for the Girls." These songs, along with her recent hits "Concrete Angel," "Love's the Only House" and "God's Will" have not only become memorable music statements, but offer resounding social commentaries.
Since April, McBride has appeared on numerous national television shows including FOX's "American Idol," ABC Primetime's "Six Degrees of Martina McBride," CBS' "Fashion Rocks," ABC's special "CMA Music Festival: Country Music's Night To Rock," "The Tyra Banks Show" and four appearances on NBC's "Today Show." McBride's 2007 tour was ranked by Pollstar as a top-10 tour in all genres, top-five country tour, and the number one solo-female country tour.
"Martina McBride showed the crowd last night that she's elbowing Chesney, McGraw, and Urban for a spot at this format's top entertainer's table," noted Lon Helton, host of Westwood One's Country Countdown USA. "We've all known for a long time Martina has one of the best voices in the business. She brings down the house with as much passion and emotion as I've heard any artist bring to a song. She now works the stage and the crowd as well as anyone, and has joined the ranks of this format's top entertainers."
Joining McBride on tour is Jack Ingram, a Texas-based singer/songwriter that is quickly becoming one of country's hot-new stars. After building his fan base on the Texas Roadhouse circuit for years, Ingram's current CD "This Is It," on Big Machine Records, has spawned four-consecutive national radio hits including the No. 1 smash "Wherever You Are." As well as No. 1 Videos on CMT, a fan-voted CMT Award Win, his own CMT "Cross Country" episode with Miranda Lambert and separate national tours with Brooks & Dunn, Dierks Bentley, Sheryl Crow and Brad Paisley.
Opening the show will be Capitol Records Nashville newcomers Lady Antebellum. The trio of Hillary Scott, Charles Kelley and Dave Haywood combines to create a unique blend of harmonies reminiscent of classic country, a soulfulness of 1960s R&B and the heart-on-the-sleeve openness of 1970s singer/songwriters all with a keen edge of contemporary country. The group, who discovered each other's music on MySpace, has since grown an overwhelmingly strong fan base. Their self-penned debut single "Love Don't Live Here" has just been released to country radio. An album is expected in early spring 2008.