Merle Haggard died from pneumonia on his 79th birthday yesterday. His son Ben says a week ago Merle told the family he was going to die on the day he was born. Carrie Underwood tweeted “Merle was a pioneer…a true entertainer…a legend. There will never be another like him.” Jason Aldean wrote, “one of the greatest of all time.” Dustin Lynch added, “working with him is something I’ll never forget and will cherish forever.” Jake Owen tweeted, “nobody ever sang a song with the heart and emotion that Merle did.” I interviewed him twice and the first time we met I knocked his fishing hat off when we took a photo together.

Today Blake Shelton’s filming NBC’s opening theme video for NASCAR’s final season half at Texas Motor Speedway. Tonight Carrie Underwood performs on the last American Idol.

As for the strangest rumor he’s ever heard about himself, Sam Hunt said, “I kept hearing that I was dating Miranda Lambert and I’ve never even met her.”

Finally – now we know why actor Kiefer Sutherland was an ACM presenter. He’s working on an album that’s quote, “heavily country-influenced with some old-school country songs on it.”

Filed under: Nashville Kat