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PEOPLE & ARTS Saturday 25 February 2017
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Little Big Town’s momentum grows with Ryman residency

KRISTIN M. HALL little life that has come into and Schlapman with “Girl
Associated Press our world,” he said. “And Crush” writers Hillary Lind-
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — it’s so precious and special sey, Lori McKenna and Liz
Please excuse singer Phil- and I think it makes us truly Rose after Westbrook’s sis-
lip Sweet if he gets a little stop and enjoy that mo- ter Joyce died in 2015 due
emotional when Little Big ment in our real lives.” to cancer, has a poignant
Town performs Friday night Sweet and Schlapman, message for the band.
during the first-ever residen- along with husband-and- “It was kind of therapeutic
cy in the 125-year history of wife Jimi Westbrook and for them obviously to write
the Ryman Auditorium, a Karen Fairchild, make up it,” Sweet said. “This is what
venue that helped popu- the vocal band that hit a you would say to someone
larize country music. career high in 2015 with you loved. Just a reminder
“I know I am going to get the multiplatinum hit “Girl to always live in the mo-
so choked up that it’s go- Crush,” which earned ac- ment every chance you
ing to be hard to sing,” colades at the 2016 Gram- get.”
Sweet said in an interview mys. The group has a tradition on
this week. “It’s a really emo- They also experimented release week to play their
tional time for the band. It’s outside the genre with a entire album beginning This Feb. 12, 2017 file photo shows Philip Sweet, from left, Kimber-
a lot to celebrate.” pop record “Wanderlust” to end. Friday’s show will ly Schlapman, Karen Fairchild, and Jimi Westbrook of the musi-
Little Big Town marks a re- produced by Pharrell Wil- be the first of at least nine cal group Little Big Town at the 59th annual Grammy Awards in
turn to their roots with the liams in 2016. dates they have booked Los Angeles. Associated Press
album “The Breaker,” out And the band didn’t let at the Ryman throughout
Friday, with the No. 1 single that momentum fade. the year, with more dates ager of the Ryman Audi- Little Big Town is so much
“Better Man,” written by “We didn’t want people to likely to be added. Built in torium and vice president that.”
Taylor Swift. It’s the first sin- know who wrote it for a little 1892 as the Union Gospel of concerts and entertain- Swift, who has said she’s
gle off their new record. while because we wanted Tabernacle, the building ment at Opry Entertain- not touring in 2017, per-
The four-piece Grammy- everyone to hear the song has become synonymous ment Group, said the Ry- formed “Better Man” dur-
winning country group is with no subtext,” Sweet with country and bluegrass man wanted the first resi- ing a special performance
also celebrating an addi- said of “Better Man.” and served as the home of dency to reflect the diver- in Houston as part of the
tion to the family — singer ‘’I feel like people listened the Grand Ole Opry from sity of the musicians who pre-Superbowl festivities,
Kimberly Schlapman re- with different ears because 1943 to 1974. Musical icons have performed there. but Sweet said the band is
cently announced that she of that.” from Elvis Presley, Merle “We wanted to be work- ready if the pop star ever
has adopted a daughter, In a departure from pre- Haggard, Johnny Cash, ing with someone who was wants to perform the song
Dolly Grace. vious records, the band The Carter Family, Patsy genre bending, who was with them.
Sweet said the timing of members only had a hand Cline, Earl Scruggs and Bill very firmly rooted in coun- “I mean, come on, Taylor,”
these milestone events in writing three songs on Monroe have all graced try music, which is Nashville, Sweet said.
has given him pause. “It’s the album. “Don’t Die its stage over the past 125 but also very open and cre- “We would love to do it. If
almost like this moment is Young, Don’t Grow Old,” years. ative and inclusive of other she’s up for it, we’re up for
marked by this beautiful co-written by Fairchild Sally Williams, general man- genres,” Williams said. “And it.”q
Conservative activist O’Keefe posts tapes targeting CNN

FRAZIER MOORE tapes’ release, but said the important role as an arbiter to record as he brought a
AP Television Writer source had approached of news.” young woman posing as a
NEW YORK (AP) — Con- his organization “in recent Some of O’Keefe’s previ- prostitute to the group’s of-
servative activist James weeks.” ous ventures have resulted fices.
O’Keefe on Thursday re- The audio was initially post- in a legal backlash. In 2010, The widely aired footage
leased what he said are 119 ed online for only a few he pleaded guilty to misde- and the resulting outrage
hours of raw audio secretly minutes Thursday morning meanor charges of enter- led to ACORN disbanding.
recorded inside CNN’s At- before the site crashed. It ing federal property under O’Keefe agreed to pay
lanta headquarters in 2009. remained unavailable for false pretenses after trying $100,000 to settle a lawsuit
The audio was recorded several hours after that. to tamper with the phones based on the ACORN inci-
and provided to O’Keefe’s More tapes will be forth- in Louisiana Democrat Sen. dent.
website, Project Veritas, by coming, O’Keefe said. He Mary Landrieu’s office. Though he has said he
a source he didn’t identify. refused to comment on He called that episode a has no formal training
His organization promot- whether any were more re- “huge misunderstanding”
ed the tapes as exposing cent. and defended his tactics, as a journalist, O’Keefe
journalistic lapses at CNN. “This is a kind of new era of saying investigative report- helped found a conserva-
One excerpt reveals that In this May 26, 2010, file pho- journalism where it’s WikiLe- ers have been using hid- tive monthly journal called
CNN did not include a par- to, James O’Keefe makes a aks-style dumping of infor- den cameras for years. The Centurion as an un-
ticular poll in its reporting statement after leaving the mation that we will contin- The year before, he be- dergraduate at Rutgers
eight years ago. However, federal courthouse in New Or- ue to do more of,” he said. came notorious for his se- University. After graduating
it is common for news or- leans. CNN declined to com- lectively edited videos in 2006, O’Keefe was paid
ganizations to be discern- Associated Press ment. about ACORN, the Associa- to set up magazines and
ing about which polls they a phone interview Thurs- In previewing the planned tion of Community Organiz- newspapers on university
choose to report on. day, adding that the pro- release, O’Keefe, who is ers for Reform Now, which campuses for the Leader-
“We don’t know everything cess of sifting through them generally critical of the backed efforts to register ship Institute, which recruits
that’s on the tapes. We’ve continues. news media, had said on voters in urban and other potential conservative
listened to a fraction of He did not explain the Wednesday he is targeting poor areas of the country. public policy and media
them,” O’Keefe said during yearslong delay in the CNN because it “has a very He used a hidden camera stars.q