One Direction sweeps awards for most popular social media stars

British pop band One Direction perform during the BRIT Awards, celebrating British pop music, at the O2 Arena in London February 20, 2013.

Credit: Reuters/Dylan Martinez

By Patrick Johnston

SINGAPORE | Fri May 24, 2013 10:15am EDT

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - British boy band One Direction has swept the inaugural awards recognizing the most popular people in social media globally, coming top in four out of 10 categories at a star-studded ceremony in Singapore.

One Direction was named most popular music group, most popular UK musicians, most popular in the UK, and most popular in west Europe, at the Social Star Awards, but did not show up to collect their prizes, sending their thanks by videolink.

Canadian pop star Justin Bieber won the award for best solo artist, Selena Gomez for most popular actor, Ellen DeGeneres for top TV show, and Portuguese soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo for most popular sports star.

The awards highlight viral sensations and people who garner the most social media attention globally based on data from Singapore-based Starcount that tracks the social media activity of 1.7 billion people across 11 social media networks.

American actress Jessica Alba and "Entourage" star Jeremy Piven hosted Thursday night's ceremony that ended a 24-hour marathon of 288 online awards awarded in categories ranging from best finance brand to top Indonesia actor.

"It is all about the most popular people on the planet ... Everyday we are sharing, liking, viewing, tweeting and what our awards show does is celebrate the superstars of social media," Starcount CEO Paul Morrison told reporters ahead of the awards.

Many of the award winners were absent from the prize giving but the void was filled with live performances by South Korean rapper Psy, American singer Carly Rae Jepsen, SkyBlu from electronic dance duo LMFAO, and U.S. rockers Aerosmith.

R&B singer-songwriter Eric Benet hailed the impact of social media.

"If you plan on being relevant and have a sustainable career in this day and age social media is about as important as TV was ... in the 1950s," he told Reuters television.

"Way back in the '90s when I started back in the music industry we would have to rely on our PR department and our record label but now in this day and age we, the artist, can take command of our career. It's awesome."

(Reporting by Patrick Johnston, Editing by Belinda Goldsmith)

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Bunting, big stars and British pride close out Proms

By Michael Roddy

LONDON | Sat Sep 8, 2012 8:11pm EDT

LONDON (Reuters) - Australian singer Kylie Minogue drew crowds to Hyde Park, Maltese tenor Joseph Calleja sang his heart out at the Royal Albert Hall, but the big stars of the Last Night of the Proms on Saturday were the standing "Prommers" in the vast indoor venue.

The Last Night has become one of the biggest musical celebrations in Britain, and possibly the world and the Prommers, some 600 of them, many of whom come to dozens of concerts during the two-month-long BBC Proms season, brought red, white and blue Union Jack flags, noisemakers, funny hats, beach balls and even a giant inflatable banana to celebrate in the standing area in the middle of the hall.

They actually took over the 6,000-seat hall at one point, to sing a heartfelt and poignant "Auld Lang Syne" for departing Czech conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra Jiri Belohlavek, who received a big cheer when he pulled out the CBE honor given him by Queen Elizabeth and put it round his neck.

The crowd gave another roar when, unannounced on the program, nine of Britain's Olympic and Paralympic winners for water sports were ushered onstage for a huge singalong version of "Rule Britannia", with Calleja dressed in a Union Jack sports windbreaker, underneath which he wore a black T-shirt with a Maltese cross, to sing "Britannia rules the waves".

"It's a big end-of-term party," said computer programmer Philip Trueman, 50, of Winchester, England, dressed in formal black with a carnation in his lapel, as he bade farewell to other Proms colleagues in the middle of the hall as it ended.

He dismissed suggestions that the Last Night is somehow "fascistic" because of the huge number of Union Jack flags on display, saying it's really all about the music that has brought the entire audience, but especially the Prommers, together.

"We are a collective," he said, adding that he has been coming for 20 years and had gone to three weddings of friends he'd made there.

There did indeed seem to be a special spirit in the air in the sold-out Royal Albert Hall, ending the 118th Proms season, and at the Hyde Park concert, where an estimated 40,000 people showed up for the 17th year of the twin outdoor event that handles the overflow, and is geared more to a pop audience.

Many of those in attendance at both venues seemed to be on a high in a year that has seen the Jubilee celebration for Queen Elizabeth's 60 years on the throne, the 2012 Olympics in which Britain's athletes placed well in the medals tables, and the Paralympics.

"BRITISH AND PROUD OF IT"

"I think a lot of people usually don't like to show off that they are British and wave the flag but I think this year they said 'to hell with everything, we are British and we are proud of it'," said Suzanne Pinto of London, one of the 600 Prommers.

Although the Royal Albert Hall event has all of the Proms' 118 years of history going for it, it was hard to tell which was the jollier and livelier place to be - with the classical music lovers at the hall, or dancing, chatting and picnicking the day away in bright sunshine leading to a balmy night in the park.

"This is my first time here and I wasn't sure about coming but it's absolutely fantastic," said Julie Tekgul, 36, of Harwich, Essex, who came to Hyde Park because Minogue "is my favorite icon" but figured she'd be happy to go to either Prom because what makes it work is the atmosphere and the people.

And what of the music that is the reason the BBC Proms has won a reputation as one of the world's great music festivals?

Calleja, for one, was in top form and got ovation after ovation for his ventures into repertoires like Puccini's "Nessun Dorma" and Lara's "Granada" that once were standards for the late Luciano Pavarotti.

Scottish violinist Nicola Benedetti also won over the crowd for her performance of Bruch's popular first violin concerto. She also got a semi-cat call for her "great frock" when she came on stage in her second designer gown of the evening.

There was much, much more, including conductor Belohlavek flying the flag for his Czech compatriots by including a choral work by Suk and a festival overture by Dvorak.

"It is fantastic, there is nothing in the world like the Last Night of the Proms," said Uruguayan-born, U.S.-based conductor Jose Serebrier, who has conducted at the Proms but was, like a transiting airline pilot, sitting in the audience.

"The whole festival is the most unique, fantastic festival in the whole world and the Last Night, for all the panoply and all the fun, is still an amazing event. I can't compare it to anything else."

(Editing by Paul Casciato)

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Rolling Stone overhauls album ranking, Kanye stars

Recording artist Kanye West sits courtside as he attends the NBA basketball game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Chicago Bulls in Los Angeles December 25, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Danny Moloshok

By Mike Collett-White

LONDON | Fri Apr 27, 2012 12:03pm EDT

LONDON (Reuters) - Three Kanye West albums have made it on to the latest edition of Rolling Stone magazine's authoritative "500 Greatest Albums of All Time" list, placing him among the greats of popular music.

The new ranking, which combines a 2003 list (updated in 2005) with a later survey of the 2000s, saw two Radiohead records join the elite club, while long-established names including Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan also had albums added.

Rolling Stone has published the list, along with details of the albums and several new recording histories based on first-hand accounts, in "bookazine" format available for $11.99 on newsstands between Friday and July 25 in the United States.

As with any survey that tries to put arguably the greatest rock and roll recordings into a particular order, there was plenty of heated debate among the journalists and editors who came up with the final list.

Much of the hard work had been done, however, with hundreds of reporters, executives and musicians involved in the earlier surveys.

"We had arguments in the office, and I hope those arguments are replicated elsewhere," said Christian Hoard, a senior editor at Rolling Stone, of the selection process.

"These special issues are great sellers," he told Reuters. "But they also turn people on to music they haven't heard, and hopefully start fun arguments too.

"People like to get angry about these 'best' lists. It was really a great deal of fun to make."

WEST THE BIG WINNER

The big beneficiary was U.S. hip-hop star West, who saw 2005 album Late Registration, The College Dropout (2004) and My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010) make it to the top 500.

In total, 30 albums were added and 30 taken away, with the casualties including several artists well-represented on the list already and whose "lesser" albums have now been dropped.

The highest entry among recent albums was West's Late Registration at No. 118.

Asked whether the relatively low position of recently released albums reflected a barren period for great rock and pop, Hoard replied:

"My personal opinion is no. Music is as inspirational as it's ever been.

"Things get clearer as the years pass. If you held this poll in 10 years, say, Arcade Fire could be a lot higher and the same could be said of Kanye West. Reputation and time definitely help an album, especially with pollers like ours."

Canadian band Arcade Fire's Funeral is among the 30 additions, as is British act Arctic Monkeys for their 2005 hit Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not.

Radiohead features twice -- for Amnesiac (2001) and In Rainbows (2007), Jay-Z is added for The Black Album (2003), Lil Wayne makes it with Tha Carter III (2008) and the late Amy Winehouse for Back to Black.

Among those dropping out to make way for the additions were The Beach Boys (Sunflower), David Bowie (Changesone), Elton John (Elton John) and Madonna (Music).

The first change to the previous list comes at number 59, leaving the Beatles to dominate the top 10.

The Fab Four feature no less than four times in the first 10; at number one (Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band), three (Revolver), five (Rubber Soul) and 10 (The White Album).

Three acts have 10 albums each on the list -- the Beatles, Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan -- and the oldest album on the list is from 1952 (The Anthology of American Folk Music).

Only 40 albums released since 2000 feature, compared with 187 from the 1970s.

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White, editing by Paul Casciato)

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KISS, Motley Crue Take Aim at Rihanna, Awards Show Pop Stars

by David Greenwald, L.A.  |   March 21, 2012 11:09 EDT

Two of hard rock's biggest acts aren't happy with the state of pop.

"We're sick and tired of girls getting up there with dancers and karaoke tapes in back of them," KISS' Gene Simmons said on Tuesday afternoon as KISS and Motley Crue announced their first joint tour in three decades. "The guys you see on stage are playing their instruments. No fake bullshit. Leave that to the Rihanna, Shmianna and anyone who ends their name with an 'A.'"

Backstage at the Roosevelt Hotel, Motley Crue's Tommy Lee expanded on his colleague's comments, criticizing the state of pop-heavy award shows.

"No disrespect to Rihanna, she's a great singer, but we're in a slump for some shit that has some personality and appeal beyond a bunch of pop stuff that's floating around out there," he told Billboard.com. "I'm glad he said that actually because I don't think i can bear watching another f***ing award show that is just a little bit better than 'American Idol.' It's f***ing pathetic to watch people go out and f***ing karaoke with a bunch of lights and video. It's all completely watered down."

KISS & Motley Crue Announce Summer Tour: 'No Fake Bulls---'

"He's right, anyone can buy a light show, anyone can buy pyro," KISS' Eric Singer added. "You can't keep reinserting a different he or she in there. you have to be able to get up there and play and sing."

Other members of the bands questioned the apparent dearth of guitar rock, on the road and elsewhere.

"It's a shame you don't have as many rock and roll bands, only the cream of the crop has survived," KISS' Tommy Thayer said. "It makes [the tour] more of a unique event. It's definitely the biggest rock show of the year."

While many musicians have found success online in recent years -- Rihanna, for instance, has 53 million Facebook likes -- KISS' Paul Stanley said the real fan interaction happens at the show.

"Isn't that what we're all about? We're only as good as the audiences. So fan interaction, that's really what rock and roll is," he said on Tuesday. "If you [just] want to listen to music, stay home and put it on the stereo."

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Aretha Franklin joins list of stars getting engaged (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – "Queen of Soul" singer Aretha Franklin has become the latest celebrity to announce an engagement over the holidays, joining a list including "Aerosmith" frontman Steven Tyler and basketball superstar LeBron James.

Franklin, 69, and her friend William 'Willie' Wilkerson hope to marry later this year on a sandy Miami beach with a private party to celebrate afterward aboard a yacht, a spokeswoman for Franklin confirmed on Monday.

"We're looking at June or July for our date, and no I'm not pregnant, LOL!," Franklin said in a statement.

Franklin, 69, was sidelined by a mysterious ailment at about this time last year, but overcame her health scare in January and shed 85 pounds on the road to better health. The legendary singer of 1960s hits like "Chain of Fools" and "Baby I Love You" sang at her own 69th birthday party in March.

Tyler, 63, rocked longtime girlfriend Erin Brady, 38, with a proposal, too, his representative confirmed to celebrity media, but no details were given.

In recent days ahead of New Year's Eve, the two have been photographed in Hawaii with Brady showing off a new diamond engagement ring wrapped around her finger. Tyler and Brady have been together since 2006. It will be his third marriage.

James and his longtime girlfriend Savannah Brinson also became engaged over the New Year holiday weekend.

(Reporting by Bob Tourtellotte; Editing by Greg McCune)

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Aretha Franklin joins list of stars getting engaged

Singer Aretha Franklin arrives at the Candie's Foundation 10th anniversary Event to Prevent benefit New York May 3, 2011. The aim of the organization is to prevent teenage pregnancy.

Credit: Reuters/Eric Thayer

LOS ANGELES | Tue Jan 3, 2012 5:20pm EST

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Queen of Soul" singer Aretha Franklin has become the latest celebrity to announce an engagement over the holidays, joining a list including "Aerosmith" frontman Steven Tyler and basketball superstar LeBron James.

Franklin, 69, and her friend William 'Willie' Wilkerson hope to marry later this year on a sandy Miami beach with a private party to celebrate afterward aboard a yacht, a spokeswoman for Franklin confirmed on Monday.

"We're looking at June or July for our date, and no I'm not pregnant, LOL!," Franklin said in a statement.

Franklin, 69, was sidelined by a mysterious ailment at about this time last year, but overcame her health scare in January and shed 85 pounds on the road to better health. The legendary singer of 1960s hits like "Chain of Fools" and "Baby I Love You" sang at her own 69th birthday party in March.

Tyler, 63, rocked longtime girlfriend Erin Brady, 38, with a proposal, too, his representative confirmed to celebrity media, but no details were given.

In recent days ahead of New Year's Eve, the two have been photographed in Hawaii with Brady showing off a new diamond engagement ring wrapped around her finger. Tyler and Brady have been together since 2006. It will be his third marriage.

James and his longtime girlfriend Savannah Brinson also became engaged over the New Year holiday weekend.

(Reporting by Bob Tourtellotte; Editing by Greg McCune)

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Stars bring Hank's 'Lost Notebooks' to life (AP)

By CHRIS TALBOTT, AP Entertainment Writer Chris Talbott, Ap Entertainment Writer – Fri Oct 7, 2:16 pm ET

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Over the years, Holly Williams never felt much of a connection to her grandfather. So when she slipped on a pair of white gloves and lifted one of Hank Williams' old spiral-bound notebooks to inspect its pages full of careful cursive script recently at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, she was a little bit startled to feel a deep visceral reaction.

"Just amazement," she said a few minutes later. "Just shock and awe."

Touching the notebooks left her with a feeling of "just how prolific he was."

"I'm 30," she said. "It makes me go, `God, I sure haven't got much done.' ... He died at 29 and he wrote these songs."

Williams' notebooks not only inspired his granddaughter, but an all-star cast of artists who put the country archetype's unfinished lyrics to music for the new project "The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams." Williams used to carry the notebooks in a battered old leather briefcase he always had with him, including at the time of his death just before or on Jan. 1, 1953, on the way to a show in West Virginia. His mother found a cache of material after his death as well. She turned the song fragments over to Williams' publisher and they've sat in a vault for most of the ensuing decades, until producer Mary Martin came up with the idea for breathing life into them.

All participants were challenged to put Williams' words to music. Some added lyrics of their own to flesh out fragments, and all were responsible for their own melody and instrumentation. For the most part, the principles stick close to what they imagined the source material should have sounded like, but each brings something a little different.

Williams is joined by her father Hank Jr. on her contribution "Blue is My Heart." Dylan, his son Jakob, Alan Jackson, Merle Haggard, Norah Jones, Jack White, Vince Gill and Rodney Crowell, Lucinda Williams and Sheryl Crow also cut songs for the long-simmering project, which Bob Dylan released this month on his Columbia Records imprint Egyptian Records, in association with the hall of fame.

Jackson delivers the closest homage with leadoff song "You've Been Lonesome, Too," Jones keeps it stripped down to acoustic guitar and harmony on "How Many Times Have You Broken My Heart," and Crowell and Gill lay down what sounds like a classic song coming out of the radio circa 1950 on "I Hope You Shed a Million Tears."

Gill and Crowell frame part of their song as a spoken-word monologue, adding a classic feel.

"To say you wrote a song with Hank Williams, yeah, that's pretty cool," Gill said. "Rodney was the biggest part of that, of taking it and making it something special. You couldn't envision that would ever happen. You wouldn't think there's a bunch of unfinished Hank Williams songs laying around and they're going to be giving them some folks who are kind of eccentric and talented, and have them finish them up."

Martin's original intention was for Williams fan Dylan to do a full album, but he eventually scuttled that plan. He spoke with Holly Williams about it around eight years ago, giving her a handful of copied lyrics while the two stood outside his tour bus.

"And you could tell it was a Hank song in an instant because of the way it was written," she said. "I said, `These are Hank lyrics,' and he said, `Yeah, they want me to do an album of these but that's a lot of pressure on me, so I may give them to a lot of different artists.' I wanted to take them and run with them and read them, but he put them back on the bus."

Two years later she got a call saying it was time to come pick up a few samples of what was available.

"I ran down to my publishing company and got the lyrics and spent two days soaking it up, like a lost `Harry Potter' book or something," she said. "I could not wait to get my hands on it."

"Blue is My Heart" had just six lines when she picked it. She fleshed out the song lyrically and added a melody.

"I hope that you can't tell when he stopped writing and when I started writing it because it was exactly half," she said.

Her father, Hank Jr., makes an appearance on her song. But that's about all he has to do with the album. Asked what he thought of the project, he said: "Yeah, yeah, it's different. Some of it's OK, some of it's not. It's all right."

Asked if he had a favorite song, he pointed to the entries from his daughter and Jackson.

"That's probably the best two on there," he said. "I wasn't really contacted about it at all. Let me tell you, if you don't need me, go ahead, rock on, brother."

Holly Williams is extremely pleased with the project, though. She thinks it provides a chance for a new generation of fans to access the music of her grandfather in a meaningful way.

Williams combined lonesome country sounds with the blues and other influences from his childhood in Alabama to revolutionize country music with universal themes almost anyone can identify with. He sold his first song at 19 and went on to record timeless classics like "Your Cheatin' Heart," "Hey, Good Lookin'" and "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry." His hard-living lifestyle and his tragic early death helped ensure his place as an American icon.

Combined with recently unearthed material on the new collection "The Legend Begins" and last year's "The Complete Mother's Best Recordings," there is a new sense of discovery swirling around Williams in the 21st century.

"I feel like ('Lost Notebooks') is just going to open a door where people say, if Jack White or Norah Jones or Lucinda love this, maybe I should check it out," Holly Williams said.

___

AP writer Caitlin R. King in Nashville contributed to this report.

___

Online:

http://www.countrymusichalloffame.org

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Top Europe reggae festival opens, Marley family stars (Reuters)

MADRID (Reuters) – Europe's largest reggae festival Rototom Sunsplash opens its gates on Thursday in the Spanish resort of Benicassim, where over 200,000 fans are expected over 10 days of Jamaican-inspired music headlined by leading members of the Bob Marley dynasty.

This year's 18th Sunsplash pays homage to the legendary reggae musician on the 30th anniversary of his death with concerts by his wife Rita, backing singer in Bob Marley & The Wailers, and the most famous of his children including Ziggy and Stephen.

Stephen Marley will open the festival on the main stage, where Ska pioneers Toots and the Maytals and Jamaican dancehall star Mr. Vegas are also expected to play on the first night.

Over 300 bands and DJs playing reggae genres from roots to rocksteady and ragga to dub will be performing on six stages during a festival which mixes reggae music with social forums as well as African and Caribbean arts and culture.

Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Iran's Shirin Ebadi will attend Rototom's social forum, which also hosts Tobin Tax campaigner Bernard Cassen and environmental activist Vandana Shiva.

"We've got people participating from over 100 different countries, this makes us a truly global festival with a global philosopy of tolerance behind it," festival director Filippo Giunta told Reuters.

"This year we can do it knowing that the local community approves and knowing that the public are going to come. We had 160,000 last year, we are expecting over 200,000 this year," Giunta said.

Rototom Sunplash decided to move to Spain from northern Italy in 2010, after what Giunta said was a clash between the festival's ideals and the ideas of some politicians in the country.

"They accused us of promoting the use of marijuana just because of the relationship of reggae and the Rastafarian religion, which considers it to be a holy plant," Giunta said.

Rototom is a non-profit collective which donates the income from Sunsplash to charities in Africa, Asia and Latin America, attracting speakers and activists from non-government organisations as well as reggae acts from the famous to the obscure.

"We've been to great reggae festivals in France but this has the biggest line-up," said 28-year-old Mariajo, from Madrid.

"I'm going for classics like Toots and the Maytals and (reggae poet) Linton Kwesi Johnson, but I don't think we'll stay for the full 10 days. That's a lot of reggae!"

(Editing by Mike Collett-White)

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Top Europe reggae festival opens, Marley family stars

Jamaican musician David ''Ziggy'' Marley attends the opening day of the exhibit ''Bob Marley, Messenger'' at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles May 11, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Mario Anzuoni

By Jonathan Gleave

MADRID | Thu Aug 18, 2011 8:42am EDT

MADRID (Reuters) - Europe's largest reggae festival Rototom Sunsplash opens its gates on Thursday in the Spanish resort of Benicassim, where over 200,000 fans are expected over 10 days of Jamaican-inspired music headlined by leading members of the Bob Marley dynasty.

This year's 18th Sunsplash pays homage to the legendary reggae musician on the 30th anniversary of his death with concerts by his wife Rita, backing singer in Bob Marley & The Wailers, and the most famous of his children including Ziggy and Stephen.

Stephen Marley will open the festival on the main stage, where Ska pioneers Toots and the Maytals and Jamaican dancehall star Mr. Vegas are also expected to play on the first night.

Over 300 bands and DJs playing reggae genres from roots to rocksteady and ragga to dub will be performing on six stages during a festival which mixes reggae music with social forums as well as African and Caribbean arts and culture.

Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Iran's Shirin Ebadi will attend Rototom's social forum, which also hosts Tobin Tax campaigner Bernard Cassen and environmental activist Vandana Shiva.

"We've got people participating from over 100 different countries, this makes us a truly global festival with a global philosopy of tolerance behind it," festival director Filippo Giunta told Reuters.

"This year we can do it knowing that the local community approves and knowing that the public are going to come. We had 160,000 last year, we are expecting over 200,000 this year," Giunta said.

Rototom Sunplash decided to move to Spain from northern Italy in 2010, after what Giunta said was a clash between the festival's ideals and the ideas of some politicians in the country.

"They accused us of promoting the use of marijuana just because of the relationship of reggae and the Rastafarian religion, which considers it to be a holy plant," Giunta said.

Rototom is a non-profit collective which donates the income from Sunsplash to charities in Africa, Asia and Latin America, attracting speakers and activists from non-government organisations as well as reggae acts from the famous to the obscure.

"We've been to great reggae festivals in France but this has the biggest line-up," said 28-year-old Mariajo, from Madrid.

"I'm going for classics like Toots and the Maytals and (reggae poet) Linton Kwesi Johnson, but I don't think we'll stay for the full 10 days. That's a lot of reggae!"

(Editing by Mike Collett-White)

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Underwood, stars align at ACM Lifting Lives camp (AP)

By CHRIS TALBOTT, AP Entertainment Writer Chris Talbott, Ap Entertainment Writer – Fri Jul 1, 3:49 pm ET

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Carrie Underwood turned in one of the most-talked about performances with Steven Tyler at this year's Academy of Country Music Awards. Three months later, though, it was another performance that night in Las Vegas that was on her mind.

Underwood met with participants in the ACM Lifting Lives Music Camp this week. Developmentally disabled campers who attended the session last year joined Darius Rucker on stage during the awards telecast in April, an emotional highlight on a night with a lot of strong performances.

"Just what a special thing that was," Underwood said. "Everybody sitting in the audience and for everybody sitting at home, and obviously the campers on stage, they were loving every single second of it."

The campers were scheduled to reprise that song Friday night at the Grand Ole Opry with Rucker and perform another song they wrote and recorded during the camp, which was founded by the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities. It's aimed at teens and young adults from around the country with Williams Syndrome and other disabilities like autism and Down Syndrome.

Campers spent time with Gary Allan, Wynonna Judd, Little Big Town, songwriters Brett James and Odie Blackmon, and producer Mark Bright during the week leading up to their Opry performance. Underwood met with campers Wednesday, talked about her recording experiences, gave advice and posed for pictures.

"I was like shocked," said camper Mackenzie Mansour, a 16-year-old from Lone Oak, Texas. "I didn't know what to do. I was like, `Um, should I say hi to her or should I hug her?' I was like, `Gotta think.'"

Mackenzie didn't waste any time making an impression on Underwood, though: "I said, `Do you want me to sing with you?' She said, `No, I'll sing to you.'

"You can just tell how much they love it and how proud they are of themselves just from recording a song, writing a song," Underwood added. "I think we all kind of forget what a special gift that we have and we're able to participate in every single day. And music is definitely a universal language. Anybody can speak it. Anybody can love it. Anybody can be involved in it. You can just tell how happy it makes them.'"

___

AP writer Caitlin R. King in Nashville contributed to this report.

___

Online:

http://www.acmliftinglives.org

___

Contact Chris Talbott at http://www.twitter.com/Chris_Talbott or http://www.twitter.com/AP_Country.

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