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Martina McBride talks Joy of Christmas Tour, Vocal Point, exhibit (Includes interview)

She is out on the road as part of her 2019 “Joy of Christmas” Tour. On December 12, she will be playing the Oakdale Theatre in Wallingford, Connecticut, and on December 15, she will be performing at the Union County Performing Arts Center in New Jersey. “I am very excited,” she said. “We changed a lot of things. We have a 16-piece band on stage, and I changed the order of the songs. It’s just a totally different show than last year.”

 Vocal Point with Martina McBride

‘Vocal Point with Martina McBride’
True Public Relations

Regarding her new podcast, “Vocal Point,” she said, “I am having fun doing it. I get to sit down and talk with so many interesting people.”

On being an artist in the digital age, McBride said, “It feels great. At first, I wasn’t sure about doing a podcast, but now I am really enjoying it. We have so many interesting people coming up: we have Vince Gill and Amy Grant, Pam Tillis, and Brenda Lee. So many great conversations that I would have never been able to have otherwise. It has been really fun.”

At the same time, there is a resurgence of vinyl. “I love vinyl,” McBride admitted, prior to complimenting its warmth and nostalgia.

Martina McBride  Dolly Parton  Carrie Underwood  Reba McEntire and other women performing as part of...

Martina McBride, Dolly Parton, Carrie Underwood, Reba McEntire and other women performing as part of ‘Women of Country’ tribute at 2019 CMA Awards
ABC, Image Group LA

A few weeks ago, she performed her signature song “Independence Day” at the 2019 Country Music Association (CMA) Awards, as part of the “Women of Country” tribute. “That was amazing,” she said. “Just getting to be with those women and the whole night felt so special. Getting to stand next to Dolly Parton while I sang my song was something I never dreamed of. The whole night had such a great feel to it. There was a feeling of solidarity, and we had support for each other.”

This past August, she was the recipient of the coveted “Cliffie Stone Icon Award” by the Academy of Country Music. “That was great. Very unexpected. It was special to be recognized for my body of work. It was an honor. A lot of people have been given that award that I look up to and respect so much,” she said.

Another special moment was performing the country classic “Delta Dawn” with Tanya Tucker, as well as Brandi Carlile, Trisha Yearwood, Deana Carter, RaeLynn, Carly Pearce, and Lauren Alaina at the 2019 CMT Music Awards. “That was great. I love Tanya Tucker. I grew up listening to her records and singing along with them in my bedroom. To get to honor her in that way was cool and to be a part of that group of women,” she said, prior to complimenting Tucker on her four 2020 Grammy nominations. “That goes to show that Tanya is still relevant. She still sings great and she is making some of the best music of her career.”

In 2020, she will have her own exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, along with the iconic Bill Anderson and Chris Stapleton. “That is so great. I am excited about putting that together,” she said.

Martina McBride

Martina McBride
Joseph Llanes

She revealed that her charitable organization, “Team Music is Love,” is doing well. “We just did a food giveaway in San Antonio, where we fed hundreds and hundreds of people. We are doing some things on this tour, and we will be doing big things in 2020 to help more people. Team Music is Love is growing really fast,” the country queen said.

From the younger male singer-songwriters out there, she expressed an interest to work with Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real (which is fronted by Willie Nelson’s son Lukas). “I interviewed Lukas for my podcast,” she said. “I think he is a real artist and I love his voice. Lukas is great. That would be fun to do a duet with him.”

When asked which Faith Hill song she would ever cover, she responded, “Stronger.” “I really love that song,” she admitted, prior to noting that she would love to someday do a duet with Faith Hill. “That would be fun,” she said.

On the best advice she was ever given, the Kansas native said, “Stay in the moment. Enjoy every part of this career and of life. That’s what I try to do.”

McBride is rooting for her childhood rock idol, Pat Benatar, to get inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year. “I’ve been voting for her. I definitely hope she makes it in. She deserves it,” she said.

She was fortunate to do the CMT Crossroads special with Pat Benatar back in the fall of 2003. “That was so great. I was so happy to be there with her singing those songs. It was fantastic,” she exclaimed.

On the title of the current chapter of her life, McBride said, “Discovery and Happiness” “It is both ends of the spectrum. I am happy but I am still creating,” she said. “I am doing new tours and hopefully new music soon.”

McBride also shared that she is proud of the recipes on her latest cookbook, Martina’s Kitchen Mix: My Recipe Playlist for Real Life, which is available on Amazon.

Martina McBride

Martina McBride
Photo courtesy of Food Network

For her fans and supporters, she said, “Come out and see the ‘Joy of Christmas’ Tour. It’s a really special show. I am proud of this show. We worked really hard on it, and it will definitely put you in the holiday spirit. It’s an evening of happiness. It’s about two hours and it’s a big night, and I just want everyone to experience it.”

She defined the word success simply as “happiness” in life.

For more information on Martina McBride and her 2019 “The Joy of Christmas” show dates, visit her official website, and follow her on Twitter and Facebook.

Markos Papadatos
Written By

Markos Papadatos is Digital Journal's Editor-at-Large for Music News. Papadatos is a Greek-American journalist and educator that has authored over 20,000 original articles over the past 18 years. He has interviewed some of the biggest names in music, entertainment, lifestyle, magic, and sports. He is a 16-time "Best of Long Island" winner, where for three consecutive years (2020, 2021, and 2022), he was honored as the "Best Long Island Personality" in Arts & Entertainment, an honor that has gone to Billy Joel six times.

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