Shelton, who will perform at Winstock Saturday, June 9, received two nominations, including Entertainer of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year.

McBride, who will perform at Winstock Friday, June 8, was also nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year.

The 47th Annual ACM Awards will be Sunday, April 1, 2012, in Las Vegas, and will be broadcast live on CBS at 7 p.m.

The 19th annual Winstock Country Music Festival will take place Friday and Saturday, June 8 and 9, 2012.

Blake Shelton and Martina McBride will headline Minnesota’s best country music camping vacation in 2012.

Keep checking WinstockFestival.com for more information and to order tickets. Tickets and camping passes are available by clicking here and make the perfect Christmas gift. Find Winstock on Facebook and also follow us on Twitter.

Winstock is “on the road again” to making its 19th annual festival the best yet, as the complete 2012 festival lineup was announced this morning by the K102 Wakeup Crew.

The two-day country music camping vacation in Winsted Friday and Saturday, June 8 and 9, is honored to welcome American icon Willie Nelson to the Winstock stage to join already-announced headliners Blake Shelton and Martina McBride, along with many of country music’s top artists, including Gary Allan, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Uncle Kracker, and Sunny Sweeney.

“We’re just thrilled to be able to have Willie Nelson at Winstock,” said Winstock Country Music Festival Chairman Dave Danielson. “The entire lineup this year has a lot of diverse artists with different music styles. There is really something for everyone.”

With a six-decade career and 200-plus albums, Nelson is the creative genius behind the historic recordings of “Crazy,” “Red Headed Stranger,” and “Stardust.” He has earned every conceivable award as a musician, and amassed reputable credentials as an author, actor, and activist.

In many ways, however, the weighty distinction “living legend” does Nelson a disservice, for it discounts the extent to which he is a thriving, relevant, and progressive musical and cultural force.

Joining Nelson in rounding out the festival’s Friday night lineup, the JaneDear girls will be making their Winstock debut, as will local favorites Tim Sigler Band and WYLEE. Martina McBride will be Friday night’s headliner.

In a career that’s already taken her to breathtaking heights (four CMA female vocalist of the year trophies, three ACM female vocalist awards, a Grammy win, numerous national magazine covers and features, and television appearances), McBride is ready to take it up a notch with the help of her new record label.

“Then, to kick things off Saturday, we’re happy to bring Rocket Club back to Winstock,” Danielson said. “It’s always neat to see local talent making a national impact like they have.”

Nelson isn’t the only Texan hitting the Winstock stage in 2012, as Sunny Sweeney will keep things rolling along Saturday afternoon with her hits such as “From A Table Away” and “Drink Myself Single.”

Winstock favorite Nitty Gritty Dirt Band will find us all “Fishin’ in the Dark” Saturday afternoon before we “Drift Away” with Uncle Kracker and be “right where we need to be” when Gary Allan takes the stage.

Then, it will be “all about tonight” when Saturday night headliner Blake Shelton hits the stage for what is guaranteed to be a good time.

“We first had Blake back in 2002, which was also a time of growth for the festival,” Danielson said, adding that Shelton had a few more hits under his belt when he performed at Winstock again in 2006, and said that, now, Shelton is a bona fide headliner.

The Winstock 2012 Emerging Artist Stage welcomes yet another Texan with Wade Bowen Friday night for two sets, along with Brett Eldredge, who has also been making his mark on the country music charts, for two sets Saturday.

The Winstock 2012 performance schedule, complete with times, can be found here. Also, visit the artist page for bios and links to our entertainer’s web sites to learn more about them.

Artists performing at Winstock 2012 include Blake Shelton, Martina McBride, Willie Nelson, Gary Allan, Uncle Kracker, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Sunny Sweeney, the JaneDear girls, Rocket Club, Brett Eldredge, Wade Bowen, Tim Sigler Band, WYLEE, and The Unleaded Band, with one additional national act yet to be announced for the Emerging Artist Stage.

The Winstock 2012 campsite decorating contest theme has also been determined, and campers can decorate their campsites according to their favorite Willie Nelson song from his 50-plus-year career of hits in country music to win a multitude of prizes. Full details on the campsite decorating contest can be found here.

Be sure and “like” the Winstock Country Music Festival on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, sign up for Winstock e-mail news, and watch our website to get the latest news, including the Winstock 2012 Rumble on the Road dates, where we take to the road in advance of Winstock, hitting some of our favorite bars with some of our favorite bands, giving away Winstock tickets and many other prizes.

Tickets for the festival are on sale and can be ordered now in plenty of time before the early bird deadline Sunday, April 15. Please note that Winstock 2012 VIP tickets are sold out, with a limited number of seats in the reserved seating section still available.

“This is the earliest our VIP section has ever sold out,” Danielson added. “We appreciate all the people who make Winstock a success year after year, especially all the volunteers who make it happen.”

Danielson added that organizers are already thinking about the 20th anniversary festival next year.

The 19th annual Winstock Country Music Festival will take place at the festival grounds in Winsted, Minnesota, Friday and Saturday, June 8-9, 2012.

Shelton, who will perform at Winstock Saturday, June 9, received three nominations, including best country solo performance for “Honey Bee,” best country album for “Red River Blue,” and best country song for “God Gave Me You.”

In true Shelton fashion, he took to his Twitter and Facebook accounts to announce the nominations to his fans: “Just found that I’m the first EVER person laying in bed (drunk) in Tishomingo Oklahoma with 3 Grammy nominations!!!”

McBride, who will perform at Winstock Friday, June 8, was also nominated in the best country solo performance category for her new hit “I’m Gonna Love You Through It” for this year’s Grammy Awards.

The 54th Annual Grammy Awards will be Sunday, Feb. 12, 2012, at Staples Center in Los Angeles, and will be broadcast live on CBS at 7 p.m.

Shelton also recently won the American Music Award for favorite country male artist and is up for two People’s Choice Awards – favorite male artist and favorite country artist.

This is Shelton’s first nomination for the fan-voted award show. NBC’s “The Voice” is also nominated for a People’s Choice Awards in “Favorite TV Competition Show.” The People’s Choice Awards will air live Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2012 at 8 p.m. on CBS from the Nokia Theatre LA Live.

Winstock fans can help Shelton take home these honors by voting for him here.

McBride is also set to host the 13th Annual “A Home For The Holidays With Martina McBride,” an entertainment special that will be broadcast Wednesday, Dec. 21 at 7 p.m. on the CBS Television Network.

It will also include moving performances by country superstar entertainer McBride, pop/R&B superstar Justin Bieber, Grammy Award-winning singer Mary J. Blige, platinum recording artist Gavin DeGraw, rock group OneRepublic and singer/songwriter Christina Perri.

Following the success of the past 12 annual shows, the special continues to tell touching stories about adoption from foster care to raise awareness for this important social issue.

The 19th annual Winstock Country Music Festival will take place Friday and Saturday, June 8 and 9, 2012.

Blake Shelton and Martina McBride will headline Minnesota’s best country music camping vacation in 2012. Additional artists and lineup details are expected to be announced in early January.

Keep checking WinstockFestival.com for more information and to order tickets. Tickets and camping passes are available by clicking here and make the perfect Christmas gift. Find Winstock on Facebook and also follow us on Twitter.

“We’re just thrilled to be bringing the reigning CMA male vocalist of the year to Winstock,” said Winstock Country Music Festival Chairman Dave Danielson. “We can’t wait for him to bring his show to Winsted.”

Having a reigning award winner perform at Winstock hasn’t happened since Keith Urban performed at Winstock 2004, and went on to be named the CMA’s entertainer of the year and male vocalist of the year in 2005. This is Shelton’s second consecutive win in the male vocalist category. He was also up for four other CMA awards this year, and kicked off the show with a performance of “Footloose” with Kenny Loggins.

Joining Shelton to headline Winstock 2012 will be McBride, who was also the reigning female vocalist of the year when she performed at Winstock in 2003. McBride gave a moving performance of her latest hit “I’m Gonna Love You Through It” at the awards ceremony.

Danielson said Winstock and Shelton have been on similar paths as far as how Shelton’s career and Winstock have progressed through the years.

“We first had Blake back in 2002, which was also a time of growth for the festival,” Danielson said, adding that Shelton had a few more hits under his belt when he performed at Winstock again in 2006, and said that, now, Shelton is a bona fide headliner.

“He’s definitely grown along with our festival,” Danielson said. “He’s gone on to become one of the country music’s top entertainers, and Winstock has gone on to become one of the top country festivals.”

Danielson said Winstock organizers attempted to pull off a “husband-wife” tag-team event with Shelton and his wife, recently-named CMA Female Vocalist of the Year Miranda Lambert, but said Lambert had other commitments. For more on Shelton, click here.

Winstock’s Friday night headliner will be no stranger to the Winstock stage, as organizers are proud to welcome back McBride.

“Martina is on a new record label and seems reenergized and has spent a lot of time in the studio building up to her new album,” Danielson said. “She has some of the best music of her career and we’re excited for her to be bringing that, along with all of her hits, to Winstock 2012. Her new music gives people who may not be tried and true Martina fans a new introduction to her.”

Danielson said, in the past, McBride has enjoyed Winstock because it’s family-orientated, and said she often travels with her family. For more on McBride, click here.

The rest of the Winstock 2012 lineup is expected to be finalized in the next months and released in early January.

“There are going to be to a ton of tours this summer, and it’s been a challenge trying to lock in entertainers due to there being so many headline tours that also feature opening acts,” Danielson said.

However, that has not stopped Winstock organizers from working to secure some of the hottest acts out of Nashville.

“We’re in the process of putting together a heck of a lineup this year, and are also looking forward to our 20th festival next year,” Danielson said. “We’re already making plans for the 20th in 2013.”

He said the 2012 lineup will likely feature a couple of Winstock fan favorites, as well as a number of new artists to the Winstock roster.

“The pieces are starting to all fall into place,” Danielson said.

Winstock is a fundraising event for Holy Trinity Catholic School in Winsted and is staffed by hundreds of volunteers from the school and the area.

“We appreciate the continued support of our event,” Danielson said, “and, of course, all the volunteers who work to make it happen.”

Anywhere from 10,000 to 15,000 people attend the festival. Campsites surround the festival area and accommodate the large number of music lovers. Since the first year Winstock was started in 1994, the festival has continued to grow in both the number of fans and the quality of the artists.

“It’s just a great community event that brings together a lot of people,” Danielson said.

The 19th annual Winstock Country Music Festival will take place Friday and Saturday, June 8 and 9, 2012.

Keep checking WinstockFestival.com for more information on additional artists as they are signed and to order tickets. Tickets and camping passes are available by clicking here. Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

The very next morning, Winstock is proud to announce its headliners for the 2012 festival, set for June 8-9 in Winsted! Combined, these two talented artists who will be headlining Winstock 2012 have topped the charts 15 times spanning back to 1995. Watch the website Thursday morning at 8 a.m. for the official announcement, and also follow Winstock on Twitter and like Winstock on Facebook for all the latest details.

On July 8th, upon the legendary stage of THE Grand Ole Opry, in between Y’all Come Back Saloon and Elvira, history was made. The oldest living Opry star, Little Jimmy Dickens, strode onto the stage dressed as William Lee Golden and surprised us all by announcing that The Oak Ridge Boys were to become the newest members of the prestigious sisterhood and brotherhood that IS the Grand Ole Opry! That night is now etched in music and Oaks’ history. The official induction will take place August 6th on the same stage.

We should have known something was afoot when so many friends showed up for just a quick Friday night Opry appearance. But, as usual, we were really pounding out a huge schedule, which included a ton of studio time. We were a bit tired and totally caught off guard when Dickens appeared behind us dressed in a full fake beard, cowboy hat, and dark shades.

“I have always wanted to be a little bitty Oak Ridge Boy. You don’t know this, but on August 6th, I will become the newest member of the Oak Ridge Boys and you all will become the next members of the Grand Ole Opry,” he announced.

As Duane Allen would say, “HOLY MOLEY!”

What an emotional night. We came offstage to confront a ton of cameras and press from newspapers and TV stations, all the while trying to process this astounding honor. The WOW factor was overwhelming, because we did NOT see this coming! It was a total surprise.

So then…it is now a week later and, as the accolades and congratulations continue to pour in from literally around the world, I have had some time to ponder and, indeed, process the honor. For seven straight days now we have received tons of Tweets and Facebook posts. Our inboxes have been chock full of texts and emails regarding the Opry, which is a testimony in and of itself to the power of this great tradition in country music.

Many friends and peers have expressed surprise that we weren’t members sooner. Many thought we WERE members, and others have lamented the “what took so long?” approach. My thoughts are that the time frame does not matter. The end result is that, out of the clear unsuspecting blue, we went to bed last week as the newest members of the Grand Ole Opry.

THIS is what matters!

In my humble opinion, or as my granddaughter might say, IMHO, there may be several reasons why the time is now and was not THEN for The Oak Ridge Boys. It is my observation that the Opry was very different in the late 70’s and early 80’s, when The Oak Ridge Boys were topping the charts and selling out coliseums. Many of the older stars back then did not seem to embrace the newer acts as much as today.

The Grand Ole Opry is bigger than it has ever been right now, and I believe that the cutting edge leadership of Colin Reed, Dave Kloeppel, Steve Buchanan, Pete Fisher, and their associates, including Gina Keltner, has everything to do with it. Maintain the tradition of the great older acts and bring in a healthy mix of the young stars, the likes of which are lifting country music to newer heights with every passing moment.

Bring Trace and Carrie and Brad and Dierks and Blake and Josh into the fold and, along with Little Jimmy Dickens, Bill Anderson, Jim Ed Brown, Jeannie Seely, and such, the Opry becomes a winning situation, making people of all ages very happy that they bought a ticket. The Opry has also expanded to Tuesdays and Fridays and has added special events, like Classic Country nights and a Bluegrass series, so Saturday night scheduling conflicts cease to be as much of an issue.

Still, as years went by and The Oak Ridge Boys continued to pound away at our blessed career, I had thought our time to join the Opry might have sadly passed us by. I always figured that, although I felt their love and respect, we had gotten lost in the passing time warps and eras—that the Opry membership boat had sailed away.

That is why tears were shed last Friday. That is why the outpouring of love and support to the Opry and to the Boys. I am not sure what the “it’s about time” thing really means, because I had no high expectations here.

I have been thrilled to know Pete Fisher as a good friend and a fellow Twitter buddy, and we have always been happy to sing a few songs upon the hallowed stage when asked. In so doing, we have ALWAYS felt a small part of the magic that IS the Grand Ole Opry. But it is different now. We can now call ourselves OPRY stars…official MEMBERS!

It is indeed one of the highest honors that might exist for a singer of songs and, to a man, we are proud and humbled. It is seriously like a bunch of friends have been asking us over for dinner for years and this time they said, “Hey BOYS pack a bag… you are moving in now… THIS is HOME!”

Home at last…to the Grand Ole Opry Boys.

Winners were:

Grand prize: $15,000 cash – Tim Dahl, Winsted, MN
First prize: $1,000 cash – Roger Thompson, Winsted, MN
Second prize: $500 cash – Jackie Bernstein, Gaylord, MN
$100 cash Marietta Koch, Winsted, MN
$100 cash Bob Bayerl, Winsted, MN
$100 cash Jerome Roufs, Howard Lake, MN
$100 cash Bob & Irene Kutz, Winsted, MN
$100 cash Bernard Laxen, Winsted, MN
$100 cash Doug Gill, Cold Spring, MN
$100 cash Wally Stang, St. Cloud, MN
$100 cash Carol Mickolichek, Winsted, MN
$100 cash Charles Millerbernd, Winsted, MN
$100 cash Donna Stifter, Winsted, MN

Winners, as announced over Winstock weekend, for the annual campsite decorating contest were:

Grand prize: Shelly Micke of Carlton, MN (site 859)
First prize: Dick Uecker of Gaylord, MN (sites 212-215)
Second prize: Craig Bailey and Dale DeVriendt of Big Lake, MN (sites 917-918)
Honorable mention: Flo Kinzel of Ramsey, MN (site 1462)

This year’s campsite decorating contest theme was “Big Green Tractor” after headliner Jason Aldean’s hit song. There were 17 registered entries this year.

The winner of two front-row VIP tickets for Winstock 2012 is Allen Bernstein of Gaylord, MN. Kathy Schwalbe of New Auburn, MN won a Coby Touchscreen Internet Tablet in the drawing at the Winstock 2011 Information Booth.

The band, which scored the hit “Wild At Heart,” has been putting the final touches on its sophomore album, set for release later this summer.

“It’s been three years since we put out the first one,” Gossin said.

Since that time, the band has toured across the US, Canada, and even Australia with Taylor Swift, and has played in front of huge audiences.

“It was amazing just traveling the world and living out our dream as tour musicians,” Gossin said. “Last year, we took the year to tour ourselves – the fairs and festivals like the one in Minnesota we’re coming to do. It’s been a great road for us.”

Gossin said he feels the band has grown a lot and gone through a lot of experiences together, and said this has helped them grow musically, as well.

Click Here to read the full interview.