The Civil Wars (Photo: C Flanigan)Two-time Grammy-winning duo the Civil Wars threw a bomb onto their fans Tuesday when, instead of chattering about Election Day like much of the rest of social media, they abruptly announced the cancellation of all their upcoming tour dates.

Is the pair breaking up for good? Luckily, that doesn't seem to be the exact case. In a statement on their website, Joy Williams and John Paul White noted that they hope to deliver new music next year.

"We sincerely apologize for the canceling of all of our tour dates. It is something we deeply regret," the statement reads. "However, due to internal discord and irreconcilable differences of ambition we are unable to continue as a touring entity at this time. We thank each and every one of you for your amazing love & support. Our sincere hope is to have new music for you in 2013."

Remember what it felt like to vote in your first presidential election? Given all the excitement and narrow margins of this year's run, it's certain one young country star will remember his first time. Can you guess who?

If you guessed American Idol alum Scotty McCreery, you're right. McCreery clearly was excited to participate, proudly posting an Election Day Instagram shot of the "I Voted" sticker on his sweatshirt. "Yall make sure you get out there and vote! #USA #ivoted," he tweeted.

Scotty McCreery/Instagram

McCreery turned 19 in October, making this the first presidential run he's eligible to officially weigh in on. Congratulations on your first time, Scotty!

(photo: Disney ABC)

Not everything about the 2012 CMA Awards worked. Is the future so bright that Eric Church has to wear shades and an eye-shielding ballcap? We're still trying to figure out what we think about the Love American Style production design for Faith Hill's "American Heart"... not to mention whether it's true that an American heart can't be broken. Laserium and 1975 called, and they both want the green lighting used during the Band Perry's song back. And did Jason Aldean, Zac Brown, Luke Bryan, Church, and Faith Hill all need 20 performance slots each?

[Related: 2012 CMAs red carpet photo gallery]

But there was plenty about the telecast that did strike us right. Here, in order of appearance, a dozen highlights, comedic and otherwise:

1. Carrie and Brad go "Gangnam Style." With a pun that good for a parody-song title, they almost didn't have to do anything else to sell it. But they did, with some seriously goofy, and good, hoofing.

2. The running joke—or running shame—of "motorboatin'."

Blake Shelton was the big winner at the 46th annual Country Music Assn. Awards. The 36-year old Oklahoma native won three awards: Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year and Song of the Year. He shared the latter prize with his wife Miranda Lambert, who won Female Vocalist of the Year for the third year in a row.

[Related: Miranda Lambert cries after Song of the Year win]

Shelton was an upset winner for Entertainer of the Year. He beat Taylor Swift, whose new album, Red, made headlines just yesterday for selling more copies in one week than any other album since 2002. Swift was vying to become the first woman to win Entertainer of the Year three times. That potential record-setting achievement was promoted three times during the three-hour telecast, a sign that she just might pull it off.

In accepting the award, Shelton said that winning Entertainer of the Year was never in his sights. "When I moved here, I had two goals, to someday have a gold record and to someday be a member of the Grand Ole Opry," he said. Shelton was presented the award by Reba McEntire, a fellow Oklahoman who won the prize in 1986.

Photo: Jason KempinJust minutes before, she was ripping up the Country Music Association Awards with a no-holds-barred rendition of her spirited hit "Fastest Girl In Town." But when Miranda Lambert returned to the stage shortly after to accept the Song of the Year award with her husband, Blake Shelton, the spitfire singer was reduced to a puddle of uncontrollable tears.

[Related: 2012 CMAs red carpet photo gallery]

The reason was simple: The winning song she co-wrote with Shelton, "Over You," carries a deeply personal meaning to the couple. It's about the death of Shelton's older brother Richie, who died in a 1990 car accident when Shelton was only 14 years old--and whom Lambert has never met.

It's a safe bet that Rascal Flatts and Martina McBride prefer the CMA Awards to the Grammys. Rascal Flatts won six consecutive CMA awards as Vocal Group of the Year, but has yet to win a Grammy. McBride has been named Female Vocalist of the Year at the CMAs four times, which puts her in a tie with Reba McEntire for the most awards in the category in the show's history. She, too, has yet to win a Grammy.

George Strait and Diamond Rio also probably prefer the CMAs to the Grammys. Strait has been named Male Vocalist of the Year at the CMAs five times, which puts him in a tie with Vince Gill for the most wins in the category in the show's history. But he has yet to win a Grammy in the equivalent category—Best Male Country Vocal Performance (now Best Country Solo Performance). (He did win a Grammy for Best Country Album for 2008's Troubadour.)

Diamond Rio has won four CMA Awards for Vocal Group of the Year, but has yet to win a Grammy for Best Country Duo/Group Performance. (The group did win a Grammy for Best Southern, Country, Or Bluegrass Gospel Album for 2010's The Reason).

Tim McGraw handed out some treats--of the musical variety--on Halloween night, when he played an intimate show at a Nashville club as part of CMA Awards week. The singer previewed material from his upcoming new album Two Lanes Of Freedom (which will hit stores in February) and grooved to a variety of his older hits, but his best "trick" for the audience was a surprise appearance from an unexpected guest--R&B star Ne-Yo.

McGraw and Ne-Yo (Photo: The Green Room PR)

McGraw performed two songs with his friend, one his own ("Only Human") and the other Ne-Yo's ("She Is"). The latter song appears on Ne-Yo's new album, R.E.D., which is out next week. McGraw collaborated with the R&B crooner for the tune, so fans who weren't lucky enough to see the duet live will still be able to enjoy it on the record.

Steven Tyler and Carrie Underwood (Getty Images)Bon Jovi already went Nashville a while ago, but is the world ready for a country-fied Aerosmith? That's what they'll be getting with a Steven Tyler/Carrie Underwood that appears on the group's new album, Music From Another Dimension!, due in stores Nov. 6. Steven Tyler tells Yahoo! Music that he's certain the song will be a radio smash.

But as much benefit as there might be to including a country power ballad featuring one of America's most wholesomely leggy stars, how does that square with this comeback CD being touted as a return to seminal 1970s hard-rock form? After all, Tammy Wynette wasn't making any guest appearances on Rocks, was she?

[Related: Watch Carrie Underwood Music Videos on Y! Music]

Apparently, there was a minority faction within the band that wondered that very thing.

Tyler told us how the duet spontaneously came about. In the recording studio, "I sang it a little country," he recalls, "and one of the guys in the band said, 'You know what, you need to re-sing it,