Blake Shelton is no stranger to making pretty outrageous statements on Twitter. However, this week he's fairly outdone himself. He's "throat punched a whooping crane," "wiped with poison ivy," "tea bagged a meat grinder," and "golf clubbed a panda bear."

What's the occasion for all this activity? Ah, he's just excited. After all, he proposed to longtime girlfriend and fellow star musician Miranda Lambert, and apparently the gal accepted!

Reps for the artists confirmed that the pair--who have been dating for five years--are indeed officially engaged as of May 9. No wedding date is set yet.

As for Miranda, her tweet on the matter was simply, "Well...Ol' Blake finally got a brain!" accompanied by a twitpic of the giddy-looking couple showing off the engagement ring. (Good work, Blake--that appears to be one seriously gorgeous diamond!)

She did elaborate further to People.com, explaining that the proposal took place outside near her Oklahoma home, and was celebrated with Diet Sprite and

Let it be known: Nobody can accuse the country music community of being disloyal. Or, for that matter, pessimistic. Facing a daunting billion-dollar-plus cleanup of Music City as a result of deadly flooding in the Nashville area, the country folks are wasting no time crying. Instead, they're simply rolling up their sleeves and getting down to business.

They're donating money (most notably, Taylor Swift's pledge of $500,000 at a telethon organized by Vince Gill last week), spreading the word, giving their time. And, most recently, putting together extraordinary benefits at record speed. Country power couple Faith Hill and Tim McGraw announced today they will host a star-studded show next month which will aid flood victims.

The concert, Nashville Rising: A Benefit Concert for Flood Recovery, will take place June 22 at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena. The list of confirmed performers is A-list all the way: Swift, Carrie Underwood, LeAnn Rimes, Miley Cyrus, Martina McBride, Lynyrd Skynyrd,

What started out as a heavy weekend storm in the Southeast ended up as record flooding in Tennessee this week--killing at least 19 people, destroying roads and property, and driving President Obama to declare parts of the state major disaster areas.

The rain, of course, didn't spare Nashville or its music community. Most notably, the legendary country landmark the Grand Ole Opry House is currently under six feet of water, with as-yet-unknown damage to its historic collections. The overall cost of damages to the city is estimated to exceed $1 billion, according to Nashville mayor Karl Dean.

But country artists themselves have been affected sorely as well. While giving fervent thanks for being safe and sound, many artists still lamented the loss of musical equipment, damage to their homes, and shows canceled due to the disaster.

Kenny Chesney was working in another state when the storms hit. He returned to Nashville midweek to find his home engulfed in water, rising past the first

Kenny Chesney's flash-in-the-pan marriage to actress Renee Zellweger ended nearly five whole years ago--which seems like an eternity in terms of today's media pace--but fans undoubtedly have always been wondering what exactly happened between the pair. Zellweger cited the legal but vague cause of "fraud" as grounds for annulment of the four-month union, sparking waves of gossip as to what really caused the breakup.

Friday afternoon, Chesney spoke frankly on the Oprah Winfrey Show about the real reasons behind the failure of his relationship with Zellweger. Stating several times that he "panicked" after entering marriage, he elaborated further to Oprah:

"I look at my life as a box. So everything that I put in--learn how to play guitar, put that in the box. The friends I made. I put that in the box, and my career grew. Everything around me--all of the awards and all of the songs I wrote and all the success and everything--I put in that box. That box built grew into this wonderful house.

Music awards shows can sometimes be uneventful happenings--ya know how it goes: no big surprises; the same ol' expected folks nominated over and over. I have to admit, this is particularly true in the realm of country music. However, this isn't necessarily a bad thing--if anything, it demonstrates that country is one of the few musical genres that respects loyalty and allows artists more than a mere flash-in-the-pan career. 

That said, it is always fun to have something unexpected to look forward to when it comes to a big musical night. And, for tonight's Academy of Country Music Awards telecast, I'm laying my bet that the little surprise treat of the night will be the performance by newcomer Laura Bell Bundy.

I'm far from being the only one looking foward to Ms. Bundy's turn on the ACM stage. For those of you who haven't been introduced to her Nashville persona yet--there can't be too many of you out there who haven't seen her cheeky video for "Giddy On Up," right?--you may recognize

The dust has barely settled from last weekend's Coachella Festival, and now it's the country fans' turn to descend on the California desert for a weekend of music and fun.

This year's annual Stagecoach Festival, now in its fourth season, has a pretty fantastic lineup--the big headliners include Keith Urban, Toby Keith, Brooks & Dunn (my personal prediction for the highlight of the weekend), and Sugarland, plus a diversely mixed bag of more than 25 other acts. And, it looks like it's going to have a pretty danged good turnout as well. Coachella 2010, held in the same location and put on by the same folks, reported record numbers (more than 200,000 tickets sold). Stagecoach 2010 will likely surpass its own record numbers, which topped 100,000 last year.

A single-day general admission pass to Stagecoach will run you close to a hundred bucks, or you can spring for a weekend pass starting at $137. Given that, all I can say is: Recession? Well, sure, there's a recession, but it doesn't

Last night's Oscars were a good time for the country fans out there. Ryan Bingham rightfully took home the award for Best Original Song. Jeff Bridges got Best Actor for his riveting portrayal of the washed-up Bad Blake.

But, well, I have to admit--my personal favorite Oscar moment didn't have to do with Crazy Heart at all. It was Faith Hill's arrival with Blind Side star/husband Tim McGraw.

I just love Faith Hill. For more than her obvious talent, and the fact that she apparently actually likes to watch football and cook nachos (two of my favorite things). I love her for something completely different than these things.

Faith Hill is one of those enviable types who don't have to do a danged thing to attract the spotlight. Quite simply, she's physically stunning; the kind of beauty that can walk into a room wearing Levis and a T-shirt, and easily outshine the most glittery crowd of couture wearers.

Ironically, however, she doesn't seem to enjoy relying on this God-given gift of

Pardon me for being overdramatic, but I'll just come out and say it. I'm waiting for Taylor Swift to run for president of the United States. At the rate she's going these days, she'll go down in history as both the youngest and the first female commander-in-chief we've had.

So, you say--what's Taylor up to now, in order for me to make such a grandiose prediction? Well, two new things. Neither quite POTUS material, but both pushing her into the public-visibility category in which she becomes not only a household name, but a somewhat mythical figure to boot.

Number one: She's been named to TIME magazine's "100 Most Influential People" 2010 list, putting her in the company of Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Steve Jobs, Oprah Winfrey, Phil Mickelson, Serena Williams, Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, Lady Gaga, Simon Cowell, Prince, and Elton John.

Among 87 other world-shaking personalities, of course.

Taylor was the only country music artist to make the list. Legendary Fleetwood Mac frontwoman