Well, well, well--here's a new one for the "unusual pairing" books. However, to many of us, I'm sure this won't come as a big surprise.

Guess which unlikely characters are now on the record as being close pals? Country icon Willie Nelson and hip-hop legend Snoop Dogg.

In fact, according to U.K.-based outlet Sky News, the two may even share the stage at Britain's famed Glastonbury musical festival this weekend (both were booked, and have already performed, separately).

"We're real good friends and have been for a lot of years," Nelson, 77, said of the 38-year-old rapper. "His kids would come down to my place and we'd do videos together and hang out."

As I noted above--this alliance is probably not a big shock to those who are aware of both entertainers' infamous penchants for a certain illegal substance.

Nelson and Snoop are major supporters of marijuana--both in terms of legalization (in fact, Nelson appeared on CNN's Larry King Live in April to discuss his support in this very

Rascal Flatts are going Hollywood--and, no, I'm not talking about their acting careers, although they have been popping up on TV with some regularity lately.

Nope, the group's Tinseltown legacy is going to go way beyond guest appearances on CSI and American Idol. In fact, it is going to be literally set in stone: The guys are slated to be honored with a star on the legendary Hollywood Walk Of Fame in 2011.

The announcement was made on Thursday by the Walk of Fame Committee of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, citing the Flatts along with a list of other 2011 honorees including Melissa Etheridge, BeBe & CeCe Winans, and (posthumously) Buddy Holly.

All three members of the band responded to the announcement with a tone of humility and deep gratitude. "This far exceeds any expectations I ever had," said Gary LeVox. 

Joe Don Rooney raved, "This is the kind of stuff you dream of growing up as a kid. Having our name on the Hollywood Walk of Fame has to be one of the coolest things

The number 13 has, of course, long been acknowledged as a symbol of bad luck--but not for Taylor Swift, who credits it with nothing but great things in her life. She was born on December 13th, can cite a long list of personally fortuitous incidents involving the number, and routinely goes about with a "13" inked on her hand.

"Basically, whenever a 13 comes up in my life, it's a good thing," she's explained in interviews.

And now, this month she's taking her reverse-triskaidekaphobia to a new level. This year's annual CMA Festival--in which country fans caravan to Nashville for several fun-filled days of live music and autograph opportunities with their favorite artists--happens to run from June 10 through June 13. Swift, like most of country music's A-listers, is scheduled to meet and greet her fans at the Fest. So, she decided to put a "lucky" twist on the event: On Sunday, June 13, she's pledged to meet with fans for 13 straight hours.

Phew! Now that is dedication, my friends.

Lots of bona fide pop and rock stars have decided to take a walk over to the country scene in the past few years--Jon Bon Jovi, Jack White, and Darius Rucker are a few notable examples. However, the latest rocker to join the country ranks certainly comes as a surprise.

Chris Shiflett may not be a name that everyone immediately recognizes, but I'm sure most have heard of the band he plays with--he's the guitarist for the Grammy-award-winning rock outfit Foo Fighters. Shiflett just announced that he's fronting a side project, the Dead Peasants, which will allow him an outlet for his love of vintage country, Americana, and rockabilly music.

"One of my favorite kinds of music is old country--and old rockabilly and modern Americana like Sun Volt, Wilco, and Ryan Adams," the guitarist explained in a recent interview with NME. "I started doing some Americana shows with some friends, and that kind of evolved into recording some demos."

He used the Foo Fighters' recording studio for a month

It seems as all I can write about these days is flood-related topics. On one hand, I'm of course sad that there has been such devastation in Tennessee to generate this amount of news. However, on the other hand, I have to say my heart is truly warmed by how many people--celebrities and ordinary folk alike--have stepped up to the plate to clean up Nashville and help everyone who needs a hand.

The latest of these is Carrie Underwood, who as the 2010 Academy of Country Music Entertainer of the Year has teamed up with ACM Lifting Lives--the charitable arm of the organization--to create a new fund supporting relief efforts for flood victims displaced and in need of shelter.

The fund has a particularly apt name: Temporary Home, which of course, comes from Carrie's hit single. In addition to her contributions, Lifting Lives will be donating money from the taping of the Brooks & Dunn tribute spectacular that took place after the 2010 ACM Awards, and will be televised on CBS this Sunday.

So, the latest from Miley Cyrus: Despite being the daughter of Billy Ray Cyrus and the goddaughter of Dolly Parton--she ain't no country girl.

"It feels contrived on so many levels," the 17-year-old pop star told Parade, noting that the scene "scares" her.

"Unless you're wearing a cowboy hat and cowboy boots and singing and whining about your girlfriend or boyfriend leaving you it's not going to sell. I think that's why my dad finally got out of it. You have to wear those cowboy boots and be sweet as pie. It makes me nervous, the politics of it all."

Oh, Miley. Why do I think this is going to come back and bite you in the butt? Yes, we know you aren't a bona fide country artist--in fact, I'd say your art is primarily acting and not music. However. Let us count the ways in which alienating the country world will do you no favors.

1) Taylor Swift, a pop-star-cum-actress who has not shunned her country roots, is eclipsing you (and pretty much everyone in the world) in popularity.

2)

Music-industry bible Billboard took the opportunity this week to comb through its chart records and compile the top 25 Country artists of the past 25 years--and who do you think is topping the list?

Nope, it's not Garth Brooks, who I would say is a more than reasonable guess. However, Garth landed at No. 2, falling short only to George Strait.

Yup, Strait leads the pack. Garth may be the number-one U.S. album-selling artist in SoundScan history, but George holds more country-related accolades altogether in the Billboard world. According to the publication, he's had 44 No. 1 hits on the Hot Country Songs chart (which has been around for 64 years now). He can boast of 82 top 10 singles. And, he's the only artist in Billboard's history to achieve top 10 singles in 30 consecutive years. Three decades of top hits, folks!

The rest of Billboard's 25 is pretty interesting to check out, as well. Reba McEntire follows Strait and Brooks at No. 3 and is the only woman to make the top

So, the CMA Awards nominees were announced this week--as I duly noted, with VivaNashVegas's hot picks to win. When I first scanned the list, I thought, "This is a pretty refreshing year." Lots of new and seriously talented names on the roster, an African American artist nominated in multiple categories (it's been a while, folks), and the youngest contender in history (who also happens to be female) taking on the boys in the Entertainer Of The Year category.

Yup, can't beat 2009 for CMA excitement. Not a bad year at all.

However--one thing's been bugging me. The Raconteurs' nomination in Musical Event Of The Year category.

I've written before about being mystified at Jack White's consistent success in the Country community. Please, don't misunderstand. I like Jack White. I just...don't get it. I've wracked my brain trying to figure out what the elusive element is--it's certainly not easily apparent, as White is about as non-Heartland as you can get without actually not being an