Talking about a Revolution

Miranda Lambert is one of the hottest country music acts in the world. Next week Tuesday, Lambert will kick off the opening date of Country USA in Oshkosh at Ford Festival Park. The Festival will also feature other popular country artists such as Trace Adkins, Dierks Bentley, Rascal Flatts, Ashton Shepherd, Luke Bryan, and Lady Antebellum.

The 27 year old, East Texas native has had all three of her major label albums hit platinum status and total album sales over 3 million. Lambert has had two number one singles off her 2009 release, "Revolution", including her latest, "Heart Like Mine". 2010 and 2011 have been very good to Miranda. In 2011, Miranda won four ACM awards including the coveted Female Vocalist of the Year award. In between a new music project with singer/songwriters Ashley Monroe and Angaleena Presley called Pistol Annies, a recent marrage to fellow country artist Blake Shelton, and starting a summer tour, Lambert found time to speak with me about what was on the horizon.

AK: Revolution has been a major success for you gaining critical acclaim and numerous awards. The album has spawned two #1 singles. Do you foresee a fifth single in the future?

ML: All 15 songs on this album are my babies, and I would love to release all of them, but I think it’s time to move on. In the meantime, I’m hoping fans will want to hear more from my new band, Pistol Annies. We just released our first song, “Hell on Heels,” and we can’t wait to share more of our music with everyone.

AK:Your latest single to top the charts,"Heart Like Mine", was co-written by Ashley Monroe who is also in your all-girl group, Pistol Annies. I saw your song, "Hell On Heels", is available on the groups website. Is the group planning on releasing an EP?

ML: We’ve been recording music and now we can’t seem to stop. Hopefully we will have the full album out by this summer with all Pistol Annies music.

AK: You're riding high off a great night at the CMT Awards. Do you think the music video is still an important marketing device when some of the major music television networks do not make music videos their primary focal point?

ML: I do think music videos are important as a way to more fully express the message of a song. Songwriting is my passion, and I love expanding that art & emotion in a visual way. “The House That Built Me” is such a powerful song for so many people, and I think the music video definitely enhances that impact.

AK: VH1 will be airing your Behind The Music special on July 13th. Compared to other artists, I find that you are very open about your life with your fans. Can the viewers expect to hear different stories and see some of the people close to you in this special?

ML: I try to be open about my life because I am proud of my past and where I come from. I grew up like most other kids, and through the hard work of a lot of people, I now get to do what I love for a living. A lot of my friends & family were kind enough to take part in this piece, and I hope the audience sees that dreams can come true with enough determination!

AK: I read a while ago you will be working with ABC Family to create an hour long show revolving around your parents being private investigators. Will any other family members be involved with producing the show?

ML: That project is still in the very early stages of development; I guess anything can happen.

AK: You'll be headlining the opening night at Country USA in Oshkosh, WI on June 21st before more in-state festival stops June 24th and 25th. Do you have one memorable festival moment from the past that sticks in your mind?

ML: I don’t know if I could pick just one! I’ve played a lot of festivals, and my band and I always love it when the audience looks like they’re having a blast. The more excited the audience is, the more we get into putting on a great performance. Our show is all about leaving your problems at the door and just escaping for a few hours while having lots of fun!

AK: Congratulations on your recent wedding! I saw a picture of the brooch bouquet in US Weekly and it looked like it weighed a few pounds. Did you end up throwing the bouquet? I imagine it would have been like throwing a shot put.

ML: My bouquet weighed over 4 pounds, so throwing it might have caused some damage! Also, a lot of the brooches were gifts, so I wanted to keep it all intact as a memory.

"Ran Fans", remember, you can check out Miranda headlining Country USA in Oshkosh, Tuesday, June 21st at 10pm, at the Chippewa Valley Country Festival, Friday, June 24th in Cadott, WI, and at the Star Spangled Celebration in Richland Center, WI on Saturday, June 25th.

-AK