WHO'S YOUR DADDY? (Items on Toby Keith, Mindy McCready, Kellie Pickler, Miley Cyrus)

Who is the top country music's top earner, according Forbes magazine? The answer might surprise you (even though I've given it away with the title of this post and the pic at left).
Yeppers, Toby Keith is the big dog daddy in the country ka-ching!-stakes.
How he do it? How about his endorsement deal with Ford, his chain of restaurants and being the figurehead (and thus getting a healthy ta$te) of Show Dog records, plus, um, you know, the whole recording and touring thing. So what did country's top doughboy haul in last year? Hows about $48 million? Wow!
The Rascal Flatts chaps were #2 with a take of $40 million, due mostly to a big '07 tour and "crossover appeal."
Tim McGraw's $23 million take was due mostly to another tour last year with Faith and "being sensitive despite his masculine looks."
The man at #4? 'Thought he'd be on top of the money pile...but $22 million ain't exactly scratch for Kenny Chesney, who turned a pair of Flip-Flops into $70 million and spent the most weeks for a writer on Billboard's Country Single chart.
Nice shiftwork, if you can get it.
Being the road warriors they are, Brooks & Dunn ($20 million)land at #5 on the C&W bank account hit parade.
How does Brad Paisley land at #6 with a $16 million haul? Touring, three #1 singles and "sweet" sponsorship deals.
Checking people for ticks? It's a living.
For some reason, Faith Hill can't buy a hit on the country charts these days for some reason, but $12 million in the bank (Mostly due to the Soul2Soul II tour with Tim) could do a lot of convincing at #7.
At #8 (or #7 in a tie, I dunno, Forbes sez #8) is Keith Urban with $12 mill earned, mostly from touring. Meanwhile, the Mrs. made a bit more...
How did George Strait land at #9 with $11 million? Being George Strait.
Meanwhile ('sorry for plagiarizing, King George),
Alan Jackson had to settle for $10 million in '07...largely due to his tour with Brooks & Dunn and doing the hard work on his latest album.

"Still" Life: As Mindy McCready's life continues to be tailor-made for tabloid press coverage, she's attempting to bounce back. In a video (below), she thanks fans for their support and directs them to her website for a free download of her single, "I'm Still Here," which she wrote in while the slammer.
Meanwhile, she appears to working on a documentary (due this summer) that apparently will dish on her relationship with Roger Clemens. In addition to new music and the film, she's also working on a...reality show.



Red High Squeals: The response to Kellie Pickler's ACM Awards performance of her song, "Don't You Know You're Beautiful," led to her label pushing up the single's release date, to the day after the show. Kellie's next album is still tagged for the fall and will include a ditty co-written by her pal, Taylor Swift.
Meanwhile, an "American Idol" exec says the show veteran can attribute her success to "Two accoutrements that (naturally) photographers and men love."
Whatever, I say. Another thing I say is..."YOWZAAAAA!"

Meet Me in Montana?: Maybe not, for Miley Cyrus.