Taylor Swift
and
Chris
Young have joined the
"Give the Gift of Music" campaign. In their new video
testimonials, Swift talks about hearing
Faith Hill's "This Kiss" for the
first time, while Young recalls receiving his first guitar as a Christmas gift. The videos launched exclusively in a special
"Countdown to CMA" area on the campaign's website. Previously-posted videos feature
Kelly
Clarkson,
Little Big Town,
Martina
McBride,
Rascal Flatts,
Darius
Rucker and
Blake Shelton. The campaign has also launched a contest
asking fans to share how a particular 2011 CMA Awards nominee's music (song, lyrics, performance, etc.) has inspired them.
The grand prize winner will receive two tickets to the CMA Awards show in Nashville on Nov. 9 and $1,000. Country music gift
packages will go to the second and third place winners. Last fall, the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM)
and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) led an industry-wide effort to re-energize the 30-year old "Give
the Gift of Music" campaign.
