Paisley Run Ends; Swift and Evans Gear Up

Keith Urban made a grand exit at the end of his tour earlier this week. Now Brad Paisley’s American Saturday Night outing is winding down. Meanwhile, Sara Evans is planning a Christmas tour, and Taylor Swift is already selling out her 2010 outing.

One of Paisley’s dreams came true this week when he played at Madison Square Garden in New York City, where he gave a 9/11 tribute during the performance of “When I Get Where I’m Going.” The tour completes the 2009 run with weekend shows in Baltimore, MD; State College, PA; and Uncasville, CT. Paisley says, “To play Madison Square Garden has been on my wish list of accomplishments for a long time and to finally achieve it is unbelievable. I love New York—there are more country music fans in New York City than most people think.”

The first round of tickets for Swift’s Fearless 2010 tour went on sale this morning, and all 15 shows sold out within minutes, including four dates in the New York area selling out in two minutes. Joining her for 37 concerts in North America, plus seven shows in Australia will be Kellie Pickler and Gloriana. Swift is set to host Saturday Night Live on Nov. 7, and will be one of the few artists to also serve as the musical guest that evening. Next week Swift visits Dancing with the Stars (Oct. 27) and Ellen (Oct. 29).

Sara Evans has a new holiday release and tour in the works. Her four song collection, I’ll Be Home for Christmas, will be released digitally Nov. 3 and has traditional favorites as well as “New Again,” a song she wrote with Sony labelmate Paisley. Evans will kick off her Celebrate the Season tour Nov. 27 in Worley, Id. The outing spans a dozen West Coast dates through Dec. 14. Each show will contain a set of holiday music as well as a set her hits.