New York, NY -- September 25, 2006 -- United Stations Radio Networks, Inc., (USRN), an independent leader in original network radio programming, today announced that Country Music Recording Artists Dierks Bentley and Miranda Lambert will serve as the Special Guest Presenters of its multi-week October mini-series titled The Best of the 21st Century (So Far). This four-part, eight-hour airs two hours each weekend in October as part of the network’s Country Giants series written and produced for United Stations by Neil Haislop’s Country Forever Productions.

The Best of the 21st Century (So Far) is a music-intensive, magazine-style program meant to take a close look at the hit music and star performers who have appeared since the start of 2000, plus the stars that became superstars, and superstars that went galactic this century. With this decade more than half over, the series has a rich recent history Country to pull from and many of the songs programmed across the eight hours will be from artists who debuted their music nationally in this 21st Century. Longtime hit makers such as Toby Keith, Alan Jackson, Tim McGraw, Kenny Chesney, Martina McBride, Brooks & Dunn and Faith Hill will be featured with both music and interview, but this series will also rely heavily on the words and music of Rascal Flatts, Big & Rich, Gretchen Wilson, Sugarland, Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley, all of whom had their careers truly explode in the current decade. That’s why, in making the announcement of the two hosts, Dierks Bentley and Miranda Lambert, USRN’s EVP/Programming, Andy Denemark was especially excited. “When we have a conceptual show, we always like to have a artist-host whose career is clearly connected to our concept,” said Denemark. “With Dierks and Miranda, we’ve got two of the most exciting and impressive performers to appear in the last few years, and that’s exactly what this series is about.”

Miranda Lambert is a Texas native and she grew up in a house dedicated to country music. She got her first guitar at the age of 14 and was entering talent contest by the age of 16. She began writing her own songs and formed the Texas Pride Band picking up professional appearances rather quickly and regularly in the Dallas area. In 2001, she released an independent, self-titled CD funded by her family, and two songs from that collection entered the Texas music charts. In 2003 she finished first in the Texas auditions for the Nashville Star television show. Miranda moved to Nashville to appear on the telecast and finished third in the competition. That led to her current recording contract with Sony Music. Her major label debut, "Me and Charlie Talking," was released in 2004, followed by her successful album, Kerosene, released in 2005 on Epic Records. Miranda Lambert wrote or co-wrote ten of the 11 tracks on that disc, and not only does her future in Country Music remain quite promising, she is clearly one of the new stars of the 21st Century.

Unlike Miranda Lambert, Dierks Bentley grew up in a family without much of a connection to music in Phoenix, AZ. He got his country music education on his own by listening to recorded music and Country radio. By the age of 19, his passion for Country music motivated him to head to Nashville, but at first he found both the public and the music industry uninterested in what he had to offer. Dierks could have fallen into a pattern of being professionally discouraged, but, much in the way that the Nashville music scene has energized other performers, one special evening at the Station Inn changed his outlook. He participated in an all-night jam session that served to recharge his enthusiasm and he started to once again chase professional and personal outlets for his music. He landed a job at the TNN (The Nashville Network) doing research on classic country music and by night he worked on his demos recordings. Capitol Records heard Dierks, signed him and released his self-titled debut in 2003. Modern Day Drifter followed two years later and became a Top Ten hit, and ever since, Dierks Bentley has secured a place among the most impressive new talent to emerge this decade.

The Best of 21st Century Country (So Far) is scheduled as part of the Country Giants series, also produced by Neil Haislop’s Country Forever Productions, and it is scheduled to air on the weekends of October 7-8, October 14-15, October 21-22 and October 28-29. It is also available to radio stations independently of the Country Giants series on a market exclusive, barter basis through United Stations. Neil Haislop is recognized as one of Country Radio’s leading writers, researchers and producers. His eleven-year association with United Stations includes his role as producer of the Country Giants series as well as the popular year-end tribute "Heroes and Winners" specials and numerous seasonal specials. Haislop is the also the author of "The Giants of Country Music" which was released by Billboard Books.

United Stations Radio Networks, Inc., is the nation’s largest independently owned and operated radio network. The company currently distributes and produces several format specific services to nearly 4000 rated radio stations across the country including Adult Contemporary, Album Rock, Contemporary Hit, Oldies, Smooth Jazz, Urban and Talk. The extensive Country music lineup at United Stations includes this series along with The Road, The Crook & Chase Countdown, Thunder Road, The American Christian Music Review (ACMR), Country Comedy, Country Giants and various Holiday Specials. The New York-based company was founded in 1984 by radio pioneers Dick Clark and Nick Verbitsky.