Ok y'all (or ya'll (or yawl)), let's settle this

About a year ago Lynn made a comment on our facebook page that started out "Hey y'all".  A few minutes later somebody made a really ugly remark about how it's "ya'll" not "y'all".  So then a few weeks later, I made a post that included "ya'll" and then somebody else absolutely chastised me for not knowing that it's supposed to be "y'all" instead of "ya'll".  He said that WXBM is a reputable radio station that really should know the difference, and we lose credibility by not knowing that "y'all" (as he spells it) is a common contraction between the words "you" and "all".  I was tempted to give the guy a piece of my mind, but I wrote him a simple, short, polite note and told he is getting bent out of shape about nothing.  Since then, I have come to find out that people really do care about this, and that it really is a big deal to some people.  Why?  I have no idea.  I thought it would be fun to look at both sides of the argument. 

I have seen three different ways to spell it.  Y'all seems to be the most common.  Ya'll is a close second, and I have even seen "yawl" every now and then.  We can all agree that the word we're talking about isn't a proper word or contraction in the English language, right?  Y'all is like "ain't".  It ain't a real word.  Since it's not a real word or contraction then you can pretty much do whatever you want with it, so I'll accept "y'all".  Now let's try to throw some logic at it and try a little "punctuation 101".  The guy I mentioned earlier who said it's a common contraction between "you" and "all" is wrong.  A contraction uses an apostrophe: '   to make two separate words into one word, right?  In most cases (if not all cases), it's the second of the two words that is shortened.   In almost every instance the entire first word remains in the contraction, and there's never more than two letters after the apostrophe.  Could+not=couldn't.  Did+not=didn't.  They+are=they're.  You+are=you're.  So if "y'all" really is a contraction of the words "you" and "all", it would be "you'll", right?  But that's the contraction for "you" and "will".  So now we're back to square one.  Using logic doesn't work here.  I have seen popular country artists who were born & raised in the south use "ya'll" in the liner notes of their cd's and on their facebook and twitter pages, so you have to lend some credibility to using it that way.  I can tell you one thing, whenever we use it on the WXBM facebook page (www.facebook.com/1027wxbm) we leave the apostrophe out.  It's yall on our page because it's not worth the headache!!!  Just out of curiosity, how do you spell it?  If you do "ya'll" and someone else does "y'all", does it get under your skin?  I guess it's a moot point since it's not a real word, but hey ya'll, it's an interesting debate ain't it?

A couple quick news items.  Trace Adkins has a small role in the new movie "Lincoln Lawyer" featuring Matthew McConaughey.  Trace plays the part of a biker and McConaughey is his lawyer.  That movie is in theaters now.  The rumored duet between Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood is official.  The song will be titled "Remind Me" and will be on Brad's new cd which comes out May 24th.  Shania Twain will release her autobiography May 3rd.  Sounds like she will talk about her difficult childhood, her rise to fame and even her recent divorce.  It will be titled "From This Moment On".  Also just added some stuff to the upcoming concerts & cd's below.

Thanks again for checking in on the "News & Notes" blog this week.  Feel free to (respectfully) share your thoughts.  Have a great week and thanks for listening to Your Country 102.7 WXBM!

Upcoming CD's

March 22nd
Josh Kelly - "Georgia Clay"

April 5th

Craig Campbell - "Craig Campbell"

April 12th

Alison Krauss - "Paper Airplane"

May 24th
Brad Paisley - "This Is Country Music"

June 7th
Ronnie Dunn - "Ronnie Dunn"

August
Dierks Bentley

TBD

Martina McBride

Sunny Sweeney (From A Table Away)

Lady Antebellum

Eric Church (cd expected in late June)
Justin Moore (If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away)
Chris Young (Neon)

CD's Now Available
Jane Dear Girls - "Jane Dear Girls"

Thompson Square - "Thompson Square"

Joe Nichols - "Greatest Hits"

Sara Evans - "Stronger"

Upcoming Concerts

April 1st
Rodney Atkins - Hard Rock in Biloxi

April 8th
Loretta Lynn - IP Casino in Biloxi

April 9th
Josh Turner - Hard Rock in Biloxi

April 14th

Sugarland and Little Big Town - Pensacola Civic Center
White Sands Music Festival - Farmers Opry in Chumuckla http://www.farmersopry.com/

April 15th and 16th
White Sands Music Festival - Farmers Opry in Chumuckla

May 21st
Travis Tritt - Wind Creek in Atmore

June 5th
Willie Nelson, Jamey Johnson, Randy Houser, Lee Brice and Craig Campbell - Wharf in Orange Beach

June 16th
Keith Urban and Jake Owen - Mississippi Coast Colisseum in Biloxi