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Nashville Star winner and Dalworthington Gardens resident Melissa Lawson comments on the process following her trip to Austin to audition for a slot on the show, including talks with her husband, Rick Lawson:

"...There was the call-back day," she says while sitting at her dining room table. "And then there was an e-mail that put me in the Top 200. And a phone interview that then put me into the Top 50. And that was Nashville week... I knew I would be going there. He and I sat down and said, 'Ok, this could potentially go somewhere. If it goes somewhere are we committed to this to each other and are we committed as a family?' It means him sacrificing a lot, a lot more than me. Because I wouldn't get to see the kids and that was a huge sacrifice, but he's the one that has to come in and do all the day in and day out things, support us financially as a family, try to figure out how to get everything done. I would just be doing music, so I pretty much have the easy life while I'm gone. Comparatively, he has the hard work to do. He said he was on board and very committed to that and supported me 100 percent. At that point we then sat down with the oldest two boys and asked the same question. Both of them were like, 'Mommy we will miss you,' and they were sad about the aspect of missing me, but at the same time they were like, 'Go for it, we really think you can win the competition..."

For more on Ms. Lawson, check out Sunday's GuideLive.

Photo: The Lawson family, clockwise from left...Rick, Zaden, Ryker, Melissa, Xander, Harlan and Maverick (Lara Solt/DMN).

After a short split, Usher has bestowed the title of "momager" back to his mother, Johnetta Patton. Usher, 29, said that he just wanted his mother to focus on her role as mom when the split occurred in 2007.

What a difference a year makes! Since then: Usher went to superstar manager Benny Medina, whose top-shelf clients include Mariah Carey; he married his longtime stylist; and he and his new wife welcomed a baby boy. Could it be that Usher's missing his platinum status? There's more ... keep reading.

Jon Dee Graham continues to mend at an Austin hospital after a one-car accident on I-35 following his July 25 show at Grand Prairie's Uptown Theater. The former True Believers singer-guitarist -- and a fine solo artist -- suffered two broken two ribs and a punctured spleen, which was removed in emergency surgery at Brackenridge Hospital. His family says he fell asleep while driving back to Austin.