Wedding bells will ring for Danny Gokey and girlfriend Leyicet Peralta on Jan. 29, they announced Tuesday, and now come exclusive details on the engagement ring and the proposal itself.

“Danny originally chose a ring that was too big for Leyicet’s finger,” says the rep for the country singer andAmerican Idol season-8 finalist, “so they went on a hunt for a new one together.”

Read the full article at People.com: http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20556985,00.html

ps – remember, if you’d like to celebrate Danny and Leyicet’s upcoming marriage, the couple is requesting that any gifts be in the form of donations to Danny’s foundation, Sophia’s Heart. You can find more HERE.

We’re posting a compilation of links to a number of the articles we’ve come across, listed in no formal order. 

Note: The content of these articles is not dramatically different, it’s just fun to see all the coverage

ps – remember, if you’d like to celebrate Danny and Leyicet’s upcoming marriage, the couple is requesting that any gifts be in the form of donations to Danny’s foundation, Sophia’s Heart. You can find more HERE.

Added Dec 30th:

inmusic.ca

countryschatter.com

cmt.ca

Added Dec 29th:

billboard.com

cbsnews.com

countrymusictattletale.com  (follow-up article)

thehollywoodgossip.com

realitytvworld.com

theboot.com  (follow-up article)

starsjournal.com

suntimes.com

post-gazette.com

wetpaint.com

Added Dec 28th:

nydailynews.com

dailymail.co.uk

msn.com

dispatch.com

zap2it.com

orlandosentinel.com

nbcmiami.com

tennessean.com

washingtonpost.com

fox40.com

cnn.com

latimes.com

mjsbigblog.com (follow-up article)

realitytvmagazine.com (follow-up article)

tasteofcountry.com (follow-up article)

vibe.com

Original post – Dec 27th

people.com

yahoo.com

okmagazine.com

usmagazine.com

hollywoodreporter.com

countryweekly.com

cmt.com

gactv.com

AOL’s theboot.com

americanidol.com

usatoday.com

perezhilton.com

accesshollywood.com

eonline.com

tvguide.com

ew.com

ontheredcarpet.com

celebs.gather.com

tasteofcountry.com

countrymusictattletale.com

christianpost.com

countrymusicrocks.net

countrymusicislove.com

mjsbigblog.com

realitytvmagazine.com

celebsshow.com

digitalspy.com

jsonline.com

onmilwaukee.com

miamiherald.com

wisn.com

ajc.com

huffingtonpost.com

mlive.com

buddytv.com

radaronline.com

gotcountryonline.com

toofab.com

lovetripper.com

inquisitr.com

inewsphilippines.com

rickey.org

us99country.radio.com (*)

(*) Numerous other country stations have also run the news, using syndicated content from Taste of Country or other outlets.

American Idol season 8 finalist Danny Gokey is the latest show alum to find himself without a major label deal. A spokesperson for the country singer’s label confirms to the Hollywood Reporter that, “Danny Gokey and RCA Nashville have mutually agreed to part ways.”

Gokey was signed to the Sony Music subsidiary in September 2009, months after coming in third behind Kris Allen and Adam Lambert. He released his debut album, My Best Days, in March 2010. It entered the Billboard 200 chart at No. 4 and the country chart at No. 3. According to Nielsen SoundScan, more than 192,000 copies of the album have been sold. The disc saw two singles released, “My Best Days Are Ahead of Me” and “I Will Not Say Goodbye,” the latter which failed to chart.

Read the full article: http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/idol-worship/american-idol-alum-danny-gokey-263441

A truck driver cum-church musician turned widowed famed country singer turned community philanthropist — in a nutshell, that’s Milwaukee-native Danny Gokey’s life story. [..]

At Houston Galleria’s 23rd Annual Tree Lighting and “Ice Spectacular” presented by Cadillac on Saturday, Gokey will be the headlining act.

Gokey now lives in Nashville. Prior to his Houston visit, CultureMap spoke to the 31-year old singer by phone and learned about his hopes and aspirations.

Read the full interview at houston.culturemap.com.

Downtown Milwaukee’s Shops of Grand Avenue has been the subject of several stories detailing businesses on their way out of the downtown area. In 2011, the mall has been welcoming new tenants including one with a connection to Milwaukee area American Idol star Danny Gokey.

Gokey is making a difference with his Sophia’s Heart Foundation, which offers performing arts and academic programs to benefit young people. He talked about the continuing effort and excitement while standing in Sophia’s new place at the Grand Avenue Mall.

The need and Grand Avenue’s available space have led to the development of the Creativity Works Here program that Grand Avenue’s Tracy Korpela says helps fill space at a negotiable rate.

Read the full article: http://www.fox6now.com/news/witi-20110927-grand-ave-creativity,0,6945825.story

Danny Gokey makes a welcome return to the Grand Ole Opry this Saturday, September 10th, and like so many performers before him, Danny says that — nerves notwithstanding — there’s nothing quite like playing the Opry.

“There’s always nerves — you know, from the first time when I was super nervous, my nerves don’t operate like that anymore when I go there, but there’s still the nerves there because it’s such a sacred stage. So many historical, legendary people and events have taken place there, and you just gotta honor the stage, but, oh, man, I like it. I think the crowd responds really well, and it’s really great.”

Read the full article HERE.

via: http://www.countrymusicrocks.net/2011/09/danny-gokey-returns-to-the-grand-ole-opry-september-10.html

Aside from the ones from the judges, this week’s best-selling American Idol-related tracks are overwhelmingly country. Not just because Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley have the best-selling track, moving 68,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. But also because the singles from Scotty McCreery and Lauren Alaina continue to sell. On top of that, Danny Gokey‘s new single, Second Hand Heart, makes its debut this week with about 8,000 downloads.

via http://content.usatoday.com/communities/idolchatter/post/2011/07/country-dominates-weeks-idol-track-sales/1

If Taylor Swift’s appreciation of men wasn’t obvious from her catalog of hits, then her selection of tourmates should do the job. The lineup for the North American leg of the 21-year-old’s Speak Now World Tour includes Christian band Needtobreathe, as well as a rotation of men including Frankie Ballard, Adam Brand, Danny Gokey, Hunter Hayes, Josh Kelley, Randy Montana, David Nail, James Wesley and Charlie Worsham. The Boot sat down with these fellas to talk all things Taylor, and they did nothing but sing her praises.

“She’s a sweet girl,” Danny tells The Boot. “We did a photo shoot with her, and that’s where I got to learn how big of a heart she has. I’d seen her before, but I’d never got to talk to her before. Getting [to know] her heart, her character and who she is, honestly blew me away.”

Read the full article at http://www.theboot.com/2011/07/13/taylor-swift-speak-now-tour-opening-acts/

Danny Gokey and Allison Iraheta

Who? Season Eight’s third- and fourth-place finishers, who scored their own record deals.

Peak: Gokey went country, turning out a Top Five album with his 2010 debut, My Best Days, and is still going strong; Iraheta opened on Adam Lambert’s Glam Nation tour last summer.

Read more at http://www.rollingstone.com

Danny Gokey is someone who likes to work with genuine people. Lucky for him, the ‘American Idol‘ alumn has been hand-picked by Taylor Swift to open the next two weeks of her Speak Now World Tour.

“She’s a sweet girl,” Danny tells The Boot. “We did a photo shoot with her, and that’s where I got to learn how big of a heart she has. I’d seen her before, but I’d never got to talk to her before. Getting [to know] her heart, her character and who she is, honestly blew me away.”

The Wisconsin native knows how to read people. “We started talking about a few different things,” he continues. “I like to look at people’s hearts when I talk to them. I like to see what they’re all about. Your mouth really speaks what’s coming from your heart all the time. Talking to her, you just see how caring, sweet and kind of a person she is.”

Read the full article: http://www.theboot.com/2011/07/08/danny-gokey-taylor-swift-tour/

RESCHEDULED SHOWS:

Sun, 07/10/2011, Atlanta, GA, Phillips Arena show w/ Taylor Swift has been moved to October 2nd, same venue.

Sat, 07/09/2011, Atlanta, GA, Phillips Arena show w/ Taylor Swift has been moved to October 1st, same venue.

It wasn’t quite large enough to be seen from space, but the enormous T-shirt created by Gildan must have startled pilots of low-flying aircraft passing over Nashville’s Centennial Park on Saturday morning. [..]

With the record confirmed onstage at the Saturday night LP Field concerts, work will soon begin to transform it into 12,000 human-sized shirts, all of which will be donated to Metro Nashville Schools through Keep the Music Playing. Danny Gokey participated in both the Centennial Park and LP Field events.

Read the full article at http://blog.cmafest.com/2011/06/12/gildan-redefines-plus-size-for-t-shirts/.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Glencliff High School is getting a big honor and a check on Thursday night. The Nashville school is just one of 27 in the country to win a Grammy Signature Schools Enterprise Award.

On Thursday night, American Idol finalist Danny Gokey will present the school with a $5,500 dollar check to help its music curriculum.

Judges picked Glencliff because the school offers an entertainment marketing pathway for students and courses that combine piano and guitar classes with music technology classes.

Glencliff won the Enterprise Award category which recognizes efforts made by schools that are economically underserved.

The $5,500 check can be used for choir or band programs, music instruments or updating labs. After the check presentation, Glencliff’s High School Band will hold its spring concert.

via: http://www.newschannel5.com/story/14681212/glencliff-high-wins-grammy-signature-enterprise-award

Danny Gokey had the desire to sing. But it was his wife, Sophia, who encouraged him to pursue his dream.

She was a fan of the reality music show “American Idol.” And after watching it with her for one season, Gokey decided to take a chance. What he didn’t know was how much his life would change before and after auditioning and appearing on the popular television show.

Read the full article at http://www2.dothaneagle.com/lifestyles/2011/may/06/gokeys-life-idol-days-mixes-music-and-charity-ar-1807484/

What was it like to work with Danny Gokey and Kurt Warner?

David: Kurt was a great guy. He was in and out fairly quickly, came with his wife. He was charming, and was actually—everybody was talking afterwards with him, “Well, Kurt was really good.” Everyone, for some reason, had expected that he might be a little stiff, but not at all. Really charming, amenable guy, and played himself with aplomb, I felt. Danny Gokey was great, too. Very funny, nice guy. He just came in … he had no airs or pretense. They both were in and out and delivered a great job, so, thankfully.

Candace: Yes, I was there the day that Kurt Warner was on set, but I didn’t actually have a scene with him. But I met him and his wife and took a picture with them. I was excited. Then just love Danny Gokey so much. What a great heart he has, and—amazing voice.

Read the entire interview with the stars of Truth Be Told via http://www.hollywoodthewriteway.com/2011/04/truth-be-told-interview-with-candace.html

WITI-TV, MILWAUKEE—

A new program called “Clear Days Ahead” is helping diagnose and treat Milwaukee Public Schools students with vision problems; many who have never had an eye exam. Wisconsin Vision is leading the charge — and their front man is Milwaukee’s Danny Gokey from American Idol.

View the full article at http://www.fox6now.com/news/witi-20110408-gokey-eye-program,0,3694188.story