After getting praise for her pipes in the movie “Country Strong”  (though not so much for her Oscar performance), Gwyneth Paltrow has officially become a country singer with an Atlantic Records deal reportedly worth $900,000.  With her recurring singing role in “Glee” and a few other high-profile singing gigs, I guess the suits think she’s a sure bet.  I happen to really love her singing style, and she seems like about the nicest person in the world when we’ve talked to her.  But not everyone’s a Gwyneth fan (I think a lot of people think she’s too perfect and annoying somehow) so it will be interesting to see how this goes over.  Gwyneth says the album will be country-pop, but she wants to include a variety of pals, like rapper Jay Z and husband-rocker Chris Martin.

And has a kid named Apple?  Yep.  According to Maxim magazine, anyway.  They released a list of the “Hottest Women in Country Music” and Gwyneth Paltrow was their choice for #1.  The “Country Strong” star beat out Taylor Swift and 18 other beauties for the honor.   There are a few ladies on there who aren’t exactly tearing up the charts, but just happen to be hot, like Jessie James, Julianne Hough, and Julie Roberts, but there are also some 40+ superstars as well, like Shania Twain and Sara Evans.  Click here for the full list.

At the moment, anyway, Gwyneth is fully countrified:  Tim McGraw is releasing a duo he did with her called “Me and Tennessee” for his next single.