Country Thunder Closes

Independent label Country Thunder Records is closing their Nashville operations it has been announced by label President Herb Graham. Country Thunder’s roster of artists included Heartland, Shawn Hammonds and country duos Bluefield and Burns & Poe. Graham will carry on with his publishing and management activities through his Graham Artist Management, with a client list that includes the entire Country Thunder roster as well as Curb Records’ Rio Grande. “In today’s economic climate, we had to evaluate where the record business is and where it is going,” said Graham. “With that information, we decided to suspend label operations.”

Some of Country Thunder’s staff will assume new roles within Graham Artist Management. Those staffers include General Manager Craig Morris (c.morris@ctrmail.net); Sr. VP Promotion & Artist Development Bobby Young (b.young@ctrmail.net); Northeast Regional Manager Promotion & Marketing Rick “RJ” Jordan (rj@ctrmail.net); Artist Development Director Ralph Salazar (Ralph@grahamartistmgt.com); and Director of New Media Rachel Wills.

Staffers exiting the company include:
Kim Markovchick, V.P. Sales and Marketing (kmarkovchick@bellsouth.net 615 438-7537);
Jeff Davis, Southeast regional rep (hirejeffdavis@bellsouth.net  615-260-4975 [temp]);
Rosey Fitzpatrick, Midwest regional rep (rosefitch@aol.com  405 769 7570 or 405 255 1001);
Steve Pleshe, West Coast regional rep (stevepleshe@hotmail.com  559-307-8148); and
Seth Necessary, Promotion Manager (sethnecessary@gmail.com  615-642-1854).

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LB Cantrell

LB Cantrell is Editor/Director of Operations at MusicRow magazine, where she oversees, manages and executes all company operations. LB oversees all MusicRow-related content, including the publication’s six annual print issues and online news. She is a Georgia native and a graduate of the Recording Industry Management program at Middle Tennessee State University.

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