Int’l Country Music Conference Coming To Belmont

The 26th Annual International Country Music Conference will be held May 21-23 at Belmont University. The event features appearances by some of the top historians and scholars in country music and includes presentations of The Belmont University Book Awards, Lifetime Achievement Award and The Charlie Lamb Awards. This year’s conference will also include special panels on legends Jimmie Rodgers and Hank Williams, as well as address the topic of how to define country music. The panel “Defining Country Music: What It Is and Does It Matter” will be hosted by Dr. Don Cusic, author of Discovering Country Music, Ronnie Pugh, author of Ernest Tubb: Texas Troubadour, Dr. Jocelyn Neal, author of The Songs of Jimmie Rodgers, as well as Dr. Erika Brady and Dr. Patrick Huber. Special papers on Hank Williams will be presented by Jim Murphy, Tom Wilmeth and Colin Escott. Additionally, Barry Mazor, Dr. Tim Wise, Dr. Anthony Lis, Dr. Jocelyn Neal, Dr. Nolan Porterfield and Dr. Catherine Davies will present papers on Jimmie Rodgers. The event will be co-chaired by James Akenson and Cusic.  Registration is $100 and checks should be sent to James Akenson, Box 5042, Tennessee Tech University, Cookeville, TN, 38505. The 2008 ICMC Program Schedule can be found here. For more information, visit www.internationalcountrymusic.org.