Grammy Block Party Benefits Flood Victims

The Nashville Chapter of the Recording Academy hosted the 12th Annual Grammy Block Party on Tuesday night (5/11) to raise funds for the newly created MusiCares® Nashville Flood Relief Fund. Academy members and their guests enjoyed performances by Darius Rucker, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, Steel Magnolia, Plumb and Daily and Vincent. MusiCares Nashville Flood Relief Fund will help middle Tennessee musicians in need.  Emergency assistance has already begun and 100% of every dollar raised will be immediately distributed to help those in need. (www.musicares.com/NashvilleFloodRelief)

(l to r): Susan Stewart, Regional Director, South, Darius Rucker, Neil Portnow, President and CEO The Recording Academy. Photograph by Rick Diamond/WireImage.com

(l to r) George Flanigen IV, Recording Academy chair, Steel Magnolia’s Joshua Jones and Meghan Linsey, Neil Portnow, president and CEO of The Recording Academy. Photograph by Rick Diamond/WireImage.com

“Country Throwdown” Artists Offer Flood Relief 

In light of the recent devastation in Nashville, artists on the the Country Throwdown Tour are coming forward to help. Main stage headliners Montgomery Gentry, Jack Ingram, Eric Church, Eli Young Band and Bluebird Café Tent singer-songwriters Sarah Buxton, Heather Morgan, Jedd Hughes, Ashley Ray, Troy Olsen, Brad Tursi, Cory Branan and Dave Pahanish will be donating the net proceeds from the sale of their merchandise at select shows throughout the U.S.

“We’re excited to be a part of the Country Throwdown Tour, and through the course of the tour the artists get to participate in generating a lot of revenue for Nashville,” says Montgomery Gentry’s Troy Gentry. “Donating in one lump sum at the end of the tour gives us the opportunity to help any folks who may have fallen through the cracks, either through not having insurance or not being eligible for FEMA coverage. We’ll be able to place the money directly with the people who need it the most to rebuild.”

The Country Throwdown Tour will donate $.50 of every ticket to charity, a portion of which will go directly to Hands On Nashville to rebuild community infrastructure in Nashville. At the end of the tour, merchandise donations from the performers will also benefit Hands On Nashville.

“After moving part of our company down to Nashville well over a year ago, we’ve all grown deeply connected to this town,” says tour founder Kevin Lyman. “In the wake of this flood, all of us with the Country Throwdown Tour are inspired to help rebuild the Nashville community for many months to come.”

Country Throwdown headliners include Montgomery Gentry, Jamey Johnson, Little Big Town and Jack Ingram. Additional main stage artists include Eric Church, The Lost Trailers, The Eli Young Band, Heidi Newfield, Ryan Bingham and the Dead Horses, Jonathan Singleton & the Grove and Emily West. For tickets and information visit  www.countrythrowdown.com.

Sweetwater Sound Donates To Flood Relief

Fort Wayne, Indiana-based mail order musical instrument retailer Sweetwater Sound has stepped up to donate $10,000 toward flood relief efforts in Tennessee, company officials have announced.

“Here at Sweetwater, we can’t help but feel a special connection to Nashville, our nation’s Music City.” the company said in a statement, “That’s why this past week it’s been especially difficult to hear about the devastating flooding affecting the music heartland and the people of Tennessee.”

The flooding has led to 18 deaths in Tennessee, nine of them in Nashville. It also has caused widespread damage and forced the closure of the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Grand Ole Opry.

“We recognize,” Sweetwater’s statement said, “that helping Tennessee, in any way, means helping music — from the schoolteachers, emergency workers and students who support the Nashville music community to the many lives and families that depend on it for a living.”

Sweetwater is one of the largest music and pro audio retailers in the world. Get more details here.

Rucker and Friends Play For St. Judes

Capitol Records Nashville artist Darius Rucker will host his 1st Annual Darius and Friends Concert at Nashville’s Wildhorse Saloon on Monday, June 7 to benefit the groundbreaking research and lifesaving care of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The concert will include performances by Rucker along with Radney Foster, Randy Houser, Jamey Johnson, and Jake Owen, with additional performers being announced at a later date; doors will open at 8:00 PM, with the concert to begin at 9:00 PM. Tickets to the event are on sale now by visiting www.ticketmaster.com.

Rucker is a loyal St. Jude supporter who has visited patients at the hospital and performed at multiple events in support of the hospital’s lifesaving mission. After touring the facility in 2009, the singer vowed to create a personalized event that would raise money and awareness for St. Jude.

“The friends joining me for this benefit concert all share the same dream I do for a cancer free world, but until that can happen, we need to raise awareness and funds for this incredible organization,” says Rucker. “It’s going to be a great night of music and stories.”

All proceeds from ticket sales will help St. Jude continue its mission of finding cures and saving children fighting deadly diseases.

For additional information, visit www.dariusrucker.com.


2010 CMA Music Fest Merch Now Available

Merchandise for the 2010 CMA Music Festival, held June 10-13 in downtown Nashville, is now available for sale at CMAfest.com, providing attendees the opportunity to arrive dressed to impress in official CMA Festival apparel.

“Our fans are loyal, passionate ambassadors for the Festival and the artists,” said Steve Moore, CMA Chairman of the Board. “Sporting a CMA-signature T-shirt or hat during the event identifies them as a fan and connects them with thousands of other like-minded attendees from every state and around the globe.”

The merchandise line features 14 products and is designed and produced by Music City Merchandise, CMA’s merchandise partner for CMA Music Festival since 1993.

Popular selections this year include the official 2010 CMA Music Festival unisex event T-shirt, which displays the Festival logo on the front and the dates and location on the back. The shirt is available in black, white, and light blue. Other favorites include the white ladies tank top with a brightly-colored version of the logo on the front; and the orchid, ladies junior-cut T-shirt with “CMA Music Festival” and the dates and location interwoven in a butterfly design on the front. Sweatshirts, coffee mugs, water bottle koozies, and other accessories are also available online.

As previously announced, all net proceeds from CMA Music Festival will benefit charity with half the proceeds continuing to support music education in Metro Nashville Public Schools and the other half being donated to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee’s Metro Nashville Disaster Response Fund to aid flood victims.

“Whether you live in Nashville, or are visiting for the first time, wearing a CMA Music Festival T-shirt is a great way to display your support for this community,” Moore said.

Toby Keith Readies Golf Classic

Toby Keith’s seventh annual Toby Keith & Friends Golf Classic is set for May 21-22 in Norman, Oklahoma, and a number of additions have been made to the already full slate of events and auction items. Keith is set to emcee the May 21 dinner and auction and golf team spots for the next day’s tournament are already sold out, though tickets to the dinner are still available.

Additionally, outlaw country artist David Allan Coe and metal/pop band Rock Sugar will perform. An updated roster of auction items includes dinner for 20 with Keith, four tickets to a Chicago Bears/Minnesota Vikings games with meet-and-greets with Adrian Peterson and Tommie Harris, a seven-day SeaDream Yacht vacation, a day on the set of Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives with Guy Fieri and a two-day, three-night New Mexico hunting trip package.

Also up for auction will be memorabilia from Miley Cyrus, Brett Favre, Darius Rucker, Garth Brooks, Michael Phelps, Kerry Collins, Steve Young, Derek Jeter, Tom Clancy, Emmitt Smith, Greg Maddux, Maroon 5 and many more.

Proceeds from the event and auction will assist severely ill children and their families through the Toby Keith Foundation, which is funding the OK Kids Korral 16-room guest lodge housing pediatric cancer patients and their families on the grounds of Oklahoma University Medical Center. With completion expected in 2012, the 30,000 sq. ft. facility will be a haven of respite for families of young children struggling through cancer treatments.

Keith is currently on his eighth USO Tour visiting four countries over 14 days and performing 13 shows for troops in Korea, Germany and forward operating bases in the Persian Gulf region.

Edge Records and Lofton Creek Combine Efforts

Edge Records artist Kelly Parkes has signed a promotion agreement with Lofton Creek Records for a full secondary promotion campaign to MusicRow and New Music Weekly stations on her debut single, “Nothin’ Good Ever Happens After Midnight.” Lofton Creek Records will be responsible for promoting the song to country radio on a national basis.

“We are very excited about the opportunity to work with Kelly Parkes with the MusicRow and New Music Weekly panel,” says Lofton Creek Records President, Mike Borchetta. “This will give her the jump start to what we at Lofton Creek feel will be the start of a very successful career.

GM and National Promotions manager, Mark Maynard said of the project, “Kelly Parkes is a song’s best friend, she knows how to pick the right ones that suit her voice and style, then puts her own special touch on them.”

The Pennsylvania-born Parkes moved to Nashville in 2008, began networking in the industry and worked the mandatory “day job” at night. Two years later, her determination and sacrifice paid off.

“In today’s world of American Idol and overnight stars, little girls grow up thinking that all you have to do is sing and you’ll be noticed, Parkes says. “Not true. To establish a career, it takes a lot of work, and the work continues.”

“Nothin’ Good Ever Happens After Midnight “will be made available to radio on the June 7, CDX # 501.

(l-r): Lofton Creek's Mark Maynard, Martha Borchetta and Mike Borchetta; Springbarrel's Carol Perdew; and project producer, Kim Copeland. Parkes is seated in front.

NMPA Honors Sen. Lamar Alexander

The National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) will present its 2010 President’s Award to U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee.

“As a Senator representing a state that’s home to both the country music and the blues capitals of the world, Senator Alexander is particularly attuned to the value of music as a cultural and economic force in America,” said NMPA President and CEO David Israelite. “The songwriter and music publisher community is honored to recognize his distinguished leadership and friendship throughout his lawmaking career with the 2010 President’s Award.”

“Music has been a great source of joy in my life since my mother took me to my first piano lesson as a child,” Alexander said. “I am grateful and honored to receive this award from an organization that also celebrates the important role music plays in people’s lives.”

While Alexander’s home state is closely associated with the country and blues genres, his personal experience also extends to the classical – he is a trained pianist who, while governor, traveled the state performing with symphonies and community orchestras. More recently, he performed during the Memphis in May concert series in 2008 and at the 75th anniversary of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park in 2009, as well as at a Grand Ole Opry concert in Nashville this month when the history music venue was flooded and moved to another location after a series of devastating storms hit the area. Alexander is co-chair of the Senate Songwriters Caucus. In 2005 he sponsored legislation – now law – that provided capital gains tax incentives for songwriters.

The President’s Award is announced each year in conjunction with the NMPA’s annual gathering of songwriters and music publishers in New York City.

The NMPA established the President’s Award in 2005 to recognize an individual who has been a leader on issues of importance to music publishers and songwriters, and who works diligently to strengthen intellectual property protection. The award will be presented in Washington, DC, later this month.

Court Rules Against Peer-To-Peer Site LimeWire

Online news network CNET is reporting that a federal court has found the company that operates file-sharing service LimeWire liable for copyright infringement.

On Tuesday (5/11), U.S. District Judge Kimba Wood granted summary judgment in favor of the RIAA’s claims that Lime Group, parent of LimeWire software maker Lime Wire, and founder Mark Gorton committed copyright infringement, engaged in unfair competition, and induced copyright infringement.

The court decision could represent the biggest threat to online file sharing in years. According to a survey by the NPD Group, Limewire users account for 58 percent of the people who said they downloaded music from a peer-to-peer service last year. In the last week alone, the software was downloaded nearly 340,000 times.
The next step by the RIAA is to get a preliminary injunction and force Lime Wire to cease LimeWire’s file-sharing functionality.

The RIAA has said it is entitled to the maximum statutory damages, which is likely in the millions.

Kellie Pickler’s Summer Plans

BNA Records artist Kellie Pickler will get summer started by hosting Westwood One’s America’s Opry Weekend Summer Kick-Off Special on Memorial Day weekend. Pickler will spin tunes about sunshine and summertime, several of them live cuts from the Opry stage.

Among the songs listeners will hear are her own “Best Days of Your Life,” Brad Paisley’s “Water”; “American Honey” from Lady Antebellum; “Til Summer Comes Around” by Keith Urban and Kenny Chesney’s “When the Sun Goes Down.”

Programmers interested in the special should contact Westwood One (212-641-2012) or sue_falco@westwoodone.com. America’s Opry Weekend presents country music’s most popular songs including  performances from the Opry stage plus top artist interviews, news from Nashville, and more each week.  The show, which launched in May 2003, is serviced by Westwood One and heard on the American Forces Radio Network.

In other Pickler news, GAC will air the world premiere of the video for the singer’s new single, “Makin’ Me Fall In Love Again.” Great American Country (GAC) will air the world premiere of “Makin’ Me Fall in Love Again,” on Top 20 Country Countdown this Friday, May 14 at 7:00 PM CT.  The single is from her self-titled sophomore LP.
 
Shot in Los Angeles, Pickler once again teamed with award-winning director Roman White for the clip that illustrates the singer’s support of the USO.  Passionate about the organization that supports men and women in the military, Pickler has done three USO tours with plans for a fourth in the works.

“Thanks to her amazing fans, Kellie’s spent more than 30 weeks on our Top 20 chart,”  said GAC SVP of Programming, Sarah Trahern.  “It’s fitting that we offer her fans their very first peek at her next hit video.”

Pickler will also perform on Sunday’s Music City Keep on Playin’ – A Benefit for Flood Relief live concert and telethon event at the Ryman Auditorium, airing live on GAC at 7:00 PM CT.