Bravo Songwriting Competition Hits Nashville

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Bravo is on the hunt for the next great songwriter for Hitmakers, its newest competition series in development. The show features undiscovered singer-songwriters, talented newcomers battling through a series of innovative songwriting challenges to find out who’s ready for the top of the pop charts.

The network is partnering with True Entertainment (The Real Housewives of Atlanta) and The Writing Camp, the songwriting team behind such hits as Beyonce’s “Halo” and Rihanna’s “SOS,” to discover the nation’s top talent in every genre of music.

The winner of the series will receive a cash prize, a publishing deal with Sony ATV and a development deal with The Writing Camp for RCA/JIVE. 
 
Casting information for Hitmakers is available here. Open calls for songwriters interested in competing in the series were recently held in Los Angeles, Atlanta, New York. Final Open Casting Call takes place in Nashville this weekend. Interested songwriters should report to Sony/ATV Music Publishing at 8 Music Square West between 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM this Sunday, May 23. Call backs are scheduled for Monday, May 24.

Lady A Preps First Headlining Tour

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After selling out headlining concerts in New York, Los Angeles and Nashville, ACM and CMA Vocal Group of the Year Lady Antebellum announced today their first-ever headlining tour with special guest MCA recording artist David Nail. The Need You Now 2010 Tour is sponsored by Dr. Pepper and kicks off on Sept. 20 with stops in 35 cities across the country through November. Cities and dates will be announced by market in the coming weeks with the first one announcing on Monday, May 24.

“I feel like we were just writing songs for our very first show at this small club in Nashville,” said Hillary Scott. “I can remember being so nervous to perform in front of just a handful of people that night and to think now we’re beginning to headline our very own tour is unbelievable. We have our fans to thank for following us every step of the way!”

Lady Antebellum first took country music by storm in 2008 with the release of their self-titled Platinum debut album, which generated the hits “Love Don’t Live Here,” “Lookin’ For A Good Time” and their No. 1 smash “I Run To You.” Their double Platinum sophomore album Need You Now debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top 200 chart and has since maintained the top spot on the Billboard Country chart for an astonishing 14 weeks. The title track and multi-week No. one song “Need You Now” has dominated the Country, Top 40, AC and Hot AC charts breaking records as a country crossover hit.  Following on the heels of three consecutive No. one songs in just eight months for a total of eight weeks at the summit, Lady A’s next single is “Our Kind Of Love.”

Missouri native David Nail’s debut record I’m About To Come Alive was released on MCA Nashville August ‘09. Single “Red Light” peaked at #6, holds the record for the longest charted single in Mediabase history at 42 weeks and also just earned an Academy of Country Music Award nomination for “Single of the Year.” Visit www.davidnail.com to hear Nail’s new single “Turning Home.”

For a full list of tour dates and ticket info as it becomes available, visit www.ladyantebellum.com.

Ryan Beuschel Becomes ASCAP Nashville Creative Manager

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Ryan Beuschel

ASCAP has named Ryan Beuschel, who most recently held the post of A&R Manager at Universal Music Group, as Creative Manager for its Nashville branch.

“We couldn’t be more excited to have Ryan come on board and bring to ASCAP his unique talents, experience and passion for songwriters and their craft,” said Tim DuBois, VP and Managing Executive of operations at ASCAP Nashville. “His addition will help drive forward and bolster the expanded role of this office and our firm commitment to serving and championing our writers and publishers, on an individual, community and regional level.”

ASCAP has been restructuring its Nashville division to execute a broadened and elevated role as a Regional Office serving all genres of music.

Prior to his time as A&R Manager at Universal Music Group, Beuschel held the position of A&R Coordinator.  During his tenure, Beuschel worked with artists including Jamey Johnson, Billy Currington, Easton Corbin, David Nail and Randy Montana. He began his career in 2005 as an intern for Universal Music Publishing, where he was later named Catalog Coordinator before moving to the UMG label group in 2007. A Michigan native, Beuschel holds a degree in management and finance from Hope College.

“I’m elated to join the Nashville office in this creative capacity and look forward to helping develop and further opportunities for our ASCAP members,” Beuschel said.

Craig Morgan Aids Vets Through “Not Alone”

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As a spokesperson for Not Alone, BNA Records artist Craig Morgan is helping military men, women and their families who are struggling with the aftereffects of combat and the difficulties transitioning to life back at home. Not Alone is an organization that empowers warriors and families dealing with combat stress through training, education, counseling and support.

Today’s American soldiers are serving in combat longer than almost any U.S. soldiers in the nation’s past, with many soldiers serving multiple deployments with little break in between. Three in 10 soldiers show signs of mental illness or marital problems after their third and fourth deployments. Additionally, suicides are at record levels, divorce rates among enlisted soldiers continue to climb and rates of mental illness and prescription drug abuse are soaring.

Not Alone provides an anonymous online community where military men, women and their families can find support from others who are going through the same issues. Its core purpose is to ensure every warrior, veteran and family member gains knowledge and simple, confidential access to programs in order to empower them in their lives after war. At notalone.com, they find support groups, educational topics, blogging opportunities, and resources for face to face counseling – all at no charge.

“When I heard about what Not Alone was doing, I knew I wanted to be involved,” Morgan says. “We can’t sit quietly aside while our country’s bravest are struggling. They put their lives on the line to protect our freedoms and they deserve to be honored and know that if they need help, they are not alone.”

In his role as spokesperson for Not Alone, Morgan will bring awareness to this resource through his website, media interviews and concert appearances. Morgan is currently a part of Carrie Underwood’s Play On Tour.

 Prior to becoming a country music star, the singer spent over 10 years of active duty in the Army and additional years in the Army Reserves. He is an avid supporter of America’s military personnel and a recipient of the 2006 USO Merit Award.

 To learn more about Not Alone, log onto www.notalone.com.

Dale Franklin Award Winners Announced

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Fred Foster

Veteran record label executive and producer Fred Foster and music icons Kris Kristofferson and Willie Nelson have been selected as the 2010 recipients of the Leadership Music Dale Franklin Award, it was announced by the board of directors of Leadership Music. The three country music trailblazers, whose careers intersected at Foster’s uniquely successful independent record label, Monument Records, will be honored at a gala tribute banquet on Sunday, August 29 at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Nashville.

Kris Kristofferson

The Leadership Music Dale Franklin Award, named for the first executive director of Leadership Music, was created in 2004 to recognize a music industry leader who exemplifies the highest quality of leadership and leading by example. Foster, Kristofferson and Nelson join previous Leadership Music Dale Franklin Award honorees Tony Brown (2004), Gerry House (2005), Emmylou Harris (2006), Frances W. Preston (2007), The Bradley Family: Owen (posthumously), Harold, Jerry, Connie and Patsy (2008), and Garth Brooks, Jim Foglesong and Allen Reynolds (2009).

Willie Nelson

“Individually and collectively Fred Foster, Kris Kristofferson and Willie Nelson have been and continue to be iconic leaders in the industry by influencing popular music in countless ways over the past six decades,” says Pat Collins, President of the Leadership Music Board of Directors.” Their contributions to the art of music are immeasurable. To say that Leadership Music and its alumni are proud and delighted to honor these creative geniuses who have brought such distinction to our city is a vast understatement. It will be a night every music lover will long remember and cherish.”

Tickets to the invitation-only event will be available in July.

Colt Ford Posts Impressive Numbers

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In 2008, Average Joes Entertainment Group launched with flagship artist Colt Ford, and today, nearly two years later, the label has surpassed 500,000 in digital single sales and 253,969 albums sold on Ford according to Nielsen SoundScan.

“When we first began marketing Colt Ford, 99 percent our industry peers said it was impossible,” says Shannon Houchins, CEO of Average Joes Entertainment.

“It’s just an uphill battle that I got to keep fighting,” Ford echoes, acknowledging his underdog status to Billboard’s Tom Roland. “I’m sure the people who didn’t get it, they figured the first record we got lucky. But I feel like I followed it up with a record that’s as good or better.”

The critics agree, with New York Times’ Jon Caramanica touting, “The heartland themes here will be familiar to those who follow Nashville, and the crossover gestures (and sometimes clunky cadences) familiar to anyone who’s listened to Kid Rock.”

“Guitars of the Stars” Benefits Flood Victims

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Chris Young

A second annual Guitars of the Stars Benefit Auction will be held on Friday, June 11 at 3:00 PM at the Ryman Auditorium. The event will give fans in town for CMA Music Fest the opportunity to bid on acoustic guitars decorated by some of country music’s hottest stars. All proceeds from the auction will benefit the Opry Trust Fund and will be earmarked for victims of this month’s Middle Tennessee floods.

Among the stars confirmed to contribute guitars they’ve designed in celebration of their current singles, hobbies, favorite country songs, or country music heroes are Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Danny Gokey, Alan Jackson, George Jones, The Judds, Jake Owen, Rascal Flatts, Darius Rucker, and more.

Other guitars up for bids will include a custom Gibson Ebony LP guitar to be signed by artists at the 2010 CMT Music Awards and a guitar designed by the artists on this spring’s Country Throwdown Tour.
RCA Nashville artist Chris Young will kick off the event with songs from his current album, The Man I Want To Be, followed by the auction. Young will also contribute a guitar personalized for a winning bidder that afternoon. GAC-TV and 650 WSM radio personality Bill Cody will be on hand as emcee.

For more than 40 years, the Opry Trust Fund has assisted members of the country music community in need of help with medical bills, living expenses, utilities, rent, and food. Proceeds from this year’s auction will be earmarked to benefit victims of the floods that ravaged Middle Tennessee earlier this month.

AEG Live Adds Amy Bryan

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Amy Bryan

AEG Live/Moore Entertainment Group has announced that Amy Bryan has joined the firm to develop a Talent Buying division for the company. Prior to her new position, Bryan was a Talent Buyer and an Entertainment Producer for Neste Event Marketing.

Bryan is a graduate of the University of Florida and has been producing entertainment for a variety of events and venues in North America over the past four years. She can be reached at (615) 340-5384 and [email protected]. For more information, go to www.aeglive.com.

AEG Live, the live-entertainment division of Los Angeles-based AEG, is dedicated to all aspects of live contemporary music performance. The company is comprised of touring, festival, exhibition, broadcast, merchandise and special event divisions, fifteen regional offices, and thirty state-of-the-art venues.

McBride Signs With Morris Artist Mgt.

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RCA Nashville artist Martina McBride has signed a management deal with Clint Higham, President of Morris Artist Management, this week. Higham, who manages Kenny Chesney and Jake Owen, is based in Nashville and has been with Morris Artist Management for 18 years.

“Excited is an understatement when it comes to how I feel about starting this partnership with Clint,” says McBride. “He has strong and focused ideas about my career and the opportunities that lie ahead. I have the utmost respect not only for his talent and passion as a manager, but also for his integrity both professionally and personally.”

“My team and I cannot be more thrilled and honored to represent Martina,” says Higham. “She is an artist who inspires all those around her as well as millions of fans everywhere. Martina is a superstar at the top of her game but I believe there are many layers to her career that have yet to be explored. I look forward to an exciting future with her.”

Worley’s “Hitmakers” Sing For Charity

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Songwriters Darryl Worley, Jim “Moose” Brown, Walt Aldridge, and Steve Wariner performed some of their biggest hits this past Friday (5/14) for a sold out audience at the Hitmakers on the Harbor songwriters concert.

The event took place in Pickwick, TN and raised $28,000 in support of The Darryl Worley Foundation, which doubled the amount raised last year. Hit songs like “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere” (Brown), “I Loved Her First” (Aldridge), “Holes In the Floor of Heaven” (Wariner), and Worley’s latest single, “Best of Both Worlds” carried the melody for the night with behind-the-scenes stories told by the hitmakers about the songs that have graced the top of the country music charts.

Hitmakers on the Harbor is the first of four songwriter events leading up to Worley’s annual songwriters dinner (Sept. 15) and Tennessee River Run (Sept. 16-18), a four-day festival established by Worley for various charities funded by the Darryl Worley Foundation.