ACM Fan Voting Opens Today

Fan voting for the Entertainer of the Year and New Artist of the Year honors at the 47th Annual ACM Awards opens today, March 19. Winners will be revealed Sun., April 1 during the ACM Awards, which will be broadcast live on CBS from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Fans can vote here.

The New Artist of the Year award, with nominees Brantley Gilbert, Hunter Hayes and Scotty McCreery, closes at 8:00 PM ET/ 5:00 PM PT on April 1st.

Entertainer of the Year voting will remain open through the third hour of the ACM Awards Show for nominees Jason Aldean, Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton and Taylor Swift.

Preceding the awards, fans can catch an original 5-webisode series, Road To The ACM Awards, featuring New Artist of the Year nominees Gilbert, Hayes and McCreery. Additionally, GAC will premiere its ACM New Artist of the Year special with interviews and exclusive performances from the nominees tonight at 9 pm ET.

ABC’s “GCB” to Feature Music from Chenoweth, JaneDear girls and More

Earlier this month (3/4), GCB premiered on the ABC Television Network. Beginning the same day, the ABC Music Lounge began featuring songs from each week’s GCB episode and video clips from the show. The GCB soundtrack will be available from Elektra Nashville on May 8.

GCB star Kristin Chenoweth contributes three tracks to the compilation, including a duet with costar Miriam Shor on the classic “This Little Light of Mine.” Other contributing artists include country superstar John Rich (of Big & Rich), country duo the JaneDear girls  and singer-actress Emily West (Body of Proof). Damien Horne, Joanna Cotten, Don Derby, Jaime Hanna, Bum Steers, and Dean Alexander round out the roster of artists.

Fans can click on www.abcmusiclounge.com or visit iTunes each week to purchase the featured song. the JaneDear girls’ “Good Girls Gone Bad,” Chenoweth’s “Blessed Be the Ties That Bind” and West’s “Cross My Heart” are all available now.

Additionally, Chenoweth’s version of Carrie Underwood’s “Jesus Take The Wheel” was a recently hot topic for bloggers everywhere after Chenoweth debuted her version on GCB. Due to fan reaction, Warner Music Nashville has made the track available on iTunes. Also available on iTunes this week is Joanna Cotten’s “If I’m Gonna Be Bad.”

GCB airs Sundays at 9 pm CT on ABC.

Frasher Opens Gunslinger Entertainment With First Client

Bryan Frasher

Former BNA Records VP Promotion Bryan Frasher has announced the launch of Gunslinger Entertainment, LLC, a music entertainment and management company. The company’s first client is BNA Records artist Casey James.

It’s a busy time for the pair, as James’ single “Let’s Don’t Call It A Night” is climbing charts and his self-titled debut album hits stores tomorrow (March 20). “We hit the ground running after the first of the year and things have been moving at the speed of light ever since,” says Frasher.

To support his album release this week, James will perform on Ellen on Wednesday, March 21, as well as the fourth hour of the Today Show on Thursday, March 22.

Frasher got his start in the music business as a tour manager and musician for Tanya Tucker, and also held similar positions with Lee Roy Parnell and Chely Wright. Later he got into the radio promotion business, first with Warner Bros. Records, followed by Arista and BNA.

Reach him at bryan@gunslingerentertainment.com.

Digitalmusic.org Brings Music Start Up Academy to Nashville

Digitalmusic.org, the home of NARM’s digital initiatives, will present several educational sessions from its Music Start Up Academy in Nashville on Wednesday, April 11. The event will take place 1-6 pm CT at the Quonset Hut, and is co-sponsored by the Application Developers Alliance, The Copyright Forum at Belmont University, and the Mike Curb College of Entertainment & Music Business at Belmont.

Session offerings include Label and Publishing Basics for Entrepreneurs, Music Industry Content Acquisition and Business Development, and a Flo{thinkery} presentation by Mark Montgomery, among others. The aim of the Academy is to encourage the creation of music startups by helping newcomers understand how the industry operates.

“The future of the music business is dependent upon technology innovation, but there are very few opportunities that provide the fundamentals of the industry for these entrepreneurs,” said Bill Wilson, VP, Digital Strategy & Business Development, NARM/digitalmusic.org. “Here in Nashville, it is our goal to build a bridge between these groups so more great new music-focused start-ups get to market quickly and achieve success.”

For MusicRow readers: Save $10 off $35 regular price – use promotion code: msa-musicrow
Register here.

AIMP Nashville Names Board Members

The Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP) Nashville Chapter has named its 2012 board members.

Officers are: President Kevin Lamb (Peer Music), Vice President Dianna Maher (Moraine Music), Secretary Jewel Coburn (Ten Ten Music), and Treasurer Eli Ball (Lyric Financial).

Board members at large are: John Allen (BMG/Chrysalis), Ross Asher (Razor & Tie), Walter Campbell (Big Garage Music), Tim Fink (SESAC), Michael Martin (ASCAP), Jill Napier (Napier Consulting), Kerry O’Neil (Big Yellow Dog Music), David Preston (BMI), and Randy Wachtler (615 Music).

The organization will host its inaugural meeting on March 26 at Cabana. The event is sold out and will feature a panel discussion by Keith Stegall, John Strohm, David Macias, Frank Liddell and Chris DuBois with moderator John Allen.

Another panel discussion is set for June 16 and will focus on film/TV music supervision.

Members of the music community can join AIMP by visiting www.aimp.org and clicking on Nashville Chapter.

AIMP is a non-profit organization providing education and information on current topics, trends and practices in the music publishing industry. Formed in 1977 by a group of Los Angeles music publishers, the AIMP has chapters in Los Angeles, New York and Nashville, that host regular panel discussions, workshops, networking opportunities and special events.

MusicRowPics: Rising Women on the Row

On Friday (3/16), MusicRow’s Rising Women on the Row event, sponsored by City National Bank, honored five women from different segments of Nashville’s music industry: The Greenroom owner Mary Hilliard Harrington, SESAC’s Shannan Hatch, Loeb & Loeb’s Denise Stevens, Sony Music Nashville’s Heather McBee, and Big Yellow Dog’s Carla Wallace.

The sold-out breakfast event was created to recognize women who are becoming visionary leaders in Nashville’s music industry through their dedication, innovation, and contributions. MusicRow Publisher/Owner Sherod Robertson said, “I knew I wanted to join my staff and do something special to salute and honor the women on Music Row who are making a difference.” Kay West, journalist and women’s advocate, served as the guest speaker.

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The 1861 Project Offers Companion Concert and Documentary

Nashville’s ambitious The 1861 Project has unveiled its second phase, a companion concert and documentary called The 1861 Project Live. The downloadable in-concert presentation of the album also features documentary footage and interviews about the project’s creation. The 1861 Project, a musical concept about the American Civil War, debuted in 2011.

The 1861 Project Live is a natural extension and a direct result of the success we’ve had with the CD,” says Project producer/songwriter Thomm Jutz. “In the live setting, people have been connecting with these songs and these stories in a way that is immediate and really gratifying.”

Joining Jutz for performances of these songs are some of Nashville’s finest including bassist Mark Fain (Ricky Skaggs, Alison Krauss, Dolly Parton) and multi-instrumentalist Justin Moses (Ricky Skaggs, Dan Tyminski Band), along with drummer Lynn Williams (Delbert McClinton, Lee Roy Parnell, John Hiatt). Singers performing songs from the CD include Irene Kelley (“Horse Without A Rider”), Stan Webb (“That’s Me”), J.T. Brown (“Freedom Train”), and The Melby Sisters (“The South’s On Fire”).

Belmont University To Honor Mike Curb

Mike Curb

Belmont University’s College of Entertainment and Music Business will salute its benefactor and namesake Mike Curb during the annual Best of the Best showcase on April 14.

The event will honor Curb with the 2012 Robert E. Mulloy Award of Excellence, for his nearly five decades of success as a songwriter, producer and record company owner. In addition to his musical accomplishments, he serves as the chair of his Mike Curb Family Foundation which has made contributions to the greater Nashville community including The Curb Pediatric Center at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital, The Curb Theater at the downtown library, the Nashville Alliance for Public Education, and the Nashville Symphony. It was through the foundation Curb backed the construction of the Curb Event Center and contributed to Belmont’s studio facilities, including Historic RCA Studio B and the newly renovated Quonset Hut.

Belmont’s free Best of the Best showcase features compilations of student winners from the yearly Showcase Series, including Urban/Pop (Tre Houston), Christian (Haley Hamilton), Country (Tristen Smith), and Rock (Christopher Wild). Winners from the ASCAP Writers Night series will also perform.

Topspin and MTV Networks Partner For New Initiative

Nashville-based Topspin has announced a partnership to connect its direct-to-fan platform to the users of MTV’s network of television, mobile, and web properties. Participants will have multiple opportunities through MTV, VH1 and CMT to grow their fanbase and generate income.

The new initiative, Artists.MTV, gives artists direct access to their MTV presence and lets them connect directly with MTV’s millions of users. Artist pages on the website have been redesigned to allow fans to discover new music, plus buy tickets, merchandise, and more. Musicians of all levels, from famous to unknown, will have access to it.

Artists.MTV will also provide artists opportunities on MTV, VH1, and CMT for video and audio views to song placement in shows and even more. Topspin’s tools are built right in, which marks the first time at major outlet has given artists this level of control.

The program is expected to launch in June 2012, but artists will be able to check out a private beta trial starting in May. Current Topspin customers will automatically be signed up.

Nashvillians the Crickets Headed To Rock Hall of Fame

Middle Tennesseans Jerry Allison, Sonny Curtis and Joe B. Mauldin will be among those entering the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame next month.

They are being inducted, along with the late Nikki Sullivan, as members of The Crickets. They recorded such hits as “That’ll Be the Day” and “Peggy Sue” with Buddy Holly. Following his 1959 death, the band continued to tour and record well into the 1990s. See full bio here. The Crickets were inducted into Nashville’s Musicians Hall of Fame in 2008.

The band is among several being honored with special inductions, including The Miracles, The Comets, The Blue Caps, The Famous Flames and The Midnighters.

The six bands will be entering the Hall of Fame alongside the previously announced “regular” inductees the Beastie Boys, Donovan, Guns N’ Roses, Laura Nyro, Red Hot Chili Peppers and The Small Faces/The Faces, plus Freddie King as an early influence and non performers Don Kirshner, Cosimo Matassa, Tom Dowd and Glyn Johns.

The frontmen of all six bands have already been enshrined as solo members of the Hall. The Crickets’ Buddy Holly and The Famous Flames’ James Brown were inducted in 1986. The Miracles’ Smoky Robinson and The Comets’ Bill Haley were inducted in 1987. Hank Ballard of The Midnighters joined the Hall in 1980, and Gene Vincent was inducted in 1998 without his Blue Caps.

The six new inductions are the result of “a special Rock and Roll Hall of Fame committee review,” according to a recent press release from the organization. The bands’ names will be placed alongside their lead singers.

“These inductees are pioneers in the development of the music we call rock and roll,” said Joel Peresman, president and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation. “As part of our mission to recognize the most impactful, innovative and influential artists in rock, the committee brought forth these six groups who belong in the Hall of Fame.”

This month’s Goldmine magazine says that these six inductions, “right some pretty serious wrongs.” The magazine and its readers have frequently criticized the Hall of Fame for its oversights.

Among those often cited as being repeatedly overlooked by the Hall are Chicago, Kiss, Linda Ronstadt, Paul Revere & The Raiders, Rush, Connie Francis, Neil Sedaka, The Moody Blues, The Monkees, The Clovers, Deep Purple, The Guess Who, Heart, Grand Funk Railroad, Bon Jovi and The Doobie Brothers. None of them have been made Hall of Fame members. Until now, The Miracles and The Crickets were on this list as well.

Other Nashville-area residents who are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame include Duane Eddy, Brenda Lee, Little Richard, The Everly Brothers, Bob Gaudio (4 Seasons), Felix Cavaliere (Rascals), Bernie Leadon (Eagles), Steve Cropper (MGs), Scotty Moore and D.J. Fontana.

The 2012 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions will take place in Cleveland’s Public Hall on Saturday, April 14.