Academy of Country Music Promotes Three, Hires One

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Lisa Lee

The Academy of Country Music has announced a round of promotions and one new hire, as well as a reorganization and renaming of three departments.

Sr. VP Lisa Lee has been promoted to lead the new Creative, PR & Production department, which combines the previously separate Creative & Media Production and PR/Marketing departments. Sr. VP Michelle Goble will head up the newly named Membership & Industry Relations department. As a result, Erick Long will take over Academy event management in his new role as Sr. VP of Operations & Events, formerly the Operations department. All positions are based out of the ACM’s Encino, CA headquarters and report to EVP and Managing Director Tiffany Moon. Additionally, the Academy has hired Alexa Fasheh as Director, Finance.

Michelle Goble

“Not too long ago, the Academy’s focus was solely on one television property,” said Bob Romeo, CEO of the Academy. “But over the past few years, our scope of work has grown to include more large-scale events, promoting

more country music artists and engaging more of our industry than ever.  This reorganization recognizes the incredible work our Academy senior team has done to lead this charge, and positions us for the growth to come.”

Erick Long

Lee joined the organization in 2007 when it implemented an in-house creative and media production team, editing all materials and serving as video producer. She will continue to act as liaison with CBS creative and promotion departments and manage fan voting for Entertainer of the Year and New Artist of the Year.

Goble managed the Academy’s Membership & Events department since 2007, producing and elevating events such as ACM Honors, ACM Weekend on Fremont Street, and more. In her new role, she will act as lead liaison for artist talent booking for ACM Events and continue focusing on industry engagement.

Alexa Fasheh

Long started with ACM in 2009, and manages logistics for the ACM Awards and daily operations in Encino. He also spearheaded the creation of the ACM Experience in 2012, a 3 day, open to the public event during ACM week.

Fasheh joins the Academy staff after seven years as a Sr. Accountant at The Haber Corporation, where she managed the ACM account. Fasheh is a Los Angeles native who graduated from Loyola Marymount University, and has worked for a variety of CPA Firms.

Nail Covers Adele on VEVO

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David Nail, who has been warming up before his shows with Adele’s “Someone Like You,” has performed the song acoustically in a video that is airing on VEVO/YouTube today (6/18).

“When my manager called me to tell me, I thought it was funny,” said Nail. “We did the video just for friends who’d heard me sing the song backstage, and wanted to have access to it. It’s a great song – and it brings so many things out of you as a vocalist, so I wanted to make sure the visuals lived up to it, but I never thought anyone would pay attention to it. I certainly didn’t expect it to turn into something like this…”

“Someone Like You” will be featured on VEVO’s front page all day. It will also be cycling through playlists on the entire country roster on YouTube. You can view the video here.

Industry Pics: AIMP, Lambert, ACM

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AIMP Power Lunch
Fifth Third Bank’s Music and Entertainment Division hosted an AIMP (Association of Independent Music Publishers) power luncheon on Mon., June 11 at The Tavern restaurant in Nashville. Attendees included AIMP officers, founding members, music supervisors and Fifth Third Bank personnel.

(L-R): Front Row: Amy Rosen (Grey NY); Cheryl Martin (Fifth Third); Sarah Gavigan (Sarah Gavigan Music). Back Row: Debbie Zavitson (Zavitson Music Group); Karen Macmillian (Nettwerk Music Group); Dianna Maher (Moraine Music Group); Brad Peterson (Fifth Third); Philip Feemster (Fifth Third); John Melillo (Melillo Music); Craig Currier (peermusic). Photo: Jill Napier

 

Lambert Celebrates 1 Million Twitter Followers
RCA Nashville artist Miranda Lambert recently surpassed one million Twitter followers, a milestone few country artists have reached. Sony Music Nashville Chairman/CEO Gary Overton (left) and Sony Music Nashville Manager of Digital Marketing Copeland Isaacson (right) presented her a plaque backstage before her show at LP Field during the CMA Music Festival Show.

Photo: Blu Sanders

 

Claudia Lee Visits ACM
The Academy of Country Music welcomed singer/actress Claudia Lee to the office while she was in Los Angeles recently. Lee is best known for her past role on hit TV show Zeke and Luther on Disney XD, and currently is featured on the CW’s Hart of Dixie. While at the Academy she performed her single “3 Leaf Clover” and signed up for professional ACM membership, as part of the Academy’s complimentary one-year membership offered to support emerging artists.

(L-R): Michelle Goble, ACM Senior Vice President, Membership & Events, Claudia Lee. Photo: Michel Bourquard/ACM

 

BamaJam Brings Out the Fans

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Zac Brown performs at BamaJam 2012. Photo courtesy BamaJam.

Festival season is in full swing, and thousands of country music fans flocked to Enterprise, Alabama over the weekend for BamaJam 2012.

Tim McGraw and Eric Church performing. Photo courtesy BamaJam

After a one year hiatus the popular BamaJam festival, now with Pepsi onboard as a sponsor, returned to BamaJam Farms in southeast Alabama June 14-16. The event offered dual music stages for constant musical entertainment and the all-star lineup included Tim McGraw, Zac Brown Band, Kid Rock, Eric Church, Alan Jackson, Sheryl Crow, Willie Nelson, NEEDTOBREATHE, Yelawolf, Casey James, Gov’t Mule, Ronnie Milsap and more. The grounds also offered camping, ATV Trails, and a water park.

A series of severe storms interfered with the schedule on Thursday night (6/14) and forced several performers, including Broken Bow up-and-comer Dustin Lynch, to cancel their sets. But when he heard about two fans who drove from Virginia just to see him, Lynch turned his tour bus around and gave them a special private performance of “Cowboys and Angels.” Check it out here. Thursday evening headliners Eric Church and Tim McGraw went on and performed as planned after the weather cleared.

Don Williams Album Coming Tomorrow

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Don Williams’ new album is premiering exclusively today (6/18) on 650 AM WSM. And So It Goes, set for release tomorrow by Sugar Hill, features guests Alison Krauss, Keith Urban, Vince Gill and Chris Stapleton.

WSM’s Bill Cody kicked off today on his “Coffee, Country, and Cody” show with an interview with Garth Fundis who produced the new album as well as numerous other projects by the Country Music Hall of Fame inductee. Cody will also air excerpts from a sit-down interview with Williams recorded earlier this year.

Throughout the day, listeners will have the opportunity to hear all tracks from And So It Goes and be able to win copies of it and the accompanying commemorative Hatch Show Print.

“Don Williams has been a core WSM artist his entire career, so it’s only natural that the station where his hits live premieres his newest album,” WSM Operations Manager Joe Limardi said. “We can’t wait to share the classic Don Williams sound on this new CD with our audience!”

The on-air content can also be heard at www.wsmonline.com.

Radney Foster Revisits “Del Rio”

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Radney Foster will celebrate the 20th anniversary of his classic album Del Rio, TX, 1959 with a new release called Del Rio, Texas, Revisited: Unplugged and Lonesome due out August 14.

Foster made his solo artist debut with the original Del Rio collection, which featured the hits “Just Call Me Lonesome,” “Nobody Wins,” and “Easier Said Than Done.” The new album aims to reinvent the original with a looser feel and updated acoustic arrangements.

“This time everyone was in the same room, with live takes with no fixes and no headphones,” says Steve Fishell, who produced the original Del Rio and played guitars on Revisited. “We have all new tempos and new grooves.” In addition to Fishell, guests on the new collection include Dixie Chick Martie McGuire (fiddle), Jon Randall Stewart (guitar), Glenn Fukunaga (doghouse bass), and Michael Ramos (keyboard).

Pre-orders of Revisited are available here. For tour dates, check here.

Law Group Celebrates Turning One

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(L-R): Country Artist Lorrie Morgan and Attorney Jason Turner

Attorney Jordan Keller shares childhood stories of spinning in his father's Herman Miller chair, now proudly featured in his office.

 

Located in the stylish Terrazzo building, the law firm of Keller, Turner, Ruth, Andrews, Ghanem & Heller celebrated its first anniversary in style by opening the firm’s contemporary dwellings to a packed house earlier this month.

Looking more like a modern penthouse than a law office, the space provided the perfect place for attendees to mix and mingle while celebrating the firm’s one year milestone.

Offerings made to party goers included a full bar, margaritas, and fabulous food including a chocolate cupcake tower with each cake donned with miniature chocolate guitars.

Attorneys Jordan Keller, Jason Turner, TD Ruth, Chris Andrews, Jennifer Ghanem and Jaime Heller started their full-service entertainment law firm last year to provide transactional and litigation services for entertainment and sports, as well as real estate, corporate, tax and estate planning.

 

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Grand Ole Opry Celebrates Most Loyal Fan

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On Saturday, June 16, The Grand Ole Opry will recognize its undisputed most loyal fan, Nashville’s Paul Eckhart.

Eckhart will mark 40 years without having missed a single weekend of Opry performances, and the Opry plans to celebrate during the show by honoring him with its first-ever Opry Fan Award along with other surprises while he and his family enjoy performances from the Opry’s front row.

“None of us can imagine looking out on a weekend Opry performance and not seeing Paul in the crowd,” said Opry Vice President and General Manager Pete Fisher. “We hope to make this Saturday night’s show his most memorable yet!”

Eckhart began his Opry streak the day he and his family moved from Northeastern Pennsylvania to Nashville, visiting the Opry that night before his family unpacked. Paul credits the Opry as having played a pivotal role in his happy marriage, because while Eckhart spent his weekends at the show, his wife went to play bingo.

“Every Opry show has been special, each one has been different, and every single one of them has been entertaining,” Eckhart said. “I can’t imagine having spent my weekends anywhere else.”

Industry Ink (6/15/12)

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The 2012 Songwriters Hall of Fame 43rd Annual Induction and Awards Gala took place last night (6/14), celebrating some of songwriting’s greatest talents. At the ceremony Gordon Lightfoot, Bob Seger, Don Schlitz, Harvey Schmidt & Tom Jones and Jim Steinman were all inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Special awards were given to Bette Midler (Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award); Ne-Yo (Hal David Starlight Award); Lance Freed (Abe Olman Publisher Award); Mike Stoller (Towering Song Award for “Stand By Me”); Ben E. King (Towering Performance Award); and a posthumous Pioneer Award to Woody Guthrie. Performers included Meatloaf, Constantine Maroulis, Patti Russo, Seger, Valerie Simpson, Kenny Rogers, Schlitz, Steve Miller, Lightfoot, and Cheyenne Jackson. The organization also saluted the late Frances Preston and her devotion to the craft of songwriting.

Don Schlitz (L) with Kenny Rogers. Photo: Larry Busacca/Getty Images

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Q Prime South's John Peets

Nashville-based Q Prime South, led by manager John Peets, is currently celebrating the rare feat of having two No. 1 songs simultaneously top the charts of two different formats for the second time this year. Eric Church’s “Springsteen,”  which topped MusicRow’s CountryBreakout Chart a few weeks back, is currently the No. 1 country song on the Billboard/BDS and Mediabase country charts, and The Black Keys’ “Gold On The Ceiling” is currently the No. 1 song on the Billboard/BDS and Mediabase alternative charts. Early in 2012, The Keys’ “Lonely Boy” topped the alternative charts at the same time as Church’s “Drink In My Hand.”

Melanie Wetherbee

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Melanie Wetherbee has exited her position as Manager with McGhee Entertainment Nashville. She had served with the company for five years. Wetherbee is currently looking for her next opportunity and can be reached at 615-364-4908 or at [email protected].

Photo Friday (6/15/12)

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Lady Antebellum and GAC met up at LP Field during CMA Music Festival last week to present a check for $5,000 to Nashville’s W.O. Smith Music School. The organization has been providing 50 cent music lessons to middle Tennessee’s underserved children for over 25 years.

(L-R): GAC President Ed Hardy, Lady A’s Charles Kelly, Hillary Scott, Dave Haywood and W.O. Smith Board President Tony Conway.

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Republic Nashville’s Greg Bates journeyed to Tampa, FL to film the music video for his debut single “Did It For The Girl.” Bates’ friends and team members from label, management, radio, and video crew paused on the shore to celebrate and have a little beach time.

(L-R): Front Row – WQYK PD Mike Culotta, Director Brian Lazzaro, Greg Bates and BMLG EVP Jimmy Harnen; Middle Row – Gina Ketchum, Republic Nashville’s Megan Knutson, Manager Martha Earls, Nicole Flammia and Eric Williams; Back Row – Kim Goddard, Crew Members and Roger Pristole