Industry Ink (8/29/12)

As part of its 15th Anniversary celebration, SOLID Nashville will present a conversation with KISS member Gene Simmons and manager Doc McGhee in the Hutton Hotel Ballroom at 8:15 am. Tuesday, September 4. Billboard’s Ray Waddell will moderate the panel, and a light breakfast will be provided for attendees. RSVPs are required to attend. Reserve seats here and make sure to print out tickets after reserving.

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Little Big Town and ConAgra Foods have partnered in support of the company’s Child Hunger Ends Here campaign. LBT is recording an exclusive video of the original song “Here’s Hope” in the style of their web series “Scattered, Smothered, and Covered.” The group’s version will be available on the ConAgra Foods Facebook page in September. More info about the campaign here.

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Jimmy Carter, the only living founder of The Blind Boys of Alabama, will participate in a symposium on Friday (8/30) called “The Influence of Music on the Civil Rights Movement.” The symposium will take place at the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University, 5:30-7:30 pm on August 31. The event, hosted by John Seigenthaler, is free and open to the public. Carter will discuss his 70 years in music, and the Blind Boys’ role in the Civil Rights movement during the 1960s.

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IBMA Award-winning group Balsam Range has signed with Class Act Entertainment for booking representation. The North Carolina-based outfit topped bluegrass charts with its “Trains I Missed” in 2011, and its most recent album Papertown was released earlier in 2012. The Class Act roster includes The Boxcars, The HillBenders, Chip Taylor, Bryan Sutton and more.