Phil Vassar To Entertain at Titans Home Games

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Pictured (L-R): Don MacLachlan (EVP Titans); Phil Vassar; Tracy Holliday (Titans Event Coordinator)

Phil Vassar will team up with The Tennessee Titans to entertain fans on the new Titans Party Stage at LP Field for every home game this season.

This offseason the Titans made upgrades to LP Field, including the addition of the Party Stage, where Vassar and his band will perform prior to kickoff during selected breaks and during half-time. The stage will be located under the new video board in the north end zone.

In addition, Vassar will tap into Nashville’s music pool, inviting artists from rock, pop and other genres to join him onstage.

“We have one of the best talent pools in the world to bring up special guests,” said Vassar. “We’re going to throw out a great selection of different music at every game. They have a killer new sound system at LP Field, and we’re gonna ‘turn it up’!”

“We really wanted to improve the fan’s experience at LP Field and tried to set Nashville apart from any other NFL venue,” said Tracy Holliday, Titans Event Coordinator. “The obvious choice was music, so we added the stage to give Titans fans an even more enjoyable atmosphere on game days.”

Grammy Nominations Concert Coming To Nashville

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The GRAMMY® Nominations Concert Live!! — Countdown To Music’s Biggest Night® will be held at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Wed., Dec. 5, marking the first time the event has taken place outside of Los Angeles. The show, which will air live on CBS at 10 p.m. ET/PT and 9 p.m. CT, officially kicks off GRAMMY season by revealing nominations in several categories along with performances by past winners and/or nominees.

Details regarding presenters and performers for The GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!! will be announced in the coming weeks. Additionally, public ticket sales information will be released soon.

The 55th Annual GRAMMY Awards will be presented live from STAPLES Center in Los Angeles on Sun., Feb. 10, 2013, and broadcast on CBS at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

“We are excited for the opportunity to bring The GRAMMY Nominations Concert Special Live!! to Nashville this year as we recognize our nominees for the 55th Annual GRAMMY Awards®,” said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy. “Nashville’s rich musical and cultural history is so important and vital to our industry, and indeed to the world — a fact The Academy has recognized for decades by locating one of our most thriving and active Chapters there. We look forward to celebrating the year in music in such a passionate, vibrant, and flourishing city.”

“Having The GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!! in Music City is a perfect fit,” said Nashville Mayor Karl Dean. “This announcement further validates that Nashville is a destination on the rise, and our rich musical heritage has once again put us on the national stage. This is tremendous news for Nashville, and we look forward to working with The Recording Academy to ensure the show’s success.”

This concert special marks the fifth time nominations for the annual GRAMMY Awards will be announced live on primetime television. Last year’s airing of the nominations special helped lead to increased ratings for the 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards which attracted 39.9 million viewers, the largest audience since 1984 and the second largest in history. The telecast was also the biggest social event in the history of television, drawing 13 million social media comments with the conversation on Twitter reaching a record high at 160,341 tweets per minute during the live telecast. Additionally, the 54th GRAMMY Awards telecast has received six Emmy® nominations, including the Outstanding Special Class Programs category.

The GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!! — Countdown To Music’s Biggest Night is produced by AEG Ehrlich Ventures, LLC. Ken Ehrlich is the executive producer.

[UPDATED] Wynonna’s Husband Cactus Moser Loses Leg From Accident

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UPDATED: Aug. 21, 2012

According to a statement released yesterday (Mon. 8/20), Michael Scott “Cactus” Moser, husband of Wynonna Judd, has lost his leg due to a motorcycle accident he had on Saturday (8/18). Moser’s left leg was severed at the scene of the accident and doctors in Rapid City, SD amputated the leg above the knee. He has also undergone surgery to his hand.

Judd has postponed her scheduled concerts in Canada this week due to the serious motorcycle accident involving her husband and drummer.

Moser and Judd went for a ride together on separate bikes before her scheduled concert in Deadwood, SD on Saturday. Moser collided with an oncoming vehicle and was transported to a local hospital. He is being treated for serious but non-life threatening injuries. Wynonna was not involved in the accident.

“The outpouring of prayer and support from friends, family and fans has been a blessing to both Cactus and I. Cactus is a champion. I love him deeply and I will not leave his side,” said Wynonna.

Judd and Moser extend their appreciation to all of the quick medical and police responders as well as the hospital staff and well- wishers from family, friends and fans.

Wynonna married Moser on June 10, 2012 during a ceremony at her Leiper’s Fork farm.

Kyle Frederick Signs with Vandermont Music Group

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Indie rock writer/producer Kyle Frederick has signed a publishing and production agreement with Doug Howard’s Vandermont Music Group. The agreement includes SoulJob, Frederick’s upcoming album project with Nashville-based rockers BoomTemple. In addition to BoomTemple members Frederick and Tony Lindsey, the album features musical contributions from many of their fellow Kentucky-born contemporaries, including Sam Bush, Chris Carmichael, Byron House, Bill Lloyd, Greg Martin, Jonell Mosser and more.

“Kyle uniquely fills an extremely important space in our overall creative mission,” said Howard. “His music is borderless and we look forward to sharing it with the world.”

SoulJob is currently being mixed in Nashville by Rob Feaster and is slated for digital and limited CD release this fall.

Dierks Bentley Sells Out Red Rocks

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Dierks Bentley performed for a sold out crowd of over 9,450 country fans last Thursday night (8/16) at the Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, CO. The naturally formed amphitheater is known for its perfect acoustics and has hosted some of music’s biggest names including The Beatles and U2.

“Red Rocks is right there at the top of every artist’s bucket list to play,” said Bentley. “It’s crazy to be able to perform there again and this time with a wild, sold out crowd…can’t wait to go back!”

Bentley continues on the road this weekend before kicking off his Country & Cold Cans: Back to College Tour today (8/20) at The University of Georgia. Tuesday (8/21), Bentley will celebrate the release of his four-song Country & Cold Cans EP at The University of South Carolina followed by Ole Miss on Wednesday (8/22). For more information on the new music and for a full list of upcoming tour dates, visit www.dierks.com.

Massive Johnny Cash Box Set On the Way

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Just in time for holiday shopping, Sony Music will release Johnny Cash — The Complete Columbia Album Collection, a deluxe box set featuring 59 of Cash’s albums on 63 CDs. The set will be available  October 30 through Columbia/Legacy.

Beginning with 1958’s The Fabulous Johnny Cash, and running through 1990’s Highwayman 2 (with Waylon, Willie, and Kristofferson), the set includes 35 albums being released on CD for the first time and the artist’s first 19 albums presented for the first time in mono.

The collection will come in a special box, with lift off cover and a full-color booklet with complete discographic information for every album. Rich Kienzle provided the liner notes.

To compliment the Columbia releases, two new compilations have been assembled for this set. Johnny Cash With His Hot & Blue Guitar is a 28-song collection of single and non-single tracks released during his Sun Records years (1954-1958) including “Hey Porter,” “I Walk The Line,” and more. The Singles is a 2-CD, 55 song collection of single sides that did not originally appear on Cash’s Columbia albums, plus his guest performances on other artists’ albums. Also included are rare albums like Johnny Cash pa Osteraker, a 1972 live album from Sweden’s Osteraker prison, and the motion picture soundtrack for the Gregory Peck-starring I Walk The Line.

More info, including the complete album disc listing, here. Amazon has the set available for pre-order with a $269 price tag.

CMT On Tour Taps Headliner Jake Owen

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Jake Owen will headline the 11th annual CMT On Tour, with special guests Love and Theft and Florida Georgia Line. CMT On Tour Jake Owen: The Summer Never Ends 2012 kicks off Oct. 10 in New York City.

The tour comes on the heels of a monster year for Owen, which includes back-to-back, multi-week No. 1 singles “Barefoot Blue Jean Night” and “Alone With You.” Owen has performed to millions of fans since his career launched, including a coveted spot on the Brothers of the Sun tour this summer with superstars Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw.

Owen, who first appeared on CMT On Tour as an opening act, said, “Being the headliner of a tour is something I’ve been dreaming about since I was in college, performing songs every Sunday afternoon on a bar stool and playing for tips. Headlining the CMT Tour is really cool for me because I was the opening act in 2007, when Sugarland was the headliner and Little Big Town had the middle slot. So now, to be headlining the 11th Annual CMT Tour, with my buddies Love and Theft and Florida Georgia line, it feels very surreal. I’m honored and I can’t wait to hit the road in October and keep that feeling of summer going on The Summer Never Ends tour.”

Jake Owen talke about the tour with CMT Radio Live’s Cody Alan during a segment for tonight's (8/20) show. Photo: Dingo O’Brien

“The CMT Tour has this incredible history of featuring artists that have gone on to become superstars, capable of filling stadiums and arenas, and now it’s Jake’s turn at headliner status,” said Leslie Fram, SVP of Music Strategy, CMT. “Jake possesses an undeniable star quality that promises to propel him to new heights amongst his peers who have anchored the CMT Tour.  We’re also thrilled to feature up-and-coming acts Love and Theft and Florida Georgia Line in this year’s fantastic line-up.”

CMT On Tour launched in 2002 and has featured superstars Trace Adkins, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Randy Houser, Jamey Johnson, Miranda Lambert, Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, Sugarland and Keith Urban. The tour is produced by Lindsay Bertelli of REACH.

Tickets go on sale Fri., Aug. 24. For details, visit cmtontour.cmt.com.

 

 

CTK Management, The Agency Group Sign Josh Doyle

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Pictured (L-R): Neil Warnock, The Agency Group; Josh Doyle; Danny Nozell, CTK Management

Rising artist Josh Doyle recently inked deals with CTK Management and The Agency Group. Doyle is recording a project with Grammy winning producer John Shanks which is set for October release.

CTK, which also represents Dolly Parton, is headed by Pres. Danny Nozell. “The depth of Josh’s music and lyrics immediately sold me,” said Nozell. “He is an exceptional talent, and I couldn’t be more excited for what the future has in store for him.”

“I believe we have significant talent here with Josh, and The Agency Group looks forward to working with Josh and his whole team to bring the success he deserves,” added Neil Warnock, CEO of The Agency Group Worldwide.

Doyle won Guitar Center’s Singer-Songwriter competition earlier this year. Out of 17,000 submissions he was one of 10 artists selected by Shanks to perform at the final completion at Los Angeles’s Hotel Café in February. He was voted the overall winner and received a prize package including $10,000, an EP produced by Shanks, and gear from Fender, Taylor, Ernie Ball and Shure. Doyle was born in England but grew up in Antioch, Tenn., where he still resides.

“There was something unmistakable about Josh’s raw performance. The combination of his talent—that voice and impeccably crafted lyrics—struck a chord with me, making him the clear winner,” said Shanks.

“It’s been a whirlwind experience,” shared Doyle. “Sharing my music with other people is what I love to do, and with this competition Guitar Center and John Shanks are helping me do that on a larger scale than I could have ever imagined.”

Darrell Scott and Tim O’Brien to Release Live Album

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Musician friends Darrell Scott and Tim O’Brien have come together for We’re Usually a Lot Better Than This, a live album due for release October 9 on Full Light/Thirty Tigers. The album was recorded in 2005 and 2006 during two separate concerts at the Grey Eagle in Asheville, NC to benefit the Arthur Morgan School.

“With Tim and me, it’s all fair game,” says Scott. “We are fearless and we egg each other on toward the edge of crash and burn. Hopefully there’s more burn than crash here.”

Scott and O’Brien previously collaborated on the 2000 studio album Real Time, and some of its songs are reprised for Better Than This. Also among the 13 tracks are covers of songs by Townes Van Zandt (“White Freightliner Blues”), Lefty Frizzell (“Mom and Dad’s Waltz”), Hank Williams (“House of Gold”), Gordon Lightfoot (“Early Morning Rain”) and Keith Whitley (“You Don’t Have to Move That Mountain”).

Multi-instrumentalist Scott has collaborated with Steve Earle, Sam Bush, Guy Clark, and more. Most recently he has been a member of Robert Plant’s Band of Joy. Bluegrass favorite O’Brien has released over 13 solo albums, as well as seven albums with Hot Rize in the ‘80s, and four with his sister Mollie. He has played with Mark Knopfler, Steve Martin, Steve Earle and more.

APA Brings On Cass Scripps

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Cass Scripps

Agency for the Performing Artists (APA) announced the addition of veteran agent Cass Scripps to its Nashville office.

Scripps joined the Nashville talent and literary agency August 1, where he is responsible for developing and growing the new Contemporary Music Division. Scripps brings artists Corey Smith, Edwin McCain and David Ryan Harris with him to the agency’s talent roster.

Scripps has over 25 years as an agent, most recently with Buddy Lee Attractions. In 1992 he formed Metro Talent group in Atlanta, GA where he represented artists such as Hootie and the Blowfish, Sister Hazel, Jump Little Children, and Drivin’ N Cryin’ among others.