Christian Music Manager Norman Miller Passes

Norman Miller

Prominent Christian music manager Norman Miller passed away on Monday (Dec. 3). He was 69.

In 1970, Miller started his own record label in the UK, which was later purchased by American-owned Christian music label Word Records, with Miller becoming the Executive Director of Word Europe. Miller founded his management company, Proper Management, in 1983. Proper Management represents Anthem Lights, Casting Crowns, Fireflight, Francesca Battistelli, Leeland, Nichole Nordeman, and The Afters, among others. Proper Management has previously produced and managed tours for numerous artists, including 2nd Chapter of Acts, Brandon Heath, Family Force 5, Michael W. Smith, Natalie Grant, Newsboys, NewSong, Point of Grace, Steven Curtis Chapman, Tenth Avenue North, Third Day and tobyMac, among others.

Miller is responsible for putting together several well-known groups in Christian music, including Avalon, ZOEgirl, Jump5 and PureNRG. He has also been the creator of several best selling Christian albums, including the Andrae Crouch Tribute Album as well as Soulful Celebration (a Gospel version of Handel’s Messiah). Miller won a GRAMMY Award for each of those albums.

Several prominent Christian artists expressed their condolences via Twitter.

Bart Millard of MercyMe: “A true hero of the faith passed away today. Norman Miller will be missed.”

Steven Curtis Chapman: “Praying for comfort for family of dear friend Norman Miller, a brilliant man who loved to tell THE STORY w/all he did..& his has only begun!”

Casting Crowns’ Mark Hall: “Yesterday afternoon, our close friend and manager Norman Miller went to be with Jesus. He was a hero for Christian music and for us. Please pray for his family during this time.”

Francesca Battistelli: “Heartbroken over the loss of my dear friend, mentor, and manager Norman Miller. Yet even as we mourn him, we rejoice that he is with Jesus.”

Jody McBrayer (formerly of Avalon): “My friend and manager Norman Miller passed away tonight. He was a unique, upright man and he will be missed. My heart is heavy. I know he is with The Lord whom he took such pleasure making music about. There would have been no Avalon without his nurturing and leadership. It’s difficult to imagine what my life would have been like had he not taken a chance on me. Norman, there is no one else like you and you will be missed.”

Miller’s memorial service will be held Monday (Dec. 10) at 3 p.m. CT at Brentwood Baptist Church, located at 777 Concord Rd. in Brentwood, Tenn. There will be no visitation.

Those who wish to send flowers can send them to Brentwood Baptist Church prior to 2 p.m. CT on Monday (Dec. 10). For those who wish to make a donation in lieu of flowers, the family has requested that all donations be made to World Vision.

Artist Pics (12/5/2012)

••• The Band Perry recently returned from a tour in the United Kingdom where they played to sold out venues in Glasgow, Manchester and London. Each night, the sibling trio introduced fans to new single, “Better Dig Two,” which has already sold well over 250,000 downloads in the United States. The Band Perry’s highly-anticipated sophomore album is slated for release in April 2013. They will perform at tonight’s (15/5) Grammy Nominations Concert LIVE on CBS.

Rocking the house in Manchester.

••• Craig Morgan headlined the charity event Budweiser Presents Happy’s Birthday Bash at The Fox Theater in Bakersfield, Calif. The event benefited the Kevin Harvick Foundation and included special performances by Bridgette Tatum and Matt Stillwell. “I’m glad to be back in Bakersfield, (Calif.),” Morgan said prior to the show. “The Kevin Harvick Foundation has done a lot for the local community, so I’m glad to be part of this event and hopefully help the foundation raise some funds to keep the programs going that help so many kids.”

(L-R): Kevin Harvick, Craig Morgan, Bridgette Tatum, Matt Stillwell

••• Baseball Hall of Famer Don Sutton was the guest of Country Music Hall of Famer Bill Anderson on Nov. 30 at the Grand Ole Opry. “I’ve dreamed of coming to the Opry since I was a kid listening to the show on the radio down in Alabama,” Sutton said. “And to get to see it at the Ryman is really special. This is a big item I can now mark off my bucket list.”

(L-R): Don Sutton, Bill Anderson, Photo: Pete Fisher

 

No. 1 Party: Lee Brice’s ‘Hard To Love’

(L-R): Founder and Chairman of Curb Records Mike Curb, CMA Senior Manager of Membership and Balloting Brandi Simms, songwriter Billy Montana, Curb recording artist Lee Brice, CMA CEO Steve Moore, songwriters John Ozier and Ben Glover, CMA Senior Coordinator of Member Relations and Services Betsy Walker, and CMA Membership and Balloting Assistant Brenden Oliver. Photo: Christian Bottorff, CMA

Curb Records’ Lee Brice celebrated his second No. 1 single, “Hard To Love,” with songwriters Ben Glover, Billy Montana and John Ozier during a party held at the CMA offices on Tuesday (Dec. 4).

Presentations were made by CMA’s Brandi Simms, Country Radio Seminar’s Bill Mayne, Avenue Bank’s Cooper Samuels, BMI’s Bradley Collins and ASCAP’s Ryan Beuschel. Drew Alexander, Director of Publishing at Curb Records, congratulated Mike Curb on the 317th No. 1 record of his career.

“Hard To Love” marks Glover’s first No. 1 country hit, though he has had considerable success in Contemporary Christian music. He was named ASCAP’s 2012 Christian Songwriter of the Year and has had 15 No. 1 Christian songs in his career. His songs have been recorded by artists including Brandon Heath, Britt Nicole and Kari Jobe, as well as Steve Holy, Trace Adkins and Gloriana. “These guys are some of my dear friends,” he said of Brice, Ozier and Montana. “That’s one of the cool things [about working as a songwriter] is working with your friends.” He later told Brice, “You hope your song gets sung by someone who can sing really well, so thank God for you.”

Brice was quick to pass on praise to the songwriters. “This day wouldn’t have happened without my buddies,” said Brice. “This party is about them.” He also thanked fiancee Sarah, saying “Thank you for letting me work so hard. I’m gone a lot and it’s hard, so thank you for being so supportive.” He also thanked the promotion team at Curb Records. Producers Kyle Jacobs and Matt McClure were among those in attendance, as well as Jacobs’ wife and recording artist Kellie Pickler.

It was the first chart-topper for Ozier, who is also Curb Records’ VP of A&R. He wrote the song on his father’s 1967 Martin guitar. Montana, marking his fourth No. 1 single, perhaps best summed up the mood, saying, “Music speaks to people. Let’s not forget that music affects their lives and that’s a beautiful thing.”

Both “Hard To Love” and Brice’s previous hit, “A Woman Like You,” are platinum-selling singles.

(back row, l-r): Curb Records’ Mike Curb; Curb Music’s Drew Alexander; producer Matt McClure; and ASCAP’s Ryan Beuschel (middle row, l-r): Lee Brice; co-writers Billy Montana, John Ozier, and Ben Glover; and Ariose Music Group’s Jeremy Ash; (front row, l-r): BMI’s Bradley Collins; producer Kyle Jacobs; and Ariose Music Group’s Eddie DeGarmo. Photo: Erika Goldring

 

Grammy Nominations Add to Tonight’s Lineup

The lineup for tonight’s (12/5) The GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!! — Countdown To Music’s Biggest Night continues to grow, including Little Big Town, Chris Young, Sheryl Crow, The Lumineers and Janelle Monáe.

The one-hour show — which announces Grammy nominations in several categories — will additionally feature Hunter Hayes, The Band Perry, Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, The Who, FUN., Maroon 5 and Ne-Yo. The Who, The Band Perry and Dierks Bentley will perform together in a special tribute to Johnny Cash. Immediately following the televised segment, Maroon 5 is set to perform an exclusive concert for attendees.

Taylor Swift will co-host the one-hour concert special alongside LL COOL J, who is also a show producer. Swift co-hosted the first Grammy nominations special with the rapper in December 2008.

For the first time, the show will air from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, live on CBS at 9 p.m. CT. Tickets are still available online. Fans can view live backstage coverage of the evening on the web or on the Grammy Mobile App.

Capitol Records will release the 2013 GRAMMY Nominees album. The music from this year’s nominated artists and songs will be available Jan. 22, 2013 with a portion of album proceeds benefiting the Grammy Foundation and MusiCares Foundation.

The 55th Annual GRAMMY Award Show will be held in Los Angeles on Feb. 10, 2013.

Read MusicRow’s exclusive interview with President/CEO of The Recording Academy, Neil Portnow, about tonight’s show.

DISClaimer: Train Teams With Ashley Monroe

Train's Pat Monahan and Ashley Monroe in video for "Bruises."

How interesting: The two best country platters of the week both come from bands who are considered to be outside the country format.

The British folk-rock combo Mumford & Sons has definitely earned its acoustic bona fides while rising to Platinum and Grammy-nominated status. Now it is knocking on country music’s door with “I Will Wait.” I, for one, would open it.

The San Francisco pop rockers Train have also attained Platinum and Grammy recognition. They’ve also appeared on CMT with Martina McBride. They perform super catchy songs and lead singer Pat Monahan blends fantastically well with mountain soprano Ashley Monroe. All of that is why “Bruises” is the Disc of the Day.

And since Mumford & Sons have never appeared in this column before, that qualifies them for a DisCovery Award.

Mumford and sons

HANNAH BETHEL/No Where Left to Roam
Writer: Hannah Bethel; Producer: Andy Sheridan & Hannah Bethel; Publisher: Hamywyn, BMI; Hannah Bethel (CDX) 
—She sings splendidly, with just the right blend of sweetness, ache and hillbilly heart. The softly brushed drums, scampering fiddle, plaintive dobro and stacked vocal harmonies are all pluses, even if the title seems buried in the lyric.

RANDY HOUSER/How Country Feels
Writer: none listed; Producer: none listed; Publisher: none listed; Stoney Creek (track) 
—The title tune to Houser’s upcoming CD is a solid stomper that places his bruiser voice right up front, where it belongs. The man can sure-nuff sing. Play it.

CLAYTON BELLAMY/Straight Into the Sun
Writer: none listed; Producer: none listed; Publisher: none listed; MDM (ERG) 
—I think it’s meant to sound slow and sultry. It put me to sleep.

TRAIN & ASHLEY MONROE/Bruises
Writer: Pat Monahan/Espen Lind/Amud Bjorklund; Producer: Espionage & Butch Walker; Publisher: EMI April/Ptimon/Stellar, ASCAP; Columbia 
—Train writes such catchy tunes. No wonder it has a shot on country playlists. Especially when collaborating with a hillbilly angel like Hippie Annie. This little sparkler is an addictive audio delight.

JASON KIRKNESS/Leavin’
Writer: none listed; Producer: none listed; Publisher: none listed; MDM (ERG)  
—This Canadian has a slightly folkie bent, but with all the earnest “heart” that good country singing requires. The mid-tempo song is loaded with hooks, and the production is stellar. In short, come on down.

MUMFORD & SONS/I Will Wait
Writer: none listed; Producer: none listed; Publisher: none listed; Glassnote (ERG) 
—It’s a frothy, banjo-and-guitar driven track with loads of energy. Their haunting vocal harmony work captures your full attention. I have been smitten with this folk-rock band for quite some time and think this format could do itself a big favor by inviting the Mumfords to the party.

WAYNE WARNER/The Journey
Writer: none listed; Producer: none listed; Publisher: none listed; B-Venturous (ERG) 
—His quivering, quavering vibrato is either a welcome novelty or an audio irritant. Take your pick.

PAT GREEN/Even the Losers
Writer: none listed; Producer: none listed; Publisher: none listed; Sugar Hill (ERG) 
—His voice sounds as urgent and rousing on a semi-ballad like this as it does on his crowd-pleasing rockers. I remain a fan.

ELVIS BEFORE NOON/Best Year
Writer: Daylon Greer; Producer: Eric Racy; Publisher: none listed, ASCAP; EBN (track) 
—This Arizona four-piece jangles like The Byrds, twangs like The Eagles, rocks like Creedence and crafts tunes that sound as good as familiar oldies. A classic country-rock sound.

KEVIN DEAL/There Goes the Neighborhood
Writer: none listed; Producer: Lloyd Maines; Publisher: Piedrero, ASCAP; Blindfellow (track)
—This perennial Texas favorite is back with a new collection this year. Its bouncy, banjo-backed title tune and lead track lets you know you’re in for a good-natured ride. Ragged but right, as they say.

 

Portnow Discusses Grammy Nominations Concert Decision

Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy, gave an exclusive interview with MusicRow about the decision to bring the GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!! to Nashville earlier this year. This is the first time the event has ever taken place outside of Los Angeles.

MR: What went into the decision to move the concert from LA to Nashville?
PORTNOW: The way I’ve been explaining it is that it begins with a business management principle, which I embrace and I encourage our staff and our elected leaders to embrace, which is if asked the question “Why do we do this?” If the answer is simply “Because we’ve always done it this way,” that’s really not an acceptable or smart approach to what you might be doing at any given time.

What that informs is a constant re-evaluation in taking a look at things to make sure that however we’re doing it that it’s the right way, it’s an interesting way, it’s unique and it really represents the values and the missions of the academy.

That’s a basic principle to this particular project and it’s fairly new one, it’s something we conceived of five or six years ago, after years of traditional press conferences to announce the nominations. I always thought that was okay, but it’s cruel and unusual punishment for artists to be up at seven in the morning to do that and then frankly at some point it gets a little bit dull and a little predictable. We realized if we’re going to celebrate music then let’s do it in a venue and an environment that really speaks to that celebration and let’s have some music. So that led us to moving from a press conference in a hotel ballroom to a music venue. That kind of inspired, “Well if we’re in this space where music is played, let’s play some music and let’s put it on TV. Let’s have this as a way to really set up and introduce Grammy season in a way that is very involving and empowering for the fans.”

When we got to the five-year mark of that adventure, it was time to take another look to see if there’s anything about it that we might change. We have been changing the content and format a little bit, we’ve been out to a few different venues in LA and so the next thing to consider was “what about somewhere other than LA?” And that’s what got us thinking about this and down this path.

MR: So why Nashville?
PORTNOW: First of all, Nashville has a lot of intersection with the Academy. The first one as basic as that when the Academy was formed 55 years ago, one the concepts was that it have the ability to incorporate the diversity that’s found in music centers around the country and not try to have one size fits all, programmatically or even culturally. One of the very early chapters, aside from Los Angeles and New York, is Nashville and we have a long history there as an organization and we have a very successful vibrant chapter, one of our largest memberships comes from that region.

Number two, to the credit of Mayor Dean and the whole team in Nashville they wisely recognize, and I applaud them for it and support them in it, that creativity and the arts are key components to a broad and enlightened culture, and specifically music is a key element to the success of Nashville on so many levels.

I’d met with the mayor for quite a few years and was very familiar with his desire and the community’s desire to ramp up, to spread the word, to paint Nashville beyond a country music city, but just music city with the diversity and the great music population that’s there. So that became a factor.

Additionally, our current chairman of the board of the academy is George Flanigen. George is in the last lap of the first chair to ever have a 4-year term and so having our chair on the ground and being part of the community really opened a conduit of information and enthusiasm for getting this done.

MR: Do you see the concert moving around the country? Returning to LA? Staying in Nashville?
PORTNOW: The great thing for us is that we view most of what we do as an artist would view a fresh canvas. So we have fresh canvas to paint on on an annual basis. I like that fact that we have no restrictions or requirements that can’t be evaluated regularly. This is the first move for this particular project and we’ll see how it goes. I’m hopeful that it’s going to be a major homerun and a great experience. So afterwards we’ll come back and take a look at it and see what makes sense for the following year.

*****

The GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!! — Countdown To Music’s Biggest Night airs tonight (12/5) on CBS live from the Bridgestone Area at 9 p.m. CT. For details on tonight’s event, click here.

Brad Long – Everybody Wants You

Sometimes you hear a musician perform, and you immediately know that with hard work and a few breaks, this artist is going to make it. Brad Long’s clear, powerful, yet controlled tenor voice and rock-tinged country style absolutely shout “Nashville star.” He has the sound, the look, the style, and the songs. He has a strong work ethic and a desire to continually improve. And as a result, he is making the connections.

Hailing from Myrtle Beach, and now a resident of Conway, SC, He made the obligatory move to Nashville, where he was mentored by country-music great Teddy Gentry, co-founder and bassist of the legendary supergroup Alabama and a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame.

After a sojourn in Nashville, Long moved back to South Carolina and kept on working, touring constantly and keeping his Nashville connections active. He has shared the stage with such luminaries as Dwight Yoakam, Craig Morgan, Little Big Town, Jason Aldean, Rodney Atkins, Jimmy Wayne, and Justin Moore. He polished his stage performances to a high gloss and continues to strive to improve. In short, he’s doing all of the things a budding country star needs to do to gain lasting success.

Nancy Shapiro Honored By Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

(l-r): Vice President of Museum Programs Jay Orr, Randy Scruggs, Nancy Shapiro, Gibson Guitar Corporation President Dave Berryman, Gary Scruggs, Museum Editor Michael Gray and Gibson Foundation Executive Director Nina Miller. Photo: Donn Jones

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Sixth Annual Louise Scruggs Memorial Forum Presented by the Gibson Foundation honored Recording Academy President of Membership Services Nancy Shapiro on Monday (Dec. 3) during an event at the Hall’s Ford Theater.

After joining the Recording Academy in 1985, Shapiro championed programs involving music and education communities across the country. Shapiro is the highest ranking woman at the Recording Academy, the organization behind the Grammy Awards, the charitable MusiCares Foundation and more.

Shapiro studied elementary education at the University of Oklahoma and spent time as a stay-at-home mom before moving with her family to Nashville in 1975. She worked as a catering sales manager for a Nashville hotel and then as a publicist for a TV production company before accepting a position as executive director of the Recording Academy’s Nashville Chapter in 1985.

Nearly three decades later, Shapiro has risen through the ranks, serving as South Regional Director and then National Field Director. She helped establish five new chapters—Texas, Florida, Pacific Northwest, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. In 2012, Shapiro was promoted to Senior Vice President of Membership Services. Based in Nashville and Los Angeles, she oversees all 12 of the Recording Academy chapters across the country, as well as the organization’s Corporate Governance, GRAMMY U, Producers & Engineers Wing and GRAMMY Professional Development arms.

• • •

Other upcoming events at the Hall include a Sat., Dec. 15 panel discussion and concert in conjunction with current exhibition The Bakersfield Sound: Buck Owens, Merle Haggard and California Country. The panel discussion, titled California Angels: Women of West Coast Country, will feature five artists who rose to prominence while performing in the Golden State: Kay AdamsLorrie Collins,Rosie FloresRose Lee Maphis and Country Music Hall of Fame member Jean Shepard. The program, which will be moderated by California-based music journalist Scott B. Bomar, begins at 11:00 a.m. in the Ford Theater.

At 2:00 p.m., Rosie Flores will return to the Ford Theater stage for a concert. Both programs are included with museum admission and free for museum members. Details at www.countrymusichalloffame.org.

Industry Photos (12/4/2012)

Lady Antebellum was honored with the CMA’s International Artist Achievement Award, formerly the International Touring Artist Award during the trio’s press conference Monday (12/3) announcing LadyAID. The award, presented by CMA’s Steve Moore, recognizes outstanding achievement by a U.S.-based artist who contributes to the awareness and development of Country Music outside the U.S. The “Need You Now” trio has performed in 11 countries with recognitions from the CCMA (Canada), Brit Awards (UK), CMC Music Awards (Australia) and Juno Awards (Canada).

Pictured (L-R): Hillary Scott, Moore, and Charles Kelley and Dave Haywood. Photo: Donn Jones

••••

BMG Chrysalis Nashville has signed artist/writer Hailey Steele to an exclusive songwriter agreement. Steele is a cowriter on Raelynn’s upcoming Republic Nashville single, “Boyfriend,” and was a previous contestant on The Voice.

BMG Chrysalis signs Hailey Steele. Pictured (L-R) Seated: Sara Johnson (Sr. Director, Creative), Hailey Steele, Tyler Middleton (atty., Graffam Middleton). Standing: Darrell Franklin (Executive VP), Scott Knabe (Scott Knabe Management), and BMI's Bradley Collins. Photo: Drew Maynard

 ••••

The ACM welcomed Jason Sturgeon as a professional member of the organization. He visited the ACM offices recently during a trip to Los Angeles and performed current single, “Time Bomb.” Click here to watch a video of the visit.

Pictured (L-R): Michelle Goble (Membership & Industry Relations), Jason Sturgeon, Dennis Kurtz (Showgun Ent.). Photo: Michel Bourquard

Clint Black’s Father Passes

MusicRow extends condolences to Clint Black and his family on the recent loss of Black’s father, G.A. Black, who died on Sunday (Dec. 2) at the age of 78. According to a statement, it is believed that the elder Black chose to end his own suffering due to the loss of his wife and his own declining health. He had given no prior indication of his plans to family or friends.

“Our family is devastated by this news,” Clint said via a statement. “We are still in the beginning stages of preparations to honor our father, and at this time, we respectfully ask for privacy until we have had the opportunity to fully process what’s transpired over the last 48 hours.”Black is survived by sons Mark, Brian, Kevin, Clint and his extended family.