Tennessee Radio Hall of Fame to Induct Second Class in May

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tennessee radio hall of fame1The second class of the Tennessee Radio Hall of Fame will be inducted on May 4 at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Murfreesboro, Tenn.
Career Category:
Tommy Jett, “The Tommy Jett Good Time Oldies Rock and Roll Variety Show”
Charlie Chase, co-host of “Crook & Chase.”
Pat Sajak, former WSM-AM personality and host of Wheel of Fortune.
Rick Dees, disc jockey, television host who had a hit song with “Disco Duck.”
George Klein, disc jockey, television host and longtime friend to Elvis Presley. Current host of Elvis Radio on SiriusXM and on the George Klein Original Elvis Hour on WKQK-FM.
Bob McKay, station owner from Columbia, Tenn.
Les Acree, radio pioneer and mentor to many in the industry.
Legacy Category:
Rufus Thomas, R&B broadcaster and a recording star himself with hits like “Walkin’ the Dog” and “(Do the) Push and Pull.”
Drue Smith, a Chattanooga native who wrote for both the Chattanooga papers before spending several decades reporting the news on radio stations across the state.
Coyote McCloud, known as “Bill Scott” while working at WGOW in the early ’70s, went on to superstardom in Nashville, and was dubbed by CBS “America’s 1st shock jock.”
George Mooney, owned a number of stations in Tennessee and was also involved in the Tennessee Volunteer Network.
Allen Dennis, whose four-decade radio career started at WRIP in Chattanooga. He spent much of his career in Nashville.
Dewey Phillips, The longtime Memphis DJ was the very first to ever play anything by Elvis, “That’s All Right Mama.”
Luke Medley, Cookville, Tenn., WHUB.
Noel Ball, a Top 40 DJ in Nashville who also did a lot of TV work.
Tennessee Ernie Ford, best known for singing the hit “Sixteen Tons,” he began his career in radio in Bristol, Tenn.

Creative Nation Signs Maggie Chapman

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Pictured (L-R): Creative Nation’s Co-Owner/Songwriter/Producer Luke Laird, BMI’s Jody Williams, Creative Nation’s Co-Owner/General Manager Beth Laird, Maggie Chapman, Creative Nation’s Creative Manager Julie Stuckey and Maggie's attorney, David Crow. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Creative Nation

Pictured (L-R): Creative Nation’s Co-Owner/Songwriter/Producer Luke Laird, BMI’s Jody Williams, Creative Nation’s Co-Owner/General Manager Beth Laird, Maggie Chapman, Creative Nation’s Creative Manager Julie Stuckey and Maggie’s attorney, David Crow. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Creative Nation.


Creative Nation celebrated the signing of songwriter/artist Maggie Chapman by hosting an intimate gathering Monday evening (March 18) at the company’s office in Nashville. Friends, family and members of the music industry community were on hand to join in the festivities.

“Even before Maggie has her driver’s license, she’s writing about mature subject matter that is original and at the same time refreshing,” shares Creative Nation’s Co-Owner/General Manager Beth Laird of the young writer. “She is holding her own with some of the biggest names in Nashville, although she continues to write prolific songs by herself. We are so happy that Maggie has joined the Creative Nation team!”
Creative Nation is home to hit songwriters Luke Laird and Barry Dean and newly signed duo Native Run. The company touts over 27 cuts including major label artists’ cuts, production deals on major label artists, film soundtrack and TV placements, and the ConAgra “Child Hunger Ends Here” campaign theme song performed by Jewel, Jay Sean, Owl City and Little Big Town.

Stars To Perform at Jack Greene Memorial Service

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Jack Greene

Jack Greene


A memorial service for Grand Ole Opry member Jack Greene will include numerous musical tributes. The service will be held Wed., March 27 at 11 a.m. at the Ryman Auditorium.
Greene passed away on March 14 at age 83. Read his obituary.
Scheduled to perform are Vince Gill, Lorrie Morgan, Gene Watson, Mandy Barnett, The Whites, Ricky Skaggs, Penn Pennington, Joe Rucker and members of the Opry band.
Expected to give eulogies are Dallas Frazier, Jeannie Seely, Keith Bilbrey, Charlie Ammerman and Roxanne Atwood.
The public is invited to attend.

Artist Updates (3-21-13)

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Darius Rucker released a teaser of his upcoming video for his single “Wagon Wheel.”  The single features backing vocals from Lady Antebellum and was originally performed by Old Crow Medicine Show.

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brad paisley wheelhouseA special edition Brad Paisley’s Wheelhouse will be available on April 9 at all Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® locations and online at crackerbarrel.com and select digital retailers. The release includes three additional exclusive tracks and coincides with Paisley’s Wheelhouse standard edition release on Arista Nashville.
Among the special guests joining Paisley on Wheelhouse – Special Edition are Charlie Daniels, LL COOL J, Eric Idle, Mat Kearney, Dierks Bentley, Hunter Hayes and the late Roger Miller. Paisley produced his new album and wrote or co-wrote all 17 of the tracks.

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Wynonna

Wynonna


Wynonna will continue her recent media blitz with an interview on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Friday (March 22). The entertainer made her debut on Dancing With The Stars on Monday, the same evening her GAC documentary Wynonna and Cactus: The Road Back aired. Yesterday, she interviewed with Access Hollywood: Live.
 

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deep roots steven curtis chapmanSteven Curtis Chapman’s new CD with Cracker Barrel Old Country Store®, Deep Roots, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Bluegrass Albums Chart and No. 2 on the Contemporary Christian Chart. The CD, released on March 11, is available exclusively at all Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® locations, iTunes, crackerbarrel.com and Amazon.com.
 

Snapshots: Sixth Annual Jeffrey Steele and Friends Concert

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Jeffrey Steele and a string of high-profile musical buddies took the stage for a sold-out show during the sixth annual Jeffrey Steele and Friends benefit concert. The event, held March 12 at Franklin Theatre in Franklin, Tenn., featured Billy Ray Cyrus, Gloriana, Colt Ford, Chris Janson, The Shuggah Pies, LoCash Cowboys and others. GAC’s Storme Warren hosted the event.
Funds from the concert benefited the Alex LeVasseur Memorial Fund of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.

Jeffrey Steele and Gloriana

Jeffrey Steele and Gloriana


Pictured (L-R): Billy Ray Cyrus, Chris Janson, LoCash Cowboys

Pictured (L-R): Billy Ray Cyrus, Chris Janson, LoCash Cowboys


The Suggah Pies and Jeffrey Steele

The Shuggah Pies and Jeffrey Steele


jeffrey steele and friends photo1

Pictured: Chris Janson, The Shuggah Pies, Shay Mooney, Storme Warren, Colt Ford, LoCash Cowboys, Tom Hambridge, Tommy MacDonald, Steve Cirkvencic, Jeffrey Steele


Jeffrey Steele and Colt Ford

Jeffrey Steele and Colt Ford


 
 

SiriusXM To Host Town Hall With Blake Shelton

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Blake_0050_5x7Blake Shelton will participate in a Q&A session with a group of SiriusXM listeners at the SiriusXM Music City Theatre in Nashville. Storme Warren will moderate “SiriusXM’s Town Hall with Blake Shelton” on Sun., March 24.
Listeners who want to attend can tune in to The Highway or visit www.siriusxm.com/townhall for details. SiriusXM listeners are also invited to submit a question for Shelton by Tweeting @SiriusXM and using the hashtag #SXMTownHall or posting a question on SiriusXM’s Facebook page.
The special will debut on The Highway, channel 59, on Tues., March 26 at 12:00 pm ET. That is release day for his latest album Based On A True Story. Rebroadcast times can be found at www.siriusxm.com/townhall.
Previous “SiriusXM Town Hall” specials have featured Bruce Springsteen, Taylor Swift, Willie Nelson, Tim McGraw, Tom Petty, Coldplay, Alicia Keys, Jason Aldean, Usher, Tony Bennett, Aerosmith, Ringo Starr, Roger Waters and Kris Kristofferson.

Dove Awards To Be Held Oct. 15 at Lipscomb University's Allen Arena

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doveChristian music’s Dove Awards will return to Nashville after taking place for two years in Atlanta. The Dove Awards will take place at Lipscomb University’s Allen Arena on Oct. 15.
A move to presenting in the fall marks a large shift for the awards show, one that should help build awareness of new releases going into the all-important holiday season. Jackie Patillo, executive director of the Gospel Music Association, told AccessAtlanta that an important factor in the decision to move the awards show back to Nashville is that the bulk of the Christian music industry is still based in Music City. “It was time to come home,” Patillo said.
Dove Award nominees will be announced on Aug. 22. For the first time, the awards will include a feature film category to recognize the impact of inspirational movies within the entertainment community.
GMC TV will air the awards show.
 

[Updated] Lifenotes: Janet Rickman

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Janet Rickman with Reba McEntire in 2012.

Janet Rickman with Reba McEntire in 2012.


Longtime music industry publicist Janet Rickman passed away Tuesday, March 19 at Alive Hospice after a year long battle with cancer.
Her career began as a publicist for PolyGram -Mercury/Nashville in the mid 1970s working with The Statler Brothers, Johnny Rodriguez and a young Reba McEntire. This led to stints in the Los Angeles and New York publicity departments of Mercury Records where she worked closely with Tears for Fears, Rush and John Mellencamp among others. Rickman later returned to her Nashville home to head up the MCA Nashville publicity and video department, where she worked extensively with artists such as Reba McEntire, Vince Gill, George Strait, Patty Loveless, Marty Stuart, Trisha Yearwood and more. She retired from MCA Nashville in the late 90s and began a second career with the Nashville Library.
No memorial service is planned but donations may be made to a library of your choice.
Reba has fond memories of Rickman, sharing a favorite memory. “I just found out today that my friend of many years, Janet Rickman, has gone on to the big library in the sky. We had many good times together but one in particular I remember was the time Janet picked me up at the Nashville airport and drove me to my hotel. She even walked me to my room, to make sure everything was in order, when we found the mattress off the bed, sheets thrown everywhere, lamps turned over and the whole room in a mess. Janet was NOT happy about that! 🙂  She indignantly closed the door and ushered me back to her car. She drove me straight to the Spence Manor, a more private and more up scale hotel off Music Row. Now, I had always wanted to stay at the Spence Manor and Janet was the one to get me in!
“I loved working with Janet,” she continues. “She was one of a kind. I didn’t see her much but knowing she’s passed on, makes me realize, once again, how quickly things can change. Because I didn’t get to say goodbye to Janet, her passing reminded me to let people know how much they mean to me. So while it may take some time of me letting you know in person, let me say now to my friends in the music business, thank you for all your love and support during my years in this wonderful business. Here’s to many more great times together.”
 

Sugar Hill Records Adds Director, Artist & Media Relations

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Jess Draper

Jess Draper


Sugar Hill Records has added Jess Draper as Director, Artist & Media Relations. She replaces Donica Christensen, who left in January.
Most recently, Draper was the Director of Publicity at The Media Collective. Prior to her post at The Media Collective, her career has included time as Manager of Creative Services at ASCAP and Music Editor at Performing Songwriter.
Draper can be reached at (615) 915-3049 or at [email protected].
 

No. 1 Party: Gary Allan's "Every Storm (Runs Out of Rain)"

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Pictured (L-R): BMI’s Clay Bradley, Lytle Management’s John Lytle, producer Greg Droman, Gary Allan, co-writers Hillary Lindsey and Matt Warren, ASCAP’s Mike Sistad, MCA Nashville’s Mike Dungan and BMG’s Kos Weaver. Photo by John Russell

Pictured (L-R): BMI’s Clay Bradley, Lytle Management’s John Lytle, producer Greg Droman, Gary Allan, co-writers Hillary Lindsey and Matt Warren, ASCAP’s Mike Sistad, MCA Nashville’s Mike Dungan and BMG’s Kos Weaver. Photo by John Russell.


Gary Allan, Matt Warren and Hillary Lindsey celebrated their No. 1 single, “Every Storm (Runs Out of Rain)” recently in Nashville. BMI’s Clay Bradley and ASCAP’s Mike Sistad co-hosted the event, held at Nashville’s Sambuca.
Allan received a guitar from BMI for his first No. 1 hit as a co-writer. BMI No. 1 cups were also given to Greg Droman and Mike Dungan. The crowd got a surprise when Dungan, Sr. VP, Promotion Royce Risser and VP, National Promotion Van Haze all took the stage in kilts.
Sistad honored ASCAP writers Warren and Lindsey for the chart-topping single. It also marked the first No. 1 song for Warren, who used to coordinate merchandise on the road for Allan.
Awards and plaques were given to the songwriters and artist from Dungan, the Country Music Association’s Brandi Simms, Country Radio Broadcasters’ Bradford Hollingsworth and Avenue Bank’s Ron Cox. Cox noted that Allan was slated to perform in the New York area when Hurricane Sandy hit earlier this year. On behalf of the songwriters, Avenue Bank made a donation to the Red Cross Hurricane Sandy Relief Fund.
Allan was quick to thank his two co-writers, especially Matt for introducing him to co-writer Lindsey. “I like writing with friends so if you don’t know Matt or Odie [Blackmon], it’s hard to get into my living room [to write],” quipped Allan.
The strong friendship among the three writers was obvious. “We support each other’s successes,” said Lindsey after thanking the crowd for sharing in the moment. “That shows what this town is about.” Lindsey, who has also been a vocalist on the road with Allan, also showed gratitude to his band members. “His band is amazing. Obviously he is a talent, but he’s a good man and has a good heart and good people around him. I’m so happy that you called and brought me in [to co-write].”