Leadership Music Application Deadline Coming Soon

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leadership musicThe deadline to apply for Leadership Music’s Class of 2015 is Monday, March 31. Applications from established industry leaders will be accepted at leadershipmusic.org until 5:00 p.m. on March 31. The selection process commences in early April, and applicants will be notified of their selection in late May.
Leadership Music is a 501(c)(3) educational non-profit organization. The Nashville-based, eight month education program begins in September and is intended to create understanding among professionals in different segments of the music industry. Participants are required to attend an orientation, all-day sessions once a month on Fridays, plus opening and closing retreats during the program.
Leadership Music has graduated more than 1,000 music industry-related executives since 1990.

Lari White Produces 'Shoe Burnin'' Album

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shoe burninSeveral Nashville songwriters contributed to a new book and companion CD titled The Shoe Burnin’: Stories of Southern Soul.
Lari White produced the companion CD that includes 18 works. She also makes her debut as an author with her “Girl Shoes” story in the book.
Among the 24 authors and singer-songwriters who contributed to the project are Chuck Cannon, Lisa Carver, Chuck Jones, and guest vocalist Sarah Buxton.
Here’s a little history behind the title, according to a press release: The first Shoe Burnin’ originated when a group of writers found themselves in a cabin with no firewood — only a box full of old shoes. As each shoe was thrown into the fire, they made up stories about it. Over time, this became a tradition, and in remembrance, many stories and songs shared since have involved shoes — all the places they trod and the myriad experiences of those who wore them.

Columbia Nashville Inks Strategic Partnership With Chase Rice

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Pictured (L-R): Triple 8 Management's George Couri; Columbia Nashville VP Promotion Norbert Nix; Chase Rice; Sony Music Nashville Chairman & CEO Gary Overton; Triple 8 Managment's Bruce Kalmick.Photo Credit: Alan Poizne

Pictured (L-R): Triple 8 Management’s George Couri; Columbia Nashville VP Promotion Norbert Nix; Chase Rice; Sony Music Nashville Chairman & CEO Gary Overton; Triple 8 Managment’s Bruce Kalmick.
Photo Credit: Alan Poizner


Chase Rice, Thirty Tigers, and RED Distribution have entered into a strategic partnership with Columbia Nashville. The Country label will begin promoting Rice’s Top 40 single, “Ready Set Roll,” at Country radio.
Rice’s Ready Set Roll EP, produced by Chris DeStefano and Scott Cooke, was released through his own label, Dack Janiels, LLC. Rice and management company Triple 8 Management then hired independent promotion company RPM to promote “Ready Set Roll,” which garnered the attention of Columbia Nashville. Rice is also a co-writer on Florida Georgia Line‘s debut hit, “Cruise.”
Gary Overton, Chairman & CEO, Sony Music Nashville said, “We are extremely excited about our new relationship with Chase and having him on our Columbia Nashville roster. He and his team have created a tremendous buzz about him, his music and his live shows and we are ready to help them break it wide open across the country.”
“It started out with me pounding the pavement and playing anywhere I could that involved reaching the fans,” shares Rice. “It’s grown into this really incredible entity where the #CRew spreads the word about our music and our shows for us. We’ve played based on where they demanded us—so when we were approached to take it to the next level, we knew we had to take advantage of the opportunity for them.”
“This partnership really strengthens the backbone of Chase’s organization,” shares Rice’s manager, Bruce Kalmick, Triple 8 Management. “We hope to leverage their promotional team’s passion to catapult his story on a grander scale both regarding sales and radio success.”
“Ready Set Roll” debuted at No. 1 on iTunes’ sales chart and has sold over 260,000 copies. A full album is expected for release in summer 2014.

Florida Georgia Line Launching "This Is How We Cruise" In November

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how we cruise logo
Duo Florida Georgia Line has been gearing up to bring their party from land to sea. The duo, in partnership with Sixthman Ltd., will debut the “This is How We Cruise” music festival aboard the Norwegian Pearl from Nov. 8-12.
Rapper Nelly, Thomas Rhett, Colt Ford, The Cadillac Three, Canaan Smith, and Chris Lane will join Florida Georgia Line on the cruise. The musical venture will depart from Miami, Fla., traveling to Great Stirrup Cay, Norwegian’s private island in the Bahamas. The Norwegian Pearl will offer 13 bars and lounges, 19 dining experiences, an outdoor pool, hot tubs, spa, fitness center and more.
Florida Georgia Line is currently on tour with Jason Aldean‘s Night Train Tour, and will soon begin the This Is How We Roll Summer Series 2014, featuring Nelly and Chris Lane.
For more information and reservations, visit fglcruise.com.

Industry Ink (3/27/14)

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SESAC recently hosted an afternoon of music and politics when Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) visited the New York offices to talk about the Songwriter Equity Act. The bill, co-sponsored by Jeffries along with Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA), endeavors to modernize the music licensing system by updating provisions to the Copyright Act of 1976 to ensure songwriters are fairly compensated for their creative work. During the afternoon meeting Jeffries was treated to some incredible music courtesy of SESAC-affiliated songwriter/artists such as Angela Hunte, Michael Michel, Steve Cooper, Martha Redbone and Tiombe Lockhart.

Front Row: SESAC’s Pat Collins. Back Row (L-R): Michael Michel, SESAC’s Keenan Popwell, Diane Blagman (Greenberg Traurig & SESAC Legislative Advocate), Steve Cooper, Martha Redbone, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, SESAC’s Trevor Gale & Jamie Dominguez, Angela Hunte, Tiombe Lockhart, Kirsten Donaldson (Legislative Director and Counsel to Rep. Jeffries) and SESAC’s Linda Lorence Critelli. Photo: Jerritt Clark

Front Row: SESAC’s Pat Collins. Back Row (L-R): Michael Michel, SESAC’s Keenan Popwell, Diane Blagman (Greenberg Traurig & SESAC Legislative Advocate), Steve Cooper, Martha Redbone, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, SESAC’s Trevor Gale & Jamie Dominguez, Angela Hunte, Tiombe Lockhart, Kirsten Donaldson (Legislative Director and Counsel to Rep. Jeffries) and SESAC’s Linda Lorence Critelli. Photo: Jerritt Clark

 • • •

TweelXSongwriter Billy Montana has added his catalog to TweelX, a Nashville-based company that acquires songs through digital publishing and co-publishing arrangements with labels and publishers. It also issues stock in these songs to accredited investors.
“TweelX provides the opportunity for investors to participate in one of the most exciting industries there is,” says Montana. “At the same time, it gives songwriters and musicians a way to partner with people who appreciate their creative work and are willing to share in the potential for its growth and success. It’s a win—win, and I’m excited to be a part of it.”
Under the TweelX model, investors have the ability to buy stock in music and obtain a cut of song royalties. By pairing a music publishing operation with an online trading platform, TweelX has established a securities market in single songs.

 • • •

jcm111Nashville’s Johnny Cash Museum recently took home the top honor, the 2014 Award of Excellence, at the Tennessee Association of Museums Conference. Exec. Director Sydney Robinson and founder Bill Miller were recognized for their “superlative achievement for the permanent exhibition.”

Miller and Robinson were awarded the honor in a ceremony held at the General Morgan Inn in Greenville, Tenn.

                                                         • • •

ctmA night with Marcus Hummon and the premier of “The Passion,” a cantata he produced, will take place April 4, 2014, at Christ Church Cathedral in Nashville at 7:30 p.m. The free event will also feature Chris Roberts, the Belmont Chamber Singers and narrator Rev. Becca Stevens. “The Passion” is being released on CTM Records.

In Photos: Tin Pan South 2014's Wednesday Shows

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Station Inn Late Wednesday 3.26.14 Moments By Moser 84

Station Inn’s Late Show on Wednesday, March 26. Photo: Bev Moser


Special guests abounded at last night’s (Wednesday, March 26) round of Tin Pan South 2014 shows. Jan Howard made an appearance at the Late Show at Station Inn, while Jewel filled in for Jamie Spears at the Bluebird Cafe (Spears was on her honeymoon). Nashville actor Sam Palladio (who portrays Gunnar) performed with the Rutledge early show, and brought along fellow cast members Chaley Rose (who plays Zoey Dalton), and Aubrey Peeples (who plays Layla Grant).
Last night’s shows featured the likes of Tom Douglas, Brett Jones, Dave Turnbull, Marty Dodson, Liz Rose, Lisa Carver, Josh Dorr, Chase Bryant, Vince Gill, Sherrie Austin, Steve Bogard, Leslie Satcher, Larry Gatlin, Justin Wilson, Rob Hatch, Buddy Jewel, Jeff Bates, Billy Yates, Jessi Alexander, Josh Kear, Sarah Zimmermann and Justin Davis of Striking Matches, Karyn Rochelle, John & Jacob, Craig Campbell, and numerous other incredibly talented singer-songwriters.
See below for photos from last night’s shows. All photos by Bev Moser.
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Tech Bytes: Twitter Back In Music Game With 'Billboard' Chart

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Twitter copy
Billboard and Twitter have teamed for a chart that will track US music conversations among the millions of Tweets sent each day. The Billboard Twitter Real-Time Charts will be the first real-time charts on the Billboard platforms and a continuation of the publication’s integration of new media music consumption in its chart rankings. A Twitter Amplify partnership will help distribute the chart beyond Billboard.com and include custom in-Tweet charts and in-Tweet video round ups of the week in music on Twitter.
Twitter closed its failing Music app last week, and apparently this is part of its new music strategy. According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, the new plan centers around music conversations and content on Twitter itself, instead of a separate app. The social media company has been in talks with Beats Music, SoundCloud and Vevo.
• Spotify is offering its Premium subscription service to college students in the United States for $4.99; a 50 percent discount from the regular price.
• Facebook is gobbling up companies, including virtual reality headset maker Oculus for $2 billion and WhatsApp for $19 billion. Its $3 billion bid for SnapChat was rejected. Billboard wonders is Mark Zuckerberg is a visionary or living in his own virtual reality.
• Last.fm is scrapping its subscription radio service, which pulls music from its own servers, and replacing it with music piped in from YouTube and Spotify.

'Nashville: On The Record' To Air April 23 On ABC

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nashville on the record1

Cast members from ABC’s Nashville, along with some of Music City’s top singer-songwriters, will be featured in a one-hour music special set to air on Wednesday, April 23 at 10 p.m. ET on ABC. Filmed at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium and Bluebird Cafe, Nashville: On The Record marks the television show’s first music special. Nashville cast members including Hayden Panettiere (“Juliette”), Charles Esten (“Deacon”), Clare Bowen (“Scarlett”), Sam Palladio (“Gunnar”) and Lennon & Maisy Stella (“Maddie” and “Daphne”) will take part in the event.

Among the songwriters appearing are Trent Dabbs and Caitlyn Smith, who co-wrote “Don’t Put Dirt On My Grave Just Yet,” as well as Striking Matches (comprised of Sarah Zimmermann and Justin Davis), who co-wrote “I Ain’t Leaving Without Your Love” with Cary Barlowe. Also appearing is Ashley Monroe, who co-wrote “A Life That’s Good” with Sarah Siskind.

Nashville: On The Record began as a documentary web series that follows the life of original songs performed on Nashville, from the songs’ creation to the on-air premiere. The series offers a looking at the complete songwriting process.

Buddy Miller is Executive Music Producer of Nashville: On the Record and George Flanigen is executive producer and director.
Nashville is executive-produced by Dee Johnson, R.J. Cutler, Callie Khouri and Steve Buchanan. Miller serves as Executive Music Producer, while Frankie Pine works as Music Supervisor. All original music is released by ABC Studios, Lionsgate and ABC Music Lounge in association with Big Machine Records.

Stars Shine For Charlie Daniels Benefit Concert at Lipscomb

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CharlieandLuke111

Charlie Daniels and Luke Bryan


Luke Bryan and Lee Greenwood were the surprise guests Tuesday night (March 25) at Nashville’s Lipscomb University for the Copperweld Charlie Daniels’ Scholarship for Heroes event. Additional performers included the Charlie Daniels Band, Kellie Pickler, The Grascals, the U.S. Navy Band Sea Chanters, and the American Hitmen, who were on the bill to celebrate military veterans and to raise funds for the national Veterans Yellow Ribbon education program.
Greenwood performed early during the event with a rendition of his anthem, “God Bless the USA.”
“The sacrifices these veterans and their families have made help keep our country free,” stated Bryan. “We should take care of them in whatever ways that we can, and that includes a good college education.”
Proceeds from the event benefited Lipscomb University’s Charlie Daniels Scholarship for Heroes Fund.
The event, sponsored by Copperweld, Humana, Grand Avenue, Twice Daily, Clear Channel, Shofner Vision Center, Lipscomb, Glover Group Entertainment, and produced by David Corlew & Associates, was streamed live worldwide by Blue Scout Media and will also be broadcast to all US military bases in coming weeks by the Pentagon Channel and Armed Forces TV.
To view the show, visit stagehop.com.
Charlie and Luke2111

Charlie Daniels and Luke Bryan


Kellie Pickler

Kellie Pickler

[Updated]: Industry Ink (3/26/14)

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trace adkins

Trace Adkins


[Updated, 5:17 p.m. CT]
Country artist Trace Adkins‘ wife Rhonda Adkins has filed for divorce in Williamson County, citing irreconcilable differences, according to ABC News. She is asking for primary custody of the couple’s three children, for Trace Adkins to pay child support, alimony and all her legal fees.
The couple has been married for 16 years, and both live in Brentwood, Tenn., just south of Nashville.

• • •

[Previous story, 10:05 a.m. CT]

 
SoundExchange has announced two key promotions within the company’s senior management team. Anjula Singh, Senior Vice President of Finance and Administration, is promoted to Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Colin Rushing, General Counsel, is promoted to Senior Vice President and General Counsel, effective immediately.
As Chief Financial Officer, Singh has more than 20 years of experience in corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, and audits. Singh began her career as an auditor at KPMG L.L.P., a global audit, advisory and tax services firm. Prior to SoundExchange, Singh served as Director of Corporate Accounting for The AES Corporation, a global Fortune 200 affordable energy company.
Formerly General Counsel for SoundExchange, Rushing helped expand the organization’s international presence and increase regulatory and advocacy initiatives on behalf of the creative community and more. Previously, he was an attorney at WilmerHale in Washington, D.C., where his focus was intellectual property and media law.

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Wide Open Music Group has brought Amanda Flynn into the fold as Creative Director. She will represent and manage the catalogs of Trent Tomlinson, Ash Bowers, Tim Owens, Steve Williams and her own material.

“Amanda was the breath of fresh air we were starving for. She not only knows and loves country music, she’s also very well respected and extremely professional for such a young lady and Lord knows that’s not easy to find,” Wide Open Founder and Owner Steve Williams said. “She’s so passionate and fiercely driven by great songs and we are so fired up to have her on board.”
Pictured (L-R): Steve Williams, Ash Bowers, Amanda , Trent Tomlinson, BMI's Perry Howard

Pictured (L-R): Steve Williams, Ash Bowers, Amanda Flynn, Trent Tomlinson, BMI’s Perry Howard.

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Josh Thompson recently visited Nashville’s Blackbird Studio, with producer/director Stokes Nielson and Butch Waugh (artist relations), where Thompson taped an episode of Country Now’s “Hear & Now: Live From Blackbird Studio.” Thompson performed three songs from his upcoming release Turn It Up, including the single “Cold Beer With Your Name On It.”

Pictured (L-R): Stokes Nielson, Josh Thompson and Butch Waugh.

Pictured (L-R): Stokes Nielson, Josh Thompson and Butch Waugh.