Blake Shelton, Rihanna Among 2014 iHeartRadio Award Winners

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blake shelton iheart

Blake Shelton at the iHeartRadio Music Awards. Photo: Brian Friedman for iHeartRadio

Blake Shelton brought home another trophy for his awards shelf Thursday night (May 1) at the inaugural 2014 iHeartRadio Music Awards. Shelton’s “Boys ‘Round Here” was honored as Best Country Song. The popular hit was penned by Craig Wiseman, Dallas Davidson and Rhett Akins. Shelton performed his current single, “Doin’ What She Likes,” during the broadcast.

R&B artist Rihanna was the major winner of the evening, earning awards for Best Hip-Hop/R&B Song (“Pour It Up”), Song of the Year (“Stay,” featuring Mikky Ekko), Artist of the Year, and Best Fan Army (Rihanna Navy). Teen pop star Lorde earned Best New Artist, while Ariane Grande won the Young Influencer honor.
Among the Nashville artists and personalities attending the show were Luke Bryan, Billy Ray Cyrus, Nashville actor Sam Palladio, and radio personality Bobby Bones.
A full list of iHeartRadio Music Award winners is below.
BEST HIP-HOP/R&B SONG
Rihanna, “Pour It Up”
BEST COLLABORATION
Pitbull feat. Kesha, “Timber”
BEST LYRICS
Miley Cyrus, “Wrecking Ball”
BEST NEW ARTIST
Lorde
BEST FAN ARMY
Rihanna Navy
BEST INSTAGRAM
Austin Mahone
YOUNG INFLUENCER
Ariane Grande
BEST ALTERNATIVE ROCK SONG
Imagine Dragons, “Demons”
SONG OF THE YEAR
Rihanna featuring Mikky Ekko, “Stay”
BEST COUNTRY SONG
Blake Shelton, “Boys ‘Round Here”
BEST EDM SONG
Avicii, “Wake Me Up”
INNOVATOR AWARD
Pharrell
ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Rihanna

Big Yellow Dog Signs Guerreso, Hires DeVries

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Claire Guerro

Claire Guerreso


Singer-songwriter Claire Guerreso has signed with Big Yellow Dog Music. The Colorado native previously released three albums under the name The Little Bear, with Plastic 350 Records/Infinity Cat Records, with producer Robert Ellis Orrall. Most recently, her original song “Hide and Seek” was featured in the first season of CW series Reign.
Additionally, Big Yellow Dog Music has hired Devon DeVries as VP, Create-Film & TV/A&R. DeVries is a former professional wrestler and previously worked as Creative Director at Essential Publishing-PMG/Sony Music Entertainment. DeVries has worked in the Los Angeles offices of Paramount Pictures TV Music, as well as Extreme/Sony ATV.
Devon DeVries

Devon DeVries


“Devon’s unmatched enthusiasm rounds out our BYD team. He compliments our collective passion for songs and songwriters,” says Carla Wallace, BYD’s President and co-owner.

OakPoint Purchases Music Circle Property For $1.35 Million

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2 music circle s111

2 Music Circle South, Nashville


OakPoint Real Estate has purchased the property located at 2 Music Circle S. for $1.35 million. The seller is listed as New Life International. The property includes a 9,118-square-foot office building, which has undergone renovations in recent years.
“We are enthusiastic about this investment in a quality property in a very dynamic and exciting location,” said Justin Albright, OakPoint principal. “The building will represent a long-term investment property for OakPoint, which plans to manage and lease the asset.”

ASCAP Expo Welcomes Hit Writers, Publishers

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HOLLYWOOD, CA- APRIL 26: Desmond Child: Brought In for Questioning at the 2014 ASCAP EXPO at the Loews Hollywood Hotel on April 26, 2014 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Michael Underwood/PictureGroup)

Desmond Child and John Stamos on April 26, 2014 in Hollywood.


Photos by PictureGroup
The ASCAP “I Create Music” EXPO was held April 24-26 at the Loews Hollywood Hotel. The conference for songwriters, composers and producers of all genres of music, hosted speakers including Jimmy Jam, Dr. Luke and ASCAP’s Paul Williams. Master Sessions featured Jermaine Dupri, Amy Grant and more.
Desmond Child, who has hits by Katy Perry, Meatloaf, Bon Jovi, KISS and many others, was interviewed by John Stamos on the Brought In for Questioning panel. Child’s advice to those in the audience: “Understand what it means to be an artist, and try to find what you can give before you can get.” 
country-feedback-panel

Country Feedback panelists Joe Fisher, Jimmy Robbins and Michael Knox


SONGS Music Publishing’s Tom DeSavia moderated the Getting Creative: How Publishers and Writers Work Together panel featuring Sony/ATV’s Jennifer Knoepfle, Combustion Music’s Chris Farren, BMG’s Andrew Gould, Universal Music Publishing’s Jessica Rivera and Warner/Chappell’s Greg Sowders. The session addressed the changing role of the publisher, the importance of writing songs that listeners find relatable, and songwriters staying focused.
LeAnn Phelan, the Senior Director of ASCAP in Nashville, led a Country Feedback panel featuring UMG Nashville A&R exec Joe Fisher, producer Michael Knox and hit writer Jimmy Robbins.
GettingCreative-620

Backstage at the Getting Creative panel (l-r): Greg Sowders, Jessica Rivera, Chris Farren, Jennifer Knoepfle, Tom DeSavia, Andrew Gould


ASCAP Nashville songwriter Shane McAnally also took part in the Expo’s closing “The Writers Jam” performance panel.

Pictured (L-R): Beth Orton, Shane McAnally, Julie Frost, Crystal Nicole and Desmond Child.

Pictured (L-R): Beth Orton, Shane McAnally, Julie Frost, Crystal Nicole and Desmond Child.

Performer Lineup Announced For Billy Block Fundraiser

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billy block

Billy Block


Play One For Billy, a fundraiser and tribute to longtime Nashville music industry member Billy Block, has released its lineup of performers. The event will take place Sunday, May 4 from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m. at The Listening Room in Nashville. Block is being treated for stage 4 metastatic melanoma.
The lineup includes Billy Adams, Al Anderson, Ella Mae Bowen, Ryan Broshear, Gary Burr, Chase Bryant, Aaron Eshuis, Feed The Birds, Wade Hayes, Kristen Kelly, Matt McGinn, Brittany McLamb, Buddy Miller, Logan Mize, Muddy Magnolias, Danny Myrick, Gary Nicholson, The Other Brother, Marc Scibilia, Striking Matches and others.
Doors will open at 4:30 p.m. and a $5 minimum donation is requested upon entry.
Billy and his family will be in attendance as the final band of the night (The Other Brother) will feature two of his sons (Rocky & Grady Block), to be introduced by Billy Block himself. The event is hosted by YEP Nashville, Crush Music and I.R.S. Records Nashville.

Industry Ink (5/1/14)

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Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) members Daisy Mallory, Hannah Ellis and Luke Caccetta, along with NSAI Board member Mark Irwin, performed at the Bluebird Cafe on Wednesday (April 30) as part of the NSAI Presents series.

Pictured (L-R): Mark Irwin, Daisy Mallory, NSAI Executive Director Bart Herbison, NSAI Song Evaluations Manager Amanda Toney, Hannah Ellis, and Luke Caccetta.

Pictured (L-R): Mark Irwin, Daisy Mallory, NSAI Executive Director Bart Herbison, NSAI Song Evaluations Manager Amanda Toney, Hannah Ellis, and Luke Caccetta.

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SOURCE and Leadership Music recently welcomed K.T. Oslin as part of Leadership Music’s quarterly “Off The Record” series. Oslin was interviewed by MusicRow journalist Robert K. Oermann. The luncheon was held at Sambuca restaurant in Nashville.

Pictured (L-R): Denise Nichols (President of SOURCE), K.T. Oslin and Laurie Hughes (Hughes & Kessler Law Firm). Photo: Denise Fussell

Pictured (L-R): Denise Nichols (President of SOURCE), K.T. Oslin and Laurie Hughes (Hughes & Kessler Law Firm). Photo: Denise Fussell

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CMA Corporate LogoThe Music Business Association has partnered with the Country Music Association to program the 2014 Country Music Meetup, to be held May 8 during the Music Biz 2014 conference at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles.
The event will feature members from Rdio, Made In Network, Nielsen Entertainment, Shazam and the CMA to discuss today’s Country music consumer and how Country music is accessed on physical, digital and mobile formats. Among those taking part are Emily Cohen (Rdio), Kevin Grosch (Made In Network), Eric Zino (Shazam), Karen Stump (CMA) and Julianne Schiffer (Nielsen Entertainment).
“Over the years, we’ve found that Country fans are often misunderstood when it comes to their lifestyles and format choices, and we’re looking forward to setting the record straight with this Country Meetup,” said Damon Whiteside, Sr. VP of Marketing and Partnerships at the CMA. “Music Biz as an organization has always been incredibly supportive of Country Music, and we’re happy they chose to spotlight it this year at their convention.”
For admission information, visit countrymusicmeetup.eventbrite.com.

 • • •

hit men11111 The classic music industry book Hit Men: Power Brokers and Fast Money Inside the Music Business is being re-released as a newly expanded edition on May 5, with a new chapter including events that occurred since it first debuted in 1990. The new edition includes the tale of music industry stalwart Steve Popovich‘s battle with Sony over royalties from Meat Loaf’s Bat Out of Hell album, which Billboard previewed. Popovich was head of Mercury Records from 1986-1988, where he signed Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Lynn Anderson, Billy Swan, Johnny Paycheck and others.
Popovich retired to Murfreesboro, Tenn. and died at his home on June 8, 2011, at age 68.

 
 

Kobalt Unveils YouTube Matching Technology ProKlaim

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kobalt
As royalties from YouTube continue rising, music publishers and record labels continue identifying opportunities to garner a portion of the payments. Kobalt Music Group has launched ProKlaim, a detection technology that identifies and claims copyrights being used in user-generated videos.
The company states that ProKlaim has matched more than 50 million videos and 1 billion YouTube streams per month.
“Our mission has always been to help artists and songwriters maximize their digital revenue,” said Willard Ahdritz, Founder and CEO of Kobalt Music Group. “Our technical integration with YouTube now allows us to do that in a groundbreaking way. We’ve been able to deliver 100 percent of Kobalt’s eligible catalog to YouTube with an extended range of high quality metadata for each song that enables much faster, more efficient content matching and reporting. It also enables us to deliver daily-automated feeds of updated new, claimed and blocked content to ensure we are quickly resolving any rights conflicts for our clients.”

Mark Your Calendar – May 2014

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all for the hallIndustry Events

May 1
iHeartRadio Music Awards airing live on NBC from Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium
May 3
2014 Tennessee Radio Hall of Fame inductions at the Embassy Suites in Murfreesboro
May 4
“Play One For Billy [Block]” will take place at The Listening Room from 5-8 p.m.
May 5
36th annual ASCAP Christian Music Awards at the historic Franklin Theatre
May 6
We’re All 4 The Hall at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena
May 7-11
19th Annual Key West Songwriters Festival presented by BMI
May 12
T.J. Martell Foundation honors Rob Beckham at its inaugural Ambassador of the Year event at Nashville’s The Rosewall at 6 p.m.
May 13
Grammy Block Party at Owen Bradley Park
May 16
Miranda Lambert: Backstage Access opens at the CMHoF
May 18
Billboard Music Awards live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on ABC
May 19
Roy Orbison’s Mystery Girl will screen at Nashville’s Belcourt Theatre
May 20
ACM Presents: An All-Star Salute To The Troops on the CBS, taped April 7 at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena
May 22-June 1
Americana Experience in Franklin, Tenn.
May 30-June 1
K-LOVE Fan Awards and Ultimate Fan Experience; award show at the Grand Ole Opry House

Single Add Dates

May 5
Chasin’ Crazy/That’s How We Do Summertime/RPME
May 12
Dan + Shay/Show You Off/Warner Bros.-WAR
Bucky Covington/Buzzin’/Barefootin’, Inc.
David Grey & Lisa Lee Albritton/We’re Out of Here/Cat 5 Records
Jordan Anderson/American Dream/GTR Nashville
May 19
Jerrod Niemann/Donkey/Arista
Randy Houser/Like A Cowboy/Stoney Creek Records
Grayson/Time Machine/Way Outback Records
Eric Von/I Can’t Help But Smile/HMG Nashville
May 26
Casey Donahew Band/Lovin Out of Control/Almost Country Ent.
Crystal Day/Drown/HMG Nashville

Album Releases

May 6
Hunter Hayes/Storyline/Atlantic Records-Warner Music Nashville
Leah Turner/Leah Turner [EP]/Columbia Nashville
Various/All My Friends: Celebrating the Songs & Voice of Gregg Allman/Rounder Records
Various/The Music of Nashville Season 2, Volume 2/Big Machine Records
Josh Dorr/Josh Dorr [EP]/RCA Records Nashville
May 13
Dolly Parton/Blue Smoke/Sony Music Masterworks-Dolly Records
Rascal Flatts/Rewind/Big Machine
Mary Sarah/Bridges/144 Entertainment
Radney Foster/Everything I Should Have Said/Devil’s River Records
May 19
Brantley Gilbert/Just As I Am/The Valory Music. Co.
Various Artists/Mud Digger 5/Average Joes
May 20
Roy Orbison/Mystery Girl – Deluxe [CD/DVD]/Legacy Recordings-Roy’s Boys
Hank Williams/The Garden Spot Programs, 1950/Omnivore Recordings
May 27
Jamie O’Neal/Eternal/Momentum Label Group

SESAC Signs Trey Smith of duo Smithfield

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SESAC has signed Trey Smith, of Bigger Picture recording duo Smithfield, for representation. Smith visited the performing rights organization’s Nashville office with his Smithfield partner Jennifer Fiedler to celebrate the new signing. Fiedler recently signed with ASCAP.
The Texas-raised duo moved to Nashville in 2012; they signed with Bigger Picture Group in 2013.

Pictured (L-R): Bigger Picture’s Jason Campbell, SESAC’s Dennis Lord and Smithfield’s Jennifer Fiedler & Trey Smith. Photo: Peyton Hoge

Pictured (L-R): Bigger Picture’s Jason Campbell, SESAC’s Dennis Lord and Smithfield’s Jennifer Fiedler & Trey Smith. Photo: Peyton Hoge

StubHub Bringing Concert Series to Nashville

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StubHub_logoSecondary ticketing site StubHub will launch two concert series, one produced in partnership with Pandora Presents, and the other produced on its own as StubHub’s Next Stage Concert Series, which will benefit the Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation.
The Pandora Presents concerts are free and feature emerging artists. Performers will be determined by using Pandora to analyze the musical preferences of local listeners. The series launches April 30 with Tokyo Police Club at Boulevard 3 in Los Angeles. Other stops will include Delta Spirit on May 27 in Boston, as well as yet to be announced artists in Nashville in June, San Francisco in July and Los Angeles in August.
StubHub’s Next Stage Concert Series benefitting Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation will kick off its self-produced and self-ticketed benefit concerts in Los Angeles on May 18 with the first artist being announced and tickets going on sale next week. This is the first of five concerts in the series which will continue in Nashville in June, San Francisco in August, Chicago in September and New York, NY in October.

For details visit www.stubhub.com/next-stage-concert-series.