Stone Door Media Lab Relocates

/by

jeff green11

Jeff Green


Stone Door Media Lab will relocate to Monterrey, Calif. Company founder Jeff Green‘s contact information will remain the same. He can be reached at 615-406-4567, and at [email protected].
Stone Door launched in 2012 as a Nashville-based creative think tank to provide ratings research, customer data, digital media consumption analytics, market analysis and more. Green previously spent five years as VP/Operations at Country Aircheck, and 22 years in executive posts at the Americana Association, Radio & Records, the Country Music Association, Music & Media and more.

Miranda Lambert Brings 'Playable Poster' To 'Platinum Tour'

/by

miranda lambert poster1Miranda Lambert has teamed with Crystal Light to debut the first “Playable Poster” at concert venues on her 30-city Platinum Tour. New technology allows Platinum Tour attendees to touch a Crystal Light poster and literally “spin” her record, which will unlock audio tracks from the new album Platinum. The posters are designed by Chicago-based VSA Partners.
“We’re excited to bring this cutting-edge Playable Poster technology to legions of Miranda Lambert fans nationwide,” said Jennifer Dahlgren, Senior Brand Manager for Crystal Light. “These posters will give our consumers a really unique way to experience Miranda’s music that is both memorable and fun.”
Conductive ink is printed on the reverse of the poster, creating touch sensors that can pick up electrical signals from fingers. The conductive ink is connected to a processor – similar to an iPad, but on paper – and an electric speaker is attached to the back, turning the poster into a megawatt speaker.
“I’m always thrilled to introduce new ways for my fans to interact with my music,” said Lambert. “What better way to kick off the ‘Platinum’ Tour than with my favorite brand Crystal Light, and a fun, unique way for concert-goers to enjoy my album.”
Lambert’s Platinum Tour launched July 10 and will run through September.

HitShop Records Realigns Promotion, Marketing Teams

/by

Skip Bishop

Skip Bishop


HitShop Records has re-aligned its promotional and marketing departments to focus on streaming, satellite, syndication, and other platforms as it prepares for its 2015 release schedule.
National Director of Promotion Rick Baumgartner has exited the company. He can be reached at 615-491-0975.  National Promotion/Special Ops representative Jennifer Wayne is no longer with the organization (she can be reached here). Former National Promotion/Special Ops rep Caroline Cutbirth continues work as a song plugger with Young Guns Publishing.
Diane Monk-Harrison and Director of National Promotion A&R Kim Stephens are both exiting the organization. Stephens can be reached at 404-229-6712.
“We are so grateful to all the support from our radio partners — particularly with the launch of Natalie Stovall — however, the new artist path at terrestrial radio has become an increasingly expensive and crowded lane,” shares industry veteran and RMG Co-Chairman/HitShop President, Skip Bishop. “The fatigue on the new artist airplay system has become difficult for both radio and recording companies — a problem not unique to independent labels, but majors as well. To best serve the artists we align with, HitShop will refocus its energies in artist development in areas including major radio platforms such as satellite, streaming, syndication, social entities and executive level radio strategies. Our staffing will reflect this creative shift.””
Bishop adds that the Young Guns Publishing and Next.Biz entities will not be impacted by the imprint’s realignment. HitShop Records is distributed by Warner Music Nashville and is part of the RMG, whose holdings include Young guns Publishing and Nekst.biz.

“We’re so grateful to HitShop and the opportunities they’ve created for us with country radio for our first single ‘Baby Come On With It’,” shares HitShop artist Natalie Stovall and the Drive. “We’ve just released ‘Mason Jar’ and the response has been incredible! We definitely want to continue to release more music for our fans and will be aligning with additional partners as we work toward releasing a full record in 2015.”

Artists Sign On For Billy Block Benefit in Nashville

/by

billy block1‘A Love Fest For Billy Block,’ presented by Guess What’s Coming Productions, will be held Wednesday, Aug. 6 at Nashville’s 3rd & Lindsley. Promoter, producer and musician Block is battling Stage 4 Melanoma cancer. The benefit will provide financial assistance to help ongoing medical treatments.
Special guests during the evening will include Jeffrey Steele, Lari White, Jim Lauderdale, Emily West, Sarah Buxton, Bob DiPiero, Chuck Cannon, and Rocky Block. Doors will open at 5 p.m., with a silent auction to precede the performance. The show will begin at 6 p.m. General admission seating is $20, with limited VIP reserve seats available for $75.
Tickets are on sale at 3rdandlindsley.com.

Tom Baldrica To Leave Show Dog-Universal

/by

Tom Baldrica

Tom Baldrica


Show Dog-Universal’s VP, Promotion and Radio Marketing Tom Baldrica is exiting the label after joining in 2012. Baldrica will leave his post on Friday, Aug. 1.
“Show Dog-Universal President Mark Wright and I had a two-year agreement,” said Baldrica. “Those two years are now complete and I have chosen to move on. I want to thank Mark, George Nunes, Bill Kennedy and Rick Moxley for the opportunity to work alongside them. And, a sincere ‘thank you’ to the Show Dog-Universal promotion team and staff for their support and hard work. I leave with gratitude and appreciation.”
Baldrica previously served two years as president of Average Joes Entertainment. Prior to his work at Average Joes, he spent 17 years with Sony Nashville, working in radio promotions and marketing. He was named VP, Marketing for Sony Nashville in 2006.
Baldrica can be reached at [email protected] or at 615-715-6378.

IBMA To Launch Film Festival

/by

ibma1111The inaugural IBMA Film Festival will be held during the International Bluegrass Music Association’s World of Bluegrass event, to be held in Raleigh, N.C., Sept. 30-Oct. 4. The film festival will highlight eight film projects, including “Banjo Romantika” (Lee Bidgood), “The Porch Light Sessions” (Anna Schwaber), “At the Feed and Seed” (April Janow), “The Cricket” (Andrew Cartoun), “G2-Mind Over Matter” (David Elfgren), “Herschel Sizemore: Mandolin in B” (Rick Bowman), “The History of Future Folk” (Jeremy Walker), and “The Tao of Bluegrass-A Portrait of Peter Rowan” (Christine Funk).
“We have several goals for the film festival:  to introduce the bluegrass industry to new bluegrass-related films, to promote the creation of these films, and then to provide a platform and a showcase for our members who have created these films,” said Nancy Cardwell, Executive Director of IBMA. “We feel this will be a benefit not only to the filmmakers in our industry, but to the many bluegrass fans that attend World of Bluegrass.”
All eight films in the IBMA Film Festival will have multiple showings Oct. 3 and Oct. 4. The showings, held near the Bluegrass Expo Hall inside the Raleigh Convention Center, are free and open to the public. Some filmmakers will attend the screenings to participate in “Q&A” sessions with the audience.
For more information about the films, along with movie trailers, scheduled viewing times and locations, visit ibma.org/world-of-bluegrass/film-festival.

Industry Ink (7/29/14)

/by

CTM Writers Ink, the publishing division of Catch This Music, has signed Autumn McEntire Sizemore to its roster.
“We’re thrilled to add Autumn to our unique team of creators,” says Eddie Robba, president/CEO of CTM Writers Ink and Catch This Music. “Autumn brings phenomenal energy that undeniably aligns with our vision for continued growth and success.”
After graduating from Belmont University, Sizemore signed her first publishing contract with Still Working Music Group, and earned her first songwriting cut on Danielle Peck’s debut album. Sizemore, who lives in Nashville with husband Mark and their son Brecken, is the son of Pake McEntire and niece to Reba McEntire.

Pictured (L-R): Narvel Blackstock, Reba McEntire, Autumn McEntire Sizemore and Eddie Robba.

Pictured (L-R): Narvel Blackstock, Reba McEntire, Autumn McEntire Sizemore and Eddie Robba.

 • • •

nikki mitchell songwriting contestThe Nikki Mitchell Foundation and Hank Cochran’s The Pen Fund invite aspiring songwriters to get creative for a cause with the New Moon Full Life Songwriting Contest. Entries are being accepted through Saturday, Nov. 29. There is a $20 entry fee for the competition. The fee will go to the Nikki Mitchell Foundation, with a portion going to Hank Cochran’s The Pen Fund, to aid songwriters battling pancreatic cancer. For more information, visit contest.nikkimitchellfoundation.org.
One or more Full Moon Full Life artists will record the winner’s song and perform it at Full Moon Full Life 2015.

 • • •

AIMP LogoThe Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP) Nashville and Fifth Third Bank welcome the Production Music Association for a Production Music 101 panel held Aug. 6 at ASCAP’s Connie Bradley Board Room from 12:30-2:00p.m. Moderated by Hunter Williams (PMA), confirmed panelists are Randy Wachtler (Warner/Chappell Production), Brian Brasher (Pitch Hammer Music), Paul Jones (Auralation Music) and Lindsey Williams (Composer/Really Big Bison Music), who will address topics such as creation of production music libraries, licensing/monetization of libraries, and worldwide view or reach of production music.
This event will is $10 for AIMP members and $20 for guests.  Pre-registration is required as lunch is provided and can be done until Aug. 1 here.

Luke Bryan Announces Sixth Annual "Farm Tour"

/by

unnamedLuke Bryan will again present his “Farm Tour” this October and will donate a portion of the proceeds to local college scholarships. The “Luke Bryan Farm Tour Scholarship” will go to students from a farming family within the communities visited during the tour. Bryan broke a record last year by performing for over 115,000 fans during the “Farm Tour” in eight towns.
This year, he’ll add stops in Gainesville, Fla. and Knoxville, Tenn., where the tour will begin on Oct. 1, 2014.
The Farm Tour ticket presale will begin for Luke Bryan’s Fan Club, the Nut House, on July 29 at 10 a.m. local time for Knoxville, Gainesville, Auburn and Statesboro. The public on sale for those shows begins at 10 a.m. on Aug. 1. The Nut House ticket presale for Macon, Columbia, Athens and Tallahassee will launch on Aug. 5 at 10 a.m. local time, with the public on sale beginning at 10 a.m. local time on Aug. 8.
Special VIP experiences will be available for Farm Tour 2014. The “Harvest Time VIP Experience” includes a general admission ticket that comes with an exclusive VIP viewing area with premium view of the stage, a parking pass, access to VIP only restrooms, limited edition Farm Tour poster, private cash bar and more.
For additional Farm Tour 2014 information, including where to get tickets, go to www.lukebryan.com/farmtour
Farm Tour 2014 Dates:
Oct. 1         Knoxville, Tenn.-Maple Lane Farms
Oct. 2         Auburn, Ala.-Ingram Farms
Oct. 3         Tallahassee, Fla.-Cross Creek Place
Oct. 4         Gainesville, Fla.-Whitehurst Cattle Farm
Oct. 8         Statesboro, Ga.-Perry Field
Oct. 9         Athens, Ga.-Meldon Farm
Oct. 10       Columbia, S.C.-Culler Farms
Oct. 11       Macon, Ga.-Midway at Central City Park
(dates & cities subject to change)

ACM Lifting Lives Accepting Submissions For 2014 Grant Cycle

/by

ACMLiftingLivesACM Lifting Lives has announced it will be accepting submissions for the 2014 Grant Cycle from Sept. 1 to Sept. 30, 2014. For information on submitting a grant request, visit acmliftinglives.org. Funding decisions and notifications will be made in November 2014.
ACM Lifting Lives, the Academy of Country Music’s philanthropic arm, is dedicated to improving lives through the power of music. Through grant cycles, ACM Lifting Lives provides funding to programs that promote education and healing with a musical connection.
Among the organizations that have previously received funding are Alive Hospice in Nashville, Tenn.; Bridges Academy in Nashville, Tenn.; Free Arts for Abused Children in Los Angeles; Music National Service Initiative in the Bay Area, Calif.; Musicians on Call in Nashville, Tenn.; Notes for Notes in Nashville, Tenn., Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, Calif.; Peace thru Music in Ventura, Calif.; Porter’s Call in Franklin, Tenn.; Possibilities! in Cumberland Furnace, Tenn.; Rock for Kids in Chicago; Tapping Individual Potential (T.I.P.) in Nashville, Tenn.; The Art of Elysium in Los Angeles; Vanderbilt Music Therapy Program in Nashville, Tenn.; and W.O. Smith Nashville Community Music School in Nashville, Tenn.
Through partnerships with artists and those in the music industry, ACM Lifting Lives develops and funds music-related therapy and education programs, and serves members of the community who face unexpected hardships through its Diane Holcomb Emergency Relief Fund. Funding from ACM Lifting Lives includes disaster relief, helping communities in need, music education in schools, music camps for those with disabilities, and programs that use music therapy to help veterans and wounded warriors.

Big & Rich Prep New Album, Single on Own Label

/by

GravityIn celebration of 10 years of making music, Big Kenny and John Rich have revealed plans for a new Big & Rich album, titled Gravity. The duo’s fifth studio album will launch on Sept. 23, with the lead-off single, “Look at You” making its way to No. 39 on this week’s MusicRow CountryBreakout chart.
In addition to the latest recording project, the duo has formed its own label, Big & Rich Records, a partnership with Kobalt Label Services.
“We continue to embrace all the change that happens in our business of entertainment,” says Big Kenny. “As artists, we are now at the place where we can finally gain complete creative control. That’s huge. It allows us to be true to ourselves and be the trailblazers we’ve always risked being.”
Big & Rich will tour through the summer with shows spanning across the U.S. and Canada. Cities among upcoming stops for the tour include Orlando, Grand Rapids, Spokane, Hampton, Panama City and more.
For more information, visit: bigandrich.com.
Gravity Track Listing:
1. Look At You
2. Lovin’ Lately (feat. Tim McGraw)
3. Gravity
4. Brand New Buzz
5. Rollin’ Along
6. Run Away With You
7. Lose A Little Sleep
8. Don’t Wake Me Up
9. That Kind of Town
10. Thank God For Pain
11. I Came To Git Down