Brantley Gilbert Comes Full Circle With New Release

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Brantley Gilbert

Brantley Gilbert

One year after the top selling debut of his album Just As I Am, Valory Music’s Brantley Gilbert continues the momentum with this week’s release of Just As I Am Platinum Edition. The latest version of his Gold-certified third studio album was released Monday, May 18, and features five new tracks, in addition to a remix of the chart-topping “Bottoms Up” featuring rapper T.I., for a total of 19 songs. Last year, the Georgia native notched the third-highest debut and landed in the Top 5 best selling country albums of the year. Now, with his newest release, Brantley continues to share his life experiences and lessons through his music.

All of my songs tell a story.

His vision for the album is one of authenticity, bringing everything back full circle. Brantley tells MusicRow, “All of my songs are chapters of my life. They tell a story. The five new songs tie up loose ends on the record.” Brantley who writes all of his songs on the album, admits, “We wait longer than a lot of folks between records to make sure I tell the story right. Since I write everything I cut, we want to make sure it’s perfect. There was a lot of the good, the bad, and the ugly to talk about on this record. The way it has worked out is amazing and I’m excited it’s finally here.”

I sat in front of the cross and talked to God.

The album ends with the deeply personal and powerful ballad, “Just As I Am.” He shares the story that inspired this solo-written tune: “This song is about a huge battle in my life,” confesses Brantley. “It’s a true story. There’s a little chapel in my hometown that sits off the road with a large concrete cross. There had been a lot of things going on; so one night when I was riding by the chapel on my motorcycle, I pulled over. I sat there in front of the cross and talked to God. That’s when I started to try to get my stuff together, by getting some things that needed to go, out of my life. It’s one of those songs that tells my exact story. It’s as real as it gets for me.” This is the same cross that is featured on the cover of his second album, Halfway to Heaven. He adds, “It’s a bit of foreshadowing because that situation is exactly what this song is about.”

Youtube video

 

Military has always been a passion for me.

In celebration of his new release, Brantley is joining forces with Harley-Davidson and Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) for a two-day motorcycle ride to introduce WWP’s “Rolling Odyssey” program, a therapeutic ride for combat veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and readjustment challenges. Brantley will make four stops in 48 hours as they trek from Houston to Baton Rouge with an acoustic performance and autograph signing at each stop. He will end the ride with a performance at the Bayou Country Superfest as part of Kenny Chesney’s The Big Revival Tour.

When asked about his connection to the men and women who serve our country, Brantley shares, “My support for the military has always been a passionate part of me. My mom’s side of the family is a military family and I had heard my whole life that freedom ain’t free.” But when Brantley once made a trip to Arlington National Cemetery, it left an unshakable impression on the country artist. “I went to Arlington and saw the ocean of gravestones of people who laid down their lives for our freedom. I love my God. I love my country. I love my guns. I love my family. I love my job. Those ladies and gentlemen protect that and give me the freedom to do these things.” And Brantley’s not one to forget what they have done, adding, “I’m going to show them every bit of love and support I can in return.”

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Brad Paisley Set To Open For Rolling Stones In Nashville

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bradpaisleystonesThe Rolling Stones have announced country music’s Brad Paisley will be a special guest opening their show in Nashville on June 17 at LP Field.

Zip Code Tour, the band’s 15-city North American stadium tour, kicks off in San Diego on May 24, and will be making stops in Columbus, Minneapolis, Dallas, Atlanta, Orlando, Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, Kansas City, Raleigh, Indianapolis, Detroit and Buffalo before wrapping in Quebec on July 15 at Le Festival D’Été de Québec.

The tour will be the first time the rock legends have played North American stadiums since 2005-2007’s A Bigger Bang Tour. AEG Live’s Concerts West is the promoter of the Zip Code Tour and tickets can be purchased here.

The Rolling Stones – Zip Code Tour
May 24, 2015–San Diego, CA (Petco Park)
May 30, 2015–Columbus, OH (Ohio Stadium)
June 3, 2015–Minneapolis, MN (TCF Bank Stadium)
June 6, 2015–Dallas, TX (AT&T Stadium)
June 9, 2015–Atlanta, GA (Bobby Dodd Stadium)
June 12, 2015–Orlando, FL (Orlando Citrus Bowl)
June 17, 2015–Nashville, TN (LP Field)
June 20, 2015–Pittsburgh, PA (Heinz Field)
June 23, 2015–Milwaukee, WI (Summerfest/ Marcus Amphitheater)
June 27, 2015–Kansas City, MO (Arrowhead Stadium)
July 1, 2015–Raleigh, NC (Carter-Finley Stadium)
July 4, 2015–Indianapolis, IN (Indianapolis Motor Speedway)
July 8, 2015–Detroit, MI (Comerica Park)
July 11, 2015–Buffalo, NY (Ralph Wilson Stadium)
July 15, 2015–Quebec, QC (Le Festival D’Été de Québec)

Top Nominees To Perform at CMT Music Awards

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2015-CMT-Music-Awards-FeaturedCMT has announced the first round of performers for the CMT Music Awards, set for June 10 at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena. Confirmed to perform are Carrie Underwood, Florida Georgia Line, Jason Aldean, Keith Urban, Kenny Chesney, Lady Antebellum and Luke Bryan. The show will be broadcast live at 8:00 PM ET/PT.

Heading into the event, Underwood is the frontrunner with five nominations, including two for Video of the Year, two for Female Video of the Year and one for Collaborative Video of the Year for her duet with Miranda Lambert. Lady Antebellum and Chesney have four nominations each, while Florida Georgia Line and Aldean earned a respective three nominations. Urban and Bryan both scored two nods.

Additional performers, presenters and host will be announced at a later date.

Fans can vote at CMT.com through June 7 at 11:59 PM ET to determine the winners. The six finalists for Video of the Year will be announced at the beginning of the live show and fans can then vote at CMT.com throughout the live telecast (ET/CT only) to determine the night’s big winner.

The 2014 CMT Music Awards was the second most-watched telecast in franchise history.

Luke Bryan To Heat Up Summer With New Album

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luke bryan kill the lightsLuke Bryan’s next album Kill The Lights is set for release on Friday, Aug. 7. It is the follow up to his most successful project to date, the double platinum Crash My Party, which has yielded six consecutive No. 1 singles.

The Capitol Nashville artist appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show today (May 19) to announce the album and perform its lead single “Kick The Dust Up,” which was released today. Tonight he will perform the single on the season finale of The Voice.

“We’ve been performing the new song on tour this spring, using it to open the shows,” said Bryan. “We love the crowd reaction to it and I cannot wait to be able to share more new music this summer. It’s been two years since we’ve had a new album and I don’t think I’ve been this eager yet to get it out to the fans.”

Bryan will perform on Good Morning America on album release day, Aug. 7, as part of the 2015 Summer Concert Series at Rumsey Playfield in Central Park.

Since debuting in 2007, Bryan has scored 12 No. 1 singles and sold nearly seven million albums. His digital track sales total 27 million from four studio albums.

In 2014, Bryan achieved the best touring year of his career with 1.7 million fans attending his concerts. In early 2015, he played his first-ever shows in Europe. His current Kick The Dust Up Tour will continue through October and includes seven stadium dates. He is the reigning CMA and ACM Entertainer of the Year.

This Friday (May 22), The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum will launch a summer exhibit, “Luke Bryan: Dirt Road Diary.”

iHeartMedia To Pay $1 Million FCC Fine

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bobby bones show crew 2015

The Bobby Bones Show crew.

The FCC has fined iHeartMedia $1 million for airing fake Emergency Alert System (EAS) tones on the syndicated “The Bobby Bones Show.”

The program originates from WSIX Nashville and is heard on 80-plus affiliated stations.

According to the FCC: “During the October 24, 2014 episode of ‘The Bobby Bones Show,’ iHeart inserted into the program an audio clip containing EAS tones, including Emergency Alert Notification (EAN) codes that aired during the first nationwide test of the EAS on November 9, 2011. The transmission of those EAN codes, in turn, engaged the EAS equipment of certain other EAS participants, ultimately causing a multi-state activation of the EAS.”

In addition to agreeing to pay the fine, iHeartMedia will set up a three-year compliance and reporting plan.

Use of EAS tones in the absence of an emergency or test of the system is prohibited. The FCC states: “Unauthorized use of actual or simulated EAS tones risks desensitizing the public to the tones’ association with life-saving information, and such ‘Cry Wolf’ mimicking of EAS tones present a real threat to public safety.”

Full FCC statement here.

Gloriana To Release ‘Three’ in June

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glorianaOn June 2, Gloriana will release its first new album in three years with Emblem Records, under exclusive license to Warner Bros. Records. Appropriately titled, THREE, the project is a reflection of Rachel Reinert, and brothers Mike and Tom Gossin‘s journey as a band.

Produced by Matt Serletic, the new album features the top 25 and climbing lead single, “Trouble.”

Fans who pre-order the record at iTunes will have instant access to three songs from the album (“Trouble,” “It’s On Tonight,” “Wanna Get To Know You”), followed by another three tracks on May 26 (“Ain’t Runnin’ Outta Summer,” “Nobody But You,” “Lighters”).

Gloriana’s previous release, A Thousand Miles Left Behind, debuted at No. 2 and featured the hit “(Kissed You) Goodnight.” The Platinum song was one of ASCAP’s Top 5 Performed songs for 2013 and the eighth most played song on country radio in 2012.

THREE track listing:
1.“Trouble”* (Rachel Reinert/Mike Gossin/Jon Nite/Ross Copperman)
2. “Ain’t Runnin’ Outta Summer”** (Tom Gossin/Mike Gossin/Ross Copperman)
3. “Are You Ready” (Tom Gossin/Josh Kear)
4. “Nobody But You”** (Eric Paslay/Dylan Altman/Will Hoge)
5. “It’s On Tonight”* (Tom Gossin/Mike Gossin/Danny Myrick/Rachel Proctor)
6. “Fight” (Catt Gravitt/Gerald O’Brien/John King)
7. “Wanna Get To Know You”* (Rachel Reinert/Tom Gossin/Ross Copperman)
8. “Let’s Take A Shot “(Mike Gossin/Rachel Reinert/Danny Myrick)
9. “Get Back That Goodbye” (Rachel Reinert/Mike Gossin/Jon Nite/Jimmy Robbins)
10. “Lighters”** (Tom Gossin/Rachel Reinert/Ross Copperman)
11. “It Won’t Let Go” (Mike Gossin/Tom Gossin/Danny Myrick)
12. “My Somebody” (Lucie Silvas/Jon Green/Jeremy Spillman)

*Tracks available May 19, following pre-order
**Tracks available May 26 following pre-order

Lifenotes: Songwriter Elbert West Passes

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elbert west LivinthelifeSongwriter Elbert West passed away on Monday morning (May 18) at age 46. The West Virginia native penned two of Tracy Lawrence’s early hits, 1991’s “Sticks and Stones,” and 1993’s “Can’t Break It To My Heart.” Both records topped the Billboard Country Singles chart. He also scored cuts by platinum artists including Tim McGraw and John Michael Montgomery.

West also signed with then-new label Broken Bow Records, which released his self-titled album in 2001, produced by Scott Miller. It yielded the singles “Diddley,” “Unpredictable” and “Kimberly Cooper’s Eyes.” At the time, West said, “‘Diddley’ is about not being afraid to dance, whether it’s right or wrong, however, it also speaks of living life uninhibited and without fear. It should inspire people to be themselves and follow their dreams, no matter how much opposition they may face, at least that’s what the song says to me.” West was featured in publications including No Depression.

In the past few years, he worked with Honkytonk Records.

Arrangements are pending.

Tracy Lawrence posted this on his Facebook page:

An old friend of mine passed away today. Elbert West. He was a big reason that I have the career that I do. He was the writer of my first hit “Sticks And Stones.” He also wrote “Can’t Break It To My Heart.” He was a brilliant songwriter.

I haven’t seen him in a long time and I’m not sure of all the details yet. But I’m asking that you all keep his family in your prayers. He was way too young to be gone so soon. It seems the older I get the more loss I see. Give “Sticks And Stones” a listen for Elbert tonight. God bless you my old friend.

elbert west

NSAI Honors No. 1 Songs

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First row seated: Larry McCoy, Bart Butler, Jeff Carlton, Sarah Buxton, Chris DeStefano, Troy Verges; Second row seated: Ryan Hurd, Nicolle Galyon, Ashley Gorley, Ben Glover, Marv Green; Standing: JT Harding, Jesse Frasure, Bart Herbison, Hank Adam Locklin, Aaron Scherz, Brent Anderson, Lee Thomas Miller, Adam Sanders, Liz Rose, Jimmy Yeary, Cary Barlowe

The Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) honored Nashville-associated writers on Monday, May 18, 2015, at the Music Mill, NSAI’s headquarters on Music Row. The writers were honored for penning songs which topped the digital or radio airplay chart between December 2014 and March 2015.

Additionally, Jeff Carlton was presented the NSAI President’s Award. The veteran music publisher has signed hit writers including Erin Enderlin, Tony Martin, Lee Thomas Miller, Monty Criswell, Jimmy Ritchey and Bobby Pinson. During his tenure at Willin’ David Music, the company had seven BMI million performance pop singles written by Will Jennings and three No. 1 country singles. He is now working with business partners Tim Hunze and J.P. Williams on integrating the Bigger Picture publishing catalog they purchased.

Songs Recognized

“Something In The Water,” Carrie Underwood, Brett James, Chris DeStefano, recorded by Carrie Underwood

“Somewhere In My Car,” Keith Urban, JT Harding, recorded by Keith Urban

“Shotgun Rider,” Marv Green, Hillary Lindsey, Troy Verges, recorded by Tim McGraw

“Girl In A Country Song,” Taylor Dye, Maddie Marlow, Aaron Scherz, recorded by Maddie & Tae

“God Made Girls,” RaeLynn, Nicolle Galyon, Lori McKenna, Liz Rose, recorded by RaeLynn

“Perfect Storm,” Lee Thomas Miller, Brad Paisley, recorded by Brad Paisley

“‘Til It’s Gone,” Rodney Clawson, David Lee Murphy, Jimmy Yeary, recorded by Kenny Chesney

“I See You,” Luke Bryan, Luke Laird, Ashley Gorley, recorded by Luke Bryan​

“Sun Daze,” Cary Barlowe, Sarah Buxton, Jesse Frasure, Tyler Hubbard, Brian Kelley, recorded by Florida Georgia Line

“Make Me Wanna,” Thomas Rhett, Bart Butler, Larry McCoy, recorded by Thomas Rhett

“Jesus Loves Me,” Ben Glover, Chris Tomlin, Reuben Morgan, recorded by Chris Tomlin

“Lonely Tonight,” Ryan Hurd, Brent Anderson, recorded by Blake Shelton

“Just Gettin’ Started,” Chris DeStefano, Ashley Gorley, Rhett Akins, recorded by Jason Aldean

“Come As You Are,” David Crowder, Ben Glover, Matt Maher, recorded by Crowder

“Ain’t Worth The Whiskey,” Cole Swindell, Josh Martin, Adam Sanders, recorded by Cole Swindell

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(L-R): NSAI President Lee Thomas Miller and Jeff Carlton

SAG-AFTRA Taps Van Syckle As Nashville Executive Director

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RichardVanSyckle

Richard Van Syckle

SAG-AFTRA has added Richard Van Syckle as the new Nashville Local executive director, overseeing the union’s day-to-day operations.

Van Syckle’s prior experience includes network television and new media production, major market local news, national marketing and advertising, and international syndication. Likewise, he has produced, written and directed many projects with SAG-AFTRA members, including a stop at CMT.

“Richard was the right fit for the Nashville Local at a time when local production is growing and the music industry continues to be a dominant force along Music Row,” says National Executive Director David White. “We are excited for him to bring his creative talent and business management skills to the Nashville Local membership and SAG-AFTRA.”

Nashville Local President and search committee member Pat Alger adds, “Most impressive to the committee was the fact that Richard understood our contracts and membership and came to the interview with a clear idea of what this Local does, the diversity of the membership and the challenges that lie ahead in the months and years to come.”

Van Syckle began May 4 and reports to SAG-AFTRA Assistant National Executive Director, Locals Linda Dowell. He will be formally introduced to members at the Local’s annual membership meeting on June 3.

“SAG-AFTRA has a significant presence in Nashville, especially with its offices on Music Row,” says Van Syckle. “I’m looking forward to working with the Local membership and leadership to continue the union’s high profile in the music and entertainment industry.”

Van Syckle’s many accolades include Emmy Awards, an Associated Press Television and Radio Association (APTRA) Award, a Radio Television News Association of Southern California Golden Mike Award, a GLAAD Media Award and the 2014 Nashville International Association of Business Communicators Gold Pen Award.

Nominations Revealed For 27th Annual MusicRow Awards

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MusicRow awards Slider2015MusicRow is pleased to announce the nominees for our 27th Annual MusicRow Awards, Nashville’s longest running industry trade publication honors.

The 2015 MusicRow Awards will be hosted at ASCAP’s Nashville headquarters on Tuesday, June 23 at 5:30 p.m.

Nominees in each of the four categories, which are determined by the MusicRow editorial team, are voted on by the magazine’s subscriber members. Outside submissions were accepted for the Breakthrough Songwriter category, which honors writers and co-writers who scored their first Top 10 hit on MusicRow, Billboard or Mediabase radio charts during the eligibility period (5/1/14 — 4/30/15).

Click here to download the PDF and see the complete list of nominees. 

MusicRow will also distribute the Musician All-Star Awards at the ASCAP event, recognizing those who played on the most albums which reached the Top 10 during the eligibility period. Honors will be presented for bass, drums, fiddle, keyboards, steel, vocals and engineer talent.

Winners will be profiled in MusicRow’s June/July print magazine, which will debut at the ceremony.

Subscribed Members of MusicRow will receive ballots via email later today (May 19). If you do not have a subscription, click here to subscribe and receive your ballot. Voting closes at 5 p.m. on Tues., May 26.

musicrow awards nominator 2015 screenshot

Click to view.