Lee Thomas Miller, Beth Matthews To Speak on Behalf of Songwriters

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Lee Thomas Miller is in DC this week.

Lee Thomas Miller is in Washington, D.C. this week.

Nashville Songwriters Association (NSAI) President Lee Thomas Miller, and ASCAP CEO and General Counsel Beth Matthews are among those who will testify during a Senate subcommittee hearing titled “How Much For a Song?: The Antitrust Decrees that Govern the Market for Music,” tomorrow (March 10) at 10:00 a.m. EST. Miller will appear on behalf of BMI, and Matthews on behalf of ASCAP, before the subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition, Policy and Consumer Rights to vie for changes to the outdated consent decrees which currently govern the rate setting procedures used by the PROs.

“Performance royalty rates for American songwriters are governed by ASCAP and BMI consent decrees from 1941,” said Miller. “We get paid ridiculously low rates when our songs are streamed through digital music services. Changes must be made or songwriting, as a profession, will become extinct.”

Other witnesses include: Matt Pincus, Founder and CEO of SONGS Music Publishing; Mike Dowdle, VP of Business Affairs and General Counsel of Bonneville International; Jodie Griffin, Senior Staff Attorney–Public Knowledge; and Chris Harrison, President of Business Affairs–Pandora Media, Inc. (If the hearing is streamed, it can be accessed at www.judiciary.senate.gov.)

Elizabeth Matthews

Elizabeth Matthews

Following the hearing, Miller and ASCAP songwriter Jessi Alexander will perform some of their hits in an event sponsored by NSAI and the National Music Publishers Association.

“We want policy makers to see how little a songwriter earns when their creations are streamed,” said NSAI Executive Director Bart Herbison. “We will present payment information from Pandora illustrating that millions of streams amount to only hundreds of dollars.”

This hearing follows last week’s reintroduction of the Songwriter Equity Act (SEA) in the Senate and House of Representatives. The SEA aims to change the process that sets royalty rates for American songwriters.

Currently, two outdated portions of the Copyright Act, Section 114(i) and Section 115, prevent songwriters from receiving royalty rates that reflect fair market value for the use of their intellectual property.

Section 114(i) forbids federal rate courts from considering sound recording royalty rates as a relevant benchmark when setting performance royalty rates for songwriters and composers.

The SEA would allow the rate court to consider other royalty rates as evidence when establishing digital performance rates.

Section 115 of the Copyright Act has regulated musical compositions since 1909, before recorded music existed. Section 115 allows anyone to seek a compulsory license to reproduce a song in exchange for paying a statutory rate. Today, that rate is 9.1 cents per song and does not reflect market value.

The SEA would adopt a fair rate standard for reproduction (mechanical) licenses that reflects free market conditions.

Dierks Bentley, ‘Nashville’ Stars To Celebrate African Children’s Choir

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africa childrens choir

(Clockwise from top): African Children’s Choir, Lennon & Maisy Stella, Charles Esten, Dierks Bentley, Connie Britton.

Nashville stars Connie Britton, Lennon and Maisy Stella, and Charles Esten will join Dierks Bentley to celebrate the African Children’s Choir’s 30-year anniversary. The concert event will take place on Sunday, March 22, beginning at 6:30 p.m. at 3rd and Lindsley in Nashville. The internationally acclaimed African Children’s Choir will join the superstar lineup during the event.

All funds raised that evening will go to the African Children’s Choir and their education programs. The African Children’s Choir has educated over 52,000 children in the last 30 years and helped over 100,000 people through relief and development programs in Kenya, Uganda, Sudan, Rwanda, Ghana, Nigera and South Africa. To learn more, visit www.africanchildrenschoir.com

Country Music Execs Join Grammy Alliance’s Managers Think Tank

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recording_academy_logo_lClarence Spalding, Ansel Davis, Betsy McHugh, Marion Kraft, Daniel Miller, Gaines Sturdivant are among 30 artist managers who have recently signed on to join the Recording Academy’s Managers Think Tank, as part of the recently launched Grammy Creators Alliance. The Managers Think Tank will be used to review legislative proposals, identify new issues, advise policymakers on long-term solutions to develop a sustainable music marketplace.

Spalding represents clients including Jason Aldean and Rascal Flatts. Ansel Davis and Betsy McHugh guide Hunter Hayes’ career, while Marion Kraft represents Miranda Lambert. Daniel Miller aids in Lady Antebellum’s career, while Sturdviant is involved with The Band Perry.

The Grammy Creators Alliance was established in response to bipartisan congressional requests for the music community to become involved with policy matters. The growing coalition of songwriters, performers, and studio professionals includes founding members deadmou5, Dr. Luke, Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, Jennifer Hudson, Jimmy Jam, Alicia Keys, Lady Antebellum, Adam Levine, Ryan Tedder, and Steven Tyler.

Additional managers joining the Think Tank include Scooter Braun, Will Botwin, Mark Beaven, Jay Brown, Troy Carter, Bruce Eskowitz, Jordan Feldstein, Ron Laffitte, Pat Magnarella, Susan Markheim, Michael McDonald, Simon Renshaw, Larry Rudolph, Bill Silva, John Siva, Damien Smith, Ty Stiklorius, Lee Trink, Caron Veazey, and Dean Wilson. Legal advisors include Jay Cooper, Joel Katz, Dina LaPolt, and Charles Ortner.

“As the Judiciary Committee continues its review of the Copyright Act, it is imperative that we understand the implications on the creators of content and their representatives,” said Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. “I look forward to hearing the viewpoints of music creators as we consider changes to the law to ensure we ‘promote the progress of science and useful arts,’ as the framers intended. The GRAMMY Creators Alliance will be an important voice in this discussion.”

CMA Announces International Award Winners

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Brad Paisley 2014The Country Music Association recently revealed its recipients for an array of international awards, including the Global Country Artist Award, International Artist Achievement Award, International Country Broadcaster Award, the Jo Walker-Meador Award, and the Wesley Rose International Media Achievement Award.

“Advancing Country Music around the world is at the very foundation of CMA’s mission,” said Sarah Trahern, CMA Chief Executive Officer. “Being able to acknowledge the exhaustive efforts of our international and domestic colleagues outside of U.S. borders is very rewarding and central to our strategic objective of growing the business and developing new territories for Country Music.”

Award recipients in alphabetical order by category:

GLOBAL COUNTRY ARTIST AWARD – Morgan Evans
The Global Country Artist Award recognizes outstanding achievements by a Country Music artist originally signed outside of the United States – in both furthering the popularity of Country Music and bringing attention to the Country Music format in their foreign-based territory.

Morgan Evans

Morgan Evans

The winner of a record three Country Music Channel Music Awards this year, Evans was recently signed as a presenter, host, and ambassador for the Country Music Channel in Australia. He has toured with Country superstars including Alan Jackson and Taylor Swift, as well as headlining his own tours in Australia and New Zealand. Evans was recently signed to William Morris Endeavour Agency.

INTERNATIONAL ARTIST ACHIEVEMENT AWARD – Brad Paisley
Formerly the International Touring Artist Award, the CMA International Artist Achievement Award recognizes outstanding achievement by a U.S.-based artist who contributes to the awareness and development of Country Music outside the United States.

Since being the recipient of this award in 2011, Brad Paisley has remained dedicated to including the international market place in his schedule. In 2014, he headlined the C2C Festival in London and Dublin as well as recorded the special “Brad Paisley & Friends” for BBC Radio 2 before going on to headline shows in Norway and Sweden.

INTERNATIONAL COUNTRY BROADCASTER AWARD – Ricky Ross

Ricky Ross

Ricky Ross

The International Country Broadcast Award recognizes outstanding achievement by radio broadcasters outside the U.S. who have made important contributions to the development of Country Music in their country.

Singer/songwriter Ross, who regularly visits Nashville, presents the BBC Radio Scotland’s “Another Country.” With a mix of classics and new Country releases, Americana, and alternative Country, he has won two Sony Radio Awards, the first in 2011 and the second the following year.

JO WALKER-MEADOR AWARD – Scott Borchetta

Scott Borchetta

Scott Borchetta

Named for Country Music Hall of Fame member and longtime Executive Director of CMA, the Jo Walker-Meador Award recognizes outstanding achievement by an individual or company in advocating and supporting Country Music’s marketing development in territories outside the United States.

As the founder and CEO of Big Machine Records, Borchetta has supported artist development internationally early in artists’ careers. Borchetta previously won the Jo Walker-Meador Award in 2012.

WESLEY ROSE INTERNATIONAL MEDIA ACHIEVEMENT AWARD – Bob Shennan

Bob Shennan

Bob Shennan

The Wesley Rose International Media Achievement Award recognizes outstanding achievements in the media, which contribute to the development of Country Music outside the United States. Radio, TV, print journalists, authors, editors, television writers, producers, and PR companies who reside outside the United States are eligible to win this award.

Since Shennan took over as Controller of BBC Radio 2 in 2009, he has driven exposure opportunities and was instrumental in bringing Country Music into the mainstream arena. Now Director of Music, Shennan chairs the newly formed CMA U.K. Advisory Group and serves on the CMA Board of Directors.

CMA International Awards are voted on by CMA International Membership as well as a panel of domestic U.S.-based industry members.

The timing of the announcement coincides with the return of the CMA Songwriters Series, and the third C2C London event (March 7-8), which is presented by AEG Europe and SJM Concerts in association with the Country Music Association.

Chris Young Takes Tour Overseas

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Chris young 2015

Chris Young is taking his 2015 World Tour to Asia and Australia in March. Young leaves this week for three shows in Hawaii as well as his second trek to Australia for performances in Melbourne, Sydney and Ipswich.

The 29-year-old singer/songwriter, who has been on a sold-out streak since last summer, will then headline his first tour stops in Asia, with dates booked for military installations in Pohang, South Korea; Fuji, Japan; and Okinawa, Japan. 2015 marks his third consecutive year of sharing his show with international audiences.

Young, a CMC International Act of the Year nominee, made his inaugural trip to the UK and Ireland in 2013 for the CMA Songwriters Series. That same year he made his CMC Rocks QLC Festival debut. In 2014 Young ventured across the pond for shows in London, Dublin, Stavanger, Oslo, Gotteborg and Stockholm, helping him earn the award for British Country Music Award International Act of the Year.

Chris Young 2015 World Tour
March 11—Melbourne, Australia
March 13—Sydney, Australia
March 14—Ipswich, Australia
March 15—Ipswich, Australia
March 17—Pohang, South Korea
March 19—Fuji, Japan
March 21—Okinawa, Japan
September 11—Gstaad, Switzerland
September 12—Gstaad, Switzerland
September 14—London, England
September 16—Glasgow, Scotland
September 17—Dublin, Ireland
September 19—Munich, Germany
September 20—Cologne, Germany
September 22—Berlin, Germany
September 24—Stockholm, Sweden

Lee Ann Womack Has ‘Trouble In Mind’ For Record Store Day

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Lee Ann Womack Trouble In MindLee Ann Womack will offer a limited edition 12″ vinyl release, titled Trouble In Mind, on Record Store Day, April 18. The singer-songwriter and husband/producer Frank Liddell discussed the possibility of a one voice/one instrument project, to offer unadorned versions of a few handpicked compositions.

Womack then teamed with Richard Bennett (Mark Knopfler/Steve Earle), who brought in several vintage guitars. The duo recorded several tunes in one afternoon, and picked three for Trouble In Mind.

“I think independent record stores are so important,” Womack says. “It’s the last temple of music you can take home… A place where people come looking for the rare, for the special or even just the record they have to buy one more time. But I love the idea of people selling records, talking about what’s on them, getting turned on to cool music. I wanted to be part of Record Store Day last year, but we couldn’t get it together in time. So this year, we started early. I got to have Richard Bennett, who is one of those musicians who can get so much heart and tone out of his guitars, come to the house. It was just the two of us, and it was awesome!”

The three songs are the blues classic “Trouble in Mind,” Roger Miller’s semi-obscure “Where Have All The Average People Gone?” and Ralph Stanley’s bluegrass gospel song “I’ve Just Seen The Rock of Ages.” The project is engineered by Chuck Ainlay and mastered by Paul Hamann at Suma Recording Studio.

Trouble In Mind is just the latest in a string of interesting collaborations Womack has taken part in during recent months. She co-hosted the International Bluegrass Music Awards with bluegrass stalwart Jerry Douglas, participated in a CMT Crossroads taping with John Legend, recorded with Ralph Stanley, and more.

[Updated]: LifeNotes: ‘Billboard’s’ Wade Jessen Passes

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wade jessen

Billboard Sr. Chart Manager, Nashville, Wade Ray Jessen passed away unexpectedly this morning, March 5, 2015. He was 53 and suffered a massive heart attack.

With the publication since 1994, Jessen managed the Music City operations, and oversaw all radio and retail charts for bluegrass, Christian, country and gospel. He also represented those charts to the global press community and provided weekly chart analysis on multiple delivery platforms.

He was a well-liked and respected member of the Nashville music community for more than 20 years. He was a former ACM Board member, and was active with the CMA, GMA, IBMA, Leadership Music, SGMA and The Recording Academy.

Jessen was also a SiriusXM radio host on the Willie’s Roadhouse channel. A self-described “country music nerd,” he had extensive knowledge of music history and took particular interest in classic country, antique radios, phonographs, and microphones.

A helpful friend to fellow media, Jessen annually assisted MusicRow in compiling data to tabulate the publication’s Top 10 All-Star Musician Awards.

He was born Nov. 15, 1961 in Roosevelt, Utah. Jessen’s first job in radio was at age 16, as an on-air personality at KNEU/Roosevelt. He later moved to KSOP/Salt Lake City and then to WSM-AM/Nashville, where he was named Billboard’s medium market music director of the year in 1994.

With widely varying interests, Jessen also studied rural, farming, and ranching issues. He enjoyed good wine, cooking, furniture and china.

He was preceded in death by parents Robert Gary Jessen and Rosalee Brown Jessen of Utah. He is survived by spouse Corey Jones. 

Funeral arrangements are as follows:

Visitation from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday, March 8, 2015 with the family receiving guests from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Spring Hill Funeral Home, 5110 Gallatin Pike, Nashville, Tenn.

Visitation at 11 a.m. Monday, March 9, 2015 with Mass at 12 noon at the St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church, 1700 Heiman Street, Nashville, Tenn.

There will be a viewing at the Jessen Family home in Utah Friday, March 13, 2015 from 4-8 pm. Graveside services and interment at the Mt. Home-Boneta Cemetery, Mt. Home, Utah Saturday, March 14, 2015 at 11 am. Arrangements entrusted to Spring Hill Funeral Home and Cemetery, 5110 Gallatin Road, Nashville, TN 37216. Click here for additional details.

Weekly Chart Report (3/6/15)

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Gorley, Brown, Child Slated For ASCAP’s “I Create Music” Expo

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ASCAP 2015 I Create Music ExpoASCAP will welcome several top-shelf songwriters during its 2015 ASCAP “I Create Music” Expo, slated for April 30-May 2 at Los Angeles’ Loews Hollywood Hotel.

The expo is now in its 10th year, and offers three days of panels and discussions centering around the art and business aspects of songwriting, producing and composing, as well as an array of performances from artists and songwriters.

Among the writers scheduled to take part in the expo this year are Ashley Gorley (Carrie Underwood, Brad Paisley), Darrell Brown (LeAnn Rimes, Keith Urban), Desmond Child, Bill Withers, Kevin Cronin (REO Speedwagon), Lou Gramm (Foreigner), Savan Kotecha (Ariana Grande, Jessie J, One Direction), Greg Kurstin (Kelly Clarkson, Ellie Goulding), and more. Gorley will take part in The Writers Jam with Andrew Bird, Aloe Blacc, and others. Brown will participate in a live multi-genre song feedback workshop series.

“The ASCAP ‘I Create Music’ EXPO has become one of our signature events and for good reason,” said ASCAP President Paul Williams. “The chance to meet and learn from others who share the enthusiasm for our craft is immensely valuable, especially when you’re in the early stages of your career. This is something ASCAP excels at, and with EXPO we’re gratified that we can provide the opportunity for music creators of all levels and genres to come together for this incredibly rewarding experience.”

Williams will participate in a conference panel on Saturday, May 2, that will focus on legislative issues affecting songwriters. Joining Williams will be songwriter/artist Aloe Blacc, ASCAP CEO Beth Matthews, and co-sponsors of the Songwriter Equity Act, Congressmen Doug Collins and Hakeem Jeffries.

Nashville Film Festival’s Music Line-Up Revealed

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NaFF2015

The Nashville Film Festival (NaFF) has announced the selections for the Gibson Music Documentaries for the 46th Nashville Film Festival, slated for April 16 – 25 at Regal Green Hills Cinema.

“These music documentaries bring music lovers surprising stories they have never heard. This is a remarkable collection of world, southeast and Tennessee premieres, that cross many music genres,” said Brian Owens, NaFF Artistic Director. “There is truly something for everyone—from blues, country, and gospel to disco and rock.”

Details at www.nashvillefilmfestival.org.

Here’s the list:

• Austin to Boston, Featuring Mumford & Sons’ Ben Lovett and narrated by Gill Landry this documentary is about a modern tour, done the old-fashioned way.

• Buskin’ Blues, About Asheville, N.C. street musicians.

• Country: Portraits of an American Sound, The history and culture of country music through the lens of the photographers Les Leverett, Leigh Weiner, Henry Horenstein, Henry Diltz, Raeanne Rubenstein, David McAlister and Michael Wilson. Cast: Rosanne Cash, Roy Clark, Merle Haggard, Lyle Lovett, Charley Pride, LeAnn Rimes, Kenny Rogers, Tanya Tucker, The Band Perry, Keith Urban. World Premiere.

• Heartworn Highways Revisited, A new community of singer-songwriters whose work is heavily influenced by the “Outlaw” artists presented in the 1976 documentary Heartworn Highways. Cast: David Allan Coe, Guy Clark, Bobby Bare Jr. Shelly Colvin, Andrew Combs.

• How Sweet the Sound – The Blind Boys of Alabama, Filmed over the course of 10 years. World Premiere.

• Imba Means Sing, About the Grammy-nominated African Children’s Choir.

• Made in Japan, The story of Tomi Fujiyama, the world’s first Japanese country music superstar.

• My Voice, My Life, A group of under-privileged students undergo six months of vigorous training to produce their first stage musical.

• Orion: The Man Who Would Be King, About Jimmy Ellis, who masqueraded as Elvis back from the grave in a scheme concocted in the months after Presley’s death.

• The Record Man, Henry Stone catapulted the Miami sound into the mainstream with TK Records (KC and the Sunshine Band’s “Get Down Tonight,” Anita Ward’s “Ring My Bell”).

• Revival: The Sam Bush Story. Cast: Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Chris Thile, The Avett Brothers, Bela Fleck, Del McCoury, Ricky Skaggs, John Oates. World Premiere.

• Sweet Micky for President, Pras Michel of the Fugees, returns to his homeland of Haiti to mobilize a presidential campaign for Haiti’s most controversial musician: Michel Martelly (aka Sweet Micky). Cast: Pras Michel, Michel Martelly, Wyclef Jean, Ben Stiller