Garth Expands Life Zone at Texas Children’s Hospital

Garth Brooks was on hand to celebrate the grand opening of the newly-renovated and expanded Child Life Zone at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston June 26. Funded through his Teammates for Kids foundation, the Zone provides a fun, safe environment for patients and their families. The newly-renovated space includes video gaming with a new Microsoft Media Wall and Surface Pro tablets, pool, air hockey, and race car driving on the Zone’s arcade games, an expanded kitchen, and an expanded production studio which offers patients the opportunity to explore and create music and allows kids to go “on air” each week as Radio Lollipop broadcasts their radio program throughout the hospital. 

Garth Brooks greets a patient at the Child Life Zone.

Old Dominion’s Video Break Up

Old Dominion filmed the video for their debut single “Break Up With Him” during CMA Music Festival in Nashville. 

Pictured (L-R:) Whit Sellers (Old Dominion), director Steve (video director), Trevor Rosen (Old Dominion), Geoff Sprung (Old Dominion), Matthew Ramsey (Old Dominion), Tracy Fleaner (Director, Creative, Sony Music Nashville), Brad Tursi (Old Dominion) Photo: Rick Diamond/Getty Images for Sony Music Nashville

A SOLID Round Table Discussion

SOLID recently hosted a round table discussion at the Nashville Entrepreneur Center where industry leaders were on hand to address new trends in technology and changes needed to keep up in the music business.

SOLID also hosted one of its most successful yard sales during this year’s CMA Music Festival at the George Jones Museum, where over $6,800 was raised and donated to the Muscular Dystrophy Association and Notes for Notes.

SOLID round table discussion. Pictured (L-R): Stephanie Cox, Vice President of Creative at Kobalt Music Publishing; Mike Butera, Founder & CEO of Artiphon; Chris McMurtry, CEO and Founder at DART; Marc Dottore, President and Manager at M. Dottore Artist Management; and Kurt Nelson, Founder of Aloompa

Pictured (L-R): Scott Borchetta, Florida Georgia Line, Jimmy Harnen.

Scott Borchetta‘s Big Machine Label Group (BMLG) has acquired full-stake ownership in Republic Nashville, according to sources.

The deal comes as BMLG re-signs a distribution agreement with Universal Music Group, which reportedly gives the label group a lower distribution fee.

Led by label president Jimmy Harnen, Republic Nashville’s current roster includes Florida Georgia Line, The Band Perry, Eli Young Band, Cassadee Pope and A Thousand Horses.

“Big Machine’s total industry market share including track equivalent albums is 1.7 percent year to date while [the] Valory imprint provides an additional 0.27 percent and now the Republic Nashville label adds another 0.37 percent for a total market share of 2.34 percent,” reports Ed Christman of Billboard.

Started in 2009 as the third imprint in Borchetta’s label group, Republic Nashville was created as a 50/50 partnership with New York’s Universal Republic President/CEO Monte Lipman. Republic Nashville launched with artists Sunny Sweeney and Fast Ryde, who have both since departed the company.

Big Machine and Republic first teamed in 2007 when Lipman’s staff helped cross Taylor Swift to Top 40 radio and beyond. That partnership continues to today, as Republic Records promotes Swift’s 1989 to pop radio.

Universal Republic also had a hand in Universal South, a company that eventually merged with Toby Keith‘s Show Dog in 2010 to become Show Dog-Universal. Keith’s label more recently became Show Dog Nashville and established closer ties to Universal Music Group Nashville. Keith was involved with Big Machine from the onset and remains a shareholder.

Bobby Wills visited the MusicRow offices to treat the staff to a performance that included his Top 30 hit “Never Didn’t Love You,” and “Show Some Respect.” Wills encouraged all to view the music video which can be seen here. Wills also sang his next single, “Crazy Enough” which will go for adds on July 16. The song was based on his personal experiences growing up.

Wills is a consecutive Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) Male Artist of the Year nominee. He also won the 2013 CCMA Rising Star title in addition to successively taking home the Alberta Country Music Association (ACMA) Male Artist of the Year award.

The Canadian singer is planning on moving his base from Calgary to Music City and will release his EP on July 17 through Willing Nashville.

Top L-R: MusicRow’s Sherod Robertson, Troy Stephenson, Eric Parker, Willing Nashville’s Angela Borchetta. Bottom L-R: MusicRow’s Kelsey Grady, Wills, MusicRow’s Sarah Skates