Kip Moore, Randy Rogers, Wade Bowen Set To Share Tall Tales On New Mini-Tour

Kip Moore, Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen are set to trade stories and songs on a new tour, the “Tall Tales and the Truth Tour,” which will kick off in Denver on Dec. 7.

The limited-run, special solo acoustic tour will feature all three writers taking the stage together each night and performing and sharing the intimate stories behind their songs. Along with Denver, the tour will hit Lincoln, Nebraska (Dec. 8), Washington D.C. (Dec. 13) and wrap in New York City on Dec. 14.

“This is something Randy and I have been cooking up for a while,” says Moore. “We’ve always had a great camaraderie, and a similar mantra, and so we thought it might be a cool way to share our stories in a more intimate setting with our fans. We did a show with Wade and mentioned the idea and then it all fell into place.”

“This tour with Kip is long overdue,” says Rogers. “We were label mates for years and have been talking about doing a tour together for a while. Adding lil’ buddy Wade Bowen to the mix just seemed like a natural fit. Guaranteed good times — both on stage and off.”

Tickets will go on sale this Friday, Oct. 27.

Skillet To Headline Winter Jam 2018

Skillet has been named headliner for the upcoming Winter Jam 2018 Tour Spectacular. The Jam’s 46-city Eastern U.S. tour will also feature worship leader Kari Jobe (featuring Cody Carnes), Building 429, John Crist, hip-hop artist KB, tour creators and hosts, NewSong, Jordan Feliz, and a message from author, speaker and evangelist Nick Hall.

In addition, the Pre-Jam Party will feature Dan Bremnes and singer/songwriter Mallary Hope, along with new Baby Syndrome Records artist Westover.

“We are so excited to be back on Winter Jam in 2018,” said Skillet’s John Cooper. “I’m looking forward to playing with great artists, talking about faith with great friends, and playing for the legendary crowds that attend Winter Jam!”

Kicking-off Jan. 5 at the Charleston Civic Center in Charleston, West Virginia, the tour will visit numerous venues across the country, including Chicago’s Allstate Arena, Lakefront Arena in New Orleans, Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, and Charlotte, North Carolina’s Spectrum Center, among others, before concluding March 31 at Lexington, Kentucky’s Rupp Arena.

“I can’t wait to see what God is going to do on Winter Jam 2018,” said tour creator/NewSong co-founder, Eddie Carswell. “Every year He amazes us with His presence and the people He draws to each venue to hear the Gospel. We hope everyone can make it out this year. It’s going to be a show to remember.”

Music Biz Conference To Continue In Nashville Through 2020

The Music Business Association (Music Biz) Conference will remain in Nashville through 2020.

“The Music Biz conference has grown steadily over the three years we have hosted it in Nashville, topping 2,000 attendees last year for the first time since 2001,” said James Donio, President of Music Biz. “The music business sensibility of Nashville and its Music City Music Council aligns so well with our efforts on behalf of music services, stores, labels, artists, songwriters, managers, publishers, entrepreneurs, startups, educators, students, and everyone else in or looking to break into the industry. We’re thrilled to make it our flagship conference’s home base for at least another three years, and look forward to exposing more music companies to Nashville and the many opportunities it provides.”

The previously announced dates for Music Biz 2018 will be May 14-17, 2018 at Omni Hotel Nashville. Future dates include:

May 5-8, 2019 at JW Marriott Nashville (slated to open in July 2018)

May 11-14, 2020 at JW Marriott Nashville

Music Biz was first held in Nashville in 2015 and has grown in attendance since then.

“When people think of music, they think of Nashville, which means there’s no better place for the Music Biz conference than right here in Music City,” said Nashville Mayor Megan Barry. “We are committed to supporting the thriving music industry in Nashville while nurturing its growth by attracting top talent to our city. The Music Biz conference has proven its ability to bring in major executives, not only from the U.S. but also from around the world, to see what we offer and establish or expand their presence here. We could not be more pleased to hear that Music Biz has booked an extended stay.”

“The Music Biz conference has been a benefit for our city, and we’re excited to have them back for the next three years,” said Music City Music Council co-chair Joe Galante. “Music is a global industry, but there’s no city in the world quite like Nashville with its mix of high-level creative and business talent. Having Music Biz here helps us spread that message by bringing in elite new visitors to experience it first-hand. We can’t wait to continue to show Music Biz’s attendees what Music City is all about.”

Registration for Music Biz 2018 is open now at musicbiz2018.eventbrite.com, with special early bird rates available through March 2, 2018.

Big Machine Label Group Names Erin Parker As VP, Strategic Partnerships

Erin Parker

Big Machine Label Group has added Erin Parker has VP, Strategic Partnerships. Parker was previously with Red Light Management’s Brand Partnership arm, New Era, where she headed endorsement deals, sponsorships, content creation and licensing for artists including Luke Bryan, Dierks Bentley, Kip Moore, and Jon Pardi.

Parker began her career at Billboard’s conference and events team in New York City before relocating to Nashville in 2008, with a stint at MAC Presents.

“We are thrilled to have Erin join the team here at Big Machine,” said Mike Rittberg, BMLG Chief Marketing Officer. “Her experience and determination in this space will be a valuable asset to our artists”.

“Music is the most impactful way for brands to tell their story,” said Parker. “I am eager to partner my experience with Scott Borchetta’s innovative vision for the Big Machine Label Group and amazing artists.”

Corey Crowder Lands New Publishing Home

Pictured (Front row, L-R): Tree Vibez Co-Founder Tyler Hubbard; Corey Crowder; Tree Vibez Co-Founder Brian Kelley. (Back row, L-R): Tree Vibez Creative Director/Tour Manager Adam Romaine and General Manager Leslie DiPiero; ASCAP Vice President of Membership Michael Martin. Photo: Ed Rode

Songwriter/producer Corey Crowder, known for co-writing songs including Chris Young’s “I’m Comin’ Over” and “Think Of You,” has landed a new publishing home at Tree Vibez Music, founded by duo Florida Georgia Line.

“Corey is the complete package: a singer’s singer, a writer’s writer and a musician’s musician. He’s a perfect fit for Tree Vibez Music and on top of it all he’s a joy to be around,” says Tree Vibez Music General Manager Leslie DiPiero.

Crowder comments, “What many may not know is Tyler, BK [Brian Kelley] and I go back long before any of us came to Nashville. So I am beyond excited to officially be a part of their family after all of these years!”

Crowder also co-produced Chris Young’s I’m Comin’ Over album, as well as Young’s recently released Losing Sleep project and the holiday album This Must Be Christmas.

Crowder’s songs have been recorded by A Thousand Horses, Chris Janson, Justin Moore, Jon Pardi, Cole Swindell, Michael Ray, Kenny Rogers, and more. Meanwhile, his work has appeared on hit TV shows like Nashville, One Tree Hill, The Biggest Loser, The Real World, and Gainesville, and he has produced projects for Cale Dodds, Seth Ennis, James Otto, Eric Paslay, and Jamie Lynn Spears, among others.

 

Warner/Chappell Nashville Inks Deal With River House Artists

Front: Alicia Pruitt (WC), Drew Parker (RH), Lynn Oliver-Cline (RH), Rob Williford (RH)
Back: Phil May (WC), Ben Vaughn (WC), Zebb Luster (RH), Will Overton (WC)

Nashville-based independent publishing company River House Artists has entered into a worldwide publishing agreement with Warner/Chappell Nashville. River House Artists, which also includes label and artist management services, launched in 2016 under the leadership of Lynn Oliver-Cline.

River House Artist’s writers include Ray Fulcher, Rob Williford and Drew Parker. Fulcher co-wrote Luke Comb’s single “When It Rains It Pours,” while Fulcher, Williford and Parker share co-writes on all 12 tracks on Combs’ debut album.

Prior to launching River House Artists, Oliver-Cline served as VP of Marketing at Thirty Tigers. Prior to that, she worked with Hootie and the Blowfish, Zac Brown’s Southern Ground Artists, Wyatt Durrette, BMI, and Virgin Records.

“It’s been great to see River House Artists accomplish so much in such a short amount of time,” said Ben Vaughn, President, Warner/Chappell Nashville. “Their success stems from Lynn’s adept entrepreneurship and ear for quality music. We’re all thrilled to start working with Lynn and her roster at such a critical point in the development of River House and its songwriters.”

Oliver-Cline added, “Everyone at Warner/Chappell has been so encouraging. With their support and resources, this partnership will undoubtedly be an exciting step forward for the future of River House Artists and our wonderfully talented songwriters.”

Kelsea Ballerini, Reba, Maren Morris, Naill Horan Set For CMA Awards Collaborations

The CMA has announced four musical collaborations for the upcoming 51st Annual CMA Awards on Nov. 8.

Five-time CMA Awards nominee Kelsea Ballerini will team with six-time CMA winner (and 50-time nominee) Reba McEntire. Both are nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year this year, with Reba having earned the honor four consecutive times (1984-87).

Male Vocalist of the Year nominee Dierks Bentley will collaborate with Vocal Group of the Year nominee Rascal Flatts, while Brad Paisley will team with Kane Brown for a performance of Paisley’s new single, “Heaven South.” Paisley will also co-host the show with Carrie Underwood for the 10th consecutive year.

Reigning New Artist of the Year Maren Morris will collaborate with pop star Naill Horan.

Winners of The 51st Annual CMA Awards are determined in a final round of voting by eligible voting CMA members. The third and final ballot closes Wednesday, Oct. 25 (6 p.m. CT). Ballots are tabulated by the professional services organization Deloitte & Touche LLP.

The 51st Annual CMA Awards is a production of the Country Music Association. Robert Deaton serves as the Executive Producer for the 11th year, and Gary Halvorson as the Director for the first time.

Bandtwango’s John Alexander Has Sights On The Evolving Music Industry

Bandtwango co-founder John Alexander

Bandtwango co-founders John Alexander and Carl Allocco have their sights on being disrupters in a changing music industry landscape. They are currently funding campaigns on their platform for artists utilizing their fan bases. Whether it’s for an EP, a full-length CD, video or other need, the platform helps the artist move forward. The company also assists with tour support, radio promotion, and publicity.

Allocco recounts when he first starting thinking about creating this new platform, “I knew an artist who raised money and made a CD, but then it was like, ‘What now?’ Since money is a starting point, we decided to help artists do the most with that money to get to the next phase of their career.” Alexander adds, “Our main emphasis is to develop artists in a non-traditional way and empower them. It’s kind of showing them that they can be their own CEOs, that this is their business, and this is their careers.”

MusicRow: John, Why did you and Carl decide to create the new company, Bandtwango?

John Alexander: With the relationships I’ve developed over the years, it was a way for us to open doors for the artists. That can mean introducing them to tastemakers, getting their songs on playlists, or introducing them to a video director and getting their videos placed. We are country music–centric and that’s what differentiates us from the other crowdfunding platforms. They’re kind of a listing services [platform]. We’re not that. We’re going to work with you on your career from day one.

What are some of your successful campaigns?

Alexander: We beta tested with an act called Hadley Park. They funded an EP and we were able to help them get on a playlist with John Marks at Spotify. They had gotten on SiriusXM with a song called “Another Bottle of Wine” and spent 13 weeks there. We’re still helping them. We also put them on a show in New York with Danielle Bradbery and RaeLynn. For Jeneve Rose Mitchell, we fully funded her campaign and she recorded an album. Now we’re in negotiations with Dollywood about a residency for her in 2018. We got her on a show in New York opening for Scotty McCreery and we’re going to do some media for her. We introduced Christina Taylor to a video director and to CMT, who has been playing her video.

Every artist has a different story and different needs. We go out there and try to find the right fit for the artist and educate them and then give them opportunity.

What advice do you give those artists?

Alexander: Basically the advice that we’re giving them, first and foremost, is that this is your life and this is your career. You have to understand that this career is in your hands– so take it seriously. If you’re looking to ask your fans to partner with you and to help you fund your next project or video, you need to engage with those fans every day. Everything’s a relationship in this town and in this industry. If we can help you open a door, you have to solidify that relationship. Use the things that Bandtwango can do for you and then expand upon it.

What about a brand new artist without much of a following?

Alexander: If they don’t have much of a fan base yet, like only several hundred followers, we do a starter-campaign called Ignite. Let’s get a website set up for you, take some photos, and look to only raise $1,000 or less. Let’s try to help you build that fan base and show you what to do, and how to get promoted on YouTube and other platforms. Then you can start attracting fans. Three months down the road, perhaps you can fund a single or a couple of songs and get you in the studio.

Tell me about the different divisions of Bandtwango, like Special Projects and Bandtwango Presents?

Alexander: Special Projects is for an artist who wants to raise money for a cause, like a natural disaster or someone with a medical emergency. For example, in the show we did on Long Island, Todd O’Neill opened up for Rascal Flatts. We were donating money to Long Island Cares. In return for that, we were able to get Todd O’Neill on that show. O’Neill was the Nash Next Winner and a Big Machine artist.

Bandtwango Presents, through our relationship in New York with a radio group, we are able to present their concerts for them. We are sponsoring a summer concert series. We are then able to grow our brand, get people attracted to Bandtwango and give our acts the opportunity to open up for others.

How do you decide what incentives an artist should offer and how do you set the goal amount?

Alexander: The formula for how much money an artist should raise is always based upon their social media following. For every ‘like’ or ‘follower’ that an artist has, it typically averages out to be a dollar they’ll get in a campaign. We want incentives that are true to that artist. Examples include, if an artist is into house concerts or if there are special things like personal paintings, Skype calls, etc. 

What are some of the different opportunities artists use crowdfunding to achieve?

Alexander: Radio promotion, video promotion, publicity… Artists need publicists once they get up and running and a lot of them can’t afford it. Those are a couple of things and some artists want to be able to go on tour. Everybody has their own needs and wants.

John, you’ve been in the music business more than 30 years. How will you define success with this venture?

Alexander: If I’m going to leave a legacy in this town, it’s really going to be the ability to help artists and take them to the next level. Although I’m hoping we can take an artist across the finish line with Bandtwango, even if I don’t and get an artist half way across the finish line and then tag someone else to take them the rest of the way, then I will feel like mission accomplished.

 

Jimmy Wayne Reveals New Album, Label Imprint

Jimmy Wayne has launched the label imprint Bea Hive Records, in support of his fourth album, Ruby Toons, a 13-track project coinciding with his upcoming book, Ruby The Foster Dog, which releases Nov. 1 (Broadstreet Publishing).

Wayne’s new album, a blend of pop and hip-hop sounds, will include uplifting, positive messages. It marks a departure for the singer-songwriter best known for country songs including “Stay Gone,” “Do You Believe Me Now” and “I Love You This Much.”

“People don’t expect it from me,” he says of the new sound. “A lot of it comes from growing up in foster care. I was exposed to all genres of music. I have a cassette tape of me rapping when I was 13. It’s not something I just started doing. I grew up listening to it—all that music.”

Ruby The Foster Dog follows Wayne’s previous print efforts, which include Paper Angels: A Novel, and A Walk To Beautiful.

Home Free Finds ‘Timeless’ Success With Catchy Covers, Originals

There aren’t many country albums where you can hear a John Mayer track, a Dave Mason classic from the ’70’s, and “Man Of Constant Sorrow” all in the same place. Welcome to the world of Home Free.

“Free” is a pretty apropos name for the five-man a cappella group, who took off when they took home the trophy on Season 4 of the NBC competition The Sing-Off and haven’t stopped soaring since. Capitalizing on their initial success and continually building on it by putting their unique spin on everything from Top 40 favorites to timeless classics, members Austin Brown, Rob Lundquist, Adam Rupp, Tim Foust, and Adam Chance have amassed an immense YouTube following of 180 million viewers. That success has translated into sales as well: the group has sold over 250,000 albums and its just-released fourth project on Columbia Records, Timeless, debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Country chart.

With a wide open field of favorites to choose from when they record, and some well-crafted originals peppered in for extra flavor, they’ve found the formula that keeps their fans constantly coming back for more: content.

“We are always evolving as artists and we try to capture that for sure on our records,” said bassist Foust about how they determine which songs to cover and record. “And it’s a really democratic process for us to be honest with you. We all have songs we are passionate about we bring to the table, and our producer or management suggest some, too. In the case of our previous album Country Evolution, we actually polled the fans and asked, ‘What do y’all want to hear?’ and we took about half of their suggestions and put those on the record.

“But with this new album we had a list of songs we’ve been wanting to do for awhile like ‘Man Of Constant Sorrow’ and even that Dave Mason song ‘We Just Disagree’ — we all grew up listening to the Billy Dean version of that. But we’ve got this pod of songs that we know, kind of like our wish list, and every album we’ll decide which ones we think are ready. And we’re always keeping our ear to radio both pop and country and then we also do our research too, like we’re big fans of John Mayer and the first time we heard ‘In The Blood’ we thought, “well this is a country song.” So we wanted to put our spin on that.”

The quintet finds an added bonus to being able to constantly mine music across many different genres for their audiences as well, according to Foust. “One of the biggest joys we’ve found in this is being able to expose a new generation of kids to music that meant a lot to us growing up. ‘We Just Disagree’ — that song is maybe not on the forefront of people’s minds these days, but we loved that song growing up and we think kids would enjoy hearing our version.”

“Our set list is always evolving too and typically whatever’s newest is what we’re excited about to sing, but I will say it never gets old singing ‘Ring Of Fire.’ The audience loves it, it’s our most popular cover we’ve ever done, and the audience loses their minds every time we start it in the show.”

Their ability to reinvent classics with a modern spin with just their voices first took shape when they met in college nearly two decades ago, and their melting pot of influences has no doubt contributed over the years to their unique sound.

“We’re kind of all over the map with our influences,” explains Foust. “Austin and Chance and I we were all raised on 80’s and 90’s country as well as classic country, and Rob and Adam are from Minnesota and they didn’t really get too much of that influence until later in life. Rob was raised on more classical stuff, his dad played a lot of Pavarotti and stuff like that, and his mom listened to pop radio when he was growing up.

“And then Adam, our beatboxer, was most influenced by composers for video game music, believe it or not. He’s really studied all the composers who have been doing that and he was a trumpet performance major in college. So whenever he does an arrangement for the group a lot of times it’s outside of the box.”

The group recorded four originals for this latest project, and has recorded songs by Mark Nesler and other Nashville writers for several of their albums. They enjoy arranging and recording originals, though Foust admits it can be a bit different than laying down favorites or standards that are already so familiar.

“I would say arranging an original is maybe a little trickier when you’re covering a song because you’ve got a fully fleshed-out instrumental arrangement to work with already, so you can pull from those elements like a certain guitar riff or something we can pull that off vocally. But whenever you’re starting an original you sort of wonder how in these sessions the Nashville players would play the stuff. So these days what we’ll do is we’ll fully flesh out a demo of an original with instruments too and then arrange based on that.

“We work with a couple of songwriters these days and I think they’re always trying to think about what they’ve written that would fit what we do. And we always tell ’em not to worry about that, we just say give us a good song because at the end of the day it just needs to be a catchy song and we’ll put our spin on it. Nine out 10 country songs too are gonna lend themselves to that standard three-part chorus harmony that you’re just so used to hearing in country music.”

In addition to the albums they record, Home Free caters to its fans by constantly feeding them new tracks via YouTube. In a content-is-king, rabid consumption world, the group has learned just how key it is to keep their fans engaged.

“I think the record industry has sort of been turned on its ear anyway and the old model of an album every 18 months or something that just doesn’t really work anymore because of the nature of the way people consume music,” said Foust. “They’re always ready for the next thing, so we’ve sort of just gone along with it and tried to commit to releasing two fully-produced videos per month. And a lot of the songs end up being songs that aren’t even on our album — we’ll just go in and cut a full track that will only ever live on YouTube. That’s just a way for us to keep cranking content out and we’ve got some pretty rabid fans, so it keeps them happy.”

The original content not only bridges the gap between albums for the group but also serves as a major way to introduce them to new fans who may not be familiar with them.

“Every show we meet quite a few people who have just discovered us shortly before the show on our YouTube channel, so it’s driving our business right now. And we have complete control over it. We get to do what we want to do and it’s a direct line of communication with us and the fans,” explains Foust.

That fan connection is so strong that the group decided to tap into it recently and partner together to help raise funds following the devastation of Hurricane Harvey. Since Foust hails from Nederland, TX, which is near Houston, the tragedy hit close to home for him, and the group quickly formed their campaign at YouCaring.com/HomeFreeHelps to help. Challenging fans to match their initial donation, they have since raised almost $100,000 to aid those affected by both Harvey and Irma.

“We started with a 20,000 donation and challenged our fans to match it, but our fans reached that in like twelve hours,” recalls Foust. “So we have upped the goal to $100,000 and we are at $87,000 right now. And during that whole campaign Irma hit Florida as well so we decided to donate $20,000 of it to Irma relief as well. The coolest thing about the Harvey relief is we’re working with an organization in Southeast Texas that my mother and sister are spearheading to make sure that every single penny is going to go to the people who need it.”

Though Home Free’s continued success may seem surprising to some not familiar with the group who might scoff at the idea of an a cappella group breaking into the mainstream, bassist Tim Foust explains it usually doesn’t take much to win the skeptics over.

“There’s still a little bit of an archaic school of thought about it, admits Foust. “It doesn’t matter how far the genre progresses, there’s still just some people out there who hear the word a cappella and they immediately think barbershop quartet, and they just don’t understand how that would possibly fit in popular programming — until they see the show, and then they go ‘OH.’ It’s a country rock show that just happens to be a cappella. So we have a little bit of a hurdle here and there, but it’s pretty easy to turn people into believers if you can get them to a show.”