Zac Brown Band, Shawn Mendes To Meet At ‘CMT Crossroads’

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CMT has announced multi-platinum stars Shawn Mendes and Zac Brown Band will tape an upcoming installment of the celebrated series CMT Crossroads next week near Nashville. The show will debut Wednesday, Oct. 24 at 10 p.m. ET/PT.

The news comes on the heels of strong growth for the network. CMT reports it is on track to earn its highest rated year since 2014, having notched six consecutive quarters of year-over-year growth among viewers P18-49.

Mendes released his highly anticipated self-titled third album in May, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, featuring the hits “In My Blood” and “Lost In Japan.” These follow his massive singles “There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me Back” and “Stitches.”

Zac Brown Band has had four consecutive albums debut at No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Albums chart. To date, the group has won three Grammy Awards, sold more than 30 million singles, 9 million albums, and achieved 15 No. 1 radio singles.

Apple Music Publishes 116 “Top 100” Music Charts

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In a software update slated Friday (Sept. 7), Apple Music will reportedly introduce 116 “top 100” charts, displaying the top-streamed songs on its streaming platform.

In a demo to Rolling Stone, there will be one global chart and a top 100 chart for every country in which Apple Music is available (grouped together under the platform’s “Browse” tab and have a similar visual appearance to that of playlists or albums, notes reporter Amy X. Wang). Each chart is expected to be updated daily, at 12 a.m. PT.

Broader updates to Apple’s software and hardware products are expected at the company’s Sept. 12 special event.

Luke Combs Announces First Arena Headlining Tour

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Luke Combs will kick off his first headlining arena tour in 2019. The Beer Never Broke My Heart Tour will feature special guests LANCO and Jameson Rodgers. Commencing Jan. 31 at Birmingham’s Legacy Arena at the BJCC, the outing will run through the spring, visiting legendary venues including New York’s Hammerstein Ballroom and Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheater.

The tour was announced by Combs earlier this morning (Sept. 7) on SiriusXM’s The Highway.

Tickets go on sale Friday, Sept. 14 at 10 a.m. local time. In an effort to combat scalping, fan club tickets will be sold through the Ticketmaster Verified Fan™ program and all tickets will have fan-focused pricing offered between $25 and $50.

Combs plays Nashville tonight (Sept. 7) as part of Jason Aldean’s tour. Later this fall Combs travels to Europe for a series of headline shows which sold out months in advance.

He is nominated at the 2018 CMA Awards for Male Vocalist of the Year and New Artist of the Year. Combs wrapped the record-breaking, 55-city sold-out Don’t Tempt Me With A Good Time Tour earlier this year. His major label debut, This One’s For You, is currently the most-streamed country album of 2018, achieving over 1 billion streams.

Luke Combs Beer Never Broke My Heart Tour
January 31—Birmingham, AL—Legacy Arena at the BJCC*
February 1—Huntington, WV—Big Sandy Superstore Arena*
February 2—Greensboro, NC—Greensboro Coliseum Complex*
February 7—Wichita, KS—INTRUST Bank Arena*
February 8—North Little Rock, AR—Verizon Arena*
February 9—Baton Rouge, LA—Raising Cane’s River Center*
February 14—Greenville, SC—Bon Secours Wellness Arena*
February 15—Knoxville, TN—Thompson-Boling Arena*
February 16—Evansville, IN—Ford Center*
February 21—Hershey, PA—Giant Center*
February 22—Columbus, OH—Schottenstein Center*
February 23—Charlottesville, VA—John Paul Jones Arena*
February 28—New York, NY—Manhattan Center Hammerstein Ballroom†
March 1—Bangor, ME—Cross Insurance Center*
March 2—Worcester, MA—DCU Center*
March 8—Tupelo, MS—BancorpSouth Arena*
March 9—Orange Beach, AL—Amphitheatre at The Wharf*
March 28—London, ON—Budweiser Garden*
March 29—Oshawa, ON—Tribute Communities Centre*
March 30—Kingston, Ontario—Leon’s Centre*
April 11—Duluth, MN—AMSOIL Arena*
sApril 12—Moline, IL—TaxSlayer Center*
April 13—Saginaw, MI—Dow Event Center*
April 25—Green Bay, WI—Resch Center*
April 26—La Crosse, WI—La Crosse Center*
May 10—Tulsa, OK—BOK Center*
May 11—Omaha, NE—CHI Health Center Omaha*
May 12—Morrison, CO—Red Rocks Amphitheater*

*with LANCO and Jameson Rodgers
†with Jameson Rodgers

Kane Brown Details Upcoming Album, First Headlining Arena Tour

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Since his debut RCA Nashville album released in 2016, Kane Brown has been a mainstay on the country music charts. He made history earlier this year by becoming the first artist to top all five Billboard Country Charts with his breakthrough album.

The 24-year-old’s career impetus continues with the upcoming release of his new album, Experiment, on Nov. 9. Brown co-wrote 11 of the album’s dozen tracks, and welcomed writers including Taylor Phillips, Shy Carter, Will Weatherly, Laura Veltz, and more.

Brown will hit the road in January on his first arena headlining tour, the Kane Brown: Live Forever Tour, which will include support acts Granger Smith, RaeLynn, Danielle Bradbery and Jimmie Allen on select dates.

Experiment Track Listing:
1. “Baby Come Back to Me”
Kane Brown/Chase McGill/Matthew McGinn/Will Weatherly

2. “Good as You”
Kane Brown/Brock Berryhill/Shy Carter/Taylor Phillips/Will Weatherly

3. “Lose It”
Kane Brown/Chase McGill/Will Weatherly

4. “It Ain’t You It’s Me”
Kane Brown/Brock Berryhill/Josh Hoge/Taylor Phillips

5. “Short Skirt Weather”
Kane Brown/Chase McGill/Will Weatherly

6. “Homesick”
Kane Brown/Brock Berryhill/Matthew McGinn/Taylor Phillips

7. “Weekend”
Kane Brown/Chase McGill/Will Weatherly

8. “Work”
Kane Brown/Sam Ellis/Josh Hoge

9. “One Night Only”
Kane Brown/Corey Crowder/Josh Hoge/Matthew McGinn

10. “My Where I Come From”
Kane Brown/Chase McGill/Matthew McGinn/Will Weatherly

11. “American Bad Dream”
Kane Brown/Sam Ellis/Josh Hoge/Chase McGill

12. “Live Forever”
Sam Ellis/Jon Green/Laura Veltz

Kane Brown: Live Forever Tour Dates (2019)
Jan. 10: Infinite Energy Arena @ Duluth GA
Jan. 11: Pensacola Bay Center @ Pensacola FL
Jan. 12: Columbus Civic Center @ Columbus GA
Jan. 17: Silverstein Eye Centers Arena @ Independence MO
Jan. 18: Landers Arena @ Southaven MS
Jan. 19: Lloyd Noble Center @ Norman OK
Jan. 24: Von Braun Arena @ Huntsville AL
Jan. 25: Colonial Life Arena @ Columbia SC
Jan. 26: Amway Center @ Orlando FL
Jan. 31: Berglund Center @ Roanoke VA
Feb. 1: The Arena @ Corbin KY
Feb. 15: BMO Harris Arena @ Rockford IL
Feb. 16: Swiftel Center @ Brookings SD
Feb. 17: Ralph Engelstad Arena @ Grand Forks ND
Feb. 21: SNHU Arena @ Manchester NH
Feb. 22: Oakdale Theatre @ Wallingford CT
Feb. 23: Covelli Centre @ Youngstown OH
Feb. 28: Grossinger Motors Arena @ Bloomington IL
March 1:Show Me Center Cape @ Girardeau MO
March 2: CenturyLink Center @ Bossier City LA
March 7: Allen Event Center @ Allen TX
March 8: HEB Center Cedar  @ Park TX

Weekly Chart Report (9/7/18)

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Click here or above to access MusicRow’s weekly CountryBreakout Report.

Hosts, Performers, Musical Director Announced For 17th Annual Americana Honors & Awards

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The Americana Music Association announced today that The Milk Carton Kids will be on hand to host and Buddy Miller will return as musical director for the 17th annual Americana Honors & Awards ceremony. This year’s show will take place at 6:30 p.m. CT on Wednesday, Sept. 12 at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium.

Legends and longtime fan-favorites line up alongside present-day buzz generators including k.d. lang, Buddy Guy, Irma Thomas, Rosanne Cash, John Prine, Robert Earl Keen, Brandi Carlile, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, I’m With Her, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats, Margo Price, Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real, Mary Gauthier, Anderson East, Lilly Hiatt, Tyler Childers and Courtney Marie Andrews as confirmed performers for the Honors & Awards show.

The ceremony is the capstone event for the 19th annual AMERICANAFEST, held at various venues throughout Nashville during the week of Sept. 11-16.

For the first time, Americana award-winning and GRAMMY-nominated duo The Milk Carton Kids, Kenneth Pattengale and Joey Ryan, will host the critically acclaimed program, while Americana’s most-awarded artist, songwriter, musician and producer Buddy Miller takes the reins of musical direction for the Americana All-Star Band featuring Don Was, Jerry Pentecost, Joe Pisapia, Ian Fitchuk, Lillie Mae, Joshua Grange, Jim Hoke and the McCrary Sisters.

A live video stream of the 2018 Honors & Awards show will be webcast via NPRMusic.org. Additionally, CMT is set to broadcast a special featuring performance highlights on Nov. 28 at 8 p.m. CT; followed by a special broadcast of the television series Austin City Limits on PBS in February 2019.

“Each year this show is so special, driven by the passion of music-loving artists and fans, it is truly a humbling event,” said Jed Hilly, Executive Director of the Americana Music Association, adding, “it’s an honor to produce this event with the best team in the biz, Michelle Aquilato, Martin Fischer and Edie Hoback and thrilled to expand our collaboration team to include Terry Lickona (Austin City Limits), Margaret Comeaux and Ellie Chandler from CMT.”

“We’ve been supported by and supporters of Americana since our inception,” said Pattengale and Ryan. “And the thought of hosting this event with so many of our friends and idols performing and receiving honors thrills us to no end. We’ve been working hard on the program and are excited to help present a memorable night. We hope, additionally, that we don’t blow it.”

In addition to the annual “Of the Year” awards presented during the program, the 2018 Honors & Awards Show will include this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award honorees: lang, Guy, Thomas, Cash and Olivia Records pioneers Judy Dlugacz and Cris Williamson.

A live audio simulcast of the Honors & Awards show will also be available via SiriusXM’s Outlaw Country, and on Nashville area terrestrial radio stations: WRLT (100.1 FM), WSM (650 AM) and WMOT (89.5 FM).

Confirmed performers for the 2018 Americana Honors & Awards, in alphabetical order:

Courtney Marie Andrews
Brandi Carlile
Rosanne Cash
Tyler Childers
Anderson East
Mary Gauthier
Buddy Guy
Lilly Hiatt
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit
Robert Earl Keen
k.d. lang
Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real
Margo Price
John Prine
Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats
Irma Thomas

Little Big Town To Appear On ‘Stand Up To Cancer’ Telecast

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Stand Up To Cancer’s sixth biennial telecast on Friday, Sept. 7 (8:00 – 9:00 p.m. ET/PT) has added more names to its star-studded lineup, including Little Big Town. The quartet will offer one of the show’s three musical performances, in addition to performances from Stevie Wonder and Charlie Wilson.

Jason Bateman, Beth Behrs, Julie Bowen, Josh Brolin, Kaley Cuoco, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Max Greenfield, Jon Hamm, Mark Harmon, Sarah Hyland, Adam Klein, Tyler Labine, Diego Luna, Sonequa Martin-Green, Dave Price, Keanu Reeves, Tracee Ellis Ross, Winona Ryder, Jimmy Smits, Eric Stonestreet, Alison Sweeney, Bree Turner, Sofia Vergara and Marlon Wayans are coming together in the fight against cancer.

They join a list of previously announced participants including Mahershala Ali, Kathy Bates, Katie Couric, Jennifer Garner, Tony Hale, Marg Helgenberger, Ed Helms, Ken Jeong, Marlee Matlin, Matthew McConaughey, Maria Menounos, Jillian Michaels, Trevor Noah, Dak Prescott, Italia Ricci, Rob Riggle, Karla Souza, David Spade and Keith Urban.

As in years past, ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC, along with American Heroes Channel, AT&T AUDIENCE Network, Bloomberg TV, Bravo, Destination America, Discovery Family, Discovery Life, E!, EPIX, Escape, ESPNEWS, FM, Freeform, FS2, FXM, FYI, Galavision, Great American Country, HBO, HBO Latino, ION Television, Jewish Life TV, Laff, Logo, MTV2, Nat Geo WILD, REELZ, SHOWTIME, Smithsonian Channel, STARZ, STARZ ENCORE, STARZ ENCORE ESPAÑOL, TNT, Univision Puerto Rico, and WGN America are donating one hour of simultaneous commercial-free primetime for the telecast, with additional networks to be announced.

Industry Ink: Michael Martin Murphey, B! Noticed Public Relations, Riser Music

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Michael Martin Murphey Joins Skyline Artists Agency

Michael Martin Murphey. Photo: Katrina Barber

Michael Martin Murphey has signed to the Skyline Artists Agency for exclusive booking worldwide. Nashville-based Skyline agent James Leslie will RA. Murphey is managed by Nashville-based Michael Blanton and James Hodgin of Be Music Management/Imagine One Events with PR handled by Nashville’s Lance Cowan of LCMedia.

Michael Martin Murphey won the ACM New Male Vocalist Of The Year in 1983 and has been nominated for multiple Grammys. His platinum and three gold albums include the hits “Wildfire,” “Geronimo’s Cadillac,” “What’s Forever For,” “Carolina In The Pines,” “A Long Line of Love,” “Cowboy Logic” and “A Face in the Crowd.”

His new album Austinology—Alleys of Austin will be released Oct. 5. It features songs from the early 70s Austin music scene with guest vocalists Willie Nelson, Amy Grant, Lyle Lovett, Steve Earle, Jerry Jeff Walker, The Last Bandoleros and more.

 

B! Noticed Public Relations Adds Social Media Manager

Leslie Armstrong

Leslie Armstrong has joined Bev Moser’s B! Noticed Public Relations as Social Media Manager. Armstrong previously served as editor for online country music news site Nashville Country Club, and continues to provide content for that outlet.

“Having Leslie join my staff was one of the easiest decisions I have had to make!” stated Moser, President / Owner of B! Noticed Public Relations. “I have always admired her tenacity, devotion and creativity as she covered and promoted artists and their projects. She takes pride in staying a step ahead in the digital and social media platforms, and brings with her the background of marketing to give my firm added creative edge.”

 

Publishing Company Nashville Cool Acquires Riser Music Catalog

Nashville Cool, a publishing venture that launched earlier this year, has acquired the catalog of Riser Music. As a part of the transition, the “Riser” trademark owned by Riser Music has been assigned to Riser House Entertainment.

“We are excited about this expansion and look forward to this next phase of our company’s growth,” says Nancy Deckant, President & Chief Creative Officer of Nashville Cool.

Deckant can be reached at [email protected].

ACM Lifting Lives Opens 2018 Grant Cycle

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ACM Lifting Lives announced a call for submissions for the 2018 Grant Cycle, beginning Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2018. Through grant cycles, ACM Lifting Lives provides funding to programs that promote education and healing with a musical connection, to further the mission of improving lives through the power of music.

Submissions will be taken through Monday, Oct. 1, 2018. For information on program guidelines and how to submit, please visit acmliftinglives.org. Funding decisions will be determined and recipients will be notified in November 2018.

“With this call for submissions, we are excited to continue ACM Lifting Lives’ rich history of supporting worthy organizations that improve lives through the power of music,” said Debbie Carroll, ACM Lifting Lives’ Chairman. “It’s our privilege to support the many hardworking and dedicated philanthropies—big and small—on behalf of the country music community and artists that make our fundraising goals achievable.”

ACM Lifting Lives has given to 48 deserving organizations across the country through its grant cycle in the past, including last year’s recipients Barefoot Republic, Inc., Camp Sunshine Inc., COPD Foundation, CreatiVets, El Paso Symphony Orchestra Assn., Inc., Every Child Counts, Follow Your Heart Arts Program, Inc., Foundations of Music, Girls Rock Santa Barbara, High Hopes Development Center, Legacy Music Alliance, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Middle Tennessee State University Foundation, Music for Seniors, Music Mends Minds, Musicians on Call, Nashville Songwriters Foundation, Inc., Operation Song Inc., Peggy R. McConnell Worthington Center for the Arts, Porter’s Call, Rocketown of Middle Tennessee, The Quest Center for Art & Community Development, St. Anna’s Episcopal Church, Tennessee Alliance for Kids, and Vanderbilt Kennedy Center.

Kings of Leon To Welcome Sheryl Crow, Little Big Town, Brandy Clark For Harvest Night Concert

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Kings of Leon at a previous Harvest Night.

A stellar line-up of musical artists and acclaimed chefs are set for for Music City Food + Wine Festival’s Harvest Night. Joining headliners Kings of Leon to perform iconic disco hits from the 70s and 80s will be Sheryl Crow, Little Big Town, Brandy Clark, Elle King, Phillip Phillps, Moon Taxi, The Struts, War & Treaty, Lilly Hiatt, Ida Mae, Parker Gispert, Ruby Amanfu, Robert Randolph, Tommy Sims, Nightly, Death From Above 1979 and Carla Hall (playing double-duty as chef and musician for the night).

Harvest Night will be at Nashville’s Walk of Fame Park on Saturday, Sept. 15 from 7 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.

Festival-goers are encouraged to dress in their flashiest Studio 54-inspired garb for a dance party under the stars, while enjoying signature dishes from nationally acclaimed chefs including: Jeni Britton Bauer (Jeni’s Ice Cream); Tom Bayless (The Public House); Matt Bolus (The 404 Kitchen); Billy Durney (Hometown Bar-B-Que); Carla Hall (Chef, Author, TV Personality); Tiffani Faison (Sweet Cheek, Tiger Mama, Fool’s Errand); Ford Fry (Sea Wolf, Le Loup, Star Rover, Superica); Matt Hyland & Graydon Atchley (EMMY Squared Nashville); Tim Love (Lonesome Dove Western Bistro, Woodshed Smokehouse, Queenie’s Steakhouse, Love Shack, White Elephant Saloon); Matt McClure (The Hive); Margot McCormack (Margot Café & Bar); Aarón Sánchez (Johnny Sánchez); Chris Shepherd (UB Preserv); Jonathan Waxman (Barbuto, Jams, Adele’s, Brezza Cucina); Tandy Wilson (City House); and Andrew Zimmern (Four-time James Beard Award-Winning TV Personality, Chef, Writer).

For a complete schedule of the weekend and to receive updates, visit www.musiccityfoodandwinefestival.com.