BREAKING: Troy Tomlinson Named Chairman/CEO Of UMPG Nashville

Troy Tomlinson, who served as Sony/ATV Music Publishing Nashville’s President/CEO since 2005, has joined UMPG as Chairman/CEO of its Nashville division. With this appointment, Tomlinson becomes UMPG Nashville’s first-ever Chairman and CEO. He will begin his new role July 15 and will report to UMPG Chairman/CEO Jody Gerson.

In his new role, he will join UMPG’s global senior management team, with responsibility for the entirety of UMPG’s Nashville operations, including providing leadership to UMPG’s Tennessee-based royalty operations and Christian division. Further, Tomlinson will be a key creative voice throughout Universal Music Group, UMPG’s parent company and the world leader in music-based entertainment.

Gerson said, “Troy’s track record in Nashville is the stuff of legend. He is simply one of the best and most successful creative executives the Nashville publishing community has ever seen. And having worked closely with him during my time at Sony, I know firsthand of his ability to take a promising songwriter with a song and turn them into a career artist. I’m thrilled to have him join UMPG’s senior management team and accelerate our transformation into the most progressive and effective partner to songwriters anywhere.”

Sir Lucian Grainge, Chairman and CEO of Universal Music Group, said, “When it comes to identifying great songs, songwriters and artists, Troy is one of Nashville’s finest. I’m looking forward to him joining us at this pivotal time as we continue to build a home for songwriters like no other, one focused on long term careers and creating global opportunities.”

Tomlinson said, “I’m so excited to join Jody and her exceptional team at UMPG. For me, this is the right time and UMPG is the right place to channel my energy and passion to build something entirely new and dynamic for Nashville’s songwriting community. I’ve long admired Jody even before I had the opportunity to work with her at Sony, and to see what she’s achieved at Universal and the culture she’s created in just the few years since she joined is nothing short of inspiring. To be able to work with her again and contribute to UMPG’s incredible momentum is exciting to say the least.”

Tomlinson joined Sony/ATV Music Publishing in 2002 as Vice President of Creative, rising to President and CEO in 2005. During his tenure he oversaw the songwriting careers of artists including Taylor Swift, Kenny Chesney, Miranda Lambert, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Darius Rucker, Kelsea Ballerini, Blake Shelton, Thomas Rhett, Gary Levox (Rascal Flatts), Brett Eldredge, Jon Pardi, The Band Perry, Mitchell Tenpenny, Jimmie Allen, Cole Swindell, Randy Houser, Charlie Worsham, High Valley, and Chase Rice.

In addition to Sony/ATV Music Publishing’s writer-artists, Tomlinson guided the careers of songwriters Josh Osborne, Chris DeStefano, Ross Copperman, Jon Nite, Jaren Johnston, Lindsay Rimes, Jim Beavers, Luke Laird as well as Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees Bill Anderson and Bobby Braddock and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee Tom Douglas, among many others. He was responsible for stewarding the song catalogs of Hank Williams, Dolly Parton, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Alan Jackson, Guy Clark, Buck Owens, Hank Cochran and the Everly Brothers. Under Tomlinson’s leadership in 2007, Sony/ATV Music Publishing Nashville became the only country music publishing company in history to win the ASCAP Country Publisher of the Year, BMI Country Publisher of the Year, SESAC Country Publisher of the Year, and Billboard’s Publisher and Publishing Corporation of the Year, the same year. Additionally, Sony/ATV Music Publishing Nashville has been named BMI’s Publisher of the Year for an unprecedented 16 consecutive years, as well as Billboard’s Country Publisher of the Year for the same time period.

Prior to joining Sony/ATV, Tomlinson worked at Acuff-Rose Music Publishing where he rose to the position of Executive Vice President. While at Acuff-Rose he worked with famed songwriters Dean Dillon, Skip Ewing, Jim Weatherly, and Whitey Shafer, among others. During his early years at Acuff Rose, Tomlinson discovered four-time Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year, Kenny Chesney.

Before Acuff-Rose, Tomlinson ran the Nashville division of Fame Music Group, the company founded by Rick Hall, the Muscle Shoals studio legend.

MusicRow has confirmed that UMPG Exec. VP/GM Kent Earls is exiting.

“The past 21 + years at UMPG Nashville have been truly incredible. I’m very proud of our many accomplishments while at the helm. We had multiple Grammy wins, Writer and Song of the Year accolades, countless #1 singles but the true joy was either signing, developing and furthering the careers of incredibly talented songwriters like Luke Laird, Rivers Rutherford, Chase McGill, Lori Mckenna, Natalie Hemby, Shane McAnally, Andrew Dorff and songwriter-artists like Sam Hunt, Keith Urban, Kane Brown, Chris Young, Maren Morris , and so many more. I am also so proud of the staff we assembled in my time there-they are second to none and are the reason we achieved so many highs. I love the Nashville music industry and community and excited to see what the future holds.” Earls says.

Kent can reached at [email protected].

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Jessica Nicholson

Jessica Nicholson serves as the Managing Editor for MusicRow magazine. Her previous music journalism experience includes work with Country Weekly magazine and Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) magazine. She holds a BBA degree in Music Business and Marketing from Belmont University. She welcomes your feedback at [email protected].

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