Industry Ink: Ingrid Andress, Lindsay Ell, Brett Eldredge

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Music Industry Members Surprise Ingrid Andress With No. 1 Celebration

Several friends and supporters from the music community including publishers, agents, record label executives and songwriters surprised Ingrid Andress yesterday (April 27) with a car parade to celebrate her debut single “More Hearts Than Mine” reaching the coveted No. 1 spot on the Mediabase/Country Aircheck chart. Andress’ co-writers Sam Ellis and Derrick Southerland also joined in the honking and shouting in the parade. The Gold-certified single is featured on her debut album Lady Like, which holds the title of highest streaming female debut album of all time.

Lindsay Ell Raises $165K For Tennyson Center for Children

Lindsay Ell. Photo: Robby Klein

Lindsay Ell was scheduled to host “The 10th Annual Mile High Country Q & Brew” in conjunction with local radio station, KYGO to benefit Tennyson Center for Children. Due to social distancing the decision was made to turn the annual event into virtual concert which took place this past Sunday night (April 26). Ell hosted the event from her home studio. The livestream, via Facebook Live, raised more than $165,000 and reached more than 53,000 fans.

All proceeds from the event will benefit Tennyson Center, which serves Colorado’s most neglected, abused and traumatized children.

Brett Eldredge Celebrates Sunday Drive With Livestream

Radio personnel from across the country joined Brett Eldredge and QPrime South’s John Peets recently for a “Sunday Drive” on a Friday afternoon. Livestreaming from the QPrime studio in Nashville, Eldredge and Peets answered questions and shared stories about select songs from Eldredge’s upcoming album, Sunday Drive, which features current single “Gabrielle.” Sunday Drive is set for a July 10 release date via Warner Music Nashville.

Pete Fisher Launches Fisher Entertainment Consulting, Inc.

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Pete Fisher.

Pete Fisher has relocated to Nashville and has launched Fisher Entertainment Consulting, Inc., which aims to “connect businesses, brands, TV, film and philanthropy to the power of Nashville entertainment.”

Fisher previously served as the CEO for the Academy of Country Music from 2017 through 2019. Prior to his work at the ACM, Fisher served as VP/GM for the Grand Ole Opry for 17 years, overseeing the Opry through significant transformations over the years, including leading a $20 million renovation of the Opry House following the Nashville flood in 2010.

For more, visit fisherentertainmentconsulting.com.

Universal Music Publishing Group Launches UMPG Music Solutions

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Universal Music Publishing Group has revealed UMPG Music Solutions, which blends its network of sync and music offerings for film, television and advertising.

The service aims to provide a single point of access in each local market to the company’s global network of songwriters, composers, producers and sync resources – including its sync division, production music division and bespoke composition offerings – as well as those of select partners.

“UMPG’s Film, TV and Advertising teams strive to provide best-in-class service for our clients. With UMPG Music Solutions, we are highlighting the fact that our capabilities extend far beyond commercial music licensing,” said Tom Eaton, Senior Vice President, Music for Advertising, Film & TV, UMPG. “By harnessing the talents of our world-class roster, as well as our creative partners, UMPG continues to go above and beyond in providing the best results for all of our clients’ needs.”

UMPG Music Solutions will also offer access to works from the company’s global partners, including Elias Music, Green United Music, Decca Publishing, AMP.Amsterdam, DJDTP and Sup3rsonic.

Shawn Pennington Launches GoFundMe Campaign For Angel Flights To Support Those Affected By Coronavirus

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Triple 8 Management’s Shawn Pennington is raising funds to help rent a new plane to help fly Angel Flights to directly benefit those affected by COVID-19. Pennington’s aircraft was destroyed last month in the Nashville tornados, and he is raising funds through GoFundMe to rent the aircraft needed for the missions.

The aircraft would be used for missions to fly passengers who are directly affected by COVID-19 who otherwise would be unable. These passengers could be patients that have urgent medical needs that have nothing to do with COVID-19 but can’t get to the medical facilities necessary due to travel restrictions, current airline capacity or schedule limitations. This is in addition to transporting medical supplies, lab tests, etc.

Pennington will donate as much time as necessary to fly, but needs help paying for the aircraft rental and fuel, and 100% of donations will go to those two things.

Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood To Perform On Grand Ole Opry

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Opry members Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood will step in to the circle to perform the Grand Ole Opry’s 4,922nd consecutive Saturday night broadcast on May 2, marking the eighth time the Grand Ole Opry has not had an audience in attendance during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The show will be broadcast live on Circle, and Gray TV stations, DISH Studio Channel 102, Sling TV and other TV affiliates in addition to a companion live stream on Circle All Access and the artists’ Facebook pages. Bobby Bones will host the Circle telecast, while Mike Terry will serve as radio announcer for those tuned in to 650 AM WSM and SiriusXM Satellite Radio.

Embracing today’s technology, the Opry will be broadcast and streamed with a very small production team. The show’s artists will perform acoustically.

Those tuning into the livestream on the Circle All Access Facebook channels this week can watch Circle Sessions with Scotty McCreery hosted by Bill Cody at 7:30 PM ET/ 6:30 PM CT immediately prior to the live Opry and catch a special episode of Dolly Week: Backstage at the Opry at 9 PM ET/ 8 PM CT after the Opry.

Over the past seven weeks, artists including Brad Paisley, Bill Anderson, Jeannie Seely, Connie Smith, Mandy Barnett, Vince Gill, Marty Stuart, Amy Grant, Terri Clark, Lauren Alaina, Ashley McBryde, Trace Adkins, Jason Crabb, Ricky Skaggs, Luke Combs, Craig Morgan and T. Graham Brown have performed, sans a live audience.

MusicRow Magazine’s 2020 ‘InCharge’ Issue Features Dan + Shay

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Dan + Shay grace the cover of MusicRow Magazine’s 33rd annual InCharge issue, which releases today.

This annual guide, now in its 33rd year, highlights key music industry executives in Nashville’s entertainment community. Each of the 396 profiles includes updated contact information, career biography, and detailed board and organizational membership affiliations.

The guide also includes a company appendix, record label staff appendix, and a professional categories appendix which lists executives by their areas of expertise, including music publishing, legal, finance, performing rights organizations and more.

“The many segments of our industry including labels, finance, legal, management, marketing, publicity, PROs, publishing, radio, production and touring are represented in this issue featuring those top executives in each segment who are crucial in continuing the success and the future of the Nashville music industry,” says MusicRow Publisher/Owner Sherod Robertson. “As the industry rebuilds and realigns once the COVID-19 pandemic is curtailed, it’s these valued and respected people and the many who they represent who will undoubtedly successfully navigate the resilience and fortitude of our industry.”

Global superstars Dan + Shay are an unstoppable force in country music and beyond. The history-making duo has impressively garnered multiple GRAMMY, CMA, ACM, American Music and Billboard Music Award wins and nominations across their explosive career. With more than four billion career streams globally as well as several mega-hit songs, they recently took home a second consecutive GRAMMY for Best Country Duo/Group Performance. In addition to being the fastest country song to reach one million U.S. track equivalents in 2019, their multi-week No. 1 hit “10,000 Hours” (with Justin Bieber) earned the biggest first-week streaming total in country music history and currently boasts 1 billion global streams and over 2.5 million U.S. track equivalents to date. “10,000 Hours” is the first song by a country duo or group ever to debut in the Billboard Hot 100’s Top 5 and spent 21 consecutive weeks at No. 1 on Hot Country Songs. The worldwide smash has already achieved Double Platinum certification in Australia and Canada, Platinum in the U.S. and Gold certification in more than five other countries.

Continuing into 2020, Dan + Shay The (Arena) Tour will play to major markets across the country and includes a stop at the iconic Madison Square Garden, which sold out in under 90 minutes, and two consecutive sold-out nights at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena for opening weekend. Their Platinum-certified self-titled album spawned recent chart-topper “All To Myself” (Platinum), multi-week No. 1 “Speechless” (3x Platinum), global smash “Tequila” (4x Platinum, BMI 2019 Country Song of the Year) and more. In the seven years since they formed, Dan + Shay have accumulated 26 total RIAA certifications and achieved seven No. 1 singles at country radio.

LABEL: Warner Music Nashville
LATEST ALBUM: Dan + Shay
LATEST SINGLE: “10,000 Hours”
CURRENT PRODUCER: Dan Smyers
CURRENT PUBLISHER: Warner Chappell
PRO: ASCAP (Dan Smyers), BMI (Shay Mooney)
MANAGEMENT: Sandbox Entertainment, SB Projects
BOOKING: CAA
RECENT HITS: “10,000 Hours” (with Justin Bieber), “All To Myself,” “Speechless,” “Tequila”
AWARDS: (2) GRAMMY, (3) ACM [and an additional (2) wins for Dan Smyers as songwriter and producer], (3) CMA Triple Play [Dan (1), Shay (2)], (2) AMA, (2) CMT Music, (2) Teen Choice, (1) Billboard, (1) CMA
RIAA CERTS TO DATE: (1) Platinum Album, (1) Gold Album, (1) 4x Platinum Single, (1) 3x Platinum Single, (1) 2x Platinum single, (5) Platinum singles, (1) Gold Single
SPECIAL TV APPEARANCES: ACM, Billboard, CMA, CMT, GRAMMY Awards; American Idol, CMA Fest, Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve, Good Morning America, Ellen, FOX Super Bowl LIV Pregame, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Late Night with Seth Meyers, Live with Kelly and Ryan, TODAY, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and more
BIRTHDAY: August 16 (Smyers), December 27 (Mooney)
HOMETOWN: Wexford, PA (Smyers), Natural Dam, AR (Mooney)
WEBSITE: danandshay.com

Single copies of InCharge are available for purchase for $110, and are included with yearly memberships at no additional cost. Please note that issues of MusicRow Magazine’s InCharge issue can only be purchased online as the MusicRow building is currently closed to the public due to COVID-19.

The Gatlin Brothers Team With Time Life For Digital Multi-Album Release (Exclusive)

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The Gatlin Brothers—Larry, Steve and Rudy—have joined forces with Time Life to release four of their acclaimed albums digitally in celebration of their 65th anniversary as a group. Through a new recording and distribution agreement with Time Life, many of the songs which were previously unavailable on digital platforms are now being released.

Four albums, including Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers – Family Gospel Favorites, The Gatlin Brothers – Sincerely, Your Ticket to Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers, and Larry Gatlin – In My Life, are now available on Spotify and other streaming services. The projects contain many of the trio’s hits including “All the Gold in California,” “Houston (Means I’m One Day Closer to You),” “I Don’t Wanna Cry,” “Night Time Magic,” as well as classic gospel tunes such as “Amazing Grace,” “Rock of Ages,” “It Is Well With My Soul,” and “I’ll Fly Away.”

“It’s an honor to be working with Larry, Steve and Rudy and to bring these recordings to their fans,” notes Mike Jason, Time Life’s Senior VP, Time Entertainment. “We’re excited to deliver more of their music to the world.”

“Brother Steve, Brother Rudy and I love to sing our music for you folks. We’ve been singing together for 65 years and it never gets old,” says Larry Gatlin. “As long as you will keep listenin,’ we’ll keep singin.’ We hope you like the songs in this collection. Keep the faith.”

Time Life is planning to release additional material from the Gatlins in the coming months.

ACM Clarifies Plans For Ryman Auditorium Segment During 2020 ACM Awards

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On Monday (April 27), the Academy of Country Music announced that the ACM Awards would be held in Nashville for the first time in its history. The announcement also stated that the ACM Awards, slated for Sept. 16, would air from three Nashville locations—the Grand Ole Opry House, the Bluebird Cafe, and the Ryman Auditorium.

The date and venue caused confusion for some in the music industry, given that the annual Americana Honors & Awards had already been slated for the same evening, also at the Ryman Auditorium.
The Academy of Country Music clarified the seeming overlap in date and venue in a statement to MusicRow, saying, “Thank you for the opportunity to clarify our plans. The Academy’s current plan is to utilize the largest of the three iconic Nashville venues, the Grand Ole Opry House, as the live centerpiece of the night with select live performances from the Bluebird Cafe. Special performances and moments from the Ryman will be captured in advance of Sept. 16’s CBS broadcast of the 55th Academy of Country Music Awards. Our plans will remain fluid based on the status of the quarantine and we are prepared to adapt them based on the status of Nashville’s Roadmap for Reopening.”

While segments of the upcoming Academy of Country Music Awards will be filmed at the Ryman Auditorium in advance of the show’s airing on Sept. 16, the Americana Association also confirmed to MusicRow that its Honors & Awards show will go on as planned on Sept. 16 at the Ryman Auditorium.

Country Music Hall Of Fame And Museum To Remain Closed Through May 31

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The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum has decided to keep the museum and its ancillary properties, Hatch Show Print, Historic RCA Studio B and the CMA Theater, closed through the end of May due to safety concerns due to the pandemic.

“The health and safety of our staff and guests are our top priority,” said Kyle Young, CEO, Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. “As we look toward reopening, we will have specific measures and protocols in place and will do all that we can to help ensure a safe and healthy environment for our visitors, employees and the community.”

The museum will continue to monitor developments and rely on guidance from public health officials including Metro Public Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization to inform future decisions regarding its re-opening.

Weekly Register: Luke Combs Returns To No. 1

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Luke Combs. Photo: Jim Wright

Luke Combs‘ What You See Is What You Get returns to No. 1 on the country albums sales chart this week, according to Nielsen Soundscan.

Top 5 Country Albums (total consumption)
Luke Combs,  What You See Is What You Get, 23K
Morgan Wallen, If I Know Me, 20K
Luke Combs, This One’s For You,  20K
Sam Hunt, SOUTHSIDE,  19K
Blake Shelton, Fully Loaded: God’s Country,  14K
In addition to topping this week’s Mediabase/Country Aircheck chart, Gabby Barrett‘s “I Hope” retains its lead atop the Country On-Demand Streaming Songs chart.
Top 5 Country On-Demand Streaming Songs (millions of streams)
Gabby Barrett,  “I Hope,” 9.3 million
Morgan Wallen, “Chasin’ You,”  7.8 million
Diplo & Julia Michaels f/ Morgan Wallen, “Heartless,”  7.4 million
Maren Morris, “The Bones,” 7.1 million
Morgan Wallen, “More Than My Hometown,” 6.9 million