Industry Ink: Grand Ole Opry, Mtheory, Bow To Stern Group, Sincerely Music Group

Grand Ole Opry Rings In Dolly Parton’s 77th Birthday With Special Celebration

The Grand Ole Opry celebrated the 77th birthday of Opry member Dolly Parton on Saturday (Jan. 21) with two shows at the Ryman Auditorium. Performers included Chapel Hart, John Conlee, The Fairfield Four, Caitlyn Smith, Connie Smith, Marty Stuart, Rhonda Vincent and Chris Young.

Chapel Hart performed Parton’s “Jolene,” as well as their answer song “You Can Have Him, Jolene,” before singing a Parton-inspired version of “Happy Birthday.” The Opry square dancers donned Parton hair and joined the trio on its new Loretta Lynn “Fist City” answer, “Welcome To Fist City.”

The Opry will conclude its special, one-month run at the Ryman Auditorium with another two-show Saturday night on Jan. 28 before returning to the Grand Ole Opry House in February.

Mtheory Opens Applications For 2023-2024 Equal Access Program

Mtheory has opened cohort applications for its 2023-2024 Equal Access program. Interested applicants can apply through Feb. 10.

The year-long program, sponsored by Mtheory, CMT, CMA and First Horizon Bank, provides resources, development and support to underrepresented artists and managers in country music. 2023 marks the first cohort, and the managers include Charlene Bryant, Marques Vance and Kadeem Phillips.

Mtheory works alongside artist managers and their teams to provide the necessary knowledge, resources and additional personnel to build their clients’ careers, while organically growing the size and engagement of artists’ fanbases. Their services and realms of expertise include strategic marketing, DSP relations, product management, tour strategy and marketing, live operations and production expertise, business affairs, digital and social marketing and strategy, analytics, creative services and CRM.

Bow To Stern Adds One, Elevates One To Staff

Bow To Stern, a music entertainment company that offers music production, artist management, label services, publishing and show/festival promotion and planning, has announces staffing changes. Among them are the addition of Renee McClure as VP of A&R/Operations, and Alex Kidd transitioning to President & Partner for Bow To Stern Group and Bow To Stern Records

McClure joins the company from her position as VP of Promotion at GrassRoots Promotion. She will be involved in all divisions of the company, including, Rooster Tail Productions, Bow To Stern Music, Bow To Stern Group and Bow To Stern Records. She can be reached at renee@bowtosterngroup.com.

“This was a bittersweet move for me. After 16 years with the company, the GrassRoots team feels like my family. I couldn’t be more excited about this new chapter in my career and being part of the growth we’re seeing at Bow To Stern,” says McClure.

Kidd formerly ran the company’s day-to-day operations. He has been with Bow To Stern Group since its founding, bringing his background in tour management and social media to the company. He can be reached at alex@bowtosterngroup.com.

Bow To Stern CEO & Owner, Matt McClure shares, “As a record producer, I wanted to create a way to offer additional services and opportunities to the artists and clients I work with. Over the years I’ve consulted many on growing their career, outside of strictly creating their music. It only made sense to us to create divisions that could focus on just that. Having Renee and Alex in their new positions will be key to our continued growth and success. I couldn’t be more excited about what we have ahead!”

Brady Lee Signs With Sincerely Music Group For Management

Sincerely Music Group has signed pop-country riser Brady Lee to an exclusive management deal. Lee will release “Strangers In A Photograph,” a duet with songstress Kelsey Lamb, on Feb. 3.

“I’ve worked with Trevor [Perkins] for almost three years now and to say he believes in me is an understatement,” Lee explains. “He continues to show up in my corner, even when things aren’t going well. He celebrates the highs with me, and he pushes me through the lows. He’s the real deal and I’m so glad to have him come onto my team as artist manager. There’s a real excitement and freedom knowing that we’re doing things my way. With Trevor, it doesn’t matter how long it takes us to get to the top, cause I know we’ll get there. I can’t wait to see where the next years take us.”

“I’ve been working with Brady for nearly three years and each day he brings something new and exciting to the table,” adds Perkins, President of Sincerely Music Group. “As an independent artist, Brady understands the industry and it’s quickly improving his craft with each release we push out. It’s been an absolute pleasure to work with Brady on the public relations and development side! I’m excited for the future as we’re just getting started.”

Lee, a songwriter, performer and multi-instrumentalist, released his debut single, “I Can Do This All Day” in September of 2020. In June, Brady released his debut EP, Backyard Vacation, which reached the top 50 on the iTunes Country charts and was featured on Spotify’s New Music Friday Country and Fresh Finds Country playlists.