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Industry Ink: Eric Church, ACM, Grammy, ‘Gateway,’ Jimmy Bowen & Friends

May 11, 2026/by Lauryn Sink

Eric Church Gives UNC Chapel Hill Commencement Speech

Eric Church. Photo: Courtesy of UNC-Chapel Hill

Eric Church served as the keynote speaker at UNC Chapel Hill’s Spring Commencement ceremony on Saturday. The North Carolina native spoke of family, faith, community, resilience and perseverance in relation to the six strings of his guitar. He ended the address with a rendition of “Carolina.”

 

Academy Of Country Music Unveils 61st ACM Awards Radio Special

Pictured (L-R): Damon Whiteside, Becca Walls, Dan Smyers, Shay Mooney, Libby Gardner, Matt Brum-Taylor. Photo: Courtesy of the Academy of Country Music

The Academy of Country Music is offering a non-exclusive radio special hosted by Dan + Shay in the lead up to the 61st ACM Awards.

“Countdown to the ACM Awards” is a two-hour special featuring Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Riley Green, Cody Johnson, Ella Langley, Zach Top, Shania Twain, Lainey Wilson and more, with no national spots, 14 minutes of local avails per hour, and a broadcast window of May 11 to May 17. A brown bag version will also be made available.

The special is available here.

 

Music Industry Members To Mentor Nashville Students In Grammy In The Schools Program

The Grammy Museum’s Grammy In The Schools Program, a regional music career day presented in partnership with the Recording Academy Nashville Chapter, will host an event in Nashville on Wednesday (May 13).

Industry participants will include Eleonore Denig, Mike Elizondo, JoJamie Hahr, Morgan “MORGXN” Karr, Josh “Sci-FY” Smith, Emoni Wilkins, Franklin Willis, Arin Canbolat, Schyler O’Neal, Sydney Verge, Alicia Warwick and Sydney Verge.

 

Dana Richie Hosts ‘Gateway’ Premiere

Pictured (L-R): Patrick Custer, Debbie Carroll, Dana Richie, Ty Herndon and Leslie Fram. Photo: Mackenzie Boyd

Music and media leaders recently gathered at the Soho House premiere of the award-winning documentary Gateway. Sponsored by the Nashville Film Festival and written, produced and directed by Dana Richie of Backlot Productions, the film features three families impacted by opioid addiction and their journeys of heartbreak and hope.

Following the screening, FEMco’s Leslie Fram moderated a panel discussion featuring Debbie Carroll, Ty Herndon, Patrick Custer and Richie. Both Herndon and Custer shared their personal stories of addiction and recovery.

 

Jimmy Bowen & Friends To Return For Season 12

Jimmy Bowen & Friends will return for season 12 with appearances from Belles, Casey James, Emmy Russell, Eric Blankenship, Frank Myers, Hilljack, Jeff Bates, Kelly Lang, Midlife Crisis, Morgan Myles, Olivia Jo and Onoleigh.

Filming will take place at The Troubadour Nashville on May 19-21. The shows are free and open to the public.

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Lauryn Sink
Lauryn Sink
Lauryn Sink is a staff writer at MusicRow Magazine. Hailing from Lexington, North Carolina, Lauryn is a 2025 graduate of the Hussman School of Journalism and Media at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Lauryn Sink
Latest posts by Lauryn Sink (see all)
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