Dolly’s Ryman Run

Dolly Parton’s two sold-out Ryman Auditorium shows last weekend helped raise money for two great causes, the Dustin Wells Foundation/W.O. Smith School of Music and the Opry Trust Fund. Parton was thrilled at the chance to lend a hand to her Opry friends as well as children at the Nashville music school. “I just love the Ryman, it’s such a sacred building. When I decided to do the benefit for Dr. Wells and the Dustin Wells Foundation, I was happy to learn it would be at the Ryman,” says Parton. “The money from this weekend will help get instruments into the hands of children wanting to learn music and will also help all my friends at the Opry, in the event they need a little extra help.”

John and Jacob Help Make Room For Americans

John and Jacob is working with the Make Room organization to help draw awareness to the problem of skyrocketing rent prices and unaffordable housing in America through their nationwide campaign. The band performed a private concert for Marlene Sigar, a single mother living in Madison, TN whose housing costs make up more than 75 percent of her monthly income, and her family. The show was filmed to help raise awareness about the housing issues currently plaguing America since one in four of the 42 million U.S. renter households spend at least half their income on rent which forces them to choose between paying for rent or paying for groceries, medicine, childcare and other essentials. Carly Rae Jepsen kicked off the national campaign May 1 with a living room concert in L.A.

Montgomery Gentry’s Super 8 Military Show

Montgomery Gentry treated members of the military and their families in Oak Grove, KY to a special live performance earlier this week, thanks to the Super 8 hotel chain and Premiere Networks. Held at Valor Hall near Fort Campbell, the event was hosted by CMT After MidNite’s Cody Alan and marked the first stop of the newly-launched “Super 8 Military Appreciation Tour.” Sponsored by Super 8 and Premiere Networks, the tour provides members of the military and their families with unique access to private concerts by top name country stars. 

Songs For Sound’s “Hearoes” Tour

Songs For Sound, an organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for the hearing impaired, is kicking off a 12-week “Hearoes” Tour on August 15-16 at Chicago’s Air & Water Show. Laura Bell Bundy will perform at air shows around the country on the tour, while Jessie James Decker will close out the tour at the Blue Angels Homecoming Air Show in Pensacola Nov. 7. The tour will feature a screening vehicle which will travel to 60 stops around the country to help raise awareness around hearing health and prevention among veterans and their families. Lexi Vernon, a bilateral cochlear implant recipient, is the inspiration behind Songs for Sound, which was founded by Rascal Flatts member Gary LeVox‘s brother and sister-in-law, Kevin and Jaime Vernon.

Shane Michael Taylor MusiCares Benefit

Shane Michael Taylor will perform a benefit for MusiCares in memory of his friend Lorna Flowers, who co-wrote songs with Taylor and encouraged his dream of becoming a songwriter in spite of his communication struggles due to cerebral palsy. Taylor will perform songs from his new CD I Will Stand at the Listening Room event August 12, which will also feature performances by Mason Douglas, Eddie Heinzelman, Justin and Jamie Zimmer, Jack Sundrud, and Mark Lonsway.

 

 

King Jewelers and luxury Swiss watchmaker Raymond Weil have announced a collaboration with Gibson to create a limited “Nashville, TN” watch that will be exclusive to King Jewelers. The timepiece will be unveiled in September.

The special watch collection will be numbered (1-10), feature additional engravings on the sapphire crystal case back and will include a special edition watch box.

Inspired by the self-tuning Gibson SG Standard, the watch features four key design features and reinvents them on the dial of the timepiece. A steel and titanium 46mm diameter case houses a black galvanic dial encircled by six grooves symbolizing the strings of the Gibson SG Standard and displays the Gibson logo and iconic emblem at 12 o’clock.

“We’re both honored and excited to work with two incredible brands like Gibson and Raymond Weil,” says David King, President of King Jewelers in Green Hills, “The ability to conceptualize an exclusive and unique edition of watches just for this market speaks volumes to the allure of Nashville. We’re thankful to live in the heart of the music industry and to have the Gibson brand as an iconic staple to this amazing city.”

The Windy City got a touch of Music City magic last week when the CMA Songwriters Series brought top country tunesmiths to Joe’s Bar in Chicago Thursday night (7/30). Songwriters Jim Collins, Ryan Hurd, Brett James, and Lee Thomas Miller took the stage for the special songwriters round to share the stories behind their hits with the packed house. The show is part of the eleventh season of CMA’s Songwriters Series, which kicked off in January at the Sundance Film Festival.

 

McCreery Gets Gold During Fox Concert

Scotty McCreery debuted his new single “Southern Belle” (Sean McConnell/Jason Saenz) on FOX & Friends’ All-American Summer Concert Series last Friday (July 31). During his appearance on the show, FOX & Friends hosts Steve Doocy, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, and Brian Kilmeade presented McCreery with an RIAA-certified Gold single plaque representing more than half a million sales and streams of his recent “Feelin’ It.” This is McCreery’s fourth RIAA-certified single, having already earned three Platinum certifications for “I Love You This Big,” “The Trouble with Girls,” and “See You Tonight.”

Chesney Breaks Pink Floyd Record at Arrowhead

Kenny Chesney‘s August 1 show at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City marks a new record for the stadium’s attendance: 57,368. Pink Floyd previously held the record for a 1994 show with 56,134. The show marked Chesney’s fourth headlining stand at Arrowhead. He attended a football practice with the KC Chiefs on Friday before the big show. “I had no idea about the number when we took the stage,” Chesney marveled when he was told. “Pink Floyd are rock icons. Every kid’s high school experience…I never ever would’ve thought something like that could happen. We’ve been coming to Kansas City for years, and they’ve always been really loud audiences. But when we hit the stage, it felt like all those years, all those shows were added up into one – and that was what we were being hit with.”

Eldredge To Help Crown Miss America

Brett Eldredge has been tapped as the first of seven judges for the live broadcast of the 95th anniversary of the 2016 Miss America Competition. Miss America returns to Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall on September 13 (9:00 – 11:00p.m. ET) on ABC. Fifty-two women, representing their home states and territories, will compete to bring home the crown and scholarship. “I get to judge Miss America. Are you kidding me?!” said Eldredge. “Talk about a dream come true! I can’t wait to be a part of this.”

Tyler Headlines Bristol Speedway Show in August

Steven Tyler headlining the pre-race concert for the IRWIN Tools Night Race at Tennessee’s Bristol Motor Speedway on August 22. with Nashville-based band Loving Mary will also perform. A limited number of Steven Tyler SuperPacks are available including pre-race SuperPass (track walk, plus on-track access to the concert and Sprint Cup driver introductions), a Cold Pit Pass (for pre-race access to the Garage area), and select Steven Tyler merchandise. Visit BristolTix.com for all the ticketing options.

Meghan Linsey’s “Believer” Released

Meghan Linsey, runner-up of NBC’s The Voice and half of ex-country duo Steel Magnolia, teamed up with Popmatters.com to unveil her new pop/soul EP Believer in its entirety before the EP was released last Friday (July 31) via digital retailers. The EP was recorded in Nashville and produced by Tyler Cain.