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Doug Howard Appointed To Dean Of Belmont's Mike Curb College

December 22, 2014/by Sherod Robertson

Doug Howard

Doug Howard, founder of Vandermont Music Group and former Sr. VP of A&R for Lyric Street Records, has been appointed to dean of the Belmont’s Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business effective January 1, 2015. Howard fills a position held for nine years by Dr. Wes Bulla, who announced earlier this year his intention to return to a full-time teaching position.
Belmont Provost Dr. Thomas Burns says, “From his long-held ties with Belmont to his incomparable music business experience, Doug Howard is uniquely prepared for this role, and we’re honored to have him join us as the new Curb College dean.”
A 1979 alumnus of Belmont, Howard received his MBA from Vanderbilt University and his JD from the George Washington University School of Law in Washington, D.C. Howard began his music industry career with stints as a song plugger and studio manager for the Welk Music Group. Howard served as VP and General Manager for PolyGram Music Publishing becoming the Sr. VP of A&R for Lyric Street Records, a division of the Walt Disney Company. Howard is the President and Owner of Vandermont Music Group, a company he founded in 2010.
Howard said, “I am grateful and honored to be part of the Belmont family. My business career and personal life have both been wonderfully influenced by the education and mentoring I received here as a student and from the lifelong relationships developed with classmates and alumni. As dean of the Curb College, my goal is to support and guide the faculty and staff in educating, encouraging and developing our students to be transformative leaders, innovators and creators in every facet of the entertainment industry and to foster a spirit of service that reflects Belmont’s mission and vision.”
Howard will serve more than 75 faculty and staff and nearly 2,000 students in Curb College programs.
Howard’s Belmont ties through the years include serving as the chair of the Advisory Board of the Curb College and being a member of the William G. Hall Scholarship Committee. Additionally, he serves on the Advisory Council for the Center for Popular Music at Middle Tennessee State University, the Board of the Tennessee Shakespeare Festival and the Nashville Board of Governors of the Recording Academy.

Mae Boren Axton Documentary To Air in January

December 22, 2014/by Jessica Nicholson

Mae Boren Axton

Music documentary Mama Mae: The Life and Music of Mae Boren Axton will premiere on OETA PBS on Jan. 29, 2015 at 7 p.m.
The late Axton wrote more than 100 songs and received seven BMI awards. Axton, with Tommy Durden, co-wrote Elvis Presley‘s signature tune “Heartbreak Hotel.”
The documentary features Blake Shelton, Garth Brooks, Reba, Buddy Killen, Crystal Gayle, Tanya Tucker, Dolly Parton, Ray Stevens, Moe Bandy, Willie Nelson, Charlie Daniels, and more.
The film was directed by Randall Wilson for production company Guerrilla Docs.

Tracy Lawrence To Launch Radio Show

December 22, 2014/by Jessica Nicholson

Beginning in January, Tracy Lawrence will add a new role to his resume, as DJ/host of a syndicated radio show. Lawrence will host the three-hour weekend show “Honky Tonkin’ with Tracy Lawrence,” which will include music from the ’80s, ’90s, and early 2000s.
Lawrence notched 22 Top 10 hits, including eight No. 1 singles, during the ’90s and 2000s.
Lawrence is still active as a singer and entertainer, performing up to 100 concerts a year across the country. He is no stranger to work behind the radio microphone; during his college days at Southern Arkansas University, he worked at the campus radio station and earned a degree in mass communication skills.

BMG Chrysalis Extends Term with Jeff Stevens

December 19, 2014/by Eric T. Parker

Pictured (L-R): From Left To Right: Daniel Lee (BMG Chrysalis, Senior Creative Director); Jeff Stevens; Kevin Lane (BMG Chrysalis, Creative Director); Kos Weaver (BMG Chrysalis, Executive Vice President)

BMG Chrysalis recently announced it has extended its publishing agreement with multi-hit songwriter and producer Jeff Stevens.
Stevens has secured numerous No. 1 singles as a songwriter during the course of his career, which includes producing UMG superstar Luke Bryan and writing his “Someone Else Calling You Baby” and “Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye.”
Additional hits include George Strait‘s “Carrying Your Love With Me”, “True,” “Carried Away,” and Tim McGraw‘s “Back When.”

Industry Pics: Kelly Clarkson, BMI, Swon Brothers, Love And Theft

December 19, 2014/by Kelsey_Grady

Pictured (L- R): Mary Baker, executive director, Monroe Harding Children’s Home; Dr. Meg Rush, chief of staff, Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt; Kelly Clarkson, Jaynee Day, president & CEO, Second Harvest Food Bank; Katrina Robertson, national sales director, Thistle Farms; and Ellen Lehman, president, The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. Photo: Justin McIntosh/Starstruck

Kelly Clarkson posed with representatives from the four nonprofits that will benefit from this Saturday’s Miracle on Broadway concert event at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena. The group gathered to discuss the event which features special guests Kix Brooks, Garth Brooks, Ronnie Dunn, Charles Esten, Shane McAnally, Martina McBride, Kacey Musgraves, Reba, Meghan Trainor, Hayley Williams (Paramore), and Trisha Yearwood performing their favorite holiday songs. You can donate by texting MIRACLE to 41010.

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Pictured (L-R): BMI’s Clay Bradley, BMI songwriter Guthrie Trapp, BMI songwriter Steve Cropper, BMI’s Mary Loving and David Preston.

Pictured (L-R): Musicians Pete Abbott, Guthrie Trapp, Jamie McLaughlin, Firekid, Meredith Morgan, Jimmy Wallace and Dave Santos.

Broadcast Music, Inc. writer Steve Cropper was honored with another Million-Air certificate for his iconic hit “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay,” reaching an incredible 10 million broadcast performances. Cropper was presented with the award after playing at BMI’s HDRadio-sponsored showcase, Trapped Above Ground. Guthrie Trapp and his Mule Kickers band are the hosts of the free, weekly event, bringing up-and-coming songwriters to play alongside legendary acts at Nashville’s Acme Feed and Seed.

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Pictured (L-R): Colton Swon, Craig Wayne Boyd, and Zach Swon.

While making media appearances in New York City, Arista Nashville’s The Swon Brothers received a surprise dinner invitation from The Voice’s newly crowned season seven winner, Craig Wayne Boyd. The Swons, likewise veterans of The Voice and Team Blake, grabbed a bite with Boyd at New York’s Bond 45, where fans were delighted to spot the stars and get a few photo opps of their own.

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Photo: Ashley Kennedy

Earlier this week Stephen Barker-Liles and Eric Gunderson of Love and Theft hosted their 2nd annual Toys for Tots benefit show here in Nashville. The event took place at Soulshine Pizza and featured performances by the duo as well as their songwriter friends including Tyler Reeve, Michael Ray, Stevie Monce and Trent Tomlinson. Guests were asked to bring a toy to donate or buy a t-shirt in support of the great cause.

Lady A to Perform Anthem at National College Football Championship

December 19, 2014/by Eric T. Parker

The College Football Playoff (CFP) today (December 19) announced Lady Antebellum will perform the national anthem at its inagural national championship game, featuring the winner of the Rose Bowl Game against the winner of the Allstate Sugar Bowl on January 12.
Held at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX, pre-game festivities will kick off at 7 p.m. with Grammy nominated Aloe Blacc, singing “America the Beautiful” joined by Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Dallas.
For the main event, the Nation’s Colors will be presented by military members of the Joint-Service Color Guard from Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base, TX. For more information about the CFP National Championship, please visit collegefootballplayoff.com.
Before then, the trio will perform at the first annual Cheers for Charity event in downtown Nashville on new year’s eve, including dinner, drinks and music to benefit LadyAID. Immediately after, the band will head downtown to be featured in a segment of Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest on ABC.

Shania Twain in Las Vegas: By The Numbers

December 19, 2014/by Jessica Nicholson

Shania: Still The One, the singer-songwriter’s two-year Las Vegas run at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, ended on Dec. 13. During the run, Twain played 105 shows and sold more than 337,000 tickets. The show included:

2 years (the show opened Dec. 1, 2012 and closed Dec. 13, 2014)
3 backup singers (Twain’s sister Carrie-Ann Brown and twins Dan and Ryan Kowarsky
4 horses (rotated in and out of the show for the first year and a half of the run)
6 male dancers
11 musicians

To commemorate Shania’s dedication to the Shania Kids Can Foundation and to the City of Las Vegas, during the final show, John Meglen, President of Global Touring with AEG Live, and Sean McBurney, General Manager of Caesars Palace, presented the Shania Kids Can Foundation with a check for $5,000.
The Colosseum will bring more country artists to its stage next year, when Reba, Brooks & Dunn: Together In Las Vegas launches June 24.

General Manager of Caesars Palace Sean McBurney (L) and President of Global Touring with AEG Live John Meglen (R) present a check to Shania Twain for her Shania Kids Can Foundation during her final performance of Shania: Still The One at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. (Photo: Denise Truscello/WireImage)

ACM Launches Campaign to 'Be Like Blake'

December 19, 2014/by Eric T. Parker

The Academy of Country Music is launching a “Be Like Blake” social media campaign to encourage fans to donate to ACM Lifting Lives this holiday season.
Blake Shelton has donated more than $30,000 after teaming up with CrowdSurge to donate $1 from each ticket sold during the pre-sale for his 2014 Ten Times Crazier Tour. Funds went to the charitable arm of the ACM, dedicated to improving lives through the power of music.
Fans who donate online for the new social roll-out by Jan. 5 will be entered to win a copy of the Academy’s retrospective book, This Is Country: A Backstage Pass to the Academy of Country Music Awards, signed by Shelton.
See a list of grants the charitable organization donated funds to this past year.

CMHoF Hosts Bakersfield Sound Tribute Concert

December 19, 2014/by Sarah Skates

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum marked the final month of its major, three-year exhibition, The Bakersfield Sound: Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, and California Country with a tribute concert on Saturday, Dec. 13 in the museum’s Ford Theater. Chuck Mead led a troupe comprised of Martin Lynds, Mark Miller, Carco Clave, Renae Truex through classics by Bakersfield legends, with an emphasis on Buck Owens and Merle Haggard. They were joined during the nearly two-hour program by special guests Deke Dickerson, Suzy Boggus, Chris Scruggs, Caitlin Rose, and Cam. Legendary guitarist James Burton walked onstage to a standing ovation and closed out the program by replicating his original signature licks from Haggard recordings of “Working Man Blues,” “The Fugitive,“ “Mama Tried,“ and more.
Catch The Bakersfield Sound at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum before it closes Dec. 31.

Pictured (back row, L-R): Deke Dickerson, Chuck Mead, and Martin Lynds; (middle row, L-R): the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Ali Tonn, Carco Clave, James Burton, Suzy Bogguss, Cam, Rose Lee Maphis, and Renae Truex; (front row, L-R): Chris Scruggs, Caitlin Rose, and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Abi Tapia. Photo: CK Photo