Representatives of the American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada (AFM), the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) and the American Association of Advertising Agencies’ (4A’s) Joint Policy Committee on Broadcast Talent Union Relations (JPC) announced today that a successor agreement has been reached covering the services of professional musicians who record music tracks in the production of television, radio and internet commercial announcements. The parties began negotiating in February of this year to modify the contract previously agreed to in 2009.
The new “Jingles and Spot Announcements” agreement will run three years and provides for an upfront six percent increase in wages applicable for recording sessions and reuse payments. The contract also provides needed improvements to health and welfare payments, cartage payments, sideline services, Internet wages, and pension contributions.
Added provisions include a waiver for certain types of internet productions, and a new structural feature which permits advertisers to pay an upfront fee for 52-week initial soundtrack use and reuse cycles covering all media.
“We have concluded an exceptional and progressive agreement with the Advertising Industry that we believe achieves our goals, both economically and structurally,” AFM International President Ray Hair said.
“These negotiations have been a positive and productive step towards a partnership with commercial musicians and the AFM. I am pleased to have achieved these important industry goals in key areas and I want to thank the members of our negotiating team: my partners, Douglas Wood and David Weissman, and Kathleen Quinn of the 4A’s. I look forward to the ratification by their membership,” Joint Policy Committee Lead Negotiator Stacy K. Marcus said.
The agreement will be submitted to rank and file musicians for ratification, a process that is expected to conclude in 60 days. While all terms and conditions of the new contract are effective immediately, the industry will have 60 days following ratification to implement the new terms.

With 2014’s CMA Music Festival successfully wrapped for another year, satisfying scores of fans with 150+ hours of music, here is a look at the hard numbers from the four-day music extravaganza.
CMA Music Festival By The Numbers:
$9 million donated to Keep The Music Playing since 2006
2.25 million, CMA’s total aggregate digital audience, up 18 percent since June 2013
143,000-plus fans at Chevrolet Riverfront Stage
$100,000 raised in the CMA Celebrity Auction for Keep the Music Playing, up from $80,000 in 2013
80,000 fans per day, matching 2013’s attendance record
63,000-plus visitors at AT&T U‐verse Fan Fair X to see more than 500 artists
38,000-plus downloads of the free festival app, up 67 percent year-to-year
1972, the year Fan Fair started
600-plus journalists, photographers, producers, and videographers
450 participating artists
230 domestic and international media outlets
150-plus hours of concerts
60 corporate brands participating, up 39 percent from 2013
50-plus artists at The Nightly Concerts at LP Field
24 countries represented among attendees
18 ambulance transports
15 weeks in advance tickets sold out, setting a record
11 stages, including the Chevrolet Riverfront Stage
 (more than 50 artists and 22 hours of concerts), Bud Light Stage at Bridgestone Arena Plaza
 (51 artists, 18 hours), Samsung Galaxy Stage in Walk of Fame Park, Nightly Concerts at LP Field, and BMI Tailgate Party.
As previously announced, the television special CMA Music Festival: Country’s Night to Rock will air Tuesday, Aug. 5 (8 PM/ET). The special debuted in 2004 and this is the 11th year the special will air on ABC.
CMA Music Festival will be held June 11-14, 2015. Ticket sales are 28 percent ahead of last year with 75 percent of available tickets already sold. To purchase tickets online, visit CMAfest.com.

Arista Nashville’s Brad Paisley took the stage in Nashville on Sunday night, June 8 to close out the 2014 CMA Music Festival.

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The annual Country Weekly Kick-Off Party Powered by NASH, held June 3 at Mercy Lounge in Nashville, raised $17,000 for Musicians On Call. The event featured Kip Moore, Frankie Ballard, and host Chuck Wicks. All proceeds benefit Musicians On Call‘s efforts to bring music to the bedsides of patients in healthcare facilities.

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The Great American Country Breakfast Series at the AT&T U-verse Fan Fair X venue inside Music City Center featured performances by Natalie Stovall and The Drive, Laura Bell Bundy, RaeLynn, and new country boy band Chasin’ Crazy.

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The fifth annual “Darius And Friends” concert to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital was held June 2 at the Wildhorse Saloon. The concert, auction and golf tournament raised a combined total of $122,490. The benefit concert line-up included emcee Storme Warren and performances by Darius Rucker, Eli Young Band, Clint Black, Charles Kelley (of Lady Antebellum), David Nail, Cassadee Pope, Kenny Rogers, Corey Smith and Thompson Square, all backed by Rucker’s band, the Carolina Grey Boys.
The June 3 celebrity golf tournament included Colt Ford, JT Hodges, Tommy John, Dave Haywood, Charles Kelley, Dustin Lynch, Derek Mason, David Nail, Jon Pardi, Eric Paslay, Keifer Thompson, tournament winners Henry Cho and Scott Hamilton and more.

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Arista Nashville’s The Swon Brothers were among the artists heating up the free Chevrolet Riverfront Stage in downtown Nashville on Saturday as part of the 2014 CMA Music Festival.

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Miranda Lambert joined in the CMA Music Festival activities with a performance at LP Field in Nashville on Friday night (June 6).

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Show Dog – Universal Music held its Second Annual Fan Appreciation Party this past week at the Silver Dollar Saloon. The event raised $4,890.00, which will benefit organizations Dreams With Wings and the Sarah Cannon Fund.

VIP tickets which included an exclusive gift bag and meet and greet with SDU artists Josh Thompson, JT Hodges, Krystal Keith, Joel Crouse and Native Run, were sold for $25 and general admission was $10. Each artist performed two acoustic songs for the crowd.

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Kristian Bush and Cumulus Media’s Charlie Cook connect backstage after Bush’s live concert performance at The Chevrolet Riverfront Stage on Friday (June 6) during the annual CMA Music Festival in Nashville.