Gibson Brands Acquires Philips' WOOX Innovations

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gibson-pickGibson Brands is extending its diversification into the music and audio lifestyle sector, announcing its agreement with Royal Philips to acquire WOOX Innovations, the audio, video, multimedia and accessories business of Philips.
Gibson Brands will pay $135 million and a brand license fee, relating to a license agreement for an initial period of seven years.
“This agreement is the most significant step yet in Gibson Brands’ journey to become the largest music and sound technology company in the world,” said Gibson Brands chairman and CEO Henry Juszkiewicz. “By acquiring Philips’ audio and home entertainment business, our goal is to continue to provide the most exceptional consumer audio products and experiences in the world. I am thrilled to extend the reach of Gibson Brands around the world and to welcome this great team to the Gibson family.”
“With this transaction, we are taking another important step in Philips’ transformation to become a leading technology company in health and well-being,” said Philips chief executive officer Frans van Houten. “Philips and Gibson Brands have played significant roles in shaping the home entertainment and music industries and with this agreement the Philips brand will continue to be an innovation leader in this space.”

RCA Records Nashville Artist Josh Dorr To Release EP May 6

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Josh Dorr


Recently signed RCA Records Nashville artist Josh Dorr will release his four-song, self-titled EP on May 6 to all digital retailers. The Gillette, Wy. native moved to Nashville in 2010 to pursue a career in music. He has co-written the theme song for the television series Open Season (Pursuit Channel); another song co-penned by Dorr, “I’d Look Good On You,” was featured in USA Network’s Necessary Roughness.
He will also have a song on Columbia Nashville artist Casey James‘ upcoming sophomore album.
Tracklisting:
1. All or Nothing
Skip Black/Matt Nolen/Eric Paslay
2. Before the Summer Dies
Josh Dorr/Marty Dodson/Josh Osborne
3. Mine Looks Like You
Josh Dorr/Ross Copperman/Bob DiPiero
4. Save Your Breath
Josh Dorr/Jason Mizelle

Nettwerk One Music/Revelry Music Group Signs Fiorentino

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Pictured (L-R): AJ Burton (Nettwerk/Revelry), Shannan Hatch (SESAC), Mike Fiorentino, Greg Beeckman (Revelry), Mark Jowett (Nettwerk).

Pictured (L-R): AJ Burton (Nettwerk/Revelry), Shannan Hatch (SESAC), Mike Fiorentino, Greg Beeckman (Revelry), Mark Jowett (Nettwerk).


Nettwerk One Music/Revelry Music Group has signed Nashville-based singer-songwriter Mike Fiorentino to its roster. Nettwerk’s roster currently includes Jessie Jo Dillon, Neil Mason (The Cadillac Three) and Archertown.
Nettwerk/Revelry’s AJ Burton says, “I’ve worked with Mike for the past two years and watched him grow as a songwriter and producer. The timing could not be better to officially bring him into our growing family.”
The Tampa, Fla. native moved to Nashville in 2007. In 2013, he co-founded The Tennessee Recording Company (an independent record label/production team) with longtime friend/collaborator Kyle Cook (Matchbox 20 guitarist).
Fiorentino recently began collaborating with Average Joes Entertainment production team, Phivestarr, writing for both Bubba Sparxxx and Colt Ford’s forthcoming albums.

ASCAP's Paul Williams Reveals Music Advocacy Project

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ASCAP’s Paul Williams


ASCAP President and Chairman Paul Williams unveiled the “Music Advocacy Project” (MAP), a five-point plan to steer music licensing reform in Washington, on Thursday, April 24 during ASCAP’s General Annual Membership meeting.
Williams outlined five core Music Advocacy Project principles that form the basis of his vision for a sustainable future for music:
• SIMPLIFICATION: The music licensing process must be simplified, streamlined and reflective of how people listen to music today.
• MARKET RATES: The free market should determine the value of music copyrights, just as it does in other entertainment sectors.
• CONSUMER CHOICE: Music fans should continue to have access to a wide variety of music on any platform they choose.
• CREATOR CONTROL: Music starts with the songwriter or composer, and the interests of music creators should be central to any effort to reform copyright laws.
• ACCESS: We must preserve a robust collective licensing system in order to keep the music playing, ensure music creators are fairly compensated for use of their work, and enable new music businesses to launch efficiently and legally.
Williams also acknowledged the recent introduction of the Songwriter Equity Act legislation in Congress, a recently announced U.S. Copyright Office study to analyze the effectiveness of the ASCAP and BMI consent decrees, and statements of support from key members of Congress.
“We are working on the front lines,” Williams told the ASCAP members in the audience. “The Music Advocacy Project is our map to a modernized music licensing system that works better for everyone – writers, composers, publishers, licensees and, most importantly, music fans.”

Foster's Iconic Entertainment Group Adds Two

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Brian O’Neil


Fletcher Foster‘s Iconic Entertainment Group has hired Brian O’Neil to the position of Artist Manager, and Ally Rodriguez to the role of Assoc. Artist Manager. O’Neil and Rodriguez previously held positions at Nashville-based booking agencies CAA and Paradigm, respectively.
O’Neil, an Indianapolis native, worked at CAA before he was selected for the Agent Trainee mail room program in 2012. He then took part in the Northeast Club Territory before transitioning into the Midwest Club Territory in 2013.
Ally Rodriguez

Ally Rodriguez


Rodriguez worked in Paradigm’s Contemporary Christian Music Division before being promoted into the Contemporary Club Division. Rodriguez earned a Bachelors in Music Business from Lee University in Cleveland, Tenn.
It was previously reported that LeAnn Rimes and Levi Hummon are the first artists to be represented by Iconic Entertainment Group.

Country Radio Seminar 2015 Dates Announced

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Country Radio Seminar 2015 will be held Feb. 25-27 at the Nashville Convention Center in downtown Nashville, Tenn.
“One of the first signs of spring is Country Radio Seminar in Nashville, and again in 2015, CRS will launch the year in country radio and music,” said CRS President, Charlie Morgan. “Again this year, our event will kick-off on Wednesday, February 25 and run through our New Faces Show on Friday night, February 27.”
The 2014-2015 CRS Agenda Committee, which will oversee the agenda for CRS 2015, was recently announced. Jeff Green (Partner/Stone Door Media Lab) will serve as Chairman and Tom Hanrahan (Regional Program Manager/Clear Channel Media and Entertainment) and John Trapane (SW Regional/EMI Nashville) were both named Co-Vice Chairman.

ole Adds Foster as Sr. Director, Creative Licensing

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Randall Foster


ole has hired Randall Foster as Sr. Director of Creative Licensing. Foster will be based in Nashville and will join ole’s Synchronization & Licensing department, where he will report to COO Lou Ragagnin.
“Foster is an excellent addition to the ole team, and we’re thrilled to have him join our already successful operation,” said Robert Ott, Chairman and CEO of ole. “With his extensive experience in digital media, digital music, DRM, music licensing, music publishing, and production, Foster is ideally suited to handle anything that may come his way in our Synchronization & Licensing department. We’re confident that he will be able to land high-quality placements for our artists and writers and ensure that they are paid fairly for the use of their work.”
Foster’s career began at MTV Latin America, where he worked in licensing and copyright clearance. He transitioned to Naxos of America in July 2005, working his way to Director of Licensing and Business Development manager. He also launched the imprint record label Naxos Wind Band Classics, working as Label Manager and overseeing A&R.

Signings & Hirings (4/28/14)

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cumulus-logo-222featuredBrian Thomas has joined Cumulus Media as Corporate Program Director and as Program Director for NASH FM in New York. Thomas joins Cumulus from CBS, where was was most recently National VP of Classic Hits Programming, Program Director of Country-formatted WQYK and Classic Hits, WRBQ, and VP of Programming in Tampa.
In his new role, Thomas will focus on several formats, and he will be based in New York City.
John Dickey, Cumulus Executive Vice President & Co-Chief Operating Officer, said, “Brian Thomas is an incredible programming talent and brings a successful track record in New York to NASH FM New York. His experience and credibility will be great assets to the creative and leadership capital that Cumulus is cultivating for the benefit of our audiences and customers.”

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Mikel Knight


Triple 7 Public Relations has signed on to represent label exec and recording artist Mikel Knight. Knight’s blend of Country and Urban music has sold more than 300,000 albums, and has been featured on MTV’s Buck Wild.

Taylor Swift Among Radio Disney Winners

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Taylor Swift


Taylor Swift was among the winners at the recent Radio Disney Music Awards, which took place at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live. Swift was honored in two categories–So FANtastic-Fiercest Fans, and Musical Mash-up: Best Musical Collaboration for “Everything Has Changed,” featuring Ed Sheeran.
Other multiple award winners include Selena Gomez, Fifth Harmony, and Demi Lovato. The event featured performances from Becky G, Ariana Grande, Fifth Harmony and others.
Winners list for the 2014 RADIO DISNEY MUSIC AWARDS:
They’re The One – Best Music Group: One Direction
He’s The One – Best Male Artist: Justin Timberlake
She’s The One – Best Female Artist: Demi Lovato
The Bestest – Song Of The Year: Come & Get It – Selena Gomez
XOXO – Best Crush Song: Still Into You – Paramore
So FANtastic – Fiercest Fans: Swifties – Taylor Swift
The Buzz – Breakout Artist of the Year: Fifth Harmony
The Freshest – Best New Artist: Becky G
Musical Mashup – Best Musical Collaboration: Everything Has Changed – Taylor Swift feat. Ed Sheeran
So Happy – Best Song That Makes You Smile: Ooh La La – Britney Spears
#Cool – Radio Disney’s Most Talked About Artist: Selena Gomez
Stuck In Our Heads – Catchiest New Song: The Fox (What Does The Fox Say?) – Ylvis
That’s My Jam – Best Song To Rock Out To With Your BFF: Me & My Girls – Fifth Harmony
Soundtraxx – Favorite Song From a Movie Or TV Show: Let It Go – Idina Menzel (“Frozen”)
Move! – Best Song To Dance To: Birthday – Selena Gomez
Hit The Road – Favorite Roadtrip Song: Made In The USA – Demi Lovato
You’ve Got Swag! – Artist With The Best Style: Zendaya

Industry Photos (4/28/14)

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Leadership Music recently hosted a quarterly Off the Record with special guest K. T. Oslin, who was interviewed by Leadership Music alum Robert K. Oermann. The sold-out event was a joint lunch-and-learn between Leadership Music and SOURCE.

Pictured (L-R): Oermann, Oslin, surprise guest Lynn Anderson, former RCA Label Chairman Joe Galante, LM Executive Director Debbie Linn and Stan Moress, Oslin’s long-time manager. Photo: Deb Varallo

Pictured (L-R): Oermann, Oslin, surprise guest Lynn Anderson, former RCA Label Chairman Joe Galante, LM Executive Director Debbie Linn and Stan Moress, Oslin’s long-time manager. Photo: Deb Varallo

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Alan Jackson headlined the first day of the 27th annual Merlefest. The Country star performed songs from his project The Bluegrass Album, which spent more than four months atop Billboard‘s Bluegrass Album Sales chart.
Jackson’s backing band included several top-notch bluegrass musicians, including Scott Coney (acoustic guitar), Sammy Shelor (banjo), Tim Crouch (fiddle), Tim Dishman (bass), Rob Ickes (dobro) and Ronnie Bowman and Don Rigsby (vocals) – all of whom played on The Bluegrass Album – along with Sierra Hull (mandolin).

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Alan Jackson performs at MerleFest.

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For the second year, CMT Edge and BMI co-hosted an event as part of the Nashville Film Festival. Top music supervisors from across the country were treated to acoustic performances in the round by Ashley Monroe, Amanda Shires, Marc Scibilia and Steve McMorran of Satellite at the CMT studios.

Pictured (L-R): Craig Shelburne, CMT.com senior editor; Penny Everhard, BMI associate director of writer/publisher relations; Marc Scibilia; Amanda Shires; Martin Clayton, CMT.com vice president; Steve McMorran (Satellite); Ashley Monroe; Jody Williams, BMI vice president of writer/publisher relations; Leslie Fram, CMT senior vice president of music strategy

Pictured (L-R): Craig Shelburne, CMT.com senior editor; Penny Everhard, BMI associate director of writer/publisher relations; Marc Scibilia; Amanda Shires; Martin Clayton, CMT.com vice president; Steve McMorran (Satellite); Ashley Monroe; Jody Williams, BMI vice president of writer/publisher relations; Leslie Fram, CMT senior vice president of music strategy.

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 Singer, songwriter and producer David Fanning stopped by Nashville’s BMI offices to celebrate his debut single, “Drink You Away.” Fanning is best-known for his work with Thompson Square and Parmalee as part of the production group New Voice.

Pictured (L-R): Rough Hollow Entertainment’s Doug Nichols, Red Bow Records artist David Fanning, BMI's David Preston, Penny Everhard and Clay Bradley, and Rough Hollow Entertainment’s Chris Alderman. Photo: Drew Maynard

Pictured (L-R): Rough Hollow Entertainment’s Doug Nichols, Red Bow Records artist David Fanning, BMI’s David Preston, Penny Everhard and Clay Bradley, and Rough Hollow Entertainment’s Chris Alderman. Photo: Drew Maynard