Performers and Presenters Announced for International Bluegrass Music Awards

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An initial list of performers and presented has been announced for the 23rd annual International Bluegrass Music Awards, which takes place Thursday, Sept. 27, 7:30 pm/CT at the Ryman Auditorium. Del McCoury and Laurie Lewis will host the proceedings.

Among those slated to appear onstage are Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out, The Gibson Brothers, Steve Martin & the Steep Canyon Rangers, Eddie & Martha Adcock, Terry Baucom, Kristin Scott Benson, Byron Berline, Blue Highway, The Boxcars, Jason Burleson, Dale Ann Bradley, Alison Brown, Sam Bush, Martino Coppo, J.D. Crowe, Dailey & Vincent, Della Mae, Steve Dilling, Jeremy Garrett, Chris Jones, Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, Jens Kruger, Kitsy Kuykendall, Rob McCoury, Joe Mullins, Mike Munford, Chris Pandolfi, Junior Sisk, Graham Sharp, Sammy Shelor, Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen, Special Consensus, Pam Tillis, Tony Trischka, and Josh Williams. A finalized lineup will be announced in the coming weeks.

For the first time, the event will be broadcast live as streaming video on BluegrassNation.org and BluegrassToday.com. In addition to online streaming, the show will be broadcast live on Sirius XM Satellite Radio and syndicated to more than 300 U.S. markets and 14 foreign networks. Program directors and station managers may register as affiliates by calling 615-256-3222.

“This year, as we give recognition to those musical heroes we have lost, but also focus on all of the great talent that we have, we celebrate our bluegrass family and community,” said Award Show co-producer, Stephen Ruffo.

A full list of IBMA nominees can be found here.

CMA Noms Solidify Church’s Place In Country Choir

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Eric Church in the music video for "Springsteen."

In the last twelve months, Eric Church has skyrocketed from first time CMA Award nominee to leading nominee competing for five categories at the Nov. 1 ceremony.

In 2011 he was in the running for New Artist of the Year, but the trophy went home with The Band Perry. Since then, Church has grown into an arena headliner, chart-topping radio act and serious sales force. His success has been propelled significantly by hit singles “Drink In My Hand” and “Springsteen,” which secured nominations today for Single, Song (co-written with Ryan Tyndell and Jeff Hyde) and Video of the Year (directed by Peter Zavadil). But without a solid foundation built by hard touring, meticulous songwriting, and an established fanbase, a few radio hits wouldn’t have justified today’s debut in the Male Vocalist category.

That fanbase showed up in August 2011 to purchase 145K copies of latest project Chief, even without a top 10 single, making it one of the best selling debuts of the year. And when the radio play caught up and attracted new fans, Church had the goods ready to bring them further into the fold with the expertly crafted album. Featuring production magic courtesy of Jay Joyce, it is now in the running for Album of the Year. Given his growing reputation for mad studio skills, maybe we should call him Dr. Jay.

The career of Church’s Capitol labelmate Luke Bryan has taken a steadier trajectory, but yielded the same result with his first Male Vocalist nod.

After a year absent from the race for CMA’s top prize—which many industry observers saw as a faulty omission—Kenny Chesney will vie for Entertainer of the Year against Jason Aldean, Brad Paisley, Blake Shelton and Taylor Swift. If Chesney wins Entertainer in 2012, he’ll take the record for the most wins in the category; he is currently tied with Garth Brooks. And P.S., aren’t Miranda Lambert and Lady Antebellum viable contenders in this race?

First Timers

Judging by the number of first-time CMA nominees, Country music is producing a bountiful crop. CMA newbies Eli Young Band will compete for Vocal Group of the Year, and Will Hoge and Eric Paslay earned their first noms for co-writing EYB’s hit “Even If It Breaks Your Heart.”

The New Artist category includes inaugural CMA nominations for Brantley Gilbert, Hunter Hayes, Lee Brice, and Love & Theft, who will also compete for Vocal Duo.

Proof of country music’s growing inclusivity are debut nods for Snoop Lion (or as we used to know him, Snoop Dogg) and Lionel Richie. And though Kelly Clarkson is not a CMA Awards newcomer (she shares the current Musical Event trophy with Aldean) some fans and members of the industry wondered if the pop singer belongs in today’s slate of Female Vocalist nominees.

Music City Roots Launches Roots Radio

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Weekly live radio show and webcast, Music City Roots, has announced the launch of Roots Radio, a streaming service featuring music, talk and news content.

“Music City Roots is approaching three years on the air and over more than 120 episodes we’ve accumulated an incredible archive of performances by the best roots artists in the world,” says co-producer John Walker. “For quite some time we’ve dreamed of growing and serving our community of music fans with a streaming music service that could be heard virtually anywhere free.”

The streaming music service will pull from a library of more than 500 tracks, compounding weekly from the shows, which have included The Civil Wars, Sam Bush, Ricky Skaggs, Marty Stuart, Elizabeth Cook, Apache Relay, Rodney Crowell, The Kopecky Family Band, Jerry Douglas, and Riders In The Sky. News and talk/interview segements, produced by co-host Craig Havighurst, will be called Connect: The Roots Radio Interview and air Saturday and Tuesday nights at 8:00 pm CT.

Americana and Roots performances are available on the web in HD video, to smartphones via the free Roots Radio app, and on the air via Lightning 100, WRLT-FM.

Music City Roots went on air in October 2009, now broadcast Wednesday night at 7:00 CT at the Loveless Café Barn. Veteran Grand Ole Opry announcer Keith Bilbrey emcees with help from musical host, Jim Lauderdale, and Havighurst.

Industry Ink (9/05/12)

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Aaron Pope, a tax manager with Flood, Bumstead, McCready & McCarthy, recently served the Tennessee Army National Guard/U.S. Army overseas. Pope was stationed at Camp Eggers in Kabul, Afghanistan for one year working as a contracting officer. His responsibilities impacted the effort to mature the country’s economy for citizens. “While I was at Camp Eggers, I received constant support from the owners and employees of the FBMM family,” Pope told co-workers at FBMM’s end-of-summer party. “I was sent care packages each month that consisted of letters, cards, pictures, consumable items, as well as love and verbal support from everyone at FBMM.” To show his appreciation, Pope presented them with a US flag flown at Camp Eggers.

(L-R): FBMM’s Jamie Cheek, Aaron Pope, Julie Boos, Duane Clark. Back row: Mary Ann McCready, Chuck Flood.

• • • • •

Roger LeBlanc

Management for Nashville’s War Memorial Auditorium has named industry veteran Roger LeBlanc as the venue’s new talent buyer, effective immediately. LeBlanc brings 20 years of experience to the role, including time as a promoter and talent buyer for The Coach House, The Canyon Theater and Saint Rocke. He also books talent for the Sunset Strip Music Festival and cruise ShipRocked. Additionally, he was a final nominee for IEBA’s “Club Buyer of the Year” honor. Congratulate him here.

• • • • •

Shawna Russell

Way Out West Records’ flagship artist Shawna Russell has signed for booking representation with William Morris Endeavor (WME). Russell’s latest single is “Sounds Like A Party,” which is currently No. 50 on the MusicRow chart.

• • • •

On Wednesday, September 12, the Curb College at Belmont University will host Stageit’s Evan Lowenstein for an Insider’s View seminar in the Massey Performing Arts Center. Lowenstein launched the online video platform in 2011 to help artists monetize special performances and interact with fans. For more info, email Sarah Cates.

• • • • •

Publishing veteran Jason Krupek has launched J. Krupek Photography, specializing in live events, parties, concerts, album artwork, and press shots. Krupek most recently served as GM of Big Tractor Music and co-founded the Buds n Suds benefit concert, which takes place September 12 at Losers. More information on J Krupek Photography here.

ASCAP Nashville Hosts Inaugural Music City Trifecta

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(L-R) (back row) ASCAP's Marc Driskill, Cornman Music's Nate Lowery, Birch Street Music's Jake McKim, ASCAP's Michael Martin, Warner Music Nashville's Scott Hendricks, Shane Stevens, Billboard (Mathieu Jomphe), Justin Weaver, Ashley Gorley, Autumn Rowe, Brett James, Troy Verges, (front row) JT Harding, ASCAP's LeAnn Phelan, Mike Krompass and Catt Gravitt. Photo: Rory White.

ASCAP Nashville recently hosted its inaugural Music City Trifecta songwriting retreat August 27-29 at Brett James’ Cornman Music offices. The event, sponsored in part by City National Bank, served to spotlight ASCAP’s diverse talents and brought together a hand-selected group of creators from Nashville, Los Angeles, New York and beyond.

Songwriters joined in small co-writing groups and worked on songs for different artists each day of the retreat, including Beyoncé and Blake Shelton.

Participants included Greg Becker, Billboard, Chris DeStefano, Ben Glover, Ashley Gorley, Catt Gravitt, JT Harding, Brett James, Mike Krompass, Hillary Lindsey, Shane McAnally, Autumn Rowe, Shane Stevens, Troy Verges and Justin Weaver. Among these writers’ many credits are hits by Britney Spears, Carrie Underwood, Jason Aldean, Ke$ha, Lady Antebellum, and many more.

Brett James, ASCAP's LeAnn Phelan and Mike Krompass. Photo: Rory White

Weekly Register: If Track Prices Rise Will Consumers Support Them?

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Taylor Swift’s recent record-setting debut week sales for her new single, “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” has spurred discussion that tracks will  become as important or more important than albums. Billboard’s Glenn Peoples compares Swift’s singles accomplishment in TEA form against Zac Brown’s album debut (July 29; 48k units) saying, “The album isn’t dead even in my exaggerated example, but it could be a few years away from parity with top 40 track sales. Single tracks also get massive awareness online in the form of on-demand audio and video streaming.”

How likely is this parity scenario and what are some of the dynamics that will affect it? First and foremost, let’s note that overall track sales are only up a modest 6% YTD for 2012 (including Taylor’s feat). In 2010 they barely budged, gaining only 1% and in 2011 they registered a more healthy 8.5% gain according to Nielsen SoundScan. So growth has hardly been overwhelming and although we have seen that it is possible for an artist to stimulate a massive track buy-in, the very fact that Swift set records indicates it is still a very special happening not to be confused with the title, “common occurrence.”

The next area to watch is pricing. As citizens of the SoundScan era we tend to talk about units, but pricing is the underlying measure that determines profits. Album pricing seems to be falling, especially downloads due to special sales and digital store-to store competition. This effect has caused Billboard to put a $3.49 pricing floor on units counted on the album chart sold during the first four weeks of release. However, tracks have actually enjoyed a price increase, with the introduction and stabilization of the $1.29 price level, making TEA album profits more competitive with regular albums. Will labels experiment soon with $1.39 and/or $1.49 levels? I believe we will see that trial balloon fly before long. Unlike the bricks and mortar days when labels completely controlled distribution and therefore pricing, the online world has introduced a new dynamic—free. Some consumers have moved to buying tracks because of the relatively low price and ease of purchase. If prices increase will they still feel that way? Or are they likely to move to an altogether new model—access?

Access or subscription as it is sometimes called brings forth a compelling value proposition—listen to what you want, when you want and wherever you want. This model has already made strong inroads onto desktop computers and mobile smartphones. The auto dashboard is next and that march has already started. We are talking about services such as Spotify, Rhapsody and rdio. Even Pandora, which features personalized programming and although not technically an on-demand variant, still offers access and a large degree of playlist control to the listener. Many of these services are free, or extremely low cost. Ultimately, and especially if faced with rising prices, fans may ask themselves, “Why do I need to carry around these files and copy them from device to device when all the music is available without worrying about that?”

Numbers Trending Lower
A quick week-to-week comparison shows album sales continuing to erode. As regular Weekly Register readers know, that usually has to do with release schedules. In fact, there were no country debuts that could muster even 9k in sales. Josh Turner delivered a live physical only album to Cracker Barrel (No. 9; 8k) and Thomas Rhett debuted at No. 24 with sales of 3.3k. Carrie Underwood rose to the top of the chart, benefitting from an iTunes $6.99 sale price with sales of almost 28k. We often talk about the 300k benchmark for Current Country Top 75 chart and this week the chart was well below that measure, registering a tepid 264k total.

Taylor Swift maintains a firm grip on the top of country tracks list with sales of almost 253k units this week. Her amazing three-week RTD (release to date) total is 1.183 million. Also floating on—well, a “Pontoon” boat—is Little Big Town celebrating the single’s voyage to platinum status in 14 weeks. This week the vocal quartet added another 78k units to its tally. Also in the million-plus club is Hunter Hayes who is becoming a regular on the Top 5 tracks list. “Wanted” added another 65k this week. Randy Rogers Band breaks Top 20 on tracks with week 1 for “One More Sad Song.”

Keep your eyes on the upcoming releases HERE. Stay tuned every Wed. for Weekly Register and thanks for reading!

PS: Congrats to EMI/Capitol Nashville with 80% of the CMA Album Of The Year Nominations!

Scotty McCreery to Release Christmas Album

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Scotty McCreery will release Christmas With Scotty McCreery (Mercury/19 Recordings/Interscope) on Oct. 16. The 11-track collection will feature the American Idol champ interpreting holiday standards as well as originals.

The Mark Bright-produced album is currently available for pre-sale on McCreery’s official site. Fans who purchase via pre-sale receive an autographed copy, a video message and a chance to win a meet and greet with McCreery.

Among the tracks are standards such as “Winter Wonderland,” “Jingle Bells,” “Let It Snow,” “The Christmas Song,” “O Holy Night,” “Holly Jolly Christmas,” “Santa Claus Is Back in Town,” “Mary, Did You Know?” and “The First Noel.” The two originals are titled, “Christmas in Heaven,” and “Christmas Is Coming Around.”

The album follows his debut project, Clear As Day, which exceeded sales of 1 million units in three months. McCreery has since been touring as part of Brad Paisley’s Virtual Reality Tour 2012.

Pickler Buzzes Hair for Cancer Awareness

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Summer Holt Miller and Kellie Pickler. Photo: Russ Harrington

Kellie Pickler has stood beside her childhood best friend Summer Holt Miller throughout her bout with breast cancer that was diagnosed in June 2012. But yesterday (9/4) in Nashville, the friends took their stance against cancer one step further when they both buzzed their hair to bring awareness to the importance of early detection.

As revealed on ABC’s Good Morning America, Pickler and Miller shared the story that Miller was just 36 years old when she received word of her diagnosis. Miller recently underwent a double mastectomy and will begin chemotherapy tomorrow (9/6).

“Cancer does not discriminate,” Pickler shared with viewers.

“If this compels even one person to change their mentality toward waiting until the age of 40 for their mammogram, then it will be worth it,” Miller said.

A behind-the-scenes video capturing the ladies’ cuts and truthful candor about Miller’s diagnosis and treatment will be shared on Athena Water’s website. Athena will make a monetary donation to the American Cancer Society in Miller’s honor.

CMA Announces Broadcast Awards Finalists

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Lee Brice revealed the CMA Broadcast Awards finalists this morning via Live Stream from CMA’s Nashville offices.

Five finalists are selected for CMA Broadcast Personality and CMA Radio Station of the Year in four categories: Small, Medium, Large, and Major Market. There was a tie in this year’s Medium Market Personality of the Year thus there are six contenders in the category.

The CMA Broadcast Award winners will be notified in mid-October and will be acknowledged at The 46th Annual CMA Awards, to be held Thurs., Nov. 1 (8:00-11:00 PM/ET) and broadcast live by the ABC from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood return to host the event for the fifth time. See the list of nominees in artist categories here.

CMA BROADCAST PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
National 
“The Big Time with Whitney Allen” (Whitney Allen) – Dial Global
“CMT’s Country Countdown USA with Lon Helton” (Lon Helton) – Westwood One
“The Crook & Chase Countdown” (Lorianne Crook and Charlie Chase) –  Jim Owens Entertainment and Premiere Networks

Major Market
“Fitz in the Morning,” Cory “Fitz” Fitzner, Ellen Tailor, Tony Russell, and Randy “The Biscuit” Stein – KKWF, Seattle-Tacoma, WA
“K102 Wakeup Crew,” Donna Valentine and Mike Mussman – KEEY, Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN
“Laurie DeYoung Morning Show,” Laurie DeYoung – WPOC, Baltimore, MD
“Mike & Amy,” Mike Chase and Amy Faust – KWJJ, Portland, OR
“Paul Schadt Morning Show,” Paul Schadt and Meg Butterly – WKKT, Charlotte-Gastonia, NC/ Rock Hill, SC

Large Market
Angie Ward – WTQR, Greensboro-Winston-Salem-High Point, NC
“Big Dave and Chelsie,” David Chandler and Chelsie Shinkle – WUBE, Cincinnati, OH
“Mornings with Dave O’Brien,” Dave O’Brien – WLHK, Indianapolis, Ind.
“Q Morning Crew” Mike Wheless, Marty Young, and Janie Carothers – WQDR, Raleigh-Durham, NC
“KJ and Friends,” Randy Carroll and Jamie Martin – KAJA, San Antonio, TX

Medium Market
“The 97 Country Breakfast Club,” Tom O’Brien, Roger Todd, and Melissa Moran – WPCV, Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL
“Andy & Alison and the Morning Crew,” Andy Ritchie and Alison Mencer – WIVK, Knoxville, TN
“Buzz Jackson,” Buzz Jackson – KIIM, Tucson, AZ
“Ellis and Bradley Morning Show” (Bill Ellis and Beth Bradley) – WSSL, Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
“Kevin Richards Show,” Kevin Richards – WGNA, Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY
“Party Marty Mitchell & The Morning Tailgate,” Marty Mitchell – WKMK, Monmouth-Ocean, NJ

Small Market
“Barrett, Fox & Berry,” Bill Barrett, Tim Fox, and Tracy Berry – KKNU, Eugene-Springfield, OR
“Dex and Mo Show,” Bill Poindexter and Melissa Turner – WUSY, Chattanooga, TN
“The Eddie Foxx Show,” Eddie Foxx and Sharon Green – WKSF, Asheville, NC
“Gary, Nelson, & Kellie,” Gary Greenwood, Josh Nelson, and Kellie Wesslund – KFGE, Lincoln, NE
“Officer Don and DeAnn,” Don Chase and DeAnn Stephens – WBUL, Lexington-Fayette, KY

CMA RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR

Major Market
KNIX – Phoenix, AZ
KWJJ – Portland, OR
WKLB – Boston, Mass.
WMZQ – Washington, DC
WPOC – Baltimore, MD

Large Market
KAJA – San Antonio, TX
WCTK – Providence-Warwick-Pawtucket, RI
WFMS – Indianapolis, Ind
WLHK – Indianapolis, Ind
WUBE – Cincinnati, OH

Medium Market
KFDI – Wichita, KS
KUZZ – Bakersfield, CA
KXKT – Omaha, Neb./Council Bluffs, Iowa
WIVK – Knoxville, TN
WSSL – Greenville-Spartanburg, SC

Small Market
WGSQ – Cookeville, TN
WKSF – Asheville, NC
WKXC – Augusta, GA
WLLR – Quad Cities: Davenport-Rock Island, Iowa/Moline, Ill.
WUSY – Chattanooga, TN

 

Mark Your Calendar (September 2012)

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Industry Events

September 5
CMA Nominations Announced

September 9
Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) Awards in Saskatoon, SK

September 10
Miller Harris Memorial Golf Tournament at Temple Hills Golf Club

September 12

  • Americana Music Association Honors & Awards— Ryman Auditorium
  • Apple to Host Press Event 10am PT

Sept 12-15
Americana Music Festival & Conference

September 17
CMA Music Festival: Country’s Night to Rock, 7-10 PM on ABC

September 21-22
Zac Brown Band’s Southern Ground Music and Food Festival, The Lawn at Riverfront Park

September 24
6th Annual ACM Honors at the Ryman Auditorium

September 27

  • WMN Pickin’ on the Patio
  • Full Moon Festival outdoor concert series
  • Rockin’ at Regions: 5-7 pm– Intimate evening of music at the Regions Music Row. Free parking and admission for beer, wine & hors d’oeuvres

Album Releases

September 4
The Bellamy Brothers/Pray For Me/Howard and David Bellamy
Derek Webb/Ctrl/Fair Trade Services

September 11
Kix Brooks/New To This Town/Arista
Bucky Covington/Good Guys/Entertainment One
Little Big Town/Tornado/Capitol
Aaron Lewis/The Road/Blaster Records
The Time Jumpers/Time Jumpers/Rounder
Kathy Mattea/Calling Me Home/Sugar Hill
Various Artists/All Star Tribute to Shania Twain/Cleopatra
Waylon Jennings/Last Recordings/Saguaro Road Records
Will Johnson/Scorpion/Undertow Music-Thirty Tigers

September 14
Kristen Cothron/Show Me Where the Edge Is…

September 18
Easton Corbin/All Over The Road /Mercury
Dwight Yoakam/3 Pears/Warner Bros. Records
Big & Rich/Hillbilly Jedi/Warner Bros.
Bart Crow/Dandelion/Smith Music
Anderson East/Flowers of the Broken Hearted

September 25
The Mavericks/In Time/Valory
Jake Owen/Endless Summer/RCA Nashville
Ricky Skaggs/Music To My Ears
Annie Moses Band/Pilgrims & Prodigals [CD/DVD]

Single Releases

September 4
Kix Brooks/Bring It On Home/Arista
Thomas Rhett/Beer With Jesus/Valory

September 10
Kenny Chesney/El Cerrito Place/Blue Chair-Columbia
Sean Patrick McGraw/Git Yer Cowboy On/Little Engine-GrassRoots
High Valley/Love You For A Long Time/Eaglemont-Rodeowave
Phoenix Stone/100 Proof Moonshine/Stonehall-Nine North-Turnpike
Kacey Musgraves/Merry Go ‘Round/Mercury
JT Hodges/Sleepy Little Town/Show Dog-Universal
Gloriana/Can’t Shake You/Emblem-WAR

September 17
Borrowed Blue/Porch People/Red Buck
Clay Walker/Jesse James/Sidewalk
The Farm/Be Grateful/All In-Elektra Nashville-New Revolution
LiveWire/Lies/Way Out West
Craig Campbell/Outta My Head/BPG
Gary Allan/Every Storm/Runs Out Of Rain/MCA
Joanna Smith/We Can’t Be Friends/RCA