‘Willie Nelson American Outlaw’ CD And DVD To Release Dec. 11

Blackbird Presents is releasing the CD and DVD of Willie Nelson American Outlaw, the once-in-a-lifetime concert event taping at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena celebrating the songs of icon Willie Nelson, on Dec. 11.

The concert film and CD features performances by Nelson, The Avett Brothers, Chris Stapleton, Dave Matthews, Emmylou Harris, Eric Church, George Strait, Jack Johnson, Jamey Johnson, Jimmy Buffett, Kris Kristofferson, Lee Ann Womack, Lukas Nelson, Norah Jones and The Little Willies, Sheryl Crow, and many more.

Performance highlights include “Willie Got Me Stoned” (Performed by Jack Johnson) and Nelson classics such as “Whiskey River”(Performed by Chris Stapleton), “Me and Paul” (Performed by Eric Church), “Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain” (Performed by Vince Gill), along with duets “The Harder They Come” (with Jimmy Buffett), “Crazy” (with Dave Matthews), “You Were Always On My Mind” (with Chris Stapleton and Derek Trucks), “After The Fire Is Gone” (with Sheryl Crow), and an All-Star performance of “On The Road Again.” In addition to these star-studded performances, music history was made when Nelson and George Strait performed together for the very first time on “Sing One With Willie” and “Good Hearted Woman.”

“Willie and his songs mean everything to music artists and fans alike. Like Willie, they have inspired us to remain true to ourselves in every possible way. This incredible lineup of artists on this show is a testament to that,” says Blackbird Presents CEO Keith Wortman.

Blackbird Presents/Caroline Records will release the full-length concert film in all audio and video formats including CD/DVD combo, now available for immediate preorder at willieoutlaw.com.

Ryan Beaver, Tiera, Dillon Carmichael Among AIMP Nashville’s Songwriter Series Class of 2020

The Association of Independent Music Publishers’ Nashville Chapter has announced the Songwriter Series Class of 2020, which highlights several of the most promising songwriters in Nashville’s independent publishing community.

This year’s honorees include Ryan BeaverDillon CarmichaelIan ChristianColin ElmoreJeff GarrisonLJ, and Tiera. They will perform together in a live songwriters’ round to be held in 2021.

Previous AIMP Nashville Songwriter Series performers have gone on to earn chart-topping hits both as performers and as writers for artists including Florida Georgia Line, Little Big Town, Morgan Wallen, Jimmie Allen, and Matt Stell; win Grammy, CMA, and CMT Awards; and reach No. 1 on the Music Row Top Songwriter Chart, among other accomplishments. Past classes have featured Luke Dick, Jameson Rodgers, Hailey Whitters, Ash Bowers, Hannah Ellis, Ross Ellis, HARDY, Ashley McBryde, Kassi Ashton, Nicolette Hayford, Kylie Morgan, Ben Goldsmith, and more.

“At AIMP Nashville, we pride ourselves on identifying talent before anyone else,” said John Ozier, President of the AIMP Nashville Chapter. “As independent publishers, we are able to see, identify, and work with songwriters and artists before the rest of the industry. If you look at the success our previous classes of writers have gone on to have, it’s remarkable. The Class of 2020 is, yet again, going to be the future of country music, and we’re proud to give them the recognition they deserve before anyone else.”

All members of the AIMP Nashville Songwriter Series Class of 2020 were selected by a special committee made up of music industry professionals, based on submissions from current AIMP Nashville members. Each writer must not have had a song charting higher than a Top 20 on the Billboard or Mediabase charts.

This Year’s Nashville Christmas Parade Goes Virtual, Adds Lauren Alaina, Jimmie Allen, Louis York, for King & Country And More

 

Lauren Alaina. Photo Credit: Katie Kauss

The 93rd annual Nashville Christmas Parade is going virtual this year due to the pandemic and will be aired on Saturday, Dec. 5 at 9 a.m. on News Channel 2.

CeCe Winans, Danielle Bradbery, for KING & COUNTRY, Jimmie Allen, Louis York and The Shindellas, Oak Ridge Boys, Lauren Alaina, Melinda Doolittle, Mitchell Tenpenny, the Nashville Children’s Theatre, Sandi Patty, Shy Carter, Benita Washington and Runaway June, who will be introduced by Radio Disney Country special correspondent Lindsay Ell, will all perform during the one-hour virtual program. Dolly Parton will also offer a special holiday greeting during the parade program.

In addition to these star-studded appearances, viewers will enjoy historic highlights from previous parades and touching patient stories from the children of Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, including that of this year’s Child Ambassador Grace Hamilton, a 12-year-old cancer survivor who battled high-risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia when she was just 5 years old. There will also be memorable moments from local marching bands and a virtual marching band performance from the Golden Rams Marching Band from West Chester University in Pennsylvania.

“We are so glad that we were able to discover a safe way to continue the tradition of the Nashville Christmas Parade this year,” said Julie Carell Stadler, parade co-producer and daughter of the late Monroe J. Carell Jr. and Ann Scott Carell. The parade has brought joy to children and their families for decades and touches even more lives by benefiting Children’s Hospital. It really is the kickoff to the holiday season for locals and visitors to Nashville, and I think people will be really pleased with how we are making it happen this year.”

The Nashville Christmas Parade debuted in 1927 and has been an annual tradition every year, except during the war years. The parade is produced annually in support of Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.

EXCLUSIVE: Sony/ATV Nashville Acquires River House Artists Catalogue, Signs Joint Venture

Pictured (L-R): Sony/ATV Chairman and CEO Jon Platt, River House Artists Founder Lynn Oliver-Cline, Sony/ATV Nashville CEO Rusty Gaston.

Sony/ATV Nashville has acquired the River House Artists’ catalogue of top-charting country songs, which includes Luke Combs’ No. 1 hits “Forever After All,” “Beautiful Crazy,” “When It Rains It Pours,” and “Lovin’ On You.” The company also signed a joint venture with River House Artists to provide creative services to its talent.

Indie record label and publishing company River House Artists launched in 2016 under the leadership of veteran industry executive Lynn Oliver-Cline, and is home to some of today’s top country hitmakers, including Combs’ long-time friend and collaborator Ray Fulcher, well known for co-writing beloved songs such as  “Does To Me,” “Even Though I’m Leaving” and “When It Rains It Pours” by Combs.

River House Artists also represents Drew Parker, rising artist-songwriter and Sirius XM’s latest Highway Find who has co-written hits including Combs’ “1,2 Many” and “Nothing Like You,” as well as No. 1 single “Homemade” by Jake Owen.

Sony/ATV Nashville CEO Rusty Gaston said, “Lynn’s intuition for identifying singer-songwriters who speak right to the heart of country music is second to none, and she knows how to turn their dreams into reality. We’re proud to partner with Lynn and the River House team as we build a long and successful future together.”

River House Artists Founder Lynn Oliver-Cline said, “When I moved to Nashville in 2013, I wanted to be Rusty Gaston! So being able to ink a deal with him and Sony/ATV, who are already my family, is a dream come true. I can’t think of our writers and artists being in better hands. Rusty’s passion for songs, songwriters and his team is inspiring on every level. I can’t thank Jon, Rusty and Cam [Caldwell] enough for making this happen!”

River House Artists’ roster also includes powerhouse songwriters such as Driver Williams, who has crafted popular hits such as “Smoke A Little Smoke” by Eric Church and “Call Me Country” by Jon Pardi; Nicolette Hayford, best known for co-writing certified gold singles “Little Dive Bar In Dahlonega” and “One Night Standards” by Ashley McBryde; and Jordan Rowe, known for his latest single “Good For Nothin.”

BREAKING: JoJamie Hahr Appointed Sr. VP, BBR Music Group

JoJamie Hahr. Photo: Cody Heckber

JoJamie Hahr has been promoted to Senior Vice President of BBR Music Group. Formerly, VP of Marketing for BBR Music Group, Hahr will help guide all non-finance and legal operations for the label. She will continue reporting to President of BMG Nashville, Jon Loba. In her new role Hahr will supervise and coordinate day-to-day operations of the label group and its roster of over 20 artists and imprints Broken Bow Records, Stoney Creek Records, and Wheelhouse Records.

“This appointment essentially formalizes the evolution of her role since BMG’s acquisition of the BBR Music Group,” said Loba. Adding, “As my responsibilities have increased, JoJamie has stepped in and stepped up at every turn, to help grow our Nashville division. She is truly a right-hand who thinks and moves like me, while at the same time challenging us all. We have enjoyed so many successes together and I would not want to do this job without her. I will never forget my first conversation with her while she was working at K92 in Orlando. She was one of the most passionate, creative and focused individuals I had ever met, and those qualities have only grown since.”

“It’s truly an honor to move into this role at BBR Music Group/BMG,” added Hahr. “Our extraordinary artists and staff continue to raise the bar, and I’m inspired by them on a daily basis. Thanks to Jon for not only believing in me, but for continuously cheering me on and lifting me up. He is an exemplary leader and I’m proud to be by his side.”

Hahr began her career in radio with WWKA in Orlando, FL. She then made a move to Nashville to work in promotion at WSIX. This led to her job as Promotion Coordinator at MCA Records where she was later promoted to Director of Secondary Promotion for the Universal Music Group imprints. Hahr began working for Loba when he hired her as Southeast Director of Radio Promotion for the BBR Music Group, helping break acts such as future superstar Jason Aldean. When Loba moved to Big Machine to help Scott Borchetta start The Valory Music Company (TVMC), Hahr soon followed and helped launch the careers of Justin Moore, Brantley Gilbert, Florida Georgia Line, and Thomas Rhett. During her time there, she elevated to Valory’s National Director of Field Promotion. A few years after Loba’s return to BBR Music Group, Hahr returned as well to serve as BBR Management’s VP of Radio Promotion before transitioning to VP of Marketing for BBR Music Group.

Since taking the helm of the then newly created marketing department at BBR Music Group, Hahr has led the department in driving key relationships on behalf of the entire artist roster with partners including Radio Disney, Music Choice, Shazam, VEVO, iHeart Digital, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Madison Square Garden, Triller, and notably Tik Tok whose relationship helped spark Blanco Brown’s worldwide success and Elvie Shane’s latest single, “My Boy” to claim the No. 1 country spot on the platform. Hahr lead marketing efforts for Blanco Brown’s debut hit “The Git Up,” the global hit claimed the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs Chart for 12 weeks and was the top-selling digital country song in the U.S. for 13 weeks resulting in Blanco being named Billboard’s 2019 Top New Country Artist.

Under her tenure, Jason Aldean has achieved ACM Entertainer of the Year three times, has been named the ACM Artist of the Decade, and has been named the No. 1 consumption artist by Billboard. Aldean also achieved Billboard’s No. 1 “Best-Selling Independent Album of 2018” with Rearview Town.

She has been key in helping to build the career of Dustin Lynch who notched his sixth and seventh Country Airplay No. 1 with “Good Girl” (his first No. 1 as songwriter) followed by “Ridin’ Roads” in January. Runaway June became the first female group to achieve a Top 5 single since The Chicks in 2003 and LOCASH returned to the top of the chart with their No. 1 hit “One Big Country Song,” earning them an additional CMT Award nomination. Lindsay Ell topped the country radio charts for the first time, received 2020 ACM and CCMA nominations and delivered a powerful concept album, heart theory, that earned universal praise and media attention and championed a voice for females as well as survivors of sexual violence. Hahr oversaw the campaign of Chase Rice’s launch as a Broken Bow artist resulting in his first career No. 1, massive streaming successes and expanded international presence.

Hahr can be reached at jojamie@bbrmusicgroup.com.

Chris Stapleton Tops Waffle House’s Tunie Awards Winners

Chris Stapleton. Photo: Becky Fluke

Chris Stapleton‘s “Tennessee Whiskey” won the award for the Most-Played Song at this year’s Tunie Awards Show. Stapleton accepted the award during the virtual music awards show that celebrated the top artists and songs played on Waffle House jukeboxes over the past year.

Tracks from Kane Brown, Justin Bieber, Eagles, Rihanna and more made the Top 10 Most-Played Songs, while Luke Combs won Top Country Artist, Zac Brown Band won Top Country Band, Lee Brice took home Top Songwriter, Brice and Carly Pearce‘s “I Hope You’re Happy Now” took Top Collaboration, MercyMe earned Top Christian Artist, and LoCash won Breakout Band of the Year.

See the full list of winners below:

LoCash: Breakout Band of the Year
Luke Combs: Top Country Artist (top country artist played in Waffle Houses this year)
Carly Pearce & Lee Brice: Top Collaboration
Zac Brown Band: Top Country Band
3 Doors Down: Top Alternative Rock Band
Kid Rock: Waffle House Tunie Legend Award
Ivey Asher: Scattered Smothered & Discovered
Mercy Me: Top Christian Artist
Shinedown: Top Cover Song
Lynyrd Skynyrd: Lifetime Achievement Award
Lauren Alaina: Top Country Vocalist
Lee Brice: Top Songwriter
Walker Hayes: 2020 Waffle House Song (it’s called “Waffle House Girl”)
Old Dominion: Associates’ Choice Award

The Waffle House Jukebox Top Ten Songs of 2020 are:

1. “Tennessee Whiskey” by Chris Stapleton
2. “Location” by Khalid
3. “Yummy” by Justin Bieber
4. “Can We Talk” by Tevin Campbell
5. “Can’t Feel My Face” by The Weeknd
6. “Sure Thing” by Miguel
7. “Heaven” by Kane Brown
8. “Hotel California” by Eagles
9. “Love on the Brain” by Rihanna
10. “Hold On, We’re Going Home (ft. Majid Jordan) by Drake

CMA Awards Leaders Sarah Trahern, Robert Deaton Discuss Navigating An Awards Show During COVID-19

Pictured: Sarah Trahern (Courtesy CMA), Robert Deaton (Photo: Jessica Lewis)

Last week’s 54th Annual CMA Awards, held at Nashville’s Music City Center, ushered in new winners in several categories, including Eric Church taking home his first Entertainer of the Year honor, and Maren Morris picking up her first Female Vocalist, Single and Song of the Year wins.

The evening also marked the first time country music’s artists had gathered all in one room for an awards show in 2020.

In addition to navigating an array of COVID-19 protocols to ensure the safety of attendees, the CMA’s team also prepared backup plans in case performers or presenters had to drop out of the show at the last minute—which did happen to a few artists and performers including Lee Brice, Florida Georgia Line’s Tyler Hubbard, Lady A, Rascal Flatts and Musician of the Year winner Jenee Fleenor.

The Country Music Association’s CEO Sarah Trahern and CMA Awards Executive Producer Robert Deaton discussed the planning that went into many of the awards show’s special moments, such as tributes to the late Charlie Daniels, Kenny Rogers, Joe Diffie and Mac Davis, and bringing artists together safely in one space.

MusicRow: The CMA Awards marked a milestone in terms of awards shows in 2020, as the nominees and performers were all in one room. When you first brought this idea to artists and their teams, what was the initial response, and what has feedback been like since the awards took place?

Robert: Here’s the thing, we never move forward with anything without the approval of our artists and management. In fact, as we were trying to figure out what we were doing months before we knew nominations I reached out to about 10 different managers who I figured may have nominated artists and posed the question, saying ‘If we can, and we don’t know if we can, but if we can have artists in the room, do you think we would get the support of the artists or would you rather not participate and keep it all separate?’ And every response was, ‘My artist would like to be in the room with the other artists and keep it as much of a regular CMA Awards show as we can. If we’re allowed to do that and we can have the protocols set and it can be safe.’ From the very beginning we included artists and managers in on that decision. All the responses I’ve gotten, even the night of the show, we were about 2.5. hours into the show and Eric Church pulled me aside and said ‘The greatest thing about tonight is that we’re all together, we’re celebrating music and I’m seeing people that I haven’t seen in such a long time.’ From my viewpoint, it’s what the artists wanted to do. I think they really enjoyed themselves and it was a healing thing for them.

Most of the performances were live. How did you decide which would be live and which would be pre-taped?

Sarah: Because of COVID restrictions, even though we had two performance stages in the room, we had to allow time between performances to totally clean stages between the live performances, so a lot of the scheduling had to do with the stacking of the performances and allowing appropriate distances between live acts.

Robert: In order to be safe and follow COVID protocols, we could not have every performance live. We had to have at least a minimum of 15 minutes between each stage to be able to clean and move people on and off in a safe manner. I put together the board, first, to get a great show run and a great flow from beginning to end, and out of that, that’s how we decided who would be live and who would be pre-taped.

What did it take behind the scenes, especially for the fuller-band performances such as those from Brothers Osborne or Jon Pardi, to pull that off?

Robert: Those performances weren’t any more difficult than say, the Thomas Rhett performance. The thing about it is, this year we had to really cut down on the number of live musicians. For example on Brothers Osborne, that’s a pre-recorded track, but vocals are live and so was John Osborne’s guitars. To be safe and follow protocols, we couldn’t have that many people onstage mic’ing instruments and so on. If you look at 22 or so performances, that’s a lot of musicians. We just did not have the bandwidth to go “live, live” like we normally do on most of our performances on a normal CMA Awards year. When you cut down the number of people onstage, the setup goes a whole lot quicker, so it really was not any more difficult than Darius and Reba’s performance with just the two of them onstage.

Charley Pride, Mickey Gilley and Johnny Lee were all in attendance, with Pride performing with Jimmie Allen. Were any special/additional precautions taken to make sure they took part in the show safely?

Robert: No, our protocols were in place for everybody. It was an extremely safe environment. The entire crew, everybody in Zone A, wore both masks and face shields. The precautions on a whole were so tight and safe, I don’t know what additional precautions could have been taken beyond what we did.

Sarah: I agree with Robert. We worked for months with the CDC and local health officials to make sure this was the safest environment possible and all protocol was strictly enforced across the board.

Several performers, including Lady A, Rascal Flatts and Jenee Fleenor, announced just before or during the broadcast that they were not taking part in the show due to COVID. What changes did that necessitate during the show?

Robert: There were no changes going into the show. The awakening moment for me was when Lee tested positive. We thought this could happen again, so we decided to overbook the show. Just overbook, so that in case someone fell out we were still okay and we could end on time. So we overbooked the show and I had an idea called “The CMA Flashback” taking one or two performances from the past and we showed things that were important to us. For example in 1983 at The 17th Annual CMA Awards we had Dolly and Kenny perform “Islands in the Stream.” We thought that could be a really fun moment to revisit that performance if on the day of show somebody called and said they can’t come for whatever reason. And so, we were just preparing ourselves. Luckily we didn’t have to use any of those backup plans.

This year’s show celebrated a few country greats that passed away earlier this year. Instead of featuring more obvious Charlie Daniels hits, songs like “Texas” and “Trudy” were included. And Darius and Reba honored Mac Davis with “In The Ghetto.” How did everyone decide on those particular songs to perform on the show?

Robert: I put together the Charlie Daniels tribute because I wanted to represent Charlie Daniels. I wanted it to feel like Charlie Daniels. When you do a tribute, you think of the song and then you think of the artist that it fits. So when I thought of “Long Haired Country Boy,” I thought of an acoustic guitar in the middle of the room with Dierks Bentley. When I heard “Trudy,” I thought it sounded like a Brothers Osborne song. And the same goes with Jason Aldean on “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” and Ashley McBryde on “Texas.” To me, it’s about honoring the artist and getting the right song with the right artist to perform that song. It’s interesting though that with “In the Ghetto,” I did not put that together. Reba had already cut that song, prior to Mac passing away, with Darius. So when that happened and Reba said she’d cut that song, it made obvious sense for them to do that. And again with Joe Diffie. Who doesn’t love “Pickup Man?” I thought, once again, I heard Jon Pardi. It just sounds like a Jon Pardi song. It’s a little bit of A&R., putting together the right song with the right artist. That’s how those songs are chosen.

Sarah: I think that’s truly one of Robert’s gifts. A few years ago he had Little Big Town do “Wichita Lineman” for Glen Campbell. These tributes aren’t meant to be an all-inclusive In Memoriam, which we’ve only done once on the show. One of Robert’s gifts is that he can think about the artists and knows the songs so well that he has a great ability to put the right artist with the song to make it pop.

We saw that this year’s ratings were down, just like most awards shows this year. How do you interpret those ratings?

Robert: The way I interpret is that everybody is down. In historic measures. These are unprecedented times and this has been an unprecedented year for most of us. We understood that we were going to be down. We can’t sit here and look at all of our friends who have shows and they’re down and expect that we wouldn’t be. I don’t know the exact reason why that is, but we all knew this was going to happen.

Sarah: Overall we expected to be down based on the trends in television today, but still strongly believe in the impact of live programming. And although the demo was lower, we were pleased with our total viewers number. We drew a significant audience, in today’s landscape, and were able to keep them throughout the show.

There were plenty of first wins in several categories—Entertainer, Female Vocalist, Song, Single. What do you feel this signals about the country music landscape as a whole?

Sarah: We felt like the nominees across the board were particularly strong this year and that’s one of the reasons we were so excited to be able to pull off a live show in front of other artists. Some of my favorite moments were the support people gave each other in the room when they won. Whether it’s the females leaning in to support Maren and her three wins, or Luke Combs jumping to his feet to celebrate Eric Church. It’s what I think is so special about our country music community and what the CMA Awards are all about. It was an exciting night for a new generation of country artists.

Dolly Parton To Receive Hitmaker Award At Billboard’s Women In Music Event

Billboard‘s annual Women In Music event is set for Dec. 10, and Dolly Parton is among this year’s honorees for outstanding women in the industry. Parton will receive the 2020 Women In Music Hitmaker Award, which recognizes a songwriter whose compositions have significantly impacted culture. The 15th annual event will be presented virtually this year due to the pandemic, and will stream live starting at 8 p.m. ET.

Jennifer Lopez will also be honored with this year’s prestigious Icon Award for her impact on the music industry and the greater artistic community. Dua Lipa is set to receive the Powerhouse Award, given to an act whose music dominated streaming, sales and radio this year, and Cardi B will receive the prestigious Woman of the Year award at this year’s event.

Brianna Agyemang and Jamila Thomas, the trailblazing minds behind the movement #TheShowMustBePaused, which launched following the death of George Floyd, will be honored with the 2020 Executive of the Year Award.

Music Knox Records/BBR Music Group’s Tim Montana To Release ‘Cars On Blocks’ EP Nov. 20

Music Knox Records/BBR Music Group’s Tim Montana announces his new EP, Cars on Blocks, will be released this Friday, Nov. 20. The project was produced by Michael Knox, known for his work with Jason Aldean. Montana co-wrote each song on the four-track project.

“There’s something about this project that just feels really good too. Not only because the music feels so ‘me’ but teaming up with Knox and having the label’s support, everything just feels elevated from what we’ve done before.” Montana says.

Track Listing:

1.   “Do It Fast”— Tim Montana, David Lee Murphy, Micah Wilshire
2.   “River Kids” — Tim Montana, Erik Dylan, Micah Wilshire
3.   “Stronger Than You” — Tim Montana, Brandon Kinney, Josh Thompson
4.   “Cars on Blocks”—Tim Montana, Jeremy Bussey, Monty Criswell, Derek George, Frank Rogers

Industry Ink: ASCAP, American Blonde, Fusion Touring

ASCAP Nashville Hosts Country Songwriters Workshop

Pictured (top row, L-R): Krissy Feniak, Hannah Sears, Theris Coats, Eitan Snyder, Deidre O’Grady; (2nd row, L-R)) Lauren Jaimes, Lauren Phillips, Matt McCartney, Devon Nicholas, Felipe Oliveira; (3rd row, L-R) Annie Defatta, Tom Martin, Meghan VK, Arielle Silver, Emma Jedow; (4th row, L-R) Angela Parrish, Sumiko Sprinkle, Lisa McEwan, Emma Murdoch, Johnny Vallone; (5th row, L-R) Hayley Giovanazzo, Scott Forman, Tawna Goforth, Aniyah Buchanan, Arielle Eden; (bottom row, L-R) Bonnie Baker, ASCAP’s Beth Brinker.

The ASCAP Nashville membership team hosted the annual ASCAP Foundation Country Songwriters Workshop in honor of Garth Brooks on Nov. 14, 2020, as part of an ongoing series designed to enhance the development and education of promising new songwriters.

The one-day virtual event was hosted by longtime ASCAP member, MTSU professor and veteran songwriter Bonnie Baker. Twenty-five songwriters were selected to participate in the event, which focused on the art and craft of songwriting, expanding sources of inspiration, building a network of co-writers, creating a healthy creative life, and a music publishing presentation by LP Creative Therapy founder, LeAnn Phelan.

“The virtual format combined with Bonnie’s thoughtful curriculum created the opportunity for twenty-five songwriters across the globe to meet, collaborate and expand their creative community. In a time when connecting feels more difficult than ever, we were able to bridge that gap and reimagine the entire workshop concept and it was a great success,” said Beth Brinker, ASCAP Associate Director of Membership.

 

Southern Halo Becomes American Blonde

American Blonde

Trio-turned-duo Southern Halo has now been renamed American Blonde. The sister duo, including Nata and Tinka Morris, recently released the video for their track “Somethin’ In The Water.”

 

Fusion Touring Signs Kolt Barber

Pictured (L-R): Mike Meade, Co-VP, Fusion Touring; Kolt Barber; Chuck Rhodes, Executive VP/GM, Fusion Touring; Amy Alyward, Co-VP, Fusion Touring – In Absentia

Fusion Touring, a division under the Fusion Entertainment Company (FUSENTCO) umbrella, has signed Kolt Barber (Barbed Wire Entertainment/Maverick Management) to its roster. The Fusion Touring team will represent Kolt Barber and all mutual endeavors, including The Kolt Barber American Cowboy Showdown™ and “Saddle To The Stage”™ television show, in the live entertainment, booking, and sponsorship sectors.