Videos From Gokey And Harp Get Exclusive Premieres

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harpThe music video for Warner artist Jessica Harp’s new single, “A Woman Needs” premiered exclusively on AOL’s The Boot yesterday (1/25). Directed by Kristin Barlowe, the video chronicles three girlfriends as they go through childhood, teen and adult years, and their tradition of marking a star symbol on their hands—first with stickers, then ink and lastly as a tattoo. Inspired by the video, Harp got a tattoo of three stars as a reminder of her first solo album, and the title track’s message about girls following their dreams.

“A Woman Needs” making-of-the-video webisodes are also on TheBoot.com. The webisodes run in correlation with a contest to win a weekend getaway to Nashville to meet Harp.

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danny gokey219 Recordings/RCA Nashville recording artist Danny Gokey found fame as a finalist on Season Eight of the FOX blockbuster, American Idol, and beginning today (1/26), AmericanIdol.com is offering a 48-hour exclusive premiere of his debut music video, “My Best Days Are Ahead of Me.” The single is the first track from Gokey’s Mark Bright-produced debut album, My Best Days, slated for release on March 2. Fans can pre-order it at dannygokey.com.

Platinum Party: Aldean Career Breaks Wide Open

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Aldean and Broken Bow's Benny Brown

Aldean and Broken Bow's Benny Brown

Dressed to celebrate Jason Aldean’s third album, Wide Open going platinum, we walked up the sultry Gulch sidewalk toward Sambuca where a boisterous and cosmopolitan crowd streamed into the red and black glow. Inside, Aldean was humbly shaking hands and sharing his quiet smile as video and flash cameras kept him in the spotlight.

Stilettos, designer jeans and gelled hair roamed the packed restaurant as the 80 or so industry folks who came to mingle sampled Sushi, cocktails, beer and wine.  The scene seemed like a blend between a New York City soiree with the beautiful faces and attention to style, and a good ole country bon fire!

Aldean with Isabel Ross

Aldean with Isabel Ross

Michael Knox, Jason’s producer introduced Tully Kennedy and Kurt Allison, members of Jason’s band. In high spirits, Knox jokingly, and with a charismatic smile, took credit for all the good things on the platinum album! Kennedy, who played bass on the album, begged to differ!

It was a pleasure to meet Aldean’s proud parents Barry and Debbie. Easy to see Jason got his handsome southern boy smile from his Mom and his rougher cowboy spirit from his Dad. In the corner of the room I spotted Aldean’s beautiful wife and new baby!

Jim Yerger, Broken Bow Records GM, called the cameras to attention on the stage and presented platinum album plaques to various people and businesses that played fundamental roles in the success of the album while Jason stood behind him nodding in agreement. Benny Brown, owner of Broken Bow Records, spoke highly of Aldean and his success.

Before ending the presentation, Aldean again gave thanks and slid off stage to give his baby and wife a hug and kiss! After snapping a quick photo with Jason, and bidding some friends goodbye, we walked to the car with none other than Craig Wiseman, Grammy award winning songwriter and one of our industry’s most prized talents.

Congratulations Jason!

Ty Williams’s “More” Offers Moving Message

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Pictured L to R: News Editor Sarah Skates, Publisher/CEO David Ross, Williams, RowFax Manager Michelle Ross and Chart Director Jon Freeman. Photo: Jon Walker, AristoWorks

Pictured (L- R): Back: Publisher/CEO David Ross, Williams, RowFax Manager Michelle Stephens; Front: News Editor Sarah Skates, and Chart Director Jon Freeman. Photo: Jon Walker, AristoWorks

The team at AristoWorks put together a slide show using images of the devastation in Haiti set to the song “More,” from Cherry Heart Records artist Ty Williams. The 24-year-old veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom wrote the song about the importance of giving to others.

Williams recently visited the MusicRow offices to meet the staff and perform an acoustic set.

The Virginia native’s debut single and video, “Barn On The Rooftop,” is out now on CMT Pure, and premiered on The Daily Buzz.

Williams’ EP is available on iTunes and his self-titled debut album is slated for release later this year.

On Tour: Jack Ingram; Hank Williams, Jr. and More

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Hank Williams Jr.

Hank Williams Jr.

Hank Williams, Jr.’s Rowdy Friends Tour 2010 includes special guests Jamey Johnson, Eric Church, and The Grascals. The tour will kick off April 2 in Charleston, WV with shows each weekend throughout April.

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Jack Ingram

Jack Ingram

Jack Ingram is releasing his new single, “Free,” from Big Dreams & High Hopes, today (1/25). Ingram also plans to kick off a one-man tour of listening rooms, reviving his Acoustic Motel Tour concept from years ago. The set will feature songs from his current album, as well as old favorites and songs from some of Ingram’s biggest influences.  The first date is Feb. 13 at Joe’s Bar in Chicago.

McGraw/Paltrow Movie Filming Free Concert

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Gwyneth Paltrow

Gwyneth Paltrow

The public is being invited to a concert that is being filmed for the new country music movie Love Don’t Let Me Down, starring Tim McGraw and Gwyneth Paltrow.

GAC’s Storme Warren will host the event on Tuesday, Feb. 2, at the Municipal Auditorium in Nashville. Extras should plan to stay from 4-11 PM. McGraw will welcome the crowd but will not perform.

The scene being filmed is the big comeback concert of Paltrow’s character, superstar “Kelly Canter.” Playing Kelly’s opening acts are Gossip Girl star Leighton Meester and Garrett Hedlund (Tron Legacy). The music being used is by Nashville tunesmiths. The Lost Trailers will also entertain fans with an acoustic set.

Admission is free and participants must be at least 18 years old. E-mail freefilmconcert@gmail.com to request tickets. Concertgoers are encouraged to new or slightly worn shoes for Soles4Soul’s Haitian relief efforts.

Parking details and more at information here.

Strait/Reba Tour Opens, Shows Selling Out

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caption captionOpening weekend on the Strait/Reba run at Baltimore’s 1st Mariner Arena. Pictured (l-r): WPOC/Baltimore APD/MD Justin Cole, Valory’s JoJamie Hahr, Valory’s Jon Loba, WGTY/York PD Scott Donato, WGTY/York on-air personality Dan Douglas, Reba, Valory’s John Zarling, Valory’s Scott Borchetta, Valory’s Andrew Kautz, WMZQ/Washington DC & WPOC/Baltimore PD Meg Stevens, WXCY/Wilmington PD Dave Hovel and Valory’s Kelly Rich.

The George Strait/ Reba co-headlining tour opened in Baltimore over the weekend with special guest Lee Ann Womack. At the show Womack joined Reba onstage for a duet of her 1993 smash “Does He Love You.” Comedian Melissa Peterman, who costarred with Reba on her namesake sitcom, also made a special appearance.

Tickets to the Feb. 20 tour stop in Tulsa, OK went on sale Saturday (1/23) and were gone in less than an hour, marking the first time in the history of the Bank of Oklahoma Center that over 18,000 tickets have been sold for one event. It will be Strait’s first appearance in the city in more than 13 years.

Reba is celebrating her No. 1 hit “Consider Me Gone” with a party for industry friends today (1/25), and will join fans for a live video chat immediately afterward at 7 PM/CT. In more Reba news, she has launched a new line of fine gifts at Dillard’s called Studs & Stitches.

Ticketmaster/Live Nation Merger To Get US Approval

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lnThe US Department of Justice plans to approve the merger of Ticketmaster and Live Nation. Regulators are demanding that the companies make a few concessions to ensure fair competition, including licensing its Ticketmaster Host ticketing software to concert promoter and venue manager Anschutz Entertainment Group, and divesting its self-ticketing subsidiary Paciolan to promoter and manager Comcast-Spectacor.

For the next decade, the new Live Nation Entertainment will be barred from taking retaliatory action against venues that choose to use another ticketing company.

The merger will create a “big three” in the touring world, made up of the new Live Nation Entertainment, AEG and Comcast-Spectacor.

Live Nation’s Michael Rapino will act as Pres./CEO, Irving Azoff will be Executive Chairman, and Barry Diller will serve as chairman. Former Live Nation shareholders will have a 49.99 percent in the new company, with former Ticketmaster shareholders holding a 50.01 percent stake.

The UK Competition Commission approved the merger on Dec. 22. UK clearance followed regulatory approval in Norway and Turkey. Canada is expected to follow suit.

Live Nation announced plans to buy Ticketmaster Entertainment for about $400 million in stock in February 2009. This news came not long after Live Nation launched its own ticketing service, and signed multimillion dollar 360 deals with superstars including Jay-Z and Madonna.

Opponents of the merger argued that Live Nation Ticketmaster would have a monopoly on the touring industry. They believed the combined company would have control over a large share of the ticketing market, many of the country’s major venues, and would have ties to numerous superstar artists.

Ticketmaster holds a majority stake in Front Line Management which, in turn, has partnerships with several top Nashville managers, including Dale Morris & Associates (Kenny Chesney), DS Management (Alison Krauss), and Spalding Entertainment (Brooks & Dunn, Jason Aldean).

Crook & Chase On WSIX; Paradiso Hires King

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ccNashville’s Big 98/WSIX-FM has added The Crook & Chase Countdown to the station’s lineup, starting yesterday (1/24). The Nashville-based program will air Sundays from 6 – 10 p.m. CT. Each week, Lorianne Crook and Charlie Chase count down the top 30 Country music songs and interview the genre’s superstars and rising artists. The show is nationally syndicated by Premiere Radio Networks, and can be heard on nearly 200 stations.

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Paradiso Music, LLC has added Steve King as Creative Director and Staff Producer. He will oversee production and artist development for the company founded in 1994 by John Pisciotta. During his twelve years in the Nashville music industry, King has held a variety of positions, working with unsigned independents to multi-platinum superstars. He has recorded and toured with Keith Urban, Jason Aldean, and Big Kenny among others. 
Paradiso Music is part of the Ripcord Entertainment parent company.

Chesney Sets Four Summer Shows In Vegas

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kenny chesneyKenny Chesney keeps adding to his summer schedule but, as promised, isn’t mounting a full-scale tour. He has just announced four dates at the Hard Rock Las Vegas, on May 14 and 15, and July 2 and 3. The performer will take over the hotel’s venue called the Joint, and says audiences in the 4000-seat room can expect a show in the style of his Keg In The Closet tours.

Chesney’s Keg In The Closet shows are usually held in college town bars, with he and his band promoting a party atmosphere driven by his hits, cover songs from U2, Steve Miller, Van Halen, Tom Petty, and more, in a 3-hour set.

“The beauty of the Joint is that not only is it a great rock and roll room, but they’ll let us get up there and play… and play… and play,” says Chesney. “We have so much fun, because we can throw in all kinds of stuff we don’t get to play in our regular show, and the audiences are diverse enough that no matter what we throw at them, they know the songs!”

The superstar is playing a few major outdoor festivals this summer, and is anticipating the April 21 release of Kenny Chesney: Summer in 3-D, the concert film which captures five of his stadium shows.

Chesney has played at the Joint before, when he was part of the grand opening in April 2009 along with Paul McCartney, Bon Jovi and the Killers.

Release Dates: Valentine’s Day, Buxton, Shelton and Lonestar

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vdayValentine’s Day will come a little before February 14 this year—February 9, to be precise. That’s when the soundtrack to the film, featuring new music from Taylor Swift and Jewel, will be released by Valory Music. The new Swift song, “Today Was A Fairytale,” jumped to No. 1 on iTunes, giving the singer her highest first-day sales to date. American television audiences will get to hear the song January 31, when Swift performs it during the CBS telecast of the Grammys. Jewel’s “Stay Here Forever” is the film’s lead single and just made its official debut on MusicRow’s CountryBreakout Chart at No. 67. Valentine’s Day the movie opens nationwide February 12.

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buxtonThe wait is almost over for Sarah Buxton’s self-titled debut album, which releases February 23 on Lyric Street. Buxton co-wrote ten of the album’s tracks, including the hit single “Outside My Window” and “Stupid Boy.” She also produced or co-produced four of the tracks, with help from Dann Huff, Craig Wiseman, Bob DiPiero and Blair Daly. Buxton was just recently added to the Shine All Night tour with Martina McBride and Trace Adkins, and she’ll be out on the road with them through May.

Sarah Buxton tracklist:
1. American Daughters; 2. Outside My Window; 3. Radio Love; 4. For Real; 5. Wings; 6. Love Like Heaven; 7. Space; 8. Innocence; 9. That Kind of Day; 10. Stupid Boy; 11. Big Blue Sky

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bsheltonBlake Shelton’s new album Hillbilly Bone is slated for a March 2 release. Produced by Scott Hendricks, the album—Blake’s sixth studio effort—will be packaged as a Six Pak that includes the hit title track with Trace Adkins and five other new tracks. The video for “Hillbilly Bone” is currently available at all digital outlets.

Hillbilly Bone tracklist:
1. Hillbilly Bone; 2. Kiss My Country Ass; 3. You’ll Always Be Beautiful
4. Can’t Afford To Love You; 5. Delilah; 6. Almost Alright

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lonestarLonestar will release Party Heard Around The World, the group’s first studio album in four years, April 27 on Saguaro Road Records. Tour dates and media appearances in support of the new album release will be announced soon. Lonestar consists of original members Dean Sams, Keech Rainwater, and Michael Britt, as well as lead vocalist Cody Collins who joined the group in 2007.