Devin Dawson To Join Dan + Shay On UK Leg Of Tour

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Atlantic Records/Warner Music Nashville’s Devin Dawson will be joining label-mates Dan + Shay on each of their January 2019 dates in the UK. Dawson began his first headlining tour, the Stray Off Course Tour, earlier this month and it will extend into February 2019.

Dawson also recently announced that the title track to his debut album, Dark Horse, is his next single set to impact radio Dec. 10.

“Stray Off Course” Tour Dates
Dec. 7: Texas Live! – Arlington, TX
Dec. 8: Texas Club – Baton Rouge, LA
Dec. 13: River Spirit Casino – Tulsa, OK
Dec. 14: Choctaw Casino – Durant, OK
Dec. 15: Gilley’s – Pocola, OK
Jan. 17: The Garage – Glasgow (sold out)*
Jan. 18: 02 Institute – Birmingham*
Jan. 19: 02 Ritz Manchester – Manchester (sold out)*
Jan. 22: SWX – Bristol*
Jan. 23: Cambridge Junction – Cambridge*
Jan. 24: 02 Shepherd’s Bush Empire – London*
Jan. 31: Bowery Ballroom – New York, NY
Feb. 1: Paradise Rock Club – Boston, MA
Feb. 2: Mohegan Sun – Uncasville, CT
Feb. 6: Brick Street Bar – Oxford, OH
Feb. 7: The Bluestone – Columbus, OH
Feb. 8: Joe’s on Weed Street – Chicago, IL
Feb. 9: The Rave II – Milwaukee, WI
Feb. 14: Terminal West – Atlanta, GA
Feb. 15: Saturn – Birmingham, AL
Feb. 16: Headliners Music Hall – Louisville, KY
Feb. 21: Blue Note – Columbia, MO
Feb. 22: The Vogue – Indianapolis, IN
Feb. 23: Thirsty Cowboy – Medina, OH
*UK Tour with Dan + Shay

Country Road Management/Digitally Sound Launch Record Label

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Pictured: Straight 8/Digitally Sound’s Lee Willard-Managing Partner, Country;
David Williams-President/CEO, and Norman Jacob-Label Product Manager; Country Road Management’s Jared Black-CEO, and Adam Black-VP. Photo: ProMO Image

Country Road Management (CRM), the company behind CountryRoadTV.com, (CRTV), and Digitally Sound (the recorded music division of Nashville’s Straight 8 Entertainment), have launched Country Road Records.

Digitally Sound will handle global distribution and retail marketing via their partnership with The Orchard. CRM will serve as the promotional arm of the label, using its CRTV network and media partnerships, including television partners “Small Town Big Deal” and Gabriel Communications (“Country’s Family Reunion” and “Larry’s Country Diner”).

Country Road Records, like its CRTV counter-part, will primarily focus on country music’s traditional realm (both vintage and new), including classic country music, bluegrass, and country gospel.  Many of label’s mastered recordings will be gleaned and compiled from Gabriel Communications’ vast 2200-song performance catalog spanning over 20 years.

Country Road Records will ‘street’ its first album, Country’s Family Reunion Presents: Home for Christmas, on Black Friday, Nov. 23. The collection features live-to-tape, one-of-a-kind performances of holiday classics and heartfelt originals as seen on the television series, Country’s Family Reunion. The album highlights legendary performances by the who’s who of country, bluegrass, and gospel, including Joey + Rory, Bill Anderson, Rhonda Vincent, The Isaacs, members of the Scott Family, Ricky Skaggs with Sharon & Cheryl White, T. Graham Brown, Mandy Barnett, Jimmy Fortune, and William Lee Golden and Duane Allen of The Oak Ridge Boys.

ole Signs Pianist/Composer Paul Cardall

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Pictured (L-R): Attorney Daniel Novick; ole Senior VP of Finance & Administration Chris Giansante; ole CEO Helen Murphy; Paul Cardall; Tina Cardall; ole VP of Creative John Ozier; ole’s VP of Corporate Affairs & Business Development Gilles Godard

Nashville-based pianist and composer Paul Cardall has signed an exclusive worldwide recording and publishing agreement with ole. Additionally, ole has acquired Cardall’s catalog, including master recordings from all 22 of Cardall’s previous albums, master recordings of 12 additional albums from Cardall’s label Stone Angel Music, as well as Cardall’s publishing and writer’s share on all compositions.

To date, Cardall has earned six consecutive No. 1 albums on the Billboard New Age Albums chart. On Nov. 2, his holiday album Christmas debuted atop the New Age Albums chart. The project includes 13 piano-based holiday classics such as “Silent Night” and “O Holy Night,” as well as vocal collaborations with artists including CeCe Winans. Cardall will perform at the National Christmas Tree Lighting in Washington, D.C. on Nov. 28.

“Even though Paul is a world class pianist, a gifted composer, and one of America’s most successful independent artists, Paul is also a brilliant business man who has surrounded himself with an incredible team to win. All of us at ole are proud and privileged to have the opportunity to work with Paul and take his incredible success story to the next level,” commented Gilles Godard, ole’s Vice President of Corporate Affairs and Business Development.

“Paul is a true musical virtuoso and we’re very pleased that ole is the new home for his incredible body of work, as well as for the works of other talented artists signed to his Stone Angel Music label,” added Helen Murphy, ole’s Chief Executive Officer.

“As an independent artist who has been blessed with a level of success, I had to learn strong principles and discipline inherent in my craft. Those same principles make up the core values of ole. It is in spirit of those principles, as well as a spirit of innovation, community, integrity, and a strong relationship with fans, that I join forces with ole to light the world with music. Whether we’re creating a ground breaking piano album, songwriting, producing or scoring films, my recordings and the existing Stone Angel Music catalogue, together with ole’s talented team of creatives, will continue to serve as a blessed resource for millions of people who use it as a tool to create an atmosphere of peace,” said Cardall.

Weekly Chart Report (11/21/18)

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Click here or above to access MusicRow’s weekly CountryBreakout Report.

David Lee Murphy Joins Kenny Chesney’s Upcoming Songs For The Saints Tour

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David Lee Murphy and Kenny Chesney

David Lee Murphy is joining buddy Kenny Chesney’s Songs for the Saints Tour in 2019, following a summer spent as the unannounced, walk-on guest at Chesney’s 19 major stadium concerts.

“There is only one David Lee Murphy,” says Chesney. “He is, as ‘Living In Fast Forward’ says, ‘a hillbilly rock star,’ and No Shoes Nation showed that every time he hit that stage! He has a thing about him that is old school country, rocking, laid back, fired up and chilled out… And he brings it every single night.”

Murphy topped the charts with “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright,” his No. 1 duet from the Chesney/Buddy Cannon/Murphy co-produced No Zip Code, but has also penned Chesney’s “Living In Fast Forward,” “Til It’s Gone,” “Just Not Today,” “Bar at the End of the World,” and the iconic “Pirate Flag,” in addition to Blake Shelton’s “The More I Drink,” Jason Aldean’s “Big Green Tractor,” Jake Owen’s “Anywhere With You” and Thompson Square’s “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not.”

“Everything’s Gonna Be Alright” also earned Chesney and Murphy a recent CMA Award, for Musical Event of the Year.

“Last year walking out onstage with Kenny was awesome,” Murphy says. “But it was over so fast. I’m excited to have a whole set to be able to play to those fans, because No Shoes Nation takes their music as seriously as any group of fans/music lovers I’ve ever seen. They opened their arms to me last year. And I can’t wait for this year.”

Jimmie Allen, Kane Brown Top Country Charts

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This week, Stoney Creek Records artist Jimmie Allen earns his first No. 1 song with his debut single, “Best Shot,” which sits atop the Billboard Country Airplay chart. The occasion marks the first time a black artist has launched their career with a debut No. 1 song on country radio. Allen also joins only Darius Rucker to climb to the top spot in country with a debut single.

“Best Shot” was penned by Allen, Josh London and JP Williams, “Best Shot” is the first single from Allen’s label debut project Mercury Lane.

“If someone asked me two years ago if I thought that this would be my life today—that I’d be on the red carpet at the CMAs or my song would be the No. 1 song on country radio, I would have honestly said no,” said Allen. “Did I think it would happen eventually? Absolutely! Just not this soon. I’m humbled and grateful— it’s such an honor to get my first No. 1 and to know that my song is connecting with people and resonating in a way that hopefully makes us all better people in the end, because that’s really what ‘Best Shot’ is all about.”

Meanwhile, RCA Nashville/Zone 4 artist Kane Brown tops both the Country Albums sales chart, as well as the overall Top 200 albums chart, with his sophomore album Experiment. The album moved 124K (104K album only) in its debut week, according to Nielsen Soundscan. Additionally, his latest single “Lose It” has topped the Hot Country Songs chart, knocking the Florida Georgia Line/Bebe Rexha smash “Meant To Be” from its 50-week run in the top slot.

The album marks only the third country album of 2018 to debut atop the Billboard 200 chart, following Carrie Underwood’s Cry Pretty and Jason Aldean’s Rearview Town. The top-shelf album debut follows several career sales milestones for Brown, including the quadruple Platinum single “What Ifs” (ft. Lauren Alaina), triple-Platinum “Heaven,” and a Platinum-certified debut album.

Randy Owen Inducted Into Alabama Business Hall Of Fame

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Culverhouse College of Business Dean Kay M. Palan formally inducts Randy Owen
into the Alabama Business Hall of Fame. Photo: JAMM Entertainment

Alabama‘s Randy Owen was inducted into the Alabama Business Hall of Fame last Thursday (Nov. 15) in Birmingham. Owen had the honor bestowed on him as a result of his business dealings in music, agriculture and humanitarianism.

“It’s a great honor to be one of this year’s inductees into the Alabama Business Hall of Fame,” says Owen. “It’s very special that my entire family got to share the night together. God bless all the fellow inductees, their families and our home state!”

Owen has been the lead vocalist of Alabama for nearly 50 years, but when he’s not writing songs or performing on the road, he operates his 3,000-acre ranch, Tennessee River Music, Inc., in Ft. Payne, AL, where he tends to 500 head of Hereford and Angus cattle.

Much of his time is spent helping others through his humanitarian efforts, such as launching Country Cares for St. Jude Kids, the annual radiothon fundraising event that has garnered more than $800 million for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. He received the Ellis Island Award for his charity work with St. Jude. Owen and Alabama have played a key role in several disaster relief initiatives as well, including organizing concerts to support rebuilding efforts from tornadoes that struck Tuscaloosa in 2011 and Jacksonville State University (his alma mater) in March of this year.

Founded in 1973 by the Board of Visitors of the Culverhouse College of Commerce at The University of Alabama, the Alabama Business Hall of Fame honors, preserves and perpetuates the names and outstanding accomplishments of business personalities who have brought lasting fame to the state of Alabama.

iHeartRadio, Waze Sync To Offer Directions And Streaming Simultaneously

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iHeartRadio has joined forces with Waze to offer both audio streaming and directions without ever having to leave the app. This new integration enables users to sync their Waze and iHeartRadio apps to access their favorite iHeartRadio features within Waze navigation or access Waze navigation inside iHeartRadio. With the new partnership listeners are able to pause, skip and add a song to their favorites without having to close the navigation screen.

Listeners can access iHeartRadio’s full range of radio stations, free playlists and library of leading podcasts all from within the Waze app, and if they prefer to keep the music up, can simply hit the “switch to audio app” button, and Waze will show their next turn in a banner at the top of the iHeartRadio app.

61st Annual Grammy Awards Final Nominees To Be Revealed Dec. 5

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The 61st Annual Grammy Awards final nominees will be announced on Dec. 5, beginning with the announcement of top categories on CBS This Morning starting at 8:30 a.m. ET. Approximately 15 minutes later, the Recording Academy will reveal the nominees in all 84 categories on grammy.com and via the Recording Academy’s social media platforms.

The 61st Annual Grammy Awards ceremony will be held on Feb. 10, 2019 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The ceremony will recognize the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, which ran from Oct. 1, 2017, to Sept. 30, 2018.

Monument Records Adds Two Staffers

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Pictured: Casey Thomas, Joel Beaver

Monument Records has announced two new hires as the label continues to expand its business, bringing Casey Thomas on as Publicist, and Joel Beaver on as Coordinator, Marketing. Both will report to Katie McCartney, SVP, Marketing & Label Operations.

Thomas is a Boston, Massachusetts native, and joins Monument from the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. As publicist, she will be responsible for the press operation, working on behalf of the label to help manage communications and press strategy for Monument artists.

Beaver, a recent Belmont University graduate, joins Monument full time after interning, then temping, for the label. In his role, he will be supporting the staff in all marketing efforts.

Formed under the leadership of Jason Owen and Shane McAnally, Monument Records re-launched as a joint venture with Sony Music Entertainment in 2017. The non-genre specific label is marketing focused with a core staff covering all digital, sales & streaming, creative, marketing, and press services partnering with Sony for radio promotion.

Flagship artist Walker Hayes delivered a platinum selling single “You Broke Up With Me” from his debut album boom. and Caitlyn Smith delivered the critically acclaimed debut album Starfire in Monument’s first year of operation. Currently Hayes has a new single at country radio, “90’s Country,” Smith is working on her second album, and new artists Anna Moon and Brandon Ratcliff are expected to release new music in 2019.