T.J. Martell Foundation will launch the first Nashville Is Nowville charity event on Sept. 7 at the Corporate Flight Management “hangar” in Smyrna, Tenn. The event, created to celebrate all things “Nashville,” will feature live performances by musicians Ryan Kinder and Joanna Smith, catering from local restaurants, as well as Nashvillian and Project Runway’s Amanda Valentine debuting her new fashion line.
CFM is located at 276 Doug Warpoole Road in Smyrna, Tenn.
Tickets and VIP tables are available now at tjmartellfoundation.org.

• • •

Live & interactive virtual concerts online venue StageIt has plans to open a Nashville office. The company, founded in Los Angeles, has hired 19-year-old Morgan Torp-Pedersen to lead the Artist Relations department.
Prior to joining StageIt, Torp-Pedersen worked with the JaneDear girls as a personal assistant and produced Nelly Joy‘s debut music video “Trampoline.” She also opened publishing company Dansk Acres Publishing and worked for AXS TV as a production assistant.
Torp-Pedersen is based in Nashville and can be reached at 615-766-7928 or at [email protected].

• • •

Capitol CMG Publishing‘s Jeremy Ash has been promoted to Director of Film/TV Music. He will transition out of his day-to-day role as Creative Director where he worked with songwriters including Ben Glover, Chris Stevens, Fred Wilhelm and Jeremy Bose, among others. Ash will work closely with the teams at Universal Music Publishing and Universal Music Enterprises as well as the Capitol CMG labels.
“Jeremy has excelled in film and TV placements over the past few years so this is a natural fit for him,” says Eddie DeGarmo, President of Capitol CMG Publishing.

The Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) and Country Music Television (CMT) have launched the 2013 NSAI Song Contest Presented by CMT. Submissions are being accepted through Oct. 31, 2013.
Prizes will be awarded to one Grand Prize Winner, one CMT Listeners’ Choice Award winner, one Lyric-Only winner, 10 Runners-Up, and 10 Honorable Mentions. The Grand Prize Winner, CMT Listeners’ Choice Award Winner, and Lyric-Only winner will all receive a full year of industry access, as well as national and regional media exposure. The Grand Prize Winner will also receive one-hour mentoring sessions with both singer/songwriter Brett James and singer/songwriter/actor and executive Paul Williams. Additional prizes include meetings with professional music publishers, an A&R meeting with one major record label, performance opportunities at the 2014 Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival and at The Bluebird Cafe, a three-day trip to Nashville, a one-year NSAI membership and more. All entrants will receive a personalized judging report.
Recent winners of the NSAI Song Contest Presented by CMT include Charlie Worsham (2006) and Andy Timmons (2011). Another recent Grand Prize winner, Bill Diluigi, won a mentoring session with Lionel Richie.
All submissions must be postmarked by Oct. 31 and the contest is open to all genres. Entries can be submitted via mail to NSAI (a printable entry form can be found at nsai.cmt.com) or online at sonicbids.com/NSAICMTSongContest. Entry fees are $35 per song for current NSAI members or $45 per song for non-NSAI members. There is no limit to the number of song entries an applicant can submit. For more information, visit nsai.cmt.com or nashvillesongwriters.com.

SESAC has promoted Justin Levenson to the position of Director, Licensing Operations. Levenson will be responsible for reviewing the productivity and efficiency of SESAC’s Licensing department utilizing systematic and measurable processes to ensure alignment with SESAC’s Organizational goals. Levenson, who has been with SESAC for over 12 years, previously served as Manager, Licensing Operations.
“Justin has proven himself to be a creative and valuable member of the Licensing department,” said Bill Lee, SESAC’s Senior Vice President, Licensing Operations. “There are many exciting new initiatives in the future and we are confident Justin’s contribution to SESAC’s continuing growth will be significant.”
Levenson is a Leadership Music alumnus and is on the Board of Directors for WO Smith Community Music School as well as a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame Troubadour Society Advisory Board and Strategic Outreach Committee Chair. He is a Library of Congress Board Member and is currently President of the Nashville Emerging Leader program (NEL).

ole has acquired the music publishing catalog of Nashville-based Better Angels Music Publishing Group. The catalog includes more than 2,000 unexploited songs, as well as more than 100 commercially-released songs, and several master recordings.
Notable copyrights acquired through the deal include several cuts from the debut album from Thompson Square, along with songs from artists Brad Paisley, Jason Aldean and Kip Moore, among others. Active songwriters moving to ole include Josh Thompson, Matthew Rogers and Brian Callihan.
Better Angels Music current General Manager, Gary Ray, will assist ole in integrating and further exploiting the catalog. Shellien Kinsey, who had previously held various positions at Better Angels, has joined ole as Office Coordinator at the company’s Nashville office.
“The purchase of Better Angels Music reiterates ole’s commitment to Music Row and Nashville’s songwriting community,” says ole GM, Nashville Creative, John Ozier. “Our Creative staff looks forward to adding value to both the catalog and the writers of Better Angels Music.”
“We’ve been speaking with ole for over a year and I couldn’t be more pleased that we’ve finally circled the wagons on a win/win deal for ole and Better Angels,” adds Better Angels CEO John McDonald. “I’m excited to be in business with such a successful and forward-thinking company.”