Richard Marx Catalogue Acquired By Chrysalis

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richard-marx-photoChrysalis Music Group USA has finalized an agreement to purchase the catalogue of renowned writer/artist Richard Marx. Among his most recent hits was the 2008 song “Everybody,” which was written with and performed by Keith Urban.

Marx has been an internationally known singer/songwriter/producer for over 20 years. In addition to selling over 30 million records as a recording artist, he has written and produced mega-hits for other artists as diverse as Barbra Streisand, Josh Groban, NSYNC, Natalie Cole, Kenny Rogers and Urban.

A pop radio staple from the late ’80s through the ’90s, Marx has written 37 Top 30 chart hits, including an impressive 13 No. 1s. Among those are his own hits as an artist, “Hold On to the Nights,” “Satisfied” and the classic “Right Here Waiting.” As he continues to tour throughout the world, Marx plans to release three new albums this year, including Duo, a collaboration with Vertical Horizon’s Matt Scannell.

ShortNotes: Rack-N-Roll, Joe Moscheo, and Edgar Bronfman Jr.

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The Rack-N-Roll team on the 10th hole at the 2009 Audio Masters Golf Tournament, serving margaritas and an audio blast from the 80s. Pictured (L-R): Tom Burns, Ashley Dennis, Ian Wolczyk, Rob Dennis and Holly Keim

The Rack-N-Roll team on the 10th hole at the 2009 Audio Masters Golf Tournament, serving margaritas and an audio blast from the 80s. Pictured (L-R): Tom Burns, Ashley Dennis, Ian Wolczyk, Rob Dennis and Holly Keim

The Rack-N-Roll Audio crew has been busy this summer. They have been on the road recording live performances ranging from arena shows like 3 Doors Down tourmates Theory of a Deadman to artists at Bonnaroo. Rentals have been hopping as well, with recent projects including Creed, Bob Rock/American Bang, and Matt Serletic/Gloriana. Rack-N-Roll’s studio, The Spank Factory, has recently hosted clients such as Mindy Smith, The Dirt Drifters and Mark McKinney who is signed to Rack’s label, Super Loud Music. McKinney, currently on his fifth consecutive Top 10 in Texas, will release his sophomore album, Middle America, in August.

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Joe Moscheo is retiring from MCS America on June 30 to pursue other interests/projects, and opportunities. In an email to MusicRow and others, he says, “I thank all of you for your loyalty to me over the years, and for your support, and to MCS for giving me this opportunity for the past 7 and 1/2 years. It has been a pleasure to serve you and to work with you.”

Janice Bane will continue to serve as General Manager of MCS, and she can be reached at (615) 250-4600 or [email protected].

Moscheo can be contacted at [email protected], (615) 513-2353 and www.joemoscheo.net
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In a recent interview with London’s Financial Times, Warner Music Group head Edgar Bronfman Jr. discusses his relocation from New York to London, and the ongoing possibility of a merger with EMI. Bronfman explains that the move is more about his family than his job, saying that he will split time between the two cities, and the presence in England should help his oversight of international business.

He also discusses the $1.1 bn in new bonds Warner received in May to repay bank debt coming due in 2011. The bond issue reignited speculation about a possible merger with EMI. When asked about that, Bronfman told the FT: “We’d like to achieve a happy medium where the bond market doesn’t feel we’re going to go crazy with acquisitions, which we certainly won’t, but the company has the flexibility to do acquisitions which are attractive for both equity and debt holders.”

Among other topics: Bronfman and his private equity backers have changed Warner’s business model fundamentally, but will continue refining it. On the digital front, he says WMG’s Atlantic label is the first in the US to generate more than half its revenues from online and mobile sources. Bronfman also points out that Warner is “more selective” about digital partners following its early willingness to work with numerous new companies which lead to many writedowns. He says WMG’s reduced A&R budget has led to “gained market share because we focused the A&R budget on the artists we believed in.” The music company’s 21% US market share last year was its highest in a decade.

Big Loud Extreme Partnership

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schottSongwriter Jenn Schott has signed with Big Loud Shirt. This is the company’s first signing under its partnership combining the Big Loud Shirt & Extreme Writer’s Group creative teams. “I’ve known and been a fan of Jenn Schott’s for years and we are thrilled to work with her. It was also great that Michael Martin of Extreme and Seth England at Shirt could come together to make this happen,” said Craig Wiseman, multiple award-winning songwriter and founder of Big Loud Shirt Industries.

Skyline Signs B&D Hitmaker Don Cook

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Pictured (L-R): Chip Voorhis, Paul Worley, Liz Morin, Wally Wilson. Seated: Don Cook. Photo: Katie Voorhis

Don Cook, writer and producer of numerous hits by Brooks & Dunn, has signed with Skyline Music Publishing. Among his credits are the B&D songs “Only In America,” “It’s Getting Better All The Time,” “Brand New Man,” “My Next Broken Heart,” “That Ain’t No Way To Go,” “You’re Gonna Miss Me When I’m Gone” and “She Used To Be Mine.” Since 1991 he has co-produced thirteen No. 1 hits by Brooks & Dunn, and served as producer on successful albums for The Mavericks, Olivia Newton-John, Shenandoah, Lonestar, Tracy Lawrence, Joe Diffie, and more.

He also wrote “Even The Man In The Moon Is Crying” and “Born To Love You” by Mark Collie, “What I Meant To Say” and “On A Good Night” by Wade Hayes, “Now I Know” by Lari White and “Small Town Girl” by Steve Wariner. In addition, Cook has had cuts by Conway Twitty, George Strait, Keith Whitley, Vince Gill, Alabama, Waylon Jennings and a host of others.

In 1994, Cook was named Senior Vice President at Sony/ATV Tree, and four years later was upped to Chief Creative Officer. He retired from the business side of publishing in 2004 to focus on his family and songwriting.

CMA Industry InSite Debuts Artist Management Segment

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cmaThis month’s installment of “CMA Industry InSite,” the online educational series for CMA members, is available starting today (6/15). The second episode on Artist Management can be found at www.My.CMAworld.com.

The series was developed by CMA’s Artist Relations Committee, chaired by Kix Brooks of Brooks & Dunn, to lay a foundation for how the various business interests within the industry function. Brooks appears in the Artist Management episode along with Kerry Hanson, President, Big Enterprises; Clint Higham, Executive Vice President, Morris Management Group; Ken Levitan, President, Vector Management; and Clarence Spalding, President, Spalding Entertainment.

Future episodes will be on topics such as Record Labels, Radio, Social Networking, Entertainment Law, and Touring. Each subsequent episode will be posted on the third Monday of the month (an exception this month for CMA Music Festival). CMA members will also be able to submit questions to the panel of experts interviewed for each episode.

“We are getting a lot of positive feedback for the series,” said CMA Chief Executive Officer Tammy Genovese. “We are hearing from our members that this is a very valuable industry awareness tool and something they are encouraging their employees and business associates to watch.”

Each segment is 8-10 minutes long and is produced by digital marketing firm Hi-Fi Fusion.

Evergreen: Barker Leaves, Drops ICG Moniker

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john-barker-08John Barker resigned his position as President of Integrated Copyright Group (ICG) and Vice President of Evergreen Copyright Administration on Monday.

Following that, today Evergreen co-CEOs David Schulhof and Richard Perna announced that ICG has formally changed its company name to EverGreen Copyrights. All ICG remaining staff will continue as employees of EverGreen.

ICG, the Nashville-based global independent administration company now in its nineteenth year, was built by Barker and purchased by Evergreen more than three years ago. During this time he says, “many positive changes have occurred, including adding a number of very talented and experienced personnel. This progression has brought us to the point where I can now step away and know that the company will continue to provide the excellent services it always has.”

Barker will remain a stock holder in Evergreen Copyrights, and will stay on as a consultant for them for at least 12 months. His old email addresses should also continue to work.

S1 Songs Makes Significant Acquisition

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(L-R): Jody Williams, BMI; Brett Beavers; Don Rollins; Chip Petree, Attorney/Copyright Exchange; Pat Finch, Sr. VP/GM S1 Songs Nashville; Shaye Smith; Abbe Nameche, VP Creative, S1 Songs Nashville

(L-R): Jody Williams, BMI; Brett Beavers; Don Rollins; Chip Petree, Attorney/Copyright Exchange; Pat Finch, Sr. VP/GM S1 Songs Nashville; Shaye Smith; Abbe Nameche, VP Creative, S1 Songs Nashville

S1 Songs has acquired the song catalogs, plus future works, of Brett Beavers, Shaye Smith and Don Rollins, and also purchased an interest in the smash hit singles “Whiskey Lullaby” recorded by Brad Paisley and “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere” recorded by Alan Jackson. The Nashville office of S1 is headed by Sr. VP/GM Pat Finch. Global CEO of S1 Songs, Steve McMellon says the publisher plans to continue acquiring “good quality Nashville copyrights.”

As a producer/writer, Beavers has garnered multiple hit singles for Dierks Bentley, including “What Was I Thinkin’,” “Lot Of Leavin’ Left To Do,” “Come A Little Closer,” “Every Mile A Memory,” and “Feel That Fire” in addition to producing Bentley’s first five Capitol albums. Beavers has also written singles for Lee Ann Womack, Brooks & Dunn, Eric Church and more.

Shaye Smith is a Grammy nominated songwriter with several No. 1 hits in the U.S. and overseas. Her hits include “Songs About Me” (Trace Adkins), “That’s Why I’m Here” (Kenny Chesney), “How Far” (Martina McBride), “There Is No Arizona” and “Somebody’s Hero” (Jamie O’Neal), “One Boy, One Girl” (Collin Raye), “Single White Female” (Chely Wright), “Complicated” (Carolyn Dawn Johnson) and “I Should Be Sleeping” (Emerson Drive). Her songs have appeared on more than 25 million albums sold.

In 2003 Don Rollins wrote “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere” with frequent collaborator Jim “Moose” Brown. The song went on to be a multi-week No. 1 for Alan Jackson and Jimmy Buffett and win the Grammy Award for Best Country Song. In 2006, Rollins scored two cuts on Reba’s Platinum Duets album. Other artists who have recorded his songs include Neal McCoy, Randy Travis, Ronnie Millsap, and Ricky Skaggs.

Big Loud Party

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Big Loud Staff (L-R): Kele Currier, Mark Ahlberg, Craig Wiseman, Matt Hilton, Heather Buresh, Marc Driskill, Kimberly Gleason, Amy Allmand, Seth England

Big Loud Staff (L-R): Kele Currier, Mark Ahlberg, Craig Wiseman, Matt Hilton, Heather Buresh, Marc Driskill, Kimberly Gleason, Amy Allmand, Seth England

On May 28 the staff of Big Loud Shirt Industries hosted their annual carnival-themed “parking lot” party. Complete with hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy and ring pops, most people flocked to the balloon-hat makers for their own unique party favor. More than 300 Music Row friends showed up to party with celebrated songwriter and Big Loud Shirt founder Craig Wiseman.

“SO many people thanked me for doing this because the Row needs it,” he told Music Row. “I agree and I think it makes us great citizens of our little world to go to this trouble and reach out to friends and have a balloon-hat and brewski. It’s the little things…..”

(L-R): Georgia Middleman, Gary Burr, Craig Wiseman, Bobby Pinson, Anthony Martin

(L-R): Georgia Middleman, Gary Burr, Craig Wiseman, Bobby Pinson, Anthony Martin

(L-R): Bonnie Baker, Chris Tompkins, Hayes Tompkins, Jessica Tompkins, Deanna Bryant

(L-R): Bonnie Baker, Chris Tompkins, Hayes Tompkins, Jessica Tompkins, Deanna Bryant

Martina Poster, Matchless Debuts, Mullins Video, Lyric Advances

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Photo: Fred Pierson

As CMA Music Festival draws near, workers install the final components of the GAC wrap on the Sommet Center’s glass tower. A 50 foot tall Martina McBride will welcome fans to next week’s event.

Shawn Pennington, formerly of Dale Morris & Associates, has launched his own artist management and consulting company called Matchless Management. Details, including the client roster, are pending. The Pittsburgh, PA native spent close to 10 years with Morris, working closely with such artists as John Rich, Big & Rich, Randy Owen, and Cowboy Troy. He can be reached at [email protected] or (615) 491-8285.

mullinMegan Mullins’ new video “Long Past Gone” has been added to GAC, CMT and CMT Pure. The shoot took place on California’s Pacific Coast and was created by Feewill Films in association with Picture Vision Pictures. Directed by Curt Apanovich, produced by William Shockley, David Bennett and executive produced by John Small of Picture Visions, the clip was filmed with the RED camera. Mullins is on Stoney Creek Records, a Broken Bow Records imprint.

LYRIC Financial announces it has begun funding advances for writers and publishers who have agreements with major publishers UMG, Warner Chappell, EMI and Sony. The company is now working with mechanical royalty revenue streams in addition to performance royalties. Lyric founder Eli Ball stated, “While mechanical royalties are not as strong as they once were, they are still a significant source of income to many writers and publishers. We have worked diligently to create the same simple, safe and transparent process as we have for performance royalty advances.” www.lyricfinancial.com

Big Tractor Re-Signs Wade Kirby

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Big Tractor Music has announced the re-signing of hit songwriter Wade Kirby. First signed to the company in 2004, Kirby worked with Big Tractor for three years before shifting to another  publisher, only to return after 8 months. His latest chart-topper is George Strait‘s No. 1 single, “I Saw God Today,” which garnered Grammy, ACM and CMA nominations. Kirby also co-wrote Joe Nichols‘ current single, “Believers.” He started his career as a road musician with acts including Ray Price and Earl Thomas Conley. Kirby’s songs have been recorded by George Strait, Gretchen Wilson, Darius Rucker, Kenny Rogers, Jeff Bates, Chris Cagle, Erika Jo, Emerson Drive, Rodney Atkins, George Canyon, Rhett Akins, Jace Everett, Faith Hill, John Michael Montgomery, Pam Tillis, Neal McCoy, Brad Johner, Billy Currington, Craig Morgan and Jason Aldean.

“I couldn’t be happier to have Wade Kirby staying on board at Big Tractor,” says General Manager Jason Krupek. “Having a hard-working hit songwriter like Wade at the company assures Big Tractor an exciting opportunity for future growth and success.”

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(l-r) Big Tractor GM Jason Krupek; Wade Kirby; and Big Tractor Creative Director Cynthia Anderson