Mike Molinar, Alex Heddle Upped At Big Machine Music

Pictured: Mike Molinar (L), Alex Heddle (R)

Big Machine Music has promoted Mike Molinar to General Manager and Alex Heddle to Vice President, Publishing. Molinar and Heddle will continue to sign and develop the independent music publisher’s array of hitmakers such as Jonathan Singleton, Brett Young, Josh Thompson, Laura Veltz and Jessie Jo Dillon, among others.

Since BMM’s inception nearly six years ago, Molinar has lead the charge on over 500 song placements, 13 No. 1 hits and 20 Top 10 singles, while nine BMM songwriters achieved their first career No. 1 or Top 5 hit. A graduate of Leadership Music Class of 2015, Molinar was named a member of the 2012-2013 MTSU Class of Distinguished Alumni and currently serves as a member of the Independent Publishers Advocacy Committee as well as the Country Music Hall of Fame Education Council.

Big Machine Label Group President/CEO Scott Borchetta commented, “Mike Molinar is a publisher’s publisher. He knows talent, he knows the streets and he knows and helps create the biggest opportunities for our writers and publishing staff. He’s always been the perfect executive to lead Big Machine Music and his track record speaks for itself. Richly deserved!”

“I’m grateful to Scott Borchetta, Andrew Kautz and Malcolm Mimms for their continued faith in me to lead this team,” said Molinar. “The cultural impact of our hits is a testament to the work of our incredibly dedicated BMM staff, talented songwriters, publishing partners and colleagues at BMLG’s A&R and Rights Management teams. This is just the beginning and I look forward to continuing our growth.”

Joining BMM in 2013, Heddle has been vital in the signing and daily development of hit songwriters Maddie & Tae, Josh Thompson, Jessie Jo Dillon, Trent Harmon and Benjy Davis. Heddle currently serves as a Music Row Ambassador for St. Jude Children’s Hospital and a member of the AIMP Nashville Awards committee.

“Alex has been crucial to the success and exponential growth of Big Machine Music,” states Molinar. “His tireless efforts and strong hit song sense have helped him become one of the most trusted publishers among our artist and A&R community. I’m incredibly proud and grateful to have him on our team!”

Heddle commented, “The level of talent on BMM’s songwriter roster is truly humbling. It is an honor to represent their songs and careers on a daily basis. I am grateful to Scott Borchetta and Mike Molinar for their continued support and am excited to continue the high trajectory of this team.”

Molinar can be reached at mike.molinar@bmlg.net and 615- 324-9321. Heddle can be reached at alex.heddle@bmlg.net and 615-324-9320.

Curb Consolidates Curb Music Publishing, Word Music Publishing, And Wordcountry

Janine Appleton Ebach

Mike Curb has announced the formation of Curb | Word Music Publishing. This entity will combine the music publishing enterprises Curb Music Publishing, Word Music Publishing and Wordcountry into one powerhouse company.

Janine Appleton Ebach, who is currently the Head of Wordcounty, will be elevated to the position of Vice President of Curb | Word Music Publishing. She will report to Josh Bailey, SVP A&R & Publishing for Curb | Word Entertainment and Jim Ed Norman, CEO, Recorded Music and Publishing for Curb | Word Entertainment.

“We are very fortunate to have Janine leading this team. She’s achieved tremendous success with Wordcountry and I’m confident that success will continue on as we further unite the Curb and Word teams,” comments Mike Curb, Chairman of Curb | Word Entertainment.

“The success of Wordcountry speaks directly to Janine’s remarkable leadership ability. Her keen creative sense and her strong artist relations skills make her a perfect fit for Curb | Word combined venture. The same creative spirit that led to her phenomenal success with Wordcountry will no doubt inform her new role with Curb | Word Music Publishing,” comments Jim Ed Norman.

A native of Missouri, Appleton joined Word Music Publishing in 2013, after spending 7+ years at THIS Music Publishing as Creative Director. In September of 2017, she was instrumental in the creation of Word’s extraordinarily successful Country division, Wordcountry.

Since its inception and under Appleton’s direction, Wordcountry has had cuts in multiple genres, along with three No. 1 Country Singles, most recently the Gold-certified song “Singles You Up” (Jordan Davis); Platinum-certified “Sleep Without You” (Brett Young) and “Heartache On The Dance Floor” (John Pardi).

Wordcountry also has current singles on the charts by Trent Harmon & Danielle Bradbery and several others due in the coming months.

“I’m extremely humbled and excited to expand my current role from Head of Wordcountry to VP of Curb | Word Music Publishing. I’m honored to lead and combine these great publishing companies into one joint force. There are many talented writers and artists on both rosters that I will now have the privilege to represent, and I look forward to celebrating many successes as a unit in this new season for Curb | Word Publishing,” comments Appleton.

Reporting to Appleton will be Colt Murski, Senior Creative Director and Nina Jenkins, Creative Manager.

Appleton earned a Music Business degree from the Mike Curb College of Entertainment & Music Business at Belmont University. She is a current nominee for the 2018 AIMP ‘Song Champion of the Year’ and is an active member of the W.O. Smith School Board.

busbee Signs Global Deal With Warner/Chappell Music

Pictured (Front row, L-R): Ben Vaughn (WC), busbee, T.D. Ruth (Keller Turner Ruth Andrews & Ghanem). (Back row, L-R): all WC – Steve Butler, Travis Carter, Alicia Pruitt, Jessi Vaughn, Alison Junker, Will Overton, Katie Jelen (synch), BJ Hill, Ryan Beuschel

busbee has signed a worldwide publishing agreement with Warner/Chappell Music. The writer and producer known for his genre-bending talents has collaborated with a broad range of artists, including Shakira, Usher, Lady Antebellum, Jon Bellion, Blake Shelton, Timbaland, 5 Seconds of Summer, Keith Urban, and Jason Aldean, among others. He was previously signed to BMG.

“busbee is a visionary whose experimental approach to songwriting will fit in perfectly at Warner/Chappell, ” said Jon Platt, CEO of Warner/Chappell Music. “With the support of Katy Wolaver, Ben Vaughn, and our entire global team I’m confident that he will push boundaries and deliver global hits across a mix of genres.”

In 2017, busbee received a BMI Song of the Year award for co-writing Florida Georgia Line’s No. 1 hit, “H.O.L.Y.” He also co-produced Grammy-winning artist Maren Morris’ breakthrough album, Hero, and co-wrote her first two hit singles, “My Church” and “80s Mercedes.” busbee also co-wrote Carrie Underwood’s “The Fighter” with Keith Urban which he won an ACM Award for last month, and produced Lady Antebellum’s 2017 Grammy-nominated album, Heart Break, co-writing six songs, including the hit single, “You Look Good.” Additionally, busbee produced and contributed to songs on the breakout albums from emerging country stars Lauren Alaina (Road Less Traveled) and Carly Pearce (Every Little Thing), having written Pearce’s breakout single of the same name, which made her the only female to debut at No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart in 2017.

He also co-wrote and co-produced Rachel Platten’s “Collide”; co-wrote and produced P!nk’s “Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken” and co-produced Gwen Stefani’s recent holiday album, You Make It Feel Like Christmas, co-writing all six of the original songs. Other notable busbee hits include “Try” by P!nk, “Dark Side” by Kelly Clarkson, and numerous other top ten singles. His recent collaborations include Jon Bellion, Justin Tranter, James Arthur, Lady Antebellum, Missio, and Maren Morris for her forthcoming project.

“Warner/Chappell feels like home. From my early meetings with the creative teams in L.A. and Nashville to my interactions with executives at every level, I can confidently say it is not only the best fit for me as a creative but it’s also the best place to grow my business,” said busbee. Adding, “They have the reach, wisdom and integrity to elevate careers within all viable markets – it’s no surprise they continue to be the premier publisher in the world, year after year. I’m honored to be partnering with Warner/Chappell.”

BMG Earns 20 U.S. No. 1 Singles In A Single Week

BMG has notched 20 No. 1 positions this week on U.S. music charts published by Billboard. The chart-toppers were split nearly 50/50 with nine No. 1s for records released by BMG, and 11 No. 1 No. 1s penned by BMG-published writers.

A Perfect Circle’s album Eat The Elephant (released by BMG) tops the Rock Albums, Alternative Albums, Tastemakers, Independent Albums and Vinyl Albums charts.

“The Middle,” by Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey, and co-written by BMG-published The Monsters & Strangerz, leads the Mainstream Top 40, Adult Top 40, Hot Dance/Electronic Songs, Dance/Electronic Streaming Songs and the Dance/Mix Show Airplay charts.

“Meant To Be” earns three No. 1s. The song, co-written by BMG-published Bebe Rexha and recorded by Rexha and Florida Georgia Line, leads Radio Songs, Hot Country Songs and the Country Streaming Songs charts.

Jason Aldean leads Top Country Albums with Rearview Town and Country Airplay with “You Make It Easy,” both of which are released by BMG. Lil Dicky ft. Chris Brown, whose “Freaky Friday” released by BMG is No. 1 on the Hot R&B Songs and R&B Streaming Songs charts, while “Despacito,” by Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee ft. Justin Bieber, co-written by BMG-published Poo Bear, is atop the Latin Digital Songs Sales chart, and the Latin Streaming Songs chart. Finally, “Finesse” by Bruno Mars and Cardi B, co-written by BMG-published Bruno Mars, is No. 1 on the Adult R&B chart.

BMG US President Repertoire & Marketing Zach Katz said, “This is first and foremost the achievement of seven of our clients. We congratulate all of them. But in a week in which we celebrate having two albums in the Top 5 of the Billboard 200 for the first time – from A Perfect Circle and Jason Aldean – it’s an incredible demonstration of BMG’s ability to succeed in a wide range of genres and in both music publishing and recordings. No one else can do that.”

Russell Dickerson Shares “Yours” No. 1 With Co-Writers Casey Brown, Parker Welling

SESAC songwriter Casey Brown, BMI songwriter Russell Dickerson, BMI songwriter Parker Welling. Photo: Steve Lowry

“I was trying to be somebody else—Keith Urban or whoever else was cool—and the songs just weren’t working,” confessed Russell Dickerson of “Yours,” the song he wrote over four years ago with his Belmont University alumni. “You all know me because we’re family, and they didn’t let me write songs that weren’t me. It just clicked because you understand my artistry and believe in me…And it wasn’t until we wrote this song that anyone started to listen. I knew we had a No. 1 song from the bottom of my heart, and I wasn’t going to give up till this song went No. 1.”

The Triple Tigers recording artist’s success was a rarity, in that it was the first No. 1 for the label, first No. 1 for the artist, and first country No. 1 for each writer—Dickerson, Casey Brown and Parker Welling.

BMI’s Leslie Roberts presided over the No. 1 party, which was held at the offices of Nashville App developer Aloompa. Roberts presented her writers —Dickerson and Welling— with BMI No. 1 Taylor guitars.

SESAC’s ET Brown, also a Belmont graduate, was thrilled to congratulate his writer, on behalf of the PRO’s event sponsor Bose.

Welling teased her publisher Jeffrey Steele and Darrell Brown.

“I’m the lone female on a guy’s record,” said Welling. “Before this write four years ago, I prayed we would write something that changed the sound of country music. We wrote this love song about our spouses four years ago when country radio was a bunch of hookup songs.”

Brown was recognized by current BMG Nashville head Kos Weaver as the reason the publishing company signed Dickerson. Weaver brought up additional reps, including label GM Norbert Nix (David Macias could not attend) and Triple 8’s George Couri, Bruce Kalmick, in addition to manager John Dennis.

“Having suffered through the downturn in the music business, the digital revolution has brought more people from around the world to consume more music than they ever have,” noted Weaver. “So it’s great having a record company opening it’s doors and starting with a great artist. This song streamed at an amazing amount thanks to the effort from you and John Dennis.”

Pictured (L-R): Triple Tigers Records’ Bruce Kalmick, Dennis Entertainment’s John Dennis, Essential Music’s Terry Hemmings, SESAC’s ET Brown, Essential Music’s Holly Zabka, 3 Ring Circus’ Jeffrey Steele, BMI’s Leslie Roberts, 3 Ring Circus’ Darrell Franklin, Triple Tiger Records’ George Couri, Triple Tiger Records’ Norbert Nix and BMG’s Kos Weaver. Photo: Steve Lowry

Nix and Dickerson personally thanked John Marks, who began his support for Dickerson while at SiriusXM before moving to Spotify, where the song has streamed 95 million times.

“Russell put an EP together and was on the road for six years, slugging it out with John Dennis and agency CAA,” said Nix. “We started hearing these venues were selling out and we couldn’t figure it out. Then country radio jumped on it—this couldn’t have happened without radio.”

“John Dennis found me, I guess through CAA, because I signed with them in 2010,” said Dickerson. “We had nothing when Darrell [Franklin] signed me, not even this song. Thank you for trusting us to come up with something and taking a chance. Almost four years to the day we wrote this song, and it went No. 1. I want y’all to know we fought for this one song for four years from the day we wrote it, we listened to it 300 times that day and didn’t stop.”

Casey Brown, who also produced the track, was honored by his first publisher, Holly Zabka of Essential Music Publishing.

“I’m relly happy I asked you to write that one time,” confessed Brown to Dickerson. “I am never the guy to ask people to write. That’s the first time, and I’ll probably stop while I’m ahead.

“Parker, you’re at my house most days of the week. I’m really thankful this happened with friends. We hung out with each other before we were working together in any professional capacity.”

MusicRow‘s Sherod Robertson offered No. 1 Challenge Coins for the No. 1 success of “Yours” on the MusicRow CountryBreakout Chart. BMI’s financial partner for No. 1 parties is Pinnacle Bank, from which David Smith spoke. Brooke Sanders with CRB noted the song has recieved 297,000 spins, reaching a total audience of 1.39 billion through the airwaves. Country Aircheck‘s Lon Helton also spoke.

Industry Ink: SB21 Music Publishing, Gary Morris, Roy Orbison

SB21 Music Publishing Celebrates First Multi-Week, Chart-Topping Song

SB21 Music Publishing is celebrating their first multi-week No. 1 song with Luke Bryan’s “Most People Are Good” written by SB21 writer David Fraiser. The song claimed the No. 1 spot on March 31 where it remained for three weeks and was recently performed on the ACM awards on April 15, 2018. The single, co-written by songwriting vets Josh Kear and Ed Hill, is off Luke Bryan’s current album What Makes You Country.

Founded by industry vet Steve Pasch and partners Eric Hart and Teresa Smith Ammon in 2011, SB21 Music Publishing is already looking to make 2018 a banner year with high profile cuts by SB21 writers include Steve Pasch, Brian White and Frasier. In addition to “Most People Are Good,” the company is enjoying success with cuts by Broken Bow recording artist Jason Aldean and Universal recording artist Jordan Davis. The songwriting team has already accumulated cuts by Rascal Flatts, Dustin Lynch, Joe Nichols, The Swon Brothers, Gretchen Wilson as well as Canadian stars, Tim Hicks, Jess Moskoluke, Chad Brownlee and many pop and Christian artists.

Gary Morris Helps Meals On Wheels Program With Bluebird Cafe Show

Gary Morris and some friends are helping raise funds for the Meals On Wheels Program in the Mid-Cumberland region with a special show on May 16 at the Bluebird Cafe.

Tickets for the show are $20 and go on sale May 9 at bluebirdcafe.com. Last year, Meals On Wheels provided 314,334 meals to seniors in the area.

 

Roy Orbison’s A Love So Beautiful Earns UK Gold

Pictured (L-R): Alex Orbison, son of Roy Orbison and President of Orbison Music; Joe Bennett, JBPR National Radio Promotions; Daniel Hinchcliffe, Managing Director, The Soundcheck Group; Orbison Music COO Chuck Fleckenstein; Olivia Walker, Head Of Marketing, Commercial Group, Sony Music UK; Nicola Tuer, COO, Sony Music UK; Phil Savill, Managing Director, Commercial Group, Sony Music UK and album producers Don Reedman and Nick Patrick. Photo: Chris Lopez

A Love So Beautiful: Roy Orbison with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, released globally by Roy’s Boys through Sony Music’s Legacy Recordings, has achieved Gold certification in the UK.  To qualify for Gold status there, an album must sell in excess of 100,000 units.  In the case of A Love So Beautiful, that plateau has been achieved more than twice over with a platinum award (sales over 300,000) expected later this year. Upon its release, the album debuted at No. 2 on the national album chart.

The Gold Award comes on the heels of the In Dreams: Roy Orbison In Concert  that played sixteen sold out dates in Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands and Ireland. The tour, produced globally by BASE Hologram, a BASE Entertainment Company, is the first of-its-kind holographic concert performance, including on-stage accompaniment by The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra for the legendary icon recreated through mind-blowing holographic laser imaging. 

NSAI Voting Open For ‘Song Of The Year’ And The 10 ‘Songs I Wish I’d Written’ Awards

Voting begins today (Monday, April 30) for the Nashville Songwriters Association International’s 10 “Song I Wish I’d Written” awards. The 130-song ballot is comprised of Nashville-associated songs that charted in Billboard Airplay Top 20 on the Christian, Country, Pop and Rock charts. Ballot-eligible singles must have charted between July 1, 2017, and April 30, 2018, and not have been awarded the previous year. The song that receives the highest number of votes will be NSAI’s 51st Song of the Year.

NSAI will recognize the 10 ‘Songs I Wish I’d Written’ awards, NSAI Song of the Year, Songwriter of the Year and Songwriter-Artist of the Year at the Nashville Songwriter Awards on Sept. 19, 2018, at the Ryman Auditorium.

Voting is open to current Professional Songwriter Members of NSAI and will run from Monday, April 30-May 13. To join, renew, or check on the status of a membership, contact Lindsay Gum at lindsay@nashvillesongwriters.com.

Alex Torrez Exits Play It Again Music

Alex Torrez

Alex Torrez has exited his role as General Manager and VP, A&R at Play It Again Music Publishing. Going forward, Torrez will work with Warner Music Nashville’s Trea Landon and TMG/Thirty Tigers’ Shotgun Rider.

“This is something I’ve been building on for a while, and it will be exciting to see what the future brings,” Torrez says.

The news follows Play It Again’s recent appointment of Juli Newton Griffith to the role of President for Play It Again.

Torrez can be reached at alextorrezmusic@gmail.com.

Music Modernization Act Passes U.S. House With Unanimous Vote

Rep. Doug Collins, R-GA

The Music Modernization Act, (MMA) H.R. 5447, was adopted today (April 25) by a unanimous vote (415-0) by the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill now moves to the U.S. Senate, where a hearing is scheduled for May 15 in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“We are an important step closer to the adoption of this landmark copyright reform legislation,” said Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) President Steve Bogard. “I’ve seen too many of my colleagues give up writing songs professionally because of unfairly low streaming royalties and other changes in the era of digital music delivery. The MMA gives us tools to move toward better compensation from streaming companies, while giving songwriters and music publishers control of digital mechanical music licensing.”

The Music Modernization Act would change a 1909 mechanical royalty standard to one that reflects a song’s worth in today’s marketplace. The bill also creates a new Music Licensing Collective governed by songwriters and music publishers, and mandates equitable distribution to songwriters of any unclaimed funds.

Other portions of the bill include:

  • Changing the lifetime appointment of a single rate court judge for ASCAP and BMI to a fairer method, similar to other federal court appointments
  • Altering Section 114(i) of the Copyright Act, allowing a rate court to consider all relevant evidence on a “willing buyer / willing seller” basis when determining songwriter compensation – including the rates that recording artists earn – which is currently prohibited by law
  • Ending the Copyright Office mass “Notice of Intent” program
  • Providing federal protection to sound recordings made before February 15, 1972 and brings these “pre-72” recordings under the same federal licensing system applied to “post-72” recordings
  • Allowing music producers to be paid directly by Sound Exchange.

“This is an historic day for music creators,” said SoundExchange’s CEO Michael Huppe. “Today’s overwhelming support in the House for the Music Modernization Act reflects the bill’s widespread consensus, both across the aisle and across the music industry. This legislation stands to benefit artists, songwriters, labels, publishers, studio producers and others – many of whom are represented by the SoundExchange Companies.

Huppe continued, “The Music Modernization Act includes provisions SoundExchange has advocated for over many years, as we work to advance fair treatment for all creators involved in bringing our music to life. We are grateful that lawmakers in the House worked to update our nation’s copyright laws for the digital age, and we look forward to working with the Senate to get this legislation passed quickly. Music creators have waited long enough.”

“The House passage of the Music Modernization Act is truly historic for songwriters and the entire music ecosystem which they fuel,” said NMPA’s David Israelite. “The MMA improves how songwriters are paid and how their work is valued, both of which are long overdue. The bill also helps digital streaming companies by giving them access to all the music their consumers want to enjoy.”

Israelite added, “I am immensely grateful to Congressmen Doug Collins and Hakeem Jeffries who have seen this process through from the beginning and have stood by songwriters through a complex and lengthy collaboration process, and to Chairman Goodlatte and Ranking Member Nadler for getting this bill to the House floor. Today’s vote sends a strong message that streaming services and songwriters can be on the same side – pushing for a better future for all. We now look forward to the Senate advancing the MMA and it ultimately becoming law.”

AIMP Announces Initial Agenda for Second Annual Indie Music Publishing Summit

The Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP) Indie Music Publishing Summit, which will take place in New York City on Tuesday, June 12, has announced its first slate of featured speakers and panels. Featured speakers include a keynote conversation with John Josephson, Chairman/CEO of SESAC, and the slate of panels will cover topics ranging from the current state of the industry and music supervision from both U.S. and international perspectives to New Revenue Opportunities for Independent Music Publishers, Digital Tools of the Trade, an update on international news from CISAC, and more.

Registration for the event is now open with full-priced tickets at $429, increasing to $529 after May 4, which includes a one-year Professional membership in the organization. Current Premier Professional and Professional members receive a 30% and 20% discount, respectively, off the non-member price; codes are available in the member section of aimp.org, and discounts are also available for members of the event’s promotional partners.

Confirmed AIMP Indie Music Publishing Summit Panel Agenda (more speakers to be added):
AIMP leadership kickoff address:
Alisa Coleman – AIMP NY Executive Director (ABKCO Music)
Michael Eames – AIMP President, Los Angeles (PEN Music Group)
John Ozier– AIMP Nashville Executive Director (ole)

CISAC Cross Industry Projects Update:
Teri Nelson Carpenter, President & CEO of Reel Muzik Werks, LLC and Vice President of AIMP

Digital Tools of the Trade:
John Raso, SVP of Client Services at HFA

International State of the Industry:
Teresa Alfonso, CEO of Teddysound, President of the Spanish Association of Music Publishers, and Executive Board at IMPF (Spain)
Ger Hatton, EU Specialist and IMPF Secretary General (Europe)
Jennifer Mitchell, CEO of Red Brick Songs and member of the CMPA Board of Directors (Canada)
Mary Megan Peer, Deputy CEO and President of Asia Pacific & Strategic Markets at peermusic (Asia)
Chris Butler, Group Head of Publishing & Rights at The Music Sales Group and President of ICMP Board of Directors (UK) (moderator)

Music Supervision Abroad:
How to navigate blanket licensing, multi-territorial licenses, and getting your music into commercials, TV shows, and films from overseas.
Nicky Bignell, BBC
Catherine Grimes, BBC

New Revenue Models for Songwriters and Music Publishers:
Chantal Epp, Clicknclear
Mark Greenburg, Tresona
Deborah Evans, Tracklib

U.S. Music Supervisors panel:
Ricki Askin, Vice
Megan Currier, Search Party

U.S. State of the Industry:
Michelle Lewis, Songwriter & Co-Founder of SONA
MaryJo Mennella, CEO of MNM and Pulse
Alison Smith, EVP of Broadcast Music Inc.
Kelli Turner, EVP, Operations, Corporate Development and CFO, SESAC
Amelia Wang Binder, Vice President, Industry & Government Affairs, NMPA
Teri Nelson Carpenter, President & CEO of Reel Muzik Werks, LLC and Vice President of AIMP (moderator)