CMA Accepting Broadcast Award Nominations

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The Country Music Association is currently accepting online submissions for the 2012 CMA Broadcast Awards for Broadcast Personality, Station, and National Broadcast Personality of the Year.

The organization is in the middle of its “Year of Country Radio” campaign. During CRS in February 2012, CMA awarded complimentary organizational and two individual memberships good for one year to all 2000-plus country stations in the United States. Since the Broadcast Award contenders must be CMA Mebers, all stations are now eligible.

“The ‘Year of Country Radio’ is all about celebrating the hard work of Country radio and its importance to our format,” said CMA Chief Executive Officer, Steve Moore. “We’re always honored to spotlight the best of the best in Country radio, and this year will be especially meaningful with so many new members in the CMA family.”

Nominations may be submitted at Broadcast.CMAawards.com until 5 pm/CT on Friday, June 29. Winners will be notified in early October and recognized during the 46th Annual CMA Awards held late in 2012 and broadcast on ABC.

McFadden Joins Momentum Promotion Team

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Momentum Label Group has announced the hire of Tim McFadden to assist promotion efforts for the label’s flagship artist Rachele Lynae. McFadden will join John Ettinger and the label’s promotion staff to promote Lynae’s new single “Party ‘Til The Cows Come Home.”

“Tim has such great relationships at radio and will be invaluable to our team as we work to break our Rachele’s new single,” says Momentum Label Group creator Jamie O’Neal. “I have always been very impressed with Tim, and I’m thrilled to be working with him.”

McFadden most recently served as National Head of Promotion for R&J Records since its inception. His career also includes time in the promotion department at Giant Records and running his own McFadden Management.

Reach him at 615-476-0090 or tzmcfadden@gmail.com.

Momentum Label Group was launched in February 2012 by singer/songwriter Jamie O’Neal, who is overseeing all aspects of the company including producing Momentum artists.

CountryBreakout No. 1 Song

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Think this one’s a hit? Yeah, us too.

Eric Church, Ryan Tyndell, and Jeff Hyde co-penned “Springsteen,” the CountryBreakout Chart’s No. 1 song, which concerns itself primarily with the memory of an old relationship. And like its namesake, “Springsteen” also uses some anthemic touches (like the “whoa whoa whoa” chant after the second chorus) that make it instantly striking.

Church just recently brought his Blood, Sweat, and Beers Tour to Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena. MR’s own Sarah Skates was present for the event and discovered that it was indeed bloody, sweaty, boozy, and explosive.

Check out the new video for “Springsteen,” directed by Peter Zavadil:

YouTube video

Weekly Chart Report (5/11/2012)

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Kix Brooks visited with Lexington/WBUL PD Michael Jordan (R) before a recent show. Brooks’ solo debut, “New to This Town,” is currently making the rounds at country radio.

SPIN ZONE
It’s dude central at the top of this week’s CountryBreakout Chart. Eric Church’s song about hearing “Springsteen” stays at No. 1 for a second consecutive week with a small spin gain. Georgia boys Jason Aldean (“Fly Over States”) and Luke Bryan (“Drunk On You”) are at No. 2 and 3, respectively, and still picking up new plays. It’s an incredibly tight Top 10 however, with only Eli Young Band’s “Even If It Breaks Your Heart” making forward movement to No. 5.

Slow-moving applies to the rest of the chart as well. Keith Urban’s “For You” manages to gain 210 spins, but only moves up one spot to No. 18. Similarly Jana Kramer’s “Why Ya Wanna” adds 180 new spins, but only gets a small bump to No. 23. Easton Corbin, Justin Moore, Love and Theft—all get triple digit spin increases, but only one spot higher positioning.

Outside the Top 40, things are less of a traffic jam. Blake Shelton’s new single “Over” is already to No. 42 in its second week, right on the heels of Montgomery Gentry’s “So Called Life” at No. 41. Lady Antebellum just flew into the chart at No. 63 with “Wanted You More,” and Lee Brice’s “Hard To Love” makes a promising debut at No. 68.

Frozen Playlists: KGRT, KICR, WBKR, WDXX, WKWS, WXMM, WXXK

Upcoming Singles
May 14
Jessie James/Military Man/Show Dog-Universal
Due West/Things You Can’t Do In A Car/Black River
Lee Brice/Hard To Love/Curb

May 21
Blake Shelton/Over/Warner Bros./WMN
Bill Gentry/That Kind of Live/Tenacity
Rascal Flatts/Come Wake Me Up/Big Machine
Jake Owen/The One That Got Away/RCA

• • • • •

New On The Chart—Debuting This Week
Artist/song/label — chart pos.
Lady Antebellum/Wanted You More/Capitol – 63
Lee Brice/Hard To Love/Curb – 68
Jake Owen/The One That Got Away/BNA – 77
Jaida Dreyer/Guy’s Girl/Soundstream – 78
Adam Gregory/High On You/Calusa Entertainment/GMV Nashville – 80

Greatest Spin Increase
Artist/song/label — spin+
Blake Shelton/Over/Warner Bros. – 394
Lady Antebellum/Wanted You More/Capitol – 373
The Band Perry/Postcard From Paris/Republic Nashville – 241
Toby Keith/Beers Ago/Show Dog-Universal – 236
Dierks Bentley/5-1-5-0/Capitol – 235

Most Added
Artist/song/label — New Adds
Lady Antebellum/Wanted You More/Capitol – 29
Blake Shelton/Over/Warner Bros. – 26
Lee Brice/Hard To Love/Curb – 10
Jake Owen/The One That Got Away/BNA – 10
Montgomery Gentry/So Called Life/Average Joe’s – 9
George Strait/Drinkin’ Man/MCA – 9
Little Big Town/Pontoon/Capitol – 9
Kelly Clarkson/Mr. Know It All/19-RCA – 9
Keith Urban/For You/Capitol – 8
Hunter Hayes/Wanted/Atlantic Records – 8

On Deck—Soon To Be Charting
Artist/song/label — spins
Rick Monroe/Crazy Not To/Render Records – 167
Clinton Gregory/Bridges/Melody Roundup – 164
Kristen Kelly/Ex-Old Man/Arista – 159
Florida Georgia Line/Cruise/Big Loud Mountain – 156
Craig Wayne Boyd/I Ain’t No Quitter/Big Ride – 153
Jason Sturgeon/Time Bomb/Toolpusher – 149
Bradley Gaskin/Diamonds Make Babies/Columbia – 147

WMN’s Hunter Hayes visited with KKWF in Seattle earlier in May. His latest single, “Wanted,” is climbing MusicRow’s CountryBreakout Chart at No. 40. (L-R): Mike Preston (KKWF PD), Hunter, Chris Stacey (WMN SVP of Radio Promotion)

Martina McBride recently visited with WGTY/Gettysburg’s staff and took calls from listeners with PD Scott Donato and morning host Kim Alexander. McBride’s latest single, “Marry Me” with Train’s Pat Monahan currently holds the No. 34 spot on the CountryBreakout chart. (L-R): Alexander, Donato, McBride, Cindy Ford (WGTY GM), Kirk Brechbiel (WGTY Sales Manager) and Republic Nashville’s Cliff Blake

Pistol Annies headlined KRTY/San Jose's 20th Anniversary show at Shoreline Amphitheatre a few weeks ago in Mountain View, CA. (L-R) Back: Gary Scott Thomas (KRTY Mornings), Nate Deaton (KRTY GM). Front: Angaleena Presley, Julie Stevens (KRTY PD), Miranda Lambert, Ashley Monroe, Tina Ferguson (KRTY GSM), and Larry Santiago (RCA Nashville)

Charlie Cook On Air: Mother’s Day

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Sunday is Mother’s Day. This is a perfect opportunity to salute the mothers that make Country Music so special. We can start by saying that Country Radio is the mother of all radio formats but that would be too easy a line. Oh what the heck—I have already written it so I am just going to leave it in.

It is also an easy reach to talk about the Ryman Auditorium being the Mother Church of Country Music and “Mother” Maybelle Carter being the matriarch of the first family of Country Music. And lastly on this tack, Mother Country Music by Vern Gosdin—“The Voice” before there was The Voice.

The topic of the actual child-bearing mother has also played a significant role in the format.

Merle Haggard takes the pain on his shoulders for not turning out how Flossie had hoped in “Mama Tried.” If she had just taken the train to see Merle in prison, THIS would have been the perfect country song.

Johnny Paycheck took it a step further, saying Mama was a good woman except for how he turned out in “I’m The Only Hell Mama Ever Raised.”

Steve Wariner and Glen Campbell covered all the motherly duties in “The Hand that Rocked the Cradle.” A very similar topic was used for Jamie O’Neal’s ode to mama, “Somebody’s Hero.”

In the case of the Judds, the motherly duties included raising Wynonna on a moving bus. For a few years there the jury was out on how that was going to work but all is well and Wynonna’s crooning about a boy that was crazy for her was a huge hit.

Wy should have known better. Had she been listening to Shenandoah’s “Mama Knows” she would have known that she didn’t really have a chance.

My favorite country song about mothers was from 1974. Melba Montgomery left a lasting impact discussing whether mothers should be paid for all they do for their children in “No Charge.” I’ll bet that kid in the song wishes he could swallow the $15 invoice he tried to pass off for his chores. I’ll also bet that most mothers feel they are paid in full when their children become upstanding citizens of the world.

We can’t really put a price on 18 years (and many more today with kids moving back into their parents’ homes after school) but I can tell you that one of the best tear-jerking songs ever, “26 Cents” by The Wilkinsons, is the most outdated. I listened to it the other day and I am not sure if I teared up because of the mother/daughter relationship or because you cannot find a phone for 25 cents anymore.

This topic is more recently explored in Carrie Underwood’s “Don’t Forget to Remember Me” but the mother in this song apparently knows that a quarter is not going to get it done.

I love that Brad Paisley finds a way to tie in motherhood and the love he has for his children’s mother. Aren’t we all envious of how Brad sees things from another angle? Aren’t we all just flat out envious of Brad for about a thousand reasons anyway?

There are scores more Mother’s Day songs in the format and I would be remiss to exclude the one that most of the husbands should be thinking about regularly. Be sure that Trace Adkins is not the only one telling your wife that she is “One Hot Mama.”

I cannot fail to mention the mother of all mothers in the format. Andrea Swift has raised a beautiful young lady who has taken the musical world to new heights. Mrs. Swift has been at Taylor’s side through it all and we should take a second to thank her for being part of making Country Radio even more in the mainstream because of her marshaling abilities.

And for all of you who still have your mother in your life, make sure that she knows how much you love her. My mother has been gone for a long time but as she looks down on me she knows how much I still love her.

Happy Mother’s Day.

Blaster Entertainment Adds Aaron Lewis, Recruits Team Members

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Blaster Entertainment has added former R&J Records artist Aaron Lewis to its roster, and his music will be distributed through Warner Music Nashville.

“Aaron Lewis is a great musician,” said Tom Porter, CEO of Blaster Entertainment. “His songs relate true country values and life experiences. We’re excited about having him on the Blaster team.”

Lewis’ management team at Vector Management has also recruited former Sony Music Nashville VP Promotion Skip Bishop, along with John Ettinger, Tony Benken and the Quarterback promotion team, to promote the artist’s current single “Endless Summer.” Former R&J Records Marketing & Artist Development head Derek Simon has been added to the project in a similar capacity. Webster & Assoc. will handle public relations.

The video for “Endless Summer” recently debuted on CMT’s Big New Music Weekend, and Lewis played to a record crowd at the Stagecoach Festival in California. The Blaster Entertainment family also includes Hank Williams Jr., Neal McCoy and Brother Trouble.

Herring Joins EMI Records Nashville

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Capitol Records Nashville has announced that promotion veteran Kevin Herring will be joining the company as VP Promotion for EMI Records Nashville. He fills the role recently vacated by Angela Lange, and will be reporting directly to Capitol Records Nashville Sr. VP Promotion Steve Hodges.

Over Herring’s 30 years in the business, he has promoted a wide variety of artists including Aaron Tippin, Rascal Flatts, Shania Twain and Toby Keith. His career began in radio at WWWW/Detroit, and he also worked with Polygram and Mercury Records. He spent 13 years with Lyric Street Records, nine of which he served as VP of Promotion. Most recently, he served as President of Skyville Records.

“Kevin brings a wealth of experience to the table,” says Steve Hodges. “His extensive professional background and relationships at radio are two metrics that are key to success in the promotion world.  I’m delighted he is joining our EMI team in a leadership role!”
Herring begins his new job May 16 and can be reached at kevin.herring@emicap.com or 615-269-2085.

The EMI Records Nashville roster includes Alan Jackson, Eric Church, Eric Paslay, and Kelleigh Bannen.

Tennessee Radio Hall of Fame Inducts Inaugural Class

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The Tennessee Radio Hall of Fame’s inaugural induction ceremony took place Sat., May 5 at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Murfreesboro. 

The inductees included:
Career category
Ralph Emery—longtime WSM announcer and Grand Ole Opry host
John Ward—the “Voice of the Vols” announcer for University of Tennessee football and basketball
Gerry House—morning personality on WSIX/Nashville for over two decades
Wink Martindale—former Memphis radio personality and television game show host
Scott Shannon—night personality at WMAK/Nashville, other stations across the country and the ABC radio network
Luther Massingill—top-rated morning host at WDEF radio for 71 years

Legacy category (deceased)
Bill “Hoss” Allen—longtime air personality and popular nighttime rhythm and blues deejay at WLAC in Nashville
John “Jack” DeWitt—beginning at 16 years old, built Nashville’s first three radio stations in the 1920s, including WSM
Larry Munson—Sports Director of WSM radio and television and the voice of the Vanderbilt Commodores football and basketball
Lindsay Nelson—play-by-play for the UT Volunteers from 1948-1952 before moving on to national fame with CBS Radio
John Richbourg—known as “John R,” worked alongside Hoss Allen at WLAC as one of their popular R & B announcers at night
Grant Turner—staff announcer at WSM for more than 40 years, and a popular Grand Ole Opry announcer

Legendary Station of the Year: WSM
WSM signed on in 1925 and its iconic Grand Ole Opry program, back then called WSM Barn Dance, is the longest running radio program in history. Among its alumni are former hosts Ralph Emery, Pat Sajak, Larry Munson, Grant Turner, Teddy Bart, and Keith Bilbrey.

Lifetime Achievement Award: Bill Barry
William O. Barry pursued his love for radio while a student at Vanderbilt University, attempting to secure a “local” AM channel for Lebanon and working on-air at WGNS/Murfreesboro. In 1957, he and Will C. Baird purchased WSOK-FM/Nashville (105.9 mhz.) from Cal Young, changing the calls to WFMB. In 1965, they sold WFMB to the Life and Casualty Insurance Company, who switched the calls to WLAC-FM. He was a leader and innovator in engineering and promotion, pushing the FCC to adopt the FM channel allocation plan that opened the new band to broadcasters across the region. Bill played a key role in starting WPLN-FM and he started, owned or grew other Nashville area stations including WAMB, WMAK and WZEZ.

Charlie Chase honored WSM. (L-R) on air personality Cathy Martindale, WSM-AM General Manager Tom English, and Charlie Chase

Flying Island Promotes Shelia Shipley Biddy

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Shelia Shipley Biddy

Shelia Shipley Biddy has been named Director of National Promotion for Flying Island Entertainment (FIE). In addition to her national leadership responsibilities for the label, she will continue radio promotion for the northeast and southeast regions.

GrassRoots Promotion co-owner and Managing Partner Nancy Tunick will continue in her role as FIE’s label and promotion consultant.

In making the announcement, CEO Nancy Eckert stated, “I am honored to work with Shelia, as her reputation and experience in this industry is legendary. Her high level experience in many aspects of the music business makes her the ideal fit to lead our promotion team and advance our overall company objectives.”

A wholly owned subsidiary of Open Road Records, Flying Island was founded in early 2011 to serve as the label home for flagship artist Gwen Sebastian, who recently appeared on the hit television show The Voice. In addition to Sebastian, Flying Island works with Shooter Jennings, Levi Riggs, Bucky Covington and Ty Herndon in various capacities.

Shipley Biddy was the first woman to enter the field of radio promotion while at MCA/Nashville where she eventually led the team and was part of over 135 No. 1 singles. She was the first woman to helm a major label in Music City during her time at Decca Records. She most recently served as a manager and project consultant at Hallmark Direction Company.

Reach Shipley Biddy at shelia@flyingislandentertainment.com or (615) 478-8480.

Lange Exits EMI Records Nashville

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MusicRow has confirmed that EMI Records Nashville VP/Promotion Angela Lange has exited her position with the label.

Lange joined Capitol Records Nashville in 2002, where she served as a regional promotion representative until Capitol’s sister label EMI was launched in 2010 and she was named VP/Promotion. At EMI, she was a part of Eric Church’s first No. 1 hit “Drink In My Hand” as well as singles by Alan Jackson, Eric Paslay, and Troy Olsen. Lange was also part of the team that launched Lyric Street Records in 1998.

Reach her here.