The Class Of 2022 Inducted Into The Country Radio Hall Of Fame

Pictured (L-R, front row): Barry Mardit, Steve Grunwald, CRB/CRS Executive Director RJ Curtis, Bob Call; (L-R, back row): Cathy Martindale, Rachael Hunter, Debbie Conner, Whitney Allen, Becky Brenner. Photo: Caitlin Harris

The Country Radio Hall of Fame Class of 2022 was inducted last night (June 30) at a dinner and awards ceremony at the Virgin Hotel in Nashville.

The special evening was packed with honoree presentations, acceptance speeches, video segments, and a performance by Lauren Alaina. Honorees praised their mentors and shared some of their most cherished moments of their career during the annual event.

The off-air honorees were Becky Brenner and Barry Mardit, along with 2021 honoree Bob Call, who was unable to attend last year’s event. On-air honorees were Whitney Allen, Debbie Conner, Cathy Martindale, and Rachael & Grunwald.

Pictured (L-R): Kurt Johnson, Lauren Alaina, Trisha Yearwood, RJ Curtis. Photo: Caitlin Harris

CRB/CRS Board President Kurt Johnson presented Chairman & CEO of Warner Music Nashville, John Esposito, with the 2022 CRB Presidents Award, and CRB Executive Director RJ Curtis presented Trisha Yearwood with the 2022 CRB Artist Achievement Award. A musical tribute featuring Lauren Alaina was held during the evening in honor of Yearwood.

Among the sold-out audience were past inductees, including Jaye Albright, Beverlee Brannigan, Charlie Chase, Charlie Cook, Lorianne Crook, RJ Curtis, Jonathan Fricke, Jeff Garrison, Dan Halyburton, Mike Hammond, Lon Helton, Gregg Lindahl, Mike O’Malley, Joel Raab, Tim Roberts, and Ed Salamon. The evening also paid tribute to honorees lost over the past year, who were Ralph Emery (Class of 1989), Eddie Edwards (Class of 2013), and Bob Robbins (Class of 2008).

Chairman & CEO of Warner Music Nashville, John Esposito; CRB/CRS Board President, Kurt Johnson. Photo: Caitlin Harris

Chart Action: Sam Hunt Makes A Splash At Country Radio

Sam Hunt

Sam Hunt‘s latest release “Water Under the Bridge” dives headfirst into the radio waters this week earning 133 new station adds across the Billboard, Mediabase, and MusicRow radio charts. It charted at No. 25, No. 37 and No. 67, respectively.

Written by Hunt with Chris LaCorte, Shane McAnally, and Josh Osborne, “Water Under the Bridge” is a fun, fast paced trip down memory lane with lyrics and melody reflecting the carefree days of youth.

“Water Under the Bridge” follows Hunt’s recent No. 1 smash hit “23,” also written by Hunt with the trio of LaCorte, McAnally, and Osborne. “23” was Hunt’s eighth chart-topping hit and has amassed over 180 million global streams. The pair of songs are the latest from Hunt since his No. 1 debuting album Southside, featuring multiple back-to-back No. 1 hits with “Breaking Up Was Easy in the 90’s,” “Kinfolks,” and “Hard To Forget.”

For more chart data, click here to view the latest edition of The MusicRow Weekly.

Country Music Hall Of Fame And Museum Opens Chris Stapleton Exhibit

Photo: Courtesy of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s newest exhibit, “Chris Stapleton: Since 1978″ presented by Ram Trucks, opens today (July 1).

The exhibit spotlights the course of Stapleton’s multi-faceted career, from his Kentucky roots and success as a songwriter to his rise to stardom as one of country’s most powerful voices. Items featured in “Chris Stapleton: Since 1978” include instruments, awards, stage and screen costumes and personal artifacts.

The dynamic singer, songwriter and musician has collaborated with everyone from Bobby Bare and Carlos Santana to Justin Timberlake and P!nk. Before breaking out in 2015 with his quadruple-Platinum album Traveller, he became an in-demand songwriter in Nashville for more than a decade. In addition to Stapleton’s own hits, he’s had songs recorded by Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Alison Krauss and Union Station, George Strait, Sheryl Crow, Thomas Rhett, Lee Ann Womack and many more.

Stapleton recently joined forces with the Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival and Fandiem to launch a fundraising sweepstakes campaign to benefit his charity, Outlaw State of Kind. The special campaign offers one lucky fan and a guest an all-expense-paid VIP trip to the 2022 Pilgrimage Festival from Sept. 24-25 in Franklin, Tennessee, plus a signed Stapleton Gibson ES-335 vintage burst guitar.

Photo: Courtesy of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Photo: Courtesy of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Photo: Courtesy of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Industry Ink: Brooke Eden, BMI, Fisk Jubilee Singers, The Other Nashville

Brooke Eden Joins Congressman David Cicilline For A Conversation About Equality

Pictured (L-R): Tom Clees – VP, Federal Public Policy at RIAA; Congressman David Cicilline; Brooke Eden

Brooke Eden joined Congressman David Cicilline, Chair of the Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus, this week for a conversation surrounding LGBTQ+ equality and representation.

Moderated by Tom Clees, VP, Federal Public Policy at RIAA, Eden and Congressman Cicilline dove deep into a number of topics for the RIAA Pride Panel. They discussed their own experiences discovering their true selves, pointing to the things they learned and sharing how important it is to see other LGBTQ+ folks visibly succeeding. Eden discussed how music allows her to tell her authentic story, and how her newest track “Left You For Me” is arguably the most honest chapter in that story to date. Eden’s conversation with Cicilline is part of her ongoing “Music Matters with RIAA” partnership.

“We’re incredibly proud to partner with Brooke on the ‘Music Matters with RIAA’ program,” says Jackie Jones, VP of Artist and Industry Relations at RIAA. “Bringing Brooke’s powerful story out into the community and connecting artists and policymakers for authentic, honest moments is the perfect way to celebrate Pride and allow the worlds of music and politics to learn and grow together.”

Over the last few years, Eden has used her personal journey to self-acceptance to create music with the message that it is okay to be who you are. Her new song “Left You For Me,” is the first to release from her upcoming EP, Choosing You, dropping July 29 via BBR Music Group.

 

 

BMI Signs K. Michelle

K. Michelle & Shannon Sanders

K. Michelle officially joined BMI on Tuesday night (June 28) during her performance at the PRO’s monthly Bluebird showcase. Shannon Sanders, Executive Director of Creative, welcomed her to the BMI family and had the honor of introducing her as the newest BMI writer.

“We are proud to welcome K. Michelle into the BMI family,” Sanders said. “Besides being her PRO representation, we look forward to supporting her during this exciting time for her career.”

A singer, songwriter and actress born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, Michelle is known for her time on VH1’s Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta. She has had success for songs including “Love ‘Em All,” “More Issues Than Vogue,” and “Just Like Jay.” She has collaborated with fellow hip-hop and R&B artists such as Juicy J, Missy Elliott and Ruben Studdard, and most recently with A-list Nashville writer Ernest.

Michelle has garnered over 500,000 monthly Spotify listeners and her first country album is expected in the coming months.

 

Fisk Jubilee Singers, Allison Russell, O.N.E The Duo Celebrate The Ryman’s 130th Birthday

Pictured: Prana Supreme and Tekitha (O.N.E. The Duo), Allison Russell, Fisk Jubilee Singers

The Fisk Jubilee Singers helped Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium celebrate its 130th birthday on Tuesday night (June 28), while commemorating the simultaneous 130th anniversary of the Singers’ first performance on the Ryman stage.

The multi-award-winning a cappella choral ensemble, who celebrated its 150th birthday in October 2021 and earned the Grammy for Best Roots Gospel Album, joined forces with 3x Grammy nominee Allison Russell and newcomers O.N.E The Duo for “Jubilation! An Enduring Musical Union.”

Proceeds from the event will benefit Fisk Jubilee Singers Endowed Scholarship Fund. The evening’s celebration was followed by an unveiling ceremony of a limited-edition book, Heritage & Honor: 150 Year Story of the Fisk Jubilee Singers at Fisk University.

 

The Other Nashville Society Celebrates Five Years, Forms First Leadership Group

Pictured (L-R): TONS co-founders Ally Venable, Katie Fagan, Mark Abramowitz, and Josh Collum. Photo: David OD

The Other Nashville Society (TONS), a 1,300+ member organization dedicated to connecting and elevating Music City’s non-country creators and industry professionals, is celebrating its fifth birthday.

To celebrate, the organization has formed its first Leadership Group, a select team of TONS members to come alongside the co-founders and provide a new perspective for the future. The Leadership Group is made up of Jacki Artis (Social Impact Manager, UTA), Jeanette Porcello (A&R, Atlantic Records), Justin Causey (BlackCity Management), and Nick Maiale (Founder/CEO, jump.global).

“We’re celebrating 5 years, but we’re really just getting started. And we knew that in order for TONS to level up, we needed new energy and new ideas in the room,” explains Josh Collum, TONS co-founder. “The thing that’s exciting is the Leadership Group’s diverse backgrounds. Jacki has deep ties to government and city leaders. Jeanette has some of the best A&R ears in Nashville. Causey is leading the city’s Hip Hop resurgence. And Nick literally knows everyone, from his days with the Music Biz conference. What a dream team.”

Founded on May 17, 2017 by Ally Venable, Katie Fagan, Holley Maher, Mark Abramowitz and Collum, TONS has struck strategic partnerships with Apple Music, AWAL, Bonnaroo, Red Bull, Music Biz, Twitch, Soundstripe, Sofar Sounds, CDbaby, Reeperbahn, and the City of Nashville. It has also directly supported some of Nashville’s non-country artists, including Lennon Stella, Joy Oladokun, Jake Wesley Rogers, Sara Kays, Charlotte Sands, and Gayle.

“We’re so proud of what TONS has become in 5 short years. In some ways, it’s overwhelming how quickly it blew up. But in other ways, it’s obvious why it exploded,” Fagan recalls. “There was a rapidly growing community of creators and industry professionals in this city that had no place to call home. TONS became that home.”

Bobby Bones To Host USA Network’s New Survival Competition Show, ‘Snake In The Grass’

Bobby Bones. Photo: Chase Bjornson/USA Network

Bobby Bones is hosting a new USA Network series that pushes human nature to the limits called Snake in the Grass, which premieres August 1.

Reality competition legends from Survivor, Big Brother, and Naked and Afraid, such as Yul Kwon, Earl Cole, Malcolm Freberg, Jeff Zausch, Janelle Pierzina, Rachel Reilly, Cirie Fields, Stephenie LaGrossa, Trish Hegarty, and Lacey Jones, will be among those competing in this real-life psychological thriller set in the central American jungle.

Each episode of the high-octane social experiment will feature four players dropped into the wild for 36 hours with a chance to win $100,000. In order to win, the four must figure out which one of them is “the snake”—a saboteur secretly undermining the group every step of the way.

The players compete in a series of grueling and mind-twisting challenges, from retrieving game pieces suspended on high wires over a 500-foot canyon, to scaling the face of a cliff to solve puzzles. With each successfully completed challenge, the competitors win a clue that helps reveal the identity of the Snake. If the players can successfully reveal the identity, they will win the $100,000, but if they get it wrong, the Snake walks away with all the money.

For Bones, Snake in the Grass serves as the next entertainment project the radio mogul has completed. He is the host of the nationally syndicated iHeartRadio program The Bobby Bones Show, which broadcasts to over 185 stations and is the No. 1 country morning show with millions of monthly listeners. The award-winning show is a 2x CMA Award winner, 4x ACM Award winner and earned Bones the title of youngest-ever inductee into the prestigious National Radio Hall of Fame. His breakout TV series for National Geographic, Breaking Bobby Bones, is streaming now on Disney+. He has served as the official in-house mentor on ABC’s American Idol, won season 27 of ABC’s Dancing with the Stars, and serves as host and executive producer of Circle Network’s Opry.

“Getting to host Snake in the Grass has been a really cool experience,” Bones says. “I lived in Costa Rica for more than a month while we were shooting it, so I can’t wait for everyone to finally get to see what we’ve been up to. The show is a mix of adventure and mystery—it’s going to keep you guessing!”

Kane Brown Stays At No. 1 On MusicRow Radio Chart

Kane Brown’s “Like I Love Country Music” remains at No. 1 on the MusicRow CountryBreakout Radio Chart this week earning an additional +7 spins. He holds a +81 spin lead over Kenny Chesney’s “Everyone She Knows,” which has remained in the top 10 for 13 weeks.

“Like I Love Country Music” was written by Brown, Matthew McGinn, Taylor Phillips, and Jordan Schmidt. McGinn ranked at No. 6 this week on the MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart. Phillips lands at No. 21, Schmidt at No. 47, and Brown at No. 55.

Brown will head across seas in September for his headlining international “The Drunk or Dreaming Tour,” with Blanco Brown, Chris Lane, Jesse James Decker, and Restless Road on select dates.

Click here to read the latest edition of The MusicRow Weekly which contains the MusicRow CountryBreakout Radio Chart.

Mark Your Calendar—July 2022

Single/Track Releases

July 1
Kylie Morgan/If He Wanted To He Would/EMI

July 5
Lady A/Summer State of Mind/BMLGR
Craig Moritz/Fun To Drink With Tailgate

July 8
Keith Urban/Brown Eyes Baby/Capitol Records Nashville
Jordan James/Truckin’ Around/AMG Records/The Orchard
Matt Jordan/Your Town

July 11
Wade Bowen/Everything Has Your Memory/Thirty Tigers
Bailey Zimmerman/Fall In Love/Warner
Jordan Fletcher/Death And Taxes/Triple Tigers
Donny Lee/Another Round Of You/Donny Lee Music
Three Days Dirty/Cowboys Never Cry

July 12
Macy Tabor/Tryin To Be Me/MC1 Nashville
Mark Blomsteel/Tennessee/MC1 Nashville
Matt Bailie/Better Believe It/MC1 Nashville

July 15
Chris Colston/Boy Like Me/AMG Records/The Orchard
Kendra Kay/Say It Again/Willing Records

July 18
Miranda Lambert/Strange/RCA
Midland feat. Jon Pardi/Longneck Way To Go/Big Machine Records
Alannah Mccready feat. Will Gitten/Can I Call/Alanna McCready
Chris Kroeze/$ (Money)/Chris Kroeze

July 19
Eric Atkinson/Shoes/MC1 Nashville

Album/EP Releases

 

July 1
Kylie Morgan/P.S./EMI

July 8
Kimberly Kelly/I’ll Tell You What’s Gonna Happen/Show Dog Nashville/Thirty Tigers

July 15
Ty Herndon/Jacob/Pivotal Records
Alana Springsteen/History of Breaking Up (Part Two)

July 22
Jack White/Entering Heaven Alive/Third Man Records
Nicolle Galyon/Firstborn/Songs & Daughters
Billy Dean/The Rest of It’s Mine/BFD/Audium Nashville
Dan Tyminski/One More Time Before You Go: A Tribute To Tony Rice

July 29
Whiskey Myers/Tornillo/Wiggy Thump Records/Thirty Tigers
Brooke Eden/Choosing You/BBR Music Group/BMG
Amanda Shires/Take It Like A Man/ATO Records
Patrick Murphy/Half The Story/Warner Music Nashville
Chris Colston/Boy Like Me/AMG Records/The Orchard

Willie Nelson Celebrates Paul English In Upcoming Book

Willie Nelson‘s new book, Me and Paul: Untold Tales of a Fabled Friendship, tells the tale of Paul English, Nelson’s longtime drummer, friend and bodyguard/guardian angel. The book will be available from Harper Horizon on Sept. 20.

Me and Paul: Untold Tales of a Fabled Friendship chronicles the pair’s unbreakable bond that lasted until English’s death at 87, on Feb. 11, 2020.

For 70 years, English served in a variety of roles in Nelson’s life: as the steady musical heartbeat in the band, the gun-toting bodyguard, the tour accountant, and more. The country legend first immortalized English with the song “Me & Paul.” Penned for the drummer in the early 1970s, the song became the title track for Nelson’s 1985 studio album and a fan-favorite in his live sets.

“There’s something about my friendship with Paul that reminds me of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. Tom was more civilized and Huck was wilder. Although I was plenty wild at age twenty-two, I’d have to say Paul was wilder,” Nelson recalls. “Like Tom and Huck, though, we became a team. Nothing could or would ever separate us. If someone tries to tell my story without putting Paul by my side, don’t bother reading it.”

Nelson wrote the book with Grammy-winning music journalist/biographer/author David Ritz, who collaborated with the singer-songwriter on It’s a Long Story: My Life and Me (2015) and Sister Bobbie: True Tales of the Family Band (2020).

Dave Pittenger Signs With Milk & Honey Music

David Pittenger. Photo: Jason Myers

Dave Pittenger has signed with Milk & Honey Management.

Pittenger is a Nashville-based producer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who just came off a global No. 1 with co-writing Gayle’s “abcdefu,” and has had cuts with other artists such as Tyler Farr, Parmalee, AJ Mitchell, Jessie James Decker and Tenille Arts, among others.

“We are excited to be working with Dave and his publishers to continue elevating his career in Nashville, Los Angeles, and beyond,” says Shelby Yoder, Milk & Honey Head of Nashville, Manager. “He is hard working, focused, and kind. We couldn’t be happier to welcome him into the Milk & Honey family and look forward to building all to come.”

“I’m absolutely thrilled to be represented by Milk & Honey,” Pittenger shares. “They’re smart, relentless, and forward-looking, but most importantly they’re great people. I’m looking forward to a long, successful relationship!”

Milk & Honey Music + Sports + Ventures is one of the biggest global management companies for songwriters, producers, DJ’s and athletes in the world with offices in LA, London, New York, Nashville, Dallas and Sydney, as well as a sports division, an agency, marketing company and IP development group. The company represents over 100 clients that span across every genre of music, and have sold nearly a billion records collectively.

Brett Young Celebrates Multi-Platinum Milestone

Pictured (L-R): BMLG Records President/CEO Jimmy Harnen, Brett Young and Otter Creek Entertainment’s Van Haze. Photo: Braden Carney

Brett Young‘s smash single “In Case You Didn’t Know” has reached an impressive new milestone, becoming one of only three country songs to reach 8x Platinum status in the last five years.

Young wrote the ballad, which has remained a fan favorite since its release, alongside Trent Tomlinson and Tyler Reeve.

BMLG Records President/CEO Jimmy Harnen and Otter Creek Entertainment’s Van Haze celebrated several notable accolades with Young during his recent show at The Bluebird Café in Nashville. Young’s heartbreak anthem “Mercy” also earned 4x RIAA Platinum certification and “Like I Loved You” went double Platinum.

“’In Case You Didn’t Know’ is one of only three country singles released in the past five years to achieve RIAA 8x multi-Platinum or higher! Just three,” notes Jackie Jones, VP of Artist and Industry Relations at RIAA. “Congratulations to Brett and his Big Machine team on this incredible achievement!”

“Eight times Platinum–that’s pretty wild,” Young adds. “I could never have imagined what this song would become when we first wrote it. It’s humbling to have created something that has resonated so strongly with so many people.”

He is simultaneously climbing the charts with the reflective “You Didn’t” and the “Never Til Now” collaboration with Ashley Cooke, and is currently on the road performing his streak of hits.