Live Nation and Music Forward Foundation’s 2024 scholarship application period for college students pursuing careers in the music and live entertainment industry is now open.

Five $10,000 scholarships will be awarded to outstanding college students in either their junior or senior year majoring in music, music business, production and/or related fields at an accredited college or university in the U.S. The opportunity is specifically designed to support students interested in the core aspects of the concert business, including concert promotion, venue operation, ticketing, sponsorship, hospitality, artist management and more. Applications must be submitted online by March 31. For more information, click here.

“We are happy to once again work with the Music Forward scholarship program as we continue to invest in talented, driven, and dedicated young people pursuing careers in live entertainment,” says Jordan Zachary, Co-President of U.S. Concerts, Live Nation.

“Our ongoing partnership with the Music Forward Foundation reinforces our commitment to champion and empower the next generation of leaders in our industry,” adds Omar Al-joulani, Co-President of U.S. Concerts, Live Nation.

“Scholarships remain a pivotal part of our community outreach and recruitment programming,” says Nurit Smith, Executive Director, Music Forward Foundation. “Music Forward’s mission is to support young people hoping to enter the music and live entertainment industry and this program expands our reach to a wide range of students who may not otherwise be afforded the opportunity to pursue dream careers.”

Scholarship recipients will be selected by a panel of industry executives and thought leaders across academic, entertainment, civic and corporate sectors. Criteria for selection include academic achievement, essay responses and recommendations. Scholarships will be announced in June 2024, and awards will be given for the fall 2024 semester.

Darren Kiely, Free Flight Records

Sony Music Nashville has launched a new imprint for non-country music called Free Flight Records. Pop/folk singer-songwriter Darren Kiely has joined the imprint’s roster.

“Nashville has always been known as a song first community and as such attracts writers from all over the world to come to practice their craft. As we’ve seen that talent pool become a deep well, we decided to build a home to partner with and support those singer/songwriters that aren’t categorically ‘country.’ Darren Kiely is symbolic of this global new wave,” says Sony Music Nashville’s Chairman and CEO Randy Goodman of the news.

Kiely hails from a quaint town in Co. Cork, Ireland. With influences such as Mumford & Sons, The Lumineers and Noah Kahan, Kiely has mastered his own distinctive sound while drawing in fans worldwide.

He released his debut EP Lost last fall, in which he solo-wrote four of the seven tracks on the project and co-wrote the other three. Kiely has now reached No. 1 on the Irish Homegrown Chart with hit hit “Sunrise” from the project. Lost also features “Mom & Dad,” which debuted in the top 40 on the Irish Singles Chart and also landed him in the top 5 on the Irish Homegrown chart.

Kiely went out on the road last fall, stopping for sold-out headlining shows in Boston and New York before bringing his “The Road Home Tour” to Ireland in November. With stops in Cork, Dublin, Galway and Limerick, the Irish leg of the tour sold out the same day it went on sale. Now he is on “The Lost Tour,” where he’ll stop in major cities across North America including Dallas, Denver, Nashville, Seattle, Vancouver and others.

Tracy Lawrence has released the title track from his upcoming new EP, Out Here In It, set for release on June 7.

The new project features cuts penned by Rodney Clawson, Wyatt McCubbin, Devin Dawson, Ernest Keith Smith, Lee Thomas Miller and more, and follows the artist’s 2022 Hindsight 2020 Vol 3. album.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been in the studio,” shares Lawrence. “I always have a blast working up new songs so it felt so good to cut new music. My last project, the 30th anniversary album Hindsight 2020, was the closing of a chapter of my life. With this new project, I really wanted to freshen things up a bit. A little bit more contemporary but still very country. I’m very proud of it and hope you all really enjoy it.”

Lawrence will take his new music on the road as he joins Riley Green for his “Ain’t My Last Rodeo Tour,” beginning Feb. 22 in Pikeville, Kentucky. The 33-stop tour will visit amphitheaters and arenas throughout spring, with stops in Houston, Lexington, Tuscaloosa, Knoxville, San Jose and Phoenix. Later on May 4, Lawrence will headline the Ryman Auditorium for the very first time.

Pictured (L-R): Grace Cavanaugh, Elek Horvath, Daniel Lonow, Michael McCall and Kelsey Reiner

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum has promoted five staff members to associate director or director roles within the museum’s events, Haley Gallery and museum services teams, including Grace Cavanaugh, Kelsey Reiner, Daniel Lonow, Elek Horvath and Michael McCall. 

Cavanaugh has been promoted to Director of Event Services and Catering. She oversees the event services team, which manages more than 1,400 private and internal events annually. Cavanaugh’s responsibilities include event planning for up to 3,000 guests, menu creation, décor and design, as well as leading a team of service and catering managers. She also oversees the guest hospitality experience for the museum’s offsite fundraising events, as well as the premier events hosted by the museum. Since joining the museum in 2015, she has served many positions, most recently as associate director of event services and catering manager. With more than 15 years of experience in the event industry, Cavanaugh previously worked with Sodexo. She holds a bachelor’s degree in hospitality management from Widener University in Pennsylvania.

Reiner has been named Associate Director of Event Sales. She helps oversee the team responsible for booking more than 400 private events at the museum annually. Reiner contributes to the growth of the events and catering annual gross revenue. She also works closely with city organizations to continually promote the museum as a premier events facility in the Nashville community. Prior to joining the museum, Reiner held the position of event sales manager at the Loveless Cafe/Loveless Events for five years, where she was responsible for booking and servicing events. She holds a bachelor’s degree in sports, entertainment and event management from Johnson & Wales University.

Lonow has been promoted to Haley Gallery Director. In this role, he manages the gallery and curates a variety of exhibits in the museum’s commercial art gallery each year that feature nationally recognized visual artists. A portion of proceeds from artwork purchased in the gallery supports the nonprofit museum’s educational mission, while fostering creative growth within the local arts community and beyond. He has been with the museum for nine years. Prior to joining the museum’s Haley Gallery, Lonow worked with TAG Art Gallery and the Ruby Green Contemporary Arts Center.

Horvath has been promoted to Associate Director of Collection Access. In this role he oversees a team responsible for the administration and management of artifacts moving to and from the museum, artifact processing and data management, internal and external communications and logistics with respect to artifacts and exhibits, collection inventory and environmental monitoring and control of archive and exhibit spaces. He joined the museum in 2000 to work on the Journal of Country Music. He also co-authored the book Hatch Show Print: The History of a Great American Poster Shop, published in 2001. In 2003, he became Special Projects Production Coordinator and helped license music used in the Grammy-winning CMF Records compilation, Night Train to Nashville: Music City Rhythm & Blues. In 2004, he was appointed Collections Registrar, a position he held until 2019, when he was appointed Senior Registrar. He is curator of the museum’s recently opened exhibit “An American Masterwork: Thomas Hart Benton’s ‘Sources of Country Music at 50.'” He holds a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Maryland. Before that, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps.

McCall has been promoted to Associate Director of Editorial. In this role he will assist in managing the development of written content for the museum’s exhibitions, books, public programs, website, social media and educational materials. A 17-year museum veteran, McCall previously served as senior museum writer-editor and has curated more than 20 museum exhibitions and hosted many programs including interviews with Kenny Chesney, Los Lobos, Blake Shelton, Country Music Hall of Fame members Brooks & Dunn, Patty Loveless, Reba McEntire and Hank Williams Jr. He has co-edited the second edition of “The Encyclopedia of Country Music,” and has written museum catalogs on Loretta Lynn, Reba McEntire and the archival collection of the museum. Prior to joining the museum, he spent four decades as a music journalist writing and editing for publications including the Associated Press, Country Music magazine, Los Angeles Times, Nashville Banner, Nashville Scene, USA Today and others. In 2007, McCall received the Charlie Lamb Award for Excellence in Country Music Journalism from Belmont University.