After several hours of deliberation yesterday, August 14, a Denver jury sided with Taylor Swift in her countersuit against former country radio host David Mueller at Denver’s KYGO for alleged sexual assault and battery. The incident took place at a meet-and-greet in June 2013. Swift was awarded $1 in damages, the amount she was seeking in the suit.

Swift followed the news of her win with a statement offering support and a voice for others who may feel silenced by sexual assault.

“I want to thank Judge William J. Martinez and the jury for their careful consideration, my attorneys Doug Baldridge, Danielle Foley, Jay Schaudies and Katie Wright for fighting for me and anyone who feels silenced by a sexual assault, and especially anyone who offered their support throughout this four-year ordeal and two-year long trial process.

“I acknowledge the privilege that I benefit from in life, in society and in my ability to shoulder the enormous cost of defending myself in a trial like this. My hope is to help those whose voices should also be heard. Therefore, I will be making donations in the near future to multiple organizations that help sexual assault victims defend themselves.”

In 2015, Mueller sued Swift and her mom, Andrea Swift, and radio promotions director Frank Bell accusing them of being responsible for the termination of Mueller’s employment at KYGO radio. On Friday, August 11, the case against Swift was dismissed.

Pandora has named Roger Lynch as CEO and president, and a member of its board of directors, effective Sept. 18, 2017. Naveen Chopra, who has served as Pandora’s interim CEO since June 2017, will continue in his role as chief financial officer. In addition, Pandora announced it has also appointed current Snap Inc. chairman and former Sony Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton to its board of directors.

Lynch’s appointment comes after Pandora co-founder Tim Westergren stepped down from his role as CEO in June.

Pandora’s current chairman, Roger Faxon, said, “After a thorough and thoughtful search process, we are thrilled to have Roger join us as CEO and a member of our board. Roger brings a stellar leadership reputation, a wealth of consumer experience, and a lifelong passion for music to Pandora – all of which are critical ingredients in the continued evolution of our company. We are absolutely confident that Roger is the right leader for Pandora who can create value for shareholders by marrying Pandora’s numerous assets with the opportunities ahead. As I have said before, with ‘digital radio’ at the core of our business, and both ‘Plus’ and ‘Premium’ as new, integral parts of our arsenal, Pandora is now in an ideal position to leverage changing consumer behaviors to further expand and monetize our listening audience. We are very excited to welcome Roger as our CEO as we embark on our next chapter with renewed focus, a strong balance sheet, a strategic partnership with SiriusXM, and an incredible team of loyal and creative employees.”

As the founding CEO of Sling TV, Lynch led the creation, launch and growth of Sling TV to become the No. 1 Live OTT service in the U.S. Prior to Sling TV, Lynch served as executive vice president, Advanced Technologies, for DISH Network and EchoStar Corporations. Lynch also served as chairman and CEO of Video Networks International Ltd., a UK based IPTV provider. Prior to VNIL, Lynch was president and CEO of Chello Broadband in Amsterdam, Netherlands where he pioneered the widespread rollout of consumer broadband services across Europe, eventually creating what was, at the time, the largest broadband provider in Europe. Prior to that, Lynch was a technology investment banker with Morgan Stanley in New York, Silicon Valley, and London. Lynch began his career as a member of the physics technical staff at Hughes Aircraft Company. Lynch holds a Master of Business Administration with Highest Distinction from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College and a Bachelor of Science in Physics from the University of Southern California.

“I cannot imagine a more important and exciting time to join Pandora,” said Lynch. “With a massive, diverse and highly engaged audience, a market-leading digital advertising business, a best-in-class product portfolio and an extremely passionate and talented group of people, Pandora is well-positioned to capture an even greater market opportunity. As a lifelong musician and exuberant music fan, this is the perfect opportunity to combine my industry experience with my love for music. I look forward to working with this great team, having a lot of fun, and leading Pandora through its next exciting phase.”

Rounder Records has announced a series of special events celebrating Southern Blood, the final album from the legendary Gregg Allman. Billed as Southern Blood: Celebrating Gregg Allman, Los Angeles will host the first event, to be held Sept. 7 at The GRAMMY Museum’s Clive Davis Theater. The event will see Devon Allman, longtime friend and manager Michael Lehman, Gregg Allman Band guitarist/musical director Scott Sharrard, and Southern Blood producer Don Was joining GRAMMY Museum Executive Director Scott Goldman to pay homage to Allman with an exceptional evening of stories, memories, and incredible music.

On Sept. 9, Allman will be posthumously honored with the key to his beloved hometown of Macon, GA by Mayor Robert Reichert, in a celebration declaring Dec. 8 (Allman’s birthday) to be known as “Gregg Allman Day.” A commemorative celebration will then be held at The Allman Brothers Band Museum at The Big House (2321 Vineville Avenue, Macon, GA 31204). In addition, that same evening will see The Big House hosting a Southern Blood: Celebrating Gregg Allman event, featuring again Devon Allman, Lehman, Sharrard in addition to Allman’s closest friend Chank Middleton joined by Chuck Reece, Editor-in-Chief of The Bitter Southerner.

The third and final Southern Blood: Celebrating Gregg Allman event will be presented at the 18th annual AMERICANAFEST: The Americana Music Festival & Conference, set for Sept. 15 at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Ford Theater in Nashville, TN. The event will again feature Devon Allman and Lehman, who will share the stage with musicians Buddy Miller, Joan Osborne, Pony Bradshaw, and John Paul White, once again joined by Goldman.

American Express pre-sale ticketing began Aug. 10 for the Los Angeles event; all remaining tickets will be released to the general public on Thursday, Aug. 17 at noon. For more information, visit grammymuseum.org.

Southern Blood hits shelves Friday, Sept. 8, including the new original song, “My Only True Friend,” written by Allman with Sharrard. The track premiered earlier this summer exclusively via NPR Music.

For the first time in their record-breaking career, Florida Georgia Line headlined a trifecta of sold-out stadium shows this summer, culminating with a pinnacle performance at Chicago’s historic Wrigley Field last Saturday night (Aug. 12).

After dominating both Boston’s Fenway Park (July 7) and Minneapolis’ Target Field (July 29), the home of the Chicago Cubs’ baseball team was jam-packed with screaming fans as hip-hop icon Nelly, breakout country star Chris Lane, and pop idols Backstreet Boys joined the duo as part of The Smooth Stadium Tour 2017.

 

Big Machine Celebrates Alex Williams’ Debut LP

Alex Williams performed to a capacity crowd at Nashville’s The Basement East last Friday (Aug. 11) to celebrate the release of his debut album Better Than Myself, out that same day via Big Machine Records.

 

LANCO Performs At Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Nashville’s Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum enlisted Sony Music Nashville band LANCO to introduce millennials to its new Troubadour membership program last Wednesday (Aug. 9), recognizing the importance of the band’s Music City origins and their nod to preserving country music.

Museum Director Kyle Young was on-hand as each member of LANCO signed their own membership. The band also performed an acoustic set in the iconic rotunda before lead singer Brandon Lancaster gave a special dedication to the late Glen Campbell, as his Hall of Fame plaque was covered in flowers nearby.

Fans who were unable to attend the event can watch LANCO’s performance here.

 

Sony Music Nashville Joins John Mayer

Sony Music Nashville executives joined Columbia Records recording artist John Mayer and President of A&R, Mark Williams, last Tuesday night (Aug. 8) for Mayer’s sold-out stop on The Search For Everything Tour at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.

 

Ronnie & Janine Dunn Host Tennessee Riverkeeper Fundraiser

Ronnie and Janine Dunn hosted a fundraising event at their Nashville home on Aug. 5 to benefit the Tennessee Riverkeeper. Through generous donations from guests, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the event raised almost the entire yearly operating budget for the organization in just one evening.