The 2015 slate of Songwriters Hall of Fame nominees for induction were announced today (Oct. 16) by SHOF President/CEO Linda Moran. The New York-based organization, which is dedicated to recognizing the work and lives of composers and lyricists who create popular music around the world, holds annual elections to determine those who will make up the roster of inductees for the following year.
Nashville songwriters in the running are Bobby Braddock and Bob McDill in the Non-Performing Songwriters category, and Vince Gill, Toby Keith and Steve Winwood in the Performing Songwriters category.
Other nominees include Non-performing: Mike Chapman/Nicky Chinn, Rudy Clark, Randy Edelman, Robert Hunter/Jerry Garcia, Sandy Linzer/Denny Randell, Linda Perry, P.F. Sloan/Steve Barri, William “Mickey” Stevenson, Rod Temperton, and Allee Willis; and Performing Songwriters: Harry Wayne “K.C.” Casey, Elvis Costello, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, Gloria Estefan, Yusuf Islam “Cat Stevens,” Cyndi Lauper, Steve Miller, Tom Petty, and Ann Wilson & Nancy Wilson (Heart).
Eligible voting members will have until Dec. 15, 2014 to turn in ballots with their choices of three nominees from the non-performing category and two from the performing category. For information on joining or renewing as a voting member in order to participate in this election, go to songhall.org/join before Nov. 17.
Bobby Braddock
The 2015 Annual Awards Gala will take place at the New York Marriott Marquis on Thursday, June 18.
From the Song Hall:
Bobby Braddock—Bobby Braddock became a songwriter in Nashville in the mid-1960s, and many of his songs, such as “D.I.V.O.R.C.E,” “Golden Ring,” “Time Marches On,” and “I Wanna Talk About Me” are country music standards. “He Stopped Loving Her Today” has led most surveys as the best country song of all time. Braddock’s most recent No. 1 composition was in 2009: “People Are Crazy.” In 2011 he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, received the annual BMI Icon Award, and in 2012 received the ACM Poet’s Award. He has received six CMA Song of the Year nominations, winning twice. Braddock is the only living person to have written No. 1 country songs in five consecutive decades.
Bob McDill
—After scoring minor hits in the late 1960s for Perry Como and Sam the Sam and the Pharaohs, Bob McDill found his place in country music, especially with Don Williams. His big hits for Williams included “Say It Again,” “She Never Knew Me” and “Amanda,” which was also a major hit for Waylon Jennings. The prodigious writer, who wrote one song a week for 30 years, also placed major hits with the likes of Alabama (“Song Of The South”), Mel McDaniel (“Baby’s Got Her Blue Jeans On”), Alan Jackson (“Gone Country”), Anne Murray, The Kendalls, and Bobby Bare, who recorded a full album of McDill songs entitled
Me And McDill. The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee’s catalog includes over 30 No. 1 hits, and his shelf displays numerous BMI Songwriter of the Year trophies.
Vince Gill
—One of the most celebrated songwriters—and artists—in country music history, Vince Gill first came to fame as songwriter and performer in Pure Prairie League. After going solo as a country artist, he broke ground in winning three straight CMA Awards for Song of the Year from 1991 to 1993: “When I Call Your Name,” “Look At Us” and “I Still Believe In You” (he won it again in 1996 for “Go Rest High On That Mountain”). Inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005, Gill was also named the Nashville Songwriters Association International’s Songwriter/Artist of the Decade for 1990-1999 and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2007. He has had songs covered by many others ranging from Alabama to Rosanne Cash. Other key songs in the Gill catalog include: “Don’t Let Our Love Start Slippin’ Away,” “If You Ever Have Forever In Mind,” “Never Knew Lonely,” and “One More Last Chance.”
Toby Keith
—Country music superstar Toby Keith was named
Billboard’s top country artist and songwriter of the 21st Century’s first decade, finishing behind only Eminem and Britney Spears on the decade’s all-genre
Billboard 200 chart. Among his numerous self-penned hits are such country chart-toppers as “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” “I Love This Bar,” “As Good As I Once Was” and “American Soldier.” Indeed, Keith has written at least one No. 1 country single over each of the past 20 years. Other key songs in the Keith catalog include: “He Ain’t Worth Missing,” “How Do You Like Me Now,” “Wish I Didn’t Know Now” and “Who’s Your Daddy.”
Steve Winwood
—Only 15 when he joined England’s Spencer Davis Group, Steve Winwood co-wrote and sang on that 1960s band’s hits “Gimme Some Lovin’” and “I’m A Man.” But he left shortly thereafter to form the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group Traffic, then joined Eric Clapton in the short-lived supergroup Blind Faith—for which he wrote “Can’t Find My Way Home.” After reuniting with Traffic, he went solo and delivered such huge hits as the chart-topping compositions “Higher Love” and “Roll With It.” Other key songs in the Winwood catalog include “Back In The High Life Again,” “Dear Mr. Fantasy,” “Can’t Find My Way Home” and “Gimme Some Lovin.’”
Details here.
Hank Williams Biopic Begins Production
/by Sarah SkatesTom Hiddleston and Rodney Crowell via Facebook.
Production of the Hank Williams biopic I Saw The Light is underway in Louisiana. Tom Hiddleston and Elizabeth Olsen star as the late singer and his wife Audrey Mae Williams. Rodney Crowell is working on music for the project.
Hiddleston is an English actor known for his role in The Avengers franchise. Olsen, who also played in The Avengers, is the younger sister of Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen.
Elizabeth Olsen
Rounding out the cast is David Krumholtz (The Judge, Numb3rs) who plays a journalist, Josh Pais (The Good Wife, Law & Order: SVU) who plays MGM film studio exec Dore Schary, James DuMont (Get On Up, Dallas Buyers Club) who plays a music promoter, and Wrenn Schmidt (Boardwalk Empire) who plays Williams’ mistress Bobbie Jett, mother of Jett Williams.
The RatPac Entertainment and Bron Studios film is being directed by Marc Abraham who wrote the screenplay based on Colin Escott’s biography. RatPac’s Brett Ratner and Bron Studios Aaron L. Gilbert are producing alongside G. Marq Roswell and Abraham.
Spalding Entertainment Teams With Maverick Managers
/by Sarah SkatesClarence Spalding
Clarence Spalding’s Spalding Entertainment, management for Jason Aldean, Rascal Flatts, Kix Brooks, Terri Clark and Seth Alley, is joining a new powerhouse music managers consortium called Maverick. The group is led by Guy Oseary, manager for U2 and Madonna, and is also affiliated with Michael Rapino-led Live Nation, according to Billboard.
On board with Maverick are Quest Management’s Scott Rodger (Paul McCartney, Arcade Fire), Laffitte Management’s Ron Laffitte (OneRepublic, Ryan Tedder, Alicia Keys), I Am Other’s Caron Veazey (Pharrell), Blueprint Group’s Gee Roberson and Cortez Bryant (Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne, T.I.) and Reign Deer’s Larry Rudolph and Adam Leber (Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus).
Billboard reports, “All nine will be joining their companies and rebranding them and their respective employees as ‘Maverick’…The Maverick managers, including leader Oseary, will report to Rapino and Live Nation’s Artist Nation management group…Oseary, Laffitte, Quest and Reign Deer already moved into Artist Nation’s spacious new headquarters in Beverly Hills earlier this year, while Blueprint will maintain its New York office and Spalding will stay in Nashville.”
Guy Oseary
Live Nation’s Artist Nation management division has more than 50 managers and 200 artists. Nashville managers already affiliated with Artist Nation include Ken Levitan’s Vector Management (Trace Adkins, Trisha Yearwood, Hank Williams Jr., Kenny Rogers, Love And Theft, Aaron Lewis, Blackberry Smoke, Drake White, Justin Adams, Emmylou Harris, Rodney Crowell, Buddy Miller, Kings of Leon) and Virginia Davis’ G Major Management (Jewel, Thomas Rhett, Danielle Bradbery).
Maverick will have connections across the members’ vast networks, ranging from live events and touring (Live Nation) to technology (Oseary’s A-Grade tech fund with Ashton Kutcher and Ron Burkle has investments including Shazam, Uber, Spotify, Soundcloud, Pinterest).
The name Maverick comes from Madonna’s Maverick Records, which Oseary previously headed.
Bucking the trend, earlier this year Morris Management Group (Kenny Chesney, Martina McBride, Jake Owen) and Artist Nation parted ways, and the company reconfigured as Morris Higham Management.
Technophobes Beware: TV Unbundled, Apple, Twitter
/by Eric T. ParkerIs unbundled television finally here? With the growing trend of television consumption online, HBO and CBS have recently announced moves to offer content free of traditional bundle services.
Yesterday (Oct. 16), CBS launched a digital subscription for its Nielsen-measured live streaming service and video on demand, available at cbs.com or the CBS App on iOS and Android. At launch, CBS All Access will offer thousands of episodes from the current season, previous seasons and classic shows on demand, in addition to local CBS-TV stations live from 14 of the largest U.S. markets, including New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas, San Francisco, Boston, Detroit, Minneapolis, Miami, Denver, Sacramento, Pittsburgh and Baltimore, with more to be added.
On Wednesday (Oct. 15), HBO chairman and CEO Richard Plepler announced during the Time Warner Investor Meeting that the company will offer a stand-alone HBO streaming service in the U.S. for 2015.
Non-subscribers will continue to have access to the most recent current episodes of CBS programming on CBS.com, select CBS Audience Network partner sites and the CBS App. Programming will be available the day after the shows air on TV, with an eight-day delay on mobile devices for primetime series only.
Citing growth opportunities inside the pay-TV universe, Plepler noted of the ten million broadband-only homes, “That is a large and growing opportunity that should no longer be left untapped. It is time to remove all barriers to those who want HBO.”
• • •
Finger sensors will enable in-app purchases on more devices with Apple Pay, which was announced Sept. 9 and will become available Monday (Oct. 20) alongside the first upgrade of iOS 8.
OS X Yosemite, new desktop operating system, has become available immediately. Corresponding hardware updates include a thinner, Retina Display iMac and upgraded Mac Mini. For developers, the software tool kit for the Apple Watch is expected next month, with hardware released early next year.
Apple shares fell 1.3 percent after the announcement, closing at $96.26.
• • •
This comes after last year’s failed attempt with Twitter’s #Music app, which was aimed at harnessing artist and track conversations for music discovery. Kevin Thau, then responsible for the creation of Twitter Music, departed Twitter less than one week after the app’s 2013 launch.
ASCAP Celebrates Currington's No. 1 Song "We Are Tonight"
/by Troy_StephensonPictured (L-R): Co-writer Marc Beeson, Billy Currington, co-writers Sam Hunt and Josh Osborne. Photo: Ed Rode
Billy Currington’s No. 1 hit “We Are Tonight” was celebrated on Wednesday afternoon (Oct. 15) at the ASCAP Building in Nashville. Along with songwriters Josh Osborne, Sam Hunt, and Marc Beeson, this was an all-ASCAP party.
For Currington, “We Are Tonight” marks his 9th No. 1 song as an artist and is the second consecutive No. 1 from his latest album.
Produced by Dann Huff, it is his 39th No. 1 as a producer. When he heard the title of the song, he hoped that it would be as great as the title. “When I heard the song, it hit me in that ‘sweet spot’ and I knew it was a hit,” said Huff.
Hit song writer Shane McAnally spoke at the party as did Osborne’s wife Toni, UMG’s Mike Dungan, and members of the CMA and CRS. Mercury Records’ Bruce Shindler was in attendance and was recognized for his career and this being his last No. 1. He will retire at the end of 2014.
Hunt, who has his own hit on the radio with “Leave The Night On,” was thankful for the songwriting community. This is Hunt’s second No. 1 song as a writer.
Osborne recalled a story of his mother meeting Billy backstage at one of his shows over the summer and she told him that she looked forward to seeing him at a No. 1 party for this song. Osborne said he is glad his mom’s proclamation came true. She was also in attendance at the party to celebrate with her son.
Beeson’s last No. 1 song was over 20 years ago with Restless Heart’s “When She Cries.” He hopes that he can “tweak this No. 1 song every 20 years thing.”
Currington was thankful for his team at Mercury Records. “I’ve been on the same team since the beginning and I never want that to change. I’m thankful.”
Pictured (L-R, front row): Beeson, Currington, Hunt, Osborne, (back row) UMG Nashville’s Mike Dungan, publisher Old Gringo/Vibe Room’s Chris Hunter, ASCAP’s LeAnn Phelan, producer Dann Huff, Warner/Chappell Music Publishing’s Blain Rhodes and Smack Blue Publishing’s Shane McAnally. Photo: Ed Rode
Dan + Shay Celebrates First Gold Single
/by Jessica NicholsonPictured (L-R): Todd Ramey, Sandbox Entertainment; Scott Hendricks, EVP, A&R WMN; Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney; John Esposito, President & CEO WMN; Jason Owen, Sandbox Entertainment
WMN duo Dan + Shay’s Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney were recently honored with their first Gold plaque in Nashville, prior to their concert at Nashville’s Cannery Ballroom, as part of their Where It All Began Tour.
Their debut single “19 You+Me” has garnered more than 720,000 in sales, earning gold status from the RIAA.
The duo was recently nominated for a 2014 CMA Award for Vocal Duo of the Year. They are also slated to perform on NBC’s Today Show on Thursday (Oct. 23), prior to their New York City performance at Highline Ballroom that same evening.
Weekly Chart Report (10/17/14)
/by Troy_StephensonClick here or above to access MusicRow‘s weekly CountryBreakout Report
No. 1 Party: Meghan Trainor's "All About That Bass"
/by Sherod Robertson(L-R): ASCAP’s LeAnn Phelan, Atom Factory’s Ty Stiklorius, Big Yellow Dog Music’s Carla Wallace, Meghan Trainor, Kevin Kadish, Sony/ATV’s Troy Tomlinson, Epic’s Paul Pontius, Sony/ATV’s Abbey Adams, ASCAP’s Michael Martin and ASCAP’s John Titta. Photo: Ed Rode
ASCAP’s LeAnn Phelan, John Titta and Michael Martin welcomed an enthusiastic crowd to the celebration for Nashville resident and pop sensation Meghan Trainor whose “All About That Bass” hit the No. 1 spot on the charts for six weeks. The song was written and co-produced by Trainor and Kevin Kadish.
Attendees were excited to pay homage to the massive hit at the invitation-only soirée at Music City Tippler on Tuesday, Oct. 14.
Sony/ATV’s Troy Tomlinson stated, “This is a very righteous moment.” Referring to recent Sony/ATV admin signee Kadish, Tomlinson revealed, “This is the first No. 1 party that he’s ever even attended.”
Kadish is from Baltimore, Maryland and lived in N.Y. and L.A. before settling in Nashville in 2007 with his family. He told the crowd, “As songwriters we face 99 percent rejection in our lives. It makes it sweeter.”
Looking down at his prepared speech, an emotional Kadish added, “I have this whole thing written and it doesn’t matter.” Glancing over at Meghan, Kadish added, “The first day you walked into my studio. The first time I heard you sing. Look at you! I’m so proud to have been a part of this. You are made of music.”
Big Yellow Dog CEO Carla Wallace shared how she first met Trainor when she was only 17 and quickly wanted to pursue signing her as a writer. Wallace wittingly quipped, “Like any great relationship, we waited until she was 18. And then we hit the ground running.”
Trainor addressed the party goers confessing, “I’m so nauseous and emotional.” Then she shared her experience as a 13-year-old artist when she went to her parents and asked, “Why am I not a superstar? I don’t understand. I’m killin’ it over here in my bedroom!” Giving gratitude to her parents for helping her follow that dream, she said, “It’s so worth it! Thank you so much for believing in me when I was 13.”
Trainor added, “Carla saw something that a lot of people did not see. I love you like a second mom.”
She recounted her first meeting in the studio with Kadish when she told him, “Let’s just write something great for the world.” Adding, “I think we did it.”
“All About That Bass” is featured on Trainor’s EP Title, which is nearing triple platinum status and the video has been viewed over 150 million times.
Nashvillians Score NY Songwriters Hall of Fame Nominations
/by Sarah SkatesNashville songwriters in the running are Bobby Braddock and Bob McDill in the Non-Performing Songwriters category, and Vince Gill, Toby Keith and Steve Winwood in the Performing Songwriters category.
Other nominees include Non-performing: Mike Chapman/Nicky Chinn, Rudy Clark, Randy Edelman, Robert Hunter/Jerry Garcia, Sandy Linzer/Denny Randell, Linda Perry, P.F. Sloan/Steve Barri, William “Mickey” Stevenson, Rod Temperton, and Allee Willis; and Performing Songwriters: Harry Wayne “K.C.” Casey, Elvis Costello, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, Gloria Estefan, Yusuf Islam “Cat Stevens,” Cyndi Lauper, Steve Miller, Tom Petty, and Ann Wilson & Nancy Wilson (Heart).
Eligible voting members will have until Dec. 15, 2014 to turn in ballots with their choices of three nominees from the non-performing category and two from the performing category. For information on joining or renewing as a voting member in order to participate in this election, go to songhall.org/join before Nov. 17.
Bobby Braddock
The 2015 Annual Awards Gala will take place at the New York Marriott Marquis on Thursday, June 18.
From the Song Hall:
Bobby Braddock—Bobby Braddock became a songwriter in Nashville in the mid-1960s, and many of his songs, such as “D.I.V.O.R.C.E,” “Golden Ring,” “Time Marches On,” and “I Wanna Talk About Me” are country music standards. “He Stopped Loving Her Today” has led most surveys as the best country song of all time. Braddock’s most recent No. 1 composition was in 2009: “People Are Crazy.” In 2011 he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, received the annual BMI Icon Award, and in 2012 received the ACM Poet’s Award. He has received six CMA Song of the Year nominations, winning twice. Braddock is the only living person to have written No. 1 country songs in five consecutive decades.
Bob McDill
Bob McDill—After scoring minor hits in the late 1960s for Perry Como and Sam the Sam and the Pharaohs, Bob McDill found his place in country music, especially with Don Williams. His big hits for Williams included “Say It Again,” “She Never Knew Me” and “Amanda,” which was also a major hit for Waylon Jennings. The prodigious writer, who wrote one song a week for 30 years, also placed major hits with the likes of Alabama (“Song Of The South”), Mel McDaniel (“Baby’s Got Her Blue Jeans On”), Alan Jackson (“Gone Country”), Anne Murray, The Kendalls, and Bobby Bare, who recorded a full album of McDill songs entitled Me And McDill. The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee’s catalog includes over 30 No. 1 hits, and his shelf displays numerous BMI Songwriter of the Year trophies.
Vince Gill
Vince Gill—One of the most celebrated songwriters—and artists—in country music history, Vince Gill first came to fame as songwriter and performer in Pure Prairie League. After going solo as a country artist, he broke ground in winning three straight CMA Awards for Song of the Year from 1991 to 1993: “When I Call Your Name,” “Look At Us” and “I Still Believe In You” (he won it again in 1996 for “Go Rest High On That Mountain”). Inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005, Gill was also named the Nashville Songwriters Association International’s Songwriter/Artist of the Decade for 1990-1999 and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2007. He has had songs covered by many others ranging from Alabama to Rosanne Cash. Other key songs in the Gill catalog include: “Don’t Let Our Love Start Slippin’ Away,” “If You Ever Have Forever In Mind,” “Never Knew Lonely,” and “One More Last Chance.”
Toby Keith
Toby Keith—Country music superstar Toby Keith was named Billboard’s top country artist and songwriter of the 21st Century’s first decade, finishing behind only Eminem and Britney Spears on the decade’s all-genre Billboard 200 chart. Among his numerous self-penned hits are such country chart-toppers as “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” “I Love This Bar,” “As Good As I Once Was” and “American Soldier.” Indeed, Keith has written at least one No. 1 country single over each of the past 20 years. Other key songs in the Keith catalog include: “He Ain’t Worth Missing,” “How Do You Like Me Now,” “Wish I Didn’t Know Now” and “Who’s Your Daddy.”
Steve Winwood
Steve Winwood—Only 15 when he joined England’s Spencer Davis Group, Steve Winwood co-wrote and sang on that 1960s band’s hits “Gimme Some Lovin’” and “I’m A Man.” But he left shortly thereafter to form the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group Traffic, then joined Eric Clapton in the short-lived supergroup Blind Faith—for which he wrote “Can’t Find My Way Home.” After reuniting with Traffic, he went solo and delivered such huge hits as the chart-topping compositions “Higher Love” and “Roll With It.” Other key songs in the Winwood catalog include “Back In The High Life Again,” “Dear Mr. Fantasy,” “Can’t Find My Way Home” and “Gimme Some Lovin.’”
Details here.
57th Annual Grammy Awards First-Round Voting Now Open
/by Jessica NicholsonMore than 20,000 entries were received, of which 17,144 remained valid. Nominations for the 57th Grammy Awards will be announced the first week of December. Final ballots will be released Dec. 17, 2014.
The 57th annual Grammy Awards’ eligibility period is from Oct. 1, 2013 through Sept. 30, 2014, and includes 83 categories in 30 fields.
The 57th annual Grammy Awards will be held Sunday, Feb. 8, 2015, at Staples Center in Los Angeles, and will be broadcast on CBS Television.
2015 Bonnaroo Dates Revealed
/by Eric T. ParkerTickets for the upcoming festival are not yet available. Early bird registration is expected soon.
In celebration of the announcement, the festival released its 2014 recap video.
The four-day festival launched in 2002 with little traditional advertising and sold out its 70,000 tickets in 11 days. Since then, organizers have continued to expand, reaching more than 90,000 for the 2014 event.