Forbes’ list of The World’s 25 Highest-Paid Musicians includes country stars Taylor Swift, Toby Keith and Kenny Chesney.
Dr. Dre leads the list with $110 million in pretax earnings between May 2011 and May 2012. His popular Beats headphones helped him bop to the top. Coming in second and third are touring forces Roger Waters with $88 million, and Elton John with $80 million.
Swift was Nashville’s top grossing artist, coming in at No. 8 with $57 million, a tie with Sir. Paul McCartney. Swift’s touring revenue earned her a reported $1 million per night in addition to revenue from marketing partnerships with CoverGirl and others. She also pulled in income from album sales and publishing for writing her own songs.
Keith tied for 10th place with 18-year-old Justin Bieber, each bringing in $55 million. Keith’s revenue is due to his Ford sponsorship, successful I Love This Bar And Grill restaurant chain, as well as label, management, and publishing interests.
Chesney came in No. 17 on the list with $44 million earned mostly from 48 tour stops in the U.S. and Canada, and Corona and Hooters sponsorships. His album, Welcome To The Fishbowl, was also released this year.
Methodology: Forbes estimates are based on total earnings from May 2011 to May 2012—the amount of money an act makes from record sales, touring, endorsements, merchandise sales and other ventures before subtracting management fees, legal costs and taxes (which can gobble up the bulk of a big payday). The totals were compiled with the help of data from Pollstar, RIAA and others, as well as interviews with industry insiders including concert promoters, lawyers, managers, agents and, in some cases, the musicians themselves.
MIDEM Direct2Fan Camp
/by Jessica NicholsonArtists confirmed for the event’s Artists Speak to Artists sessions include Mark Hoppus of rock band Blink-182, singer-songwriter Julia Nunes and Paul Miller (aka DJ Spooky).
“Direct-to-fan is an increasingly effective tool for independent artists, labels, publishers, managers, marketers, and others in the music industry,” said Bruno Crolot, Reed MIDEM Director of Music Markets. “This rapidly developing strategy is being adopted by those looking to build and leverage a fan community. MIDEM’s Direct2Fan Camp is the place to find out how this vector can accelerate an artist’s career.”
Artists Added To GRAMMY Nominations Concert
/by MichelleLL COOL J and Taylor Swift will co-host the one-hour concert special. The show, which will announce nominations in several categories as well as feature performances by past GRAMMY winners and/or nominees will take place live for the first time at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Wednesday, Dec. 5, and will be broadcast on the CBS Television Network from 9 p.m. Central. Presenters will be announced shortly.
Longtime music and television producer Ken Ehrlich, and his production company AEG Ehrlich Ventures, will produce The GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!! — Countdown To Music’s Biggest Night and the 55th Annual GRAMMY Awards, continuing his long run as executive producer of Music’s Biggest Night.
‘Forbes’ Ranks 25 Highest-Paid Musicians
/by Sarah SkatesDr. Dre leads the list with $110 million in pretax earnings between May 2011 and May 2012. His popular Beats headphones helped him bop to the top. Coming in second and third are touring forces Roger Waters with $88 million, and Elton John with $80 million.
Swift was Nashville’s top grossing artist, coming in at No. 8 with $57 million, a tie with Sir. Paul McCartney. Swift’s touring revenue earned her a reported $1 million per night in addition to revenue from marketing partnerships with CoverGirl and others. She also pulled in income from album sales and publishing for writing her own songs.
Keith tied for 10th place with 18-year-old Justin Bieber, each bringing in $55 million. Keith’s revenue is due to his Ford sponsorship, successful I Love This Bar And Grill restaurant chain, as well as label, management, and publishing interests.
Chesney came in No. 17 on the list with $44 million earned mostly from 48 tour stops in the U.S. and Canada, and Corona and Hooters sponsorships. His album, Welcome To The Fishbowl, was also released this year.
Methodology: Forbes estimates are based on total earnings from May 2011 to May 2012—the amount of money an act makes from record sales, touring, endorsements, merchandise sales and other ventures before subtracting management fees, legal costs and taxes (which can gobble up the bulk of a big payday). The totals were compiled with the help of data from Pollstar, RIAA and others, as well as interviews with industry insiders including concert promoters, lawyers, managers, agents and, in some cases, the musicians themselves.
Snapshots (11/29/12)
/by MichelleJustin Moore recently headlined a benefit concert featuring his friends, Jake Owen, Randy Houser and Thomas Rhett at Nashville’s Wildhorse Saloon. The event raised funds for the Jersey Shore Relief Fund and his publicist Carly Caramanna of PLA Media, whose parent’s home and business were destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. The proceeds collected for the Caramanna family and the hurricane victims in New Jersey totaled over $20,000. The Caramanna family was also presented with a charitable donation from Big Machine Label Group and Scott Borchetta. “I was completely blown away by the Nashville community. Their love and support has kept us going through this difficult time,” said Carly.
(L-R): Cindy Salgado, Dakota Caramanna, Nancy Caramanna, Carly Caramanna, Justin Moore, Adam Wurtzel, Photo: Bev Moser
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Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood returned to Leogane, Haiti, to participate in Habitat for Humanity’s 29th annual Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project. They were among the nearly 600 volunteers who helped build 100 homes in the Santo community in partnership with families affected by the 2010 earthquake, which destroyed 105,000 homes.
(L-R): Brooks and Yearwood. Photo: George Hipple/Habitat for Humanity International
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Alan Jackson recently played for 30,000 people in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Jackson has returned to the US and is wrapping up his 2012 tour dates with three stops in Florida.
Big Ride Launches Booking Division
/by Eric T. ParkerPictured (L-R): Kim Leiske and Silver Treft
Big Ride Entertainment has launched an in-house booking division to join the newly relocated label services, management and artist development departments. Booking agent Silver Treft has been tapped lead the new division.
“In-house booking allows us to better provide complete services to our artists, specifically in the early stages of their careers,” said Big Ride Entertainment President Kim Leiske.
The new booking branch of the company is focusing on its roster including Marlee Scott, Craig Wayne Boyd, and Donny Fallgatter.
Treft was previously a booking and management services provider at West Virginia Radio Corporation. Her additional experience includes work as an event promoter and talent buyer for various artists.
For more information on the company, visit bigride.us.
Songwriters Sing For Good Causes
/by Sarah Skates• • • The 13th Annual “Nashville Unlimited” Christmas Concert will be held Tues., Dec. 11 at 7 p.m. in the sanctuary of Christ Church Cathedral downtown. The event will be hosted by musician/producer Dave Pomeroy and singer-songwriter Don Henry, who will perform along with Johnny Neel, Jonell Mosser, Gretchen Peters, The Ornaments featuring Jen Gunderman, Michael “Supe” Granda, Nashville Mandolin Ensemble, and more. Pomeroy has organized the concert benefiting Nashville’s Room In The Inn homeless program since 1992, raising over $150,000 for the cause. For the second year in a row, an anonymous donor has offered to match the funds raised at the concert. This boosted last year’s total to $18,000, the highest amount to date. Admission is a $20 suggested donation.
• • • The Women’s Music Business Association (WMBA) will host its annual Tunes for Tots toy drive and benefit show on Tues., Dec. 4 at 6:30 p.m. at Blue Bar/Lucy’s Country Café. Hit songwriters Bobby Pinson, Jeff Cohen, Rachel Thibodeau, and Jason Sever are slated to perform. Representatives from the U.S. Marines will be in attendance to collect toys and donations for the Toys for Tots Foundation. Admission is $5 or free with a new, unwrapped toy.
CRS 2013 Announces New Faces Show Lineup
/by Sherod RobertsonThe 2013 New Faces of Country Music Show will be held Friday, March 1, 2013, at Country Radio Seminar inside the downtown Nashville Convention Center. Co-sponsored by the Academy of Country Music and Muscular Dystrophy Association, the annual new artist showcase event officially closes out the three-day seminar.
“The response we received from Country radio during the voting process this year was superb,” says CRS Board President Mike Culotta. “The five acts chosen finished extremely strong in the voting and are certainly deserving of an appearance on our New Faces lineup. We’re looking forward to another dynamite evening of entertainment at Country Radio Seminar from these up and coming stars.”
Each New Faces artist will receive a custom-made pair of Lucchese boots. Lucchese is the official boot sponsor of the 2013 New Faces of Country Music Show.
The $499 Regular Registration rate for CRS 2013 is currently available at www.CountryRadioSeminar.com.
Swift To Headline ‘New Year’s Rockin’ Eve 2013′
/by Eric T. ParkerRyan Seacrest will again host the bi-coastal celebration from New York City’s Times Square, which will feature Swift, as well as Carly Rae Jepsen and Neon Trees. For the west coast feed, Fergie will return as host with performers Brandy, Flo Rida, Karmin, OneRepublic and Pitbull. Additional performers are expected to be announced in the coming month.
Preceding the countdown, Fergie and Jenny McCarthy will host a two-hour ABC celebration of Dick Clark, the legendary TV personality and producer who rang in the New Year for four decades. The special is scheduled to begin at 8:00 pm, ET (12/31).
Seacrest, Allen Shapiro and Orly Adelson serve as executive producers while Larry Klein produces.
Adele’s ’21’ Surpasses 10 Million in Sales
/by Eric T. ParkerShe has also received the RIAA Diamond Award, for shipments of 10 million units, making her the only artist or band in the last decade to earn the honor with a one-disc album less than two years after release.
21 continues to move units, selling 28,000 this past week. The album has remained on the charts since it debuted at No. 1, where it reigned for a SoundScan record of 24 non-consecutive weeks.
The album qualified for the blockbuster status within just 92 weeks of release, a feat only eight albums have achieved in two years (104 weeks) of debuting. These additional musical stalwarts include Shania Twain’s Come On Over, ‘N Sync’s No Strings Attached, Backstreet Boys’ Millennium, Santana’s Supernatural, Alanis Morissette’s Jagged Little Pill, The Bodyguard soundtrack, and Creed’s Human Clay.
SoundScan’s tracking service has been reporting data since 1991. Since then, the top 10 albums sold are:
*RIAA tallies shipments from record companies, while SoundScan tracks consumer purchases.
MusicRowPics: Joe Bachman
/by Caitlin RantalaArtist Joe Bachman and members of his band dropped by the MusicRow office yesterday afternoon (11/28) to perform and visit with the staff. He sang current single “Small Town Rock Stars” from his album, One, which was produced by Arlis Albritton & NV (New Voice Entertainment). Bachman and his band have been touring around the country for over 10 years.
The Philadelphia native also performed “Soldier’s Memoir,” a powerful and moving song about the struggles often faced by soldiers after returning home from war. All proceeds from the sale of the single benefit The Boot Campaign, Bachman’s favorite charity.
Jägermeister has been a supporter of Bachman for many years and he reciprocated by getting a large tattoo of the liquor maker’s logo on the back of his right arm. The sponsorship began after a representative from the liquor company observed him offering shots of Jäger at one of his concerts.
For more information, visit www.joebachman.com.
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