Weekly Chart Report (7/8/11)

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Tim McGraw pauses for a picture backstage with WCJW PD/MD Lee Richey following his performance in Darien Lake, NY.


SPIN ZONE
The top of the CountryBreakout Chart gets a changeup, as Luke Bryan’s “Country Girl (Shake It For Me)” shimmies up to the No. 1 position after a two week run by Dierks Bentley. Lady Antebellum’s “Just A Kiss” is just a short distance behind at No. 2, and packs on an additional 215 spins for this chart. Zac Brown Band and Jimmy Buffett’s “Knee Deep” closes up the gap from No. 6-3, followed by Trace Adkins’ “Just Fishin’” and Eric Church’s “Homeboy.”
If he’s not careful, Keith Urban’s “Long Hot Summer” may hit No. 1 before summer’s even halfway over. The Aussie star’s latest has consistently piled on over 400 new spins since charting two weeks ago, and rapidly moved up to No. 24 as a result. Also in the “moving super fast” category is George Strait’s “Here For A Good Time,” which is already up to No. 16 after 5 weeks. Similarly Ronnie Dunn’s “Cost of Livin’” has jumped to No. 27 in four weeks thanks to a few 300-plus spin gains. A few spots back is Rascal Flatts’ “Easy” featuring Natasha Bedingfield, which is already up to No. 38 in its second week charting.
A quick look at the Most Added column below reveals that we’ve got new music from Taylor Swift on the way. “Sparks Fly” was reported by 18 stations, the week’s second most added, and is poised for a big debut on next week’s chart. Also on the verge of making chart debuts are new ones from indie darlings Katie Armiger (“I Do But Do I”), Craig Morgan (“This Ole Boy”) and Eric Lee Beddingfield (“Great Depression”).
Frozen Playlists: KCJC, KVOM, KXKZ, KYEZ, KYYK, WBKR, WEIO, WHWK, WKWS, WTCR




Upcoming Singles
July 11
Jason Sturgeon/The Cover/Toolpusher/Spinville
Christian Kane/Let Me Go/Bigger Picture
Katie Armiger/I Do But Do I/Cold River
Ashton Shepherd/Where Country Grows/MCA
Billy Ray Cyrus/Runway Lights/Buena Vista/CO5
Jason Cassidy/Honky Tonk Heaven/A-Blake/Quarterback
July 12
Royal Wade Kimes/500 Miles Away From Home/Wonderment
July 18
LeAnn Rimes/Give/Curb
Craig Morgan/This Ole Boy/Black River
Kristin Chenoweth/I Want Somebody/Sony/CO5
Taylor Swift/Sparks Fly/Big Machine
Darren Warren/Cowboy Up and Party Down/NuCorp/Nine North
•  •  •  •
New On The Chart—Debuting This Week
Artist/song/label — chart pos.
D.J. Miller/Between Sundays/Evergreen/Nine North/Spinville — 73
Susan Hickman/Just Missed This Train/4 L Clover Entertainment — 75
Sawyer Brown/Smokin’ Hot Wife — 76
JB & The Moonshine Band/Whiskey Days/Average Joe’s — 77
Darren Warren/Cowboy Up and Party Down/NuCorp — 78
Deborah Allen/Anything Other Than Love/Delta Rock — 79
Greatest Spin Increase
Artist/song/label — spin+
Keith Urban/Long Hot Summer/Capitol — 552
George Strait/Here For A Good Time/MCA — 369
Ronnie Dunn/Cost Of Livin’/Arista — 349
Toby Keith/Made In America/Show Dog — Universal — 342
Alan Jackson/Long Way To Go/EMI — 313
Most Added
Artist/song/label — New Adds
Keith Urban/Long Hot Summer/Capitol — 19
Taylor Swift/Sparks Fly/Big Machine — 18
Rascal Flatts f. Natasha Bedingfield/Easy/Big Machine — 16
Ronnie Dunn/Cost Of Livin’/Arista — 15
Shania Twain/Today Is Your Day/Mercury — 15
Alan Jackson/Long Way To Go/EMI — 13
JT Hodges/Hunt You Down/Show Dog-Universal — 11
Eric Lee Beddingfield/Great Depression/Rebel Dawg Music — 11
Jerrod Niemann/One More Drinkin’ Song/Sea Gayle/Arista — 11
Craig Morgan/This Ole Boy/Black River Entertainment — 10
Kellie Pickler/Tough/BNA — 10
On Deck—Soon To Be Charting
Artist/song/label — spins
Taylor Swift/Sparks Fly/Big Machine — 221
Katie Armiger/I Do But Do I/Cold River — 220
Craig Morgan/This Ole Boy/Black River Entertainment — 218
Susan Cattaneo/Girls Night Out/Jersey Girl Music — 218
Eric Lee Beddingfield/Great Depression/Rebel Dawg Music — 207

James Wesley and Randy Montana are opening Taylor Swift’s massive Speak Now Tour, and recently visited with WKLB when the show rolled through Boston. (L-R): Wesley, WKLB's Ginny Rogers, Montana


Toolpusher Records' Jason Sturgeon and his Jack Russell terrier Max stopped at WUSY/Chattanooga to visit with Dex & Mo. Sturgeon’s new single "The Cover" goes for adds July 11, and his 2011 Rollin' On Tour is hitting cities all over. (L-R): WUSY's Brian Stewart, Sturgeon, WUSY's Mo Paige and Bill Pointdexter, Toolpusher Records Project Manager Dennis Kurtz. Front and center is Max, Sturgeon's Jack Russell Terrier.


David St. Romain stopped by WBBN in Laurel, MS and visted with B95's afternoon on-air personality Dan Preston and PD Andy Webb. (L-R): Preston, St. Romain and Webb.

Sales Strategy Shakedown

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Every album launch has a different set of objectives for marketers on Music Row. Influencing these goals are the artist’s past sales, level of stardom, lead single success and more. With new albums coming from Blake Shelton, Chris Young and Ashton Shepherd, Tuesday’s (7/12) release schedule is a prime example of why sales expectations are different for every act.
Blake Shelton
After a decade of hard work, he’s at the pinnacle of his career thus far. And Soundscan watchers expect Red River Blue to bring big debut week sales. A key indicator is that lead single “Honey Bee” has already sold one million digital downloads.
Shelton has a lot going in his favor. As he releases his eighth project, he is Warner Nashville’s biggest active star and has full label team support. 2010 and 2011 have been his best years yet: winning CMA Male Vocalist of the Year, and putting out two successful Six Paks. Not to mention the boat load of publicity from his coaching gig on The Voice, and marrying fellow star Miranda Lambert.
Chris Young
Young’s career has been building steam over the last year and could be set to explode. He is primed for solid sales of Neon, given that lead single “Tomorrow” has already moved 550,000-plus downloads.
Young is on a roll at radio, with three consecutive No. 1’s, including “Voices,” which made an unlikely climb to the top of the charts more than two years after its original release. His sophomore RCA album The Man I Want To Be is approaching Gold sales status.
Ashton Shepherd
With the pending release of her sophomore effort, MCA’s Ashton Shepherd is still building her career. Just like her 2008 debut, the new Where Country Grows is getting great reviews from high profile outlets like Rolling Stone and Entertainment Weekly.
What she has in her favor is critical praise, what she is lacking is a blockbuster hit. Lead single “Look It Up” made it into the Top 20, and the title track follow-up is going for adds Monday (7/11).
It’s been about three years since the release of her debut album Sounds So Good. Waiting so long between projects doesn’t help keep fans hooked, hence Shelton’s Six Pak strategy.
• • •
All three artists are offering pre-order incentives to drive first-week sales. And all are set for high-profile television appearances. Shelton will perform tomorrow (7/8) on the Today Show’s Summer Concert Series. Also tomorrow, catch Shepherd on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Young is set for Good Morning America on release day (7/12) and Jimmy Kimmel Live! later this month (7/27). Do TV performances influence sales? Weigh-in with a comment below.

Billy Ray Cyrus, Craig Morgan Star in TV Series

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Pictured at the Opry Duck Hunt (L-R): Craig Morgan, Jim Ed Brown, Little Jimmy Dickens, Blake Shelton, Marty Roe, and Troy Gentry


Billy Ray Cyrus is starring in a new series on TLC, and Craig Morgan’s show just returned to the Outdoor Channel for a second season.
The first episode of Craig Morgan: All Access Outdoors followed the singer to the 40th annual Opry Duck Hunt in Mississippi where
 he joined fellow Opry stars Blake Shelton, Diamond Rio’s Marty Roe, Montgomery Gentry’s Troy Gentry, Jim Ed Brown and Little Jimmy Dickens.
 The series airs Saturday mornings at 10:00 a.m. CT.

Billy Ray Cyrus on "Surprise Homecoming."


Cyrus’s new show on TLC debuts Monday, July 11 at 9 p.m. CT. In Surprise Homecoming, the star reunites families with their military loved ones who have been serving overseas.
Cyrus’s new single, “Runway Lights,” is the series’ theme song. It is from his Buena Vista Records album I’m American, which features guests Amy Grant, and veterans turned country stars Morgan, Jamey Johnson, and Darryl Worley.
As previously reported, Zac Brown is also starring in a show for the Outdoor Channel called Fear No Evil.

Bluegrass Awards Set Nominations Date

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Sam Bush


Planning is well underway for this fall’s International Bluegrass Music Awards. A date to announce nominations has been set, and bluegrass star Sam Bush has been tapped to host the show.
The 22nd annual International Bluegrass Music Awards will be presented Thurs., Sept. 29 at 7:30 p.m. at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium.
Bush is a multi-instrumentalist who has been honored with Grammys, IBMA Awards and the Americana Music Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
It’s especially fitting that Bush, one of the genre’s premier mandolin players, will host the awards show the same month that the Father of Bluegrass Music Bill Monroe would have turned 100 years old.
Nominations for the International Bluegrass Music Awards will be announced at a press conference on Wed., Aug. 17, 5-6 p.m. CT at The Loveless Barn in Nashville.
For more information on the World of Bluegrass, which includes the awards, fan events, and a business conference, go to www.ibma.org.

Rights Holders Team With ISPs To Fight Piracy

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Copyright holders have teamed with Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to fight copyright infringement via illegal downloading. A first-of-its-kind plan for notifying those accused of stealing copyrighted material was announced today (7/7).
The RIAA, Motion Picture Association of America and others have paired with the country’s biggest ISPs including Comcast Corp., Time Warner Cable, Verizon and AT&T to form the Center for Copyright Information (CCI). Today’s announcement is the result of negotiations that began in December 2008.
Under the new agreement, illegal downloaders will receive emails and pop-up alerts warning them that their Internet accounts are possibly being used for illegal activity. These “copyright alerts” will include educational messages designed to let the file-sharer know that they are engaging in unlawful behavior. The notifications would be sent by the ISP, after receiving notice from a copyright holder.
Under the new arrangement, the offender’s Internet service would not be shut off, but could be slowed. Also, the illegal downloader might be forced to discuss the situation with his or her ISP.
According to today’s report, content theft is estimated to cost the U.S. economy $58 billion, 373,000 American jobs and $16 billion in lost employee earnings every year.
Steve Bogard, songwriter and Pres. of the NSAI Board of Directors, reiterates the importance of today’s news. “Over the past decade, songwriters, as the wellspring of music creation in America, have seen their incomes decimated and their numbers dwindle by more than two thirds,” he says. “Illegal file sharing has caused much of this devastation. This agreement will drastically reduce illegal file sharing and help law abiding Americans realize that this country can’t make the world’s greatest music and movies unless the creators are compensated. This loss of income is not just to rich recording and movie stars. It hurts all the support industries and occupations that employ hundreds of thousands of hard working Americans.”
This program is designed to provide a common framework of “best practices” for the industry. No new laws or formal legal procedures have been created. However, under current law, copyright owners were already allowed to seek remedies for infringement. ISPs will not share subscribers’ personal information with content owners except under court order.
Data from the CCI suggests that most users (up to 70%) would stop content theft once alerted that it is occurring, that it is illegal and that there are consequences associated with continuing to engage in it.

New Music From Terri Clark Coming Soon

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Terri Clark has a new album set for release later this month. Roots and Wings will be available digitally starting July 26, followed by a physical release on Sept. 13.
This is the star’s first new music since her 2009 album The Long Way Home.
The Canadian born singer produced the new collection, and co-wrote almost all of the 10 tracks. For the songs she teamed with top-notch co-writers like Kristen Hall, Tia Sillers, Tom Shapiro, Jim Collins and Jim Rushing. She also recruited Alison Krauss, Sonya Isaacs, and Hall for backing vocals.
Recorded at studios in Nashville and Toronto, Clark tapped all-star session musicians including Kenny Greenberg, Stuart Duncan, Andrea Zonn, Glen Worff, Bryan Sutton and Dan Dugmore.
Roots and Wings is available for pre-order at her website.

Since debuting in 1995 with hit “Better Things To Do,” Clark has charted 11 Top 10 hits, and won numerous awards. She has received the fan-voted Canadian Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year honor eight times, and won two Juno Awards.
Roots and Wings track listing:
“Wrecking Ball” (Terri Clark, Tia Sillers, Victoria Banks)
“Breakin’ Up Thing” (Terri Clark, Kristen Hall)
“The One” (Terri Clark, Tom Shapiro, Jim Collins)
“Northern Girl” (Terri Clark, Kristen Hall)
“Beautiful and Broken” (Terri Clark, Kristen Hall)
“The Good Was Great” (Terri Clark, Tia Sillers, Deric Ruttan)
“Lonesome’s Last Call” (Terri Clark, Jim Rushing)
“Smile” [featuring Alison Krauss] (Terri Clark, Karyn Rochelle)
“We’re Here for a Good Time” (Ramon McGuire, Brian Smith)
“Flowers in Snow” (Terri Clark, Kristen Hall)

CMA Music Festival TV Special Adds Star Power

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Alabama with Brad Paisley onstage at LP Field. Photo: Donn Jones / CMA


Star appearances on the CMA Music Festival television concert special keep stacking up. Performances added to the lineup include Country Music Hall of Fame inductee Alabama with reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year Brad Paisley; The Band Perry at LP Field; a late-night jam with Luke Bryan, Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow; Josh Turner singing with Idol champ Scotty McCreery; Gretchen Wilson partying with Big & Rich; and Alan Jackson performing with Zac Brown Band.
CMA Music Festival: Country’s Night to Rock airs Sunday, Aug. 7 on the ABC Television Network.
Elsewhere during the special, cameras follow McCreery and Lauren Alaina at their first CMA Music Festival appearances; Lady Antebellum field questions submitted by fans; as well as candid interviews with Taylor Swift and Shania Twain.
Previously announced performers include Lauren Alaina with Martina McBride, Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson, Sara Evans, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Rascal Flatts, Reba, Darius Rucker, Blake Shelton, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, and Keith Urban.

Hot Events at the Hall

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The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum has an excellent line-up of events over the next few weeks, starting tomorrow night (7/9) with Stealing Angels at the Hot Nights at the Hall concert series. Doors open at 6:00 p.m., followed by the performance at 7:00 p.m.
One highlight will be a program at RCA Studio B featuring a discussion with Elvis Presley‘s famed sidemen Harold Bradley, David Briggs and Norbert Putnam. Legends of RCA Studio B: Conversations with All the King’s Men takes place Tues., Aug. 9 at 7:30 p.m. Proceeds will benefit the Museum’s educational mission. Tickets here.
On Saturday, July 9 at 2:00 p.m., the Hall presents a special session celebrating the release of I Love: Tom T. Hall’s Songs of Fox Hollow. Performers Peter Cooper and Eric Brace assembled an impressive cast of musicians and guest singers to re-record the songs from Hall’s 1974 masterpiece.
Session player James Burton will be honored on Sat., July 23 at 1:30 p.m. His guitar playing shaped country music on classics by Merle Haggard (“Mama Tried”), Emmylou Harris (“Two More Bottles of Wine”), and Jerry Lee Lewis (“Rockin’ My Life Away”).
Museum members will be admitted free to some of these programs. Details at countrymusichalloffame.org.

Tour News From Taylor, Reba, Vince and Amy

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Swift onstage in the UK earlier this year.


Taylor Swift is rescheduling a string of concert dates due to illness. Over the weekend she postponed her concert in Louisville, and now she has added dates in Charlotte and Atlanta to the list. Swift has bronchitis, and is under doctor’s orders not to perform.
“It breaks my heart to miss out on this weekend’s shows with my friends in Charlotte and Atlanta,” said the star in a statement. “I would never cancel if I thought I was physically able to perform these shows. I am so sorry to the fans, but I look forward to seeing you when we come back through your towns, which we will do.”
She will resume the Speak Now tour July 14 in Montreal. Swift is slated to play 98 shows in 17 countries this year.
• • • • •
Reba will embark on the All The Women I Am tour Sept. 1 in Ft. McMurray, Alberta, Canada. Joining her on select dates on the 31-city arena run will be special guests The Band Perry, Steel Magnolia and Edens Edge. Ticket and pre-sale details at Reba.com.
• • • • •
Amy Grant and Vince Gill will perform at the Ryman Auditorium on Dec. 20 and 21. Tickets for The Twelve Days of Christmas go on sale July 8 at 10:00 a.m. via ryman.com.
 

SoundScan Mid Year Wrap '11

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There are numerous ways to dissect the meaning of country music sales through the end of the second quarter 2011. But perhaps these few lines of Nielsen SoundScan code tell the story best…
Country Music Album Sales (Physical/digital)
2004—77,912,000 units
2007—62,696,000
2009—46,130,000
2010—43,718,000
As one can see, there has been a 44% country album sales drop during the six years from 2004 through 2010. So when we say that YTD the first half of 2011 is down only 1.8% (from the previous year), the above numbers might temper any joy you are feeling. Watching the country album business melt away, almost 45% in six years is painful by anyone’s yardstick.
The bleeding hasn’t stopped, but it has slowed. Digital album sales, which are included in the above totals are also rising as a share of total album sales. YTD country digital album sales are up 29.9% and the share of country albums that are purchased in the digital format has grown to 20.2% as compared with 15.3% a year ago. (All genre digital album sales are 32.3% of total album sales up from 27.4% at this time last year.) The difference between 20.2% and 32.3% makes it clear that a larger percentage of country fans still prefer the CD format over digital.
We should note that track sales are beginning to reach critical mass, even among country fans. Country digital track sales YTD 2011 are at 73.578 million. Dividing that total by 10 to create track equivalent albums adds about 7.35 million additional albums, enough to put the year’s totals in positive territory.
Scanning The Charts (SoundScan revised its charts after the first charts were released. The chart numbers below have been updated.)
Jason Aldean is on fire, in case you hadn’t noticed. His latest, My Kinda Party is No. 1 again this week with scans of almost 48k and total album scans of 1.45 million. Aldean’s “Dirt Road Anthem” is No. 1 on the Digital singles list, downloading over 127k copies this week, plus he has a total of five songs on the country digital tracks 100. Justin Moore’s strong second week sales slid back a modest 54% (less than expected), remaining above the 30k level and placing him at No. 3.
The Voice judge Blake Shelton, aka “Honey Bee” needs a separate paragraph to describe everything selling in his camp. Shelton’s Loaded: The Best of … package flies up 183% to No. 4 this week with almost 25k units, hopefully as a precursor to his new album, Red River Blue which hits bins next week. Shelton also has four digital tracks on the Digital Country tracks chart!
American Idol stars also finished high in this weeks country album stats, although they were missing when the charts first arrived earlier this morning. Scotty McCreery debuts at No. 2 with over 40k units sold and Lauren Alaina debuts at No. 6 shifting over 20k units.
Independent Country Album Highlights
>>Dolly Parton debuts at No. 11 with scans slightly below 11k;
>>Colt Ford (No. 20; 4.4k) and Aaron Lewis (No. 21; 4.1 k) remain in the Top 20.