Schmitt Chronicles Arrest and Rehab

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Photo: Eric England/Nashville Scene


Former Tennessean/WKRN-2 entertainment reporter Brad Schmitt wrote the feature article (“Breaking Brad”) in this week’s (6/2) issue of the Nashville Scene, which gives the firsthand account of his DUI arrest last February and recovery process in the year following. Once a high-profile writer and TV personality, Schmitt was fired from WKRN after the arrest and sent to rehab. It’s a courageous, beautifully written piece full of heartbreak, humor, and warmth. Read it here.
The reformed journalist recounts in detail the events of the night that changed his life forever, his struggle with addiction, and the acceptance that brought him to a place of peace. Here’s an excerpt:

The police cruiser spotlight shot into my rearview mirror, pretty much blinding me. But I heard the officer’s door open and close. That was it. In that moment, I knew my whole life was about to change. I would be fired from my job as a reporter at WKRN. The news will get out, and the media and country music worlds will know.
A wave of surrender flowed over me as my mind decelerated. I’m going to start all over again, I told myself. A complete do-over. It could’ve been the vodka and Jager, but one thought took over: Tonight, whatever happens is gonna happen, so don’t fight it.

In the time since his arrest and rehab, Schmitt lost his home to the 2010 flood but has remained steadfast in his recovery. He speaks with gratitude of family and friends who have supported his journey, and helped him when everything seemed lost. He currently works at the YMCA, writes freelance, and continues to attend 12-step programs.

Adkins' Home Burns To Ground

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Sad news this weekend from Trace Adkins, whose home burned to the ground yesterday afternoon (6/4). Thankfully, everyone made it out safely, including his children and their babysitter. Wife Rhonda returned home from running errands shortly after the fire started, according to The Boot.
The fire at the Brentwood home apparently started in the garage and spread quickly. It burned for more than two hours, destroying his vehicle, motorcycle, awards and memorabilia.
A statement was posted on his website: “Trace wishes to express his gratitude for the immediate response of the Brentwood Fire Department and is humbled by the outpouring of concern from friends and fans.”
Rhonda credits the family’s safe exit with the fire drills their daughters learned at school.
Adkins was on his way to Alaska for two concert dates at the time. He immediately returned home.

CMA Fest Road Closure Info

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In preparation for next week’s 2011 CMA Music Festival, several upcoming street closures have been announced. The annual four-day festival will take place Thursday through Sunday, June 9-12, but road closures will take effect two days before the event officially begins.
Closures beginning Tuesday, June 7
9:00 AM/CT – Broadway from First to Second Avenues
9:00 AM/CT – First Avenue from Demonbreun to Church Streets
Closure beginning Wednesday, June 8
Noon/CT – Broadway from Second to Fourth Avenues (cross streets, Second and Third Avenues, will remain open)
Closure beginning Thursday, June 9
Noon/CT- Fifth Avenue from Demonbreun to Broadway
These closures will be in effect throughout the Festival and are scheduled to be cleared in the early morning hours on Tuesday, June 14.
Additional temporary closures will occur Wednesday, June 8 to accommodate The Seventh Annual CMA Music Festival Kick-Off Parade and The Sixth Annual CMA Music Festival Block Party.
The following roads will be closed for parade traffic from 9:00AM to 2:00 PM/CT
Tenth Avenue North from Broadway to Lifeway Plaza
Commerce Street from Ninth to Tenth  Avenues
Broadway from First to Twelfth Avenues (only during parade hours of 10:30 AM to 1:30 PM/CT)

Ladies Golf Tourney Announces

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(L-R): Music Row Ladies Golf Tournament committee members Herky Williams, Tim McGraw, Sara Johnson, Malia Axsom and Trina Smith.


The 25th Annual Music Row Ladies Golf Tournament has announced that their annual event will be held Monday, July 25 at Old Natchez Country Club in Nashville. Claimed as the longest-running charitable event on Music Row, the tournament has raised over $1.5 million for United Cerebral Palsy of Middle Tennessee.
Golfers can support the cause by registering a team as well as bidding on exciting auction items. Other sponsorship possibilities exist for those preferring not to play golf.
Reservations are $150 per golfer and $100 per caddie and are by invitation only. Visit the LGT Facebook page for more details.
Along with Tim McGraw’s renewed support, additional sponsors include ASCAP, Kenny Chesney, City National Bank, McGhee Entertainment, UBS Financial Services, UMG Nashville and MSO PR.
 

Weekend Notes (6/3/11)

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Next week is a busy one, with the Billboard Country Music Summit (June 6-7), CMT Music Awards (June 8), and CMA Music Festival (June 9-12) scheduled. But first we have to survive the weekend. Here’s what’s happening starting today (6/3).
Friday, June 3
Country Throwdown Tour: 3 – 10 pm, The Woods at Fontanel. Featuring Willie Nelson, Randy Houser, Lee Brice, Jamey Johnson and more.
On TV: Ronnie Dunn, Entertainment Tonight (check local listings for time)
Video Premieres: Kenny Chesney’s “You And Tequila;” Trace Adkins’ “Just Fishin’”
3rd Annual Battle of the Bands, hosted by SAE Institute: 6 pm, The Rutledge. Judges include Alan Shacklock, Ingrid Fletcher and Bernard Porter. Winning band will get studio time and radio exposure through Lightning 100. http://www.myspace.com/saebattleofthebands
 
Saturday, June 4
Joey + Rory’s 3rd Annual Bib & Buckle Fest: 4-8 pm, Pottsville, TN. http://www.bibandbucklefest.com
On TV: Old Crow Medicine Crow, The Marty Stuart Show (RFD-TV)
 

Ray Charles and Buck Owens, from the NPT special


Sunday, June 5
On TV: “Nashville: The 20th Century in Photographs, Volume 3.” 7 pm, NPT. Series narrated by Bill Turner and features photographs of Nashville from the late ‘50s through the ‘70s. http://www.wnpt.net
On TV: Jack Ingram performs the national anthem of the NBA Championship series Miami Heat vs. Dallas Mavericks. ABC, 7 pm CT.
 

Photo Friday: Trace Adkins, Matraca Berg, Steve Azar

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The video for Trace Adkins’ single “Just Fishin’” was released today (6/3) via AOL, CMT.com, GAC.com, Vevo and others. Starring Adkins and youngest daughter Trinity Adkins, the video, directed by Trey Fanjoy, will go into music network rotation on TV the following week and available for download on iTunes. Also today (6/3), CMT’s Next Superstar 109, featuring Adkins as artist advisor, will air at 9:00 p.m., ET/PT. In this episode the top two contestants go head to head at the Ryman Auditorium. Each perform a song of their choice, a judge’s pick, and a song from the record label, Warner Music. Then for the first time, CMT turns voting over to America to decide who will become CMT’s Next Superstar.






(L-R) Adkins and his daughter Trinity on the set



 
 


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BMI hosted a reception to celebrate the release of Matraca Berg’s new album, The Dreaming Fields, on Tuesday, May 24. Berg performed at the event. The CD marks the BMI award-winning hit writer’s return to performing after a 14-year break.

(L-R): Dualtone Records’ Will McDonald and Paul Roper, BMI’s Jody Williams, Keith Case & Associates’ Keith Case, Matraca Berg, Dualtone Records’ Scott Robinson, and BMI’s Clay Bradley. Photo by Eric England

• • • •

On Tuesday, May 31, North Little Rock hosted the internationally syndicated radio show, Tales of the South, that featured Mississippi native and singer-songwriter, Steve Azar, award-winning actor, Morgan Freeman, and Mississippi Democratic Governor candidate, Bill Luckett as special guests. The “Delta Music Show” edition of Tales was sponsored by Oxford American and kicked-off the Little Rock Film Festival and was filmed in front of a sold-out live audience at the Starving Artist Cafe’ in Little Rock, Arkansas. Luckett, who owns  the Ground Zero Blues Club in Clarksville, MS with Freeman and Azar shared their own memorable stories of the Delta. Azar performed “Soldier Song” and later shared the story behind the award-winning music video for, “Waitin’ on Joe,” which Freeman narrated and appeared in starring role.

(L-R): Morgan Freeman, Bill Luckett and Steve Azar Photo: ShutterTHAT.com/ Tim Vahsholtz


 
 

Forecast: iCloudy With A Chance of New Revenues

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In what may come to be viewed as a music industry watershed moment, just like the invention of the phonograph, the CD, Napster and the iTunes store, Apple has come to terms with record labels and music publishers to be able to launch its iCloud music service. The upfront cost, reportedly close to $150 million will enable the technology giant to create an online storage environment that eventually should give users a chance to experience and enjoy a “jukebox in the sky.” Once in the cloud, users can access music from a variety of locations and across all hardware platforms. According to the New York Post, Apple paid each of the four labels between $25 and $50 million each.
Actual details of the new iCloud service remain speculative until Monday June 6 when Apple will reveal all during its keynote address at WWDC (Apple Worldwide Developers Conference) in San Francisco. Apple CEO Steve Jobs is expected to be on hand to participate in the presentation.
Insiders are reporting that music companies will take 70% of the iCloud fees with 12% going to music publishers and 68% going to labels to be shared with artists, etc. Apple will hold the remaining 30%. CNet reports that Universal was the last label to agree to participate in the iCloud deal. Until the size of the revenue stream becomes clear it is too early to judge, but according to the math, publishers will now have a 17% share of royalty revenue collected (12÷70=17%).
A key feature of the new system is called scan and match which frees users from having to upload the songs, which can be highly time intensive.Instead it scans a users hard drive and then matches the music to the cloud’s master library.

Now That's What I Call Country Release

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NOW That’s What I Call Country Vol. 4, the fourth installment of the popular series, will be released June 14 and features music by Sugarland, George Strait, Taylor Swift, Lady Antebellum, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Blake Shelton, Zac Brown Band and Miranda Lambert among others. Eleven of the album’s 18 tracks were No. 1 hits.
To promote the album’s launch, Universal Music Group is sponsoring a sweepstakes that will reward one grand prize winner with the opportunity to see and meet one of the Now Country Vol. 4 artists of his or her choosing live in concert. (Transportation not included and some restrictions apply.) For more information, visit www.NowCountrySweeps.com. The project is a joint venture from Universal Music Group, EMI Music North America and Sony Music Entertainment. The NOW That’s What I Call Music! series is the world’s best-selling multi-artist album series with sales topping 200 million worldwide and 80 million in the United States.

Now That’s What I Call Country Vol. 4 tracklist:
1.    “Hello World” by Lady Antebellum
2.    “If I Die Young” by The Band Perry
3.    “Who Are You When I’m Not Looking” by Blake Shelton
4.    “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not” by Thompson Square
5.    “Stuck Like Glue” by Sugarland
6.    “Undo It” by Carrie Underwood
7.    “Put You In a Song” by Keith Urban
8.    “Roll With It” by Easton Corbin
9.    “Only Prettier” by Miranda Lambert
10. “Smoke a Little Smoke” by Eric Church
11. “Voices” by Chris Young
12. “Someone Else Calling You Baby” by Luke Bryan
13. “Come Back Song” by Darius Rucker
14. “What Do You Want” by Jerrod Niemann
15. “Let Me Down Easy” by Billy Currington
16. “Back to December” by Taylor Swift
17. “Colder Weather” by Zac Brown Band
18. “The Breath You Take” by George Strait

Paisley's World Tour Launches Today

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Following a No. 1 single (“Old Alabama”) and album (This Is Country Music), reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year Brad Paisley will launch his H20 II: Wetter & Wilder World Tour today (6/3) in Virginia Beach, VA. He’ll follow that performance with another tomorrow (6/4) in Hartford, CT. The 30 city trek includes four stadiums and overseas visits to London, Dublin, Stockholm, Oslo and more. Blake Shelton and Jerrod Niemann will join Paisley on the road. Full dates are included below.
H2O II will bring back the popular “Water World Plaza” which turns every concert event into a water festival. The “Water World Plaza Stage” will offer up-and-comers Edens Edge, Sunny Sweeney, Brett Eldredge and the JaneDear girls (on select dates) a chance to showcase their talents for concertgoers. Each tour stop opens at 4 pm and music begins at 5 pm.
H2O II: Wetter & Wilder World Tour Dates:
June 3 — Farm Bureau Live at VA Beach (Virginia Beach, VA)
June 4 — Comcast Theatre (Hartford, CT)
June 11 — Progressive Field (Cleveland, OH)
June 16 — Riverbend Music Center (Cincinnati, OH)
June 17 — Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre (St. Louis, MO)
June 18 — Verizon Wireless Music Center (Indianapolis, IN)
June 24 — Wild West Arena-Nebraskaland Days (North Platte, NE)**
June 25 — Tuttle Creek State Park (Manhattan, KS)**
July 2 — Lavell Edwards Stadium (Provo, UT)*
July 9 — Cavendish Beach Music Festival (Cavendish, P.E.I.)**
July 15 — PNC Bank Arts Center (Holmdel, NJ)
July 16 — Comcast Center (Boston, MA)
July 17 — Scarborough Downs (Scarborough, ME)
July 22 — Toyota Pavilion (Scranton, PA)
July 23 — Darien Lakes PAC (Darien Lakes, NY)
July 30 — Pizza Hut Park (Frisco, TX)
August 4 — WE Fest (Detroit Lakes, MN)**
August 6 — First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre (Chicago, IL)
August 7 — Columbus Crew Stadium (Columbus, OH)
August 17 — O2 Arena (London, UK)*
August 19 — Olympia Theatre (Dublin, IRE)*
August 24 — Cirkus (Stockholm, SWE)*
August 26 — Spektrum (Oslo, NOR)*
August 27 — Lisebergshallen (Goteburg, SWE)*
August 28 — Forum (Copenhagen, DEN)*
September 9 — 1-800-ASK-GARY Amphitheatre (Tampa, FL)
September 10 — Cruzan Amphitheatre (West Palm Beach, FL)
September 23 — Susquehanna Bank Center (Philadelphia, PA)
September 24 — Jiffy Lube Live (Washington, DC)
September 25 — Time Warner Cable Music Pavilion (Raleigh, NC)
*Paisley only shows.
**Paisley, Shelton, Niemann only

Paisley and Sony Music Nashville staff celebrate the No. 1 debut of “This Is Country Music” at the label group’s offices. (L-R): SMN SVP Promotion Skip Bishop, SMN Chairman & CEO Gary Overton, Paisley, SMN VP Sales Kerri Fox-Metoyer, Fitgerald-Hartley’s Bill Simmons, SMN SVP Marketing Paul Barnabee.

Scotty McCreery Makes History With Debut Single

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Mercury Nashville artist and American Idol champ Scotty McCreery’s “I Love You This Big” debuted at No. 32 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, the highest debut for a new artist’s first single since the chart began using BDS in 1990.
“I am humbled and shocked by this news,” says Scotty. “I can’t tell you what it means to me to be on the same charts as my musical heroes. I want to thank my fans and especially country radio for their support. I continue to be amazed by everything that has happened to me in such a short time.”
The song, which hit No. 1 on iTunes, reached No. 3 on the Billboard Digital Songs chart with 171,404 units sold.
“This is such a special song to me, so I am thrilled that it is getting such a great reception at country radio. What I love about ‘I Love You This Big’ is that it can mean different things to different people. It could be about the relationship between a couple in love or a parent and child.”
Scotty will be in Nashville next week to begin recording his debut album. He will present at the CMT Music Awards on Wednesday and participate in other CMA Music Festival activities, including the City of Hope Celebrity Softball Game on Saturday, June 11. He will make his Grand Ole Opry debut on Friday, June 10.
He will also perform on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on June 15, Good Morning America on August 12, and is featured on the American Idols Live Tour that begins July 6.