The Society of Leaders in Development (SOLID) celebrated its 25th anniversary on Thursday night (Sept. 22) with a black tie gala at Nashville’s Marathon Music Works.

Hosted by radio professional and SOLID alum Sam Alex, the awards ceremony honored alumni from the rising industry professionals organization that have gone on to become leaders in the community, and was planned by Quinton Digital’s Ashley White and incoming SOLID President Erin Pettit.

Amazon’s Head of Country Music Michelle Kammerer received SOLID’s Distinguished Alumni Award, Peermusic’s Director of Marketing and Brands Heather Cook was honored with the Impact Award, and Grayscale Marketing’s CEO Tim Gray took home the Spirit of SOLID Award. WME also received SOLID’s Giving Award, celebrating their financial contributions–the most of any company–to the organization.

“It was such a special evening having so many alumni, current members and industry peers come together to celebrate on Thursday night,” notes SOLID’s President, Avery King. “We had representatives from every class that attended the evening and hearing everyone swapping stories about when they were in SOLID made for an incredibly memorable night. It was the perfect way to honor the last 25 years and look ahead to our next 25.”

The evening also included live music by The Network, as well as event activations with candle pouring from 615 Candle Bar and live screen printed posters from Friendly Arctic Printing that were gifted to each attendee to memorialize the event.

The 11th Annual Touring Career Workshop (TCW) will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 1 at the Soundcheck Annex in Nashville.

This year’s event includes expert insight on entering the business, tax planning, touring life/home life balance, diversity and touring, health insurance options, making safety a priority and more. Registration for the free event is required and open now.

“After a three-year pandemic-induced hiatus, we are thrilled to celebrate our 11th live and in person Touring Career Workshop event,” notes TCW Executive Director and co-creator Chris Lisle. “We have a fantastic evening planned that will spotlight relevant content for our industry with a focus on our return to touring.”

TCW was created in 2011 by Lisle, owner of CLLD LLC, and industry professional Erik Parker. With more than 25 years of experience, Lisle aims to educate road crew members on things such as core financial issues (taxes, renting or purchasing a home, retirement) and personal issues (mental/physical health, family relationships, health insurance, work safety) they may face as independent contractors.

Since its start, TCW has attracted more than 2500 attendees and featured more than 150 guest speakers.

The Association of Independent Music Publishers’ (AIMP) Nashville Chapter has announced the members of the eighth annual AIMP Nashville Songwriter Series Class of 2022, consisting of local songwriters Brigetta, John Byron, Erin Kinsey, Meg McRee, Colton Venner and Caroline Watkins.

The writers will perform in a live songwriters’ round at The Listening Room Café on Oct. 4 at 6:00 p.m. CT, hosted by hit songwriters Kelly Archer and Eric Paslay.

All members were selected by a special committee made up of music industry professionals, based on submissions from current AIMP Nashville members. Each writer must not have had a song charting higher than a top 20 on the Billboard or Mediabase charts.

The honor is considered to be a strong predictor of future success in the music industry. Past AIMP Nashville Songwriter Series performers have gone on to score chart-topping hits both as performers and as writers for prominent artists; win Grammy, CMA and CMT Awards; and reach No. 1 on the MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart, among other accomplishments.

“Honoring our new Class of songwriters is such a special moment that I look forward to each year,” says John Ozier, AIMP National Chair and President of the Nashville Chapter. “It not only gives us the chance to put a spotlight on some incredible new talent but also brings our Nashville songwriting community together to connect and support each other. I can’t wait to see everyone at the Listening Room Café!”

The event is free and open to independent publishers, songwriters, or anyone in the music industry interested in learning about AIMP. Members can register for the event on the AIMP website, and non-members can purchase tickets on The Listening Room Café website.

Members of the Class of 2021 included Rocky Block, Ben Chapman, Jonathan Hutcherson, Jenna LaMaster, Jared Scott and Dan Wilson. Past honorees include Brinley Addington, Luke Dick, Jameson Rodgers, Hailey Whitters, Ash Bowers, Hannah Ellis, Hardy, Ashley McBryde, Kassi Ashton, Nicolette Hayford, Kylie Morgan, Ben Goldsmith, Ryan Beaver, Josh Jenkins, Dave Pittenger, Dillon Carmichael, Tiera and more.

Rising singer-songwriter Riley Roth is releasing her debut EP Hey Nice To Meet You, including the focus track “Hometown Home,” on Sept. 30.

The project, which was produced by songwriter Kyle Schlienger, along with Track 45’s KK Johnson producing fan favorite “Stranger,”  has already racked up nearly 5 million total streams. Hitmaker Sara Davis, a co-writer on Gayle’s global smash “abcdefu,” contributed to three of the songs as well.

“The title of my EP is inspired by my song ‘Stranger’, which really launched this era of music for me,” says Roth. “ Releasing my debut EP feels like my first real reintroduction to listeners, both as an artist and as a person. This collection of songs demonstrates every aspect of who I am and who I strive to be. It’s a glimpse into my relationships–past and present–and an honest look at my journey toward confidence and being unapologetic about who I am.”

She continues, “I love conversational lyrics, and I hope listeners hear the voice of a friend when they listen to the words of my songs–that they feel a little less alone in whatever they’re going through and a little better about themselves than they did before they found my EP.”

After high school in Nashville, Roth signed her first deal with hitmaker busbee. Shortly after releasing her first song, busbee tragically passed away from brain cancer, with the pandemic and additional personal and professional upheaval following closely after. Roth continued to use the tools around her to amass over 12 million career streams, while building an audience of more than 300,000 monthly listeners and a social media following that also tops 300K.

Hey Nice To Meet You Track List:
1. Stranger (Riley Roth/Sara Davis/KK Johnson)
2. Go Find Less (Riley Roth/Lauren McLamb/Sara Davis/Kyle Schlienger)
3. Souvenirs (Riley Roth/Jennifer Denmark/Jason Afable)
4. Hometown Home (Riley Roth/Chord Overstreet/Kyle Schlienger)
5. Over You Is Over (Riley Roth/Lauren McLamb/Kyle Schlienger)
6. Linger (Riley Roth/Lauren McLamb/Sara Davis/Kyle Schlienger)

2022 Americana Music Association Emerging Act of the Year nominee Morgan Wade will head out next February on her headlining “No Signs of Slowing Down Tour.” Kicking off Feb. 24 at Louisville’s Headliners Music Hall, the trek includes 31 dates with more to come.

Wade will visit Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, LA’s Troubadour and San Francisco’s Fillmore, as well as a handful of legendary rock rooms, including Dallas’ Kessler Theater, Philadelphia’s World Café Live, Detroit’s El Club, Seattle’s Neptune Theater and more.

Wade’s fan club pre-sale will begin this Wednesday (Sept. 28) at 10 a.m. local time with general on-sale beginning Friday (Sept. 30) also at 10 a.m. local time.

“People who’ve come to the shows to see me, they all say, ‘I really wanted more than 30 minutes…’ I get it,” says the Floyd, Virginia native. “But when you get asked to do all these different things with such different artists, I realized: this may be the only time in my career where I can do it. So, I have. And each experience has been unlike the others, really great moments as we’re building.

“There are so many songs to sing, so many songs people have asked for,” she continues. “Deep cuts, and stories. People ask me where these songs come from, and this will be my chance to finally tell them. Plus, the band just rocks–and I love being able to let them have the chance to really play, too.”

Wade has embarked on recent touring treks as support for Country Music Hall of Famers Brooks & Dunn, Chris Stapleton, Luke Combs and more.