Drew Parker Headlines BMI’s Rooftop On The Row

Warner Music Nashville’s Drew Parker headlined BMI’s Rooftop on the Row earlier this week (July 19) for a packed crowd.

The singer-songwriter played tracks from his growing catalog, a medley of ’90s country classics, and his three No. 1 hits as a songwriter. His latest No. 1, Luke Combs’ “Doin’ This,” recently landed Parker a MusicRow Awards nomination for Song of the Year.

The Georgia native will open for labelmate Cody Johnson on select dates through August, as well as his own headlining shows. For a full list of upcoming shows, click here.

 

Alana Springsteen Showcases New Music At BMI’s Rooftop On The Row

Rising singer-songwriter Alana Springsteen also served as one of the night’s featured artists at BMI’s Rooftop on the Row, performing some of her latest singles.

Springsteen kicked off the show with tunes from Part One and Part Two of her History of Breaking Up projects, the second of which was released last Friday (July 15).

Upcoming performers for Rooftop on the Row include Ashland Craft and Ray Fulcher (Aug. 16); Elvie Shane and Tenille Arts (Sept. 27); and Reyna Roberts, Tiera Kennedy and Callista Clark (Oct. 18).

 

Kenny Lovelace Featured As Part Of CMHOF’s Nashville Cats Program

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum recently featured fiddler and guitarist Kenny Lovelace for its in-depth interview series Nashville Cats. The ongoing series showcases musicians and session singers who have played important roles in support of artists in either the recording studio or on concert tours.

For more than 50 years, Lovelace has served as guitarist, fiddler, bandleader and right-hand man for Jerry Lee Lewis. He can be heard on Lewis’ Nashville recordings, including “Another Place Another Time,” “What’s Made Milwaukee Famous (Has Made a Loser Out of Me),” “She Still Comes Around (To Love What’s Left of Me),” “She Even Woke Me Up to Say Goodbye” and “Thirty Nine and Holding.”

Lovelace has toured the world with Lewis, played fiddle on the Oak Ridge Boys’ 1983 hit “Ozark Mountain Jubilee,” and performed with Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, the Rolling Stones and others.

The performance and conversation were filmed and will premiere on Aug. 30 as part of the museum’s Live at the Hall digital programs series—available to stream on the museum’s social channels.

 

Wortman Works Adds Two Account Managers

Wortman Works Media & Marketing has added two new account managers, Jayne Hamblin and Ava Evans, to the Nashville-based public relations, management and publicity firm.

“These two ladies exemplify hard work and understanding of the ever-evolving role and approach to public relations and publicity. I am thrilled to have them join the team at Wortman Works,” states Wortman Works President, Jules Wortman.

Hamblin received her undergraduate degree in Music Business and her MBA from Belmont University. The Kentucky native most recently worked as Director of Label Operations at SSM Nashville Records with prior stops at MV2 Entertainment and Smallbone Entertainment.

Evans received her undergraduate degree in Creative & Entertainment Industries at Belmont University, and just completed her MBA at Lipscomb University. The Nashville native has most recently worked as a Sales and Marketing Intern at Compass East with prior stops at Bold Soul Studios, Shelter Music Group, and ROAR Entertainment Media Group. Evans also interned at Wortman Works over the past year.

 

Kimberly Kelly Takes Over Bobby’s Idle Hour To Celebrate Album Release

Kimberly Kelly recently took over Bobby’s Idle Hour on Tuesday night (July 19) to celebrate the release of her Show Dog Nashville debut album, I’ll Tell You What’s Gonna Happen.

The night featured stories about Billy Joe Shaver, as well as the creation of the new album. CMT’s Leslie Fram moderated the listening event with Kelly, which also included live performances of album tracks.

Premier entertainment business management firm FBMM has announced a partnership with Withum to expand the company’s tax service offerings.

Withum, one of the top 25 public accounting and advisory firms in the country, will work in conjunction with the tax team at FBMM’s Nashville headquarters to enhance and oversee the tax offerings and counsel provided to FBMM’s clients across the globe. The partnership will go into effect on August 1.

“As a company, our focus has always been making sure our clients receive tax services that are ahead of the curve,” shares FBMM president Duane Clark. “A collaboration of this magnitude is a first for our industry and ensures that our clients will continue to benefit from the gold standard in tax expertise and resources for decades to come.”

BBR Music Group/Stoney Creek Records’ artist Frank Ray will release his debut EP Getcha Some on Aug. 12.

The six-song project features his top 20-and-climbing single, “Country’d Look Good On You,” and tracks Ray penned with Frank Rogers, Derek George, Monty Criswell, and others.

The EP’s title, Getcha Some, is from a phrase Ray often uses, which originated during his time spent at the police academy when he was in need of a little pick me up. He and his fellow officers would use it to motivate each other, and it became a mainstay in his life.

CMA hosted its first-ever Tour and Production Manager Forums in collaboration with the Touring Career Workshop July 18-19 at CMA’s headquarters in Nashville.

The back-to-back events featured comprehensive panels and presentations as well as networking opportunities for attendees. With touring professionals making up the second largest category of CMA membership, Monday’s event was tailored to tour managers, while Tuesday targeted production managers.

The forums featured in-depth discussions and candid conversations around topics relevant to each career path, while also highlighting universal trends in the live entertainment industry, including tactics for growing with artist clients, mentorship for the next generation, and the importance of mental health awareness.

“At our core, CMA exists to provide resources, information and support for those in the music business,” says Tiffany Kerns, CMA Vice President, Industry Relations and Philanthropy. “This type of programming allows us to not only champion and equip industry professionals, but also remain at the forefront of an ever-evolving industry through continued learning, education and engagement. We say it often, but to keep our business strong, it is so important to support each and every person who makes this business possible.”

Following the announcement of this year’s nominees for the 34th annual MusicRow Awards, we take a closer look at the Producer of the Year category. This visionary class of nominees created up some of country music’s most innovative projects during the eligibility period of June 1, 2021 to May 31, 2022.

The winners of this year’s honors will be announced online on all MusicRow platforms on Tuesday, August 30. Presenting Sponsor of the 2022 MusicRow Awards is City National Bank.

Click here to see the full list of MusicRow Awards nominees.

Winners are determined solely by MusicRow Magazine subscribed members. Voting is now open and closes on July 29 at 5:00 p.m.

To receive a ballot to vote in the MusicRow Awards, become a MusicRow member here.

 

Zach Crowell lent his production talent to Cole Swindell’s eleventh career No. 1 “Never Say Never” with Lainey Wilson, as well as buzzy singles from Chris Janson (“Bye Mom,” “Keys To The Country”), and Conner Smith (“I Hate Alabama,” “Learn From It”). He co-produced Dustin Lynch’s record-breaking, six-week No. 1 with MacKenzie Porter, “Thinking ‘Bout You,” as well as the rest of Lynch’s 2022 album, Blue In The Sky. Crowell is currently racing up the charts with Swindell’s hot new single “She Had Me At Heads Carolina,” which pays homage to Jo Dee Messina’s 1996 hit, “Heads Carolina, Tails California.” This is Crowell’s second time being nominated in the Producer of the Year category at the MusicRow Awards.

Dann Huff, a five-time winner in the Producer of the Year category, produced hits from Thomas Rhett, Kane Brown, and Lady A this year. Alongside Rhett and other co-producers, Huff helmed Rhett’s 2021 album Country Again: Side A (containing the hits “What’s Your Country Song” and “Country Again”) as well as Rhett’s 2022 album Where We Started (containing “Slow Down Summer.”) For Lady A, Huff produced their eighth studio album What A Song Can Do, including the title track single and “Like A Lady.” Huff also produced Artist of the Year nominee Brown’s recent string of hits, such as “Worldwide Beautiful,” “One Mississippi,” and “Like I Love Country Music.” Additional recent production credits for Huff include projects for Catie Offerman, Dillon Carmichael, Laci Kaye Booth, Morgan Evans, and Runaway June.

Jay Joyce produced a variety of projects for Eric Church, Lainey Wilson, Brothers Osborne, Chase Rice, Gary Allan, Charlie Worsham, LANCO and more this year. Church rode the wave of his highly successful, Joyce-produced triple album, Heart & Soul, which was released at the beginning of 2021 and generated hits such as “Hell Of A View,” “Heart On Fire,” and the rising “Doing Life With Me.” Joyce lent his talents to Breakthrough Artist nominee Wilson for her breakout album Sayin’ What I’m Thinkin’, including her first chart-topper “Things A Man Oughta Know.” His work with Brothers Osborne can be heard on their Grammy-nominated album Skeletons, including “All Night” and “I’m Not for Everyone.” Joyce is a two-time winner in the Producer of the Year category.

Shane McAnally‘s production talents, as well as songwriting prowess, were heard on multiple big projects this year. He co-produced tracks on Walker Hayes’ Country Stuff EP and album, including the blockbuster hit “Fancy Like,” and its follow up chart-burner “AA.” McAnally also worked alongside fellow Male Songwriter of the Year nominee Josh Osborne to produce Carly Pearce’s critically-acclaimed 29: Written In Stone, which boasts songs such as “Next Girl,” “Never Wanted To Be That Girl” with Ashley McBryde and her rising “What He Didn’t Do.” McAnally’s production credits this year also include music for Old Dominion, Midland, Kylie Morgan, and Tigirlily.

Joey Moi produced Morgan Wallen’s titanic Dangerous: The Double Album, which topped Billboard‘s all-genre year-end albums chart at the end of 2021 with 4.1 million units sold. The project also took home Album Of The Year at the 2021 ACM Awards, and spawned multiple No. 1 songs. Moi also solely produced Breakthrough Artist Of The Year nominee ERNEST’s debut album, Flower Shops (The Album), including the title track that is rising on the charts. Other projects Moi produced this year include HARDY’s Hixtape: Vol. 2, Jake Owen’s ninth No. 1 “Made For You,” and music for Lily Rose, MacKenzie Porter, Sean Stemaly and Larry Fleet.

Jon Randall was involved in multiple projects this past year, as a songwriter, artist and producer. He produced Miranda Lambert’s eighth solo album Palomino alongside Lambert and Luke Dick. The project spawned the hit “If I Was a Cowboy” and the rising single “Strange,” as well as fan-favorite “Actin’ Up.” Randall and Lambert teamed with Jack Ingram on the Grammy-nominated project The Marfa Tapes, sharing production credits. Randall also produced Parker McCollum’s major label debut Gold Chain Cowboy, which includes McCollum’s first and second No. 1 songs, “Pretty Heart” and “To Be Loved By You.” He also produced Chase Bryant’s debut album Upbringing. Randall released his first solo album in 15 years, a self-titled project, in mid-September.