The Recording Academy has appointed Ruby Marchand to Chief Awards & Industry Officer and Joanna Chu has been elevated to Vice President of Awards, effective immediately. The redefined roles and restructuring of the Awards Department is another step in the Academy’s efforts to better serve its membership and the music industry at-large.

In April and May 2021, new rules and updates were made to the Recording Academy’s awards process in order to better reflect the changing music community. In June the Recording Academy restructured its leadership, appointing Valeisha Butterfield Jones and Panos A. Panay as Co-Presidents. Weeks later the organization invited 2,710 music creators and professionals of “wide-ranging backgrounds, genres and disciplines” to be members.

“I am proud to welcome Ruby and Joanna into their new positions as we work to enhance our awards processes from the inside out,” says Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy. “Their expertise in this space is highly valuable as we continue to refine the Recording Academy’s role in the music industry and work to provide the highest quality of service to our members.”

In her new role, Marchand will continue to oversee both Awards and Membership & Industry Relations, reporting to the Academy’s Co-President, Valeisha Butterfield Jones. She will work closely with Genre Managers on the Awards team to effect outreach to musical communities around the world, bringing innovative new possibilities into the Awards process.

Prior to joining the Academy’s executive team, Marchand held several elected leadership roles at the Academy. She was elected Governor and Vice President of the New York Chapter in 2004, where she chaired Grammy In The Schools for more than 12 years. In 2011, she was elected a National Trustee from the New York Chapter and served for two terms. She was elected Vice Chair of the Academy by the National Board of Trustees in 2015 and served until 2019. Additionally, she was Co-Chair of the Awards & Nominations Committee for seven years and helped drive new eligibility rules as well as the process of refreshing Fields and Categories for the Grammy Awards. Marchand previously held leadership roles at Warner Music Group, including vice president of international A&R for 25 years, head of A&R for Cordless Recordings and Rykodisc, and senior vice president of revenue and repertoire assurance.

In the newly created role of Vice President of Awards, Chu will further her expertise in Awards systems and operations by leading the team through all aspects of the Awards season. Chu will report to Marchand and join her in reinforcing key Academy initiatives throughout the Awards process, with a special emphasis on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

Chu previously held Director and Managing Director roles in the Academy’s Awards Department, where she was responsible for overseeing the departmental staff and upholding the integrity of the awards process. Prior to joining the Academy, Chu worked in Silicon Valley as one of the few female software engineers in the aerospace industry for 15 years.

Tracy Lawrence will once again give back to the city of Nashville around Thanksgiving time with his 16th annual Mission Possible Turkey Fry and Benefit Concert to support Nashville Rescue Mission. Taking place on Nov. 23, this year’s event will include the annual turkey fry event held in the parking lot of Nashville Rescue Mission.

The event will then move to the SkyDeck at Assembly Hall on top of the 5th + Broadway building where Dustin Lynch, Michael Ray, Lainey Wilson and more will join Lawrence for the special benefit concert. Tickets go on sale this Friday, Sept. 24.

Since its inception in 2006, the Turkey Fry event has since raised over $600,000 for Nashville Rescue Mission, frying up over 6,400 turkeys and providing over 90,000 meals to the homeless and hungry of Middle Tennessee. To inquire about becoming a sponsor for the the 16th Annual Turkey Fry & Benefit Concert, contact Lindsey Ray at lindsey@thesteadfastco.com.

The organization recently donated $10,000 during Loretta Lynn‘s Friends: Hometown Rising fundraising event, which to date has raised nearly $1 million for United Way of Humphreys County following the Aug. 21 floods.

Lawrence is celebrating his 30th anniversary in country music this year, and to commemorate the milestone has been releasing his Hindsight 2020 project through three volumes that include new music along with his classics that fans have enjoyed for three decades.

MCC/Curb Records recording artist Jackson Michelson released his new EP, Back To That Summer, today (Sept. 17).

With six original songs including his current radio single, “Tip Jar,” Michelson gives listeners a glimpse into his life as an artist, songwriter, husband and father on Back To That Summer. “I wanted to peel back the layers of who I am and where I’m from with this EP,” he shares. “The EP is filled with upbeat songs that paint the picture of summer love and sunshine mixed with a bit of Pacific Northwest edge.”

Michelson co-wrote half of the project’s songs with additional writing contributions from Patrick Mencel, Justin Morgan, Jeff Pardo, Billy Montana, Ben Glover and Josh Osborne, among others.

Back To That Summer EP Track List:
1. Tip Jar (Jackson Michelson, Patrick Mencel, Justin Morgan)
2. Back To That Summer (Jackson Michelson, Kyle Schlienger, Nick Bailey)
3. Amplifier (Ben Glover, Billy Montana, Kyle Jacobs)
4. Love High (Jackson Michelson, Jeff Pardo, Wade Kirby)
5. Call Me No One (Justin Ebach, Jon Nite, Josh Osborne)
6. Stay Over (Jackson Michelson, Jeff Pardo, Molly Reed)

Brett Eldredge. Photo: Andrew Eccles

Brett Eldredge is the latest artist to give fans a special holiday gift this year with his new Christmas album, Mr. Christmas. The project includes beloved classics alongside two never-before-heard originals, including the title track which is available everywhere now.

Written by Eldredge and frequent collaborator Ross Copperman, title track “Mr. Christmas” showcases the singer-songwriter’s vocals backed by strings, a warm big band sound, and pops of jingle bells, giving the listener an infusion of holiday spirit.

“Mr. Christmas is something that I’ve been planning out for quite a while,” explains Eldredge. “This album is so much fun and full of joy and magic. From the album cover, you can find the magic of Mr. Christmas standing in the windowfront, looking out just like the old stores on the Rockefeller Plaza in New York City and people passing by in the window. We captured that nostalgic, classic feel that Christmas brings and mixed it with the soulful side of my music influences. It’s got a lot of heart and magic–it’s a special one for people to hear.”

Mr. Christmas follows the 2020 release of his original duet with Kelly Clarkson, “Under the Mistletoe,” and his 2016 Christmas album, Glow, which peaked at No. 2 on the country charts upon release. The project also inspired a single live Christmas show in Nashville that has grown into the annual “Glow Live” holiday tour which is set to return this winter with stops in major cities across the country, including back-to-back nights in Nashville, Boston, Chicago and New York City.

“Getting to take ‘Glow Live’ on the road again after unfortunately having to miss it last year gives me so much joy, especially knowing that this tour and this music could bring a lot of joy to a lot of people that need it right now,” Eldredge adds. “My hope is that attending these shows with friends and family can be a tradition people look forward to every year for many years to come. I cannot wait to get back out there because performing these songs makes me so happy and I just hope to share that feeling with everyone in the audience as well.”

Fan club members will have early access to ticket pre-sales beginning Sept. 21. Fans can also catch Eldredge on tour this fall with his Good Day Tour which kicked off Thursday, Sept. 16.

Glow Live Tour Dates:
Nov. 13 – Las Vegas, NV – Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas*
Nov. 26 – Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium*
Nov. 27 – Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium*
Dec. 03 – Boston, MA – Boch Center Wang Theatre+
Dec. 04 – Boston, MA – Boch Center Wang Theatre+
Dec. 10 – New York, NY – Beacon Theatre+
Dec. 11 – New York, NY – Beacon Theatre+
Dec. 17 – Chicago, IL – The Chicago Theatre+
Dec. 18 – Chicago, IL – The Chicago Theatre+
*on sale Sept 24
+on sale Oct 1

Aaron Raitiere. Photo: Alysse Gafkjen

Singer-songwriter Aaron Raitiere has extended his worldwide deal with Warner Chappell Music (WCM) Nashville and Low Country Sound, the imprint founded by Grammy-winning producer/songwriter Dave Cobb.

Raitiere’s recent cuts include four songs on Anderson East’s latest album, Maybe We Never Die, including “Hood of My Car” and “Drugs;” as well as “Heroes” (Natalie Hemby); “Rock My Soul” (Oak Ridge Boys); and Midland’s upcoming radio single, “Sunrise Tells The Story.” He was also a co-writer on the Grammy Award-winning song “I’ll Never Love Again” from A Star is Born.

Raitiere’s debut single as an artist, “Everybody Else,” is available now on Dinner Time Records via Thirty Tigers.

The Kentucky native is slated to perform at the Manchester Music Hall in Lexington alongside The Steel Woods tonight (Sept. 17), and at the Americana Music Festival in Nashville on Sept. 24. He has previously toured with Paul Cauthen and Willie Nelson, and recently performed at the Barefoot Country Festival.

Raitiere is managed by Michelle Szeto (Paquin Entertainment Group) and distributed by Thirty Tigers. His publicist is Asha Goodman (Sacks & Co.), and his agents are Marc Dennis and Justin Cahill (CAA).