Tim Gray. Photo: Courtesy Grayscale Marketing
Grayscale Marketing, the Nashville-based marketing company behind popular music venues, festivals, artists, conferences and more, is celebrating the milestone of helping their live entertainment clients sell more than 1,000,000 tickets.
Started by CEO Tim Gray in 2015, Grayscale Marketing has provided marketing, PR, advertising and partnerships for entertainment institutions like Country Jam, Hangout Music Festival, SunFest, Panorama Music Festival, Pilgrimage Fest, and Minor League Baseball, in addition to many artists, venues and brands. Grayscale’s key services are digital marketing, advertising, and PR, they also provide content creation and strategic partnerships.
While the company has already had tremendous success in its short life, 2020 shined a bright light on Grayscale Marketing for their ability to innovate quickly during the COVID-19 pandemic that has put the live entertainment business in crisis.
Early in the pandemic, Gray says that an industry colleague at UTA reached out to him with a client in need of event marketing expertise with what he was told was a “really cool concept.” With no events happening in the foreseeable future, Gray hopped on a call with the client.
“It just so happened to be Walter Kinzie, which is the founder and the CEO of Encore Live,” Gray recalls. “Walter told me about the concept of Encore Drive-In Nights, about the shows already hosted, the results, what they had planned next, how the drive-in theaters were going to work and that, basically, he needed support selling tickets and lowering their cost per acquisition. My whole team was ecstatic about the opportunity of working with a client doing something that had literally never been done at scale in the history of entertainment, much less during a pandemic.”
Grayscale and Kinzie’s team at Encore had a lot to figure out in a short period of time.
“It was not just selling tickets or creating awareness around the events via advertising. It was working day-in and day-out with the Encore team trying to figure out how we best educate fans that we’re providing a socially distanced concert experience to during COVID. It was maneuvering between keeping the fans and patrons safe while selling as many tickets as possible. Also, while juggling the ever changing rules and state mandates across the nation and in Canada. What does personal protective equipment look like when you’re in a car at a drive-in concert? How do we enforce six feet of space between the cars at over 300 theaters simultaneously? How do we cover all of that information, plus create urgency to purchase the ticket, all within a 15-30 second radio spot, TV commercial, or video ad? There were dozens of layers that had to go into marketing strategy and communication surrounding these events to effectively drive attendance. It is astonishing what we all accomplished in just a few months.”
Encore figured it out, though. In three months, Grayscale Marketing was able to help them entertain more than 900,000 fans at 1,100 concerts in 330 venues across two countries, from artists including Metallica, Blake Shelton, Garth Brooks, and Kane Brown.
Photo: Courtesy Grayscale Marketing
In January, Grayscale was tapped as the marketing agency for UFC® and Encore Live to Present the historic UFC® 257: POIRIER vs. MCGREGOR II at 31 drive-in theaters across the United States. The event was in partnership with entertainment technology company MetaMedia and Joe Hand Promotions. The fight marked the first time that UFC® has distributed one of its events at drive-in and outdoor theaters ever.
All of the drive-in concerts Gray and his team had worked on before were pre-recorded. The UFC® event would be the first time that the content was being streamed live.
“Encore needed to be able to test the concept with UFC,” Gray says. “If this worked well what we would be able to help them accomplish over 2021 and beyond would be incredible. We want to be able to host and promote, not just future sporting events and concerts, but approach it from a content distribution standpoint like nothing that’s ever existed before. We could literally help Encore, as an example, partner with a Bonnaroo, and livestream that across two countries, or globally. So instead of being 90,000 people in Manchester, it’s 900,000 people around the continent. That’s powerful.”
Gray says that one of the biggest hurdles for marketing and advertising a drive-in concert in two countries, on one night, was the education of what the actual experience was going to be like. “We had to set clear expectations to the fans and potential ticket buyers in a very short period. Literally, from announcement and on-sale to showtime was 18 days for the Kane Brown show. That’s a whirlwind of strategy, content, media, and sales all in just over two weeks.
“Garth, Metallica, and Blake fans—let’s say 40 percent of those people have maybe been to a drive-in movie at some point in their life. [These drive-in concerts] are reminding them that those venues still exist and educating them on what this new drive-in memory would look like in concert form. Can they bring lawn chairs? How many people per vehicle? What about kids? Can they bring beer? Food? How do they hear the music? There’s a ton of education and questions consumers had about what the experience is on the front end, and leading up to the show date. Our team was also in charge of answering thousands of questions in the form of comments and inbox messages. The fans wanted to come, they just needed answers before they felt comfortable making the purchase decision. Which we totally understand. It simply changed the average amount of touchpoints we are used to seeing before a conversion happens and slightly shifted the consumer journey.”
Photo: Courtesy Grayscale Marketing
With a traditional artist, Grayscale has an expert handle on who their demographic is and how to reach those fans. Once his team can nail down their demo, they can strategize on how to educate the fans about drive-in shows in a pandemic, communicate effectively, and drive them into a sales funnel to re-market. With UFC, nailing down a starting point was much more complicated.
“With the UFC event, what we found was that it’s wildly different. The demographics are all over the place. It’s 18 to 65 year olds, it’s multi-language, it’s across income demographics, socioeconomic backgrounds, populations and cities, as well as a wide range of life and music interests. So we’ve been collecting a ton of data, moving as quickly as we can in real-time to make pivots to discover what is performing best in each individual market, and learning best we can from the analytics. The buying pattern, customer journey, competing with Pay Per View, and the differences I just mentioned made it a moving target. There’s no blueprint, there’s no book, there’s no blog, our teams were literally doing it for the first time it’s ever been done. Which is incredibly exciting, but also incredibly challenging.”
The live-streamed fight proved successful, Gray says. “UFC 257 was a great test case for us and Encore. MetaMedia’s live-streaming content delivery technology is the best in the business regardless if a venue is in a suburban area with strong internet or rural area with limited cell reception. The whole team, Grayscale and Encore can’t wait to kick off the 2021 season!
Gray says that he expects this new content delivery model will outlive the pandemic.
“Don’t get me wrong, live entertainment…there’s nothing like that. That’s why I signed up to do what I do, the same goes for all my staff. We love it. There is no experience like a live concert on the planet. I do not think by any means the concept is going to replace live, but I do think that what we’re going to be able to help Encore accomplish in supporting the industry and bringing fans new live experiences is going to be staggering. The reach Encore will be able to provide for any genre artist will be amazing, but specifically for country music artists.
“When you look at traditional touring models, top tier acts are stopping in a handful of markets playing venues holding between 20,000-40,000 capacity for one night of work, for instance. Maybe there’s 20, maybe there’s 40 stops on the tour total,” Gray says. “A drive-in concert across Encore’s full theater network will hold seven times the potential capacity of the largest stadium in the US. That is like selling out Bridgestone Arena 35 times in a row without leaving Nashville, in one night. We can even push new singles or upcoming releases on the big screens to all the attendees at the same time. Having that level of attention has real value. It truly is an exciting opportunity for the music industry as a whole.
“The majority of the Heartland goes un-touched. 148 million people live within a 40 miles radius of one of the drive-in theaters. Sixty-seven percent of those are in rural or secondary towns that do not have a stadium or arena that a major artist can perform in. What we’re going to be able to help Encore accomplish will be livestreaming those concerts that are two states over to the other fans who would love to be able to attend. We’re going to be able to work hand in hand with managers and agents to distribute live music in a way that’s never been distributed before, and do it live.”
Gray says he is thankful for his partnership with Encore Live and to be marketing music in the darker days of the pandemic.
“It’s fun to be on the forefront of entertainment innovation with a client like Encore Live. They’re constantly pushing the boundaries. To go from idea to execution in under 45 days and end up with the largest in-person experience of 2020 is amazing and awesome to be a part of. They have a great team, great leadership, great vision. For us to be able to come in and partner and support them with something like this, it’s meaningful and it’s compelling. By doing what we love, we are able to help the fans and artists get back to doing what they love.”
Brandy Clark Taps Brandi Carlile, Lindsey Buckingham For Deluxe Album
/by Lorie HollabaughBrandy Clark
Brandy Clark is celebrating the one-year anniversary of her critically acclaimed album, Your Life is a Record, with the release of a special deluxe edition available March 5 on Warner Records.
The expanded album will feature six bonus tracks including “Remember Me Beautiful,” a new song Clark wrote earlier this year as part of NPR’s Morning Edition Song Project. It also includes collaborations with Brandi Carlile (“Like Mine” and “Same Devil”) and Lindsey Buckingham (“The Past is the Past”), as well as live renditions of two album tracks: “Pawn Shop” and “Who You Thought I Was,” the latter of which is out now.
In honor of the album’s anniversary, Clark will perform her first ticketed livestream concert Saturday, March 6 at 8 p.m. ET via Mandolin. Details here.
The new release continues a big year for Clark, who is nominated for two awards at the 63rd GRAMMY Awards—Best Country Album (Your Life is a Record) and Best Country Solo Performance (“Who You Thought I Was”).
Artist Action: Drew and Ellie Holcomb, Doug Stone, Drake White
/by Sarah SkatesDrew and Ellie Holcomb Pen Songs For Tennessee Tourism
Drew and Ellie Holcomb recorded the new music at the Sound Kitchen. Photo: Katie Kauss/Tennessee Dept. of Tourist Development
Drew and Ellie Holcomb released the new songs “Feels Like Home” and “Hey Rivers” as a part of Tennessee Department of Tourist Development’s “For the Love of Tennessee, Travel Safe” campaign.
The songs were inspired by a seven-day, 1600-mile R.V. trek the Holcombs and their three children took across the state as part of a video series to promote safe travel in the era of Covid 19.
To date the campaign has netted more than 75 million views. To view the webisodes, including the Holcomb’s performance of “Hey Rivers” and “Feels Like Home” live on the historic Ryman stage, visit www.tnvacation.com.
Ellie Holcomb also has a new song with Amy Grant. “A Woman,” released Friday (Feb. 12), is the story of Mary Magdalene and the debut single from the multi-artist album FAITHFUL: Go and Speak.
Doug Stone Celebrates 10 Million Albums Sold Worldwide
Pictured (L-R): Jeremy Westby, Pres./CEO, 2911 Media; Austin Smith, Smith Social Media; Doug Stone; Tayler Bock, SPM Brand Partnerships; Jimmy Dasher, Countdown Talent booking
Doug Stone was recently awarded a plaque to commemorate 10 million albums sold worldwide, including multiple RIAA Gold and Platinum certifications. Stone’s legacy spans three decades consisting of 10 studio albums, eight No. 1s and 26 charted singles including “I’d Be Better Off (In a Pine Box),” “I Thought It Was You,” “A Jukebox With Country Song,” “In a Different Light,” ”Too Busy Being in Love” and “Why Didn’t I Think of That.”
“Wow, I knew I had sold some records, but I had no idea that 10 million CDs had gone out the door,” says Stone. “My life has been a country song with many ups and downs. I am thankful to still be doing what I have always loved doing and that is singing for the fans and bringing my music to the stage. We all lived through a tough year last year and to start 2021 off with this honor is absolutely a great beginning to what is in our future.”
Drake White’s Wednesday Night Therapy Nears First Anniversary
Dillon Carmichael and Drake White at the Wednesday Night Therapy show on Feb. 3, 2021. Photo: Zack Knudsen
Drake White is nearing the one-year anniversary of his streaming live show, Wednesday Night Therapy.
Since debuting on March 18, 2020, White has welcomed Kip Moore, Colbie Caillat, Frankie Ballard, and Dillon Carmichael to his Whitewood Hollow barn in Nashville for performances. Hayes Carll will join the Feb. 17 show.
The last 18 months have been eventful for White, who suffered a paralyzing stroke mid-concert and endured months in the hospital. He went on to launch Wednesday Night Therapy just as the pandemic broke out. White recently gave a TEDxNashville Talk titled: “How paralysis helped me find my true 100%.”
As White approaches the one-year anniversary of his livestream, he expresses gratitude for wife Alex, his physical therapists and doctors, his band The Big Fire, the artists who have joined him on the show each week, and his fans The Firestarters.
Kari Jobe Announces 22-City The Blessing USA Tour
/by LB CantrellKari Jobe
Kari Jobe, in conjunction with Premier Productions, has announced The Blessing USA Tour. Sponsored by illumiNations and CovidSafeChurch.com, Jobe will hit 22 cities across the U.S.
Also featuring Cody Carnes, the tour will kick off on April 15 in Pittsburgh, and continue on to markets including Dallas, Orlando, Minneapolis, Atlanta, and Houston. Tickets will go on sale to the public next Friday, Feb. 19.
The tour is implementing “socially distanced and/or reserved COVID-safe seating and capacities” in each venue. Tour members will be tested and everyone entering will be temperature checked in addition to other standards and local requirements.
“This past year has been so difficult for a lot of us,” Jobe remarked. “We had no idea that the timing of ‘The Blessing’ would fall at such an incredibly sensitive time for our globe. I have cried so many times as I’ve watched different people all over the world declaring this song over their families, their churches and their nations. It has been so sweet. I’m so thankful that His promises are promises of peace and strength.”
Written and released the week before the the COVID pandemic hit the globe, Jobe co-wrote the tour’s namesake, “The Blessing,” with her husband and songwriter Cody Carnes and Elevation Worship’s Steven Furtick and Chris Brown. “The Blessing” was the most consumed new CCM song of the year in 2020 and also won for Worship Song of the Year at last year’s GMA Dove Awards. It is nominated for Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song at the upcoming Grammy Awards.
The Blessing USA Tour (all dates subject to change):
4/15/21 – Pittsburgh, PA
4/16/21 – Cleveland, OH
4/17/21 – Lexington, KY
4/22/21 – Jacksonville, FL
4/23/21 – Orlando, FL
4/24/21 – Ft. Myers, FL
4/25/21 – Tampa, FL
4/29/21 – Dallas, TX
4/30/21 – Joplin, MO
5/1/21 – St. Louis, MO
5/2/21 – Jackson, MS
5/6/21 – Tulsa, OK
5/7/21 – Oklahoma City, OK
5/8/21 – College Station, TX
5/9/21 – Houston, TX
5/14/21 – Atlanta, GA
5/15/21 – Cullman, AL
5/16/21 – Knoxville, TN
5/20/21 – Minneapolis, MN
5/21/21 – Cedar Rapids, IA
5/22/21 – Omaha, NE
5/23/21 – Wichita, KS
Clare Dunn’s ‘Real Thing’ EP Out Today
/by Sarah SkatesClare Dunn released her new female empowerment EP, Real Thing, Friday (Feb. 12) via Big Yellow Dog Music.
She says, “Real Thing walks through the journey of not being afraid to be exactly who you are as a woman—whether that means standing up for yourself, not being afraid to express your emotions when you’ve been blown off, not being afraid to fall head-over-heels in love, or not being afraid to accept yourself as you are. There’s no wrong way to be a woman.”
“No Wrong Way” is the culmination of the project’s theme, disposing of all the labels people put on women and finding strength in imperfection. Throughout the project, Dunn addresses authenticity (“Real Thing”), vulnerability (“Unread”), and in-the-moment fearlessness (“No Reservations”).
Dunn co-wrote and self-produced the EP at her family’s ranch in Southeast Colorado. It features co-writes by some of Nashville’s top talent including Luke Dick, Liz Rose and Connie Harrington.
Real Thing Track List:
1. No Reservations (Clare Dunn, Liz Rose, Luke Dick)
2. Real Thing (Dunn, Jenn Decilveo)
3. Unread (Dunn, Joseph Patton, Josh Gabbard)
4. No Wrong Way (Dunn, Rose, Ben West)
5. We Are (Dunn, Connie Harrington, Mark Holman)
Chart Action: Dan + Shay Debut On Radio Charts
/by Alex Parry“Glad You Exist” by Dan + Shay debuted on all three radio charts this week: No. 33 on Billboard, No. 45 on Mediabase, and No. 63 on MusicRow‘s CountryBreakout Radio Chart. The duo is also most added with over 150 radio stations playing the single written by Dan Smyers, Shay Mooney, Ryan Lewis, Tayla Parx, and Jordan Reynolds.
“To us, ‘Glad You Exist’ is more than just a song,” said Dan + Shay. “It’s a message of gratitude and hope. A message to everyone in our lives: our fans, our friends, our families, to remind them all how grateful we are to be on the planet at the same time. It’s truly remarkable when you think about it. We’ve spent the majority of the past year, like many others, searching for answers and a sense of normalcy, but finding comfort in memories of better days (that we all know will return soon). Concerts, bonfires, road trips with friends, even the simple things like date night at a restaurant, or beers at a bar during a football game. This song has taken on a new meaning not being able to see our loved ones in person, but throughout history, music has always had a special way of bringing people together, even when we are furthest apart. These words hold a special place in our hearts, and hopefully they will in yours too. We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again (and again). We’re just so glad you exist. Every. Single. One of you.”
Ashley McBryde Announces ‘Never Will: Live From A Distance’
/by Sarah SkatesAshley McBryde may not be able to return to the road, but she’s giving fans a taste of the live experience with her upcoming six-song EP Never Will: Live From A Distance, arriving Friday, May 28. The opening track, “First Thing I Reach For – Live,” is available now.
“We released Never Will on April 3 last year, so we went straight from rehearsals for a tour to not seeing each other in person for months,” says the singer. “Getting together to rehearse and record these live versions safely was our way of giving the fans a taste of what they would have seen had the world not changed so much. Man did it feel good to strap on the guitar and see my guys and just play, but we cannot wait to do it again with our incredible fans in person soon.”
McBryde kicked off 2021 with multiple television appearances, including her debut performance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show with current single “Martha Divine,” and a performance of title track “Never Will” on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Never Will: Live From A Distance Track List
1. “First Thing I Reach For,” (Ashley McBryde, Randall Clay, Mick Holland)
2. “Shut Up Sheila,” (Nicolette Hayford, Charles Chisholm)
3. “Velvet Red,” (Ashley McBryde, Patrick Savage, Daniel Smalley)
4. “Voodoo Doll,” (Ashley McBryde, Nicolette Hayford, Brandy Clark, Connie Harrington, Jake Mitchell, Aaron Raitiere)
5. “Martha Divine,” (Ashley McBryde, Jeremy Spillman)
6. “Sparrow,” (Ashley McBryde, Nicolette Hayford, Brandy Clark, Connie Harrington, Jake Mitchell, Aaron Raitiere)
Callista Clark Drops Debut EP ‘Real To Me’ Today
/by Lorie HollabaughCallista Clark. Photo: Ford Fairchild
Callista Clark is releasing her debut collection Real To Me today (Feb. 12) via Big Machine Records. The lead off single from the project, “It’s Cause I Am,” will impact country radio on March 29.
Clark first stepped onstage to perform with Jennifer Nettles at 12 years old and is a skilled musician who plays eight instruments. She’s already amassed over 65 million views on Facebook and six million views on YouTube with her inspiring videos, which eventually caught the attention of Scott Borchetta (Big Machine Label Group) and her now manager Scooter Braun (SB Projects).
Working with producer Nathan Chapman, the 17-year-old Clark has crafted a debut that showcases both her skills as a writer and her heart-in-throat vocal delivery through the feisty anthem of “Change My Mind,” the poignant and relatable truths of “Real to Me,” and the declaration of confidence in the new single “It’s Cause I Am.” She also wrote with heavyweight writers Jonathan Singleton, Chris DeStefano, Liz Rose, Laura Veltz and more for her debut.
“These songs are all very real and very personal for me,” admits Clark. “There is some heavy emotion behind all of these, and I hope that somebody can relate to them. I really do.”
Real To Me Track List
1. “It’s Cause I Am” | Callista Clark, Cameron Jaymes, Laura Veltz
2. “Heartbreak Song” | Callista Clark, Chris DeStefano, Liz Rose, Emily Shackelton
3. “Change My Mind” | Callista Clark, Dan Isbell, Jonathan Singleton
4. “Don’t Need It Anymore” | Callista Clark, Cameron Jaymes, Melissa Peirce
5. “Real To Me” | Callista Clark, Casey Robert Brown, Laura Veltz
Tracy Lawrence Marks 30 Years In Country With ‘Hindsight 2020’
/by Lorie HollabaughPhoto Credit: Jon Paul Bruno
Tracy Lawrence is celebrating his 30th anniversary in country music this year, and to mark the career milestone, he’s releasing a special project, Hindsight 2020. The three-volume album has 30 tracks and will be released throughout 2021.
The career-encompassing project is a combination of brand new material, collaborations, and some of Lawrence’s favorite hits. The first in the series, Volume 1: Stairway to Heaven Highway to Hell, will be released on April 23. This 10-song collection features all new material from Lawrence, who penned nine of the 10 tracks, mixing his signature blend of contemporary and traditional country that has made him a mainstay since his debut album, Sticks & Stones, in 1991.
Ahead of the full album, Lawrence will release new music every two weeks on his socials. The title track from Volume 1, “Stairway to Heaven Highway to Hell,” is available now.
“It has truly been the honor of a lifetime to be so welcomed by country music fans,” says Lawrence. “As I look back over the past 30 years, I am incredibly humbled to have been able to live my dream and to have so many folks support me along the way. I wanted to celebrate this amazing milestone with fond reflection and embrace the next chapter with the people who made it all happen, my fans.”
Tim Gray’s Grayscale Marketing Celebrates 1 Million Event Tickets Sold [Interview]
/by LB CantrellTim Gray. Photo: Courtesy Grayscale Marketing
Grayscale Marketing, the Nashville-based marketing company behind popular music venues, festivals, artists, conferences and more, is celebrating the milestone of helping their live entertainment clients sell more than 1,000,000 tickets.
Started by CEO Tim Gray in 2015, Grayscale Marketing has provided marketing, PR, advertising and partnerships for entertainment institutions like Country Jam, Hangout Music Festival, SunFest, Panorama Music Festival, Pilgrimage Fest, and Minor League Baseball, in addition to many artists, venues and brands. Grayscale’s key services are digital marketing, advertising, and PR, they also provide content creation and strategic partnerships.
While the company has already had tremendous success in its short life, 2020 shined a bright light on Grayscale Marketing for their ability to innovate quickly during the COVID-19 pandemic that has put the live entertainment business in crisis.
Early in the pandemic, Gray says that an industry colleague at UTA reached out to him with a client in need of event marketing expertise with what he was told was a “really cool concept.” With no events happening in the foreseeable future, Gray hopped on a call with the client.
“It just so happened to be Walter Kinzie, which is the founder and the CEO of Encore Live,” Gray recalls. “Walter told me about the concept of Encore Drive-In Nights, about the shows already hosted, the results, what they had planned next, how the drive-in theaters were going to work and that, basically, he needed support selling tickets and lowering their cost per acquisition. My whole team was ecstatic about the opportunity of working with a client doing something that had literally never been done at scale in the history of entertainment, much less during a pandemic.”
Grayscale and Kinzie’s team at Encore had a lot to figure out in a short period of time.
“It was not just selling tickets or creating awareness around the events via advertising. It was working day-in and day-out with the Encore team trying to figure out how we best educate fans that we’re providing a socially distanced concert experience to during COVID. It was maneuvering between keeping the fans and patrons safe while selling as many tickets as possible. Also, while juggling the ever changing rules and state mandates across the nation and in Canada. What does personal protective equipment look like when you’re in a car at a drive-in concert? How do we enforce six feet of space between the cars at over 300 theaters simultaneously? How do we cover all of that information, plus create urgency to purchase the ticket, all within a 15-30 second radio spot, TV commercial, or video ad? There were dozens of layers that had to go into marketing strategy and communication surrounding these events to effectively drive attendance. It is astonishing what we all accomplished in just a few months.”
Encore figured it out, though. In three months, Grayscale Marketing was able to help them entertain more than 900,000 fans at 1,100 concerts in 330 venues across two countries, from artists including Metallica, Blake Shelton, Garth Brooks, and Kane Brown.
Photo: Courtesy Grayscale Marketing
In January, Grayscale was tapped as the marketing agency for UFC® and Encore Live to Present the historic UFC® 257: POIRIER vs. MCGREGOR II at 31 drive-in theaters across the United States. The event was in partnership with entertainment technology company MetaMedia and Joe Hand Promotions. The fight marked the first time that UFC® has distributed one of its events at drive-in and outdoor theaters ever.
All of the drive-in concerts Gray and his team had worked on before were pre-recorded. The UFC® event would be the first time that the content was being streamed live.
“Encore needed to be able to test the concept with UFC,” Gray says. “If this worked well what we would be able to help them accomplish over 2021 and beyond would be incredible. We want to be able to host and promote, not just future sporting events and concerts, but approach it from a content distribution standpoint like nothing that’s ever existed before. We could literally help Encore, as an example, partner with a Bonnaroo, and livestream that across two countries, or globally. So instead of being 90,000 people in Manchester, it’s 900,000 people around the continent. That’s powerful.”
Gray says that one of the biggest hurdles for marketing and advertising a drive-in concert in two countries, on one night, was the education of what the actual experience was going to be like. “We had to set clear expectations to the fans and potential ticket buyers in a very short period. Literally, from announcement and on-sale to showtime was 18 days for the Kane Brown show. That’s a whirlwind of strategy, content, media, and sales all in just over two weeks.
“Garth, Metallica, and Blake fans—let’s say 40 percent of those people have maybe been to a drive-in movie at some point in their life. [These drive-in concerts] are reminding them that those venues still exist and educating them on what this new drive-in memory would look like in concert form. Can they bring lawn chairs? How many people per vehicle? What about kids? Can they bring beer? Food? How do they hear the music? There’s a ton of education and questions consumers had about what the experience is on the front end, and leading up to the show date. Our team was also in charge of answering thousands of questions in the form of comments and inbox messages. The fans wanted to come, they just needed answers before they felt comfortable making the purchase decision. Which we totally understand. It simply changed the average amount of touchpoints we are used to seeing before a conversion happens and slightly shifted the consumer journey.”
Photo: Courtesy Grayscale Marketing
With a traditional artist, Grayscale has an expert handle on who their demographic is and how to reach those fans. Once his team can nail down their demo, they can strategize on how to educate the fans about drive-in shows in a pandemic, communicate effectively, and drive them into a sales funnel to re-market. With UFC, nailing down a starting point was much more complicated.
“With the UFC event, what we found was that it’s wildly different. The demographics are all over the place. It’s 18 to 65 year olds, it’s multi-language, it’s across income demographics, socioeconomic backgrounds, populations and cities, as well as a wide range of life and music interests. So we’ve been collecting a ton of data, moving as quickly as we can in real-time to make pivots to discover what is performing best in each individual market, and learning best we can from the analytics. The buying pattern, customer journey, competing with Pay Per View, and the differences I just mentioned made it a moving target. There’s no blueprint, there’s no book, there’s no blog, our teams were literally doing it for the first time it’s ever been done. Which is incredibly exciting, but also incredibly challenging.”
The live-streamed fight proved successful, Gray says. “UFC 257 was a great test case for us and Encore. MetaMedia’s live-streaming content delivery technology is the best in the business regardless if a venue is in a suburban area with strong internet or rural area with limited cell reception. The whole team, Grayscale and Encore can’t wait to kick off the 2021 season!
Gray says that he expects this new content delivery model will outlive the pandemic.
“Don’t get me wrong, live entertainment…there’s nothing like that. That’s why I signed up to do what I do, the same goes for all my staff. We love it. There is no experience like a live concert on the planet. I do not think by any means the concept is going to replace live, but I do think that what we’re going to be able to help Encore accomplish in supporting the industry and bringing fans new live experiences is going to be staggering. The reach Encore will be able to provide for any genre artist will be amazing, but specifically for country music artists.
“When you look at traditional touring models, top tier acts are stopping in a handful of markets playing venues holding between 20,000-40,000 capacity for one night of work, for instance. Maybe there’s 20, maybe there’s 40 stops on the tour total,” Gray says. “A drive-in concert across Encore’s full theater network will hold seven times the potential capacity of the largest stadium in the US. That is like selling out Bridgestone Arena 35 times in a row without leaving Nashville, in one night. We can even push new singles or upcoming releases on the big screens to all the attendees at the same time. Having that level of attention has real value. It truly is an exciting opportunity for the music industry as a whole.
“The majority of the Heartland goes un-touched. 148 million people live within a 40 miles radius of one of the drive-in theaters. Sixty-seven percent of those are in rural or secondary towns that do not have a stadium or arena that a major artist can perform in. What we’re going to be able to help Encore accomplish will be livestreaming those concerts that are two states over to the other fans who would love to be able to attend. We’re going to be able to work hand in hand with managers and agents to distribute live music in a way that’s never been distributed before, and do it live.”
Gray says he is thankful for his partnership with Encore Live and to be marketing music in the darker days of the pandemic.
“It’s fun to be on the forefront of entertainment innovation with a client like Encore Live. They’re constantly pushing the boundaries. To go from idea to execution in under 45 days and end up with the largest in-person experience of 2020 is amazing and awesome to be a part of. They have a great team, great leadership, great vision. For us to be able to come in and partner and support them with something like this, it’s meaningful and it’s compelling. By doing what we love, we are able to help the fans and artists get back to doing what they love.”
Carrie Underwood Unveils Track List For ‘My Savior’
/by Lorie HollabaughCarrie Underwood has revealed the track list for My Savior, her new album of gospel hymns set for release on CD and digital March 26.
In anticipation of the project, Underwood has released “Softly And Tenderly” as an instant-grat track for those who pre-order the digital album. Underwood first performed the beloved hymn during a moving In Memoriam tribute at the 51st Annual CMA Awards telecast, which she hosted with Brad Paisley in 2017.
My Savior features covers of traditional gospel hymns Underwood grew up singing. Highlights of the album include a duet with CeCe Winans on the classic hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness,” and singer/songwriter Bear Rinehart of NEEDTOBREATHE on “Nothing But The Blood Of Jesus.”
Underwood and co-producer David Garcia assembled a group of elite Nashville musicians for My Savior, including Southern gospel and harmonica legend Buddy Greene, 10-time CMA Musician of the Year Mac McAnally, Southern gospel piano virtuoso Gordon Mote, and frequent Underwood collaborator, singer/songwriter/musician Brett James joining Underwood on harmonies, among many others, to create a unique pastiche of musical styles for the record.
“This is an album I have always wanted to record. When I set out to choose these songs, I wanted to include the beautiful, familiar hymns I grew up singing in church,” said Underwood. “There are several songs I have performed in the past, like ‘Softly And Tenderly,’ ‘How Great Thou Art’ and ‘Amazing Grace’ that mean so much to me and I knew immediately we needed to record for the album. This music shaped who I am as a person and is the foundation of my career as a recording artist. I feel so blessed to get to share these songs with generations of people who love them as I do, as well as others who might be experiencing them for the first time.”
My Savior Track List: