TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer has decided to leave the company, less then three months after joining TikTok from his previous role at Disney, reports NBC News.

In a letter from Mayer obtained by NBC News, Mayer said, “In recent weeks, as the political environment has sharply changed, I have done significant reflection on what the corporate structural changes will require, and what it means for the global role I signed up for. Against this backdrop, and as we expect to reach a resolution very soon, it is with a heavy heart that I wanted to let you all know that I have decided to leave the company.”

The news follows the Trump administration’s recent executive order, signed on Aug. 6, which states that TikTok must be sold by Sept. 15 or the app could be banned in the United States. TikTok is owned by Beijing-based company ByteDance. Though the U.S. administration has stated that TikTok’s connection to China makes it a threat to national security,  TikTok has stated its U.S. user data is stored within the United States, with a backup in Singapore.

On Monday (Aug. 24), TikTok sued the U.S. government, claiming it was withheld due process. Meanwhile, Microsoft and Oracle are competing to acquire TikTok from its parent company.

Keep the Show Rolling, a caravan of branded live entertainment industry vehicles, will make its way through Nashville on Tuesday, Sept. 1, beginning at 2 p.m. CT, in support of #WeMakeEvents, a coalition of trade organizations, businesses, unions, and live events workers who are encouraging Congress to pass the Restart Act to aid small businesses and extend Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) benefits to the live events industry that has been devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The route includes several locations key to Nashville’s live music industry: Ryman Auditorium, Bridgestone Arena, Ascend Amphitheater, Nissan Stadium, Municipal Auditorium, TPAC, and lower Broadway.

“The live entertainment industry was one of the first to shut down and will be one of the last to return,” said Chris Lisle, creator of Tuesday’s caravan, owner of Chris Lisle Lighting Design (which has worked with Jason Aldean and Miranda Lambert, among others) and co-creator of the Touring Career Workshop. “Our entire industry is in need of further financial assistance in order to weather the storm. We hope Keep the Show Rolling brings attention to that need and the sheer number of people and companies in Nashville that have been impacted.”

On Sept. 1, in addition to the caravan, numerous venues, businesses and structures around Nashville—including Nissan Stadium, Ascend Amphitheater, Metro Courthouse, Korean Veterans Bridge, Hilton Downtown, Hotel Indigo, and companies including Bandit Lites, Soundcheck/Crew 1, Brantley Sound Associates, Pyrotek Nashville, and Clair Global—will be lighted in red to help raise awareness of the fact that the live entertainment industry is on red alert for its survival.
Those interested in participating in the caravan can contact chris@touringcareerworkshop.com.

A map of the Keep the Show Rolling caravan route is below:

The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame will reschedule its 50th Anniversary Gala to fall 2021.

“We had high hopes for another stellar event to celebrate our 50th Anniversary this fall,” says Sarah Cates, chair of the organization’s board of directors.  “Unfortunately, the current health climate prevents us, like so many others, from being able to safely pursue our usual physical gathering this year.

“While it hurts not being able to reunite in our traditional format with so many cherished friends and hall of fame family members, we are excited to share that we will soon announce a Class of 2020,” Cates added. “We will work to shine a special spotlight on them as this year progresses, and we will also look forward to honoring them alongside the Class of 2021 in a special double-sized event next fall as we celebrate ‘Nashville Songwriting’s Most Legendary Night.’”

Cates added that the new date and more information will be forthcoming as soon as plans are finalized.

In 2019, the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees included Larry Gatlin, Marcus Hummon, Kostas Lazarides, Rivers Rutherford, Sharon Vaughn, and Dwight Yoakam.

The hosts and performers have been announced for the 31st annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards, set to livestream on Oct. 1 at 8 p.m. ET. The show will air on SiriusXM’s Bluegrass Junction channel and will livestream on IBMA’s Facebook Live and via Swapcard.

Sierra Hull, Joe Newberry, Tim O’Brien and Rhonda Vincent will share hosting and presenter duties over the course of the two-hour show. The event will featured taped and virtual performances and presentations from artists including the 2019 “Entertainer of the Year” Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers, as well as Brooke Aldridge, Balsam Range, Kristin Scott Benson, Blue Highway, Dale Ann Bradley, Gena Britt, Katy Daley, Gina Furtado, Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver, Ned Luberecki, Sister Sadie, Amanda Smith, Special Consensus, Billy Strings, Bryan Sutton, The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys, The Travelin’ McCourys, Molly Tuttle, Scott Vestal, Jake Workman, and more, with additional performances to be announced.

In addition to taped and virtual performances from all six Entertainer of the Year nominees, the show will feature Del McCoury Band performing a classic Bill Monroe song onstage at the Ryman Auditorium, in honor of the 75th anniversary of bluegrass. An opening number will recreate that night 75 years ago when Flatt and Scruggs joined Monroe on stage at the Ryman Auditorium.

In a tribute to Doc Watson, his longtime band mate T. Michael Coleman is joined by all five “Guitar Player of the Year” nominees for a rousing “Black Mountain Rag.” In a tribute to J.D. Crowe, his ex-band member Jerry Douglas has collected an amazing lineup of IBMA royalty, including all five banjo nominees, joined by Douglas, Sam Bush, Missy Raines and David Grier.

Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper will perform a song from the fiddling virtuoso’s 2020 Grammy-winning album Tall Fiddler. Taj Mahal will join virtually from Northern California, teaming with Rob Ickes and Trey Hensley, and nominated sidemen Mike Bub and Stuart Duncan, performing at the Ryman, for “Sittin’ on Top of the World.” Becky Buller, Missy Raines and Alison Brown will perform an original hymn by Buller, “Take Me Over Jordan,” for the “In Memoriam” segment.

To salute women in bluegrass history and the 20th anniversary of the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack, four female nominees (including host Rhonda Vincent) will do the a cappella “Down to the River to Pray” from the groundbreaking project.

“This show has been a pleasure to produce,” said Joanne Gardner Lowell, producer of this year’s Awards show. “When I started talking with the IBMA earlier this year, we were Raleigh bound. I’ve been so impressed by how eager all of the IBMA team and the performers have been to pivot and create an entirely new program with virtual aspects. It’s a testament to how the people in the bluegrass community are focused on pulling together to make lemonade out of the large crate of lemons we’ve all been handed this year.”

The IBMA and its Local Organizing Committee partners in Raleigh, North Carolina have determined that, due to ongoing health concerns relating to COVID-19 and the logistical challenges of creating a safe in-person event experience, this year’s IBMA World of Bluegrass will take place virtually. The planned conference, showcases, awards and festival performances will be presented as an online experience September 28-Oct. 3.

Reba McEntire fans can travel back in time this Friday (Aug. 28) with the release of another vintage concert special on YouTube.  Marking the first time this special will be available digitally, Reba In Concert features some of the entertainer’s biggest hits including “Fancy,” “You Lie” and “Whoever’s In New England.”
The show was filmed in 1990 at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas, and serves as a dedication to Reba’s original band members (included in the special) who were tragically lost in a plane crash the following year. Featuring 16 iconic performances, Reba In Concert will premiere at 7:30 p.m. CT and Reba will celebrate with fans through a chat on her YouTube channel.

“This show is very special to me because it features my friends that we lost in a plane crash 29 years ago,” said Reba. “Their love for music and incredible talents deserve to be seen again, and I’m so glad that we’re getting the chance to stream this concert for the first time ever. I can’t wait to watch it and I hope they will feel all the love we still have for them.”

Last month, Reba released her 1994 concert special Reba: Live and over 100,000 fans watched in just the first three days. It was recently announced she is also set to re-release her legendary album, Rumor Has It, in celebration of the 30^th Anniversary. The album includes four Top 10 hits including the title track, “You Lie,” “Fallin’ Out Of Love,” and “Fancy.” The anniversary edition vinyl will include a bonus track, a live acoustic version of “Fancy” recorded at The Ryman, while the CD and digital versions will feature that bonus track and a new dance remix of “Fancy.”