The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, including Hatch Show Print, Historic RCA Studio B and the CMA Theater will close temporarily to the public beginning at close of business today (Friday, March 13).

“The health and safety of our guests and staff is our top priority,” said Kyle Young, CEO, Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. “While there have not been any confirmed cases of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) connected to the museum at this time, we must do all that we can to help ensure a safe and healthy environment for our visitors, employees and community, which at this time calls for us to close temporarily.”

All upcoming shows at the CMA Theater for the month of March are either postponed or canceled. Ticket holders will be notified of rescheduled dates, and refunds will be issued from the point of purchase for any canceled performances. Visit CMATheater.com for information on individual shows.

The museum will continue to monitor and rely on the guidance from public health officials including Metro Public Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization to inform any decisions moving forward.

The 13th annual Record Store Day has been rescheduled from April 18 to June 20, in light of the rising number of cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) around the world.

“We’ve taken all of that information to heart as we’ve gone over the various options that involved staying the course, moving the date, even changing the structure of the event,” organizers noted in a release. “At the risk of stating the obvious, no one knows what things will look like in any given place over the next five weeks, but it is imperative that hard decisions for that time period need to be made right now, using current facts. There is no perfect solution. There is no easy answer.

“We think this gives stores around the world the best chance to have a profitable, successful Record Store Day, while taking into consideration the recommendations of doctors, scientists, the World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control, and the need to be good citizens of both local and worldwide communities. We’re working with all of our partners and our stores to make this change as smooth as possible for everyone who participates in Record Store Day: customers, record stores, artists, labels and more. Record Store Day is everywhere and we want to hold our party when everyone can gather around safely to celebrate life, art, music and the culture of the indie record store.”

According to the World Health Organization, there are currently more than 132,500 confirmed cases of coronavirus around the world. Earlier on Friday (March 13), United States President Donald Trump declared a national state of emergency due to the coronavirus pandemic. According to CNN, Trump said the move would “open up access to up to $50 billion,” which he described as “a large amount of money for states and territories and localities in our shared fight against this disease.”

(L-R): Jackie Jones (VP of Artist and Industry Relations, Nashville, RIAA), Scott Stem (McCreery’s Manager, Triple 8 Management), Norbert Nix (General Manager/Partner, Triple Tigers Records), Scotty McCreery and George Couri (McCreery’s Manager; Partner, Triple 8 Management; Partner, Triple Tigers Records) | Photo Credit: John Shearer

Scotty McCreery returned to the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville Wednesday night (March 11) for a sold-out show, which marked his first appearance at the Mother Church of country music in over six years. During a pre-show reception filled with journalists and industry execs, McCreery learned his album Seasons Change had been certified Gold by the RIAA for sales of more than 500,00 units.

“I don’t know where to even begin to say how much Seasons Change means to me or how proud I am of this album. The success of this album changed my life,” said McCreery. “If you listen to all the lyrics, then you should have a strong idea of who I am. It’s that personal. The fact that the fans and country radio loved the music means everything to me. I want to thank Triple 8 Management and Triple Tigers Records for their belief in me and for working with me every step of the way. I want to thank my band and crew for all their hard work through the years. This is a team accomplishment and a true highlight of my career.”

To help Nashville, his second home, recover from the devastating tornados in the mid-state area last week, McCreery donated all profits from his merchandise sales at the Ryman to The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee for its Emergency Response Fund.

Jackie Jones, RIAA Vice President of Artists and Industry Relations, Nashville, told the reception crowd that with the gold certification of Seasons Change, McCreery has now exceeded 8 million career RIAA certifications for his albums and singles.

Janine Ebach has started her own boutique artist management company focusing on publishing, songwriter management and artist development, Ebach Entertainment. The 15-year Music Row veteran will be based in Nashville and will also operate in Los Angeles.

Ebach began her career as Creative Director at THiS Music Publishing before becoming the Head of Wordcountry and ultimately VP of Curb|Word Music Publishing. During her time at Wordcountry and Curb|Word she celebrated multiple No. 1 songs including Brett Young’s “Sleep Without You” and “Here Tonight,”  Jon Pardi’s “Heartache on the Dance Floor,” Jordan Davis’s “Singles You Up,” and Dustin Lynch’s “Good Girl,” along with cuts by George Strait, Luke Bryan, Lady Antebellum and Lauren Daigle, among others. She is a 2019 Honoree of Music Row’s Rising Woman on the Row, 2018 AIMP Song Champion of the Year, and an active member of the W.O. Smith Board.

“Since I began my career in music publishing, I’ve had the desire to launch my own entity and am energized to finally announce this multi-faceted music company. I look forward to sharing my experience, passion and love for creatives within our unique industry and aim to discover, nurture and develop the next generation of music makers,” said Ebach.