Mitch Ballard Named Sr. Director, Creative For BMI Austin Office

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Mitch Ballard

Mitch Ballard has been named Senior Director, Creative at BMI’s Austin office, effective immediately. In this role, he will be responsible for providing service to existing BMI affiliates in Texas, signing new talent, and providing enhancement for the already vibrant songwriting community in Austin. Ballard reports to Jody Williams, VP, Creative, Nashville and Mason Hunter, AVP, Creative, Nashville.

“With a strong background in music and tech, native Texan Mitch Ballard is the perfect fit to head our new Austin office,” said Williams. “He is a proven leader who really understands the creative culture of Austin and the songwriter’s contribution to the fabric of Texas music. We look forward to Mitch’s contribution to BMI’s success as we embark on this new adventure.”

The news of Ballard’s hiring comes on the heels of BMI and Governor Greg Abbott announcing that BMI would be expanding its presence in Texas by opening its first Creative Office in Austin. The new office will allow BMI to work directly with talented songwriters and emerging artists in the Austin music community.

Ballard’s career spans over 25 years, beginning as an on-air talent in radio and television. He spent 16 years in the music business as a tour manager for major national acts. Prior to joining BMI, he utilized his background in the music industry to create early web-based applications for music booking agencies as well as a system to manage concert tours for major artists. Most recently, he started a full-service web development firm, DevDigital, in Nashville.

Ballard received a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of North Texas.

Industry Ink: NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation, Inside Music Publishing, WMA

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NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation, H&R Block To Provide Free Tax Preparation For Nashville Songwriters

NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation (Supporting Our Next Generation of Songwriters) has announced a new partnership with H&R Block to provide free in-office tax preparation to songwriters in the Nashville area as part of its effort to provide direct assistance to working music creators.

“We are thrilled to work with H&R Block to provide tax services to working songwriters. The S.O.N.G.S. Foundation strives to alleviate financial burdens placed on music creators and enable them to focus on what matters most— writing and creating the songs we love,” said NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation President David Israelite.

The Foundation is working with the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) in order to inform area songwriters about this service. For more information and to make a free tax preparation appointment, visit SONGSfoundation.org and fill out the form under the “Free Tax Preparation” tab or contact NMPA’s offices at 202-393-6672.

 

Inside Music Publishing Signs Martin “Bucky” Seja

Martin “Bucky” Seja

Songwriter/producer Martin “Bucky” Seja has entered into an exclusive worldwide agreement with Inside Music Publishing, a Toronto, Canada-based publisher with independent publishing & management offices in Nashville.

In Spring 2018, Inside Music Publishing entered into a strategic partnership with Rukkus Room Studios Nashville & Rukkus Room Publishing, owned and operated by producer & mixer Jamie Tate. As of March 2019, Seja will be producing and writing out of Rukkus Room Nashville’s Studio B, as well as his own studio in Toronto that is scheduled for completion in August 2019.

Seja has enjoyed chart-topping singles writing and performing with Down With Webster (“Your Man,” “Rich$ Girl,” “Chills,” “Whoa Is Me,” “She’s Dope,” “Big Wheels”). “Big Wheels” earned him his fifth Billboard Hot 100 single.

“Bucky is a tremendous writer, producer and genuine soul. We are thrilled to be part of this new chapter in his musical journey,” said Matt Williams, Inside Music Publishing General Manager.

 

WMA Names Caroline Bocko As Social Strategist

Caroline Bocko

WMA has hired Caroline Bocko as Social Strategist within the Global Social Team. Based in WMA’s Nashville office, Bocko will report to Ryan Hall, Head of Social (NY) and Hannah Dudley, Director of Marketing Strategy. Bocko will aide the teams in developing and executing social media campaigns for WMA’s clients, including artists, labels, brands and other entertainment businesses.

The position will draw upon Bocko’s 12+ years of digital marketing and community management experience from her time at Warner Music Nashville, Crowd Surf LLC, Sony Music Nashville, and Concord Music Group. WMA opened its Nashville office in 2018, and has additional offices in New York, Los Angeles and London.

Industry Pics: Ryan Hurd, Blake Shelton, Leah Nobel

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Hurd Celebrates “To A T Tour” In Nashville

Pictured (L-R): Janet Weir, 42 Entertainment/Red Light Management; Dennis Reese, Senior Vice President Promotion RCA Records Nashville; Ryan Hurd; Caryl Atwood, Vice President of Sales Sony Music Nashville; Steve Hodges, Senior Vice President of Promotion and Artist Development Sony Music Nashville.

RCA Records Nashville artist-writer Ryan Hurd celebrated his sold-out To A T Tour on Thursday evening (March 28) with a show at Nashville’s Exit/In. Due to demand, Hurd has added concert stops in Washington, D.C. (March 21), Raleigh, N.C. (March 22), Kansas City, Missouri (April 12), Atlanta, Georgia (April 25), and Athens, Georgia (April 26). Hurd co-wrote the sultry “To A T” with Laura Veltz and Nathan Spicer.

 

Blake Shelton Brings Heroes And Friends To Kentucky Show

Blake Shelton with Warner Music Nashville staff Photo: Jeff Johnson

Warner Music Nashville celebrated Blake Shelton‘s Heroes And Friends Tour during a stop at Louisville, Kentucky’s KFC Yum! Center on March 1. The sold-out show featured nearly two hours of Shelton’s hit songs plus an acoustic guitar pull on the stage with Shelton and his heroes John Anderson, The Bellamy Brothers and Trace Adkins, all performing some of their biggest hits. Lauren Alaina opened the show with her powerful vocals and joined Shelton on stage for his No. 1 duet “Lonely Tonight.”

John Anderson also celebrated his slot on the “Friends & Heroes” Tour, with several of his team members.

Pictured (L-R): Steve Popovich, Cleveland International Records; Bobby Roberts; John Anderson; Travis James, United Talent Agency; Don Murry Grubbs, Absolute Publicity, Inc.

 

Leah Nobel Celebrates Album Release

Pictured (L-R): Jacee Badeaux, Big Yellow Dog Music; Kara Wintergrass, Big Yellow Dog Music; Sophie Hopkins, Big Yellow Dog Music; Leah Nobel; Pete Stewart, producer; Lauren Funk, Big Yellow Dog Music; Alex Stefano, Big Yellow Dog Music; Meaghan Campbell, Big Yellow Dog Music

Big Yellow Dog Music songwriter Leah Nobel celebrated the release of her Pete Stewart-produced album Running In Borrowed Shoes with a show at Nashville’s H.O.M.E. (Helping Our Music Evolve) on Feb. 28.

Nobel’s album was created after Nobel conducted interviews with 100 strangers, discussing their life stories and the binding ties of humanity, love, loss and more.

Weekly Register: Luke Combs Tops Country Albums, Streaming Songs Charts

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Luke Combs tops both the country albums chart and the country streaming songs chart this week, according to Nielsen Soundscan.

Combs’ This One’s For You tops the country albums chart with 25K, while his recent No. 1 radio single “Beautiful Crazy” continues atop the country streaming songs chart with 9.8 million streams this week.

On the country albums rankings, Florida Georgia Line‘s latest, Can’t Say I Ain’t Country, falls from No. 1 to No. 2 this week with 22K. Kacey Musgraves‘ Grammy-winning Golden Hour remains at No. 3 for a second week, following a jump to No. 1 in the days immediately following her award wins. Dan + Shay‘s self-titled project continues at No. 4 with 14K, while Chris Stapleton‘s Traveller stays at No. 5 with 12K.

Following Combs on the country streaming songs chart at No. 2 is Stapleton’s “Tennessee Whiskey,” with 7.5 million streams. Dan + Shay take the next two slots, with “Tequila” at No. 3 (7.2 million) and “Speechless” at No. 4 (7.1 million). Brown’s “Heaven” rounds out the Top 5 with 6.9 million.

Clint Black And Trace Adkins Reveal The Hits. Hats. History. Tour

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Two country music mainstays, Clint Black and Trace Adkins, will make a return to the stage together as part of the Hits. Hats. History. Tour this summer. Pre-sale tickets go on sale Tuesday (March 5), with all remaining tickets going on sale Friday (March 8) at 10 a.m.

The Hits. Hats. History. Tour kicks off May 2 in Charlotte, North Carolina and travels to nine different cities through Aug. 9, with additional dates to be announced in the coming weeks. Terri Clark, John Berry and Craig Campbell will appear as special guests on select dates of the tour.

“It’s been a few years since Clint and I shared the stage,” said Adkins. “Since then, we have both been fortunate to have added a few more hits, and hats to our collection. Looking forward to this!”

“Trace and I toured together back in the ’90s and I’m really looking forward to sharing the stage with him again!” Black added. “He’s a lot of fun and a real pro.”

In addition to the Hits. Hats. History. Tour, Black will launch his Still Killin’ Time 30th Anniversary Tour in March to celebrate the 30th anniversary of his triple-Platinum, seminal album, Killin’ Time.

Adkins is also on the road this summer as part of his current Don’t Stop Tour 2019 as well as with Blake Shelton as part of his Friends & Heroes 2019 Tour, which concludes March 23 in New York.

Hits. Hats. History. Tour dates:
May 2 – Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre – Charlotte, NC*
May 3 – Suwannee River Jam – Live Oak, FL^
May 4 – The Bowl – Sugar Hill, GA*
May 5 – CCNB Amphitheatre – Simpsonville, SC*
June 6 – White Oak Amphitheatre – Greensboro, NC<
June 8 – Foxwoods Amphitheatre – Mashantucket, CT<
June 9 – Bank of New Hampshire Amphitheatre– Gilford, NH<
August 8 – Smart Financial Centre – Sugar Land, TX<
August 9 – H-E-B Center at Cedar Park – Cedar Park, TX<

*Features John Berry
^Features Craig Campbell
<Features Terri Clark

For more information and tour dates, visit traceadkins.com or clintblack.com.

Clint Black Still… Killin’ Time 30th Anniversary Tour dates:
3.8.19 – Norman, OK – Riverwind Casino
3.9.19 – Kansas City, MO – Ameristar Casino KC Star Pavillion
3.15.19 – Evansville, IN – Aiken Theatre
3.16.19 – Northfield, OH – Hard Rock Live
3.22.19 – St. Petersburg, FL – Mahaffey Theater
3.23.19 – Fort Pierce, FL – Sunrise Theatre
3.24.19 – Naples, FL – Hayes Hall
3.29.19 – Waterloo, NY – Del Lago Resort & Casino
3.30.19 – Rising Sun, IN – Rising Star Casino Resort
3.31.19 – Bristol, TN – Paramount Center for the Arts
4.12.19 – Westbury, NY – Theatre at Westbury
4.26.19 – Hinckley, MN – Grand Casino Hinckley Event Center
4.27.19 – Wisconsin Dells, WI – Crystal Grande Music Theatre
5.3.19 – Live Oak, FL – Suwannee River Jam
6.20.19 – Manhattan, KS – Country Stampede
6.21.19 – Dubuque, IA – America’s River Festival
6.23.19 – Chicago, IL – Country LakeShake Festival
7.20.19 – Cheyenne, WY – Cheyenne Frontier Days
7.24.19 – Helena, MT – Lewis & Clark County Fairgrounds
8.23.19 – Mitchell, SD – Corn Palace Festival
9.7.19 – Eldon, MO – Shawnee Bluff Vineyard
9.26.19 – Minot, ND – Norsk Hostfest
10.8.19 – Salt Lake City, UT – Eccles Theater

Don’t Stop Tour Dates:
April 4 – Bologna Performing Arts Center – Cleveland, MS
April 5 – IP Casino – Biloxi, MS
April 6 – Oxford Performing Arts Center – Oxford, AL
April 11 – Country Thunder – Florence, AZ
April 12 – Peppermill Concert Hall – West Wendover, NV
April 13 – Peppermill Concert Hall – West Wendover, NV
April 27 – Pearl River Resort – Choctaw, MS
May 3 – Suwannee River Jam – Live Oak, FL
May 17 – Effingham Performance Center – Effingham, IL
May 18 – J. Scheidegger Center for the Arts – St. Louis, MO
May 19 – Niswonger Performing Arts Center – Greeneville, TN
May 24 – Shooting Star Casino – Mahnomen, MN
May 25 – Prairie Knights Casino & Resort – Fort Yates, ND
May 26 – Tree Town Country Music Fest – Forest City, IA
June 13 – Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – Tulsa, OK
June 15 – Kansas Star Casino – Mulvane, KS
June 20 – The Paramount Huntington – Huntington, NY
June 21 – Penn’s Peak – Jim Thorpe, PA
June 22 – Hollywood Casino – Charles Town, WV
June 27 – Country USA – Oshkosh, WI
June 28 – Jack Cincinnati Casino – Cincinnati, OH
July 2 – San Diego County Fair – Del Mar, CA
July 3 – Alameda County Fair – Pleasanton, CA
July 5 – LRS Music Festival – Paulina, OR
July 6 – Montbleu Resort Casino – Stateline, NV
July 10 – America First Event Center – Cedar City, UT
July 12 – Chumash Casino – Santa Ynez, CA
July 18 – Great Jones County Fair – Monticello, IA
July 20 – Country Thunder – Twin Lakes, WI
July 26 – Shawnee Bluff Vineyard – Eldon, MO
July 27 – United Wireless Arena – Dodge City, KS
July 28 – Paramount Theater – Denver, CO
July 30 – Sweetwater County Fair – Rock Springs, WY
July 31 – Montana State Fair – Great Falls, MT
August 3 – Inn of the Mountain Gods – Mescalero, NM
August 17 – Chase County Fair – Imperial, NE
August 22 – Genesee County Fair – Mount Morris, MI
September 10 – Spokane County Interstate Fair – Spokane, WA
September 14 – Blue Gate Theater – Shipshewana, IN
November 13 – Royal Caribbean Poll Deck – Key West, FL

Ashley Gorley Back To No. 1 On MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart

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Ashley Gorley is back to No. 1 this week on the MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart, with Shane McAnally at No. 2 and Kevin Welch at No. 3.

Brett James follows Welch at No. 4 with Carrie Underwood’s “Love Wins” and Cody Johnson’s “On My Way To You.” Luke Combs is at No. 5 with his most recent No. 1 “Beautiful Crazy” and “She Got The Best Of Me.” Riley Green and Erik Dylan move into the top 10 with Green’s “There Was This Girl.”

The first female songwriter appears at No. 38 with Kelsea Ballerini. After experiencing the Grammy effect and being at No. 19 on last week’s chart, Kacey Musgraves drops to No. 46 this week.

The weekly MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart, published every week, uses algorithms based upon song activity according to airplay, digital downloaded track sales and streams. This unique and exclusive addition to the MusicRow portfolio is the only songwriter chart of its kind.

Click here to view the full MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart.

ole’s VP, Creative John Ozier To Exit

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John Ozier

ole’s VP, Creative John Ozier is set to exit the company on March 31 to pursue a new opportunity with music publisher Reservoir.

Tim Hunze, Sr. Director, Creative in ole’s Nashville division, will take on expanded responsibilities, including leading the day-to-day operations of ole’s Nashville Creative team and label activities. Hunze was previously co-founder and managing partner of Parallel Music Publishing, acquired by ole earlier this year. Parallel songwriters under his management achieved No. 1 hits including: The Band Perry’s “Better Dig Two,” Kelsea Ballerini’s “Love Me Like You Mean It,” Justin Moore’s “Till My Last Day,” Michael Ray’s “Kiss You In The Morning,” and Miranda Lambert’s “Mama’s Broken Heart,” Randy Houser’s “Like A Cowboy” which went to No. 2 at country radio.

Lauren Lieu, Senior Creative Coordinator, and Alexandra Tamashunas, Creative/Label Services Coordinator, will report to Hunze in his expanded capacity.

Additionally, ole has announced Gilles Godard has been appointed to Sr. VP, Publishing, and will report to ole CEO Helen Murphy. Godard will work closely with Murphy in developing and executing ole’s new growth strategy for publishing worldwide and working with key songwriters and catalogs. Godard, who has been with ole since 2006, was previously VP, Corporate Affairs and Development.

Ozier noted, “I am committed to ensuring a smooth transition of my duties to Tim under the leadership of Gilles. I will be working with the team at ole until my planned departure on March 31, to ensure our songwriters and our artists also have a seamless transition.”

Murphy said, “I would like to thank John Ozier for his many contributions to ole Nashville over the years, and I wish him the best of luck in the future.

“Gilles has been, and continues to be, an integral part of ole’s success in growing our overall publishing business worldwide. The relationships he has developed with the creative community reflect his tremendous passion and energy for creating and protecting songs and songwriters. It is my pleasure to promote him to the well-deserved position of SVP, Publishing. I look forward to the continued success of our Nashville operation under the guidance of Gilles and Tim, and I am pleased to see Tim take on an expanded role in operations. Tim has an incredible creative track record and is well respected in the industry. I am excited to have him and his catalog with ole.”

Godard noted, “I am absolutely thrilled to have this opportunity as SVP and look forward to working closely with Tim and the entire Creative team as we write the next chapter of success here at ole. The future always exceeds the past!”

Ben Folds And Violent Femmes Team For Summer Tour

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Ben Folds and the Violent Femmes are launching a summer co-headlining tour, set to begin July 28 at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut. The tour includes a stop at Nashville’s Ascend Amphitheater on Aug. 9.

Ticket pre-sale begins March 5, and all remaining tickets will be released to the general public on March 8. VIP Packages will also be available featuring a pre-show Meet & Greet and a Q&A with Folds, and a signed copy and excerpt readings by Folds of his soon-to-be-published memoir A Dream About Lightning Bugs. A Life Of Music And Cheap Lessons.

For over a decade Folds has performed with some of the world’s greatest symphony orchestras, and in 2017 was named as the first ever Artistic Advisor to the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center. In addition to touring, Folds is an avid photographer, a member of the prestigious Sony Artisans of Imagery, and completed an assignment in 2017 as a photo editor for National Geographic. He was recently featured in a mini-documentary by the Kennedy Center’s Digital Project on his photographic work.

More than 30 years into their careers, the Violent Femmes will spend 2019 touring extensively and have announced a new album set for release in late summer.

For a full list of tour dates, visit benfolds.com.

‘And The Writer Is…’ Podcast Returns For Fourth Season

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A new season of the acclaimed podcast And The Writer Is…, hosted by Ross Golan, is slated for April 1. The announcement was made during a special podcast episode which dropped today (March 4) featuring songwriter Jake Davis, the winner of the podcast’s first-ever songwriting competition. Among the guests appearing on the podcast’s fourth season are Shane McAnally, Matt Ramsey, and Kip Moore.

And The Writer Is… Season 4 will kick off April 1 with Jon Bellion, who in addition to his solo work has penned tracks with Eminem, Rihanna, Jason Derulo and many others. Other songwriters featured this season include Death Cab for Cutie’s Ben Gibbard, Teddy Geiger, X Ambassadors’ Sam Harris, Skylar Grey and Pricilla Renea, to name a few.

Golan also announced that he and podcast co-producer, GRAMMY-nominated songwriter Joe London, will be taking And The Writer Is… on the road to SXSW in Austin, Texas the week of March 11. They will be recording an interview with Fugees founding member Wyclef Jean at a SXSW official session on Thursday, March 14 at 12:30 p.m. located at the JW Marriott’s Brazos Room, which will be aired during the upcoming season. Golan will also be leading a SXSW session on the topic of “Song Math” on March 15, as well as acoustically performing his concept album The Wrong Man, which comes out on Interscope later this year. The special performance will take place at the Central Presbyterian Church in Austin on Wednesday, March 13.

“I’m honored to sit down with a new lineup of some of the best songwriters in the world. These people are artistic geniuses, ambitious entrepreneurs and most importantly, the life blood of the music industry,” said Golan.

Season 4 Guests Include:
  • Jon Bellion
  • Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie)
  • Skylar Grey
  • Kip Moore
  • Sam Harris (X Ambassadors)
  • Greg Wells
  • Brian Lee
  • Pricilla Renea
  • John Shanks
  • Matthew Ramsey (Old Dominion)
  • Teddy Geiger
  • Warren “Oak” Felder
  • Shane McAnally
  • Wyclef Jean (recorded at SXSW on 3/14)

Kings of Leon Join Azoff’s Full Stop Management

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Kings of Leon

Nashville band Kings of Leon have exited their longtime management company, Ken Levitan’s Vector Management, and have signed with Irving Azoff-owned company Full Stop Management, MusicRow has confirmed.

They are managed by Andy Mendelsohn, who joined Full Stop in February after leaving his previous position at Vector Management. During his 17-year stint at Vector, Mendelsohn served as Kings of Leon’s day-to-day manager.

The band released their most recent album, WALLS, in 2016. Band members include Caleb Followill, Jared Followill, Matthew Followill, and Nathan Followill.

Azoff’s roster includes Bon Jovi, Harry Styles, Meghan Trainor, and Mark Ronson, who recently collected an Oscar for his work on “Shallow,” from the Bradley Cooper/Lady Gaga movie A Star Is Born.