Country Thunder in Kissimmee, Florida, has added more artists to the lineup of performers on the inaugural festival’s main stage March 22-24, 2019, at the Osceola Heritage Park. High Valley, Mitchell Tenpenny, Jimmie Allen, Runaway June, Waterloo Revival, Jameson Rodgers and Noah Schnacky have all been added to the lineup, which features headliners Luke Bryan, Toby Keith and Luke Combs. 

“CT Nation has come to expect the biggest and best when it comes to our headline artists,” says Country Thunder Music Festivals CEO Troy Vollhoffer. “We’re incredibly proud to have Luke Bryan, Toby Keith and Luke Combs in Florida, but we also know that it’s a balance of headliners, combined with red-hot up-and-comers and heritage acts who have stood the test of time which creates the total festival experience.”

Three-day GA passes (including a new standing room area which allows fans to get up close and personal with their favorite stars), reserved seating, Platinum Experience, camping, glamping and all the extras are available at countrythunder.com or can be ordered by phone at 1-866-388-0007.

The Country Thunder Music Festivals organization has a 15-year history which boasts four other major multi-day events, including the reigning ACM Festival Of The Year in Arizona. The organization also hosts events in Wisconsin, Alberta and Saskatchewan.

BMI will expand its presence in Texas with the opening of its first creative office in Austin in 2019, the company has announced.

The new office will allow BMI to work directly with songwriters, composers, publishers and emerging songwriter/artists in the Austin music community and help enhance their ability to earn a living by writing music. Temporary office space has been identified and BMI is aiming to open its permanent office in either the Business District or South Congress area by March of 2019.

The Austin team will report to Nashville-based BMI Vice President, Creative, Jody Williams, and BMI Assistant Vice President, Creative, Mason Hunter. BMI is currently conducting a search for the Creative exec to lead the Austin office.

The BMI office is being opened with the support of Governor Abbott and the Texas Music Office and Entrepreneur Gary Keller, co-founder of the Austin Music Movement, who is signing on as a key sponsor of BMI’s Texas music initiatives.

“Today we are proud to announce that BMI’s support of Texas songwriters, composers and music publishers will become even more Texas-focused,” said Governor Abbott. “This capital investment expansion represents a real commitment to continue Texas’ rise as a music industry business center. I thank the Texas Music Office for their work in making this expansion possible and look forward to working with BMI to grow our thriving music industry.”

Mike O’Neill, President and CEO of BMI, added, “BMI has been active in the Texas music community for decades, and as their creative community has grown, we’ve grown along with them. Having a permanent presence in Austin is the next logical step, and we look forward to building on our many relationships within the industry to help give Texas songwriters all the support they need to create their greatest music. We’re thrilled to call Austin our newest home.”

“BMI has a long track record of music industry community building in cities such as Nashville and Atlanta, and we look forward to working with them as they continue their work here in Texas,” said Texas Music Office Director Brendon Anthony. “BMI’s move to Austin represents a significant investment towards supporting Texas songwriters and their compositions. We are proud to welcome BMI and will work alongside them to increase opportunities for Texas musicians in the years to come.”

“The new BMI office adds to the incredible momentum we’re seeing behind the growing Austin Music Movement,” added Keller. “Austin is the Live Music Capital of the World and having a company like BMI, with the support of Governor Abbott, establish a presence in our city helps further our efforts to support local music and provide resources to the many great musicians who call Austin home.”

The Austin office is the newest location for BMI, which currently has offices in New York, Los Angeles, Nashville, Atlanta, London, Puerto Rico and Washington, DC.

Willie Nelson is throwing a major Nashville party and he’s inviting a string of top artists to join him. Willie: Life & Songs Of An American Outlaw, A Willie Nelson All-Star Celebration, will be held at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Sunday, Jan. 12, 2019.

Nelson will be joined by guests including Alison Krauss, The Avett Brothers, George Strait, Jack Johnson, John Mellencamp, Kris Kristofferson, Lee Ann Womack, Lyle Lovett, Norah Jones and The Little Willies, Sheryl Crow, Susan Tedeschi & Derek Trucks, and Vince Gill. Additional artists will be announced in the coming weeks, along with surprise guests and unforgettable collaborations to be revealed at the show.

The event will also be filmed and recorded for a broadcast special set to air on A&E Network in 2019.

Tickets go on sale Monday, Nov. 12, 2018 at 10 a.m. CT at livenation.com, by phone at 800-745-3000, and the Bridgestone Arena box office. VIP packages including great seats and exclusive merchandise will be available. Citi card members will have access to purchase presale tickets beginning Thursday, Nov. 8 at 10 a.m. CT until Sunday, Nov. 11 at 10 p.m. CT through Citi’s Private Pass program.

“Willie and his songs mean everything to music artists and fans alike. Like Willie, they have inspired us to remain true to ourselves in every possible way. This incredible lineup of artists on this show is a testament to that,” says Blackbird Presents CEO Keith Wortman.

Rachel Wammack. Photo: Haley Crow/MusicRow

At a time when artists increasingly turn to homemade YouTube videos to get their music heard, new RCA Nashville artist Rachel Wammack’s discovery feels decidedly old-school.

A native of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, Wammack began collaborating with the late FAME Studios producer-writer Rick Hall while she was still in her teens. As a high school senior, Wammack was performing a mix of cover songs and originals at a restaurant in her hometown, where Sony Music Nashville’s Jim Catino happened to catch a performance.

He gave her his card, offering mentorship and guidance as she enrolled in the University of North Alabama to study professional writing.

“My professors knew I was writing songs so they would tailor assignments, like one assignment I had to go through every Bob Dylan song,” she told MusicRow during a recent visit.

She also began honing her performance skills. She reached out to Catino asking him to come see her show but instead he invited her to come perform for Sony’s A&R staff. Following their advice, Wammack made the move, while pursuing a master’s degree and working as a bartender in Nashville.

Wammack officially became an RCA Nashville artist earlier this year, signing with Sony Music Nashville during a CRS event at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Pictured (L-R): Rachel Wammack, MusicRow Owner/Publisher Sherod Robertson. Photo: Haley Crow/MusicRow

Similar to her female contemporaries like Carly Pearce (“Every Little Thing”) and Cam (“Burning House”) before her, Wammack eschewed an uptempo track as her breakthrough radio offering; “Damage” is a slow burn that focuses both on nuance of delivery and a complex storyline. Her capable, strong soprano gravitates toward intimate warmth rather than overwrought vocal gymnastics.

Wammack’s bartending experiences, celebrating with customers over a promotion, or helping salve those intent on drinking away heartache, informed her debut single, “Damage,” penned with Tom Douglas and David Hodges.

I’ve seen it from all sides/winning and losing/and love can do some damage, she sings in the song’s chorus.

“I wrote it very literally, just what I went through. I was a horrible bartender. I wasn’t good with making drinks, but I was good with people,” she recalls. “I loved sharing stories.”

Poised behind a keyboard, Wammack offered stripped down renditions of several songs from her upcoming album for the MusicRow Magazine staff. Many tracks transparently chronicle the caustic lessons learned from former flames, as she sublimates the heartache and confusion that followed an unceremonious breakup into deftly crafted songs such as “Closure.”

She rediscovers the uniqueness and validity of her own voice on anthemic tracks like “Hard To Believe” and the blunt “My Boyfriend Doesn’t Speak For Me Anymore,” which she devotes to the girl just singing in the shower/who shut up and forgot about her power.

Wammack is still recording and writing for her upcoming Sony album and says it will offer a mix of ballads and uptempos. Meanwhile, she will join Brett Young and Tyler Rich as part of CMT On Tour: Here Tonight, beginning Nov. 16 in Royal Oak, Michigan.

Pictured (L-R): Eric T. Parker, Haley Crow, Robert K. Oermann, Rachel Wammack, Sherod Robertson, Jessica Nicholson, Alex Kobrick