ACM Lifting Lives has announced the recipients of its 2017 fall grant cycle, with grants totaling more than $260,000. Partnerships with artists and generous giving from fans and the Nashville community enable ACM Lifting Lives to provide funding to these 25 organizations that share the same mission, and strive to improve lives through the power of music.
“ACM Lifting Lives is honored to have such amazing support from artists, industry members and fans, and that allows us to continuously increase the amount of beneficiaries we are able to help support every year.” said ACM Lifting Lives Chairman Debbie Carroll.
Programs funded through this grant cycle include:
Barefoot Republic, Inc. – Serves more than 2,100 youth through Day Camp, Overnight Camp, and year-round service, learning and performance opportunities in Kentucky, Tennessee, and California. Approximately one-third of campers participate in music programming. In 2018, offering will expand to include Day Camp in Compton. Funds from this grant will be used to assist with costs of opening the new camp and will allow 10 disadvantaged youth to attend the camp for free. www.barefootrepublic.org
Camp Sunshine Inc. – Enriches the lives of Georgia’s children with cancer and their families through year-round recreational, educational and support programs. This grant will support the Music Program, with the funds being used directly to pay for the musician hired for 2 weeks of summer camp, for the purchase of new musical instruments and equipment, and to hire musicians for 2 weeks of Sunshine 2U – a hospital program for children too ill to leave the hospital setting. www.mycampsunshine.com
COPD Foundation – Established Harmonicas for Health, the first nationwide harmonica program created especially for individuals with COPD and other chronic lung diseases, with PEP (Pulmonary Empowerment Program). Funds from this grant will go toward supporting this program. www.copdfoundation.org
CreatiVets – Provides combat veterans struggling with PTSD and traumatic brain injury with opportunities to use music, art and writing to heal their unseen wounds of war. This grant will be used to support the Combat Veteran Songwriting Program and to create a compilation CD of songs written in the program to distribute to other veterans recovering in hospitals, VA clinics, and other Veteran Service Organizations. www.creativets.org
El Paso Symphony Orchestra Assn., Inc. – Partnered with the El Paso Independent School District to provide a free after-school music program five days a week in one of the poorest and least educated neighborhoods in the country, with 60% of households below the poverty level, 70% not completing high school, 95% Hispanic, and 56% speaking little or no English. Funds from this grant will support the El Paso program, which serves an elementary school and plans to expand to a middle school this year. www.epso.org
Every Child Counts – Located in the Bahamas, Every Child Counts is a special needs school that provides education for children with learning, developmental or physical disabilities to maximize each child’s ability to become a productive, successful and independent citizen. Funds from this grant will help support the school’s music programs. www.everychildcountsabaco.org
Follow Your Heart Arts Program, Inc. – The Follow Your Heart Arts Program provides music education opportunities in the hometown of country music artist Charlie Worsham in rural Mississippi. Funds will be used to purchase 30 guitars for guitar lessons, to begin a songwriting program for at-risk youth, to conduct field trips to the GRAMMY Museum Mississippi, and to advocate for music education by sharing the success of the program with key state and national representatives www.FollowYourHeartArts.org
Foundations of Music – Foundations of Music brings music education to underserved classrooms and communities across Chicago. Funds will be used to support its Songwriting/Production Program for students in grades 6-8, which teaches students to write and produce original rap/hip-hop songs. www.foundationsofmusic.org
Girls Rock Santa Barbara – Empowers girls through music education. This sleep away camp includes instrument lessons, forming a band, collaboratively writing an original song, participating in workshops, recording in a professional studio, and performing with their band at a live showcase event. The grant funding will support program costs and scholarships. www.girlsrocksb.org
High Hopes Development Center – Pre-school with on-site pediatric clinic, serving children with special needs and long-term disabilities alongside their typically-developing peers. The Center offers a Music Enrichment Program for 148 preschoolers, 60% of whom are typically-developing and 40% having special needs. Funds will be used to assist with music teacher salary, instruments, and curriculum. www.highhopesforkids.org
Legacy Music Alliance – Provides children access to music education through its Instruments to Schools Program, which repaired 1,332 instruments used in schools last year, and its Clinicians in the Classroom program, which conducted 300 hours of in-classroom music lessons taught by professional musicians. Funds from this grant will be used to support these programs in an economically disadvantaged school district, continuing the work started with last year’s Lifting Lives grant. www.legacymusicalliance.org
Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra – In its 27th season offering performing concerts and providing education and community engagement programming. The Orchestra’s Soul Strings program uses the talents of orchestra members to increase the quality of life for people with developmental disabilities through music therapy. Funds from this grant will be used to provide 17 weeks of music therapy to 20 seniors with dementia and cognitive disorders. www.lpomusic.com
Middle Tennessee State University Foundation – Received a grant to support the ‘Music Row Murfreesboro’ program – launched in the spring 2016 with ACM LL grant money. This enhanced curriculum is within MTSU’s Commercial Songwriting concentration. Each semester, invited industry professionals came to campus to lecture and interact with students in a weekly three-hour class. Fund from this grant will go to continuing the program, covering travel stipends, studio times, music supplies, and Songspace memberships for each of the students. www.mtsu.edu/development/foundation.php
Music for Seniors – Connects area musicians with older adults through live and interactive programs designed to engage, entertain and educate seniors, by 1) delivering programs to groups in recreational and care settings, 2) offering public daytime concerts at accessible venues, and 3) teaching group classes in instrument and vocal performance. Funds will be used to provide Music-Making Kits to utilize during outreach, reaching 435 individuals with dementia. www.musicforseniors.org
Music Mends Minds – A non-profit organization founded to serve seniors and patients afflicted with PTSD, cognitive decline, and neurodegenerative disease, by building musical support groups. It currently consists of a network of seven bands of musicians who are affected by these conditions. Funds from this grant will be used to create five new bands in five additional communities in Southern California, and to hire a part-time music therapist to work with them, reaching at least 525 additional patients, caregivers, community volunteers, and/or community members. www.musicmendsminds.org
Musicians On Call – Brings live and recorded music to the bedsides of patients across the country. The Bedside Performance Program enlists local volunteer musician to give in-room performances to patients who are unable to leave their hospital beds, serving over 600,000 individuals to date. Funds will be used to support the development of in two new expansion markets, Boston and Dallas, growing the program infrastructure to reach thousands more patients. www.musiciansoncall.org
Nashville Songwriters Foundation, Inc. – Owns the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, launched The Songwriters TV show on Nashville Public Television, and operates an after-school songwriting program for middle school students called Express Yourself. Funds will be used to expand the Express Yourself program to two additional schools and will finance the stipend for a weekly Song Coach, refreshments, and teaching supplies. www.nashvillesongwritersfoundation.com
Operation Song Inc. – Will use funds from this grant for a 10-week songwriting program open to veterans and active duty military who suffer from service related issues and injuries. Two professional songwriters, along with a qualified therapist, will lead a weekly 2-hour group of 4-6 participants, to share their stories with their peers and have their experiences and emotions validated, culminating in a professionally co-written and recorded song, and a performance for family and friends. www.operationsong.org
Peggy R. McConnell Arts Center of Worthington – A contemporary, multidisciplinary facility presenting and promoting the performing, visual and digital arts. Through their television program, Songs at the Center, which is nationally distributed by American Public Television, the half hour TV series features songwriters performing in an in-the-round format. Grant funds will be used to produce two shows that focus on ‘Music and Healing’. www.mcconnellarts.org
Porter’s Call – Serves recording artists and their families by providing them with counsel, support, and encouragement to deal with issues off-stage. The staff currently sees 30 plus artists and/or spouses per week, often referred by record companies. Funds will be used toward counseling hours, so they can continue to offer counseling free of charge to artists and expand available hours. www.porterscall.com
Rocketown of Middle Tennessee – Offers out-of-school enrichment and youth development programs, youth arts initiatives, intramural sports and sporting events, youth ministry and outreach programs, and attraction based activities and services. Funds from this grant will be used to expand key partnerships with audio departments at public high schools to provide skill development within the field of audio production. www.rocketown.com
St. Anna’s Episcopal Church – Promotes healing and wholeness of body, mind and spirit in the Treme/7th Ward and Greater New Orleans community by offering academic, cultural and arts enrichment, holistic healthcare and healthy lifestyle education. Funds will go to oversee the coordination of activities between the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra and the Loyola Music Therapy Department, as well as teach clarinet, vocal music and Project Learning. It will also purchase instruments and repair costs for existing instruments. www.annasplacenola.org
Tennessee Alliance for Kids – Serves as a liaison between the faith-based community and the State of Tennessee with the goal of meeting the immediate needs of children and youth currently in foster care and those aging out of the system. Funds from this grant will be used to start a marching band to motivate students in the Metro School area to help them discover musical talents and to possibly provide them opportunities for college scholarships. www.tnallianceforkids.org
The Quest Center for Art & Community Development – A non-profit music education and resource center with year-round instrument instruction and music education programs serving children grades 4-12, including those with special needs. No child is turned away for financial reasons. Funds will go direct to operating costs year-round. www.qcdickson.org
Vanderbilt Kennedy Center – The grant will support the organization’s existing mission to facilitate discoveries and best practices that make positive differences in the lives of persons with developmental disabilities and their families through innovative research, services, and training for over 50 years. www.vanderbiltkennedycenter.com
Florida Georgia Line, Eric Church, Dierks Bentley Join Cheyenne Frontier Days Lineup
/by Lorie HollabaughCheyenne Frontier Days has announced the initial lineup for its 2018 Frontier Nights entertainment series in July. Florida Georgia Line, Cole Swindell, Charlie Daniels Band with special guest Tracy Lawrence, Eric Church, and Dierks Bentley were announced as performers live this week from Las Vegas during the National Finals Rodeo.
Tickets for the Cheyanne, Wyoming event will go on sale Sat., Dec. 16 at 10 a.m. CT at cfdrodeo.com, through the Cheyenne Frontier Days Ticket Office or by calling 307-778-7222.
“We are excited about the lineup for 2018,” Contract Acts chairman Scott Fleming said. “We are working on securing the remaining performances and will have a follow-up announcement at that time.”
2018 Cheyenne Frontier Days Entertainment Schedule:
Emmylou Harris, Ricky Skaggs To Honor Producer Brian Ahern At Musicians Hall Of Fame Benefit
/by Lorie HollabaughAhern, a Canadian Country Music Hall of Famer and an Americana Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, is known for producing acts such as Harris, Anne Murray, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, George Jones, Roy Orbison, Glen Campbell, Linda Ronstadt and Black Sabbath.
Proceeds from the event will go towards restoration of Ahern’s Enactron trailer, a mobile recording studio originally designed and built by Ahern in 1972 that is one of the first mobile studios used to record projects on location. The Enactron has a history of over 40 Gold and Platinum albums recorded in the trailer including Bette Midler’s The Rose and Barbra Streisand’s A Star Is Born. The new exhibit is scheduled to open this winter.
Individual tickets are available at musicianshalloffame.com/special-event. Those wishing to sponsor a table can call Tyler at 615-244-3263. If attendance is not possible, donations are appreciated and can be sent to Musicians Hall of Fame POB 23655 Nashville, TN 37202.
Weekly Chart Report 12/8/17
/by Alex ParryClick here or above to access MusicRow‘s weekly CountryBreakout Report.
Promotions And Hirings At BBR Music Group
/by Jessica NicholsonLexi Willson, Devin DeToro, Matt Holmberg
BBR Music Group has made a round of promotions and hirings among its marketing and promotion staff.
Lexi Willson has been tapped as Director of Regional Promotion, West Coast for Wheelhouse Records, a position previously held by Byron Kennedy who was named VP of Promotion for Stoney Creek Records earlier this week. She has served as Promotion Coordinator for Red Bow Records and Wheelhouse Records since August 2016 following three years at KNTY/Sacramento as a Promotion Assistant.
“Lexi hit the ground running with an incredible ‘can-do’ spirit and thirst for knowledge,” said Carson James, SVP of Promotion, BBR Music Group. “She knew from the beginning that she wanted to be in promotion. Her wish has become our wish, because she has earned it!”
Willson will report to Wheelhouse Records VP of Promotion, Teddi Bonadies and can be reached at lexi@wheelhousebbrmg.com or 707-410-6617.
Matt Holmberg will succeed Willson as Promotion Coordinator for Red Bow Records and Wheelhouse Records. Holmberg has worked at BBR Music Group since April 2017 in various creative support roles and additionally as a Catalog Coordinator for Magic Mustang. He had previously interned in promotion at BBR Music Group.
Holmberg will report to the Bonadies for Wheelhouse Records and VP of Promotion for Red Bow Records, Shelley Hargis. He can be reached at matthew@bbrmusicgroup.com or 615-610-2127.
Devin DeToro has been hired as Senior Manager of Marketing. In this role she will be serve as point on coordinating marketing efforts for Red Bow and Wheelhouse Records. DeToro joins BBR following a two-year stint in Los Angeles at iHeartMedia as Manager, Activation and Account Management. Prior to iHeartMedia she served for seven years with CBS Radio, rising to Project Manager, Integrated Marketing and Events for the Chicago cluster.
DeToro will report to BBR Music Group VP of Marketing, JoJamie Hahr and can be reached at devin@bbrmusicgroup.com or 615-610-2157.
In Pictures: Spotify Hosts Nashville Open House Event
/by Haley CrowOver the past two days, streaming service Spotify hosted a Nashville ‘Open House’ at the newly opened Analog at The Hutton Hotel. The music streaming company invited the local music community to stop by to learn more about how they can collaborate with Spotify, and also hosted a variety of intimate live performances from Maren Morris, The Shadowboxers, Russell Dickerson, and more.
Pictured (L-R): Universal Music Group Nashville Chairman/CEO Mike Dungan and Brittany Schaffer of Spotify attend the Spotify Nashville Open House on December 6, 2017 in Nashville, Tennessee. Photo: Rick Diamond/Getty Images for Spotify
Pictured (L-R): David Macias of Thirty Tigers and Rob Harvey of Spotify attend Spotify Nashville Open House on December 6, 2017 in Nashville, Tennessee. Photo: Rick Diamond/Getty Images for Spotify
Pictured (L-R): Matt Lipkins, Adam Hoffman and Scott Tyler of The Shadowboxers perform onstage for Spotify Nashville Open House on December 6, 2017 in Nashville, Tennessee. Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images for Spotify
Pictured: Special guest Maren Morris performs onstage for Spotify Nashville Open House on December 6, 2017 in Nashville, Tennessee. Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images for Spotify
Pictured: Special guest Josie Dunn performs onstage with The Shadowboxers for Spotify Nashville Open House on December 6, 2017 in Nashville, Tennessee. Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images for Spotify
Pictured: Russell Dickerson hit the driving range with fans before his live performance at Top Golf Nashville. Photo: Kate Cauthen
Pictured: Troy Carter, Spotify’s Global Head of Creator Services, during his Fireside Chat with CMT’s Leslie Fram held at Analog @ The Hutton Hotel. Photo: Jonathan Kingsbury
CMHoF Re-Elects Many Board And Trustee Posts
/by Eric T. ParkerKen Levitan, Ernie Williams (treasurer) and Jody Williams were re-elected trustees for three-year terms. They join remaining trustees Mark Bloom, David Conrad, Bill Denny, Rod Essig, Keel Hunt (secretary), Mary Ann McCready, David Ross and Turner.
Re-elected board members include Al Giombetti (executive vice president); and vice presidents Earl Bentz, Mike Dungan, Randy Goodman, John Grady, Lon Helton, Donna Nicely, Gary Overton, Jim Seabury, Bill Simmons, Clarence Spalding, Chris Stewart, Troy Tomlinson, Marcus Whitney and Tim Wipperman.
CMA CEO Sarah Trahern serves as an ex-officio member. Chris Horsnell and Mike Milom of Milom Horsnell, Crow, Rose, Kelley, PLC. continue as the not-for-profit educational organization’s legal counsel.
Dennis Gwiazdon Exits Midwest Communications
/by Jessica NicholsonDennis Gwiazdon
Midwest Communications acquired the Nashville cluster along with the Knoxville and Evansville markets from South Central Communications in 2014. Gwiazdon worked for South Central for 13 years and Midwest Communications for three years.
“In Dennis’ 16 years at South Central and Midwest Communications, he has amassed an amazing record of accomplishments and it was indeed terrific to have him as a valued member of our management team,” says Midwest Communications President/CEO Duke Wright.
“While I’m truly excited about the future, it’s bittersweet to leave such an extraordinary team in Nashville,” says Gwiazdon, a member of Leadership Music’s Class of 2012. “Duke and his team always provided us with the tools to win and I’m confident they will continue to make history in Music City.”
A search for Gwiazdon’s replacement is underway. Resumes can be sent to Michael Wright at michael.wright@mwcradio.com.
ACM Lifting Lives Grants $260K To 25 Beneficiaries
/by Jessica Nicholson“ACM Lifting Lives is honored to have such amazing support from artists, industry members and fans, and that allows us to continuously increase the amount of beneficiaries we are able to help support every year.” said ACM Lifting Lives Chairman Debbie Carroll.
Programs funded through this grant cycle include:
Barefoot Republic, Inc. – Serves more than 2,100 youth through Day Camp, Overnight Camp, and year-round service, learning and performance opportunities in Kentucky, Tennessee, and California. Approximately one-third of campers participate in music programming. In 2018, offering will expand to include Day Camp in Compton. Funds from this grant will be used to assist with costs of opening the new camp and will allow 10 disadvantaged youth to attend the camp for free. www.barefootrepublic.org
Camp Sunshine Inc. – Enriches the lives of Georgia’s children with cancer and their families through year-round recreational, educational and support programs. This grant will support the Music Program, with the funds being used directly to pay for the musician hired for 2 weeks of summer camp, for the purchase of new musical instruments and equipment, and to hire musicians for 2 weeks of Sunshine 2U – a hospital program for children too ill to leave the hospital setting. www.mycampsunshine.com
COPD Foundation – Established Harmonicas for Health, the first nationwide harmonica program created especially for individuals with COPD and other chronic lung diseases, with PEP (Pulmonary Empowerment Program). Funds from this grant will go toward supporting this program. www.copdfoundation.org
CreatiVets – Provides combat veterans struggling with PTSD and traumatic brain injury with opportunities to use music, art and writing to heal their unseen wounds of war. This grant will be used to support the Combat Veteran Songwriting Program and to create a compilation CD of songs written in the program to distribute to other veterans recovering in hospitals, VA clinics, and other Veteran Service Organizations. www.creativets.org
El Paso Symphony Orchestra Assn., Inc. – Partnered with the El Paso Independent School District to provide a free after-school music program five days a week in one of the poorest and least educated neighborhoods in the country, with 60% of households below the poverty level, 70% not completing high school, 95% Hispanic, and 56% speaking little or no English. Funds from this grant will support the El Paso program, which serves an elementary school and plans to expand to a middle school this year. www.epso.org
Every Child Counts – Located in the Bahamas, Every Child Counts is a special needs school that provides education for children with learning, developmental or physical disabilities to maximize each child’s ability to become a productive, successful and independent citizen. Funds from this grant will help support the school’s music programs. www.everychildcountsabaco.org
Follow Your Heart Arts Program, Inc. – The Follow Your Heart Arts Program provides music education opportunities in the hometown of country music artist Charlie Worsham in rural Mississippi. Funds will be used to purchase 30 guitars for guitar lessons, to begin a songwriting program for at-risk youth, to conduct field trips to the GRAMMY Museum Mississippi, and to advocate for music education by sharing the success of the program with key state and national representatives www.FollowYourHeartArts.org
Foundations of Music – Foundations of Music brings music education to underserved classrooms and communities across Chicago. Funds will be used to support its Songwriting/Production Program for students in grades 6-8, which teaches students to write and produce original rap/hip-hop songs. www.foundationsofmusic.org
Girls Rock Santa Barbara – Empowers girls through music education. This sleep away camp includes instrument lessons, forming a band, collaboratively writing an original song, participating in workshops, recording in a professional studio, and performing with their band at a live showcase event. The grant funding will support program costs and scholarships. www.girlsrocksb.org
High Hopes Development Center – Pre-school with on-site pediatric clinic, serving children with special needs and long-term disabilities alongside their typically-developing peers. The Center offers a Music Enrichment Program for 148 preschoolers, 60% of whom are typically-developing and 40% having special needs. Funds will be used to assist with music teacher salary, instruments, and curriculum. www.highhopesforkids.org
Legacy Music Alliance – Provides children access to music education through its Instruments to Schools Program, which repaired 1,332 instruments used in schools last year, and its Clinicians in the Classroom program, which conducted 300 hours of in-classroom music lessons taught by professional musicians. Funds from this grant will be used to support these programs in an economically disadvantaged school district, continuing the work started with last year’s Lifting Lives grant. www.legacymusicalliance.org
Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra – In its 27th season offering performing concerts and providing education and community engagement programming. The Orchestra’s Soul Strings program uses the talents of orchestra members to increase the quality of life for people with developmental disabilities through music therapy. Funds from this grant will be used to provide 17 weeks of music therapy to 20 seniors with dementia and cognitive disorders. www.lpomusic.com
Middle Tennessee State University Foundation – Received a grant to support the ‘Music Row Murfreesboro’ program – launched in the spring 2016 with ACM LL grant money. This enhanced curriculum is within MTSU’s Commercial Songwriting concentration. Each semester, invited industry professionals came to campus to lecture and interact with students in a weekly three-hour class. Fund from this grant will go to continuing the program, covering travel stipends, studio times, music supplies, and Songspace memberships for each of the students. www.mtsu.edu/development/foundation.php
Music for Seniors – Connects area musicians with older adults through live and interactive programs designed to engage, entertain and educate seniors, by 1) delivering programs to groups in recreational and care settings, 2) offering public daytime concerts at accessible venues, and 3) teaching group classes in instrument and vocal performance. Funds will be used to provide Music-Making Kits to utilize during outreach, reaching 435 individuals with dementia. www.musicforseniors.org
Music Mends Minds – A non-profit organization founded to serve seniors and patients afflicted with PTSD, cognitive decline, and neurodegenerative disease, by building musical support groups. It currently consists of a network of seven bands of musicians who are affected by these conditions. Funds from this grant will be used to create five new bands in five additional communities in Southern California, and to hire a part-time music therapist to work with them, reaching at least 525 additional patients, caregivers, community volunteers, and/or community members. www.musicmendsminds.org
Musicians On Call – Brings live and recorded music to the bedsides of patients across the country. The Bedside Performance Program enlists local volunteer musician to give in-room performances to patients who are unable to leave their hospital beds, serving over 600,000 individuals to date. Funds will be used to support the development of in two new expansion markets, Boston and Dallas, growing the program infrastructure to reach thousands more patients. www.musiciansoncall.org
Nashville Songwriters Foundation, Inc. – Owns the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, launched The Songwriters TV show on Nashville Public Television, and operates an after-school songwriting program for middle school students called Express Yourself. Funds will be used to expand the Express Yourself program to two additional schools and will finance the stipend for a weekly Song Coach, refreshments, and teaching supplies. www.nashvillesongwritersfoundation.com
Operation Song Inc. – Will use funds from this grant for a 10-week songwriting program open to veterans and active duty military who suffer from service related issues and injuries. Two professional songwriters, along with a qualified therapist, will lead a weekly 2-hour group of 4-6 participants, to share their stories with their peers and have their experiences and emotions validated, culminating in a professionally co-written and recorded song, and a performance for family and friends. www.operationsong.org
Peggy R. McConnell Arts Center of Worthington – A contemporary, multidisciplinary facility presenting and promoting the performing, visual and digital arts. Through their television program, Songs at the Center, which is nationally distributed by American Public Television, the half hour TV series features songwriters performing in an in-the-round format. Grant funds will be used to produce two shows that focus on ‘Music and Healing’. www.mcconnellarts.org
Porter’s Call – Serves recording artists and their families by providing them with counsel, support, and encouragement to deal with issues off-stage. The staff currently sees 30 plus artists and/or spouses per week, often referred by record companies. Funds will be used toward counseling hours, so they can continue to offer counseling free of charge to artists and expand available hours. www.porterscall.com
Rocketown of Middle Tennessee – Offers out-of-school enrichment and youth development programs, youth arts initiatives, intramural sports and sporting events, youth ministry and outreach programs, and attraction based activities and services. Funds from this grant will be used to expand key partnerships with audio departments at public high schools to provide skill development within the field of audio production. www.rocketown.com
St. Anna’s Episcopal Church – Promotes healing and wholeness of body, mind and spirit in the Treme/7th Ward and Greater New Orleans community by offering academic, cultural and arts enrichment, holistic healthcare and healthy lifestyle education. Funds will go to oversee the coordination of activities between the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra and the Loyola Music Therapy Department, as well as teach clarinet, vocal music and Project Learning. It will also purchase instruments and repair costs for existing instruments. www.annasplacenola.org
Tennessee Alliance for Kids – Serves as a liaison between the faith-based community and the State of Tennessee with the goal of meeting the immediate needs of children and youth currently in foster care and those aging out of the system. Funds from this grant will be used to start a marching band to motivate students in the Metro School area to help them discover musical talents and to possibly provide them opportunities for college scholarships. www.tnallianceforkids.org
The Quest Center for Art & Community Development – A non-profit music education and resource center with year-round instrument instruction and music education programs serving children grades 4-12, including those with special needs. No child is turned away for financial reasons. Funds will go direct to operating costs year-round. www.qcdickson.org
Vanderbilt Kennedy Center – The grant will support the organization’s existing mission to facilitate discoveries and best practices that make positive differences in the lives of persons with developmental disabilities and their families through innovative research, services, and training for over 50 years. www.vanderbiltkennedycenter.com
DISClaimer: Chris Stapleton, Cale Dodds Offer Superb Vocals
/by Robert K OermannChris Stapleton, Cale Dodds
Veterans, shooting stars and newcomers are the ingredients in this week’s country-music recipe.
Toby Keith, Lee Ann Womack and Shania Twain all demonstrate that they have enduring appeal. Kip Moore, William Michael Morgan and Chris Stapleton are here to show us why they are all hot right now. Lindsay Ell and Cale Dodds are the promising newcomers.
It will come as no surprise that Chris Stapleton wins the Disc of the Day prize. The man can do no wrong.
This week’s DisCovery Award goes to social-media sensation Cale Dodds. He’s not only super handsome; he can also sing.
KIP MOORE/Last Shot
MCA (download)
-It’s an anthem-style rock power ballad delivered in his trademark, raspy, impassioned voice. I like the “shot” imagery of drinking and romantic chances.
SHANIA TWAIN/We Got Something They Don’t
Mercury (ERG)
– Kinda rumbling. Kinda thumpy. Kinda bluesy pop. Kinda groovy and catchy. I kinda like it.
LEE ANN WOMACK/All The Trouble
ATO (download)
– She could sing the phone book and make it sound soulful. Happily, this blues lament is much, much more than that. Her whole The Lonely, The Lonesome & The Gone album is essential.
KID ROCK/Tennessee Mountain Top
Red Bow (ERG)
– Suffering in L.A., he waxes nostalgic about home, where folks pack guns and sing karaoke in a double-wide thick with cigarette smoke. If that’s his idea of heaven, he’s welcome to it.
CHRIS STAPLETON/Millionaire
Mercury
-Searing and seething with emotion. It’s a classic country message: Love is more precious than money. If you’ve got love, you’re rich. Amen, bro.
LINDSAY ELL/Criminal
Writers: Lindsay Ell/Chris Stevens/Fred Wilhelm; Producer: Kristian Bush; Publishers: Magic Mustang/BMG Rights/Lindsay Ell/Moody Producer/Capitol CMG, BMI; Stoney Creek
– This multi-talented gal is still looking for the song that will put her over the top. This is a pleasant, percolating outing, but I don’t think it’s the one.
TOBY KEITH/Shitty Golfer
Writers: Toby Keith; Producers: Keith/Bobby Pinson; Publishers: Tokeco, BMI; Show Dog/Thirty Tigers
– This will make you grin, I guarantee it. By the way, Toby’s CD The Bus Songs also contains his immortal reefer ditties “Wacky Tobaccy” and “Weed With Willie.”
WILLIAM MICHAEL MORGAN/Vinyl
Writers: Wade Kirby/Ashley Gorley/Carson Chamberlain; Producers: Jimmy Ritchey & Scott Hendricks; Publishers: Round Hill Works/External Combustion/Songs of Southside Independent/WB/Atlas/Carson Chamerlain, BMI/ASCAP; Warner Bros.
-I remain a fan. This sweet, lilting love song compares old-fashioned romance with the warmth and comfort you feel from hearing classic music. Gently persuasive.
CALE DODDS/Out Of My System
Writers: Cale Dodds, Zach Abend, Corey Crowder; Producer: none listed; Publishers: Songs From The Rose Hotel (ASCAP)/WB Music Corp. (ASCAP)/Cale Dodds Publishing (ASCAP); Bendable Music (BMI)/Nashville International Music (BMI); Songs From The Rose Hotel (ASCAP)/WB Music Corp. (ASCAP); Warner Bros.
-He knows he’s addicted to her. But he’s not ready to de-tox just yet. The jumpy, nervous track has lots of stuttering electric guitar, but his pleading, urgent vocal remains the focus. An intriguing debut. The track is paired with a number called “People Watching.” What the two share is a certain monotonic quality that favors likable energy over any kind of distinctive melody.
Charlie Daniels Volunteer Jam XX Set For March 2018
/by Lorie HollabaughCharlie Daniels. Photo: Terry Wyatt
Charlie Daniels is hosting Volunteer Jam XX: A Tribute To Charlie, an all-star concert event at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Wednesday, March 7, 2018.
This year’s Jam will feature performances by Daniels and his band, Alison Krauss, Billy F Gibbons of ZZ Top, Blackberry Smoke, Bobby Bare, Chris Janson, Chuck Leavell, Eddie Montgomery of Montgomery Gentry, Jamey Johnson, Justin Moore, The Oak Ridge Boys, Ricky Skaggs, and many more special guests to be announced in the coming weeks. Storme Warren will be returning as host. For the first time ever, rock great Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top will honor Daniels at the Jam.
Tickets go on sale Dec. 8, 2017, at 10 AM CT online at Ticketmaster.com, by phone at 800-745- 3000, all Ticketmaster locations and the Bridgestone Arena box office. A portion of the proceeds from 2018’s Volunteer Jam will be donated to The Journey Home Project, a non-profit co-founded by Daniels and manager David Corlew to help Veterans.