Meg Ryan, Quinn Kaemmer

BBR Music Group has promoted Meg Ryan as Senior Publicity Manager and added Quinn Kaemmer as Publicity Manager. Both report to Jay Jones, VP of Publicity.

Ryan joined the BBR Music Group publicity team in 2015 as an Associate Publicist. She began her public relations career at NPG PR working with the company’s diverse roster of music and brand accounts like chart-topper Granger Smith and dick clark productions’ Miss America. At BBR Music Group she has worked closely with fast-rising act Lindsay Ell, helping to drive the media campaign behind her No. 1 debut album The Project as well the media launch of Wheelhouse Records’ Runaway June.

Kaemmer joins the team bringing seven years experience in the public relations field, working with an eclectic roster of entertainment, hospitality, corporate, television and event clients. Quinn’s background includes stops at NPG PR, marlo marketing and most recently Reed PR, where she spearheaded the launch of Madame Tussauds Nashville and worked with notable brands like Pancake Pantry, and O’Charley’s.

Ryan can be reached at meg@bbrmusicgroup.com and 615-610-2110.

Kaemmer can be reached at quinn@bbrmusicgroup.com and 615-610-2142.

Shane Owen Visits MusicRow

Shane Owens. Photo: Haley Crow/MusicRow

Shane Owens recently visited the MusicRow offices to perform tracks from his latest project, including his patriotic single “19.”

Cherish Lee Visits MusicRow

Cherish Lee and her band perform at the MusicRow offices. Photo: Haley Crow/MusicRow

Cherish Lee visited the MusicRow offices on Halloween (Oct. 31) to perform tracks from her upcoming project, including “Tequila Cowgirl,” “The Ones You Leave Behind,” and “This Ain’t Your Grandma’s Country Song.”

Lee is the daughter of country singer Johnny Lee and actress-singer Charlene Tilton.

Dirk Hemsath, Rich Egan

Artist managers and music industry entrepreneurs Rich Egan and Dirk Hemsath have merged their companies, Hard 8 and Working Group, respectively, to create The Hard 8 Working Group.

The newly expanded management roster includes Cheat Codes, Brantley Gilbert, Dashboard Confessional, Billie Eilish, and R.LUM.R.

“Dirk and I go back 20 years and have always shared a mutual respect, trust and work ethic, even when we were on opposite sides of a negotiation,” says Egan, who founded Vagrant Records in 1994, sold it to Interscope, bought it back and then sold it again to BMG last year. “It’s ironic that two punk rock kids ended up in Nashville together working with such an eclectic roster, but Dirk and I speak a common language. We do things that make sense to us and for our artists – and that isn’t a genre specific approach. I couldn’t be more excited about the future of this new company.”

“Inspired by our love of music, Rich and I both started labels as teenagers and grew them into successful companies that provided an outlet for artists and music that changed culture,” says Hemsath. “We both went into management at different times for the same reasons: to be passionate advocates for artists’ rights, work and their business. Rich is a true artist advocate and I can’t wait for what we will do together.”

In addition to a new publishing division, The Hard 8 Working Group will include Egan’s Folsom Records, which originally started as a vinyl only label and has been home to releases from Rise Against and Face To Face and will re-release Dan Layus’ critically acclaimed debut album.

The company will also include a new label division headed up by David Conway. “The freedom they give me to chase my passion—which is finding great songs and pairing up the right artists—is unreal,” says Conway.

As Hemsath’s Doghouse Records celebrates its 30-year anniversary in 2018, it will continue to focus on its expansive catalog, which includes releases from All-American Rejects and Say Anything, among many more.

Industry vet Laura Bender will serve as GM of both the management side and the labels and will take an active role in the greatly expanded venture. “I moved from New York to work with Rich because his passion is contagious—he goes all in on his artists and their music and is constantly bringing new ideas to the table. I was ecstatic when he told me that Dirk and his team were joining the family.”

Sam Powers

Sam Powers has been promoted to Senior Manager, Special Projects at O’Neil Hagaman. He now oversees the business management firm’s publishing consulting activities including due diligence, catalog sales and related work.

Powers has worked in O’Neil Hagaman’s Special Projects division since 2007 and has been Manager of Special Projects at the business management firm for the last five years. O’Neil Hagaman’s Special Projects division focuses on intellectual property matters involving recorded masters, publishing, film and TV rights, catalog sales, due diligence and royalty examinations.

“I’ve worked with Sam Powers for 20 years at both Little Big Town Publishing and now at O’Neil Hagaman,” says O’Neil Hagaman co-founder Kerry O’Neil. “He has a rare combination of intellectual excellency and an ability to listen and understand people.”

Prior to joining O’Neil Hagaman, Powers worked at both Little Big Town Music and Sony/ATV Tree Publishing. He was bassist and songwriter for acclaimed indie-rock band Superdrag from 1999 to 2003. He has also contributed features for MusicRow magazine on behalf of O’Neil Hagaman.