LOCASH Set For Morning Show, Late Night Debuts
LOCASH
LOCASH will make their national morning show debut on NBC’s Today on Feb. 24. That will be followed by their late-show debut on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live on March 16.
The duo of Preston Brust and Chris Lucas broke through in 2015 with “I Love This Life,” which was co-written by Chris Janson and Danny Myrick. LOCASH’s new single is “I Know Somebody.”
“Hard work is really starting to pay off for us,” Lucas says. “We have been seeing the response live. People are singing it back to us. It’s an amazing feeling, for sure.”
Brust adds, “Every day is so exciting. I know this sounds like a cliché, but dreams do come true. We have worked so hard to get to this point. It’s so surreal.”
Scotty McCreery Returning To ‘American Idol’
Scotty McCreery taped an episode of the farewell season of American Idol earlier this week. For three days, the Season 10 champion mentored two of the Top 24 contestants (their names cannot be revealed at this time) and shared lessons learned from both his experience on the iconic television show and in his career. He also performed duets with both singers.
The episode of American Idol featuring McCreery, along with five other returning Idols, will air on Feb. 11 on FOX.
“I remember how important it was to me during my time on Idol to meet and learn from all the great artists who visited the set and offered their advice,” McCreery said. “I was proud to be able to come back and offer whatever guidance I could to my two talented contestants. This is their season and their show. I was there to help them shine…and I believe they both did!”
Joe Nichols Participates In IPF Campaign
Joe Nichols is raising awareness of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a little-known disease that took the life of his father, Michael.
The campaign is called “Breathless: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at IPF.” It brings together people sharing real stories about how IPF has touched and impacted their lives and educates and empowers those who may be at risk to get diagnosed early. IPF, which causes permanent scarring of the lungs and difficulty breathing, affects as many as 132,000 Americans.
Marty Brown Making Opry Appearance After 23 Years
Producer/songwriter Keith Stegall‘s recently launched Dreamlined Entertainment Group has announced the release of Marty Brown’s single, “Make You Feel My Love.” To celebrate the single, Brown will perform on the Grand Ole Opry stage for the first time in 23 years on Saturday (Feb. 6.) Brown recorded for MCA Nashville in the early 1990s.
Brown performed Bob Dylan’s “Make You Feel My Love” on Season 8 of America’s Got Talent after taking a lengthy break from his music career. The performance earned Brown over 7 million YouTube views and caught the attention of Stegall.
Brown is managed by Joe Carter and Mike Tallaferro.
BBR Music Signs Kristian Bush To Production, Publishing, Label Deal
/by Craig_ShelburnePictured (L-R, Bottom Row): Kristian Bush; BBR Music Group CEO/President Benny Brown; (Top Row) BBR Music Group EVP Jon Loba; Wheelhouse Records VP Promotion Teddi Bonadies; BBR Music Group SVP Promotion Carson James; BBR Music Group Legal & Financial Affairs Colton McGee. Photo: Courtesy BBR Music Group.
BBR Music Group has signed Kristian Bush to a multifaceted publishing, production and label deal. He is already in the studio working on the follow-up to his debut solo album, Southern Gravity, to be released via BBR imprint Wheelhouse Records.
Bush also joins the songwriting roster at Magic Mustang Music. As a member of Sugarland, Bush co-wrote nine of the band’s 11 Top 10 country singles.
Pictured (L-R, Bottom Row): Kristian Bush; BBR Music Group CEO/President Benny Brown; (Top Row) BBR Music Group EVP Jon Loba; Magic Mustang Music VP of Publishing Juli Newton-Griffith; BBR Music Group Legal & Financial Affairs Colton McGee. Photo: Courtesy of BBR Music Group
The new partnership with BBR/Wheelhouse reunites Bush with VP of Promotion Teddi Bonadies, who spearheaded his solo radio success with “Trailer Hitch” for Streamsound Records.
“As both a recording artist and a songwriter, I am honored to be a part of the BBR Music Group/Magic Mustang family. I’m in love with making music, and I’m humbled every day that I get to do this job,” Bush said. “My train runs on believers, and I found some incredible supporters in this building. There’s no telling what can happen when like-minded people get together, so to be surrounded by this team and given this opportunity makes me feel like a rocket sitting on a launchpad. I can’t wait to take off.”
“The world knows that Kristian Bush is an amazing songwriter but what many folks may not yet know is that he’s also a multi-talented producer. When we heard his demos we decided to sign him to a full-fledged publishing, production and artist deal. It just made sense. We’re so excited to welcome Kristian, his talent and his incredible spirit to both the Magic Mustang and BBR Music Group family,” says Benny Brown, President & CEO of BBR Music Group.
Bush is managed by Red Light Management, booked by Creative Artists Agency (CAA) and represented by publicity agency Sweet Talk Publicity. He is a BMI affiliated songwriter.
Artist Updates: LOCASH, Scotty McCreery, Joe Nichols, Marty Brown
/by Craig_ShelburneLOCASH Set For Morning Show, Late Night Debuts
LOCASH
LOCASH will make their national morning show debut on NBC’s Today on Feb. 24. That will be followed by their late-show debut on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live on March 16.
The duo of Preston Brust and Chris Lucas broke through in 2015 with “I Love This Life,” which was co-written by Chris Janson and Danny Myrick. LOCASH’s new single is “I Know Somebody.”
“Hard work is really starting to pay off for us,” Lucas says. “We have been seeing the response live. People are singing it back to us. It’s an amazing feeling, for sure.”
Brust adds, “Every day is so exciting. I know this sounds like a cliché, but dreams do come true. We have worked so hard to get to this point. It’s so surreal.”
Scotty McCreery Returning To ‘American Idol’
Scotty McCreery taped an episode of the farewell season of American Idol earlier this week. For three days, the Season 10 champion mentored two of the Top 24 contestants (their names cannot be revealed at this time) and shared lessons learned from both his experience on the iconic television show and in his career. He also performed duets with both singers.
The episode of American Idol featuring McCreery, along with five other returning Idols, will air on Feb. 11 on FOX.
“I remember how important it was to me during my time on Idol to meet and learn from all the great artists who visited the set and offered their advice,” McCreery said. “I was proud to be able to come back and offer whatever guidance I could to my two talented contestants. This is their season and their show. I was there to help them shine…and I believe they both did!”
Joe Nichols Participates In IPF Campaign
Joe Nichols is raising awareness of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a little-known disease that took the life of his father, Michael.
The campaign is called “Breathless: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at IPF.” It brings together people sharing real stories about how IPF has touched and impacted their lives and educates and empowers those who may be at risk to get diagnosed early. IPF, which causes permanent scarring of the lungs and difficulty breathing, affects as many as 132,000 Americans.
Marty Brown Making Opry Appearance After 23 Years
Producer/songwriter Keith Stegall‘s recently launched Dreamlined Entertainment Group has announced the release of Marty Brown’s single, “Make You Feel My Love.” To celebrate the single, Brown will perform on the Grand Ole Opry stage for the first time in 23 years on Saturday (Feb. 6.) Brown recorded for MCA Nashville in the early 1990s.
Brown performed Bob Dylan’s “Make You Feel My Love” on Season 8 of America’s Got Talent after taking a lengthy break from his music career. The performance earned Brown over 7 million YouTube views and caught the attention of Stegall.
Brown is managed by Joe Carter and Mike Tallaferro.
Warner, Sony To Pay Artists Profits From Sales Of Spotify Shares
/by Jessica NicholsonWarner Music Group CEO Stephen Cooper first announced that if it sells its equity interests in Spotify, Warner will pay a portion of its proceeds to its artists. The artist portions would apply to situations where Warner hasn’t paid its own cash for equity stakes in a digital service.
“As there is an ongoing debate in the media regarding how artists should be paid for use of their music on streaming services, we wanted to take this opportunity to address the issue head on,” said Cooper during an earnings call. He pointed out “the main form of compensation we receive from streaming services is revenue based on actual streams,” and added, “there are some services from which we receive additional compensation.”
“There are equity stakes in some streaming services for which we have not paid,” he continued. “Although none of these equity stakes have been monetized since we implemented our breakage policy, today we are confirming that in the event we do receive cash proceeds from the sale of these equity stakes, we will also share this revenue with our artists on the same basis as we share revenue from actual usage and digital breakage.”
Warner is estimated to own between two and three percent in Spotify, according to Music Business Worldwide.
Sony Music has also stepped up to offer a similar deal to its artists, according to Music Business Worldwide.
“As we have previously shared with our artists and their representatives, net proceeds realized by Sony Music from the monetization of equity interests that were provided to Sony Music as part of the consideration for a digital license will be shared with our artists on a basis consistent with our breakage policy,” Sony said in a statement to Music Business Worldwide.
Sony holds a reported six percent holding of equity in Spotify, according to Music Business Worldwide.
Spotify is expected to make its initial public offering (IPO) in the next 12 months.
The report does not make mention of songwriter copyrights benefitting from the deals.
LifeNotes: Fairfield Four Member Robert Hamlett Dies
/by Robert K OermannHamlett died on Monday, Feb. 1, at age 84. He had been a member of the group for more than 30 years.
The Fairfield Four is one of America’s most enduring gospel-music acts. Founded at Nashville’s Fairfield Baptist Church in 1921, the group became radio stars on WSIX in the late 1930s. Lead tenor Sam McCrary (1913-1991) joined in 1935. He made The Fairfield Four a nationally recognized force when the group joined WLAC in 1942. Its program became a CBS network fixture for the next decade. McCrary’s daughters are today’s popular group The McCrary Sisters.
The Fairfield Four underwent several personnel changes over the years. The group began recording in 1946. It issued more than 100 titles on such labels as Bullet, Champion, Dot, Delta, Nashboro, MGM and Old Town. Its signature song became “Don’t Let Nobody Turn You Around.”
McCrary became an ordained minister in 1954. He reorganized and revived The Fairfield Four in 1980. Robert Hamlett joined in 1984, just as the group was poised to achieve its greatest successes.
During the next few years, The Fairfield Four appeared at Carnegie Hall, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and the Smithsonian Institution’s Festival of American Folklife. The singers were regulars at Nashville’s Summer Lights downtown celebrations, as well as at the Tennessee Grassroots Days events in Centennial Park.
Hamlett and the group performed on records by Elvis Costello, John Fogerty, Dolly Parton and Amy Grant. The National Endowment for the Arts honored The Fairfield Four with its National Heritage Award in 1989. In 1995, the group won a Lifetime Achievement prize at the Nashville Music Awards. The group was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 1999.
In 1998, The Fairfield Four won a Grammy Award for its CD I Couldn’t Hear Nobody Pray. Hamlett and the group appeared as gravediggers in the film O Brother Where Art Thou. In 2002, its soundtrack won the group its second Grammy Award.
Hamlett continued to sing with The Fairfield Four during the ensuing decade. He performed on the 2014 PBS-TV special Rock My Soul, filmed at Nashville’s Downtown Presbyterian Church. The group’s most recent album is 2015’s Grammy-nominated Still Rockin’ My Soul.
Funeral arrangements for Robert Hamlett have not been announced.
Chase Rice Releases “Whisper” To Retailers, Sets Radio Add Date
/by Craig_ShelburneChase Rice has issued a new single, “Whisper,” to digital retailers. He co-wrote the track with Chris DeStefano and Jon Nite.
“Whisper” will go for adds at country radio on Feb. 29. Influenced by dubstep, “Whisper” is the lead single from an upcoming album expected later this year via Columbia Nashville/Dack Janiels Records. Rice and DeStefano co-produced the new music.
Rice’s prior album, Ignite the Night, was released in 2014. His hits include “Ready Set Roll” (which earned a platinum certification) and “Gonna Wanna Tonight.” He received an ACM nomination earlier this week for New Male Vocalist of the Year.
“Personally, I believe my writing has evolved since we put out the last album and it’s been a hell of a ride so far, so this one will have a more mature sound to it. ‘Whisper’ is an example of that, having some of those different production elements that push the music beyond where we’ve been before,” Rice said.
Weekly Chart Report (2/5/16)
/by Troy_StephensonClick here or above to access MusicRow‘s weekly CountryBreakout Report.
Dan + Shay Ship New Single To Country Radio
/by Craig_ShelburneDan + Shay single
Dan + Shay have sent the first single from their upcoming album to country radio. “From the Ground Up” will go for adds on Feb. 22.
Signed to Warner Bros. Records/Warner Music Nashville, the duo received their third consecutive nomination for ACM Vocal Duo of the Year earlier this week. Their hits include “19 You+ Me,” “Show You Off,” and “Nothin’ Like You.” They have released a new music video for “From the Ground Up,” directed by Shaun Silva and shot just outside Nashville.
“‘From The Ground Up’ is a song that started with a conversation about our grandparents and the love that they shared for the 65-plus years that they were married,” Dan Smyers explained of the single he wrote with Shay Mooney and produced with Scott Hendricks. “It tells the story of the life that they built through their power and dedication to each other, and the perseverance to endure whatever would come their way.”
Mooney continued, “We put our hearts and souls into every word and every note of this song, and we just hope that it’s as special to our fans as it is to us.”
No release date has been announced for the new album. The duo will open Darius Rucker’s tour dates this spring.
Steve Moakler Plans New Album, Spring Tour
/by Craig_ShelburneSteve Moakler
Songwriter Steve Moakler is working on new music with Creative Nation’s Luke Laird and preparing a U.S. tour this spring.
The project’s lead single, “Suitcase,” has been added to the playlist on SiriusXM’s The Highway and The Big 98. His music has also been spotlighted by CMT, Huffington Post, iTunes, Rolling Stone Country, Spotify and Taste Of Country.
The Pittsburgh native moved to Nashville in 2006 to pursue a career in music. His songs have been recorded by Dierks Bentley (“Riser”), Ashley Monroe, Jake Owen, Kellie Pickler, and Ben Rector.
In support of the Suitcase Tour, Moakler is partnering with Crosley radio for a special giveaway of their SoundBomb, a portable suitcase speaker.
Suitcase Tour Dates
March 30: Austin, Texas (Stubb’s)
March 31: Houston, Texas (Mucky Duck)
April 1: Dallas, Texas (House of Blues)
April 2: Waco, Texas (Common Grounds)
April 14: Columbus, Ohio (The Basement)
April 15: Washington D.C. (Jammin’ Java)
April 16: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Rex Theatre)
April 21: Grand Rapids, Michigan (Pyramid Scheme)
April 23: Madison, Wisconsin (High Noon Saloon)
April 28: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (World Cafe Live)
April 29: Boston, Massachusetts (The Red Room at Cafe 939)
April 30: New York, New York (The Mercury Lounge)
May 5: Birmingham, Alabama (WorkPlay)
May 6: Atlanta, Georgia (Eddie’s Attic)
May 7: Knoxville, Tennessee (The Square Room)
May 25: Nashville, Tennessee (3rd & Lindsley)
May 27: Chicago, Illinois (SPACE)
May 28: Minneapolis, Minnesota (7th Street Entry)
The Swon Brothers Issue Independent ‘Timeless’ EP
/by Craig_ShelburneThe Swon Brothers surprised fans with an independently-released, six-song EP titled Timeless on Friday (Jan. 29). It’s the first collection of new music from the duo since their self-titled 2014 debut on Arista Nashville.
The brothers contributed to the songwriting and played most of the instruments on the album. Production duties were shared with Derek George and bandmate Joe Henderson. Former contestants on The Voice, The Swon Brothers are best known for their hit, “Later On.”
“I don’t think we set out to create a certain sound for this record,” said Colton Swon, “But we did set out to let what we were feeling be heard, and we kind of really put our brains and minds to work and asked, where do we live, where do we feel comfortable singing, and what makes us shine the most? It really embody’s our heart and soul. Plus we had the opportunity to co-write every song on this new EP and it makes a real difference for sure.”
“Artists naturally evolve over the years and people’s sounds naturally change a little bit, but I think we’ve found a musical sweet spot, where we like to sing and play, and at this time it just happens to be capturing music with a little soulful flair,” said Zach Swon. “We put of ourselves into this record, recording much of it in our home studio and playing instruments on the majority of the tracks. A lot of love went into this record, and we hope our current fans like it and that we make some new ones because of it.”
Track listing for Timeless
1. “Just Another Girl” (Zach Swon, Colton Swon, Jordan Schmidt and Cole Taylor) Produced by Derek George and The Swon Brothers
2. “Nobody” (Zach Swon, Colton Swon, Micha Wilshire and Rick Ferrell) Produced by Joe Henderson and The Swon Brothers
3. “Throwback” (Zach Swon, Colton Swon and Derek George) Produced by Derek George and The Swon Brothers
4. “Timeless” (Zach Swon, Colton Swon, Chris Roberts and Jason Gantt) Produced by Joe Henderson and The Swon Brothers
5. “Killing Me” (Zach Swon, Colton Swon and Chris DeStefano) Produced by Derek George and The Swon Brothers
6. “You Got Somebody” (Zach Swon and Micha Wilshire) Produced by Joe Henderson and The Swon Brothers
Industry Ink: NSAI In D.C., Crowd Surf, Harmon Music Management, Crown Pointe Productions
/by Jessica NicholsonNSAI Discusses Music Licensing Reform in Washington D.C.
Representatives from the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI), including Executive Director Bart Herbison, participated in three days of meetings in Washington D.C. this week on the topic of music licensing reform.
Pictured (L-R): NSAI Legislative Co-Chair Roger Brown, Songwriter Equity Act sponsor Congressman Doug Collins (GA), songwriter Jeff Cohen, NSAI’S Bart Herbison and Jennifer Turnbow.
Pictured (L-R): NSAI Legislative Co-Chair Roger Brown, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (VA), NSAI’s Bart Herbison
Kim Davison Joins Crowd Surf As Project Manager
Kim Davison
Crowd Surf founders Cassie Petrey and Jade Driver have hired Kim Davison as Project Manager. In her new role, Davison will oversee marketing efforts for Crowd Surf’s Los Angeles-based clients.
“I’ve known Kim for years, and had always hoped that we could work together one day. She has an incredible positive energy, and really super-serves any project she works on. I’m so glad the stars finally aligned, and we were able to make this happen,” said Petrey.
Davison has relocated to Venice, California, after eight years in Nashville, where she managed digital marketing initiatives for companies such as Warner Bros. Nashville and Skyville. She also co-founded her own retail business, Goodbuy Girls. She will report to Driver and Petrey. Davison can be reached at kim@crowdsurf.net.
Harmon Music Management Signs The Vegabonds
Southern rock band The Vegabonds have signed with the roster of Harmon Music Management, spearheaded by Rusty Harmon and Sunni Ray. The band joins an artist roster that includes STELLA//JAMES, Laura Reed, TOWNE, and Chesapeake Sons.
“I love bands that work hard, tour, and write great songs,” states Harmon. “The Vegabonds exemplify all of those qualities. I’m excited to help guide their career and be a part of their business.”
The Vegabonds
Crown Pointe Productions Opens Nashville Office
Michael Maples
Photographer/Director Michael Maples has opened a Nashville outpost of his Los Angeles-based Crown Pointe Productions, a full-service commercial production company that specializes in film, web content, and photography.
A Nashville native, Maples moved to Los Angeles 16 years ago to work as a fashion photographer. His clients have included Google’s popular video game Ingress, women’s fashion line Dickie’s Girl, and Maks and Peta from ABC’s Dancing with the Stars.
Pointe Productions studios are located at 5915 Robertson Ave, Nashville TN 37209.
Maples can be reached by phone at 323-691-4300 or at CrownPointeProductionsNASH@