BBR Music Group has added a fourth imprint with the launch of Wheelhouse Records, anchored by the imprint’s first artist signings, Trace Adkins and Granger Smith. Wheelhouse Records’ first single to be promoted to radio is Smith’s “Backroad Song,” while Adkins will debut new music in the Fall.
Teddi Bonadies
“When the BBR Music Group makes a commitment to an artist, we intend to do our very best to help them live out their dreams. In order for us to do that, we have to add the support it’s going to take to gain the most airplay for each single. We’ve found that if we have more than four or five artists on one label then someone isn’t going to get the fair shot they need. That’s why we started Stoney Creek in 2009, then Red Bow in 2012, and now Wheelhouse Records. We want to do everything we possibly can for each artist – because we don’t give up easy,” said Benny Brown, owner & CEO of BBR Music Group.
“Benny Brown and I have always shared a vision of providing the artists on our roster with the individualized attention and strategic support they each deserve. Recently, we’ve been fortunate to work with some extraordinary new talent. The formation of Wheelhouse Records – and its additional promotion staff – became a necessity so that we may uphold the vision that has made the BBR Music Group both a haven for artist development and for the continued growth of superstar acts,” said Jon Loba, Executive Vice President of BBR Music Group.
Teddi Bonadies will lead the imprint as VP of Promotion for Wheelhouse Records, and will report to BBR Music Group’s Sr. VP of Promotion Carson James. Bonadies can be reached at 615-496-6352 and teddi@wheelhousebbrmg.com.
Additional staffers include:
• Jennifer Shaffer, Director of Midwest/ Southwest Promotion
Shaffer reunites with Bonadies with whom she previously worked with at Streamsound, Rodeowave and also Columbia Records. A graduate of James Madison University, Shaffer’s career includes stops at Atlantic, Warner Bros Nashville, MCA Nashville, Lyric Street, Columbia, WAR Nashville, Rodeowave, Sidewalk and Streamsound Records.
Shaffer can be reached at: 904-386-5050 and Jennifer@wheelhousebbrmg.com
• Brittany Pellegrino, Director of Northeast Promotion
Most recently an Assistant Editor at All Access Music Group, Pellegrino began her music industry career at the age of 18 as an intern for WDTW/ Detroit. Pellegrino’s vast industry experience since then includes internships with Big Machine Label Group, Warner Music Nashville and the Nashville Predators as well as working in Promotions for WKDF/ Nashville and as the Director of Northeast Promotion for Cold River Records.
Pellegrino can be reached at: 248-420-1125 and BrittanyP@wheelhousebbrmg.com
• Kimmie Trosdahl, Director of Southeast Promotion
Trosdahl has served as the Promotion Coordinator for Broken Bow Records and Stoney Creek Records since October 2014. Trosdahl previously spent six years in the promotion department at Bigger Picture Group working to enhance the careers of Zac Brown Band, Craig Campbell (now signed to Red Bow Records) and more.
Trosdahl can be reached at: 615-598-0175 and Kimmie@wheelhousebbrmg.com
• Bill Snickers, Director of West Coast Promotion
Most recently the Promotion Coordinator for Red Bow Records, Snickers’ experience includes working in sales for Sprint, a Fortune 500 company, for over five years. He simultaneously got his start in the music business by representing local artists in booking and management while in his native Seattle. Combining his true passion for music with a strong foundation in corporate sales, Snickers relocated to Nashville in late 2013 to pursue a career in the music business.
Snickers can be reached at: 206-261-0588 and Bill@wheelhousebbrmg.com
• Nicole Nehrbas, Promotion Coordinator, RED BOW & Wheelhouse Records
After serving two years as Publishing Administrator for Tucson’s Funzalo Records, Nehrbas took the plunge and moved cross-country to Nashville. Upon arriving in Music City, Nehrbas worked as a tour guide/ guest services rep at the Country Music Hall of Fame. She most recently served as the Promotion Coordinator at Streamsound Records, Nehrbas will serve as the Promotion Coordinator for both Wheelhouse Records and also Red Bow Records.
Reach Nehrbas at: 480-329-0718 and Nicole@bbrmusicgroup.com
MusicRowLife: The Oak Ridge Boys’ William Lee Golden Weds
/by Troy_StephensonSimone Staley (L) with William Lee Golden
The Oak Ridge Boys’ William Lee Golden married Simone Staley in a private ceremony among a small group of close family and friends in Nashville on Saturday, Aug. 29.
The two longtime friends first connected at an Oak Ridge Boys concert when Staley, sitting in the front row, caught a scarf that Golden had thrown her way from the stage. They finally met after a show in 1980 and began to spend time together. They went in separate directions in 1982 but were reunited in 2009.
By summer of 2013, Golden invited Simone to come to Tennessee and go to Alabama and Florida with him to visit family and friends. It was during that trip that their love was solidified.
“It’s been the most beautiful experience, together,” Golden said.
The two plan to reside in their home they found together in 2013 in Middle Tennessee.
BBR Music Group Launches Wheelhouse Imprint, Signs Adkins and Smith
/by Jessica NicholsonBBR Music Group has added a fourth imprint with the launch of Wheelhouse Records, anchored by the imprint’s first artist signings, Trace Adkins and Granger Smith. Wheelhouse Records’ first single to be promoted to radio is Smith’s “Backroad Song,” while Adkins will debut new music in the Fall.
Teddi Bonadies
“When the BBR Music Group makes a commitment to an artist, we intend to do our very best to help them live out their dreams. In order for us to do that, we have to add the support it’s going to take to gain the most airplay for each single. We’ve found that if we have more than four or five artists on one label then someone isn’t going to get the fair shot they need. That’s why we started Stoney Creek in 2009, then Red Bow in 2012, and now Wheelhouse Records. We want to do everything we possibly can for each artist – because we don’t give up easy,” said Benny Brown, owner & CEO of BBR Music Group.
“Benny Brown and I have always shared a vision of providing the artists on our roster with the individualized attention and strategic support they each deserve. Recently, we’ve been fortunate to work with some extraordinary new talent. The formation of Wheelhouse Records – and its additional promotion staff – became a necessity so that we may uphold the vision that has made the BBR Music Group both a haven for artist development and for the continued growth of superstar acts,” said Jon Loba, Executive Vice President of BBR Music Group.
Teddi Bonadies will lead the imprint as VP of Promotion for Wheelhouse Records, and will report to BBR Music Group’s Sr. VP of Promotion Carson James. Bonadies can be reached at 615-496-6352 and teddi@wheelhousebbrmg.com.
Additional staffers include:
• Jennifer Shaffer, Director of Midwest/ Southwest Promotion
Shaffer reunites with Bonadies with whom she previously worked with at Streamsound, Rodeowave and also Columbia Records. A graduate of James Madison University, Shaffer’s career includes stops at Atlantic, Warner Bros Nashville, MCA Nashville, Lyric Street, Columbia, WAR Nashville, Rodeowave, Sidewalk and Streamsound Records.
Shaffer can be reached at: 904-386-5050 and Jennifer@wheelhousebbrmg.com
• Brittany Pellegrino, Director of Northeast Promotion
Most recently an Assistant Editor at All Access Music Group, Pellegrino began her music industry career at the age of 18 as an intern for WDTW/ Detroit. Pellegrino’s vast industry experience since then includes internships with Big Machine Label Group, Warner Music Nashville and the Nashville Predators as well as working in Promotions for WKDF/ Nashville and as the Director of Northeast Promotion for Cold River Records.
Pellegrino can be reached at: 248-420-1125 and BrittanyP@wheelhousebbrmg.com
• Kimmie Trosdahl, Director of Southeast Promotion
Trosdahl has served as the Promotion Coordinator for Broken Bow Records and Stoney Creek Records since October 2014. Trosdahl previously spent six years in the promotion department at Bigger Picture Group working to enhance the careers of Zac Brown Band, Craig Campbell (now signed to Red Bow Records) and more.
Trosdahl can be reached at: 615-598-0175 and Kimmie@wheelhousebbrmg.com
• Bill Snickers, Director of West Coast Promotion
Most recently the Promotion Coordinator for Red Bow Records, Snickers’ experience includes working in sales for Sprint, a Fortune 500 company, for over five years. He simultaneously got his start in the music business by representing local artists in booking and management while in his native Seattle. Combining his true passion for music with a strong foundation in corporate sales, Snickers relocated to Nashville in late 2013 to pursue a career in the music business.
Snickers can be reached at: 206-261-0588 and Bill@wheelhousebbrmg.com
• Nicole Nehrbas, Promotion Coordinator, RED BOW & Wheelhouse Records
After serving two years as Publishing Administrator for Tucson’s Funzalo Records, Nehrbas took the plunge and moved cross-country to Nashville. Upon arriving in Music City, Nehrbas worked as a tour guide/ guest services rep at the Country Music Hall of Fame. She most recently served as the Promotion Coordinator at Streamsound Records, Nehrbas will serve as the Promotion Coordinator for both Wheelhouse Records and also Red Bow Records.
Reach Nehrbas at: 480-329-0718 and Nicole@bbrmusicgroup.com
Project Music 2016 Accelerator To Accept Applications in September
/by Jessica NicholsonThe program will begin Jan. 31, 2016, and will end in mid-May 2016. The program is slated to include 6-8 startups, with funding of a minimum of $30,000 per startup in exchange for 7 percent equity plus three percent equity reserved for key program mentors.
The program is held Monday through Friday at the Nashville Entrepreneur Center. The Project Music title sponsor is the CMA.
For more information, visit projectmusic.co.
SAG-AFTRA, Labels Announce Online Payment Formulas
/by Jessica NicholsonThe successor collective bargaining agreement is the latest legacy contract negotiated since the merger of SAG and AFTRA in 2012 and will now be known as the SAG-AFTRA National Code of Fair Practice for Sound Recordings (or, the “Sound Recordings Code”). The code originated in 1951 and covers session singers, royalty artists, announcers, actors, comedians, narrators and sound effects artists who work on recordings in all new and traditional media and all music formats, as well as audiobooks, comedy albums and cast albums. The agreement covers work for the major record labels and sub-labels, as well as signatory independent record labels. The previous agreement expired Dec. 31, 2014. The new contract covers the period from Jan. 1, 2015, through and including Dec. 31, 2017.
“The Sound Recordings Code is one of SAG-AFTRA’s most important contracts, and I am very pleased that we have achieved groundbreaking changes in this first agreement post-merger,” said SAG-AFTRA National Vice President, Recording Artists Dan Navarro. “SAG-AFTRA and the labels recognize the need for change in order to deal with the challenges and opportunities presented by new economic models in the industry. This deal starts us down that road.”
Key terms of the agreement include:
SAG-AFTRA’s 15-member negotiating committee was chaired by Navarro, with vice chairs Jon Joyce, Janice Pendarvis and Pat Alger. Stefanie Taub, Duncan Crabtree-Ireland and Randall Himes were co-lead negotiators for the union. The labels’ lead negotiators were Plum and Michael Lebowich of Proskauer Rose LLP.
Nielsen Tracking TV Streaming Viewership
/by Jessica NicholsonOverall, Nielsen is tracking around 3,000 episodes, and is sharing the results only with the studios it counts as customers.
Nielsen is not tracking original series from streaming companies, and does not share viewership stats on certain TV shows, such as re-runs of 30 Rock or The X-Files.
[Updated]: Tim McGraw, Faith Hill Reported To Help Hillary Clinton Network in Nashville
/by Eric T. ParkerFaith Hill and Tim McGraw.
(MusicRow) – [Updated, August 31, 8:40 a.m. CT]
Josh Schwerin, Spokesperson for the campaign of Hillary Clinton, has reported to MusicRow “the event is not confirmed.”
[Previous Story]
The Associated Press is reporting that Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton will “tap into the network” of Tim McGraw and Faith Hill during a fundraiser in Nashville, set for Sept. 29.
The event is said to take place for the former U.S. Secretary of State after seven fundraisers in Los Angeles and San Francisco earlier in that month.
Artist Updates: Naomi Judd, Florida Georgia Line, Home Free, Charles Esten
/by Jessica NicholsonNaomi Judd Celebrates ‘Girls Night Out’
Pictured (L-R): Greg Hill and Jeri Cooper, Hill Entertainment Group; Neil Miller, Executive Director of Entertainment, The Venetian – The Palazzo; Jim Allison, Director of Touring, AEG Live Las Vegas; Bobby Reynolds, Vice President, Booking, AEG Live Las Vegas; Ed Huckfeldt, Director of Marketing, The Venetian – The Palazzo; Naomi Judd; John Nelson, Sr. Vice President, AEG Live Las Vegas
Naomi Judd recently celebrated the announcement of The Judds’ Girls Night Out nine-show residency at The Venetian Las Vegas with the executives involved in the deal. Produced by AEG Live, Girls Night Out will mark the country duo’s first concerts together in nearly five years. The show will run at the resort casino from Oct. 7-24, 2015. Currently celebrating the 25th anniversary of their fifth and final studio album Love Can Build a Bridge, The Judds have sold more than 20 million albums to date.
Tickets go on sale Friday, Aug. 28 at 10 a.m. PT and are available at any Venetian or Palazzo Box Office, online at www.venetian.com/thejudds or by calling 702-414-9000 or 866-641-7469.
Florida Georgia Line Slated For ‘Good Morning America’ Summer Series
Florida Georgia Line. Photo: James Wright
Country duo Florida Georgia Line is set to appear on Good Morning America for the finale of their Summer Concert Series next Friday, Sept. 4 live from Central Park. The show airs at 7 p.m. ET on ABC. FGL’s Brian Kelley and Tyler Hubbard join a list of other artists from the course of the summer including Dierks Bentley, Ed Sheeran, Nicki Minaj, The Band Perry, Jessie J and Luke Bryan, among others.
The country duo will also join late night host Jimmy Fallon for another performance on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon, airing on NBC at 11:35 p.m. ET/10:35 p.m. CT.
Country Group Home Free Debuts Nitty Gritty Dirt Band/Little Big Town Mashup
Home Free
Country group Home Free debuted their new track and music video, “Fishin’ In The Dark/Down in the Boondocks” on USAToday.com on Aug. 28. The mashup includes the classic Nitty Gritty Dirt Band tune “Fishin’ In The Dark” with Little Big Town’s breakthrough hit “Boondocks.”
The group’s third studio album, Country Evolution, will release Sept. 18 on Columbia Records.
Charles Esten To Join Sam Phillips Tribute
Charles Esten
Charles Esten, star of ABC’s Nashville, will perform in the CMA Theater at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum Saturday, Aug. 29, at 2:00 p.m. Paying homage to Sam Phillips and the Sun Record label Phillips created, Esten will join Sonny Burgess, Mark Collie, Luther Dickinson, Eric Heatherly, W.S. “Fluke” Holland, Chuck Mead, Jerry Phillips, Charlie Rich Jr., the Secret Sisters, J. M. Van Eaton, and more for the concert. For a full lineup, click here.
The concert marks the opening of a new exhibit at the museum, Flyin’ Saucers Rock & Roll: The Cosmic Genius of Sam Phillips, which officially opens today, Aug. 28.
In addition, Phillips biographer and exhibit co-curator Peter Guralnick will moderate a panel, Go, Cat, Go: Sam Phillips in the Studio, at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 29, with Burgess, Van Eaton, Holland, and Jerry Phillips in the museum’s Ford Theater.
All programs are free with museum admission or membership, and attendees must have a Program Pass to guarantee admission to the event. Program passes are distributed two hours prior to the event at the museum’s box office on a first-come, first-served basis. Seating is general admission and limited.
For additional programming and exhibit details visit countrymusichhalloffame.org.
Carrie Underwood To Be Guest Judge on ‘Project Runway’ Season Finale
/by Jessica NicholsonCarrie Underwood/CALIA
Not only will seven-time GRAMMY winner Carrie Underwood be stepping to center stage in the fashion world during New York’s Fashion Week at the recently announced Calia by Carrie Underwood show to present her fall collection, she will also appear on Lifetime’s Project Runway.
Carrie will join Nina Garcia and Zac Posen as a guest judge on the season finale show that tapes Friday, Sept. 11 with Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn. The finale episode will air Thursday, Nov. 5 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
Carrie recently announced her fifth studio album, Storyteller, will be in stores on Oct. 23.
MusicRowPics: Hailey Whitters
/by Jessica NicholsonHailey Whitters performs for MusicRow staff.
Carnival Music Publishing singer-songwriter Hailey Whitters previewed songs from her upcoming album, Black Sheep, during a recent visit to the MusicRow office. Whitters signed with Carnival Music Publishing in 2012, and has recently been working with producer Derek Wells on her debut project. “We sat down with Carnival and picked out the 10 songs that most represented me as an artist,” says Whitters.
Whitters’ first single release, “City Girl,” describes a small town girl dreaming of life in the big city. Being from Shueyville, Iowa (population: 600), Whitters immediately connected with the song. “My house was in the middle of a cornfield,” she recalls. “I always fantasized about moving to a big city. It’s a dramatic, sassy way of saying, ‘I’m from the country.’” She grew up influenced by the country songs of the Dixie Chicks, Trisha Yearwood, and Shania Twain emanating from the radio. She later fell in love with the music of Loretta Lynn, Keith Whitley, and Johnny Cash through records her grandmother gave her.
This self-described country girl eventually packed up and moved to the “big city” (Nashville). At 17, Whitters enrolled in Belmont University, where discovered Nashville’s songwriting community.
“City Girl” isn’t the only song on the project to tout big dreams and the ambition to follow them. During her visit, Whitters offered an acoustic take on “Black Sheep,” the album’s title track co-penned by The Wrights’ Adam Wright. The song praises independent thinkers who have the courage to follow their own paths.
Whitters followed her acoustic showcase with “One More Hell,” a tribute to her young brother, who died four years ago in a car accident. “The family packed up for a trip to California. We didn’t know where we were going, we didn’t have a plan, we just drove,” recalls Whitter. Upon returning to Nashville after the trip, it was the first song she wrote. “It was really therapeutic for me.
“I still tear up a bit sometimes when I sing it,” she continued. “I love performing it because I feel like a lot of people have experienced loss. But even if they haven’t, I had someone come up to me at a show and say, ‘I’ve never lost anyone, but I’m here with my brother and I want say that song really touched me.’ So I feel like whether you have experienced loss or not, people have a soft spot for that song.”
The heartfelt singer/songwriter also obliged staff with a rendition of her “Low All Afternoon,” a solo-write on her Carnival debut and a title recorded by Martina McBride for consideration on her forthcoming Nash Icon debut.
Whitters is currently on the road performing shows with Leon Russell, having recently signed a booking deal with APA.
An album release will preview songs from her upcoming project at The Basement (1604 8th Ave. S.) in Nashville on Sept. 29.
Hailey Whitters with MusicRow staff.
Ian Rogers To Leave Apple Music
/by Eric T. ParkerIan Rogers
Ian Rogers–Apple executive and former CEO of Beats Music before its acquisition by Apple–is leaving the tech giant, according to confirmation from Billboard after a first report from the Financial Times.
Rogers was appointed as head of iTunes Radio in 2014. He was previously CEO of Topspin, which was acquired by Beats Music earlier that year. He was also general manager of Yahoo! Music.
“According to Financial Times sources, Rogers will be taking a job in Europe in an unrelated industry,” reports the national industry trade publication. “Rogers was key to the development of the popular Beats 1 radio, as well as drawing Beats 1’s leader Zane Lowe away from his position at the BBC (which caused a bit of a trickle-down effect).”