Pictured (L-R): Kent Earls (Universal Music Group), Mike Dungan (Capitol Nashville), Jody Williams (BMI), LeAnn Phelan (ASCAP), Dann Huff (producer), David Preston (BMI), seated: Keith Urban (singer-songwriter), JT Harding (songwriter)
Music industry members gathered yesterday (March 18) at Nashville’s Musicians Hall of Fame to celebrate Keith Urban’s 17th No. 1 single, “Somewhere In My Car.” The soiree was presented by ASCAP and BMI, in honor of ASCAP writer JT Harding, BMI writer Urban, as well as the song’s producer Dann Huff.
Publishers/administrators on the song include Songs of Universal, Mary Rose Music, Heavy Metal Disco, Mighty Seven, and Songs of SMP.
The afternoon began with a performance of “Somewhere In My Car” by Urban, followed by songwriter tributes from ASCAP’s LeAnn Phelan and BMI’s Jody Williams.
“The Nashville community knows JT as a songwriter, but there is so much more to know,” Phelan said of Harding. “He’s written three No. 1 smashes in country so far and we can’t forget the awesome song ‘Smile’ by Uncle Kracker that he co-wrote. This Detroit native also has a career as a rock star, indie film actor, he’s toured Afghanistan playing for the troops, and he has a Broadway musical under his belt. This past summer, the musical ‘Somewhere With You’ played 14 shows in New York’s musical theater festival on Broadway. It featured 17 of his songs, and now there are talks of a longer run on Broadway. He’s the only guy I know who stands up during his guitar solos at the Bluebird Café.”
“It’s hard to believe it’s been 14 years since he celebrated his first No. 1 with ‘But For The Grace of God,” said BMI’s Williams. “In that time, his BMI catalog has generated some amazing stats. Today we present to Keith his latest BMI Million-Air Awards.” BMI’s Millionaire awards are given to songs that generate more than 1 million spins on radio. Urban picked up Million-Air awards yesterday for “Kiss a Girl,” “For You,” “Long Hot Summer,” “Put You In A Song,” “Sweet Thing,” and “Til Summer Comes Around.”
Additional Million-Air awards were announced for Urban’s songs “Better Life” (2 million radio performances), “Days Go By,” “Who Wouldn’t Want To Be Me” and “But For The Grace of God,” (3 million radio performances each), and “Somebody Like You” (4 million).
“Your songs are powerful and stand the test of time. The most exciting part is that you keep adding new ones like ‘Somewhere In My Car.’ BMI is proud to represent you,” said Williams.
Universal Music Publishing’s Kent Earls said, “Thank you for letting us wave your banner and represent your songs. You are a great ambassador for both country music and Nashville and we are proud to work with you.”
Capitol Nashville CEO Mike Dungan noted that “Somewhere In My Car” is the third No. 1 from Urban’s gold-album Fuse. “I came to Capitol almost 15 years ago and there wasn’t much there. As a matter of fact, it was a disaster,” said Dungan. “But there was this bright shining light in the corner that was so far ahead of the curve that it was frightening. As you can imagine, not everybody understood what he was about. Nobody had done what he did. That was like pushing a rock up the hill, but Capitol and Keith did it. Everything since then has been the realization of the talent that is Keith Urban. This man, more than anyone, has made a difference. We know what an incredible musician he is, but he’s also one of the most incredible human beings I’ve ever known. Every time I’m around him, he inspires and we are honored.”
Appropriately, Avenue Bank announced a donation on behalf of the songwriters to the Musicians Hall of Fame. Additional award presentations were made by the Country Music Association and Country Radio Broadcasters.
Nashville Dancin’ Will Not Return For 2015
/by Jessica Nicholson“The revitalization of this iconic community event breathed a new life into Thursday nights and the summer landscape of downtown Nashville,” said founder Tom Morales of TomKats, Inc. “However, at this time, a continued investment in Nashville Dancin’ no longer makes sense. We look forward to supporting Nashville and the local music scene through other TomKats events this summer season.”
TomKats will continue to produce community, “pop-up” and turnkey events with their own infrastructure, including stage, production, concessions, strategic planning and logistics.
‘Lonely Tonight’ Earns Shelton Most Consecutive No. 1 Singles
/by Eric T. ParkerThe ACM-nominated duet with label mate Ashley Monroe is has been certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). As the second single from Bringing Back The Sunshine, the title marks Shelton’s 19th No. 1 overall and 18th Gold-certified single to date.
The country superstar is preparing to co-host the 50th ACM Awards on April 19 with Luke Bryan at the Dallas Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas where he is also nominated for Male Vocalist of the Year. He returns as a coach for his eighth season of NBC’s The Voice this spring after celebrating his fourth win as a coach last season with contestant Craig Wayne Boyd, now signed to BMLG’s Dot Records.
Weekly Chart Report (3/20/15)
/by Troy_StephensonClick here or above to access MusicRow‘s weekly CountryBreakout Report
Industry Ink: Berklee College, GrassRoots Promotion, TackleBox Films
/by Jessica NicholsonJim Ed Norman Honored by Berklee College of Music
Pictured (L-R): Stephen Webber, program director for music technology at Berklee’s Valencia campus; Pat Pattison, professor of songwriting; Curb Group CEO Jim Ed Norman; Jay Kennedy, vice president for academic affairs. Photo: Chris Hollo.
Berklee College of Music presented its first American Master Awards on Tuesday (March 17) in Nashville, to Curb Group CEO Jim Ed Norman; Grand Ole Opry vice president and general manager Pete Fisher; and Eddie Bayers, drummer on more than 300 gold and platinum records.
The inaugural American Master Awards celebrate the 30th anniversary of the college’s Nashville student trip. The awards were presented at Opry Studio following a Grand Ole Opry concert by Larry Gatlin, The Willis Clan, Lee Greenwood, and alumnus Charlie Worsham.
For 30 years, a group of Berklee students have spent their spring break in Nashville, getting an intensive, in-depth look at the music industry and gaining invaluable insight through clinics and workshops with accomplished alumni artists, songwriters, producers, and engineers. The trip, which began with five students, has grown to 120 students per year, led by Pat Pattison, professor of songwriting, and Stephen Webber, program director for music technology at Berklee’s Valencia campus. More than 3,000 students have attended the program since its inception.
GrassRoots Promotion Expands Staff
RJ Jordan
GrassRoots Promotion has added Rick “RJ” Jordan as Music Row Promotion Manager, effective March 23. Jordan currently serves as PD/PM Driver at Lloyd Lane Inc.’s WCJW in Warsaw, N.Y. His last day is March 20.
Managing Partner Nancy Tunick says, ”We are extremely excited to have RJ join our team as he is a passionate, persistent, detail-oriented, experienced promoter. You don’t find that combination often!”
Jordan will be based in Rochester, N.Y. and can be reached at rj@grassrootspromotion.com or 615-335-0718.
Silva’s TackleBox Films To Premiere ‘Nashville Flipped’ on HGTV Tonight
The show features local home flipper, Troy Dean Schafer and interior designer Alexandria Cirimelli, as they try to restore a 1930s east Nashville home.
Nashville Celebrates Keith Urban’s 17th Chart-Topper
/by Jessica NicholsonPictured (L-R): Kent Earls (Universal Music Group), Mike Dungan (Capitol Nashville), Jody Williams (BMI), LeAnn Phelan (ASCAP), Dann Huff (producer), David Preston (BMI), seated: Keith Urban (singer-songwriter), JT Harding (songwriter)
Music industry members gathered yesterday (March 18) at Nashville’s Musicians Hall of Fame to celebrate Keith Urban’s 17th No. 1 single, “Somewhere In My Car.” The soiree was presented by ASCAP and BMI, in honor of ASCAP writer JT Harding, BMI writer Urban, as well as the song’s producer Dann Huff.
Publishers/administrators on the song include Songs of Universal, Mary Rose Music, Heavy Metal Disco, Mighty Seven, and Songs of SMP.
The afternoon began with a performance of “Somewhere In My Car” by Urban, followed by songwriter tributes from ASCAP’s LeAnn Phelan and BMI’s Jody Williams.
“The Nashville community knows JT as a songwriter, but there is so much more to know,” Phelan said of Harding. “He’s written three No. 1 smashes in country so far and we can’t forget the awesome song ‘Smile’ by Uncle Kracker that he co-wrote. This Detroit native also has a career as a rock star, indie film actor, he’s toured Afghanistan playing for the troops, and he has a Broadway musical under his belt. This past summer, the musical ‘Somewhere With You’ played 14 shows in New York’s musical theater festival on Broadway. It featured 17 of his songs, and now there are talks of a longer run on Broadway. He’s the only guy I know who stands up during his guitar solos at the Bluebird Café.”
“It’s hard to believe it’s been 14 years since he celebrated his first No. 1 with ‘But For The Grace of God,” said BMI’s Williams. “In that time, his BMI catalog has generated some amazing stats. Today we present to Keith his latest BMI Million-Air Awards.” BMI’s Millionaire awards are given to songs that generate more than 1 million spins on radio. Urban picked up Million-Air awards yesterday for “Kiss a Girl,” “For You,” “Long Hot Summer,” “Put You In A Song,” “Sweet Thing,” and “Til Summer Comes Around.”
Additional Million-Air awards were announced for Urban’s songs “Better Life” (2 million radio performances), “Days Go By,” “Who Wouldn’t Want To Be Me” and “But For The Grace of God,” (3 million radio performances each), and “Somebody Like You” (4 million).
“Your songs are powerful and stand the test of time. The most exciting part is that you keep adding new ones like ‘Somewhere In My Car.’ BMI is proud to represent you,” said Williams.
Universal Music Publishing’s Kent Earls said, “Thank you for letting us wave your banner and represent your songs. You are a great ambassador for both country music and Nashville and we are proud to work with you.”
Capitol Nashville CEO Mike Dungan noted that “Somewhere In My Car” is the third No. 1 from Urban’s gold-album Fuse. “I came to Capitol almost 15 years ago and there wasn’t much there. As a matter of fact, it was a disaster,” said Dungan. “But there was this bright shining light in the corner that was so far ahead of the curve that it was frightening. As you can imagine, not everybody understood what he was about. Nobody had done what he did. That was like pushing a rock up the hill, but Capitol and Keith did it. Everything since then has been the realization of the talent that is Keith Urban. This man, more than anyone, has made a difference. We know what an incredible musician he is, but he’s also one of the most incredible human beings I’ve ever known. Every time I’m around him, he inspires and we are honored.”
Appropriately, Avenue Bank announced a donation on behalf of the songwriters to the Musicians Hall of Fame. Additional award presentations were made by the Country Music Association and Country Radio Broadcasters.
Spirit Music Group Acquires StyleSonic Catalog
/by Jessica NicholsonThrough the deal, Spirit will add four No. 1 country hits to its portfolio, including SESAC Song of the Year “Drink To That All Night” by Jerrod Niemann, “Highway Don’t Care” by Tim McGraw ft. Taylor Swift, “Feel That Fire” by Dierks Bentley, and “It Felt Good On My Lips” by McGraw.
The StyleSonic catalog also features over 15 Top 20 country songs spanning the last decade. Other key copyrights in the catalog include “Red Solo Cup” by Toby Keith, “If You’re Reading This” by Tim McGraw, “Beer with Jesus” by Thomas Rhett, “Nine Lives” by Def Leppard ft. Tim McGraw, “Shinin’ On Me” by Niemann, “Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong” and “Teenage Daughters” (both recorded by Martina McBride).
David Renzer, Chairman, Spirit Music Group, said, “The acquisition of the StyleSonic catalog fulfills multiple goals for Spirit, including continuing our aggressive growth strategy via high quality catalog acquisitions, while also fulfilling the goal of helping build and strengthen our growing Spirit Music Nashville operation. We couldn’t be more pleased.”
Daniel Hill, President, Spirit Music Nashville, said, “We are thrilled to add these StyleSonic hits to the Spirit Music Nashville catalog, and we are equally excited to add such a wealth of yet-to-be-recorded songs from some of the hottest songwriters in today’s country market.”
Spirit Music Group’s expansion into country music also includes the recent acquisition of the established and successful Nashville-based independent music publisher, production, and artist management company Cal IV Entertainment, as well as last month’s acquisition of leading contemporary Christian catalog West Main Music.
Justin Moore Commemorates Fifth No. 1 Single
/by Jessica NicholsonPictured (L-R) standing: Allison Jones (BMLG), Matt Turner (Big Loud Shirt), Perry Howard (BMI), Mike Molinar (Big Machine Music), Hannah Williams (Sony/ATV), LeAnn Phelan (ASCAP), Ben Strain (Ole), John Zarling (BMLG), seated: Rodney Clawson, Justin Moore, Jeremy Stover
BMI and ASCAP co-hosted a celebration yesterday (March 18) at the Country Music Association in Nashville to commemorate the chart-topping success of Justin Moore’s “Lettin’ The Night Roll,” which was penned by Moore, along with Rodney Clawson and Jeremy Stover.
Publishers on the song include ole Songs of Countrywood, Sony/ATV Music Publishing, Amarillo Sky Songs, Big Machine Music, Big Red Toe Music, and Double Barrel Ace Music.
The song marks Moore’s fifth chart-topper as an artist, and third as a songwriter.
BMI writer Clawson first signed a publishing deal in 2000. In 2014, he had three No. 1 radio hits.
For the song’s producer/publisher Stover, “Lettin’ The Night Roll” is his fourth chart-topper as a writer and sixth as a producer. The ASCAP member is also behind Moore’s hits “Small Town USA” and “Til My Last Day.”
Moore thanked everyone involved with the song. “Getting a No. 1 was never in my vocabulary,” said Moore. “I moved to town in 2002, and just hoped to get a record deal. I didn’t even really care if I had a record, I just wanted to say I had a record deal. I got to make an album, and I thought, ‘If I can just have one hit, that would be pretty cool, that way my buddies back home wouldn’t tell me I failed.’ Then I had a hit, and I thought, ‘I don’t want to be a one-hit wonder.’ It’s like a drug, as a songwriter and artist, you’re always worried about that next one. It’s always fun to do something like this, especially with guys like Rodney and Jeremy and so many other folks. I want to thank you guys for coming out on the bus to write songs. We live in Arkansas. You guys had to spend time away from your families to come out on the road, and I appreciate that.”
Avenue Bank made a charitable donation on behalf of the song’s writers to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
AMP Act Would Ensure Studio Pros Get Paid
/by Sarah Skates(L-R): The Recording Academy’s Daryl P. Friedman, Chief Advocacy & Industry Relations Officer; Maureen Droney, Managing Director, P&E Wing; and Neil Portnow, President/CEO join with Michael Huppe, President & CEO of SoundExchange, and GRAMMY winning songwriter/producer/guitarist Nile Rodgers to celebrate The AMP Act. Photo courtesy The Recording Academy/WireImage.com
The Allocation for Music Producers Act, or AMP Act (H.R. 1457) has been introduced to Congress. It would create statutory requirements for recording professionals (producers, mixers, engineers) to receive payment.
According to the Recording Academy, “The bill will create a statutory right for producers to receive royalties from SoundExchange when they have a letter of direction from a featured artist. And it will create a new process by which producers can request royalties from artists for older recordings when there is no letter of direction in place, if the artist does not object.”
Congressmen Joe Crowley (D-N.Y.) and Tom Rooney (R-Fla.) introduced the bill, which was crafted with considerable input from the P&E Wing’s Steering Committee.
To tell your congressional representative to support the AMP Act, click here.
Kinkead Entertainment Agency Adds To Artist Roster
/by Jessica NicholsonPictured (L-R): Ray Scott, Bob Kinkead
Singer-songwriter Ray Scott, perhaps best known for his 2005 album My Kind of Music, has signed to Kinkead Entertainment Agency for booking.
Scott, signed to deciBel Nashville, is currently promoting his self-titled album and the single “Ain’t Always Thirsty.”
Kinkead Entertainment also represents Ray Stevens, Bill Engvall, and Kyle Cease, among others.
“Throughout my booking career I have represented some of the great singers in country music (Waylon Jennings and Johnny Cash, to name a few) that stylistically made a mark in the country music industry,” said Bob Kinkead, President/Owner, The Kinkead Entertainment Agency. “Ray Scott reminds me a lot of those great icons with his unique sound and style. I am excited to get to work with and rep Ray as his exclusive agent.”
As a songwriter, Scott has penned songs including “A Few Questions” (Clay Walker) and “Pray For The Fish” (Randy Travis). He was previously signed to Warner Bros. Records in 2005, where he released three singles, including “My Kind of Music,” “Gone Either Way,” and “I Didn’t Come Here To Talk.” He then released three projects on Jethropolitan Records from 2008-2014.
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame To Begin Songwriter Showcases
/by Eric T. ParkerPictured (L-R): Mac Davis, Tom Douglas, Allen Shamblin
The inaugural Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame (NaSHOF) songwriter series will feature Mac Davis, Tom Douglas and Allen Shamblin at City Winery on Tuesday, April 14 at 6:30 pm. The NaSHOF will showcase several songwriters nights in the coming months in an effort to raise funds, billed as “Hits From The Hall.”
“These three are always so gracious to lend us their talents, just as our friends at City Winery have been gracious to provide such a fantastic environment for experiencing music,” says Mark Ford, NaSHOF’s executive director. “We look forward to hearing a lot of classic songs and the stories behind them in the months to come.”
Tickets are $20 for downstairs seating; $30 for limited upstairs VIP seating, available Friday morning, March 20 at citywinery.com/nashville or by contacting the venue at 615-324-1010.
Since 1970, 196 of Music City’s top tunesmiths from all genres of music have been enshrined by the non-profit NaSHOF, which is dedicated to honoring Nashville’s rich songwriting legacy through preservation, celebration and education. In 2013, NaSHOF realized a long-held dream with the opening of its Hall of Fame Gallery, located in downtown Nashville on the first floor of the Music City Center (201 5th Ave. S.).
Davis, a 2000 inductee wrote Elvis Presley’s “In the Ghetto,” “Memories” and “Don’t Cry Daddy.” From 1974-76 he hosted and starred in his own musical variety TV series on NBC. He also acted in such movies as North Dallas Forty (1979), Cheaper to Keep Her (1980), The Sting II (1983) and Jackpot (2001). He played the title role in The Will Rogers Follies in 1992-93, both on Broadway and in the musical’s touring company. Davis received a star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1998 and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in New York in 2006.
Douglas, a 2014 inductee wrote Collin Raye’s CMA Song of the Year, “Little Rock,” “I Run To You” by Lady Antebellum earned the 2009 CMA Single of the Year and “The House That Built Me” (with Shamblin) by Miranda Lambert to earn the 2010 NSAI Song of the Year, CMA Song of the Year and the 2011 ACM Song and Single of the Year.
Shamblin, a 2011 inductee had his first country hit with Randy Travis’ “He Walked on Water.” He wrote Bonnie Raitt’s searing “I Can’t Make You Love Me.” Other Shamblin songs include “Don’t Laugh at Me” by Mark Wills, as well as Keith Urban’s “Where the Blacktop Ends,” John Michael Montgomery’s “Life’s a Dance” and David Ball’s “Thinkin’ Problem.”