MusicRow looks back on its 2014 events, including the MusicRow Chart Annual Airplay Awards during CRS, the third annual Rising Women On The Row breakfast and the reader-voted MusicRow Awards.
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MusicRow Magazine presented its 26th annual subscriber-voted MusicRow Awards on June 18 during a ceremony hosted by BMI at the performing rights organization’s Nashville offices. The awards event, led by MusicRow Publisher and Owner Sherod Robertson, recognized the 2014 Breakthrough Artist Brandy Clark, Breakthrough Songwriters Nicolle Galyon and Cole Swindell, Song of the Year (“All Kinds of Kinds,” penned by Phillip Coleman and Don Henry), and Producer of the Year Frank Liddell.
Additionally, Top Ten Album All-Star Musician Awards were presented to session players who performed on the most top ten albums during the eligibility period.
26th annual MusicRow Awards celebrates Breakthrough Artist Brandy Clark.
26th annual MusicRow Awards celebrates Breakthrough Songwriter Nicolle Galyon.
MusicRow celebrates Song of the Year “All Kinds of Kinds.”
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MusicRow‘s 2014 Rising Women on the Row event honored Flood, Bumstead, McCready & McCarthy’s Julie Boos, Sony Music Nashville’s Caryl Healy, Big Machine Label Group’s Kelly Rich, Essential Broadcast Media’s Ebie McFarland, and Warner/Chappell Music’s Alicia Pruitt.
The event took place at the Omni Hotel Nashville on March 21.
MusicRow‘s 3rd Annual Rising Women on the Row.
MusicRow’s 3rd Annual Rising Women on the Row.
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MusicRow Magazine presented its 12th annual CountryBreakout Awards at Margaritaville in Nashville on Feb. 18. Entertainers at the event included Native Run, and Natalie Stovall and The Drive.
The CountryBreakout Awards recognize success at radio on the MusicRow chart during the preceding year (January to December 2013). A list of award recipients is below.
12th annual MusicRow CountryBreakout Award winners:
Male Artist of the Year–Blake Shelton
Female Artist of the Year–Miranda Lambert
Group of the Year–The Band Perry
Breakout Songwriter-Rodney Clawson
Breakout Artist of the Year–Kacey Musgraves
Independent Artist of the Year –Tracy Lawrence
CountryBreakout Reporter of the Year– Kelly Green of WEIO (Huntingdon, Tenn.)
CRS CountryBreakout Awards
CRS CountryBreakout Awards
CRS CountryBreakout Awards
Garth Brooks To Appear on 'Today Show' in January
/by Jessica NicholsonGarth Brooks
Garth Brooks will appear on the Today Show on Jan. 8. The entertainer will appear during all four hours of the broadcast, which marks a first in the 62-year history of the Today Show.
Brooks released his first studio album in 13 years, titled Man Against Machine, in November and is currently on a world tour with wife and singer Trisha Yearwood.
Steve Earle & The Dukes To Launch 'Terraplane'
/by Sarah SkatesSteve Earle & The Dukes will release bluesy new album Terraplane on Feb. 17 via New West Records. (As previously reported, New West is opening its first Nashville office.) The 11-track set features Earle’s longtime band The Dukes, comprised of Kelly Looney, Will Rigby, Chris Masterson and Eleanor Whitmore. Produced by R.S. Field (Buddy Guy, John Mayall), and engineered by Ray Kennedy, the album was recorded at House of Blues Studio D in Nashville. It is Earle’s 16th studio album.
A deluxe CD/DVD set of Terraplane will include an interview with Earle, three live, acoustic songs filmed on the porch of House of Blues Studio D, and a short film about the making of the album. The new track “You’re The Best Lover That I Ever Had” can be heard here.
Terraplane takes its title from the 1930s Hudson Motor Car Company of Detroit model, which also inspired the Robert Johnson song “Terraplane Blues.”
In more news from Earle, he is hosting his songwriting camp, Camp Copperhead, in New York’s Catskill Mountains July 20 – 24. He will play a residency at the City Winery in NYC during January, and 2015 will bring the publication of his memoir I Can’t Remember If We Said Goodbye (Grand Central Publishing/Hachette).
Artist Pics: Toby Keith, Josh Dorr, Kristian Bush
/by Kelsey_GradyToby Keith wrapped up an eventful 2014, headlining both Stephen Colbert‘s and Craig Ferguson‘s finales. Keith joined a host of celebrities including Jon Hamm, Metallica, Don Cheadle and Steve Carell for a musical tribute that opened Ferguson’s final night as host of The Late Late Show. A regular guest on The Colbert Report, Keith appeared on that series’ Dec. 18 finale wearing a medal from Colbert denoting him (along with Michael Stipe) as having the most appearances on the show.
Stephen Colbert and Toby Keith.
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While visiting Huntsville as part of his on-going radio tour, RCA Nashville’s Josh Dorr stopped by WDRM to perform a few songs.
Pictured (L-R): RCA’s Parker Fowler, WDRM Huntsville MD AJ McCloud, Josh Dorr, and RCA’s Josh Easler.
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Streamsound Records’ Kristian Bush performed his Top 30 and climbing single, “Trailer Hitch,” for WMZQ’s Concert for the Kids on Dec. 5 at the Fillmore in Silver Spring, Md. benefiting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Pictured (L-R): Streamsound’s Theresa Ford, Teddi Bonadies, Premiere Networks’ Director/Country Programming Justin Cole, WMZQ/PD Meg Stevens, Kristian Bush and Brandon Bush.
$39M Settlement To Indiana Stage Collapse Victims
/by Eric T. ParkerThe Indiana State Fair stage collapse.
Country duo Sugarland, concert promoter Live Nation and 16 additional defendants have reportedly reached a settlement with victims of a stage collapse during the band’s performance at the Indiana State Fair in 2011. The collapse killed seven and injured nearly 100.
Thirty-nine million dollars will be paid out based on the severity of injury. Each defendant’s financial contributions are confidential.
A previous $11 million settlement was made with the state, with some plaintiffs refusing to accept. Attorney Kenneth J. Allen confirmed this latest mediation involves all victims, however one defendant, ESG Security, is not included and may eventually go to trial. The lawsuits against all other defendants were dismissed Friday, Dec. 19, Allen confirmed to Tammy Webber of the AP.
Since the collapse, two investigations reported the rigging did not meet industry safety standards and fair officials did not have a proper emergency plan. As a result of the findings, new regulations have been made and relatively minimal fines were issued, the largest of the first investigation was $63,000.
"Lost In Transaction" Panel Held At Ocean Way Studios in Nashville
/by Troy_StephensonPictured (L-R): Shannon Sanders, Nashville P&E Wing Committee Co-Chair; panelist Joe D’Ambrosio, talent management company head; Julian King, Nashville P&E Wing Committee Co-Chair; panelist and attorney Elizabeth Gregory; panelist Jay Frank, entrepreneur and author and Owner/CEO of DigSin; moderator Dan Daley; and Jeff Balding, President of The Recording Academy’s Nashville Chapter Board of Governors. Photo courtesy of The Recording Academy.
The Producers & Engineers Wing of The Recording Academy, in conjunction with The Recording Academy Nashville Chapter, recently hosted “Lost In Transaction” at Ocean Way Studios in Nashville on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2014. The panel included Attorney Elizabeth Gregory, Entrepreneur and author Jay Frank, and Joe D’Ambrosio, head of the talent management company Joe D’Ambrosio Management, Inc. The discussion focused on the increasingly complex and intricate landscape that the music industry has become for artists, record producers and recording engineers.
“‘Lost In Transaction’ has become a highly anticipated event for both the Producers & Engineers Wing and The Recording Academy Nashville Chapter,” stated Maureen Droney, Managing Director of the P&E Wing. “It covers an often overlooked but critical aspect of music production, which is the business of music production. We all love the technical aspects of making music, and our passion for music itself has never been stronger. But without a firm understanding of the how our industry is changing around us, our ability to continue to make music for a living becomes imperiled. ‘Lost in Transaction” is how we keep our members aware of how the music business is changing.”
Rewind: 2014 MusicRow Events
/by Jessica NicholsonMusicRow looks back on its 2014 events, including the MusicRow Chart Annual Airplay Awards during CRS, the third annual Rising Women On The Row breakfast and the reader-voted MusicRow Awards.
• • •
MusicRow Magazine presented its 26th annual subscriber-voted MusicRow Awards on June 18 during a ceremony hosted by BMI at the performing rights organization’s Nashville offices. The awards event, led by MusicRow Publisher and Owner Sherod Robertson, recognized the 2014 Breakthrough Artist Brandy Clark, Breakthrough Songwriters Nicolle Galyon and Cole Swindell, Song of the Year (“All Kinds of Kinds,” penned by Phillip Coleman and Don Henry), and Producer of the Year Frank Liddell.
Additionally, Top Ten Album All-Star Musician Awards were presented to session players who performed on the most top ten albums during the eligibility period.
26th annual MusicRow Awards celebrates Breakthrough Artist Brandy Clark.
26th annual MusicRow Awards celebrates Breakthrough Songwriter Nicolle Galyon.
MusicRow celebrates Song of the Year “All Kinds of Kinds.”
• • •
MusicRow‘s 2014 Rising Women on the Row event honored Flood, Bumstead, McCready & McCarthy’s Julie Boos, Sony Music Nashville’s Caryl Healy, Big Machine Label Group’s Kelly Rich, Essential Broadcast Media’s Ebie McFarland, and Warner/Chappell Music’s Alicia Pruitt.
The event took place at the Omni Hotel Nashville on March 21.
MusicRow‘s 3rd Annual Rising Women on the Row.
MusicRow’s 3rd Annual Rising Women on the Row.
• • •
MusicRow Magazine presented its 12th annual CountryBreakout Awards at Margaritaville in Nashville on Feb. 18. Entertainers at the event included Native Run, and Natalie Stovall and The Drive.
The CountryBreakout Awards recognize success at radio on the MusicRow chart during the preceding year (January to December 2013). A list of award recipients is below.
12th annual MusicRow CountryBreakout Award winners:
Male Artist of the Year–Blake Shelton
Female Artist of the Year–Miranda Lambert
Group of the Year–The Band Perry
Breakout Songwriter-Rodney Clawson
Breakout Artist of the Year–Kacey Musgraves
Independent Artist of the Year –Tracy Lawrence
CountryBreakout Reporter of the Year– Kelly Green of WEIO (Huntingdon, Tenn.)
CRS CountryBreakout Awards
CRS CountryBreakout Awards
CRS CountryBreakout Awards
Country Stars On 'Pollstar's' Top 20 Tours List
/by Sarah SkatesThree country stars ranked on Pollstar’s Year End Top 20 Worldwide Tours chart, based on gross box office receipts from Jan. 1, 2014 through Dec. 31, 2014.
Luke Bryan grossed $62.8 million, coming in at No. 17 on the list. The WME artist sold more than 1.2 million tickets at 72 concerts. His average ticket price was about $50.
George Strait ranked No. 18 on Pollstar’s list, grossing $61.8 million on his farewell run which had an average ticket price of almost $109. Strait sold more than a half million tickets and played 26 shows. His booking is handled by The Erv Woolsey Agency.
Jason Aldean secured the No. 20 spot by grossing $52.5 million. He sold more than one million tickets over the course of 70 shows. Tickets to see the WME artist averaged $48.
The top three slots on the list are occupied by One Direction ($282M), Justin Timberlake ($184M) and The Rolling Stones ($165M).
Read more and see the full chart.
Charlie Daniels 40th Anniversary Volunteer Jam Coming in August
/by Jessica NicholsonCharlie Daniels
The Charlie Daniels Band’s 40th Anniversary Volunteer Jam presented by Copperweld will feature performances from the Charlie Daniels Band, Billy Ray Cyrus, Kentucky Headhunters, Montgomery Gentry, the Outlaws, Lee Roy Parnell and Travis Tritt. The Volunteer Jam will take place Aug. 12, 2015 at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.
The first Volunteer Jam was held in 1974 at War Memorial Auditorium in Nashville, and included members of the Marshall Tucker Band and the Allman Brothers Band. The next year, Volunteer Jam II took place at Murphy Center on Middle Tennessee State University’s campus. The event has grown into an annual favorite for fans and artists alike.
“We never had any idea how big it would become, broadcasting around the world and on Voice of America,” Daniels says. “We thought it was a hometown thing. We never realized it would become an international event. I hope to see more Nashville Volunteer Jams in the future. I’m very very excited to continue the Jam tradition 40 years later. Ain’t it good to be alive and be in Tennessee.”
Tickets for the 2015 event go on sale Friday, Jan. 30 at 10 a.m. CT at the Bridgestone Arena Box Office and all Ticketmaster locations. Tickets range from $17.48 to $500 (VIP seating). Profits benefit The Journey Home Project, which helps aid veterans of the United States Armed Forces, as well as The Predators Foundation.
95.5 Nash Icon serves as the event’s official radio partner, while the event is produced and promoted by Corlew & Associates in association with Mike Smardak/Outback Concerts.
Nashville Music Venue The Basement To Open Second Location
/by Jessica NicholsonThe new venue, Basement East, will be located at 917 Woodland Street, and is set to open in March 2015. The Basement is currently operated on 8th Ave. S., below Grimey’s New & Preloved Record Store. The 8th Ave. location opened in 2005, and is curated by Mike “Grimey” Grimes.
'Live From the Artists Den' Enlists Zac Brown Band To Launch Ninth Season
/by Jessica NicholsonZac Brown Band
Zac Brown Band will help launch the ninth season of Live From The Artists Den, which premieres on public television Jan. 30. The band will offer a performance at the historic Forest Hills Stadium in New York.
The new season also features performances from Alabama Shakes (performing at Nashville’s Loveless Barn), as well as Cage the Elephant and Damien Rice.
The music series is funded in partnership with Barnes & Noble, Citi, Lexus and Samsung to create free secret shows throughout the year.