Parton Offers Early Look at Dollywood's DreamMore Resort

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lobby1111

A rendering of Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort.

Dolly Parton has offered an early look at conceptual drawings of Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort, the latest addition to the multi-talented entertainer’s Dollywood family amusement park in Pigeon Forge, Tenn.

The 230,000-square-foot complex will have more than 300 guest rooms, indoor and outdoor pools, a spa and a full-service restaurant. It will also feature a family activities center, reports The Tennessean.
This is the second capital investment in a 10-year plan that will include more than $300 million in development for various Dollywood properties.
Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort is slated for a summer 2015 opening.

dollywood dreammore111

 

Concert News: SDU Fan Party, Martina McBride at The Ryman

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sdu fan concert

Show Dog – Universal Music, in conjunction with Country Music Is Love, will host their second annual Fan Appreciation Party the week of CMA Music Fest with proceeds benefitting Dreams With Wings and the Sarah Cannon Fund. The event featuring performances by Josh Thompson, JT Hodges, Krystal Keith, Joel Crouse and Native Run is set for Thurs., June 5, 3- 5 p.m. at Silver Dollar Saloon.

The $25 VIP tickets include the artist meet and greet. General Admission tickets are $10 or fans can get their tickets at the door for the same price (cash only accepted day of show). Details here.
martina mcbride2014• • • •
Martina McBride will perform at the Ryman Auditorium on Sat., Nov. 1 at 8 p.m.
Tickets start at $39.50 and go on sale Fri., May 9 at 10:00 A.M. via Ticketmaster outlets.
McBride recently released Everlasting, where she reimagined treasured classics by artists such as Etta James, Sam Cooke and The Supremes, with the help of legendary producer Don Was.
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Also recently added to the Ryman’s performance schedule is Beck, who will play Mon., July 14 and Tues., July 15. Tickets for those shows go on sale Fri., May 9 at 10 a.m. and start at $54. Details here.

Bone McAllester Norton Adds Entertainment Attorney Loren Mulraine

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Loren Mulraine

Loren Mulraine


Bone McAllester Norton PLLC has hired entertainment attorney and Belmont Law professor Loren E. Mulraine. He is the law firm’s 38th attorney.
He will serve as Of Counsel at Bone McAllester Norton, and will focus on entertainment law, intellectual property, as well as business and corporate law. Additionally, he will continue in his role at Belmont University College of Law, where he teaches courses in copyright law, entertainment law, media law and intellectual property law.
“Loren is a dynamic attorney who brings unique experience from a career based in the entertainment industry and the college classroom,” said Charles W. Bone, founder and chairman of Bone McAllester Norton. “We look forward to sharing his depth of experience with our clients and sharing our firm’s full-service expertise with Loren’s clients.”
Previously his career has ranged from an on-air radio personality and music producer to serving as a government contracts attorney with the Federal Aviation Administration in Washington, D.C. He also previously worked as a full professor and chair of the department of Recording Industry at Middle Tennessee State University, where he taught for 14 years.
A graduate of the University of Maryland and the Howard University School of Law, Mulraine is a member of the Nashville Bar Association, the Institute for Intellectual Property and Social Justice, Black Entertainment and Sports Lawyers Association, The Recording Academy (Grammy-voting member) and the Gospel Music Association.

Artist Updates (5/5/14)

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scotty mccreery

Scotty McCreery


Singer and North Carolina State University singer Scotty McCreery was visiting friends at a North Carolina apartment Monday morning (May 5) when three gunmen broke in and held up those inside the apartment, reports WRAL.
The break-in occurred before 2 a.m. when the three gunmen forced entry into the apartment at Wolftech Lane in Raleigh, N.C. Those inside, including McCreery, were not hurt, but some were robbed of cell phones and wallets. Police are not certain if the apartment was specifically targeted by the gunmen.

                                                                                                                                                • • •

Matt Stillwell

Matt Stillwell


Matt Stillwell has entered into an association with Morton Buildings. The Illinois-based company builds a variety of structures ranging from farm shops, airplane hangars, custom homes, churches, general storage buildings, commercial structures and more. The company constructs in 42 states.
“I’m very proud to be associated with such a tradition rich company like Morton,” says Stillwell. “The foundation of what I do is based on hard work and I share that with Morton and the people who have and use their buildings. I’m excited about the possibilities of what we will be able to do together!”

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Last year, Bigger Picture Group artist Chelsea Bain performed a two-month residency at Nashville’s popular Billy Block Show. Sunday evening (May 4), Bain took part in Play One For Billy, an event to raise funds for host Billy Block‘s battle with cancer. To donate, visit yepnashville.com and click on the Play One for Billy banner.

Pictured (L-R): Chelsea Bain and Billy Block.

Pictured (L-R): Chelsea Bain and Billy Block.

Industry Ink (5/5/14)

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pfeiffer twins111PLA Media has signed duo The Pfeiffer Twins, comprised of Carrie and Lindsay Pfeiffer, to its roster. The New Jersey natives first entered the national spotlight in 2012, when they became contestants on NBC’s music reality competition The Voice.
“These girls have such an original sound and an incredible passion for their art, no matter what genre of music you like they’ll have something for you,” said PLA Media’s Pam Lewis.

                                                        • • •

hayden111Photographer/director Matt Egan recently directed Nashville star Hayden Panettiere in a new ad for Belk as part of the fashion brand’s “Modern. Southern. Music.” campaign. Filmworkers Nashville provided post-production services for the commercial, produced by Coin-Operated Films, which captures the actress arriving on location at the newly-renovated Country Music Hall of Fame for an evening shoot. Egan supervised editorial, performed by Coin-Operated Films’ Charles Newberry, and final post-work completed at Filmworkers.

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Erik Edmondson


Motion Graphics designer and animator Erik Edmondson has joined the creative team at Filmworkers Nashville. This allows Filmworkers to expand its menu of services, adding design and animation to its core post-production offerings, including editing, color correction, visual effects and editorial finishing. Edmondson has already completed several projects for Filmworkers, including three fully-animated commercials for the Tennessee Lottery and Nashville agency The Buntin Group. He also contributed to a commercial for Alameda Health System and produced type animation for HealthSpring.
“We’re very excited to bring Erik and his artistry to Filmworkers,” says Robert Zimmerman, the company’s executive producer. “He consistently hits it out of the park in terms of creative execution and always works hard to ensure the work exceeds the client’s expectations.”

Miranda Lambert Leads 2014 CMT Music Awards Nominees

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Miranda Lambert

Miranda Lambert is this year’s leading artist going into the 2014 CMT Music Awards; Lambert has garnered a total of six nods this year, including two for “Automatic,” two for her collaboration with Keith Urban on “We Were Us,” and two as a member of Pistol Annies.

Florida Georgia Line and Luke Bryan follow with five nominations each. Urban and Taylor Swift earned four nominations each.

The CMT Music Awards will air live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, June 4 at 8 p.m. ET. Voting begins now at cmt.com and runs through Sunday, June 1 at midnight ET. Tickets for the event go on sale Saturday, May 10 at 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. CT at Ticketmaster outlets and at the Bridgestone Arena Box Office.

Last year, Carrie Underwood took home the coveted Video of the Year award for “Blown Away,” while Lambert and Florida Georgia Line took home two trophies apiece. FGL took home Breakthrough and Duo Video of the Year honors for “Cruise” last year, while Lambert took home Female Video of the Year for “Mama’s Broken Heart,” and CMT Performance of the Year for “Over You.”

A full list of nominees for the 2014 CMT Music Awards is below:

VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video of the year; awarded to the artist (male, female, group/duo or collaboration) and the video director. Final nominees announced during live telecast, with final voting held online at CMT.com during the show.

  • Blake Shelton featuring Pistol Annies and Friends – “Boys ‘Round Here”
  • Carrie Underwood – “See You Again”
  • Eric Church – “Give Me Back My Hometown”
  • Florida Georgia Line featuring Luke Bryan – “This Is How We Roll”
  • Hunter Hayes – “I Want Crazy”
  • Kacey Musgraves – “Follow Your Arrow”
  • Keith Urban with Miranda Lambert – “We Were Us”
  • Luke Bryan – “That’s My Kind of Night”
  • Miranda Lambert – “Automatic”
  • Taylor Swift – “Red”
  • Thomas Rhett – “It Goes Like This”
  • Tim McGraw with Taylor Swift and Keith Urban – “Highway Don’t Care”

MALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video by a male artist; awarded to the artist

  • Blake Shelton – “Doin’ What She Likes”
  • Eric Church – “Give Me Back My Hometown”
  • Hunter Hayes – “I Want Crazy”
  • Jason Aldean – “Night Train”
  • Luke Bryan – “Crash My Party”
  • Randy Houser – “Runnin’ Outta Moonlight”

FEMALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video by a female artist; awarded to the artist

  • Carrie Underwood – “See You Again”
  • Cassadee Pope – “Wasting All These Tears”
  • Kacey Musgraves – “Follow Your Arrow”
  • Miranda Lambert – “Automatic”
  • Sheryl Crow – “Easy”
  • Taylor Swift – “Red”

GROUP VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video by a group; awarded to the artists

  • Eli Young Band – “Drunk Last Night”
  • Lady Antebellum – “Compass”
  • Little Big Town – “Your Side Of The Bed”
  • Rascal Flatts – “Rewind”
  • The Band Perry – “Done”
  • Zac Brown Band – “Sweet Annie”

DUO VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video by a duo; awarded to the artists

  • Dan + Shay – “19 You + Me”
  • Florida Georgia Line – “Round Here”
  • Florida Georgia Line – “Stay”
  • Thompson Square – “Everything I Shouldn’t Be Thinking About”

BREAKTHROUGH VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video from an artist’s major breakthrough album; awarded to the artist (male, female or group/duo)

  • Brett Eldredge – “Beat Of The Music”
  • Cassadee Pope – “Wasting All These Tears”
  • Cole Swindell – “Chillin’ It”
  • David Nail – “Whatever She’s Got”
  • Thomas Rhett – “It Goes Like This”
  • Tyler Farr – “Redneck Crazy”

COLLABORATIVE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Best video that featured a special collaborative appearance by artists; awarded to the artists (individual, group or duo)

  • Blake Shelton featuring Pistol Annies and Friends – “Boys ‘Round Here”
  • Florida Georgia Line featuring Luke Bryan – “This Is How We Roll
  • Florida Georgia Line featuring Nelly – “Cruise (Remix)”
  • Hunter Hayes featuring Jason Mraz – “Everybody’s Got Somebody But Me”
  • Keith Urban with Miranda Lambert – “We Were Us”
  • Tim McGraw with Taylor Swift and Keith Urban – “Highway Don’t Care”

CMT PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR
Musical performance on a television show, series or variety special on CMT; awarded to the artist (individual, group or duo)

  • Dierks Bentley and OneRepublic – “Counting Stars” from CMT Crossroads: OneRepublic and Dierks Bentley
  • Jake Owen – “Days Of Gold” from CMT Hot 20 Countdown
  • Lady Antebellum and Stevie Nicks – “Rhiannon” from CMT Crossroads: Stevie Nicks and Lady Antebellum
  • Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie – “Oh No/All Night Long” from 2013 CMT Artists of the Year
  • The Band Perry and Fall Out Boy – “My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark” from CMT Crossroads: Fall Out Boy and The Band Perry
  • Willie Nelson and Neil Young – “Long May You Run” from CMT Crossroads: Willie Nelson & Friends from Third Man Records 

Promotions at Webster & Associates

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Screen shot 2014-05-05 at 10.20.04 AM11Kirt Webster, Webster & Associates Public Relations President, has announced a round of staff promotions.
Jeremy Westby, most recently the VP of Operations, has been promoted to Sr. Vice President.
“Jeremy has spent the past six years working in various capacities within the firm, ranging from publicity to heading up the television department to traveling on tour with clients. He has learned all aspects of the company, shown company loyalty, and has earned the trust of the managers and clients we represent,” says Webster. “The promotion is well deserved!”
Additionally, Heath Scott rises from Director of Publicity to VP, Publicity. Caitlin DeForest ascends from Publicity & Events Coordinator to Publicity & Events Manager, while Abbey Stanerson climbs from Jr. Publicist to Publicity Manager and Kyle Watson moves from Jr. Publicist to Bluegrass Publicity Manager.
Westby can be reached at 615-777-6995 x228 or jeremy@websterpr.com
Scott can be reached at 615-777-6995 x222 or heath@websterpr.com
DeForest can be reached at 615-777-6995 x240 or caitlin@websterpr.com
Stanerson can be reached at 615-777-6995 x238 or abbey@websterpr.com
Watson can be reached at 615-777-6995 x231 or kyle@websterpr.com

Country Now Enters Partnership With Artist Julia Sheer

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julia sheers111

Julia Sheer


Country Now, an original Country music-dedicated YouTube channel, has entered into an exclusive partnership with Country artist Julia Sheer, whose YouTube channel boasts 460,000+ subscribers.
As part of the deal, Country Now will incorporate a six-part daily online series, Blackbird Sings, and a music video premiere produced by Country Now and The Blackbird Studio/Academy in Nashville.
The campaign launches today (May 5) with the premiere of Blackbird Sings, captured at John McBride‘s Blackbird Studio. The series will chronicle the making of Sheer’s single “Should’ve Run,” which included work from 30 students attending the post-secondary program at Blackbird Academy.
“With this unique content partnership with one of YouTube’s biggest artists, Country Now is looking to change the paradigm in how Country music gets created and marketed,” said Dominic Sandifer, President Country Now/Greenlight Media & Marketing, LLC. “In Blackbird Sings, we’re combining the best of Nashville’s hit making abilities with YouTube’s growing power to create new stars by reaching untapped audiences. Working at Blackbird Studios with legendary insiders like studio owner John McBride and record exec Butch Waugh allowed Country Now and Julia Sheer the incredible chance to produce a new single while documenting the process.”

Homegrown Band – I'm Gonna Be Me

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HomegrownBandPictureWhen you hear “Homegrown,” what comes to mind? Do you think of something tended year after year with patience and love? Maybe a crop, an idea, or a way of life that, after years of cultivation, rewards dedication with something precious?
When they settled on the name “Homegrown Band” in the spring of 2011, members Craig Brannon, Kevin Brannon, Jason Cole, Megan Blair, and Nick Ivey hoped their fans would associate them and their music with that sentiment. “As we were writing and branding ourselves,” says Jason, “we found that the recurring theme was ‘home’–our home, the South–and its culture, value system, and way of life. We were invoking the place and the things that our parents, their parents, and, generations later, we believed to be important enough to build our lives around. While ideas like fidelity, the virtue in hard work, and the necessity of faith are quickly being written off as old-fashioned, they’ve been cultivated in us, and we think that they’re vital enough to write and sing about.”
The band’s down-home image and songs about life as they know it enjoyed success from the start. In early 2012, HB released their first album, a self-titled EP recorded at Skaggs Family Studios in Nashville, TN and produced by Homegrown Band and Jason Singleton of Red Hill Entertainment. The album’s first and only single, “This Ol’ Truck,” was featured on 94.9 The Bull’s Backyard Country for three weeks. Says Craig of the record’s success, “It was unprecedented. We were just starting up, had maybe a thousand fans on social media, and very little exposure. It was incredible to compete with more established artists like Colt Ford and Jake Owen and hang in there. We felt validated; we were relying completely on the strength of the song and holding our own.”
After touring for months in West and South Georgia, metro Atlanta, and East Alabama and opening for artists like Corey Smith and Ashton Shepherd in support of the EP, the band recorded, produced, and released its second single, “Enjoy The Ride,” in late 2013. Initially, the song was given away as a free download at the band’s shows. After a few months, the band noticed the song’s growing popularity among their fans and placed it in rotation on The Bull’s Backyard Country.
Homegrown Band is planning to release a second album tentatively titled ‘Summer Song’ in the summer of 2015. The record will feature new songs that the band has been writing and performing over the course of their 2014 tour schedule.

[Updated]: Lifenotes: Services Announced for Radio Promotion Vet David Haley

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DavidHaley

David Haley


Radio promotion veteran Kermit David Haley passed away on May 3, 2014 in Oxford, Miss. He was 56.
A visitation will be held on Tuesday, May 6, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Chancellor Funeral Home in Byram, Miss. The funeral will be Wednesday, May 7 at Hickory Grove Baptist Church in McCarley, Miss. Visitation at the church will be held at 2 p.m. with a graveside service following at Hickory Grove Cemetery at 3 p.m. The service will be officiated by Reverend Lanny Haley. Pallbearers are Bob Haley, Glenn Haley, Brandon Haley, Locke Bennett, Lane Bennett, Haley Bennett, Darren Elliott and Shane Allen Sakkinen.
A Nashville memorial service is currently in the works.
Haley’s Country music industry career began at age 17, when he accepted a position as a weekend DJ at WJXN in Jackson, Miss. While attending Hinds Community College, he was an evening DJ at WJQS in Jackson; he rose to the position of Program Director at that station.
Haley moved to Nashville in 1984 at age 28. He held radio promotion roles at various labels, including 17 years with MCA Nashville, where he rose to VP, Promotion. He followed his time at MCA with roles at Equity, InstiGator, Edgehill, and Tenacity.
He greatly influenced the careers of numerous artists, including Reba, Little Big Town, Vince Gill, Marty Stuart, Trisha Yearwood, George Strait, Aaron Watson and others. Among industry colleagues and co-workers, Haley was known for his tireless work ethic, positive spirit, humor and zest for life. While Haley had the drive to be successful in a competitive industry, friends also spoke of his kind and gentle demeanor.
Haley suffered a stroke in 2011, but his positive outlook never diminished. He retired and relocated to Oxford, Miss. in 2013, in order to be close to family.
David was preceded in death by his parents, Kermit and Kate Brunson Haley. He is survived by his daughter Crystal Haley Polk and her husband Jeffery, his sister Brenda Haley Davis and her husband Charles, as well as numerous cousins and a multitude of friends.
Nashville has seen an outpouring of love from family, friends, artists and industry members; Vince Gill dedicated “Go Rest High On That Mountain” to Haley during a weekend performance on the Grand Ole Opry.
The family requests that memorials be made to Hickory Grove Baptist Church Cemetery Fund, 940 County Road 81, McCarley, MS 38943; Music Health Alliance or the pet rescue organization of your choice.