Nashville Ranks Among Top 10 Fastest Growing Cities

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nashville growthNashville is among the 10 fastest-growing cities in the United States. Music City ranks as the seventh fastest growing city, with a 1.8 percent growth in population from July 2012-July 2013, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The data puts Nashville’s population at approximately 1.8 million residents, reports CNN.
Austin, Texas ranks No. 1 in population growth according to the data, with 1.9 million residents and a 2.6 percent population growth over the same time period. Austin is followed by Houston (6.3 million, 2.2 percent growth), Raleigh, N.C. (1.2 million, 2.2 percent growth), Orlando, Fla. (2.3 million, 2 percent growth), San Antonio (2.3 million, 1.9 percent growth), Denver, Nashville, Charlotte, N.C.; Oklahoma City, and Phoenix.
Nashville’s Music Row, home to record companies, music publishers and music-related industries, is where some of the city’s 20,000 music industry jobs can be found, according to CNN. The robust healthcare industry is another significant attraction.

“About half of all the for-profit hospital beds in the country are administered from Nashville,” said Matthew Wiltshire, head of Nashville’s department of economic and community development. “Healthcare is a $30 billion industry here.”
An additional incentive for the influx of new residents is a reasonable cost of living, which is 14 percent less than the national average, according to Wiltshire.

SOLID Fundraiser Earns $30K For Big Brothers Big Sisters

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Pictured (L-R): SOLID President Brian O’Neil, SOLID Community Outreach Co-Chair Berkley Myers, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee Chief Executive Officer Carlyle W. Carroll, and SOLID Community Outreach Chair Jason Hauser. Photo by Lauren Robertson.

Pictured (L-R): SOLID President Brian O’Neil, SOLID Community Outreach Co-Chair Berkley Myers, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee Chief Executive Officer Carlyle W. Carroll, and SOLID Community Outreach Chair Jason Hauser. Photo by Lauren Robertson.


SOLID (Society of Leaders In Development) is set to donate $30,150.14 from its 4th Annual Music Row Madness Bowling Showdown to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee.
Twenty-seven teams participated in the annual fundraiser, which was held at Hillwood Strike & Spare in West Nashville on March 27. The top single fundraiser for the event was SOLID Education Committee Chair Alex Luebbert, who raised $1,690.
Among the event’s sponsors and donors were Music City Dream Cars, Blue Hat, CDB Inc., 1 Degree Sports Management, The Spot, The Grand Ole Opry, Cracker Barrel, GAC Headline Country, Smith Wiles, Local Taco, Harlow Salon, Two Old Hippies, Hatch Show Print, Uber, Famous Daves, Watermark and The Pub.
“Thank you to everyone who donated their time and money to benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters! This has been the most successful single fundraising event in SOLID’s 17-year history, and we are thrilled to contribute to an organization that has such a positive impact on kids in our local community,” said SOLID President Brian O’Neil.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Middle Tennessee helps children overcome adversity and better position themselves for the future.

The Band Perry To Open 49th Annual ACM Awards

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Blake Shelton and Luke Bryan will host the

Co-hosts Blake Shelton and Luke Bryan


The Band Perry. Photo: David McClister

The Band Perry. Photo: David McClister


The Band Perry is slated to give the opening performance at the upcoming 49th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards, offering their new single, “Chainsaw.” The awards program will also feature performances from Luke Bryan, Hunter Hayes, Miranda Lambert, George Strait and Florida Georgia Line.
Lambert and Strait will perform a tribute medley in honor of Merle Haggard‘s 50 years in Country music. Garth Brooks will also be in attendance to present Haggard with the Crystal Milestone award. Hayes will perform his current single, “Invisible,” while Florida Georgia Line will team with Bryan on the single “This Is How We Roll” at the 4th Annual ACM Fan Jam.
They join announced performers include Jason Aldean, Eric Church, Brett Eldredge, Toby Keith, Justin Moore, Kip Moore, Blake Shelton, Keith Urban, and Lady Antebellum with Stevie Nicks.
The 49th annual ACM Awards will air on Sunday, April 6 at 8 p.m. live ET/delayed PT.
Additionally, brand partnerships have been announced for the 2nd Annual ACM Party for a Cause® Festival, a two-day outdoor music festival headlined by Rascal Flatts and Keith Urban on Friday, April 4 and Saturday, April 5. Activities will include ACM & Cabela’s Great Outdoors Archery Event, ACM Expo Marketplace presented by Roper, Coors Light Beer Garden, Diet Dr Pepper Red Carpet Experience, Firestone’s Destination Country Tour, RAM Ride and Drive and many more.

In Photos: Tin Pan South Thursday Shows

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Cohen, DioGuardi, Harding, Slater perform

Jeff Cohen, Kara DioGuardi, JT Harding, and James T. Slater perform. Photo: Bev Moser


The song extravaganza that is Tin Pan South continued at venues across Music City Thursday night (March 27) as songwriters filled clubs including The Commodore, Bluebird Cafe, The Listening Room Cafe and the Hard Rock Cafe to bring to life the stories behind their famous compositions.
Blake Chaffin, Adam Hambrick, Logan Mize, Randy Montana, Dallas Davidson, Rhett Akins, Ben Hayslip, Anne E. DeChant, Emmy Russell, David G. Smith, Mare Wakefield, Sarah Buxton, Erin McCarley, Lucie Silvas, Kate York, Sarah Siskind, The Stellas (Brad Stella, Marylynne Stella), Fred Wilhelm, Kelsea Ballerini, Jennifer Denmark, Sara Haze, Meghan Linsey, Danielle Peck are just a few of talented tunesmiths who showcased their songs and voices.
All photos by Bev Moser/Moments By Moser.
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Second Annual "Pub Deal" Contest Launched

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the pub deal111Three music brands have combined forces to give songwriters and artists of various genres a chance at a coveted $20,000, one-year publishing contract. Management company Secret Road, Nashville-based music tech startup Songspace, and instrument maker Martin Guitars have teamed for the second annual “Pub Deal” contest.
In addition to receiving a non-recoupable $20,000 advance, the winner will work with Secret Road during the year to build their repertoire and market songs for film and television. Twenty-five finalists will be featured on American Songwriter‘s website. Five finalists will participate in an audition that includes a series of interviews with Secret Road’s staff and co-writing sessions with top songwriters.
The deadline for entering is May 3, 2014, at 11:30 p.m. CST.
The contest will be powered by Songspace, a Nashville-based startup and partner company of American Songwriter Media. Songspace provides a song catalog for music businesses fed by a collaborative app for songwriters.
Secret Road is a Los Angeles-based music licensing, publishing, and management company that has placed songs in television shows including Grey’s Anatomy, Parenthood, and Pretty Little Liars, as well as the films No Strings Attached, What to Expect When You’re Expecting and Something Borrowed.
For application information, visit thepubdeal.com.

Dillon, Dorff, McDonald Take Part In Songwriters Summit

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Pictured (L-R): KSFI-FM/KRSP-FM/KSL-AM Director of Sales Stephanie Palmer, Bonneville-Salt Lake VP of Marketing Tami Ostmark, KSFI/KRSP Sales Manager Emily Hunt, BMI’s Dan Spears, Dean Dillon, Paul McDonald, Steve Dorff, Bonneville’s Lisa Brown, KSFI/KRSP Director of Promotions Joey Roth, KSL Broadcast Group President Darrell Brown, KSFI/KRSP Brand Manager Kelly Hammer.

Pictured (L-R): KSFI-FM/KRSP-FM/KSL-AM Director of Sales Stephanie Palmer, Bonneville-Salt Lake VP of Marketing Tami Ostmark, KSFI/KRSP Sales Manager Emily Hunt, BMI’s Dan Spears, Dean Dillon, Paul McDonald, Steve Dorff, Bonneville’s Lisa Brown, KSFI/KRSP Director of Promotions Joey Roth, KSL Broadcast Group President Darrell Brown, KSFI/KRSP Brand Manager Kelly Hammer.


BMI and Bonneville Radio partnered recently (March 22) to present the 1st Annual Songwriters Summit at The Depot in Salt Lake City.
BMI Icon Dean Dillon and Grammy-nominated writer Steve Dorff performed some of their biggest hits written for artists such as George Strait, Kenny Chesney, Kenny Rogers and Ann Murray, while American Idol finalist Paul McDonald performed a number of songs from his upcoming project as well as tunes that were recorded with his band The Grand Magnolias. A portion of the proceeds from the Summit benefited Legacy Music Alliance, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing music education in Utah public schools.
The day before the Summit, the songwriters paid a visit to Salt Lake Community College where they met with students in the music department; many of whom were aspiring songwriters and musicians.
McDonald, Dorff and Dillon spoke to students at Salt Lake Community College about life as a professional songwriter and what it takes to write a great song.

McDonald, Dorff and Dillon spoke to students at Salt Lake Community College about life as a professional songwriter and what it takes to write a great song.

Weekly Chart Report (3/28/14)

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Screen Shot 2014-03-27 at 4.20.55 PMClick here or above to access MusicRow‘s weekly CountryBreakout Report
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Americana Music Association Teams With Grammy Museum

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Mary Gauthier

Mary Gauthier


The Americana Music Association and the GRAMMY Museum have partnered to produce a series of programming in Los Angeles as part of the museum’s continuing educational mission. These programs will be moderated by vice president of the GRAMMY Foundation and MusiCares’ Scott Goldman, produced by GRAMMY Museum Director of Public Programming and Artist Relations Lynne Sheridan, and sponsored by American Express.
Singer/songwriter and Americana Music Association board director Mary Gauthier will kick off the series on Monday, April 21 at 8 p.m. in the GRAMMY Museum’s Clive Davis Theater. On Monday, April 28, New Orleans-based Hurray for the Riff Raff will be the featured artist.
The Grammy Museum is located at 800 West Olympic Blvd. in Los Angeles. For tickets, visit the GRAMMY Museum website.

Artist Updates (3/27/14)

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Charlie Daniels

Charlie Daniels


Brandy Clark’s new music video, for her song “Get High,” will premiere on perezhilton.com today (March 27) at 5:00 PM/CDT. The video was directed by Becky Fluke. 

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Charlie Daniels is set to release a new album Off The Grid—Doin’ It Dylan on April 1. Daniels will be making the media rounds including stops at Kathie Lee & Co. (March 26), Huckabee (March 29), Morning Joe (March 31), Access Hollywood (March 31), Hannity (March 31), Fox 411 (March 31), The Artie Lange Show (March 31), SiriusXM ‘Artist Confidential’ (March 31), The Today Show (April 1), ABC NewsNow (April 1), The Better Show (April 6), The Cain Conversation and more.
The new collection contains Daniels’ renditions of 10 of Bob Dylan’s signature songs, including “Times They Are A Changin’,” “Country Pie,” “Just Like A Woman,” and others.

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salute troops111The Academy of Country Music and dick clark productions have announced LL COOL J and Chris O’Donnell will co-host ACM Presents: An All-Star Salute To The Troops. Additionally, Dierks Bentley, Lee Brice, Luke Bryan, Hunter Hayes, Toby Keith, Tim McGraw, Kellie Pickler, and Keith Urban have been added to the lineup of artists scheduled to perform.
The special will be taped Monday, April 7 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and will be broadcast Tuesday, May 20 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

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josh thompson turn it up111Show Dog-Universal Music recording artist Josh Thompson is gearing up for the April 1 release of his highly anticipated sophomore album Turn It Up. Thompson has appearances lined up on GAC’s Headline Country, which airs today, March 27 at 3:30 p.m. EST and re-airs throughout the weekend, CMT’s Hot 20 Countdown (April 5) and GAC’s Great American Playlist (April 1).  Thompson will also be featured in a forthcoming episode of Country Now’s Hear & Now: Live From Blackbird Studio.

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majestic11CMG Label Group artist Kari Jobe celebrates the release of her new album and DVD, Majestic. The project was recorded live at the historic Majestic Theatre in Dallas, and climbed to No. 4 this week on iTunes Overall Albums and No. 1 on iTunes Christian & Gospel charts. Majestic is also Jobe’s first full-length live concert DVD.
In support of her release, Jobe has been on the road the past month performing sold-out dates in New York City, Birmingham, Ala.; Raleigh/Durham, N.C.; and Toronto, Ontario Canada. The “Majestic Tour” features special guests Rend Collective and continues through April 8.

Leadership Music Application Deadline Coming Soon

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leadership musicThe deadline to apply for Leadership Music’s Class of 2015 is Monday, March 31. Applications from established industry leaders will be accepted at leadershipmusic.org until 5:00 p.m. on March 31. The selection process commences in early April, and applicants will be notified of their selection in late May.
Leadership Music is a 501(c)(3) educational non-profit organization. The Nashville-based, eight month education program begins in September and is intended to create understanding among professionals in different segments of the music industry. Participants are required to attend an orientation, all-day sessions once a month on Fridays, plus opening and closing retreats during the program.
Leadership Music has graduated more than 1,000 music industry-related executives since 1990.