Nashville Symphony To Host ‘MLK: A Celebration In Song’ With Mickey Guyton

/by

The Nashville Symphony is will host its 31st annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day concert, “MLK: A Celebration in Song,” on Jan. 19 at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville.

Led by conductor Jonathan Taylor Rush, the event will feature the Nashville Symphony, Mickey Guyton, Celebration Chorus, Celebration Youth Chorus and W. Crimm Singers. The concert will offer a mix of classical, contemporary and spiritual music that honors Dr. King’s lasting message of hope, equality and justice.

Due to a new sponsorship from Spencer Fane, the show will be free and open to the public this year. Reservations to attend the event are required, and can be made here. Spencer Fane will also host a complimentary pre-show reception for all ticket holders from 6:15 p.m–7:15 p.m.

“This concert embodies our mission to inspire and engage the diverse and growing Nashville community with live orchestral music experiences,” says Nashville Symphony President & CEO Alan D. Valentine. “We are deeply grateful to Spencer Fane for making it possible to open our doors and welcome the community to this meaningful celebration of Dr. King’s legacy.”

“Partnering with the Nashville Symphony to ensure that this powerful tribute to Dr. King is accessible to everyone is important to us and aligns with our mission to positively impact the communities we serve,” adds Stacey Garrett Koju, Spencer Fane Partner. “We are honored to continue our tradition of supporting an event that amplifies Dr. King’s timeless message for equality.”

VIP Experience tickets with Guyton are also available, offering an exclusive Q&A session and a photo opportunity. Proceeds from these tickets directly benefit the Nashville Symphony’s more than 300 annual music education and community programs throughout Middle Tennessee. VIP tickets are priced at $100.

Looking For A New Job In 2025? Check Out MusicRow’s Job Board

/by

With another year upon us, new job opportunities are opening up.

MusicRow wants to encourage its readers who are either looking for a music industry job or have an open position to fill to check out its Job Listings Board, located in the top menu bar on the MusicRow website.

Those who have full-time, part-time or temporary job opportunities can submit a form to list a job on the Job Listings Board. All job listings are free-to-list and will be posted for 60 days. Listings are accepted and published at the discretion of MusicRow.

Weekly Register: Country Albums Chart Closes 2024 With Christmas-Filled Top Five

/by

The top five on the country albums chart consisted of Christmas collections as 2024 came to a close.

Brenda Lee‘s Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree ascended to No. 1 with 53K in total consumption (1.5K album only/66 million song streams), as Bobby Helms‘ A Bobby Helms Christmas took No. 2 with 44K (5 album only/57 million song streams). Gene Autry‘s Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer and other Christmas Classics rose to No. 3 with 43K (185 album only/54 million song streams), while Elvis Presley‘s The Classic Christmas Album claimed No. 4 with 40K (2.7K album only/48 million song streams). Burl Ives‘ Rudolph, The Red Nosed Reindeer ranked No. 5 with 39K (656 album only/49 million song streams).

On the country streaming songs chart, Shaboozey‘s “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” stayed at No. 1 with 12 million new streams, adding to 993 million ATD. Post Malone and Morgan Wallen‘s “I Had Some Help” held No. 2 with 10 million streams, adding to 869 million ATD, followed by Wallen’s “Love Somebody” at No. 3 with 9.1 million new streams, adding to 155 million ATD. Based on audio streams, Zach Bryan and Kacey Musgraves‘ “I Remember Everything” sat at No. 4 with 7.3 million streams, adding to 1.1 billion ATD. Bryan’s “Something In The Orange” remained at No. 5 with 7.1 million new streams, adding to 1.7 billion ATD.

Jeremy Camp’s ‘These Days Tour’ To Kick Off In March

/by

Jeremy Camp. Photo: Anabel Litchfield

Dove Award-winning artist Jeremy Camp will embark on his “These Days Tour” this spring. Jonathan Traylor will be special guest on the 21-date trek.

Camp will visit Tampa, Lynchburg, Knoxville, Kansas City, Louisville and more on the tour, with a Nashville date set for April 13. The shows will feature Camp’s signature blend of heartfelt worship and personal storytelling including songs from his recent No. 1 album Deeper Waters, as well as many of his hits that have garnered him multiple artist of the year nods and even an artist of the decade top contender spot.

Earlier this year, Camp notched his 44th No. 1 single with “These Days,” the anthemic track that serves as the inspiration for this upcoming tour. The living-in-the-moment anthem is the lead single from Deeper Waters, which also debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 Christian chart.

With more than six million albums sold and 44 No. 1s across all formats, Camp’s music has earned him numerous awards and nominations across genres, including five GMA Dove Awards, a Grammy nomination, three American Music Award nominations and four ASCAP Songwriter of the Year Awards.

“These Days Tour” Dates:
Wed., March 26 | Chattanooga, TN
Thurs., March 27 | Tampa, FL
Sun., March 30 | Lynchburg, VA
Thurs., April 3 | Royal Oak, MI
Fri., April 4 | Akron, OH
Sat., April 5 | Knoxville, TN
Sun., April 6 | Columbus, OH
Thurs., April 10 | Hattiesburg, MS
Fri., April 11 | Florence, AL
Sun., April 13 | Nashville, TN
Thurs., May 1 | Louisville, KY
Fri., May 2 | Springfield, MO
Sat., May 3 | Texarkana, TX
Sun., May 4 | Fort Smith, AR
Thurs., May 8 | Amarillo, TX
Fri., May 9 | Wichita, KS
Sat., May 10 | Effingham, IL
Sun., May 11 | Milwaukee, WI
Thurs., May 15 | Dekalb, IL
Fri., May 16 | Kansas City, MO
Fri., May 17 | Lincoln, NE

Date Set For Fourth Annual Nash To Naples Songwriter Fest

/by

The Nash To Naples Songwriter Fest is set to take place at Cambier Park Bandshell in Naples, Florida on Jan. 11.

Writers taking the stage for the festival’s fourth year are Lori Mckenna, Barry Dean, Kelly Archer, Steve Moakler, Mia Mantia and Jonathan Hutcherson. There will also be a kids music and art activation at 5 p.m. with Big Ole Day Studios prior to the show, with all ages welcome.

The concert is free to the public, but a suggested donation is recommended and donations will be collected throughout the event for The Hacienda of Hope, which provides support and shelter for children in Ecuador, as well as Habitat for Humanity Collier, a partnership that strives to improve housing affordability.

The Nash to Naples team recently took a trip to Ecuador to spend time at the Hacienda of Hope. In previous visits, the team has brought a songwriter and artist to teach children creative skills, and the team has also worked on a few recent builds at Habitat for Humanity Collier Majestic Place in East Naples.

UMG & Amazon Music Expand Global Relationship

/by

Universal Music Group (UMG) and Amazon Music have expanded their global relationship in hopes of enabling further innovation, exclusive content with UMG artists and advancement of artist-centric principles, including increased fraud protection.

This expanded relationship seeks to reflect the companies’ shared commitment to advancing and safeguarding human artistry, while ensuring UMG’s creators achieve their commercial potential through the service’s product enhancements and exclusive content that aims to elevate authentic engagement between artists and fans.

They will work closely to explore new and enhanced product opportunities designed to benefit artists and enrich the experience of their fans. UMG will also collaborate with Amazon Music as it continues to expand in audio, including further innovation in audiobooks, audio and visual programming, and its investment in livestreamed content. The companies will also work collaboratively to address unlawful AI-generated content, among other things, as well as protect against fraud and misattribution.

“We are very excited to advance our long-standing, excellent partnership with Amazon Music that marks a new era in streaming—Streaming 2.0,” says Sir Lucian Grainge, Chairman & CEO, UMG. “We appreciate Amazon Music’s deep commitment to the interests of our artists, and look forward to progressing our shared artist-centric objectives through product innovation and accelerating growth of their service.”

“UMG has always been a collaborative partner to Amazon Music, and as we continue to invent and introduce more artist-to-fan connections through our product and exclusive content, we are redefining what it means to be a streaming service,” shares Steve Boom, VP of Audio, Twitch & Games, Amazon. “We are thrilled to expand our relationship with UMG, which will enable us to partner on meaningful new ways for artists to deepen their engagement with fans around the world, while working together to protect the work of artists, songwriters and publishers.”

Nate Smith, Morgan Wallen & Big Loud Top 2024 Mediabase Year-End Country Charts

/by

Morgan Wallen, Nate Smith

Mediabase revealed its year-end charts for 2024, with Nate Smith topping the country songs list with his multi-week No. 1 “World On Fire.”

Smith is followed by Warren Zeiders‘ “Pretty Little Poison” at No. 2, Jelly Roll and Lainey Wilson‘s “Save Me” at No. 3, Sam Hunt‘s “Outskirts” at No. 4 and Bailey Zimmerman‘s “Where It Ends” at No. 5.

Industry stalwart Morgan Wallen tops the most-played country artists list of 2024. He is joined by Jelly Roll, Smith, Wilson and Luke Combs as the top five most-played country artists. Wallen is also the No. 5 most-played artist on the overall Mediabase 2024 chart, with Jelly Roll following him at No. 7 and Post Malone taking the No. 9 slot on the all-genre list.

Big Loud is once again the No. 1 country label of the year by market-share. They are followed by RCA (No. 2), Broken Bow (No. 3), Stoney Creek (No. 4) and Columbia (No. 5).

The 2024 chart year is based on the time period from Nov. 12, 2023 through Nov. 9, 2024.

See the full slate of information here.

Mediabase 2024 Year-End Country Songs Chart Top 10:
1. “World On Fire” by Nate Smith
2. “Pretty Little Poison” by Warren Zeiders
3. “Save Me” by Jelly Roll with Lainey Wilson
4. “Outskirts” by Sam Hunt
5. “Where It Ends” by Bailey Zimmerman
6. “Thinkin’ Bout Me” by Morgan Wallen
7. “Truck Bed” by Hardy
8. “I Had Some Help” by Post Malone featuring Morgan Wallen
9. “Back Then Right Now” by Tyler Hubbard
10. “Tucson Too Late” by Jordan Davis

Mediabase 2024 Year-End Most-Played Country Artists:
1. Morgan Wallen
2. Jelly Roll
3. Nate Smith
4. Lainey Wilson
5. Luke Combs
6. Chris Stapleton
7. Cody Johnson
8. Post Malone
9. Dustin Lynch
10. Kane Brown

Mediabase 2024 Year-End Country Label Market-Share:
1. Big Loud: 13.1 %
2. RCA: 7.4%
3. Broken Bow: 7.4%
4. Stoney Creek: 6.6%
5. Columbia: 6.5%
6. WEA: 5.6%
7. MCA: 5.4%
8. WMN: 4.6%
9. Valory: 4.5%
10. Big Machine: 4.1%

RECORDS Nashville Rings In 2025 With Back-To-Back No. 1s

/by

RECORDS Nashville is entering 2025 with back-to-back chart-toppers, as Koe Wetzel‘s “High Road (feat. Jessie Murph)” reaches No. 1 at country radio shortly after George Birge‘s “Cowboy Songs.”

“Cowboy Songs” serves as the title track for Birge’s latest EP, and marks his second No. 1 on both the Billboard Country Airplay and Country Aircheck/Mediabase chart. The singer-songwriter scored his first with “Mind On You” in early 2024.

The RECORDS Nashville team promoted “High Road,” which marks both Wetzel and Murph’s first career No. 1 on the Billboard Country Airplay and Country Aircheck/Mediabase charts. The collaboration appears on Wetzel’s 9 Lives album.

“We are so excited for George Birge, Koe Wetzel and Jessie Murph as they all [mark] major career milestones,” says Josh Easler, Executive Vice President of Promotion & Commercial Strategy, RECORDS Nashville. “Each have spent the past year delivering incredible music and are truly deserving of their No. 1 spots, and the RECORDS Nashville team was proud to help bolster these artists on their journey to No. 1 at radio.”

The label is also currently preparing for the release of Ty Myers‘ debut album, The Select, on Jan. 24.

Country Music Stars Show Out For ‘New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash’

/by

Kane Brown performs during New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash. Photo: Tibrina Hobson/CBS

Country stars showed off the magic of Music City during New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash, ringing in 2025 on Tuesday night (Dec. 31).

Hosted by four-time Grammy winner Keith Urban and Entertainment Tonight’s Rachel Smith, the five-hour broadcast featured more than 40 back-to-back performances from Big & Rich, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Luke Combs, Tyler Hubbard, Miranda Lambert, Post Malone, Shaboozey, Brittney Spencer, Chris Stapleton, Zach Top and Lainey Wilson. Urban, Kane Brown and Jelly Roll headlined the event in Bicentennial Park for an estimated crowd of 220,000—a record number for Nashville.

Keith Urban performs during New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash. Photo: Tibrina Hobson/CBS

Comedians Bert Kreischer and Leanne Morgan made surprise appearances throughout the night, as did actor Montana Jordan, Bunnie Xo, Katelyn Brown, Alana Springsteen and more. Over at Brooklyn Bowl was the official Big Bash watch party, headlined by Parker McCollum and hosted by Cody Alan and Caylee Hammack.

Live from Times Square, Dustin Lynch and WCBS-New York Weather Anchor Lonnie Quinn counted down to midnight with the East Coast for New York’s Ball Drop. At midnight CT, Nashville celebrated with the Music Note Drop on the Bicentennial Mall stage.

New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash was executive produced by Robert Deaton and Mary Hilliard Harrington in partnership with Music City Inc., the foundation of the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp (NCVC). The special was directed by Sandra Restrepo.

Jelly Roll performs during New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash. Photo: Tibrina Hobson/CBS

Chris Stapleton and Post Malone perform during New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash. Photo: Jon Morgan/CBS

Miranda Lambert performs during New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash. Photo: CBS

Shaboozey performs during New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash. Photo: Tibrina Hobson/CBS

Lainey Wilson performs during New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash. Photo: CBS

New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash. Photo: Tibrina Hobson/CBS

Martha Earls To Serve As Keynote Speaker For Women In Music Virtual Summit

/by

Martha Earls

Martha Earls will serve as the Keynote Speaker for Women in Music (WIM)’s annual Virtual Summit, taking place Jan. 15–17.

The global event is designed to educate, empower and advance women and gender-expansive individuals across all facets of the music industry. Featuring panels, workshops and breakout sessions, the summit seeks to provide a collaborative space to gain insight from industry leaders, foster meaningful connections and acquire tools for personal and professional growth.

Having spent over two decades in the music business, Earls is well-versed in music publishing and artist management. She gave up a full music scholarship playing piano to transfer to Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU). Earls started her career as a receptionist and song plugger at Warner Chappell Music before joining BMG to work with 100 songwriters. She then founded a publishing company with Mike Molinar, which is now Big Machine Label Group’s publishing arm, Big Machine Music. Earls moved on and launched her Nashville-based music and entertainment company, Neon Coast (formerly EFG Mgmt), in 2016. The Neon Coast roster includes Kane Brown, Restless Road, Dylan Schneider, Nightly and Kat Luna, among others. Earls also currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Academy of Country Music.

Additionally, the nonprofit organization has introduced WIM Safe(r) Spaces, a resource and training program that aims to create safer environments within the industry, which will be featured at the summit. A session focused on the WIM Workplace Initiative, which includes a survey to gather data for WIM’s “Best Places to Work” lists that will be published in March, will also be held during the event.

“We are delighted to kick off our 40th year in service to the music industry with our fourth annual WIM Summit as we bring together more of the brightest minds and boldest voices to inspire, educate, and create lasting change,” says Nicole Barsalona, WIM President. “Our goal is to create a transformative experience where attendees make meaningful connections, build their network and safety net, feel empowered in their leadership, and equipped to navigate and shape the future of our industry.”

WIM members can register for free, and non-members can purchase tickets and explore membership tiers. For more information, click here.