Artist News: Little Big Town Heads To Conan

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Little Big Town will make their debut on CBS’ The Talk on Tuesday, March 29 before joining CONAN on TBS for a performance of their current single, “The Reason Why.”

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Frankie Ballard will be opening for Bob Seger March 29 – April 2 at his sold-out Saginaw, MI and Toledo, OH shows as well as Ballard’s hometown stomping grounds of Grand Rapids, MI. Ballard also recently announced that he will join Taylor Swift on select dates of her upcoming North American leg of the Speak Now World Tour 2011.

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Rebel Dawg Records artist Eric Lee Beddingfield recently filmed the his debut video for the song “The Gospel Accourding to Jones,” featuring an appearance by George Jones.






Pictured during the shoot are: (l-r) Co-director Ryan Lassan Autumn, Producer Chuck Jones, George Jones, Eric Lee Beddingfield and Co-director Daniel Slezinger.








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Buddy Lee Attractions’ Scott Stuttard, Executive Sponsorship Director, has announced that Average Joe’s Entertainment’s country act Colt Ford has been named the Official Spokesperson of the Beast Hunting Buggies as well as their newest Team Beast Pro Staff Member.

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Former American Idol season 5 finalist Bucky Covington has recently embarked on his Hometown tour, targeting 30+ small cities with upcoming shows and airplay for his song, “Hometown.” Eight of the ten shows already played were sold out.
 

New Music Discovered Via Radio, Word of Mouth

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Orpheus Media Research surveyed 500 consumers about how they discover new music:
87 percent of respondents said they actively search out new music
82 percent identified radio as the greatest single influence of their music listening
57 percent indicated that they most often relied on radio or word of mouth to learn about new music
Here are the findings on music recommendation tools including music streaming services, and search and discovery platforms:
77 percent have discovered new music with a recommendation tool, and 92 percent continue to listen to that new music, often recommending it to others
Yet, these respondents feel that the accuracy of available recommendation tools is lacking in accuracy. And 82 percent feel that the music industry is doing an average to poor job in their ability to identify good music.
More here.

Darius Rucker's ACM Benefit Performance

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>>>Lee Brice and Chris Young treated patients and families to a special performance last week at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, and presented the hospital with more than 30 Zune devices on behalf of Microsoft.


Darius Rucker


>>>Darius Rucker will perform alongside 25 ACM Lifting Lives music campers on Sunday night’s (4/3) ACM Awards. They will sing “Music from the Heart,” written by the campers with songwriters Brett James and Chris Young. The performance will raise awareness for the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, which helps people with developmental disabilities. Viewers can donate during the awards show to the center via phone, text or web at www.acmliftinglives.org.
>>>Trent Dabbs, Luke Laird, Ashley Monroe and Jessi Alexander will perform Tues., April 12, at 9 PM at the Bluebird to benefit the American Cancer Society.
>>>On April 25, Nashville sound engineer Jimmy Daniel will begin a yearlong mission to fight heart disease with his Heart of the Green campaign. He is trying to break four golf-related Guinness World Records, including most rounds in one year.
>>>The Mel Tillis and Friends Fishing Tournament will be April 16 in Crystal Springs, FL to benefit the Shriners Hospital.
>>>Jeremy McComb was scheduled to perform at The Wounded Warrior Project Soldier Ride in San Diego, CA on Friday, March 25. The artist is a long-time supporter of service men and women.

Taryn Pray Joins Capitol Media Team

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Taryn Pray


Taryn Pray joined the Capitol/EMI Records Nashville team today (3/28) as Director, Media & Public Relations. She will report directly to Lori Genes Christian, Senior Director, Media & Public Relations.
In her new role Taryn will help oversee the media campaigns for the artists on Capitol/EMI Nashville which include Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Walker Hayes, Alan Jackson, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town, Jennette McCurdy, Troy Olsen, Jon Pardi, Eric Paslay, Roy D. Mercer, Kenny Rogers, Darius Rucker, Keith Urban and Tim Wilson.
Pray was most recently a publicist at Sony Music Nashville, helping manage media campaigns for artists on Columbia Nashville and BNA Records, including Miranda Lambert, Kellie Pickler, Josh Thompson and Kenny Chesney. Pray and Christian developed a relationship while both worked at Sony.
The Capitol media department experienced the recent departure of publicist Dixie Owen, who joined Universal Music Group.
“I am so excited that Taryn is joining our Capitol/EMI Nashville family,” shares Christian. “Her passion for our music and artists is infectious and her knowledge of both the media and marketing world make her the perfect fit for our team.”
“I am beyond thrilled to be working with Lori and Capitol/EMI Nashville!” adds Pray. “This team always takes such a creative approach with their artists and I’m so excited at the opportunity to work with this talented and enthusiastic group of people.”
Pray can be reached at taryn.pray@emimusic.com or 615-269-2087.

McGraw And Sirius XM Team For Intimate Show

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Sirius XM has announced that Tim McGraw will perform a special, invitation only concert at New York City’s Beacon Theatre Wednesday, April 27 at 6:30 pm CT. The concert will celebrate 10 years of Sirius XM broadcasting country music.
McGraw’s Emotional Traffic Tour guests Luke Bryan and The Band Perry will also perform at the event.
In anticipation, Sirius XM is launching “Tim McGraw Radio,” a commercial-free channel devoted to McGraw’s catalog. The concert will be broadcast live on three Sirius XM channels: “Tim McGraw Radio,” The Highway and Prime Country.
“Tim McGraw Radio” will run April 20-27 and will be available through the Sirius XM app for iPad, iPhone and more. Subscribers will have the opportunity to win tickets through call in promotions or by visiting www.siriusxm.com/timmcgraw starting April 4.

Industry Ink Monday

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>>>The deadline to apply for the next class of Leadership Music is Thursday, March 31. Established entertainment industry leaders are encouraged to apply for the eight-month, music business education program. Application forms, program dates, policies and FAQ’s are available online at www.leadershipmusic.org.

Larry Wayne Clark


>>>Songwriter and MusicRow contributor Larry Wayne Clark will be inducted into the British Columbia Music Association Hall of Fame during an event set for April 23 in Coquitlam, B.C. Clark has won numerous awards from the organization, including producer of the year. He has had cuts by Lee Greenwood, the Statler Brothers and more.
Clark and wife Maggie Ross are living in Saint John, New Brunswick while he undergoes cancer treatment. They have been working with the local music scene, where he is producing, mentoring and writing. Here is his recent blog for the Songwriters Association of Canada about how his illness has affected his songwriting. More from Clark here or email him at info@brainchildmusic.com.
>>>The CMA Songwriters Series will bring some of Nashville’s legendary hit makers to New York City’s Joe’s Pub on Wednesday, May 11. Bill Anderson, Dean Dillon, Steve Wariner and Craig Wiseman will join host Bob DiPiero in sharing the stories behind their biggest hits. Ticket details at www.joespub.com.
>>>ASCAP is accepting submissions for the ASCAP Deems Taylor Awards Competition for books, articles, liner notes, broadcasts and websites on the subject of music. The deadline for submissions is June 1, 2011. For additional information, click here or contact Esther SanSaurus at esansaurus@ascap.com.

Twain Joins Canadian Musical Hall of Fame

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Shania Twain is inducted into the Canadian Musical Hall of Fame. Photo: CARAS/iPhoto


Shania Twain was inducted into the Canadian Musical Hall of Fame last night (3/27) at the Juno Awards. The televised awards show took place at Toronto’s Air Canada Centre.
Country Album of the Year honors went to Johnny Reid for his release A Place Called Love.
Reid and other off-camera award winners received their trophies—Canada’s version of the Grammy’s—at a gala dinner on Saturday night (3/26).

Country Album of the Year winner Johnny Reid. Photo: CARAS/iPhoto


Arcade Fire was the big winner at the Junos, taking home Album of the Year, Group, and Songwriter honors. Justin Bieber received the first awards of his career, and hip-hop star Drake went home empty handed despite being the top nominee going into the show. Neil Young was in attendance to accept the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award.
 

Swift Expands Speak Now Tour

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As she prepares to wrap the European leg of her Speak Now World Tour, Taylor Swift has announced the addition of 16 dates to the tour’s North American portion. Swift will now headline 78 shows in 63 cities across the US and Canada. New dates are included below, and full dates are on http://www.taylorswift.com/
Tickets for the new shows will be on sale soon. Previously announced show sold out in mere minutes, including multi-night concerts at the Prudential Center in Newark and the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Adam Brand (Arista) has been chosen to open Swift’s November shows, and David Nail (MCA) will be opening the October dates.
Swift is also nominated for four ACM Awards, including Entertainer of the Year. The Speak Now tour has already played to capacity crowds across Asia and Europe.
Added Speak Now Tour Dates:
September 20 – Bossier City, Louisiana – CenturyTel Center
October 14 – Lubbock, Texas – United Spirit Arena
October 15  – Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – Oklahoma City Arena
October 20 – San Diego, California – Valley View Casino Center
October 21 & 22 Phoenix, Arizona – Jobing.com Arena
October 25 – San Antonio, Texas – AT&T Center
October 26 – Austin, Texas –  Frank Erwin Center
October 30 – Memphis, Tennessee – FEDEX Forum
November 5 – Houston, Texas – Minute Maid Park
November 12 – Tampa, Florida – St. Pete Times Forum
November 13 – Miami, Florida – American Airlines Arena
November 17 – Raleigh, North Carolina – RBC Center
November 18 – Columbia, SC – Colonial Life Arena
November 21 & 22 – New York, NY –  Madison Square Garden

Eye On Idol (3/25/11)

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Casey Abrams


Gasp! The drama! The emotion!
It’s only appropriate that wrestler Hulk Hogan (!) made an appearance on last night’s (3/24) American Idol results show. The evening’s exciting conclusion was practically worthy of its own WWE story line.
In fact, early fan favorite Casey Abrams found himself down for the count at the end of the night, singing for his life. Randy Jackson waved him off after a couple lines, subsequently using the judges’ one save to keep him on the show. Casey appeared simultaneously sick and overjoyed.
Which means, apparently, that the upcoming Idol tour will feature 11 performers instead of the usual 10. Good for Casey, and great for America.
Quite a shocker. Casey has been a standout performer, but may have lost some of his mojo last week when he took on Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” He seemed to recover in Wednesday’s (3/23) Motown-themed episode, turning in a typically unhinged version of “Heard It Through The Grapevine” that was praised by the judges. But show producers gave him the dreaded show-opening slot, and either his followers didn’t see it or they didn’t remember two hours later when it came time to vote.
Joining Casey in the bottom were two of obvious suspects: Stefano Langone, whose ably-performed version of Lionel Richie’s “Hello” failed to ignite any sparks; and Thia Meghia, who sounded convincing on “Heat Wave” but has struggled to forge a distinct identity in the contest.
The Wednesday night performances were mostly good, but a handful stood out from the rest.
He’s a long shot to win, but Jacob Lusk’s rendition of the Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell classic “You’re All I Need To Get By” was so fantastic I actually had to watch it again just for good measure. Scotty McCreery’s soft, shuffling take on Stevie Wonder’s “For Once In My Life” worked surprisingly well in his traditional style. And Pia Toscano showcased her impressive vocal range once again to deliver Stevie’s “All In Love Is Fair.”
Speaking of Stevie, he made a special and unannounced appearance in the results show opening to sing “Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours)” with the contestants and then wish judge Steven Tyler happy birthday. Later in the show, Sugarland and Jennifer Hudson both showed America why they deserve to be mega-famous platinum artists.
I can honestly say, I have no idea what’s going to happen next. And, you know what? I think I like it.

Lady Gaga Offers Countrified Version of Born This Way

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This isn't the first time Lady Gaga has tried the cowgirl thing...well, her version of it anyway. Pictured (left) with Beyonce in the "Telephone" video.


At midnight Lady Gaga let loose a country version of her hit “Born This Way,” sharing it with her Twitter followers.

Her producers toned down the dance-thump backbeat and added in some country-staple instrumentation for the remix. Gaga also added some new lyrics, around the 3-minute mark.
Meanwhile, the original track is spending its sixth week in a row at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.