Craig Morgan was saluted recently by the Tennessee City Volunteer Fire Department for rescuing two children from a burning house last month. Pictured backstage at the Grand Ole Opry House. (L-R): Danny Tucker, Jr., Chief Mike Grant, Joe Murraca, Craig Morgan, and Lieutenant Brian Bretoi.
>>>Songwriter
Harley Allen is battling stage four lung cancer. Among his hits are Blake Shelton’s “The Baby,” Joe Nichols’ “I’ll Wait For You,” and Darryl Worley’s “Awful, Beautiful Life.” Allen has also had numerous cuts by Alan Jackson, Dierks Bentley, Gary Allan, Garth Brooks, Josh Turner and more. He is married to Debbie Nims. Friends are welcome to send cards to Harley Allen c/o Harlan Howard Songs, 1902 Wedgewood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212.
>>>Darius Rucker’s second annual “Darius and Friends” benefit concert will be Monday, June 6 at the Wildhorse Saloon. Performers have not been announced. Last year he raised over $48,000 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Ticket info at
DariusRucker.com.
>>>The 5th Annual
Country Weekly Fashion Show & Concert will take place Tuesday, June 7 at Nashville’s Rocketown. The event will benefit Musicians On Call, a non-profit organization which brings live and recorded music to patients in healthcare facilities.
>>>Planning is underway for the inaugural
Mow The Row benefit in memory of songwriter
Joshua Ragsdale. The celebrity lawnmower race and concert is set for Tuesday, June 7 on Demonbreun. Ragsdale, who died of cancer last year at age 32, came up with the idea to benefit the Hospital Hospitality House. A committee of his friends and loved ones from the music business are organizing the event. Artists are still needed to participate. Hospital Hospitality House is a home away from home for patients and families seeking medical treatment in Nashville hospitals. To get involved, visit
www.mowtherow.com.
>>>Also benefiting Hospital Hospitality House is an upcoming dinner and concert featuring
Steve Cropper and
Lee Roy Parnell. On Tuesday, April 19, Balfour Beatty Construction will host an evening at the Nashville Dinner Theatre in Printer’s Alley. Tickets at
www.hospitalhospitalityhouse.org.
>>>Randy Owen has joined forces with BLEVE Entertainment to release a new album on May 19.
Friends was produced by
Michael Knox and will kick off BLEVE’s Help the Good Guys campaign. Profits will benefit the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) and the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF).
Songwriters Salute Hank at the Hall of Fame
/by MichelleFamily Tradition co-curator Michael McCall will host and each artist will perform one or more of William’s classic songs, as well as some of their own compositions that were influenced or inspired by Williams.
I Saw The Light is presented in conjunction with the Museum’s exhibition Family Tradition: The Williams Family Legacy, Presented by SunTrust, and will begin at 1:30 p.m. in the Museum’s Ford Theater. It is included with Museum admission and is free to Museum members.
For more details visit countrymusichalloffame.org.
Foster & Lloyd Reunite For New Album
/by Sarah SkatesThe duo co-produced and co-wrote all twelve songs on the set, which was recorded and mixed by Justin Tocket (Marc Broussard, Randy Rogers Band). Among the studio musicians are Cheap Trick bassist Tom Petersson and drummer Keith Brogdon. And guests include pedal steel guitarist Lloyd Green, producer and steel guitarist Steve Fishell, vocals from singer/songwriter Beth Nielsen Chapman, and bassist Garry Tallent from Bruce Springsteen’s E. St. Band.
In 1985 Foster & Lloyd were paired together by their publisher, which led to a deal with RCA Records. “Crazy Over You,” made them the first duo in Country music to score a No. 1 on their debut single.
Before parting ways in 1990 for solo careers, they recorded three albums for RCA and had other hits with “Sure Thing,” “What Do You Want From Me This Time,” “Texas in 1880” and “Fair Shake.”
More recently, a request from the Americana Music Association to reunite for a fundraiser show got the duo together onstage. The show sold out in 15 minutes.
“It was so much fun getting back together onstage, and we realized that the new songs we had written together still had that magic,” says Foster. “We decided to start getting together once a month to write. Soon the songs were pouring out, and we knew we needed to get back in the studio.”
The duo will hit the road with a string of dates in Texas this spring and summer, as well as a May 18 CD release show at Mercy Lounge in Nashville, and a June 25 performance at the Blackberry Jam Music Festival in Franklin, Tenn.
NuCorp Ent. Launches With Flagship Act Darren Warren
/by Sarah SkatesHandling distribution and promotion will be execs Chuck Rhodes, and longtime Warner Bros. staffer Doug Grau. Other team members include Toni D. McDaniel in finance, sales, and marketing; and Kris Carlson and KentuckyLake.com overseeing web and social media. Outside the company, AristoMedia will work music video promotion, and Campbell Entertainment will coordinate publicity. Regina Raleigh has been tapped to promote the single on MusicRow’s Country Breakout Chart.
Warren’s debut single “Cowboy Up and Party Down” was produced by Grau and will go for adds in May 2011. The first album will be released later this summer.
The Kentucky native is a survivor of childhood cancer and actively works to help St. Jude, the hospital that saved his life.
NuCorp’s offices are currently located in Franklin, KY and will soon be relocating to a new home in Nashville.
The Roys Release Lonesome Whistle
/by MichelleThe 11-song album includes 10 Roy originals, and was co-produced by the duo and Andy Leftwich. The disc’s first single, “Coal Minin’ Man,” is climbing the bluegrass charts. The video, which was filmed in Hazard, KY at the Teco Coal Company, rolls out very soon.
The Roys’ cluster of media appearances began yesterday on Channel 17′s Tennessee Mornings, followed by Bill Cody‘s WSM-AM 650 show, Channel 4′s Better Nashville show and GAC TV’s On The Streets.
Other media stops include The Daily Buzz, the G. Gordon Liddy’s syndicated radio show, Fox News Channel’s Fox and Friends, Sirius XM’s The Roadhouse “Freewheeling”, and FoxNews.com.
In April, fans can catch the duo on Better TV, Country Vibe, Inside Music Row, and Larry’s Country Diner.
The disc is The Roys’ first release for Rural Rhythm Records and they join a roster that includes Michael Martin Murphey, Randy Kohrs, Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out, Mason Douglas and Lonesome River Band among others.
For more details visit theroysonline.com.
Musical Chairs
/by Sarah SkatesJordan Zucker
>>>Jordan Zucker has joined the CO5 Nashville team as Director of Promotion and Marketing, Southeast. David Newmark, VP of Promotion and Business Development, made today’s announcement. With 30 years of experience, Zucker was most recently CEO of Infirst Promotion, an Atlanta company that facilitates radio, satellite, and syndicated airplay. He has held promotion and marketing positions with Sanctuary Records, RCA Records, and A&M Records, working with Zac Brown Band, ZZ Top, Dave Matthews, Sting, Crosby Stills and Nash, and Lynyrd Skynyrd. Zucker can be reached at 678-475-0627 or jordan@co5music.com.
>>>Jerry Bailey is retiring from his longtime post at BMI. The industry veteran currently works as Sr. Director, Media Relations & Business Communications. Bailey’s immediate plans include realizing his long-time dream to conquer the Appalachian trail.
>>>Laura McKinley has exited her role at Sony Music Nashville after nine years with the company. She most recently served as Associate Director of Artist Development and Marketing. McKinley can be reached at LMcKinley79@gmail.com or 615-364-1382.
>>>Emblem Music Group has promoted Haley Melikian to Day-to-Day Manager for Gloriana and Tyler Hilton. She previously held the position of New Media Marketing Specialist. Before coming to Emblem in 2009, she worked in the new media department of Warner Bros. in Burbank. Additionally, Abby Grover has been hired as an Administrative Assistant for the label co-founded by Matt Serletic and Dean Serletic.
Benefits: Mow The Row In Memory of Joshua Ragsdale
/by Sarah SkatesCraig Morgan was saluted recently by the Tennessee City Volunteer Fire Department for rescuing two children from a burning house last month. Pictured backstage at the Grand Ole Opry House. (L-R): Danny Tucker, Jr., Chief Mike Grant, Joe Murraca, Craig Morgan, and Lieutenant Brian Bretoi.
>>>Songwriter Harley Allen is battling stage four lung cancer. Among his hits are Blake Shelton’s “The Baby,” Joe Nichols’ “I’ll Wait For You,” and Darryl Worley’s “Awful, Beautiful Life.” Allen has also had numerous cuts by Alan Jackson, Dierks Bentley, Gary Allan, Garth Brooks, Josh Turner and more. He is married to Debbie Nims. Friends are welcome to send cards to Harley Allen c/o Harlan Howard Songs, 1902 Wedgewood Ave., Nashville, TN 37212.
>>>Darius Rucker’s second annual “Darius and Friends” benefit concert will be Monday, June 6 at the Wildhorse Saloon. Performers have not been announced. Last year he raised over $48,000 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Ticket info at DariusRucker.com.
>>>The 5th Annual Country Weekly Fashion Show & Concert will take place Tuesday, June 7 at Nashville’s Rocketown. The event will benefit Musicians On Call, a non-profit organization which brings live and recorded music to patients in healthcare facilities.
>>>Also benefiting Hospital Hospitality House is an upcoming dinner and concert featuring Steve Cropper and Lee Roy Parnell. On Tuesday, April 19, Balfour Beatty Construction will host an evening at the Nashville Dinner Theatre in Printer’s Alley. Tickets at www.hospitalhospitalityhouse.org.
>>>Randy Owen has joined forces with BLEVE Entertainment to release a new album on May 19. Friends was produced by Michael Knox and will kick off BLEVE’s Help the Good Guys campaign. Profits will benefit the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) and the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF).
Alan Jackson Teams With Capitol's EMI Records Nashville
/by Sarah SkatesJackson, who built his 60-million album selling career at former home Arista Records, has had a long standing relationship with Capitol Records Nashville President and CEO Mike Dungan.
In 2010 Capitol Records Nashville announced its newest imprint EMI Records Nashville, which is designed to be a sister label to Capitol Nashville.
ACR (Alan’s Country Records) was formed by Jackson when he released his 2002 Let It Be Christmas album, followed by the platinum-selling Precious Memories in 2005.
Alan Jackson and Mike Dungan—the early years.
“Mike Dungan and I go way back. He was right there during my early days at Arista, and it’s going to be great to work with him and his team there at Capitol,” Jackson says. “I’m happy to be joining the hottest label in Nashville.”
“Everyone here at Capitol/EMI is beyond thrilled to represent Alan Jackson,” responds Dungan. “A true American original, a future Hall of Famer, and an artist whose work to date is not only commercially successful, but is of historical cultural significance. We are honored, and we are jacked!”
Jackson has topped the country singles charts 35 times, and won countless awards, including three CMA Entertainer of the Year honors.
NYT Feels Music Industry Pain
/by adminA loophole purposely built into the NYT system has already backfired. NYT decided that links from Twitter and Facebook should get free passage through the paywall and be able to exceed the 20 item limit per month imposed on non-subscribers. Search links would get five items per day. The thinking seems sound, since these social networking/search links are responsible for directing large amounts of traffic to the newspaper website.
Enter new Twitter feed @freeNYTimes. The feed tweets a link to every story published on nytimes.com. This allows readers to easily surf around and through the paywall, avoiding its restrictions. According to a Forbes.com story, NYT has already asked Twitter to shut down the new feed. At press the feed has 562 followers and explains itself by saying, “NYTimes articles as they’re published. Read more than your 20 articles/month allotment, because you came from Twitter! Data provided by The New York Times.”
A second similar twitter feed has already sprouted at @timeswiretap. It now has 92 followers.
Another widely reported NYT hack was created by a Canadian blogger in just four lines of code and bears the name, NYTClean. The site is already experiencing a massive slowdown due to a rash of unexpectedly high visitor traffic.
NYTClean coder David Hayes sums up the problem saying, “Wow, I’ve gotten tens of thousands of hits since this went up yesterday, especially considering this was a lunchtime project — You just can’t see a wall like this without wondering how you can get around it. I love the New York Times, don’t say that I forced you to not pay for it.”
Dolly's "Better Day" Still To Come
/by Freeman“I wanted to do an album that would be very uplifting and positive, as well as inspirational,” says Parton. “Times are hard all over. I think people need to feel better and I thought Better Day was a perfect title because it says ‘hope.’”
The Better Day world tour kicks off July 17 in Knoxville, including two shows at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. On August 20, the trek moves overseas and features two shows at the O2 Arena in London. Full dates included below.
Dolly’s 2008 album Backwoods Barbie produced singles like “Better Get To Livin’” and “Shinola” and the ensuing European tour played for over 170k fans.
Better Day tour dates:
Sun 17 Jul – Knoxville, TN – University of Tennessee – Thompson Boling Arena
Tue 19 Jul – Dallas, TX – Verizon Theatre Grand Prairie
Wed 20 Jul – Albuquerque, NM – Sandia Casino
Fri 22 Jul – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Bowl
Sat 23 Jul – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Bowl
Sun 24 Jul – Concord, CA – Concord Pavilion
Wed 27 Jul – Prior Lake, MN – Mystic Lake Casino
Thu 28 Jul – Chicago, IL – Rosemont Theater
Sat 30 Jul – Wallingford, CT – Toyota Presents Oakdale Theatre
Sun 31 Jul – Vienna, VA – Wolf Trap
Tue 02 Aug – Durham NC – Durham Performing Arts Center
Wed 03 Aug – Alpharetta, GA – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater @ Encore Park
Sat 20 Aug – Glasgow – Glasgow SECC
Sun 21 Aug – Glasgow – Glasgow SECC
Mon 22 Aug – Nottingham – Nottingham Arena
Thur 25 Aug – Copenhagen – Copenhagen Forum
Sat 27 Aug – Stockholm – Globe Arena
Sun 28 Aug – Göteborg, Sweden – Gothenburg Scandinavium
Wed 31 Aug – Liverpool – Echo Arena
Fri 2 Sept – Birmingham – LG Arena
Sat 3 Sept – Cardiff – CIA Arena
Sun 4 Sept – Cardiff – CIA Arena
Tue 6 Sept – Bournemouth – Bournemouth BIC
Wed 7 Sept – London – O2 Arena
Thur 8 Sept – London – O2 Arena
Sat 10 Sept – Newcastle – Metro Radio Arena
Sun 11 Sept – Manchester – Evening News Arena
Mon 12 Sept – Sheffield – Motorpoint Arena
Wed 14 Sept – Dublin – 02 Arena
Thur 15 Sept – Belfast – Odyssey Arena
Industry Ink Wednesday
/by Sarah SkatesThe CMC Rocks the Hunter 2011 Country Music festival in New South Wales, Australia served as the backdrop for two recent CMA International Award presentations. Event performer Joe Nichols; event co-producer and CMA Board member Rob Potts; and event host and CMA Board member Storme Warren of GAC's "Headline Country" presented the CMA Wesley Rose International Media Achievement Award to Cheryl Byrnes, Manager of Country Music Capital News, and the CMA International Country Broadcast Award to Larry Cann, of the Fairfax KIX Country Radio Network. Pictured (l-r) Warren, Nichols, Byrnes, and Potts.
>>>>The Country Network (TCN) continues to expand its broadcast reach with the addition of five new television station affiliates under an agreement with Kansas City, Missouri based Newport Television. These new markets—Salt Lake City, Fresno, Little Rock, Wichita, and Tulsa—will begin airing TCN next month. Including the association with Newport Television, TCN is available on 42 stations.
>>>>Aria Records Nashville artist David St. Romain has signed with entertainment publicity company Shock Ink for exclusive media relations representation. The Nashville Star alum released his latest album, All I Really Wanted To Say, this month. Its first single, “Twenty Years Late,” will impact radio April 4.
>>>>Debut Broadcasting Corp.‘s Syndication Division is prepping the launch of three new national radio programs: A Country Legend, Radio Racing Minute, and Boot Scooting 90’s.