The Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum will honor one of American music’s most indelible stars, Tammy Wynette, in Tammy Wynette: First Lady of Country Music, Presented by Great American Country Television Network, a biographical exhibit opening Friday, August 20 for a 10-month run in the Museum’s East Gallery. The exhibit will run through June 12, 2011.
Opening weekend festivities will include an exhibit introduction and talk by a Museum curator; a panel discussion featuring friends and associates of Wynette and illustrated with photos, film footage and recordings from the Museum’s Frist Library and Archive; and a screening of the 1987 documentary Stand by Your Dream.
“Tammy Wynette was a true steel magnolia, a daughter of the South whose ladylike appearance and slight physical stature belied the magnitude of her grit, determination and talent,” said Museum Director Kyle Young. “Throughout her career, her personal and professional lives were indistinguishably interwoven, resulting in achingly honest recordings and performances to which fans could relate. She helped redefine what it means to be a female country singer. Her death at age 55 came far too soon, but Tammy left behind a musical canon that is among the strongest and most influential in American music history.
“Accordingly, we are thrilled to have Faith Hill play a prominent role in our exhibit,” Young continued. “Faith, who herself is a superstar and role model for many of her contemporaries, sat down with our curators for an exclusive on-camera interview and talked at length about Tammy’s influence. The resulting video, which is woven throughout the exhibit’s narrative, provides an artist’s unique context and insight. We are grateful to Tammy’s family and friends for sharing their mementos and memories and allowing us to tell this extraordinary story.”
Notable artifacts featured in the exhibit include the following:
* Several of Wynette’s childhood possessions, including a petite hand-painted wooden chair with rush seat; and an ecru embroidered cotton and lace baby bonnet
* Recipe box and numerous recipes in Wynette’s own hand, including directions for fried green tomatoes and ice box lemon pie, which Tammy noted as “my children’s favorite”
* A lead-crystal vase filled with cotton hand-picked by Wynette, which was long a fixture on the singer’s coffee table
* A black, leather-bound appointment book for 1977, given to Wynette by Billy Sherrill, which details her activities during the year. The journal-like entries note both career events and personal, sometimes humorous anecdotes, e.g. “August 10, 1977 – Maxine & Cliff went to Gov. mansion with us. Gov. Blanton took me to kitchen and made me drink 8 oz. glass of cabbage juice.”
* A peek into Wynette’s glam closet will feature an array of elaborate beaded gowns, many created by Wynette’s long-time designer, Jeff Billings, as well as casual and dressy designer separates, including a teal and russet brocade jacket designed by Oscar de la Renta, embellished with faux leopard fur, embroidery and bold enamel buttons.
* Numerous awards, including Wynette’s 1968-70 Country Music Association awards for Female Vocalist of the Year; her 1967 and 1969 Best Female Country Vocal Performance Grammy awards (for “I Don’t Wanna Play House” and “Stand by Your Man,” respectively); and her 2000 Academy of Country Music Pioneer Award
Jerrod Niemann Debuts at No. 1
/by contributorJudge Jerrod & The Hung Jury is only the second country album to debut at No. 1 this year and the first by a male country artist during that time. One of only three albums in 2010 to earn the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart, the album also scores an impressive debut on the all-genre Billboard 200 album sales chart, where it enters at No. 7.
While the hit single “Lover, Lover” is climbing the country radio charts, it’s the whole of Judge Jerrod & The Hung Jury that’s impressing fans, as well as media.
The New York Times cheers, “In sum, Mr. Niemann is a gentleman outlaw, but mostly he’s a history-minded technician on this thoughtful, magnetic record,” while USA Today declares, “You’ve got to love a country album that opens with a movie-trailer spoof and a ballad comparing one’s lover to cocaine. Niemann’s a freewheeling honky-tonker … and an intelligent singer/songwriter with a penchant for cornball humor.”
Niemann is also in esteemed company as one of only seven male artists on this week’s Billboard Top Country Albums chart to have hit No. 1 with their current releases, including Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Keith Urban, George Strait, Toby Keith, and Tim McGraw.
Judge Jerrod & The Hung Jury features eight skits alongside a dozen songs, ten of which were written or co-written by Niemann. A throwback to the days of the album as musical journey, Judge Jerrod & The Hung Jury was crafted as a start-to-finish listening experience.
This Friday (6/23) Niemann will appear on GAC’s Top 20 Country Countdown, as well as on the new episode of CMT Insider, premiering this Saturday (6/24). The singer is also the focus of a feature in the new issue of Country Weekly, on sale now.
Following a packed schedule of upcoming appearances, Niemann will hit the road with headliner Gary Allan and Randy Houser on Allan’s Get Off on the Pain tour in September.
For more information on upcoming appearances visit www.JerrodNiemannOfficial.com.
Hall of Fame Honors Tammy Wynette
/by contributorOpening weekend festivities will include an exhibit introduction and talk by a Museum curator; a panel discussion featuring friends and associates of Wynette and illustrated with photos, film footage and recordings from the Museum’s Frist Library and Archive; and a screening of the 1987 documentary Stand by Your Dream.
“Tammy Wynette was a true steel magnolia, a daughter of the South whose ladylike appearance and slight physical stature belied the magnitude of her grit, determination and talent,” said Museum Director Kyle Young. “Throughout her career, her personal and professional lives were indistinguishably interwoven, resulting in achingly honest recordings and performances to which fans could relate. She helped redefine what it means to be a female country singer. Her death at age 55 came far too soon, but Tammy left behind a musical canon that is among the strongest and most influential in American music history.
“Accordingly, we are thrilled to have Faith Hill play a prominent role in our exhibit,” Young continued. “Faith, who herself is a superstar and role model for many of her contemporaries, sat down with our curators for an exclusive on-camera interview and talked at length about Tammy’s influence. The resulting video, which is woven throughout the exhibit’s narrative, provides an artist’s unique context and insight. We are grateful to Tammy’s family and friends for sharing their mementos and memories and allowing us to tell this extraordinary story.”
Notable artifacts featured in the exhibit include the following:
* Several of Wynette’s childhood possessions, including a petite hand-painted wooden chair with rush seat; and an ecru embroidered cotton and lace baby bonnet
* Recipe box and numerous recipes in Wynette’s own hand, including directions for fried green tomatoes and ice box lemon pie, which Tammy noted as “my children’s favorite”
* A lead-crystal vase filled with cotton hand-picked by Wynette, which was long a fixture on the singer’s coffee table
* A black, leather-bound appointment book for 1977, given to Wynette by Billy Sherrill, which details her activities during the year. The journal-like entries note both career events and personal, sometimes humorous anecdotes, e.g. “August 10, 1977 – Maxine & Cliff went to Gov. mansion with us. Gov. Blanton took me to kitchen and made me drink 8 oz. glass of cabbage juice.”
* A peek into Wynette’s glam closet will feature an array of elaborate beaded gowns, many created by Wynette’s long-time designer, Jeff Billings, as well as casual and dressy designer separates, including a teal and russet brocade jacket designed by Oscar de la Renta, embellished with faux leopard fur, embroidery and bold enamel buttons.
* Numerous awards, including Wynette’s 1968-70 Country Music Association awards for Female Vocalist of the Year; her 1967 and 1969 Best Female Country Vocal Performance Grammy awards (for “I Don’t Wanna Play House” and “Stand by Your Man,” respectively); and her 2000 Academy of Country Music Pioneer Award
Brumley Publishing Signs Jill King
/by contributorArtist/songwriter Jill King has signed an exclusive publishing deal with the Brumley Music Group. King, who enjoyed indie success with her 2003 single, “One Mississippi,” is currently touring in support of her latest release, Rain on Fire.
(standing l-r) John Leal of Brace Management, BMI’s Bradley Collins, and Terence Burke, Creative Manager, Brumley Music Group. (seated l-r) Brumley Music President Bob Brumley, King, and Dave Durocher, VP Brumley Music Group.
Swift’s “Fearless” Follow-Up Coming Oct. 25
/by Sarah SkatesKnown for writing or co-writing her own material, Swift said she spent about two years writing for the new project, basically since the release of Fearless. The title, she said, “pertains to the album as a concept, and as an entire theme of the record, more than I can even tell you.”
“Thankfully, in the past two years I’ve experienced a lot of things that I’ve been dying to write about,” she explained. “A lot of things that I’ve wanted to say in the moment that I didn’t… Track by track, each song is a different confession to a different person.”
Starting on August 20th, Speak Now will be available for special pre-sale on the site www.SpeakNow13.com.
Swift reunited with longtime producer Nathan Chapman for the album.
Josh Gracin
/by ProgrammerPlaylist“Cover Girl”
Average Joes Entertainment
“I want to sing. I want to write. I want to produce. I want to put myself on the chopping block,” admits Josh Gracin, newly signed to hot independent label Average Joes Entertainment. Signing with an indie has allowed the singer to grow and challenge himself while still providing an outlet for his product. Gracin’s first single for Average Joes is “Cover Girl,” and it’s going for adds August 2.
Gracin has been hard at work on his new album, which he co-produced with his drummer Kevin Murphy and recorded with his road band. “We aimed to paint that picture and give it a feel that everything is in the room with you,” he says. “I love those guys and I love having them on the record. The band was able to live with the songs and given the artistic freedom to bring in their interpretation to the music.”
The Michigan native won the hearts and ears of America after he auditioned for season two of American Idol while serving in the Marine Corps. Following his fourth place finish on Idol and the completion of his military service, Gracin signed with Lyric Street Records and released his self-titled debut album in June 2004. The album was RIAA-certified gold and spawned three top five singles—“I Want to Live,” “Stay With Me (Brass Bed),” and the No. 1 hit “Nothin’ to Lose.”
http://www.joshgracin.com/
http://www.myspace.com/joshgracin
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Top Earners: Kenny Chesney And Toby Keith
/by Sarah SkatesL-R: Chesney, Keith
Forbes’ just released list of Top-Earning Musicians includes Kenny Chesney and Toby Keith from the country set. Chesney ranked No. 9 on the Top 10 list, by bringing in $50 million between June 2009 and June 2010. Like most of the other top money makers, a significant portion of his earnings came from the box office, where he raked in about $1.6 million per show, according to the magazine. He also scored with Mastercard and Corona sponsorships.
Keith came in at No. 10 with $48 million for the 12-month period. He too made big bucks on the road, as well as through his restaurant chain, and publishing royalties. Forbes asked his manager, T.K. Kimbrell, how serious is Keith about making money? Kimbrell’s answer: “You’d get a severe head injury dropping a nickel around him.”
Leading the superstar tally is U2, who netted an estimated $130 million, followed by AC/DC ($114 million), No. 3 Beyonce ($87 million), No. 4 Bruce Springsteen ($70 million) and No. 5 Britney Spears ($64 million). Full story here.
The New Normal: Recalibrating The Sales Compass
/by adminBill Kennedy
Country’s half year sales were punctuated by a strong selling sophomore album from Lady Antebellum, but little else emerged to boost industry coffers according to Nielsen SoundScan. One week into the second half of 2010 finds country tallies down 9.5% YTD and drooping like a wilted sunflower. Some optimism is starting to appear however, as the year-end release schedule begins to swell with upcoming superstar entries from artists such as Zac Brown Band, Taylor Swift, Sugarland, Kenny Chesney, Toby Keith and more. The sales story for 2010 is clearly far from over. But with prices dropping and margins shrinking how do we really determine where we are? What about revenue? To help calibrate our compass we contacted Show Dog-Universal veteran and VP Marketing Sales and New Media, Bill Kennedy.
“There are a lot of different revenue sources these days,” says Kennedy. “Physical sales plus the digital album—which in my opinion still has a lot of growth in it for our format. Single downloads may have leveled off in terms of volume, but on the revenue side we have a modestly higher price point that does add up over time. We also have revenue coming in from streaming that we really didn’t have before, and revenue from video downloads which show modest increases. Maybe instead of going for the three run homer you have to play ‘little ball’ and do it a bit differently.”
Kennedy sees single sales at least mitigating some of the losses from album unit sales for some artists. “This revenue model has been changing for the past five years,” Kennedy continues, “so it’s hard to compare just on a per unit CD cost. We have certain tracks and artists in our format that can sell 2 million downloads, and that adds up. It may be invisible revenue to some, but not for the labels, especially when you sell 500k singles or more.”
Kennedy is realistic, but sees some upside on the horizon. “There may actually be a slight increase in overall units sold this year due to all the big titles scheduled to appear, so we’ll see,” he says. “We are operating under a new normal since October 2008 when the market started to implode. It will continue to be a struggle and you will have to grind it out and hope your artist can hit one out of the park and get a career song. Bottom line you have to work a lot smarter and extract the unnecessary costs.”
One reassuring new development is seeing single sales jump ahead of country radio. “With Joe Nichols’ ‘Gimme That Girl’ we had single sales topping 20-25k per week while the single was hovering in the 20s at country radio,” Kennedy recalls. “We are also seeing it with some of the newer acts like Jerrod Neimann and Jaron And The Long Road to Love. Our fans are engaging the viral world where you can spread the word, network and get to the fans directly long before the song happens via radio. You still need country radio in our format to put it over the top, but you have the opportunity to get there a lot quicker than ever before.”
Greene Becomes Pres./Owner of Modern Mgmt.
/by Sarah SkatesTed Greene
Modern Management partner Ted Greene has taken over as President/Owner of the firm which represents Josh Turner, Diamond Rio, Raquel Warchol and NASCAR Nationwide Series Driver Willie Allen.
Brenner McDonald, a partner in the company since its 2002 inception, has sold her interest in Modern Management. She can be contacted at brenner.mcdonald@comcast.net or (615) 594-3550.
Songwriters In New York, Napa, Nashville
/by Sarah SkatesSinger/songwriter James Otto, songwriters Robert Ellis Orrall and Chris Wallin, and host/songwriter Bob DiPiero hang out backstage between two sold-out shows of the “CMA Songwriters Series” at Joe’s Pub in New York City last Thursday, July 15. The popular series, which showcases many of Nashville’s top songwriters, will continue at Joe’s Pub on Sept. 8 when Jamey Johnson, Buddy Cannon, and Bobby Pinson join DiPiero on stage.
Pictured (L-R): Robert Ellis Orrall, James Otto, Chris Wallin, and Bob DiPiero. Photo Credit: 2010, Kyle Quigley/CMA
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Another group of songwriters is headed to Napa Valley, California for the annual Nashville In Napa event at Baldacci Family Vineyards. Tony Lane, Jessi Alexander, Jon Randall, Jim “Moose” Brown, Brett Jones and Don Sampson will perform at the Aug. 14 event. Proceeds will go to provide music education for school-aged children. The Notes for Education charity was founded when producer/songwriter Frank Rogers and winemaker Debi Cali began to see the similarities between their industries.
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The family festival will take place from 4 -7 p.m. and the concert from 7 p.m. – midnight. The event’s goal is to aid local flood victims, particularly children, with free entertainment, new toys and school supplies to replace those lost in the flood.
The event plans to be an annual one and is sponsored by Leap Frog and Freshii, a new healthy fast food restaurant coming to Nashville in August. Attendees who were not affected by the flood are asked to bring a new packaged toy or school supplies.
Jerrod’s Release Party; Jaron On “Tonight Show”
/by Sarah SkatesOver 400 fans packed Knoxville’s Tin Roof last week for Jerrod Niemann’s CD release party. He performed for two hours, followed by a marathon two-and-a-half hour CD signing session. More than 550 copies of his new album Judge Jerrod & The Hung Jury were sold that night.
Staying up late for Niemann's album release party were (l-r): Arista Nashville Regional Promo Manager R.J. Curtis and Director of Nat’l Promotion Lesly Tyson, Niemann, and WIVK Knoxville programmer Mike Hammond.
Jaron recently visited Hazel Smith for a taping of CMT's Southern Fried Flicks.
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Jaron of Jaron And The Long Road To Love will perform his hit single “Pray For You” on Tuesday, July 27 on NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. The single is now seeing success beyond the US, and has become a hit in Canada and Australia.
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Chuck Wicks will be representing Nashville as the sole country artist performing at the Los Angeles Chapter GRAMMY Block Party on July 31, a celebration of music that will also serve as a fundraiser for the MusiCares Nashville Flood Relief Fund.
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Bridgette Tatum will perform at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ Brickyard 400.
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Christian Kane performed his song “Thinking of You” on the Sunday, July 18 episode of the hit TNT series Leverage, in which he stars as “Eliot Spencer.” Next month Kane will release his first single “The House Rules,” which he co-wrote with Blair Daly. The single is from his forthcoming full-length album due out in October.