Nashville Film Festival Ready To Roll

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nashvillefilmThe 40th Annual Nashville Film Festival (NaFF) is ready to roll. The Festival is hosted by the Regal Green Hills Stadium 16 in the Green Hills area of Nashville. With over 22,000 people attending last year’s NaFF, it is one of the best-known arts events in Tennessee and is the biggest, most international film festival in the mid-South. The festival runs from April 16-April 23, and advance tickets for individual movie screenings go on sale April 7. The kick-off patron party, one of the festival’s big fundraising events for the year, is scheduled for Thursday, April 9 at Tennessee Bank & Trust at Grace’s Plaza in Green Hills from 6:00-9:30 PM.. Last year NaFF received over 1700 submissions from all over the world and 215 films from 38 countries were selected. NaFF provides the only opportunity to see many of these films in this region of the U.S. You can check out the full schedule of films here.

GAC To Re-Air ACM Awards

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logoGreat American Country (GAC) will present an encore presentation of the 44th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards on Sunday May 31 at 8 PM/CT. This year, GAC and GACTV.com expanded their longstanding partnership with the Academy of Country Music by hosting the first-ever fan vote for nominees in the Top New Artist categories.

In addition to the May 31 premiere, the ACM Awards will also re-air June 1 and at various other times throughout the year. “GAC historically devotes many hours of time both on-air and online to shine a spotlight on ACM-nominated artists and their music,” said Sarah Trahern, Senior Vice President of Programming at GAC. “This programming creates excitement and anticipation for the ACM awards, and makes GAC’s encore presentation much more robust for our viewers and fans.”

Flatts, Aldean Set To Boost Country Sales

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flatts1Two big releases due April 7 — from Lyric Street’s Rascal Flatts and Broken Bow’s Jason Aldean — could bring a welcome boost to 2009 country sales. Fresh from their seventh consecutive ACM Vocal Group of the Year win, Rascal Flatts will celebrate the release of their sixth album, Unstoppable, with a day-of-release appearance on NBC’s Today followed by guest spots on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on April 13 and The Late Show with David Letterman on April 16. “Here Comes Goodbye,” the debut single from Unstoppable, has already hit the top of the MusicRow CountryBreakout chart.

aldeanPlatinum-selling artist Aldean will release his third studio album, Wide Open. Already riding high on the momentum of the album’s debut single, “She’s Country,” the singer will visit eight cities in eight days. Highlights from his cross-country promotional trip include an April 10 appearance on NBC’s Today, followed by an appearance at the opening game of the Atlanta Braves home season, where Aldean will throw out the first pitch and sing the National Anthem. He will also be featured on a one-hour GAC special titled Jason Aldean: Wide Open, also premiering April 7. On May 1, Aldean will play Jimmy Kimmel Live’s outdoor concert series.

Stars On Deck For City Of Hope

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hopeCountry stars Carrie Underwood, Vince Gill, Montgomery Gentry and Josh Turner are among the celebrities who will be participating in the 19th Annual City of Hope Celebrity Softball Challenge on Wednesday, June 10 at 7 p.m. at Nashville’s Greer Stadium. Billed as the unofficial kickoff to CMA Music Festival, this year’s game will be held in the evening for the first time since the event’s inception 19 years ago. Rival teams, Grand Ole Opry and After MidNite with Blair Garner return for an evening of pranks, fun and softball. The whole affair benefits City of Hope, a leading research, education and treatment center for cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Tickets are $18 each and $40 for a family four pack. There will be a silent auction during the game with autographed memorabilia as well as an online auction after the game at www.auctionsforhope.com. For more information on the 19th Annual City of Hope Nashville Celebrity Softball Challenge, visit www.cityofhope.org/softball. To purchase tickets visit www.ticketmaster.com or call 615-255-9600.

BamaJam Join Forces With Talladega

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bamajamlogoyellowspotRonnie Gilley Entertainment’s BamaJam Music & Arts Festival has announced a cross-promotional partnership with Alabama’s Talladega Superspeedway. The partnership is designed to cross-promote the spring 2009 Talladega Superspeedway races and the BamaJam Music & Arts Festival, scheduled for June 4-6 in Enterprise, Ala. BamaJam Music & Arts Festival will have a prominent presence at the three Talladega Superspeedway races to be held the weekend of April 24-26. Prior to the races, the BamaJam bus will make its official entry with pit stops at local truck stops Race City Travel in Lincoln, Ala. and Rookies, in nearby Oxford, Ala. During the 3-day race event, the BamaJam bus will be at the Superspeedway making tickets available for purchase. Fans can also participate in a bean bag toss competition and enter to win prizes including an autographed guitar by BamaJam performing artists, a “Richard Petty Driving Experience” prize package and more. In addition, LoCash Cowboys, official spokespersons for the BamaJam Music & Arts Festival, will perform at the Superspeedway on Saturday, April 25 at 9:00 PM/ET.

Industry Vets Open Herrington/Fox Management

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Industry veterans Dan Herrington and Mitchell Fox have announced the formation of Herrington/Fox Management, a full-service, artist and project management company headquartered in Nashville. Herrington, who recently sold his Dualtone Records label to Cal Turner IV, brings more than 20 years of record company and music publishing management experience to the company. Fox got his start in artist management working with Peter Grant and Led Zeppelin at Swan Song Records in New York in the late ‘70s. He relocated to Nashville where he managed the Kentucky Headhunters through his own company, Mitchell Fox Management. Initial client roster for the management company is being established and will be announced soon. Herrington and Fox are also partners in The Last Company, an information and data management service provider to the music industry. Herrington can be reached at danherrington@bellsouth.net or at 615-975-9021. Fox can be reached at mitchell.fox@comcast.net or at 615-202-2177.

Storme Warren Tweets For GAC at ACMs

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storme_warrenGAC’s Headline Country added a new component to coverage of Sunday’s ACM Awards. Show host Storme Warren was on the orange carpet providing live updates via the online social network, Twitter. Additionally, Warren plucked a fan from the bleachers to the orange carpet to file the Twitter updates visible at www.twitter.com/headlinecountry.

Rich Pacts With Crown Royal

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jrWarner Bros. artist John Rich and Crown Royal Canadian Whisky are teaming up to offer one winner a “special mentorship experience.” The For Every King, A Mentor contest includes a trip for two to Nashville for a behind-the-scenes look into Rich’s performing, producing and songwriting career; a tour of the mansion where his CMT show Gone Country is filmed and a personally-signed guitar. Rich will also conduct a tour of some of his favorite Nashville hangouts. Fans of legal drinking age can enter the contest by visiting www.CrownRoyal.com and explaining their aspiration for being mentored by Rich. “Crown Royal is all about getting people together and celebrating responsibly, and that’s how I like to enjoy myself with my friends and family,” Rich said.

NY Sen. Schumer Introduces Ticketing Legislation

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U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer has introduced legislation designed to crack down on ticket resellers and ensure that fans get the opportunity to obtain concert tickets at face price. The legislation would give fans two days to buy tickets before they became available to ticket resellers to sell on the secondary market. The legislation also requires resellers to obtain a federal registration number from the FTC, and post that number in conjunction with all ticket re-sales on brokerage websites and through other means. According to Schumer, Ticketmaster supports the proposed legislation and he plans to meet with Ticketmaster to draft a formal code of conduct for ticket reselling. The legislation will be introduced in two weeks when the Senate reconvenes.

“I am very happy to support Sen. Schumer’s thoughtful proposal and leadership on this issue,” says Irving Azoff, CEO of Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc. “Staggering the resale process to commence 48 hours after an on-sale is a very important step in reforming the process and bringing transparency to the on-sale process.”

Country “Sidekick” Frank Oakley Passes

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Frank Oakley, a well-liked music executive who worked with country artists including Marty Robbins, Jim Reeves, Faron Young and Willie Nelson, died on April 2. He was 83. A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Oakley was a veteran of WWII and a former police officer. His country music career began in 1961, when he was hired by  the Mary Carter Paint Company, charged with attracting country stars for the company’s advertising. In 1979, Oakley and his wife Jeanie went to work for Nelson, opening the Willie Nelson and Family General Store, which they ran for the next 30 years. He chronicled his life in country music in a recent book, The Nashville Sidekick. Oakley was was a member of AFTRA and R.O.P.E.