Top Artists Support Worthy Causes

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Many big name artists are set for benefit concerts in Nashville over the next few weeks. On Feb. 2 Dolly Parton, Ronnie Dunn, Kellie Pickler, Keith Anderson, Jennifer Hanson, Mark Nesler, and Matt Gary will turn out for the Gift of Music benefit at the Wildhorse Saloon. The 7 PM fundraiser for the W.O. Smith Music School is being presented by The Dustin J. Wells Foundation, which was established to honor the memory of Dustin (son of Dennis J. Wells, D.D.S., and nephew of music producer Kent Wells) who lost his life in a 2005 car accident. Last year’s Gift of Music concert raised more than $50,000. Tickets are available via Ticketmaster and start at $45. VIP tickets are $500.

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Lorrie Morgan, Vince Gill, Tracy Lawrence, Joe Diffie and guest Jesse Whitley will perform at the Life Through Music Concert to benefit Grammy-winning Nashville bassist Chris Kent who has Multiple Myeloma. The concert will be Thurs., Feb. 5, 7 PM at the Cannery Ballroom. Tickets start at $25, and VIP tickets including artist meet & greet and drinks are available for $65. For tickets go to www.mercylounge.com or www.ticketweb.com.

Lady A Making National TV Rounds

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Lady Antebellum has scheduled several upcoming national television performances, including NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Jan. 22, and a two-song performance on The Early Show’s “GRAMMY Concert Series” on CBS, Sat., Feb. 7. Additionally, in anticipation of the Grammy nominated band’s opening slot on Kenny Chesney’s Sun City Carnival tour of arenas and stadiums, Lady A will be featured on DirectTV’s Concert Series through March 15. “I Run To You” is the third single from the trio’s hit debut album and is working its way up the Country Breakout chart.

Publishers Snap Up Rights To Hall of Famers’ Songs

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Primary Wave Music Publishing, with offices in New York and Los Angeles, has purchased the late Tennessee Ernie Ford’s catalog from his estate, Billboard reports. The transaction includes about 170 songs by the Country Music Hall of Fame inductee. Also a member of the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, Ford released nearly 50 albums during his career. Though Ford is best known for his biggest hit “16 Tons,” he did not write the song and therefore it is not included in the catalog.

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Gospel Music Hall of Famer BeBe Winans has signed an exclusive publishing deal with Evergreen Copyrights. According to Billboard, the deal is comprised of songs on his upcoming albums, including a reunion project with CeCe Winans. His latest single, “Right Now (We Need One Another),” features Vince Gill, Wynonna Judd and CeCe.

Clear Channel Hires Lindy, Despite Looming Layoffs

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Clear Channel Communications will begin restructuring across the board next week, making changes expected to save the company $400 million, according to The NY Post. With 30,000 employees worldwide, CCC’s plan includes laying off workers in its radio, outdoor advertising and international divisions. In an attempt to consolidate duties and cut programming costs, CCC might also adopt a “national programming” model that would require less local-level staffing, the Post says. Bain Capital Partners and Thomas H. Lee Partners purchased CCC last year for $17.9 billion.

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Scott Lindy, Sirius’s former Sr. Country PD, is taking over as Clear Channel Atlanta’s Director of Operations, as well as handling PD duties for the cluster’s WUBL (94.9 the Bull)/Atlanta. He left the satcaster in September during its merger with XM. Succeeding the recently promoted Clay Hunnicutt, Lindy begins his new duties in Atlanta next week.

Circuit City Going Under

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Circuit City will liquidate its nationwide chain of more than 500 consumer electronics stores. After courting prospective buyers and investors, as well as filing Chapter 11 in November, the nation’s second-biggest consumer electronics retailer announced today (1/16) that it had run out of viable options to stay afloat. The closures will leave the chain’s 30,000 people without work. In the Nashville area, Circuit City has stores in Clarksville, Cool Springs, Bellevue and Madison.

Turmoil on Gaylord Board

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Gaylord Entertainment is in a dispute with its largest shareholder, TRT Holdings, over the way Gaylord executives are running the company. TRT, which owns properties including the Omni Hotel chain, yesterday (1/15) sent an open letter to shareholders criticizing Gaylord’s senior management and seeking support to elect four of its own people, including TRT CEO Robert Rowling, to the Gaylord Board of Directors. In the letter, TRT accuses Gaylord of poor financial performance relative to peer group, excessive overhead, corporate waste, and lack of accountability to shareholders.

A statement released by Gaylord defends its management and says that electing TRT execs to its board would be a conflict of interest because of the Omni Hotels. Gaylord counters that TRT is trying to take control of the company without “a full and fair price being paid to all Gaylord shareholders.”

Tin Pan South Dates Announced

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The Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) has set March 31–April 4, 2009 as the dates for its renowned Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival. Regions Bank is back as the presenting sponsor of the 17th annual event. A Tin Pan South Preview Party, scheduled for March 3 at The Rutledge, will feature songwriter performances and announcements about the Festival line-up, venues, tickets and more.

An annual fundraiser for NSAI’s work on behalf of songwriters, last year’s Festival featured nine Nashville venues hosting over 350 songwriters performing 80 shows. Tin Pan South is the world’s largest all-songwriter festival, drawing over 9,000 fans in 2008.

Regular updates regarding the 17th Annual Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival and the sale of the popular Fast Access passes can be found at www.nashvillesongwriters.com and www.tinpansouth.com beginning Jan. 19. Fast Access passes will go on sale March 4, 2009.

Americana Auction Open, Conference Planning Underway

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The Americana Music Association is hosting an auction to raise funds for its 2009 Americana Music Festival & Conference, set to take place in Music City Sept. 16-19. Auction items include a Gibson-donated guitar signed by Robert Plant, Levon Helm and other artists who appeared at the 2008 Americana Honors & Awards show; a songwriter mentor session with Jim Lauderdale; passes for Austin City Limits’ 35th Anniversary show featuring Willie Nelson and Asleep at the Wheel; concert tickets and autographed Hatch Show Prints. New items are being added all the time, and the auction will proceed through the winter months at www.americanamusicauction.com.

With plans well underway for the 10th annual Americana Music Festival & Conference, today (1/15) the non-profit organization began accepting applications to showcase at the event. An annual part of the conference is the Americana Music Association Honors & Awards, scheduled this year for Sept. 17 at the historic Ryman Auditorium. Conference registrations are currently at the early bird discounted rate of $250 for members and $350 for non members. Conference registration and showcase information at www.americanamusic.org.

Chesney Set For Grammy Performance, Adds Tourmates

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Kenny Chesney is among the first performers announced for the 51st Annual GRAMMY® Awards telecast, where he is nominated for Best Country Collaboration With Vocals, for “Shiftwork” with George Strait. Also performing on the Sun., Feb. 8 telecast from the STAPLES Center in Los Angeles are Coldplay, Jonas Brothers, Lil Wayne, and Katy Perry. With eight nominations, Lil Wayne has the lead going into the night.

Today (1/14) Chesney also revealed that Sugarland and Montgomery Gentry will join him for stadium dates on the upcoming Sun City Carnival tour. Both have been on the road with him before. Though most of the stadium stops on the Corona Extra sponsored outing haven’t been announced, 2008 saw Chesney visiting 14 major stadiums. As previously announced, Miranda Lambert and Lady Antebellum will join him for the entire 2009 tour.

Megastars Sign On To Celebrate Inauguration

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Garth Brooks and Jennifer Nettles will perform at Sunday’s (1/18) super star-powered concert “We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial.” The free, public event will also include Sheryl Crow, Beyoncé, Bruce Springsteen, U2, Usher, Stevie Wonder, James Taylor, and numerous others. Most artists will perform cover songs with historical significance or tunes which fall under the “We Are One” theme. The Washington Post reports that Nettles will join Taylor and another yet-to-be-announced artist on “My Country ‘Tis of Thee.” The concert will air as a 90-minute special that evening on HBO, which is offering a free broadcast even to non-subscribers.