Industry Ink: Ronnie Milsap, Elle King, CMA, Jeffrey Steele, BMI

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Grand Ole Opry Celebrates Ronnie Milsap’s 80th Birthday

Pictured: Trace Adkins, Ronnie Milsap, Mark Willis andn Little Big Town (Photo: Mark Mosrie)

The Grand Ole Opry celebrated the 80th birthday of legendary member Ronnie Milsap with a special “Ronnie Milsap & Friends” performance on Saturday night. Milsap was inducted into the Opry family on February 6, 1976.

Milsaps’ celebration featured peformances from the legend himself plus Trace Adkins, Mandy Barnett, Little Big Town, Don Schlitz, Jeannie Seely, and Mark Wills. The Show ended with a performance of “Honky Tonk Women” led by Milsap with Adkins, Little Big Town and Wills joining.

Portions of the show will air as a Saturday night Opry Live later this year on the Opry’s television broadcast home, Circle Nework, Circle All ACcess Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Elle King Surprises Beloved High School Teacher in Tulsa

Pictured: Elle King, Cathy Welker-Graham (Choteau High School teacher), Emma Hughes (Choteau Senior Student) (Photo: Corey Bost)

When Elle King received a letter form Chouteau High School senior student, Emma Hughes, praising her teacher, Cathy Welker-Graham, King decided to pay a visit before her Tulsa show last Friday (March 24).

King and her guitarist surprised the student, teacher, and entire student body when she arrived to perform “America’s Sweetheart” and dedicate it to Welker-Graham.

“I didn’t always have the greatest experience in school,” laughed King. “But every few schools I would find a teacher who believed in me, and it gave me confidence and they told me that I could do something great with my life even if I was different. So I think that great teachers should be celebrated. It was important to me that we show this deserving teacher some well-earned gratitude.”

Chouteau High School Principal Clint Hall, who helped to coordinate the surprise said, “As educators, this is why we do what we do. We are here to make positive impacts on our students. It took a lot for me to keep a lid on this. Mrs. Welker-Graham is a rockstar teacher and Emma is a great kid! It could not have come together for two better people. This was priceless! Tears of joy from a lot of people today!”

King went on to record a new song at Tulsa’s legendary Church Studio before her show at Cain’s Ballroom. She performed hits from her new album, Come Get Your Wife, including “Tulsa,” for a sold out audience and special guests Hughes, Welker-Graham, and Hall.

CMA Hosts ‘MemberSIPS’ Focused On The Power of Women and Connection

Women in the music industry gather for a MemberSIPS event focused on “The Power of Women and Connection”

CMA members gathered at CMA’s Nashville headquarters for a ‘MemberSIPS’ event featuring women across the music industry to discuss the power of connection and mentorship last Thursday (March 23).

Moderated by coach and consultant, Jorja White, participants were invited to bring a female colleague that they were impressed with or have mentored. CMA members in attendance, including 2023 CMA Membership Committee Chair Karen Fairchild, then broke into small groups to further network, share stories and provide their contact information so that each attendee left with at least one new connection. The women also had the opportunity to have a complimentary professional headshot taken while at the event.

CMA created MemberSIPS to cater to its members’ professional development needs—offering thematic presentations, discussions and gatherings, and providing members a networking opportunity while enjoying a beverage with one another.  CMA members can look forward to the next MemberSIPS on Wednesday, April 12.

Stars Support 16th Annual Jeffrey Steele Benefit Concert

Pictured: Jeffrey Steel & Friends (Photo: Anthony Scarlati)

The 16th Annual Jeffrey Steele & Friends fundraising concert supporting The Alex LeVasseur Memorial Fund raised nearly $200,000 last Friday (MArch 24). All proceeds go t0 continuing the mission aiding overlooked and at-risk youth in the memory of Steele’s son, Alex LeVasseur, who passed away in 2007.

Country radio personality Storme Warren and Casey LeVasseur hosted the evening. The concert opened with a surprise performance by Gary LeVox (Rascal Flatts). Other surprise guests included Shay Mooney (Dan + Shay) country rapper Jelly Roll, and performers Ben Burgess, Steve Dorff, Preston James, Carolyn Dawn Johnson, LOCASH, Lit, Silence X Noise, Bridgette Tatum and The Warren Brothers

“Your generosity over the last 16 years has helped us to not only build a legacy for Alex, but to really make a difference in the lives of our youth in Middle Tennessee and beyond,” says the LeVasseur family. “We have raised more than $1.6 million to help nonprofits in our area who are championing our youth and the kids of our community and in other neighborhoods and communities across the country, to share Alex’s love and light to those who need it most.”

The LeVasseur family announced at the benefit concert that a $200,000 grant to the Brentwood Family YMCA is supporting the building of the Alex LeVasseur Memorial Skatepark.

The Alex LeVasseur Memorial Fund has been able to build partnerships and lend support to many youth-focused organizations. Through the Alex LeVasseur Memorial Grant, they have supported the building of 12 skateparks in underserved communities across the country. With The Beat of Life, a scholarship giving vulnerable youth access to music education, instrument lessons, and more has been established in Alex’s name.

BMI Presents At The Bluebird Cafe Highlights Local Nashville Songwriters

Pictured (L-R): BMI’s Shannon Sanders, Tyler Cain, Meghan Linsey, Channing Wilson, and Bluebird Café’s Erika Wollam Nichols (Photo: Heather Freeland)

BMI continued its monthly songwriter showcase at the Bluebird Cafe on March 21 with Channing Wilson, Meghan Linsey, and Tyler Cain.

Linsey, runner-up from Season 8 of NBC’s The Voice, sang her songs “Over the Moon,” “You Ruined That Song,” and “Say It To My Face.” Since her time on The Voice, she’s toured internationally and worked with Chingy and Aloe Blacc.

Nashville songwriter Wilson has cuts with Luke Combs, Travis Tritt, Oak Ridge Boys and more. He performed songs from his latest album, Dead Man, including “A Little More Like Him,” “Good Morning Hot Coffee,” and “Sunday Morning Blues.”

Producer, songwriter, and artist Cain sang “The Dreamer,” “Forever and Always,” and “Suitcase Heart.” His previous collaborations include Darius Rucker, Big & Rich, Ruston Kelly, and Ashley Moore.

The next showcase, again hosted by BMI’s Shannon Sanders, is April 25 with a lineup to be announced in the coming weeks.

Scotty McCreery Teams Up With UScellular To Celebrate Hometown Connections

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Scotty McCreery. Photo: Jeff Ray

Scotty McCreery is teaming up with UScellular for its “Locally Grown, Locally Live” music campaign to showcase artists and the people and places that have shaped who they are today.

The campaign will spotlight McCreery’s hometown connection as well as Greylan James (Knoxville, Tennessee); Kalie Shorr (Portland, Maine); Corey Kent (Bixby, Oklahoma); Hailey Whitters  (Shueyville, Iowa); and Morgan Wade (Floyd, Virginia.)

The campaign kicked off yesterday (March 27) with the “Locally Grown, Locally Live” VIP Fan Experience Sweepstakes and will run through May 28. There are a variety of opportunities for fans to engage with the artists, including a website with artist videos and an original Spotify playlist, curated to showcase the artists. On April 5 at 8 p.m. CT, McCreery will host an “Ask Me Anything” Instagram Live session, where fans will have a chance to ask questions and interact with him. UScellular will also celebrate each artist and their stories on its socials.

“I love how UScellular is creating an opportunity for me and other artists to stay connected with fans in communities across the country,” says McCreery. “The amazing people in my hometown of Garner, North Carolina, helped give me my start in music, and it’s great to see that UScellular is working in a similar way to show how they are committed to enriching the communities they serve.”

There will also be special appearances from all the “Locally Grown, Locally Live” artists at the UScellular Connection Stage, headlined by McCreery, at Summerfest in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on July 8.

“At UScellular, we connect people to what matters most. The two letters at the beginning of our name speak volumes about who we are as a company and how we show up for our communities” says Verchele Roberts, UScellular Vice President of Brand Management. “Music brings us together, so we’re celebrating artists across the country who cultivate genuine connections with their fans.”

Weekly Register: Morgan Wallen Remains At The Top Of The Charts

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Morgan Wallen. Photo: John Shearer

Morgan Wallen maintains his chart-topping positions this week according to Luminate data.

Wallen’s One Thing At A Time remains at No. 1 on both the country albums chart and all-genre albums chart with 209K in total consumption (12K album only/245 million song streams).

Once again, his Dangerous: The Double Album comes in at No. 2 with 41K (1K album only/51 million song streams) and Zach Bryan‘s American Heartbreak stays at No. 3 with 25K (1K album only/30 million song streams). Taylor Swift‘s Red (Taylor’s Version) lands at No. 4 with 20K (3K album only/21 million song streams), moving Bailey Zimmerman‘s Leave The Light On to No. 5 with 17K (483 album only/22 million song streams).

Wallen’s “Last Night” holds its No. 1 spot on the country streaming songs chart—and moves to No. 2 overall—with 29 million new streams adding to 214 million RTD. “Thinkin’ Bout Me” continues to land at No. 2 with 14 million streams adding to 50 million RTD and “You Proof” stays at No. 3 with 12 million streams adding to 491 million RTD. “Thought You Should Know” rises to No. 4 with 11.7 million streams adding to 296 million RTD and Zimmerman’s “Rock and A Hard Place” jumps to No. 5 with 11.5 million streams adding to 386 million RTD.

Opry Crooner Ray Pillow Passes

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Ray Pillow

Grand Ole Opry star Ray Pillow has died at age 85.

He is best known for his 1966 hit duets with Country Music Hall of Fame member Jean Shepard (1933-2016) “I’ll Take the Dog” and “Mr. and Mrs. Used to Be.” Pillow had top-40 solo country hits with “Thank You Ma’am” (1965), “Common Colds and Broken Hearts” (1966), “Volkswagen” (1966) and “Reconsider Me” (1969). He charted 18 times between 1965 and 1981.

Pillow also had a career on Music Row as an executive for Liberty Records in the 1990s. He was a song publisher and the co-founder of an independent record label as well.

Born Herbert Raymond Pillow, the singer was a native of Lynchburg, Virginia. He graduated from Lynchburg College with a business degree and served in the U.S. Navy.

Pillow performed locally on radio and TV before coming to Nashville to compete on the Pet Milk Talent Contest. He did not win, but he persevered and eventually found his Nashville manager, Joe Taylor. This led to a 1964 contract with Capitol Records. This label is where most of his hits occurred.

Ray Pillow was named “Most Promising Male Artist” by Billboard in 1966. Cash Box echoed that by naming him its Most Promising New Artist of 1966. That was also the year that he was inducted into the Opry cast.

During his heyday, he appeared on the nationally syndicated television shows of Porter Wagoner, Bobby Lord and The Wilburn Brothers. He also appeared in the feature films Country Boy (1966) and The Disc Jockey (1979).

The baritone vocalist continued to record for the next three decades. Pillow placed singles on the charts on such imprints as ABC, Plantation, Mega, Hilltop, Dot, MCA and First Generation.

In 1964, he and Taylor formed The Joe Taylor Artist Agency, a management and booking company. It was located on 12th Avenue South in the complex now occupied by Dolly Parton’s offices.

Pillow also partnered with former Mel Tillis bass player Larry McFaden. They co-founded the song-publishing business Sycamore Valley Music. The firm became highly successful, handling the songwriting catalog of Lee Greenwood in the 1980s. The songs included Greenwood’s 1984 anthem “God Bless the U.S.A.,” which won the CMA Song of the Year award.

In 1990, Jimmy Bowen hired Pillow as an A&R executive at Liberty to screen songs for the label’s artists. Ray Pillow celebrated his 50th anniversary as an Opry member in 2016 and retired two years later.

The singer passed away on Sunday, March 26. He is survived by his wife, Joanne Pillow, daughter, Selena Malone, son, Daryl Ray Pillow and by six grandchildren and a great-grandchild. A celebration of life will be announced at a later date by the family.

Dustin Lynch & MacKenzie Porter Celebrate Six-Week No. 1, ‘Thinking ‘Bout You’

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Pictured (L-R): Hunter Phelps, Andy Albert, Dustin Lynch, Mackenzie Porter and Will Weatherly. Photo: Erika Rock

Industry members gathered at the curling and bowling bar-restaurant Tee Line in Nashville last week to celebrate Dustin Lynch and MacKenzie Porter‘s six-week No. 1, “Thinking ‘Bout You.” The tune is Lynch’s eighth U.S. and second Canadian No. 1 at country radio, and Porter’s first U.S. No. 1.

The collaboration made history last year after becoming the longest-running top 10 single in Billboard Country Airplay chart history at 28 weeks and Broken Bow Records’ longest-reigning single at country radio. “Thinking ‘Bout You” was named the No. 1 song on the Mediabase 2022 Year-End Country Chart as well as the No. 2 track on the Billboard 2022 Year-End Country Airplay Songs chart.

Pictured (L-R, back row): Mike Sistad (ASCAP), Zach Crowell (Producer), Ryan Beuschel (Warner Chappell Music), Kelly Bolton (Tape Room Music), Kelsey Worley (BMG), Jon Loba (BMG) and Josh Tomlinson (BMI); (L-R, front row): Hunter Phelps, Andy Albert, Dustin Lynch, MacKenzie Porter and Will Weatherly. Photo: Erika Rock

Hosted by BMI and ASCAP, Lynch and Porter were joined by “Thinking ‘Bout You” co-writers Andy Albert, Hunter Phelps and Will Weatherly in the celebrations.

BMI’s Josh Tomlinson presided at the curling and bowling establishment. He started by congratulating BMI affiliates Lynch and Weatherly.

Tomlinson shared that outside of the soundtrack for the Disney movie Encanto, “Thinking ‘Bout You” is one of the only songs that will calm his 13-month-old son on his way to daycare. “We’re grateful for that,” Tomlinson quipped.

ASCAP’s Mike Sistad was on hand to celebrate affiliates Albert, Phelps and Porter. He shared a bit about each writer’s background and congratulated them all. He also recognized ASCAP member Zach Crowell, who produced the track.

BMG’s Kelsey Worley filled in for Chris Oglesby. She admitted she was nervous to speak, as it was her first time, but she handled it like a pro.

“I’m so glad that my first time speaking at one of these is for such a little-known, under the radar song that very few people have heard,” she joked about the tune that has garnered over 455 million global on-demand streams to date. Worley congratulated BMG writer Lynch. “I want to point out that your belief in this song played such an appropriate role in its incredible success.”

Pictured (L-R, back row): Ellen Ford (BBR), JoJamie Hahr (BBR), Ashley Wojcinski (BBR), Carson James (BBR), Renee Leymon (BBR), Scotty O’brien (BBR), Jon Loba (BMG) and Shelley Hargis (BBR); (L-R, front row): Hunter Phelps, Andy Albert, Dustin Lynch, Mackenzie Porter and Will Weatherly. Photo: Erika Rock

Worley’s point was echoed throughout the party. “Thinking ‘Bout You” originally appeared as a collaboration with Lauren Alaina on his fourth album Tullahoma. When Alaina wasn’t available to be a part of the single release, Lynch put a call out to the country music community for submissions for the part from up-and-coming female artists. After blindly listening to tapes from different auditions, Lynch chose Porter’s vocal to be his duet partner, and the rest was history.

Tape Room’s Kelly Bolton spoke about writers Weatherly and Phelps. She recognized each of the Broken Bow Records radio promotion team members and BBR executives.

Warner Chappell’s Ryan Beuschel was next to congratulate writers Lynch, Weatherly and Phelps. He pointed out that “Thinking ‘Bout You” was written while Lynch was out on the road on 2019 with Thomas Rhett.

“When DL and I started working together, he was very passionate about making sure we had a lot of bus runs. That’s been a big strategy of ours,” Beuschel said. “There’s a lot of distractions that go on out on the road, but when he has writers out, he is locked in and focused.”

Concord’s Brad Kennard and Matt Turner spoke about their relationship with writer Albert. Kennard spoke about wishing to be a part of “Thinking ‘Bout You” when he heard and then getting to be a part of it when the company acquired Albert’s catalog from Downtown in spring of 2021.

He turned the mic over to Turner, because he had been working alongside Turner at Downtown before moving to Concord, himself. “I was at Downtown when this song was written. I heard it and immediately wanted to know when it was coming out,” Turner said. “I couldn’t be more grateful to work with Andy and to be here celebrating this song.”

“Thinking ‘Bout You” collaborators with their MusicRow No. 1 Challenge Coins. Pictured (L-R): MusicRow‘s LB Cantrell, Hunter Phelps, Andy Albert, Dustin Lynch, Mackenzie Porter, Will Weatherly and MusicRow‘s Sherod Robertson. Photo: Erika Rock

In partnership with BMI on their No. 1 parties, Studio Bank’s Ron Cox gave a presentation at the party, revealing that the bank had make a donation to Lynch’s The Cowboys and Angels Fund in the writers’ names.

Next up, BBR Music Group’s Shelley Hargis was on hand to speak on behalf of the award-winning promotion team.

“What a blessing this was to work this record,” she said. “As a promo staff, it’s amazing when you are given an amazing piece of work that you know from the get-go is going to be huge. We felt it from the first time we heard it. When we finally got to work it as a single, we partied our way to the top.”

After all the executives spoke, it was time to hear from the writers and artists. Weatherly was first—he kept it short and sweet, thanking his co-writers, publishers and Lynch.

Then came Albert. “This is the kind of song I’ve been praying about being a part of since before I moved to Nashville. I feel like no matter how many times I’ve heard it, I’m still not sick of it. That’s not easy to come by. It’s one of those songs that doesn’t burn out, it just burns in.”

Phelps was next. He echoed thanks to the village around the song. He made sure to thank his grandmother for the inspiration, saying, “Shoutout to my Grandma for picking up the phone one day and saying, ‘I was just thinking ’bout you.'”

Porter thanked her team and husband when she stepped up to the mic. She showed a lot of love to her duet partner who brought her on to the history-making song.

“Dustin, thank you for taking a chance on me. I know that this song had a beautiful life before I got involved. I know it was probably a scary and hard decision, but thank you for believing my voice,” Porter said. “Thank you for teaching me so many things on this road, like how to do an award show, how to do a TV talk show and how to do all these things as an artist. Thank you for showing me how I also want to be as an artist. Hopefully I will be able to pass that down to someone newer than me one day.”

When it came time for the man of the hour to speak, he gave particular attention to thanking everyone individually that was involved in “Thinking ‘Bout You.”

“We’ve been trying to put this party on since last May, so it’s been almost 12 months if that tells you how crazy life gets once we start touring again, recording, and going and doing life. MacKenzie, I knew from the moment I heard your voice on this track that we had something magical on our hands. Thank you for wanting to be a part of ‘Thinking ‘Bout You’ and joining me on the wild journey of this song. To my BBR family, we made history together! Love y’all and am so grateful for you,” he shared. “Another huge thank you to country radio for loving this one as much as we do and giving it the life it deserved. And to Andy, Hunter and Will, thank you guys for both continuing to believe in me and create with me. These guys keep swinging the bat and believing in what we’re doing, and every now and again we get a ‘yes’ and it changes our lives. More to come, right?”

Morgan Wallen & Co-Writers Remain At The Top Of The Top Songwriter Chart

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Morgan Wallen. Photo: Ryan Smith

Morgan Wallen remains at No. 1 on the MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart this week with a whopping 16 currently charting songs. In addition to 14 from his new album, he is also a co-writer on Keith Urban‘s “Brown Eyes Baby” and Corey Kent‘s “Wild As Her.”

Ashley Gorley, who has 12 charting songs on the Wallen project, is at No. 2 and Ryan Vojtesak, who has 14 Wallen cuts, is at No. 3.

Zach Bryan moves back up into the top five on the MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart this week, propelled by “Something In The Orange” and “Dawns.”

The weekly MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart uses algorithms based upon song activity according to airplay, digital download track sales and streams. This unique and exclusive addition to the MusicRow portfolio is the only songwriter chart of its kind.

Click here to view the full MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart.

Carly Pearce Earns Fourth No. 1 With ‘What He Didn’t Do’

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Carly Pearce. Photo: Allister Ann.

Carly Pearce has earned her fourth career No. 1 with “What He Didn’t Do,” as the song officially tops the Country Aircheck/Mediabase chart.

The Gold-certified hit has amassed over 235 million streams to date, and its video is currently nominated for CMT Female Video of the Year. The 10-time CMT Music Awards nominee is also up for Performance of the Year, and will perform at the live show on April 2, which will air on CBS and stream on Paramount+ at 7 p.m. CT.

“I wrote ‘What He Didn’t Do’ at a time when I needed to be reminded of my worth and that I deserved better,” says Pearce. “I knew it was special from the moment we wrote it. It is a song about hope, reminding yourself what you deserve moving forward. Out of all of my singles, this one I am most proud of. I am thankful that country radio wrapped their arms around it to allow fans to hear the message.”

Pearce is also celebrating the release of her latest album 29: Written In Stone (Live From Music City), which was released March 24 via Big Machine Records. The project marks Pearce’s first live album and closes the chapter on her pivotal 29 journey.

The Grand Ole Opry member will also return to the Opry stage on April 11 for her landmark 100th performance since making her 2015 debut.

Summerfest 2023 Lineup Announced

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Eric Church, Brett Young, Mitchell Tenpenny and more are among the lineup for Milwaukee’s Summerfest 2023 presented by American Family Insurance, set to take place over three weekends: June 22-24, June 29-July 1, and July 6-8.

Over 100 artists are set to perform during the festival’s 55th anniversary, including Dave Matthews Band, Odesza, Zach Bryan, Imagine Dragons, Santa Fe Klan, Earth, Wind & Fire, Noah Kahan, Ava Max, The Pretty Reckless, Sean Paul, Coi Leray, Japanese Breakfast, Yellowcard, Smokey Robinson, Fleet Foxes and more.

“Celebrating 55 years of live music is a true testament to this festival. Together with the City of Milwaukee, we look forward to hosting music fans from across the globe at Summerfest and delivering a world-class lineup with hundreds of artists during our nine-day run” says Don Smiley, CEO of Milwaukee World Festival, Inc.

Tickets for Summerfest are on sale now at Summerfest.com with single day general admission starting at $26. In celebration of the 55th anniversary, the UScellular Power Pass is available for $55 and includes admission for all nine days of the festival, and is available now through Wednesday, March 29.

Boy Named Banjo Makes Grand Ole Opry Debut

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Boy Named Banjo during their Grand Ole Opry debut. Photo: Grand Ole Opry/Chris Hollo

Mercury Nashville band Boy Named Banjo made their Grand Ole Opry debut on Tuesday, March 21.

The Nashville-born quintet of Barton Davies, Ford Garrard, Sam McCullough, Willard Logan and William Reames stepped into the legendary Opry circle for the first time for a special performance of “Go Out Dancing” and “Heart In Motion.”

Boy Named Banjo released their latest track, “Whiskey Dreams,” last week. A vinyl reprint of the band’s major label debut EP, Circles, is available now for pre-order in an exclusive “whiskey smoke” color and will be released this Friday, March 31. The band is currently prepping its next project, out later this year.

“Tonight was such an amazing night! Growing up in Nashville, making our debut at the Grand Ole Opry is such an important milestone for us,” said Davies. “Stepping into that historic circle, playing our original music as a band that’s known each other for years, was an incredible experience I don’t think any of us will forget. And we are all so happy that we got to share this special night with our families and friends who came out to support us.”

Scott Borchetta Involved In Racing Accident

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Scott Borchetta. Photo: Nathan Morgan for BMLG

Big Machine Label Group Chairman & CEO Scott Borchetta was left injured after a crash while he was racing at the Trans Am2 Series at Road Atlanta on Sunday (March 26). According to BMLG, he is currently in stable condition.

Borchetta is also the team owner for the Big Machine Racing team in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. He crashed on lap 24 of Sunday’s race and was transported to a local hospital.

“We ask everyone to please respect the Borchetta family’s privacy during this time,” the label shared in a statement.

Well wishes for Borchetta can sent to wellwishes@bmlg.net.

On Tuesday (March 28), Sandi Borchetta shared the below statement:

Dear Friends,

I’d like to share with you that my husband, Scott Borchetta, was hospitalized Sunday, March 26 after his race accident during the Trans Am TA2 Race Series event. I would like to thank everyone for their love and concern during this time. We feel your support from near and far. Scott is tough and he will be okay.

Thank you for your prayers and support on his road to recovery.

In addition, our hearts are completely broken by what occurred in Nashville on Monday. We send our love to our neighbors and those families who are enduring so much pain and loss.

Love,
Sandi Borchetta

More updates regarding Borchetta will be published as they come out.