Nashville-based Emily Stephenson is now the President of Publishing at Downtown Music. The news was announced on Thursday (March 30) by Downtown Music Holdings.

Stephenson most recently served as the division’s Vice President of Business Operations during her 10-year tenure at the company. She has been responsible for all aspects of publishing administration and client services for Downtown’s songwriter and publishing clients, including Ryan Tedder, Big Yellow Dog and the John Lennon Estate. Downtown’s publishing administration services currently have nearly 2 million songwriters and more than 1.5 million copyrights under management.

In her new role, Stephenson will oversee all publishing efforts, including client acquisition and business development, A&R, rights management, and client services for the group’s publishing companies—Downtown Music Publishing, Songtrust and Sheer. She will report to Downtown Music President, Pieter van Rijn.

It was also announced today that London-based Mike Smith will exit his position as Global President of Downtown Music Services.

“Thanks to Mike’s fantastic leadership over the past three years, Downtown’s publishing divisions are in a great position to align our efforts and maximize revenue for our clients, whether they use Downtown Music Publishing, Songtrust or Sheer,” Stephenson shares. “This unified approach means that Downtown can offer the industry’s leading publishing services both at scale and in-depth, working more closely with our current and future clients at every stage.”

Since Downtown Music Publishing was established in 2007—and Songtrust in 2011—publishing has been at the core of Downtown’s mission. The company divested its owned song catalog in 2021 to focus exclusively on providing publishing administration and creative services.

Under Stephenson’s leadership, Downtown Publishing will focus on employing the strengths of each division to create an aligned offering that shares technology and expertise. According to Downtown, Songtrust has experienced significant growth over the past five years and in 2022, reached the milestone of having distributed over $100,000,000 in royalties to independent songwriters, producers and creators.

Stephenson’s immediate team includes Jedd Katrancha, who has been promoted to Chief Commercial Officer, Publishing after sixteen years at Downtown. New York-based Katrancha was the first hire to be made by founder, Justin Kalifowitz, and subsequently led the company’s creative services and sync licensing business from its inception. In his new role, Katrancha will report to Stephenson and oversee Business Development, A&R, and Sync for Downtown’s group of publishing companies.

Of the news, Downtown Music President Rijn shares, “Emily is a proven leader and Downtown Publishing is excellent hands. Mike stewarded Downtown Music Services through a period of great change and leaves it as a global leader. Now, with Downtown’s publishing companies aligned, we’ve created a powerful service offering that will maximize client revenue and present new opportunities to Downtown’s client base.”

Tin Pan South kicked off the 31st annual songwriters festival on Tuesday night (March 28) in bars and listening rooms across Nashville. This year’s festival includes over 400 songwriters in a variety of genres performing in nearly 100 rounds running through April 1.

SESAC songwriters started the first night with a showcase at Live Oak featuring Allison Veltz Cruz, Megan Moroney, Jon Nite and Dave Pittenger. Over at The Listening Room, attendees were treated with music from ASCAP songwriters Everette, Makayla Lynn and Dylan Scott.

At The Vinyl Lounge, Ash Bowers, Johnny Dailey, Jeffrey East, Natalie Madigan and Paul Sikes played the 6 p.m. show. Matt Dragstrem, Ft. Worth Ferguson, Maddie & Tae and Jordan Minton took the stage at the Analog room at the Hutton Hotel, while Kassi Ashton, Barry Dean, Luke Laird and Lori McKenna played at 3rd & Lindsley.

During the 9 p.m. slot, Rodney Clawson, Matt McGinn, Jimmy Robbins and Chris Tompkins took over the stage at 3rd & Lindsley. The Bluebird Cafe featured performances from Kelly Archer, Dylan Guthro, Adam Hambrick and Jenn Schott.

BMI songwriters Nicolle Galyon, Jo Dee Messina, Lauren Watkins and Anne Wilson took over The Listening Room for the 9 p.m. show. Ray Fulcher, Neil Medley, Drew Parker and Austin Snell performed at the Hard Rock Cafe, while Trent Harmon, Rob Hatch, Rebecca Lynn Howard and Shane Stevens took over Live Oak.

Among the songwriters who will be featured at tonight’s rounds (March 29) are Ashley Gorley, Laura Veltz, Will Weatherly, Hunter Phelps, Will Weatherly, Ingrid Andress, Tenille Townes, Ben Johnson and many more. See the full schedule here.

A GoFundMe page has been created for Emma Grandillo, who for the last nine years, has worked for Grammy-winning producer/songwriter Jay Joyce at Neon Cross Studios.

Grandillo had successful surgery to remove a benign meningioma in her brain behind her eye. She underwent surgery previously for this condition—the first time was back in 1997. Her brain, incision, and eye are healing well from the recent surgery, but it will take a few months for the swelling to subside and the nerves to recover completely. In the meantime, Grandillo is left unable to drive herself to work or to her doctor appointments, and is relying on Uber, Lyft, and friends for transportation.

Grandillo was a writer, vocalist, and bassist for the band In Pursuit on MTM/Capitol Records. Their song “Walking on a Thin Line” reached No. 18 on the pop AC charts. She also worked at Capitol Records from 1991-2006, and after leaving Capitol, organized special events, including artist and writer/publisher showcases at various Nashville hot spots. She also worked with songwriters Monty Powell and Anna Wilson.

She has volunteered for the Garth Brooks Teammates For Kids Foundation and hosted directors, producers, and actors from films showcased at the Nashville Film Festival. She also recently secured the new single for the group Runaway June, “Broken Hearts (Do Broken Things).”

The GoFundMe page to help Grandillo can be found here. 

Turnpike Troubadours, Whiskey Myers and Gary Allan are set to headline the upcoming Born & Raised Music Festival Sept. 14-16 in Pryor, Oklahoma.

This year’s festival has been expanded to three full days of music for its third annual experience, and will feature performances from more than 40 artists including Ryan Bingham, Randy Rogers Band, Lukas Nelson + POTR, Randy Houser, Flatland Cavalry, William Clark Green, Wade Bowen, Reckless Kelly and more.

The country music and camping event at the Pryor Creek Music Festival Grounds will also host a special festival pre-party on Wednesday, Sept. 13.

“There’s nothing quite like the feeling of being born and raised on the red dirt in this part of the country, and that’s exactly what our festival celebrates – the roots, the heritage, and the music that define us,” shares Dave Geincke, Founder & Vice President, General Manager of Pryor Creek Music Festivals. “So we invite you to come on over, kick up your boots and show the world what it means to be an outlaw at Born & Raised Music Festival.”

General tickets go on sale tomorrow, March 31 at 12 p.m. CT for level two pricing. The campgrounds will open on Sunday, Sept. 10 with GA camping available for $99 and VIP camping for $119 in addition to glamping experiences. For more information, click here.

Born & Raised Music Festival first debuted in 2021, and has featured performances from ZZ Top, Cody Jinks, Zach Bryan, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Tanya Tucker, Blackberry Smoke, Brothers Osborne, Margo Price, Parker McCollum and more.

Business management firm Flood, Bumstead, McCready and McCarthy Inc. (FBMM) has promoted Fred Ford, Jeff Jones, Emily Walker and Regina A. Bassett to Associate Business Manager positions.

“Regina, Fred, Jeff and Emily are a testament to the rich mix of expertise at FBMM,” says Duane Clark, FBMM Owner & Business Manager. “Each of these four individuals has a track record of providing exceptional service to their roster of clients and a commitment to nurturing their teams. They are more than deserving of these promotions, and we look forward to watching their continued growth as leaders at FBMM as they take on these new roles.”

Ford has been with FBMM for 25 years. Throughout his career at the firm, he has worked in both the Tax and Business Management departments. He oversees a team of six, and is also heavily involved with W.O. Smith Music School, serving as both an instructor and member of the Finance Committee of its Board of Directors.  

Jones, who has worked at FBMM for 15 years, is known for his holistic approach to his clients’ financial well-being. He graduated summa cum laude from Pittsburg State University in Kansas, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree and Master’s degree in psychology. He also holds a Bachelor’s degree in music business from Middle Tennessee State University.   

Walker enters her new role with more than 15 years of experience in the music industry. She oversees a team of four, and is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University with a Bachelor’s degree in recording industry management with a focus in music business and a minor in journalism. 

Bassett has nearly a decade of experience working in the music business as well as experience working in multiple genres such as pop, rock, country and more. She graduated from Hunter College in New York with a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting.