“Bluegrass Nights at the Ryman” Returns

Springer Mountain Farms Bluegrass Nights at the Ryman returns to the Nashville stage where Bluegrass was born starting Thursday, June 24 and continuing each Thursday night through July 29. Vince Gill will kick off the prestigious series featuring the biggest names in the Bluegrass genre.  Following Gill in the series will be Grammy award winning artist […]

Hall of Fame Spotlights Statler Brothers

Legendary quartet the Statler Brothers, whose tight harmonies and dynamic stage shows delighted decades of fans and influenced generations of country vocal groups that followed, are the subject of the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum’s newest spotlight exhibit, The Statler Brothers: Havin’ Quite a Time, which opens June 1. Incorporating photographs, costumes, instruments […]

Stars Gather For “Music Saves Mountains”

An unprecedented roster of acclaimed musicians came together Wednesday night (5/19) at the historic Ryman Auditorium to launch Music Saves Mountains, a campaign sponsored by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and the Gibson Foundation to end the destructive method of coal mining known as mountaintop removal. The campaign, which features Dave Matthews, Emmylou Harris, Alison […]

Bravo Songwriting Competition Hits Nashville

Bravo is on the hunt for the next great songwriter for Hitmakers, its newest competition series in development. The show features undiscovered singer-songwriters, talented newcomers battling through a series of innovative songwriting challenges to find out who’s ready for the top of the pop charts. The network is partnering with True Entertainment (The Real Housewives […]

Lady A Preps First Headlining Tour

After selling out headlining concerts in New York, Los Angeles and Nashville, ACM and CMA Vocal Group of the Year Lady Antebellum announced today their first-ever headlining tour with special guest MCA recording artist David Nail. The Need You Now 2010 Tour is sponsored by Dr. Pepper and kicks off on Sept. 20 with stops […]

Ryan Beuschel Becomes ASCAP Nashville Creative Manager

ASCAP has named Ryan Beuschel, who most recently held the post of A&R Manager at Universal Music Group, as Creative Manager for its Nashville branch. “We couldn’t be more excited to have Ryan come on board and bring to ASCAP his unique talents, experience and passion for songwriters and their craft,” said Tim DuBois, VP […]

Craig Morgan Aids Vets Through “Not Alone”

As a spokesperson for Not Alone, BNA Records artist Craig Morgan is helping military men, women and their families who are struggling with the aftereffects of combat and the difficulties transitioning to life back at home. Not Alone is an organization that empowers warriors and families dealing with combat stress through training, education, counseling and […]

Dale Franklin Award Winners Announced

Veteran record label executive and producer Fred Foster and music icons Kris Kristofferson and Willie Nelson have been selected as the 2010 recipients of the Leadership Music Dale Franklin Award, it was announced by the board of directors of Leadership Music. The three country music trailblazers, whose careers intersected at Foster’s uniquely successful independent record label, […]

Colt Ford Posts Impressive Numbers

In 2008, Average Joes Entertainment Group launched with flagship artist Colt Ford, and today, nearly two years later, the label has surpassed 500,000 in digital single sales and 253,969 albums sold on Ford according to Nielsen SoundScan. “When we first began marketing Colt Ford, 99 percent our industry peers said it was impossible,” says Shannon […]

“Guitars of the Stars” Benefits Flood Victims

A second annual Guitars of the Stars Benefit Auction will be held on Friday, June 11 at 3:00 PM at the Ryman Auditorium. The event will give fans in town for CMA Music Fest the opportunity to bid on acoustic guitars decorated by some of country music’s hottest stars. All proceeds from the auction will […]

AEG Live Adds Amy Bryan

AEG Live/Moore Entertainment Group has announced that Amy Bryan has joined the firm to develop a Talent Buying division for the company. Prior to her new position, Bryan was a Talent Buyer and an Entertainment Producer for Neste Event Marketing. Bryan is a graduate of the University of Florida and has been producing entertainment for […]

McBride Signs With Morris Artist Mgt.

RCA Nashville artist Martina McBride has signed a management deal with Clint Higham, President of Morris Artist Management, this week. Higham, who manages Kenny Chesney and Jake Owen, is based in Nashville and has been with Morris Artist Management for 18 years. “Excited is an understatement when it comes to how I feel about starting […]

Worley’s “Hitmakers” Sing For Charity

Songwriters Darryl Worley, Jim “Moose” Brown, Walt Aldridge, and Steve Wariner performed some of their biggest hits this past Friday (5/14) for a sold out audience at the Hitmakers on the Harbor songwriters concert. The event took place in Pickwick, TN and raised $28,000 in support of The Darryl Worley Foundation, which doubled the amount […]

CMA Names Chapman Director of Marketing

The Country Music Association has promoted Cory Chapman to Director of Marketing, announced CMA Senior Director of Marketing Tammy Donham today (5/19). “During his tenure with CMA, Cory has shown a strategic vision and commitment to our department and organization that has significantly contributed to our many recent successes,” said Donham. “His creative skills, marketing […]

DISClaimer 5/19/10 (reveiws)

It sounds to me like this town is ready to shake off those rainy-day blues and do some dancing in the sunshine.

Habitat Knoxville’s “Brooks & Dunn” House

Knoxville Habitat for Humanity and the Charlie and Moll Anderson Family Foundation are teaming up with America’s talented musical artists to build a ‘Music Row’ in Knoxville. Only this ‘Music Row’ serves to provide local families with simple, decent and affordable housing. Today, Brooks & Dunn’s Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn participated in the dedication […]

Naxos Brings “Classical” Flood Relief

Franklin, Tennessee-based classical music company, Naxos of America, joins with online retailers Amazon MP3, Naxos Direct and ClassicsOnline to launch Naxos for Nashville, from which one hundred percent of the proceeds will go to Hands On Nashville (www.hon.org), a volunteer organization that is helping local communities in and around Nashville cope with losses from the […]

22nd Annual MusicRow Awards

MusicRow is proud to announce its nominees for the 22nd Annual MusicRow Awards. Ballots for the reader-voted categories will be emailed to subscribers May 19. The deadline for voting is May 24th. The winners, along with the Top Ten Album All Star Musicians will be announced at our awards ceremony on June 24. (The eligibility […]

Swift Wins BMI Song of the Year

Taylor Swift won top honors at last night’s BMI Pop Awards in Los Angeles, taking home the prestigious Song of the Year award for her multi-genre international No.1 smash “Love Story.” 20-year old Swift is the youngest songwriter in history to win this honor, and the first country winner in more than a decade. The […]

Music Rising Offers Musicians Flood Relief

Music Rising, the campaign launched in 2005 to aid the musicians of the Gulf Coast Region after the hurricane disasters of Katrina and Rita, has pledged support to the city of Nashville and its musicians affected by the recent floods. Co-founded by U2’s the Edge, legendary producer Bob Ezrin and Gibson Guitar CEO and Chairman Henry […]

CMT Awards Adds Performers, Offers Flood Relief

Tim McGraw, Brad Paisley and Zac Brown Band have been added to the performance line-up for the CMT Music Awards. The show is set for Wednesday, June 9 at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena with host Kid Rock, who has added performer to his list of duties. Toby Keith, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Carrie Underwood and Keith […]

Chesney Movie Out Via Kmart

Kenny Chesney has teamed with Kmart for exclusive nationwide distribution of his “Kenny Chesney: Summer in 3D” movie. The 2-D version is available for preorder on DVD and Blu-ray at Kmart.com, and will out in Kmart stores on June 13. In more Chesney news, he opened a two weekend stand at the Las Vegas Hard […]

Randy Houser Sets Sophomore Release Date

Show Dog – Universal is planning the Sept. 14 release of Randy Houser’s sophomore album, They Call Me Cadillac. “I’m All About It,” the self-penned lead single, is already building steam at radio, while another new track, “Whistlin’ Dixie,” has generated over 100,000 in digital single sales. For the album produced by Cliff Audretch and […]

Artist Photo Spread

Wade Bowen’s charity event…Fast Ryde visits CMA…Gloriana on “Good Day New York”….Chuck Wicks stops by “CMT Top 20 Countdown.”

Unbundling’s Curse On Profitability

“Record labels have depended on album sales to boost profits. But in the digital music era, consumers prefer single songs over music ‘bundles.’ The result? It is time for the industry to rethink its products and prices.”

Benefit For Josh Ragsdale

Friends are rallying to support songwriter Joshua Ragsdale who is undergoing cancer treatment. A benefit is set for Tues., June 1 at the Mercy Lounge featuring Rivers Rutherford, Randy Montana, Leslie Satcher, Luke Laird, host Cledus T. Judd and many more. Ragsdale co-wrote Montana’s debut single “Ain’t Much Left Of Lovin’ You” with the artist. […]

Tube Time: Dolly Parton, Luke Bryan, More

Luke Bryan made his debut appearance on The Tonight Show last Tuesday, May 11, where he performed his new single, “Rain Is A Good Thing.” •••••••••••••• Dolly Parton rounded up her friends and fellow celebrities for a Hallmark Channel original special marking the 25th anniversary of her Dollywood theme park. Dolly Celebrates 25 Years of […]

BamaJam Draws Big Sponsors

Dodge Ram Trucks and Kraft foods are the latest big-name sponsors on board with the 2010 Verizon Wireless BamaJam Music & Arts Festival. The event, running June 3-5 in Enterprise, Alabama, has lined up performances by Dierks Bentley, Miranda Lambert, Rodney Atkins, Kenny Chesney, Gretchen Wilson, Zac Brown Band and tons more. As part of […]

Warner Re-works Promo Dept., Hires Chris Palmer

Radio promotion executive Chris Palmer is joining the team at Warner Music Nashville (WMN). Starting June 14 he will be on board as Vice President of Promotions. Palmer will oversee the newly-created promotion staff team known as Warner Bros., Atlantic & Reprise (WAR), which will complement Warner Music Nashville’s (WMN) current promotion staff headed by Bob […]

Brooks And Dunn Special To Air May 23

The all-star Brooks & Dunn ACM tribute will air Sunday, May 23, at 8:00 PM ET/PT on CBS. ACM Presents: Brooks & Dunn—The Last Rodeo was previously taped in Las Vegas with performances by Jason Aldean, Kenny Chesney, Faith Hill, Jennifer Hudson, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Reba McEntire, Tim McGraw, Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, Darius […]

Country Hall Unveils Updates

Curators at the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum unveiled additions to its permanent collection at a special reception Thursday night (5/13). The second-floor updates, which bring the story of country music forward in time from 1965 to present, showcase contemporary artists Jamey Johnson, Brad Paisley, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban, bluegrass […]

MusicRow Award Nominations Coming Wed.

Voters on your mark, get ready to choose the winners for the 22nd Annual MusicRow Awards. Final nominees for Producer of the Year, Song of the Year, Breakthrough Artist and Breakthrough Songwriter will be announced Wed., May 19 in our @MusicRow morning report and your picks will decide the winners. Ballots, which contain safeguards to […]

Warner/Chappell Promotes BJ Hill, Alicia Pruitt

BJ Hill and Alicia Pruitt have been promoted to Sr. Directors of A&R for Warner/Chappell Nashville. They will continue to be responsible for signing emerging songwriters, developing the publisher’s existing roster, and securing song placements. Hill joined the company in 2005 where he is responsible for signing and overseeing some of Nashville’s top songwriters including […]

Photos: Gill Wedding, Country Throwdown, Songwriters

Jenny Gill, singer and daughter of Vince Gill, was married on May 8th to Josh Van Valkenburg, Manager of A&R for EMI Music Publishing. The wedding and reception was held at the Nashville home of her father and his wife Amy Grant. Jenny’s mother is Janis Oliver of Sweethearts of the Rodeo. The couple, who […]

Music City Relief Concert Raises Over $1.7 MM

Last night’s flood relief concert on GAC raised $1.7 million and counting. Some of Nashville’s biggest names turned out to perform, answer telethon phones and make significant donations. Brad Paisley and his wife Kimberly Williams-Paisley opened the night with a $100,000 gift. Kimberly co-hosted the event at the Ryman along with actor and Nashville native […]

SOLID Preps 13th Annual Crawfish Boil

The Society of Leaders in Development (SOLID) is inviting Music Row, Nashville and beyond to attend their 13th Annual Crawfish Boil on May 19. The event kicks off at 5:30 PM in the SESAC parking lot at 66 Music Square West. The informal gathering is free and open to the public (21 + with I.D.). […]

Artist News: Nail, McCurdy, Dalley and Jewel

David Nail Plays Ball MCA Records artist David Nail will be the focus of a new six-part CMT webisode series titled Making The Team. Cameras document Nail’s invitation to try out for the St. Louis Cardinals during spring training camp in Jupiter, Florida. The premiere episode posted today (5/14) at 6:00 AM CT on www.cmt.com. […]

Hard Rock Reopens, Announces Flood Benefit

Following the recent devastating flooding in Nashville, the Hard Rock Cafe Nashville officially reopens for business today (5/14). Located just steps away from the Cumberland River, like many establishments downtown, Hard Rock was subject to the recent flooding, and less than two weeks later, they are reopening. To further aid the surrounding community in flood relief […]

615 Music Nominated For Daytime Emmy

615 Music has been nominated for a 2010 Daytime Emmy award in the “Outstanding Original Song” category.  President Randy Wachtler made the announcement. “The team here at 615 Music is very proud to have been involved in the making of such a memorable song to promote the Today show with NBC,”  Wachtler says. “As a company, […]

Laura Bell Bundy Surprises Aspiring Singer

Mercury Records artist/Broadway star Laura Bell Bundy stopped by Pope John Paul II High School in Hendersonville, TN recently to inform student Michael Nelson that he would be performing a song on the Sports Zone Stage at this year’s CMA Music Festival. Bundy, star of Broadway’s Legally Blonde: The Musical, took time out from promoting […]

Flood Relief Telethon on GAC Sunday

The first national telethon and concert event to raise money to aid victims of the recent flooding disaster in Middle Tennessee, sponsored by Great American Country Television, the Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau and Gaylord Entertainment, is set for this Sunday (5/16) at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. Music City Keep on Playin’ – A Benefit for Flood […]

Elevation and Wide Open Join Forces

Elevation Music Publishing and Wide Open Music Group have announced a new alliance between the two Nashville-based music publishing operations. Through a shared services arrangement, Elevation Creative Principals Mike Molinar and Martha Earls are joining with Wide Open’s creative team to provide catalog and songwriter representation, as well as creative consultation. Elevation will also relocate […]

John Grady Exits Borman Entertainment

John Grady will leave his post at Borman Entertainment Nashville, it was announced today. “For all of you looking for a juicy story, you will have to make one up,” says Grady said. “I have learned more from Gary and his staff at Borman Entertainment than I could ever have imagined. It’s simply time for […]

Grammy Block Party Benefits Flood Victims

The Nashville Chapter of the Recording Academy hosted the 12th Annual Grammy Block Party on Tuesday night (5/11) to raise funds for the newly created MusiCares® Nashville Flood Relief Fund. Academy members and their guests enjoyed performances by Darius Rucker, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, Steel Magnolia, Plumb and Daily and Vincent. MusiCares Nashville Flood […]

“Country Throwdown” Artists Offer Flood Relief 

In light of the recent devastation in Nashville, artists on the the Country Throwdown Tour are coming forward to help. Main stage headliners Montgomery Gentry, Jack Ingram, Eric Church, Eli Young Band and Bluebird Café Tent singer-songwriters Sarah Buxton, Heather Morgan, Jedd Hughes, Ashley Ray, Troy Olsen, Brad Tursi, Cory Branan and Dave Pahanish will […]

Sweetwater Sound Donates To Flood Relief

Fort Wayne, Indiana-based mail order musical instrument retailer Sweetwater Sound has stepped up to donate $10,000 toward flood relief efforts in Tennessee, company officials have announced. “Here at Sweetwater, we can’t help but feel a special connection to Nashville, our nation’s Music City.” the company said in a statement, “That’s why this past week it’s […]

Rucker and Friends Play For St. Judes

Capitol Records Nashville artist Darius Rucker will host his 1st Annual Darius and Friends Concert at Nashville’s Wildhorse Saloon on Monday, June 7 to benefit the groundbreaking research and lifesaving care of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The concert will include performances by Rucker along with Radney Foster, Randy Houser, Jamey Johnson, and Jake Owen, […]


2010 CMA Music Fest Merch Now Available

Merchandise for the 2010 CMA Music Festival, held June 10-13 in downtown Nashville, is now available for sale at CMAfest.com, providing attendees the opportunity to arrive dressed to impress in official CMA Festival apparel. “Our fans are loyal, passionate ambassadors for the Festival and the artists,” said Steve Moore, CMA Chairman of the Board. “Sporting […]

Toby Keith Readies Golf Classic

Toby Keith’s seventh annual Toby Keith & Friends Golf Classic is set for May 21-22 in Norman, Oklahoma, and a number of additions have been made to the already full slate of events and auction items. Keith is set to emcee the May 21 dinner and auction and golf team spots for the next day’s […]

Edge Records and Lofton Creek Combine Efforts

Edge Records artist Kelly Parkes has signed a promotion agreement with Lofton Creek Records for a full secondary promotion campaign to MusicRow and New Music Weekly stations on her debut single, “Nothin’ Good Ever Happens After Midnight.” Lofton Creek Records will be responsible for promoting the song to country radio on a national basis. “We […]