Bundy Graces Mag Cover, Drops New Single

Laura Bell Bundy’s second single, “Drop On By,” goes for adds at country radio on Aug. 9. The track was produced by Nathan Chapman. Bundy is also featured on the cover Nashville Lifestyles August “Hot List” issue. Editor of Nashville Lifestyles, Stacie Standifer, says, “Putting this New York-to-Nashville talent on the cover was a no-brainer, […]

Concert Promoters Form Alliance

Three concert promoters have formed an alliance and opened offices on Music Row. Gary Weinberger, President of Red Mountain Entertainment (RME); Russell Doussan, President of Blue Deuce Entertainment (BDE); and Jim Green, President of Green Machine Concerts (GMC) have set up offices at 1028B 18th Ave. S., Nashville, Tennessee. They can be reached at 615-320-7800. […]

John Aylesworth Passes

Veteran television producer John Aylesworth died Wednesday in Rancho Mirage, CA at age 81. He was best known to Nashvillians as the co-producer of the enormously successful country-music series Hee Haw. Born in Canada, Aylesworth moved to the U.S. in 1958 to write for the CBS TV series Your Hit Parade. He and his writing […]

Foster Moves To Management?

It remains unconfirmed, but MusicRow’s Crystal Ball sees a flashing red light signaling that Fletcher Foster is leaving label land to join a management team with a couple of well-known clients. More information is expected in the near future. Foster has also just been announced as a co-producer of Fox’s new American Country Awards. The […]

McGraw Named Most Played Artist of Decade

Tim McGraw has been honored with Nielsen BDS’s Most Played Artist of the Decade Award, for all genres. Nielsen Music’s Jon Peck recently presented McGraw with a plaque commemorating 7,965,000 radio spins, the most airplay of any artist from January 1, 2000-December 31, 2009. According to Eric Weinberg, president Nielsen Entertainment, “We congratulate Tim McGraw […]

Jimmy Wayne Wraps Walk To Phoenix

Jimmy Wayne set out New Years Day on a journey halfway across the country to raise awareness for at-risk youth. Despite a broken foot, he ended his 1,700 mile Meet Me Halfway walk yesterday (8/1)  in Phoenix. Wayne arrived at his destination, HomeBase Youth Services, at 9:11 AM/PT. He concluded his last mile in the […]

Aiming For The Sky

Paul Worley’s music career now spans over 30 years. He’s served as a session guitarist, producer, publisher, label executive and more. But the Grammy-winning music man seems happiest in his current role.

Fox Plans New Country Awards Show

Fox will announce today (8/1) the launch of a new fan-voted country music awards show. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the American Country Awards will air Dec. 6 live from Las Vegas. The two-hour telecast is being executive produced by Bob Bain, who handles Fox’s hit Teen Choice Awards. Paul Flattery and Tisha Fein will […]

Garth Brooks Licenses Catalog To HFA

Garth Brooks has made his prestigious catalog available for licensing with the Harry Fox Agency, Inc. (HFA), a leading provider of copyright, licensing, royalty distribution, and outsourced technology services for the music industry. Licenses can now be obtained for Brooks’ compositions in cover recordings for CDs, permanent digital downloads (PDDs), ringtones and interactive streams. “We […]

Media Prices On The Rise

As media outlets suffer a decline in ad sales, they are passing the cost on to the consumer. A report by Hollywood industry blog TheWrap.com shows that the price of media consumption has risen sharply this year, particularly the cost of electronic media, such as e-editions of newspapers, video streaming, and e-books. It is important […]

Photo Friday – Artists on the Road

The Academy of Country Music welcomed Warner Music Nashville Recording Artist and ACM Professional Member James Otto to the office for a visit when he was in Los Angeles last week. Otto’s new Warner Music Nashville album Shake What God Gave Ya releases on September 14 and features his current Top 25 single “Groovy Little […]

Lyric Street Staffers Contact Info

Following the recent downsizing of Lyric Street Records, remaining promotion team members Kevin Herring, Dale Turner, John Ettinger, Theresa Ford, Neda Tobin, Kris Lamb, Michelle Tyrrell and Landon Morgan will be leaving the Disney Music Group on August 20. Their contact information is below. Kevin Herring — 615-308-1103 Kevin.Herring@comcast.net Dale Turner — 615-417-7482 Dturner507@comcast.net John Ettinger […]

ReTune Nashville Announces Flood Benefit

Tennessee non-profit ReTune Nashville announced today (7/30) its Benefit Concert and Art Auction Event set for Saturday, October 23 at Nashville gear storage facility and rehearsal space, Soundcheck, featuring artwork both created and donated by Nashville celebrities. The music and live art auction event will feature a gallery of artwork created from flood-damaged instruments, along […]

Nashville Hosts Noise! Music Camp

The Muzak Heart & Soul Foundation’s NOISE! music camp for gifted high school students, currently underway in Nashville, gives students a hands-on learning opportunity through a series of field trips and lectures from top music industry professionals. On Thursday July 22, thirty-two NOISE! students from all over the nation recorded an original song co-written with Better […]

LeDoux Memorial Golf Tourney a Success

The 4th Annual Chris LeDoux Spurs and Spikes Memorial Golf Tournament, founded by Jerrie Bennett, Pam Kinchen, and LeDoux’s wife Peggy, raised over $30,000 for the Chris LeDoux Memorial Foundation. Held at the Powder Horn Golf Club in Sheriden, WY, 36 teams participated in the two-day event that included a practice round, BBQ, auction and […]

Weekly Chart Report (7/30/10)

SPIN ZONE The battle for No. 1 continues for yet another week, and Keith Urban’s “I’m In” holds the top spot for a second consecutive week as Blake Shelton’s “All About Tonight” cuts the difference between them to seven spins. Sure to be contending for the No. 1 position soon is Lady Antebellum’s “Our Kind […]

Blair Garner Debuts Unsigned Sarah Marince

After MidNite host Blair Garner made a dream come true earlier this week when he exclusively debuted a new song, “In The Mean Time,” from unsigned country artist Sarah Marince. The impact of airing on After MidNite was immediate. “In The Mean Time” debuted at #40 on Mediabase’s Real Time Chart. After an initial run […]

Lambert and “Friends” Shine in New Video

Miranda Lambert invited her friends Kellie Pickler, Laura Bell Bundy and Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott to join her in the video for her new single, “Only Prettier.” The video is a mini-movie about two rival cliques of girls attending a 1950’s high school sock hop. The “Only Prettier” video will make its world premiere on VEVO August 3rd at 12AM ET […]

“Next Big” Digital Summit Coming To Nashville

The newly combined Next BIG Nashville (NBN) and Leadership Music Digital Summit (LMDS) have announced artists, speakers and details for their highly anticipated September 29-October 2 event in Nashville. NBN and LMDS recently joined forces to become Nashville’s most progressive music event: combining a four day multi-genre music festival with a two-day digital summit engaging […]

Black River Music Signs Matt Lopez

Black River Music Publishing has signed Matt Lopez to a publishing deal. “I am looking forward to working with Matt,” said Celia Froehlig, Vice President of BRMG Publishing. “He is a wonderful addition to the BRMG publishing family!” Lopez is a member of the emerging group Due West who recently signed a record deal with […]

Rascal Flatts to Join Big Machine

Big Machine President/CEO Scott Borchetta announced today (7/29) that Rascal Flatts would be the latest addition to the Big Machine family. A new album called Nothing Like This, produced by Dann Huff, is due out November 16. The first single “Why Wait,” written by Neil Thrasher, Tom Shapiro and Jimmy Yeary, is being released to […]

Hall of Fame Celebrates Elvis

Loving You: Collecting Elvis Presley, a spotlight exhibit on one of the most beloved and influential cultural figures of the twentieth century, will be unveiled August 6 at the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum. The exhibit, which celebrates Elvis Presley’s 75th birthday, is located within the Museum’s permanent exhibition and will run through January […]

Wynonna Named Cecil Scaife Visionary

Five-time Grammy winner Wynonna Judd will receive The Cecil Scaife Visionary Award for 2010. Governor Phil Bredesen and First Lady Andrea Conte will be on hand for an evening of music and heartfelt memories on Tuesday, August 24, as Nashville celebrates Wynonna for her countless contributions to the Nashville community and future generations who wish […]

Baldrica Exits Sony Music Nashville

Radio-Info’s Phyllis Stark is reporting that Tom Baldrica, Sony Music Nashville VP Marketing has exited the label. Baldrica was elevated to VP Marketing in Sept. 2006 after joining the organization’s promotion department in 1993. His current role was to oversee artist development, media, creative services and strategic marketing for the label groups imprints which include […]

DMX Wins Rate Court Lawsuit Against BMI

DMX, Inc., a leading provider of commercial music services, has won a rate court proceeding against performing rights organization BMI. On Monday (7/26), a federal district judge in New York ordered BMI to provide DMX with an adjustable fee blanket license that allows DMX to license music directly from music publishers and writers. The decision […]

Rod Riley Named President of Word Entertainment

Warner Music Nashville (WMN), the Nashville-based music operations of Warner Music Group Corp., today announced that Rod Riley has been named President and CEO of Word Entertainment, WMG’s Christian music division.  
In his new role, Riley will oversee Word’s entire operation, including A&R, sales and marketing, music publishing, distribution, church resources and artist services. Riley […]

New Morning Team for WSM 95.5 The Wolf

Over the last few months, Cumulus Radio’s 95.5 The Wolf (WSM-FM) in Nashville has been assembling a new team for its morning show, the Wake Up with the Wolf Show. Show host Rick Marino, who has been a fixture on the Nashville airwaves since 1994, was joined in May by another well-known market face, TV […]

DISClaimer Single Reviews (7/28/10)

Among the new super sounds are efforts by Mark Chesnutt, Train, Kenny Chesney and Matt Kennon. Newcomers Kathe Knight, Manning-Dickson and The Ketucky Linemen are also welcome additions to our audio environment.

Capitol Ups Autumn House to VP, A&R

Capitol Records Nashville has promoted Autumn House to Vice President, A&R. House will report directly to Mike Dungan, President/CEO, Capitol Records. She will continue to act as the A&R department’s liaison with producers, publishers, management and artists on behalf of Capitol Records Nashville and EMI Records Nashville. “Capitol Records has never been hotter, and a good […]

Sizing Up Country Summer Sales

So is it likely that 2010 country YTD album sales totals will catch up with 2009 by the end of September?

Katie Armiger Fans Pick New Album Title

Rising country artist Katie Armiger teamed up with GACTV.com to have fans help name her third studio album, set for release on Cold River Records October 5. During the last two weeks over 1,300 fans visited the website to cast their vote for the album title and Confessions of a Nice Girl was the clear […]

Walden’s Puddle Benefit Aug. 21

The 2010 Walden’s Puddle Puddle-Palooza benefit concert and festival has been scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 21, at Nashville’s Yogi Bear™ Jellystone Park, event organizers announced today. Hosted this year by the Music Valley Merchants Association, the festival and concert raises funds for Walden’s Puddle Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Center. Artists scheduled to perform include John […]

Steel Guitarist Ben Keith Passes

Steel guitar great Ben Keith has died in Northern California at age 73. He reportedly suffered a heart attack. Born Bennett Keith Schaeufele, he grew up in Bowling Green, KY. He joined the Nashville Musicians Union at age 19 in 1956. A year later, he joined Faron Young’s band The Country Deputies. He rose to […]

James Otto To Shake Things Up In September

Warner Bros. Records has set a Sept. 14 release date for James Otto‘s sophomore album, Shake What God Gave Ya. Recorded in Nashville and co-produced with Paul Worley (Big & Rich, Lady Antebellum, The Dixie Chicks), the project further captures Otto’s country-meets-soul sound. A sought-after writer for other artists, Otto penned 11 of the 12 […]

UMPG Signs Darius Rucker

Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) today (7/27) announced the signing of an exclusive, worldwide publishing agreement with Darius Rucker. The songwriter and artist built a strong career with Hootie & the Blowfish and in 2008 launched a notable solo career in country music. His UMPG publishing agreement encompasses all of his writing for his country debut […]

Neighbor Warns Row To Take Caution

A concerned member of the music business called the MusicRow offices to warn his neighbors about a recent incident. Earlier this month, employees were frightened by a lewd disturbance while leaving their offices on the 800 block of 18th Ave. S. These victims just want to remind the community to be on the lookout. Pictured […]

Babies On Way For Dierks Bentley, Josh Turner

Josh Turner and wife Jennifer revealed recently that they are expecting their third child in early 2011. The new baby will join sons Hampton, 3, and Colby, 1. Turner shared the news with People magazine, read the full story here. Dierks Bentley and his wife Cassidy are also on the baby train, with their second […]

Darius Rucker To Mentor Song Contest Winner

Budding songwriters take note: the NSAI Song Contest Presented by CMT opens August 1 and the grand prize winner will get a mentoring session with Darius Rucker. NSAI’s 11th annual contest, running through Oct. 31, will yield one industry-selected Grand Prize Winner and one CMT Listeners’ Choice Winner. Past winners have found success ranging from […]

Brenda Lee Donates Lifetime of Memorabilia To Hall of Fame

Brenda Lee has given her priceless lifetime cache of career memorabilia to the permanent collection at the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum. The collection includes stage costumes, vintage photos, magazine cover stories in many languages, awards, show posters, advertisements, personal correspondence, a Brenda Lee comic book and paper doll set, and a trove […]

Debut Music From Paltrow/McGraw Flick

The first music from the much talked about movie starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Tim McGraw appeared in insider in-boxes today (7/26), courtesy of RCA Records. The label is handling radio promotion for Paltrow’s recording of the film’s title track, “Country Strong,” which features background vocals from Vince Gill and Patty Griffin. The song was written […]

Blogroll: Larry Wayne Clark, Wynonna, Google Music

•••• MusicRow contributor and songwriter Larry Wayne Clark and his wife Maggie Ross have started a blog to keep in touch with Nashville friends while they are living in New Brunswick, Canada for Clark to undergo cancer treatment. Maggie says, “We’re so grateful for everyone’s support.” •••• The New York Post reports that Google Music […]

Lifenotes: Margaret Ann Rich

Margaret Ann Rich, songwriter and widow of country singer Charlie Rich, died on July 22 at her Memphis home. She was 76 and had been battling Alzheimer’s disease. One of the best-known songs from Margaret Ann Rich’s pen was the 1991 Ricky van Shelton hit, “Life’s Little Ups and Downs.” Her husband, who passed away […]

RAM Writer’s Group Signs Will Rambeaux

Doug Merrick has formed a new music publishing company called RAM Writer’s Group and has signed hit songwriter/producer Will Rambeaux as the flagship writer for the outfit. “Will and I have been associates for years, and when I decided to form RAM Writer’s Group I knew he would be a great asset to the new […]

Noms Open For Country DJ and Radio Halls of Fame

Country Radio Broadcasters, Inc. is now accepting nominations for the 2011 Country Music DJ and Radio Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony will be held Tuesday, March 1, 2011, at the Nashville Convention Center. Nominations can be submitted at www.CRB.org. Country Radio Broadcasters, Inc. will provide each nominee with an official application, which may include […]

McCartney In Music City Tonight

Tonight (7/26) when Paul McCartney‘s Up and Coming 2010 Tour stops in Nashville it will mark his first concert appearance in town, but not his first visit to Music City. McCartney and his family spent six weeks in Nashville in 1974, a visit he told the Nashville Banner at the time was to “relax, ride […]

CMA Board Visits Fontanel

The CMA Board of Directors were invited to experience Fontanel, the former home of four-time CMA Award winner Barbara Mandrell, by current co-owners Dale Morris and Marc Oswald. A reception was held on Wednesday, July 21, during which the Board toured the mansion and learned about the latest developments of Nashville’s newest entertainment complex.

Ryman Named “Best Music Venue”

Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium has once again been voted Best Music Venue by Tennessean readers choice poll, Toast of Music City. The announcement was made last night (7/21) during a special ceremony held at the War Memorial Auditorium. “We continue to be humbled by the amount of love and support the citizens of Nashville have […]

Union Station Bassist Bows Instructional Video

Barry Bales, longtime bass player for Grammy award winners Alison Krauss & Union Station, is releasing first-ever bass instructional video through AcuTab Productions. To celebrate the release, Bales and AcuTab have teamed up for a contest involving bass players and Bales fans. The contest allows fans to get involved in a fun and entertaining way […]

Gill Featured in Clapton’s “Crossroads” Film

On July 27, in 475 select theaters, the film version of Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festival 2010 will debut. Country Music Hall of Fame member Vince Gill will be one of the artists featured. Also included in the film are performances from Clapton, Jeff Beck, Z.Z. Top, John Mayer, B.B. King, Sheryl Crow, Bill Murray and many […]

Franklin-Based Naxos Adds Positions

Franklin, Tennessee-based Naxos, the No. 1 independent classical music distributor in the U.S, is getting ready to move some its IT operations from overseas in Manila back to the company’s Franklin headquarters. The company cites the need to move these positions closer to the its North American markets. Currently, Naxos global has around 80 employees […]