Tag Archive for: featured-2

CMA Salutes Triple Play Songwriters

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CMA congratulates this year's Triple Play Award winners at the annual CMA Songwriters Luncheon. Pictured (l-r): Troy Tomlinson (CMA Board President-Elect), Dallas Davidson, Luke Laird, Luke Bryan, Dave Turnbull, Rhett Akins, Jason Sellers, Casey Beathard, Chris DuBois, and Steve Moore (CMA CEO). Photographer: John Russell / CMA

Events at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum are always fantastic and Tuesday’s CMA Songwriters Luncheon in the Hall’s Conservatory was no exception. The occasion celebrated songwriters who penned three chart-topping hits in a 12 month period to earn the elusive CMA Triple Play Award.

Presiding over the occasion was CMA Board President-Elect Troy Tomlinson, President and CEO, Sony/ATV Music Publishing Nashville. “How someone can walk into a room with a blank legal pad and walk out with a song is magic,” he began. “They create something out of thin air that moves us. They put into words and music what the rest of us feel but can’t articulate.”

“Nashville is legendary for its songwriters and their ability to convey the triumphs and tragedies of everyday life,” agreed Steve Moore, CMA Chief Executive Officer, before beginning the trophyfest.

As awards were presented attendees nibbled on tasty mixed greens with raspberry vinaigrette, beef tenderloin, prawn skewers, creamy mashed potatoes, and a winter root vegetable medley. Cheesecake for dessert and wine offerings—including one of my personal faves Arrington Vineyards’ Stag’s White—brought smiles to the faces of many munchers.

Tomlinson’s affable demeanor lets him get away with plenty of good-natured ribbing. Songwriter honoree Jason Sellers was on the receiving end of a few friendly jokes from the podium after stumbling into the conservatory cascade pool while posing for a photo. “I’m soaked from the knees down,” he exclaimed while accepting his award.

Fellow honoree Casey Beathard also drew plenty of applause when Tomlinson noted that the songwriter with 25 top ten hits to his credit also has five children. “That’s a five to one ratio,” declared Tomlinson. “Go home and get busy making some more hits.”

Several artist-writers were among the winners. Luke Bryan arrived fresh from the studio, but scheduling conflicts prevented Brad Paisley, Hillary Scott, Taylor Swift, Zac Brown, and ZBB member Wyatt Durrette from attending. Good thing for Tomlinson, who admitted he had run out of adjectives for Swift a long time ago.

Nevertheless, there were plenty of adjectives and applause for honorees Dave Turnbull and Chris DuBois, Paisley’s frequent collaborators.

Garnering a remarkable two Triple Play Awards each were Brown and Dallas Davidson. After his standing ovation, Davidson looked at hometown buddy Bryan and recalled the early days when they stared at Triple Play Awards but earning one seemed next to impossible. He said, “I’m blessed to be able to do this for a living and I’ll never take it for granted.”

Rhett Akins qualified for a Triple Play Award when his song “I Don’t Want This Night To End” slid into the top spot on MusicRow’s CountryBreakout chart just before his 12 months was up. The song recently made its way to the top spots of both the BDS and Mediabase charts as well.

It’s no surprise that when a songwriter is on a roll, publisher BJ Hill calls it “Luke Lairding.” That hitmaker, who is starting his own publishing company with wife Beth, said gratefully, “I love music so much and I feel blessed by God to get to make it every day.”

“Any songwriter realizes that to get a song recorded and then have it make it to the top of the charts requires the alignment of every single star in the universe,” summed Tomlinson. “But to have three songs do that in such a short period of time is truly exceptional.”

CMA Triple Play Award winners

Rhett Akins: “Honey Bee,” “Take a Back Road,” “I Don’t Want This Night to End”
Casey Beathard: “The Boys of Fall,” “Come Back Song,” “Just Fishin'”
Zac Brown: “Highway 20 Ride,” “Free,” “As She’s Walking Away,” “Colder Weather,” “Knee Deep,” “Keep Me in Mind”
Luke Bryan: “Rain is a Good Thing,” “Someone Else Calling You Baby,” “Country Girl (Shake It for Me)”
Dallas Davidson: “All About Tonight,” “If Heaven Wasn’t So Far Away,” “Country Girl (Shake It for Me),” “All Over Me,” “Just a Kiss,” “We Owned the Night”
Chris DuBois: “Water,” “Anything Like Me,” “Old Alabama”
Wyatt Durrette: “Highway 20 Ride,” “As She’s Walking Away,” “Colder Weather”
Luke Laird: “A Little Bit Stronger,” “Take a Back Road,” “Drink In My Hand”
Brad Paisley: “Water,” “Anything Like Me,” “Old Alabama”
Hillary Scott: “Our Kind of Love,” “A Little Bit Stronger,” “Just a Kiss”
Jason Sellers: “Don’t You Wanna Stay,” “I Won’t Let Go,” “I Got You”
Taylor Swift: “Mine,” “Back to December,” “Mean”
Dave Turnbull: “The Boys of Fall,” “Anything Like Me,” “Old Alabama”

CountryBreakout No. 1 Song

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It’s difficult to believe that The Band Perry is still a relatively new group, isn’t it? After “If I Die Young” conquered the world in 2011, it feels like they’ve been around making music for a lot longer. But I suspect this is just the beginning for the Perry siblings.

“All Your Life,” the fourth single from their self-titled 2010 debut, is now the CountryBreakout Chart’s No. 1 song for a second consecutive week. Written by hitmakers Brian and Clara Henningsen, “All Your Life” lets leader Kimberly Perry express her simple desire to have a devoted partner above all else, including the “sun, the moon, and all their light.”

The trio is currently bracing for pranks on Brad Paisley’s Virtual Reality tour, but they’ll soon have an incredible opportunity to play on the Grammy stage Feb. 12 with Blake Shelton and the legendary Glen Campbell. They have also reportedly been working on their sophomore album during breaks from the road. The future looks pretty bright indeed.

Weekly Chart Report (1/27/12)

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Kellie Pickler recently stopped by Premiere Radio Networks’ After MidNite to talk with host Blair Garner about her upcoming release 100 Proof, which hit stores Jan. 24.

SPIN ZONE
That sound you hear? It’s probably promotion executives cursing at the logjam happening in the upper half of MusicRow’s CountryBreakout Chart. The Band Perry’s “All Your Life” is tough enough to stay at No. 1 for a second consecutive week, but the Top 10 remains entirely unchanged save for George Strait’s “Love’s Gonna Make It Alright” creeping into that last spot.

Things are a little better if we zoom out to the Top 40, at least if you’re a member of something with “Band” in the name. Case in point: Eli Young Band’s “Even If It Breaks Your Heart” is looking to capitalize on the success of “Crazy Girl” and has already risen to No. 27 after four weeks. Similarly, Zac Brown Band’s “No Hurry” is actually moving quite fast, reaching No. 40 in its second week on the chart. Competing with these ensembles is Kellie Pickler’s “100 Proof,” which moves up to No. 28, and Alan Jackson’s “So You Don’t Have To Love Me Anymore,” now at No. 37.

Yep, it’s tough out there, but there are independent (and indie label) artists making headway regardless. Average Joe’s duo Montgomery Gentry has a bona fide hit with “Where I Come From” at No. 8. Neal McCoy is staring down the Top 20 at No. 23 with “A-Ok.” Inside the Top 40 are LiveWire’s “Tater Fed” at No. 35, Madonna Nash’s “Dirty Little Secret” at No. 36, and Taylor Made’s “Good Love” at No. 38. Rodeowave’s Phil Vassar is off to a good start with his latest, clenching the weeks’ biggest debut with “Don’t Miss Your Life” at No. 62, while Marlee Scott also has a big first week with “Train Wreck” debuting at No. 73.

Frozen Playlists: KICR, KITX, KKAJ, KXBZ, KYEZ, WBKR, WKWS, WRHT

Upcoming Singles
January 30
Maggie Sajak/First Kiss/AO Recordings/CO5
Thompson Square/Glass/Stoney Creek Records
Ira Dean/Somethin’ ‘Bout A Sunday/Average Joe’s
The McClymonts/I Could Be A Cowboy/BSM
Leah Seawright/Til Your Boots Are Dirty/AttaBaby
Royal Wade Kimes/Cold Country/Wonderment Records

February 6
Shooter Jennings/The Deed and the Dollar/Flying Island
Jason Aldean/Fly Over States/Broken Bow
David St. Romain/Some Things/DSR Entertainment
Tyler Farr/Hot Mess/BNA

• • • • •

New On The Chart—Debuting This Week
Artist/song/label — chart pos.
Phil Vassar/Don’t Miss Your Life/Rodeowave – 62
Jason Aldean/Flyover States/Broken Bow – 67
JT Hodges/Goodbyes Made You Mine/Show Dog-Universal – 70
Marlee Scott/Train Wreck/Big Ride/InstiGator – 73
Sherry Lynn/Breakin’ Up Song/Steal Heart – 78
Bucky Covington/I Wanna Be That Feeling/E One – 79
Kinsey Sadler/Sometimes I Forget/ — 80

Greatest Spin Increase
Artist/song/label — spin+
Zac Brown Band/No Hurry/Southern Ground/Atlantic – 382
Rascal Flatts/Banjo/Big Machine – 376
Alan Jackson/So You Don’t Have To Love Me Anymore/ACR/EMI – 363
Blake Shelton/Drink On It/WMN/Warner Bros. – 310
Eli Young Band/Even If It Breaks Your Heart/Republic Nashville — 293

Most Added
Artist/song/label — New Adds
Zac Brown Band/No Hurry/Southern Ground/Atlantic — 29
Alan Jackson/So You Don’t Have To Love Me Anymore/ACR/EMI — 23
Marlee Scott/Train Wreck/Big Ride / InstiGator — 22
Phil Vassar/Don’t Miss Your Life/Rodeowave — 19
Rascal Flatts/Banjo/Big Machine — 18
Jason Aldean/Flyover States/Broken Bow — 17
JT Hodges/Goodbyes Made You Mine/Show Dog-Universal — 12
Rachel Holder/In Your Arms/Curb — 12
Kellie Pickler/100 Proof 19/BNA — 10
Eli Young Band/Even If It Breaks Your Heart/Republic Nashville — 10

On Deck—Soon To Be Charting
Artist/song/label — spins
Lewis Copeland/She’s Got It Goin’ On/Phull Entertainment – 197
Claudia Lee/Hollywood Sunset/CLM96enterprises — 195
Kaleb McIntire/Redneck In All Of Us/Rockin’ Country Doc Music – 195
Thompson Square/Glass/Stoney Creek – 158
Ira Dean/Something About A Sunday/Average Joe’s – 154
John Maison/Fast Enough/Big High Five — 152
Coy Taylor/Fall For You — 152

Brantley Gilbert spent his birthday in Cape Girardeau, Missouri as part of the Blood, Sweat, and Beers tour with Eric Church. The gang from B97.9 KBXB/Sikeston, MO took it upon themselves to present the artist with a cake following his set. (L-R): B97.9 Dir/Promotions, George Davis; B97.9 Dir./Programming, C.J. Cruze; Gilbert; B97.9 Afternoon Personality, Brian Taylor

Flying Island’s Levi Riggs visited Clear Channel’s WTCR in Huntington, WV to promote his new single “My Best Friend’s a Girl.” (L-R): WTCR hosts Jim McElroy and Judy Eaton, Levi Riggs.

Singer/songwriter Jason Cassidy recently got two times the Jon while visiting Nashville’s WSIX. The singer/songwriter’s latest single “What If” is currently going for adds at country radio. (L-R): MusicRow Managing Editor Jon Freeman, Cassidy, WSIX Program Director Jon Anthony

Charlie Cook On Air: SOPA and PIPA

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If I was to walk into a Wal-Mart here in Morgantown, put an $11.99 CD under my jacket, and walk out of the store without paying, I would be committing shoplifting in my home state of West Virginia. If I walked into Target and put a $19.99 DVD under my jacket and walked out I would be guilty of shoplifting.

Here is the law in West Virginia:

“A person commits the offense of shoplifting if, with the intent to appropriate merchandise without paying the merchant’s stated price for the merchandise, such person, alone or in concert with another person, knowingly: transfers the merchandise from one container to another.”

This sounds a lot like online piracy to me. Now, the law goes on and on, describing other situations and the penalties. In fact, the law goes on for about two pages. All of this was said, more succinctly many years ago:

“Thou Shall Not Steal.”

Four pretty simple words that lawmakers have not been able to improve through the years.

At the urging of my friend Jim Urie I wrote a letter to Senators Feinstein and Boxer (of my other home state, California), joining with most of the Nashville Music community asking that they support PIPA in the Senate.

Those of you who know me well know that I did not want to write those two Senators. Not because I don’t believe in the cause but because I don’t ever want to show up on a list associated with either of those Senators. But I did. Did it do any good? No.

Their leadership was bullied into backing down because they couldn’t check the definition of a crime on Google one day that week.

The law is to stop U.S. companies from providing funding, advertising, links or other assistance to foreign sites selling pirated material. Pretty simple concept. Not as simple as Thou Shall Not Steal but in the ballpark.

We have become so dependent on the Internet for every aspect of our lives from e-mail, entertainment and information that the new media guys threatened our lifeline and Congress, afraid to be blamed for you not being able to stream Coldplay for one day, buckled.

Unfortunately the White House was no leader on this issue. A carefully worded memo that tried to appease both sides and yet provide no help, gave Congress cover.

I don’t know if PIPA and SOPA are well written bills. I suspect that by watching the other legislation that comes out of Washington we can guess that these laws were poorly constructed too. I mean these are the same politicians who fashioned a tax code that is 1.3 million pages.

We send our representatives to Washington to accomplish things. To protect our interests. Why we keep sending them back when they accomplish so little that is in our best interests boggles me.

(Editor’s note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of MusicRow)

Bobby Karl Works EYB and Lady A No. 1 Parties

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Chapter 386

To quote the late, great Jerry Reed, “When You’re Hot, You’re Hot.”

Monday evening (1/23) was a confluence of hotness in Music City. You see, “Crazy Girl” isn’t just another No. 1 record, it’s THE No. 1 record of 2011. Lady Antebellum hasn’t just another No. 1 record, but TWO No. 1 records in a row, “Just a Kiss” and “We Owned the Night.” Both are co-written with red-hot Dallas Davidson. The band’s label, Capitol Nashville, is currently also hot, hot, hot with back-to-back chart-toppers for Eric Church (“Drink in My Hand”) and Luke Bryan (“I Don’t Want This Night to End”). It also has Keith Urban and Dierks Bentley in the Top 10.

Monday’s bashes celebrated all of that and more.

At BMI (1/23), the lobby was packed, because, “Everybody loves Lee Brice; everybody’s pulling for him,” explained Jody Williams. And, “Everybody loves Liz Rose. So that makes a lot of people,” gathering to support the “Crazy Girl” co-writers. Plus, there are the four members of the Eli Young Band and their friends and relatives.

(L-R): Sony / ATV Tree’s Terry Wakefield, Eli Young Band’s James Young, co-writer Lee Brice, Cake Taker Music’s Gilles Godard, co-writer Liz Rose, Eli Young Band’s Jon Jones and Mike Eli, producer Mike Wrucke, Eli Young Band’s Chris Thompson, Cake Taker Music’s Arthur Buenahora, Mike Curb Music’s Drew Alexander, and BMI’s Leslie Roberts. Photo: Steve Lowry

Jody had to hustle to hand out their awards and still make it to The Boun’dry to celebrate Lady A’s two chart toppers. Group members Charles Kelley and Dave Haywood are both BMI affiliates, as is Dallas.

The celebration (1/23) was held in the venue’s third-floor space The Phoenix Room, festively festooned with paper lanterns hung from the ceiling and party lights massed on the cornices. Rhett Akins and Ben Hayslip, Davidson’s co-conspirators in The Peach Pickers, joined Lance Miller, Daniel Miller, Rick Murray, Sarah Trahern, Ed Morris, Alicia Warwick, Linda Edell, Donna Hughes, Bob Paxman, Bobby Young (on the eve of his “31st birthday,” RIGHT), Mary Hilliard Harrington, Perry Howard, Vernell Hackett, Suzanne Gordon, Julie Boos, Clay Bradley and Clarke Schleicher in making merry.

“This is a great and special event,” said Mike Dungan in greeting the throng. He noted that Lady A is now out on its first headlining tour and emphasized the character that Hillary Scott, Dave Haywood and Charles Kelley consistently display. Normally, you expect “misbehavior” and/or “attitude” by this point in a stellar career. Instead, Dungan noted that these three are, “respectful,” “joyful” and “focused.”

“If somebody wanted to paint a picture of the state of songwriting in Nashville, they would look no further, than ‘Just a Kiss’ and ‘We Owned the Night,’” stated Jody. Lady A’s album is now approaching Double Platinum and is up for a Grammy, he added. These are Charles and Dave’s sixth and seventh No. 1 singles as writers. “Then there’s Dallas Davidson,” Jody marveled. Dallas has four singles on the charts right now, is BMI’s Country Songwriter of the Year (along with Rhett). He has co-written 16 hits and 11 No. 1 smashes in his career to date.

(L-R): Jody Williams (BMI), Dallas Davidson, Charles Kelley, Hillary Scott, Dave Haywood, Ben Vaughn (EMI Music Publishing). Photo: Adam Boatman

Jody called producer Paul Worley to the stage as, “The best friend a hit singer ever had.” Steve Markland of Warner-Chappell (Dave and Charles) and Ben Vaughn of EMI Publishing (Hillary and Dallas) were summoned to the stage as well. Everybody got plaques.

Ron Cox announced that Avenue Bank is making a donation to the Wounded Warriors Project on the band’s behalf. Tim Fink noted that Hillary Scott is SESAC’s Country Songwriter of the Year and that the organization is making a donation to her charity, My Life Speaks. That group is building orphanages in Haiti. Dallas Davidson also made a donation to it, and gave vintage guitars to Charles and Dave.

(L-R): Dallas Davidson, Charles Kelley, Tim Fink (SESAC), Hillary Scott, Dave Haywood, Ben Vaughn (EMI Music Publishing). Photo: Adam Boatman

“I thank God for bringing Lady Antebellum into my life,” Dallas told the crowd.

The man who brought Dave and Charles to Warner-Chappell was in the house. B.J. Hill gave out some more plaques, followed by the CMA’s Steve Moore and Brandi Simms.

“Great songs make great radio,” said the CRB’s Bill Mayne. “Country radio world-wide loves you…Thank you for kicking off CRS by bringing your tour this year.”

“It would be very easy to take this stuff for granted, but they don’t and we don’t,” said Mike Dungan in conclusion.

For the past 11 years, Mike has led his staff in annual acoustic celebrations with the Capitol roster. Lady Antebellum upheld the tradition by capping the party with lushly harmonized renditions of their two honored tunes, accompanied only by Dave’s guitar and percussion by Hillary’s new hubby, Chris Tyrrell.

“We just want to say a huge ‘thank-you’ to each and every one of you,” Hillary said. “We’re having a blast,” added Dave.

The bash attracted Capitol’s biggest national and international brass, including Roger Faxon, Leo Corbin, Matthew Tilley, Greg Thompson and Colin Finkelstein. Now that’s what you call hot.

2012 ACM Award Nominations Announced

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The 2012 Academy of Country Music Nominees were revealed in an all Facebook press conference this morning, and Kenny Chesney emerged as the leading solo nominee with 9 nominations. Taylor Swift led among solo females with 3 nominations. Lady Antebellum earned the most nomations for a group with 5. Top nominees listed below.

Earning their first-ever ACM nominations are Grace Potter, Aaron Lewis, Thompson Square, and Love and Theft. Show co-host Blake Shelton picked up his first Entertainer of the Year nomination.

Previous winners fared well in many of the categories. Brad Paisley has won the Male Vocalist category five times to date, and Miranda Lambert has won the Female Vocalist category three consecutive times. Kenny Chesney has won four Entertainer of the Year awards, and if he picks up a fifth it will tie him with Alabama.

Top Nominees:
Kenny Chesney — 9
Jason Aldean — 6
Lady Antebellum — 5
Brad Paisley — 4
Taylor Swift — 3
Eli Young Band — 3
Toby Keith — 3
Grace Potter — 3

• • • • • •

Entertainer of the Year
Jason Aldean
Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Taylor Swift

Female Vocalist of the Year
Sara Evans
Miranda Lambert
Martina McBride
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood

Male Vocalist of the Year
Jason Aldean
Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Chris Young

Vocal Group of the Year
The Band Perry
Eli Young Band
Lady Antebellum
Rascal Flatts
Zac Brown Band

Vocal Duo of the Year
Love and Theft
Montgomery Gentry
Steel Magnolia
Sugarland
Thompson Square

New Artist of the Year (Announced Jan. 30)

Album of the Year
[Award to Artist/Producer/Record Company]
Chief — Eric Church (EMI Nashville) [Producer: Jay Joyce, Arturo Bunahora, Jr.]
Four the Record — Miranda Lambert (RCA) [Producer: Chuck Ainlay, Frank Liddell]
Hemingway’s Whiskey — Kenny Chesney (BNA) [Producer: Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney)
My Kinda Party — Jason Aldean (Broken Bow) [Producer: Michael Knox]
Own The Night — Lady Antebellum (Capitol Nashville) [Producer: Lady Antebellum, Paul Worley]

Song of the Year
[Award to Composer/Publisher/Artist]
“Crazy Girl” — Eli Young Band (Composers: Liz Rose, Lee Brice) [Publishers: Cake Taker Music (BMI), Mike Curb Music (BMI), Sony/ATV Tree Publishing (BMI), Sweet Hysteria Music (BMI)]
“Home” — Dierks Bentley (Composers: Brett Beavers, Dierks Bentley, Dan Wilson) [Publishers: Big White Tracks (ASCAP), Chestnut Barn Music (BMI), Chrysalis Music/BMG Rights (ASCAP), Chrysalis One Songs (BMI)]
“Just A Kiss” — Lady Antebellum (Composers: Dallas Davidson, Dave Haywood, Charles Kelley, Hillary Scott) [Publishers: Dwhaywood Music (BMI), EMI Blackwood Music, Inc. (BMI), EMI Foray Music (SESAC), Hillary Dawn Songs (SESAC), Radiobulletspublishing (BMI), String Stretcher Music (BMI) Warner-Tamberlane Publishing Corp. (BMI)]
“Threaten Me With Heaven” — Vince Gill (Composers: Vince Gill, Amy Grant, Dillon O’Brian, Will Owsley) [Publishers: Grant Girls Music (ASCAP), Vinny Mae Music (BMI), Willie-O Music (ASCAP)]
“You and Tequila” — Kenny Chesney (Composers: Matraca Berg, Deana Carter) [Publishers: Deanaling Music (ASCAP), Hannaberg Music (BMI), Songs of Universal Inc., (BMI), WB Music Corp. (ASCAP)]

Single Record of the Year
[Award to Artist/Producer/Record Company]
“Crazy Girl” — Eli Young Band (Republic Nashville) [Producer: Mike Wrucke]
“Don’t You Wanna Stay” — Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson (Broken Bow) [Producer: Michael Knox]
“Red Solo Cup” — Toby Keith (Show Dog-Universal) [Producer: Toby Keith]
“Tomorrow” — Chris Young (RCA) [Producer: James Stroud]
“You and Tequila” — Kenny Chesney feat. Grace Potter (BNA) [Producer: Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney]

Vocal Event of the Year
[Award to Artist/Producer/Record Company]
“Country Boy” — Aaron Lewis feat. George Jones and Charlie Daniels (R&J Records) [Producer: Aaron Lewis, James Stroud]
“Don’t You Wanna Stay” — Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson (Broken Bow) [Producer: Michael Knox]
“Old Alabama” — Brad Paisley feat. Alabama (Arista) [Producer: Frank Rogers]
“Remind Me” — Brad Paisley with Carrie Underwood (Arista) [Producer: Frank Rogers]
“You and Tequila” — Kenny Chesney feat. Grace Potter (BNA) [Producer: Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney]

Video of the Year
[Award to Producer/Director/Artist]
“Tattoos On This Town” — Jason Aldean [Producer: John Burke; Director: Wes Edwards]
“Homeboy” — Eric Church [Producer: Brandon Arolfo; Director: Peter Zavadil]
“Red Solo Cup” — Toby Keith [Producer: Mark Kalbfeld; Director: Michael Salomon]
“Just a Kiss” — Lady Antebellum [Producer: Don Lepore; Director: Shaun Silva]
“Mean” — Taylor Swift [Producer: Oualid Mouaness; Director: Declan Whitebloom]

Songwriter of the Year
Rhett Akins
Dallas Davidson
Ben Hayslip
Luke Laird
David Lee Murphy

Promoter of the Year
Ben Ferrell ‐ Varnell Enterprises, Inc.
Brad Garrett ‐ Police Productions
Brian O’Connell ‐ Live Nation
Glenn Smith ‐ Glenn & Linda Present
Ed Warm ‐ Joe’s Bar

Don Romeo Talent Buyer of the Year
Ethan Hirsch ‐ Wilson Events
Jimmy Jay ‐ Jayson Promotions, Inc.
R.J. Kaltenbach ‐ Klein’s Attractions
Gary Osier ‐ Gary Osier Presents
Huston Powell ‐ C3 Presents

Venue of the Year
BOK Center ‐ Tulsa, OK
Bridgestone Arena ‐ Nashville, TN
First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre ‐ Chicago, IL
Jiffy Lube Live ‐ Bristow, VA
Sprint Center ‐ Kansas City, MO

Nightclub of the Year
Billy Bob’s Texas ‐ Ft. Worth, TX
Buck Owens’ Crystal Palace ‐ Bakersfield, CA
Grizzly Rose ‐ Denver, CO
Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar & Grill ‐ Minneapolis, MN
Wormy Dog ‐ Oklahoma City, OK

Casino of the Year
Agua Caliente Casino ‐ Rancho Mirage, CA
IP Casino ‐ Biloxi, MS
Island Resort Casino ‐ Harris, MI
Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino ‐ Las Vegas, NV
WinStar World Casino ‐ Thackerville, OK

Specialty Instrument(s) Player of the Year
Eric Darken
Aubrey Haynie
Ilya Toshinsky
John Willis
Jonathan Yudkin

Piano/Keyboard Player of the Year
Tony Harrell
John Hobbs
John Jarvis
Charlie Judge
Michael Rojas

Fiddle Player of the Year
Glen Duncan
Stuart Duncan
Larry Franklin
Joe Spivey
Jonathan Yudkin

Steel Guitar Player of the Year
Paul Franklin
Mike Johnson
Greg Leisz
Russ Pahl
Scotty Sanders

Guitarist of the Year
J.T. Corenflos
Kenny Greenberg
Jay Joyce
Brent Mason
Adam Shoenfeld

Percussionist/Drummer of the Year
Matt Chamberlain
Chad Cromwell
Shannon Forrest
Chris McHugh
Greg Morrow

Bass Player of the Year
Mike Brignardello
Kevin “Swine” Grantt
Mark Hill
Michael Rhodes
Jimmy Lee Sloas

Audio Engineer of the Year
Jeff Balding
Derek Bason
John Kelton
Mills Logan
Justin Niebank

Producer of the Year
Mark Bright
Buddy Cannon
Nathan Chapman
Jay Joyce
Frank Liddell

DISClaimer Single Reviews (1/25/12)

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There is life after major labels.

That’s today’s message, coming to us loud and clear from Deborah Allen, Neal McCoy, Jonathan Edwards and Suzy Bogguss. All of them have excellent indie albums, with Suzy and Deborah owning their own labels. For shining a spotlight on our folk-music legacy, Suzy Bogguss wins our Disc of the Day.

From the Broken Bow label comes a young Tullahoma, Tennessee native named Dustin Lynch. Give his “Cowboys and Angels” single a spin. I think you’ll agree with me that he’s a worthy DisCovery Award recipient.

KENNY VAUGHAN/Country Music Got a Hold on Me
Writer: none listed; Producer: Brandon Bell, Carmella Ramsey & Kenny Vaughn; Publisher: Veltal, BMI; Sugar Hill (track) (www.kennyvaughan.net)
—With Marty Stuart and the rest of The Fabulous Superlatives along for the rollicking ride, Kenny’s current solo CD kicks off with this neo-rockabilly romp that comes with built-in smiles as well as his trademark, deliciously stinging guitar licks.

SUZY BOGGUSS/Red River Valley
Writer: anonymous; Producer: Suzy Bogguss; Publisher: public domain; Loyal Duchess (track) (www.suzybogguss.com)
—Suzy’s American Folk Songbook CD is precisely what its title says it is, a collection of simply arranged gems of our nation’s musical heritage. Not only does she still sing with immense warmth and luster, she is surrounded by some of Music City’s top instrumentalists plus vocal harmonies courtesy of Matraca Berg, Harry Stinson and Gretchen Peters. I am told this is doing quite well overseas. It is a thorough delight.

TRENT JEFFCOAT/When I Find Me That Mountain
Writer: Trent Jeffcoat/Brandy Clark; Producer: Paul Sikes; Publisher: none listed; Deer in the Headlights (track) (www.trentjeffcoat.com)
—This singer-songwriter has a seven-song CD as a calling card. Its title tune is a meditative ballad with a deeply stirring lyric made even more potent because of his resonant, emotional baritone vocal. Trent Jeffcoat has the goods, people.

DEBORAH ALLEN/It Better Be Big
Writer: Deborah Allen/Callie Champion; Producer: Deborah Allen; Publisher: none listed; Delta Rock (track) (www.deborahallen.com)
—The second single from Deborah’s new Hear Me Now CD is a hoot. After a bluesy intro, she sizzles into a rapid-fire, rocking delivery. “If you’re gonna give it to me, baby, it better be big,” she sings. Get your mind out of the gutter: She means a wedding ring. Stay tuned for her personality-packed asides during the finale.

ALAN RHODY/Somebody to Care
Writer: Alan Rhody/Bill Caswell; Producer: Alan Rhody; Publisher: Sony-ATV, BMI; Ashwood (track) (www.alanrhody.com)
—If you’ve never seen this Nashville singer-songwriter perform, you’re missing out on one of our most entertaining and amusing acoustic troubadours. Alan’s new Led By Love collection begins with this ear catching story song about a would-be liquor store robber who finds romance and redemption en route. The supporting cast of this sterling set includes Sam Bush, Gordie Trapp, Mike Henderson, Jay Patten, Mike Bub, Vickie Carrico, Billy Thomas and Jonell Mosser. Are the tracks cool? You bet.

NEAL McCOY/Sentimental Journey
Writer: Les Brown/Bud Green/Benjamin Homer; Producer: Les Brown Jr. & Keith Olsen; Publisher: Morley/Holliday/Songwriters Guild of America/MPL, no performance rights listed; Encore/DPTV (track) (www.dptvmedia.org)
—Country star McCoy teams up with Les Brown’s Band of Renown on a new, in-concert CD that’s a definite change of pace. Singing the swing band’s signature song, he seems relaxed and at ease with the massed brass section wailing behind him. Charley Pride and Janie Fricke also make guest appearances on the set, which was originally recorded for a PBS special.

RANDY THOMPSON/One Guitar
Writer: Randy Thompson; Producer: Randy Thompson; Publisher: Twang This, ASCAP; Jackpot (track) (www.randythompson.net)
—Thompson’s Collected CD compiles tunes he has recorded over the past decade for various albums and singles. This is one of its two newly recorded selections. It is a country rocker with a “spaghetti western” vibe. The band rushes the tempo, and there’s too much echo on his vocal.

JONNY CORNDAWG/Shaved Like a Razor
Writer: none listed; Producer: Loney John Hutchins & Jonny Corndawg; Publisher: none listed; Nasty Memories (track) (www.corndawg.com)
—I think it is meant to be funny, but he still can’t sing.

JONATHAN EDWARDS/Surrounded
Writer: Jonathan Edwards; Producer: Jonathan Edwards & Jim Begley; Publisher: Joinatune Earthwords, no performance rights listed; Appleseed (track) (www.jonathanedwards.net)
—Appleseed Records specializes in reviving the careers of “heritage” artists who have long been absent from the recording scene, including Tom Rush (35 years between studio recordings), David Bromberg (17 years), Buffy Sainte-Marie (13 years), Jesse Winchester (10 years), Roger McGuinn (10 years) and Donovan (8 years). Edwards has been m.i.a. for about a dozen years. His comeback My Love Will Keep CD begins with this lilting, pastoral ode with super-soulful harmonies by bluegrass star Claire Lynch. In addition to his own songs, he covers works by Mark D. Sanders & Adrienne Young, Tommy Rocco, John Brannen and Henry Gross, not to mention Lennon & McCartney.

DUSTIN LYNCH/Cowboys and Angels
Writer: Dustin Lynch/Josh Leo/Tim Nichols; Producer: none listed; Publisher: Big Machine/Golden Gears/Super 98/Sony-ATV Tree/Warner-Tamerlane/Contentment/Made For This, BMI; Broken Bow  (www.dustinlynch.com)
—He sings in a clear, confident, smooth baritone with smoky, whiskey aftertones. The moody power ballad has a dusky, romantic vibe that is quite magnetic. This could definitely go places.

CBS, ACM Announce 10-Year Deal

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CBS, the Academy of Country Music and dick clark productions announced today a new 10-year deal that will keep the annual Academy of Country Music Awards, broadcast on the CBS Television Network through 2021. The new agreement further extends a successful broadcast partnership between the ACM and CBS that has been in place since 1998.

In addition to the annual awards telecast, the new agreement includes the continued broadcast of annual ACM specials.

This news comes before tomorrow morning’s announcement of the ACM Awards nominees for the upcoming show on April 1.

Last year’s ACM Awards broadcast won its time period in households (7.6/12), viewers (13.05 million), and several key demographics.

“The Academy of Country Music represents a highly valued partnership for our company and the awards show is one of the marquee broadcasts on our network,” said Leslie Moonves, President and CEO, CBS Corporation. “It is an entertainment event that continues to grow in scope and popularity, and we look forward to working with the ACM and dick clark productions to build on this great momentum over the next decade.”

“The Academy has been home at CBS for 14 years, and we’re thrilled to continue that winning partnership over the next decade,” said Bob Romeo, CEO of the Academy of Country Music. “With our friends at CBS and our partners at dick clark productions, we’ve grown the Academy’s brand and television properties, consistently delivering hits that country music fans can count on. We look forward to 10 more years of incredible entertainment programming that brings fans the best that country music has to offer.”

“The Academy of Country Music Awards is one of the crown jewels in our collection of storied franchises,” said Mark Shapiro, CEO of dick clark productions. “This new deal recognizes the continuing success of the awards show and creates a platform for expanding our reach with ACM-branded programming. We are delighted to extend our relationship with America’s most-watched television network.”

 

Labels Earned $5.2 Billion in Global Digital Revenue Last Year

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The Digital Music Report 2012 is an in-depth look at worldwide trends. Released Monday by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, the report covers revenue, subscription and download models, piracy and more. Highlights and summary are below. Click here to download the full report, or here for an outline of key facts.

Digital Revenue Rising
Digital channels account for about 32 percent of record company revenues globally, up from 29 percent in 2010. Some markets now see more than half of their revenues derive from digital channels, including the US (52%), South Korea (53%) and China (71%).

Global digital revenues to record companies grew by an estimated 8 percent to $5.2 billion in 2011. This compares to growth of 5 percent in 2010 and represents the first time the year-on-year growth rate has increased since IFPI started measuring digital revenues in 2004.

Access and Ownership Models
Ten years after the first online stores emerged in the US and Europe, digital music is now broadly segmented into two main consumption models: “ownership” and “access.” Ownership usually refers to download services such as iTunes and Google Music. The access model is typically a subscription service such as Spotify.

According to the report, both models have enormous growth potential. At the start of 2011, the largest international digital music services were present in 23 countries. One year later they are present in 58 countries. Rob Wells, president, global digital business, Universal Music Group, explains, “The fact that these two models of consumption can co-exist speaks volumes about the future. In fact, we have really only scratched the surface of digital music in the last decade—now we are starting the real mining, and on a global scale.”

Spurring digital music growth is the rising prevelance of smartphones, tablets and broadband. “The technology infrastructure is being put in place in a way that we have never seen before and that is one major reason why we feel positive about digital music going into 2012,” adds Edgar Berger, President and CEO, International, Sony Music Entertainment.

Another bright spot is the growing popularity of online radio and music videos. The most watched artist on YouTube is Justin Bieber, whose videos have been viewed more than two billion times.

Sources: PWC Global Entertainment & Media Outlook and IFPI. Notes: games includes players’ purchases of accessories and additional game content as well as subscriptions. Music share is based on trade revenues. Newspapers include digital advertising and subscriptions. Books excludes audio books. Film excludes online sales and rentals of physical discs.

Download Services
IFPI estimates that 3.6 billion downloads were purchased globally in 2011, an increase of 17 percent (combining singles and album downloads). Single track downloads are up 11 percent by volume, and digital albums are up 24 percent by volume.

Download stores account for a large proportion of digital revenues and account for most of the 500 legitimate services worldwide, offering libraries of up to 20 million tracks. The most popular download store, iTunes, continued growing in 2011. iTunes opened for business in 28 additional markets, reaching more than 50 countries. Download service 7digital is now available in 37 countries.

Though singles are growing in popularity, up 10 percent in the US (Nielsen SoundScan), the album isn’t dead. Digital album volume sales have grown steadily in recent years, with US digital album sales in 2011 up 19 percent (Soundscan). In the US digital albums already account for 31 percent of all album sales by volume. Driving demand for digital albums are strong marketing campaigns, premium offerings that provide additional content, consumer habits and growing computer storage space.

The top selling single of 2011 was Bruno Mars’ “Just The Way You Are,” which sold more than 12.5 million copies.

Subscription Services
The number of consumers subscribing to music services globally is estimated to have increased by nearly 65 percent in 2011, reaching more than 13 million, compared to an estimated 8.2 million the previous year. This supplements the tens of millions of consumers who already use download services.

Subscription services Spotify, WiMP and Deezer are expanding fast across national borders. Spotify launched in the US and four European markets and now reaches 12 countries. The US also saw the launch of Muve Music in 2011.

Piracy Remains
It’s no secret digital piracy remains a critical barrier to growth and investment by record companies. Twenty-eight percent of internet users globally access unauthorized services on a monthly basis, according to IFPI/Nielsen.

There has been positive momentum in the fight against piracy in 2011. In the US, an ISP cooperation deal was signed in 2011 and a graduated response program will be implemented in 2012, with most major ISPs signing up to a “copyright alert system.” The move follows the closure of the illegal service LimeWire in 2010, which has helped cause a dramatic drop in levels of P2P piracy in the US market.

A similar law in France, the Hadopi graduated response law, has seen peer-to-peer (P2P) piracy levels decline by 26 percent since warning notices were first sent out in October 2010, according to IFPI/Nielsen. A newly-published academic study finds that single track sales were 23 percent higher than they would have been in the absence of Hadopi.

Mark Piibe, executive vice president, global business development, EMI Music, sums, “We know that some people will migrate from piracy and that others will not, but we want alternatives to be there.”

 

Borchetta: “Love what you do, and outwork everyone”

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(L-R): Michael McCall, Scott Borchetta. Photo: Donn Jones

Scott Borchetta visited with Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum writer and editor Michael McCall this past weekend (Sat., Jan. 21) in a public series at the Museum’s Ford Theater to discuss his career growth and success in the music industry.

MusicRow was in attendance for the event along with many industry players, college students, and a number of Borchetta employees who he referred to as ‘machinists’ including his wife Sandi Spika, John Zarling, Allison Jones, Andrew Kautz, Kelly Rich, Matthew Hargis, Nikki Burns, Erik Powell and Jake Basden.

Borchetta is perhaps best known for breaking Taylor Swift and The Band Perry, and his contributions to the careers of superstars Toby Keith, George Strait, Rascal Flatts, Garth Brooks, Martina McBride and Reba. For these reasons, Borchetta has been included among 92 new entries in the second edition printing of The Hall’s Encyclopedia of Country Music, available on Feb. 1.

A majority of the session was spent discussing his resume, and sharing opinions and predictions for the industry. Notably, Borchetta quipped when asked where the music is headed: “it’s going straight to your heart.” A theme that seemed to thread throughout the afternoon was to stay true to yourself; follow your gut.

“We love what we do,” said Borchetta. “I don’t feel like I’ve ever given up anything in my life to do this. This is my life, and we love doing it. If you don’t love doing it, somebody will beat you because they love it more. Love what you do, and outwork everyone.”

When Scott moved to Nashville to join his father Mike, he jumped into a country band on a dare. Music City exposed the Southern California boy to a new music scene—one to which he was unaccustomed. “I wised up very quickly to the amazing level of talent in Nashville. It was the first time I saw what I thought were truly gifted musicians. There’s a difference when you’re a practicing musician and you’re in the presence of a gifted musician. A bell goes off. But one thing that happened, I became able to explain the business to musicians.”

Borchetta grew that business ability and gained a reputation around 1989-90 for promoting edgier country, working with Marty Stuart, Dwight Yoakam, and Kelly Willis, which earned him an invitation to work at MCA. “When I came, MCA had great executives but needed a culture of winning. The program needed a spark, and I think I brought that.”

It wasn’t just his drive that pushed the label forward, however. MCA gained the ability to be trusted by radio. “At the end of the day records and radio want the same thing: answers. Is this going to work? The momentum from George and Reba gave MCA more opportunity to be trusted by the gatekeepers at radio to really start forest fires with the listeners and fans for newer acts.”

When Borchetta’s time at MCA ended, he aligned with James Stroud, who was starting DreamWorks Nashville for David Geffen and Mo Ostin. Borchetta had a vision of creating another imprint for DreamWorks, which would allow the label to compete with RCA and MCA, and he began building a business model. That plan was shelved when DreamWorks in LA decided to sell out to Universal Music Group, home to MCA Nashville. Borchetta found himself SVP of Promotions and Artist Development at the label he had been working at a few years prior. Nonetheless, he pocketed a few lessons from his work with the DreamWorks roster.

Borchetta notes, DreamWorks hadn’t fully understood Toby Keith’s commercial appeal, but when they did, he exploded. “He was like a new Hank Jr., a country rock star. Toby eventually got so big that DreamWorks was unable to keep a balance and it hurt the label dramatically. When Taylor got so big, we knew we needed to keep a balance.”

“The things we learned with Jessica Andrews [at DreamWorks] had a lot to do with how we broke Taylor. For one, we found she had a teenage audience very excited about country music.” Jimmy Harnen, then in promotions at DreamWorks, suggested engaging this audience with shows at high schools. “Nothing too extraordinary, it just came out of paying attention. And we saw it just light up. A lot of the things we learned, we put into play with Taylor from day one. Jessica wavered between wanting to be a pop artist and a country artist. A lot of artists that young don’t have the focus, that’s whats so extraordinary about Taylor. She had that drive.

“Mergers are tough,” Borchetta said about the shift back to MCA after DreamWorks sold. “I don’t think bigger is better. Fewer isn’t better for the creative community. I’ve never thought fewer radio stations or record labels were better. Greatness is about identifying great talent, but what I think is great, other label heads Mike Dungan, Luke Lewis, or Gary Overton might hate. People just need more opportunities.”

In 2004, Borchetta met Taylor, and she waited for him to start Big Machine after he exited Universal. “We had a real vision and a direct goal for what we wanted to do. It just started happening, I put up my own money in the beginning, Toby put money in, and we were able to get Big Machine launched. There were a lot of disbelievers.

Mike McCall with Scott Borchetta discussing the impact the late race car driver Dan Wheldon made on his life

“If you haven’t done this, I encourage everyone to do it at least once, put everything on the line and see how good you are. You will reach down and find things in yourself that you didn’t know you had. I found people that were willing to put it on the line with me. We put blinders on and didn’t look back, we looked straight ahead. Talk about feeling alive and living like you were dying.”

Borchetta explained the success of his label is the diversified talent and the agility to move quickly where larger labels are unable. “We made sure our label wasn’t just about Taylor, we found balance with Garth and shortly after, Trisha, and Reba. We broke The Band Perry and we’re able to treat every artist individually.”

Breaking acts while continuing to promote established superstars seems to be at the crux of his business model. “Don’t ever take these amazing artists for granted. You know their names because they’re extraordinary. They didn’t one day stop being extraordinary. Something stopped happening and someone stopped caring. Maybe that artist or maybe the people around them, but you have to cut through and stay relevant and understand and accept that things change.

“The industry is going to change. We’ve got to do a better job at harnessing our whole digital platform. It’s out of control, but people haven’t fallen out of love with music, they’ve just fallen in love with new ways to use it. There’s no value in us fighting that, we have to accept it and figure out what other services to provide an artist. I love Spotify as a consumer, but as a businessman I hate it. It’s literally fractions of pennies and its really hard for a new artist to survive. We’ve got to make a lot of noise by figuring out how to get the attention if you’re playing video games or on Facebook all day. But when we get it, the artist better be ready.”

And as swiftly as he addressed his intentions to sell his empire a few months ago in an appearance on CNBC, Borchetta eloquently stated, “Predominantly, I’m un-hirable. I have a house. I have a car. I don’t know that you could throw a bunch of money and we’d give up what we’ve got. Right now, I’ve not seen anything that excites me more than what we do. We are always looking at opportunities, but it would have to be pretty extraordinary for us to change our mind.

“And for the Taylor fans, we’ll have a new record out in October.”