NASHVILLE, TN – Mar. 19, 2020 – Multi-PLATINUM band and Arista Nashville hit-makers LANCO take a step back in time in the new music video for their nostalgic single “What I See.” The music video heightens the song’s vivid lyrics of hometown memories proving there’s more to everyone than what meets the eye. Lead singer Brandon Lancaster created the concept alongside director Peter Zavadil and also serves as a co-writer on the track with drummer Tripp Howell, bassist Chandler Baldwin and Jeremy Spillman. “What I See” is known to “showcase the band’s versatility” (Billboard) and has already garnered more than 8 million streams alone and its music video is now available here.
“This music video explores the idea that everyone has their own story and their own perspective on what makes that story special,” Lancaster said. “I wanted the narrative to highlight how different pillars can evoke different emotions in people depending on the path they’ve taken — whether it be a scoreboard, a curve in a road or even one’s own reflection.The center-point of the video is at a dive bar which to many could seem insignificant, but to us it represents the place where the concept of this song was born.”
Go behind the scenes with LANCO on the music video set for “What I See” as they share the importance of detailing the past here: https://youtu.be/8_Gd7ZkDCxM
Through “What I See” LANCO “builds from simplicity to epic grandeur” (Music Row) as they fuse together a modern twist on sentimental memories that are combined with a fresh mix of organic sounds. Filled with their signature anthemic melodies and sing-along choruses the “devastatingly universal concept” (Taste of Country) is another example of how LANCO “makes music that matters and sounds original,” (Planet Weekly). The new single also served as the name behind their headlining WHAT I SEE TOUR where “the crowd-pleasing country-rock quintet” (Chicago Daily Herald) was known to deliver “giant singalongs” (St. Louis Dispatch).
LANCO continues to pave its course after the the success of their 2x PLATINUM multi-week radio chart-topper “Greatest Love Story” and critically acclaimed GOLD hit “Born To Love You.” The five-man band’s No. One selling debut and coming-of-age album, HALLELUJAH NIGHTS, made LANCO the first Country group to debut on the Billboard Top Country Albums charts at No. One in 10 years. The new music from the ACM “New Group of the Year” follows multiple nominations from from the CMT, CMA, ACM, AMA, and iHeartAwards, while Lancaster became the first member of a group to ever win NSAI’s “Songwriter/Artist of the Year.” Critics continue to be impressed with the chart-topping band’s persistence of “bringing a combustible mix of romance and live-for-the-moment joy” (Journal Courier). For more information visit www.lancomusic.com.
LOS ANGELES, CA (March 19, 2020) – The Academy of Country Music® and dick clark productions announced today, with appearances and concerts canceled, Country Music’s biggest stars are practicing social distancing by staying home – and inviting fans to join them for a new kind of entertainment special. ACM® PRESENTS: OUR COUNTRY will feature intimate conversations and at-home acoustic performances with top Country artists along with clips of their favorite moments from the Academy of Country Music Awards’™ 55-year history. The new special will be broadcast Sunday, April 5 (8:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Participating artists will be announced in the coming weeks.
Artists will appear from their homes via video chat to share some heartfelt thoughts and perform acoustic versions of Country hits. Additionally, video clips from previous ACM Award® broadcasts will allow viewers to reminisce with them about their favorite ACM moments. It will be a night filled with entertainment, hope and reflection, bringing the healing power of music to Americans at a time when they need it most.
“Although the highly anticipated 55th ACM Awards show is unable to take place on April 5th due to the health crisis, we still wanted to deliver fans an entertaining ACM Country Music special as planned,” said Damon Whiteside, CEO of the Academy of Country Music. “We are thrilled to announce ‘ACM Presents: Our Country,’ an all-new special that allows fans to connect with their favorite Country artists and to relive some of the greatest moments of the ACM Awards, all from the comfort and safety of their own homes.”
“Music has always served as a powerful form of hope and solidarity during challenging times,” said Amy Thurlow, President, dick clark productions. “It’s our privilege to offer audiences an uplifting message through music as well as a look back at some of the best moments in ACM Awards history.”
“Broadcast television and music have always been mediums that bring people together,” said Jack Sussman, Executive Vice President, Specials, Music and Live Events, CBS Entertainment. “From their living rooms to yours, CBS is pleased to partner with the ACM and dick clark productions to have some of today’s biggest country artists connect with and entertain fans in an intimate way while allowing everyone to stay safe.”
ACM PRESENTS: OUR COUNTRY will broadcast during the time slot previously scheduled for the 55th Academy of Country Music Awards, which are postponed to air on CBS in September, at a date, time and venue to be determined.
For more information on the ACM Awards and all ACM events, visit ACMcountry.com. You can also like Academy of Country Music on Facebook or follow on Twitter at @ACMawards, follow on Instagram at @ACMawards and sign up for the FREE ACM A-List for more immediate updates.
About ACM® PRESENTS: OUR COUNTRY ACM® PRESENTS: OUR COUNTRY invites fans to join their favorite superstars for a new kind of entertainment special featuring at-home acoustic performances with top Country artists along with clips of their favorite moments from the Academy of Country Music Awards’™ 55-year history. ACM PRESENTS: OUR COUNTRY is produced for television by dick clark productions. R.A. Clark, Barry Adelman, Mark Bracco and Amy Thurlow are executive producers. Damon Whiteside is executive producer for the Academy of Country Music®.
About dick clark productions dick clark productions (dcp) is the world’s largest producer and proprietor of televised live event entertainment programming with the “Academy of Country Music Awards,” “American Music Awards,” “Billboard Music Awards,” “Golden Globe Awards,” “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest” and the “Streamy Awards.” Weekly television programming includes “So You Think You Can Dance” from 19 Entertainment and dcp. dcp also owns one of the world’s most unique and extensive entertainment archive libraries with over 60 years of award-winning shows, historic programs, specials, performances and legendary programming. dcp is a division of Valence Media, a diversified and integrated media company with divisions and strategic investments in television, film, live entertainment, digital media and publishing. For additional information, visit www.dickclark.com.
WHO: Reigning CMA New Artist of the Year and ACM New Female Artist winner Ashley McBryde made her debut with Girl Going Nowhere, landing her a GRAMMY nomination for Best Country Album in 2019, with seminal track “Girl Goin’ Nowhere” gaining two GRAMMY nominations in 2020. Both Rolling Stone and NPR have highlighted her follow-up Never Will as one of the most-anticipated records of the year.
WHAT: McBryde goes live on Facebook to perform select songs and check in with fans during this unprecedented time. Today’s Facebook live encourages donations to MusiCares.
MusiCares provides a safety net of critical assistance for those in the music industry in times of need. MusiCares’ services and resources cover a wide range of financial, medical and personal emergencies. MusiCares also focuses the resources and attention of the music industry on human service issues that directly influence the health and welfare of the music community.
About Ashley McBryde Ashley McBryde learned how to sing sad songs in a biker bar off a rural Arkansas highway––and it shows. Her 2018 major label debut Girl Going Nowhere (Warner Music Nashville) charmed the New York Times, NPR, Rolling Stone, Paste, The Washington Post, and more, all en route to landing a GRAMMY nomination for Best Country Album. McBryde closed out 2019 with ACM New Female Artist, CMT Breakout Artist of the Year, a New Artist of the Year win at the 53rd Annual CMA Awards and two nominations for the 2020 GRAMMYs for Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance for “Girl Goin’ Nowhere.” When she confirmed April 3, 2020, as the release date for her follow-up Never Will, Rolling Stone tagged the record as one of the most anticipated of the year. So did NPR, who also ranked lead single “One Night Standards” as one of the best songs of 2019. Produced once again by Jay Joyce, Never Will reveals the witty, confessional, detail-driven songwriting addressing a wide spectrum of blue-collar Southern women’s experience introduced on Girl Going Nowhere is still here, but perhaps even sharper. The music itself is stadium-ready rock-and-roll with a bluegrass wink or two and country music’s storytelling heart––and McBryde, no longer new, is the music’s ordained and highly capable standard bearer. For more information, visit AshleyMcBryde.com or follow her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AshleyMcBryde, Instagram @AshleyMcBryde and Twitter at @AshleyMcBryde.
Live Broadcast Featuring Special Guests Michael Ray, Aaron Tippin, Austin Merrill, T. Graham Brown and Katie Austin Set for Tonight, Wednesday, March 18, at 8/7c
Concert to be Hosted by Inside Edition’s Megan Alexander; Sponsored by Foundry Records
Nashville, Tenn. (March 18, 2020) — During a time of national uncertainty, GRAMMY® Award-winning country music group Shenandoah is looking to brighten spirits with a special Facebook Live performance event that will bring music to the masses. Today the legendary country band announced “Keep the Music Playing,” a free live-streamed concert set for tonight, Wednesday, March 18, at 8/7c. Amid concert postponements nationwide, the event will provide a unique opportunity for fans to enjoy live performances from the comfort of their living rooms. Shenandoah has enlisted Michael Ray, Aaron Tippin, T. Graham Brown, Austin Merrill, and Katie Austin to join them during the live web broadcast. The event, sponsored by Foundry Records and hosted by Inside Edition’s Megan Alexander, will take place at Nashville’s SIR Rehearsal Studios with no live audience and minimal staff. “The main mission here is to hopefully, with music as only music can, bring some sunshine to the gloom,” says Shenandoah frontman Marty Raybon. “We’ll be taking all of the recommended precautions to ensure everyone’s safety.” Butch Spyridon, president and CEO of the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp, is thrilled about the event. “We are happy to see artists doing everything they can to ‘Keep the Music Playing’ during these challenging times as we try to keep the virus from spreading,” he says. “Seeing all the ways that live music is still being shared is part of the creative spirit in Music City.” Though the event is free to view online, the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp Foundation / Music City, Inc will be accepting donations throughout the live broadcast. All donations will aid Middle Tennesseans who have been affected by COVID-19 and the recent tornadoes that ravaged the area. “It has taken an army of people to put this event together in less than 24 hours,” notes Foundry Records/Johnstone Entertainment’s Cole Johnstone. “I want to give special thanks to SIR Nashville, Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp, 2911 Media, TNDV and Nic Dugger, Mama Sue, Absolute Publicity, Shenandoah’s band and crew, all of our guest artists, and the Foundry Records staff for making this possible.” “Keep the Music Playing” will be live streamed on each artist’s Facebook page and can also be viewed at smarturl.it/KeepTheMusicPlaying How to donate: Donate online at visitmusiccity.com/nashvillestrong/donate Text NASHSTRONG to 615-551-5122 Check: payable to Music City Inc. at 150 4th Avenue North, Ste. G-250, Nashville, TN 37219*Music City Inc. is a 501c3 non-profit organizationAbout Shenandoah: Shenandoah originally formed in Muscle Shoals, Alabama in 1985. The band has charted 26 singles on the Billboard Hot Country charts, including No. 1 hits “The Church on Cumberland Road,” “Sunday in the South” and “Two Dozen Roses” from 1989, “Next to You, Next to Me” from 1990, and “If Bubba Can Dance (I Can Too)” from 1994. The single “Somewhere in the Vicinity of the Heart,” which featured guest vocals from Alison Krauss, won both artists a GRAMMY®, Award for “Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.” To date, the group has sold millions of albums worldwide and is a recipient of the Academy of Country Music’s coveted “Vocal Group of the Year” award.
Encino, CA (March 15, 2020) – The 55th Academy of Country Music Awards™ scheduled to air live on the CBS Television Network on Sunday, April 5th from Las Vegas is postponed and will be rescheduled to air on CBS in September, at a date, time and venue to be determined. The health and safety of our artists, fans, industry, staff and partners is our number one priority.
“The ACM Awards® is a tentpole event for our Country Music industry, and the Academy of Country Music® and dick clark productions went to great lengths to find a safe solution for the show to go on so that we can honor our artist community. This decision involved many partners, stakeholders and the industry who we have been in constant conversations with over the past several days as the situation has developed. We look forward to identifying a future date that we can celebrate with our Country community safely,” said Damon Whiteside, CEO of the Academy of Country Music.
Refunds will be issued for tickets purchased for the ACM Awards and ACM Party for a Cause® events, including ACM Lifting Lives® Topgolf Tee-Off and ACM Beach Bash. Please monitor our ACM website and social accounts for information on how to claim your refund.
March 12, 2020 – As the nation continues to mourn the tragic loss of life and devastation across many communities in Tennessee caused by destructive tornadoes last week, relief efforts are greatly needed, and many are currently already underway locally. PepsiCo’s MTN DEW brand, which was born in Tennessee more than 80 years ago, wants to chip in on the recovery of its home state by putting on a free livestream (filmed from The George Jones in Nashville), with the hope of raising money for Team Rubicon Relief Efforts within Nashville and surrounding areas.
MTN DEW will match all donations up to $50,000 on the night of the livestream. Fans are encouraged to enjoy the musical showcase and make donations by tuning into the iHeartMedia livestream.
“MTN DEW has such a rich history in Tennessee and we are just heart-broken by the loss of life and sheer destruction caused by these storms,” said Chauncey Hamlett, CMO, PepsiCo Beverages North America, South Division. “The nation is mourning, our local communities, our South Division employees in the area are in a tremendous amount of pain, so we knew we had to help in any way we could.”
“Nashville is our home – it’s where we live, raise our families, and write and create music,” said Preston Brust of LOCASH. “Chris and I wanted to help our beautiful city, state and community, and when we heard that the folks at MTN DEW were looking to help raise some money and give people an opportunity to start the healing and rebuilding process, we of course jumped at the chance.”
“After the tornado struck Middle Tennessee last week, it was inspiring to see Nashville and its surrounding communities come together and become a family,” said Tyler Farr. “I’m very blessed and thankful to be a part of the Nashville and Middle Tennessee community.”
“Nashville has been my home for the last couple of years and I am deeply thankful for the first responders and volunteers who were at the scene lending a hand to everyone effected by this tragedy,” said Caleb Lee Hutchinson. “It has been incredible seeing the amount of people stepping up to help in times of tragedy and I wanted to do anything I could to help out as well.”
“The Nashville area holds a very special place in my and my team’s hearts,” said Rod Phillips, Executive VP of Country Programming, iHeartMedia. “We knew we had to do something to support the community that has done so much for us at iHeartCountry and are proud to partner with the team at MTN DEW to put on a special musical showcase to support the local responders through Team Rubicon.”
MARCH 10, 2020 – MEDIA ALERT At the direction of the County of Riverside and local health authorities, we must sadly confirm the rescheduling of Coachella and Stagecoach due to COVID-19 concerns. While this decision comes at a time of universal uncertainty, we take the safety and health of our guests, staff and community very seriously. We urge everyone to follow the guidelines and protocols put forth by public health officials. Coachella will now take place on October 9, 10 and 11 and October 16, 17 and 18, 2020. Stagecoach will take place on October 23, 24 and 25, 2020. All purchases for the April dates will be honored for the rescheduled October dates. Purchasers will be notified by Friday, March 13 on how to obtain a refund if they are unable to attend. Thank you for your continued support and we look forward to seeing you in the desert this fall.
Humanitarian Relief Effort funds to support local recovery efforts in response to the recent damage caused by tornadoes in middle Tennessee
NASHVILLE, Tenn. / TAMPA, Fla. (March 6, 2020) – Rock This Town®, a program of the IRONMAN®Foundation and the charitable program for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series® has launched a Humanitarian Relief Effort campaign to raise critical funds in response to the major damage caused by the tornadoes in middle Tennessee. Funds raised will support recovery efforts and service projects in the greater race community for the St. Jude Rock ‘n’ Roll® Nashville Marathon & ½ Marathon taking place on April 25-26, 2020.
With community being a core pillar of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series, Rock This Town is dedicated to creating a positive impact across event city locations through grant funding and volunteerism. To support local relief efforts the IRONMAN Foundation has matched the $10,000 donation made by the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp. to the Music City Inc. Foundation.
“We stand with the staff of The IRONMAN Group regional office in Nashville along with the local community and call upon our greater IRONMAN and Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series community to join us in helping bring assistance in this time of need,” said Sarah Hartmann, Executive Director of the IRONMAN Foundation. “The areas affected will require ongoing assistance and donations, and service projects will be critically important for their continued recovery efforts.”
In an effort to give back to the local Nashville community, Rock This Town will offer a hands-on Service Project Day taking place on Sunday, April 26 to assist the community with rebuilding. Additional information can be found at www.ironmanfoundation.org/relief. ;
To help raise funds for those in need, the IRONMAN Foundation has set up three ways to help with the Nashville Relief Effort: DONATE – All donations will fund Rock This Town Humanitarian Relief Effort Grants awarded at the 2020 St. Jude Rock ‘n’ Roll Nashville Marathon & ½ Marathon. T-SHIRT SALES – 100% of the proceeds raised through the sale of a custom “Nashville Strong” Relief T-Shirt will go towards Rock This Town’s Humanitarian Relief Effort Grants. VOLUNTEER – Register to volunteer and provide hands-on recovery assistance at the local service project planned for Sunday, April 26 in Nashville. “We cannot thank the IRONMAN Foundation and Rock This Town enough,” said Butch Spyridon, President and CEO, Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp. “We have been partners on the marathon for more than 20 years, and their generosity is evidence of how deep the partnership is.”
For full details on the Humanitarian Relief Effort and how to donate, purchase t-shirts or volunteer, visitwww.ironmanfoundation.org/relief. To learn more information on the St. Jude Rock ‘n’ Roll Nashville Marathon & ½ Marathon, visit www.runrocknroll.com/Nashville. For more information on the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series, please visit www.RunRocknRoll.com. Media-related inquiries should be directed to press@runrocknroll.com. ### About the IRONMAN Foundation The IRONMAN Foundation creates positive, tangible change in race communities by engaging athletes and volunteers to participate in programs that demonstrate service through sport and commitment to the community. Since 2003, over $50,000,000 has been provided through giveback programs led by the IRONMAN Foundation to more than 9,500 local, regional, national and global nonprofit initiatives. Through these partnerships, IRONMAN and Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series participants are powerfully linked to the community and together help leave a positive legacy behind in race communities long after event day. For more information on IRONMAN Foundation programs, including Team IMF, Community Fund, Rock This Town®, Your Journey Your Cause, and Women For Tri, visit www.ironmanfoundation.org.
About Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series The Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series® is the world’s largest running series taking part in over 30 destination events around the world every year. Established in 1998, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series simple idea of making running fun has transformed both the U.S. and global running landscape by infusing the course with live bands, cheer teams and entertaining water stations, creating a block-party atmosphere for participants and spectators alike. Focused on running, music and community, race weekend kicks off with a free Health & Fitness Expo showcasing the latest in running gear, sports apparel, health and nutritional information and much more. Events culminate with an entertaining finish-line festival featuring some of the biggest names in music, with past performances including Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, O.A.R. Aloe Blacc, Pitbull, Flo Rida, The Band Perry, Fitz and the Tantrums, the Goo Goo Dolls and Bret Michaels. Further information about the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series can be found online at www.RunRocknRoll.com and follow @RunRocknRoll on all social platforms.
About The IRONMAN Group As part of Wanda Sports Group, The IRONMAN Group operates a global portfolio of events that includes the IRONMAN® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN® 70.3® Triathlon Series, 5150™ Triathlon Series, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series®, IRONKIDS®, ITU World Triathlon Series, premier running events including the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon™ and The Sun-Herald City2Surf® presented by Westpac, Ultra-Trail® World Tour events including Tarawera Ultra and Ultra-Trail Australia™, mountain bike races including the Absa Cape Epic®, road cycling events, and other multisport races. The IRONMAN Group is the largest operator of mass participation sports in the world and provides more than a million participants annually the benefits of endurance sports through the company’s vast offerings. Since the inception of the iconic IRONMAN® brand and its first event in 1978, athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE® by crossing finish lines around the world. Beginning as a single race, The IRONMAN Group has grown to become a global sensation with more than 235 events across 55+ countries. For more information, visit www.ironman.com.
About Wanda Sports Group Wanda Sports Group (Nasdaq: WSG) is a leading global sports events, media and marketing platform with a mission to unite people in sports and enable athletes and fans to live their passions and dreams. Through our businesses, including Infront and The IRONMAN Group, we have significant intellectual property rights, long-term relationships and broad execution capabilities, enabling us to deliver unrivaled sports event experiences, creating access to engaging content and building inclusive communities. We offer a comprehensive array of events, marketing and media services through three primary segments: Mass Participation, Spectator Sports and Digital, Production, Sports Solutions (DPSS). Our full-service platform creates value for our partners and clients as well as other stakeholders in the sports ecosystem, from rights owners, to brands and advertisers, and to fans and athletes. Headquartered in Beijing, China, Wanda Sports Group has more than 60 offices and 1,600 employees around the world.
NASHVILLE – March 5, 2020 – Earlier this evening, CMT partnered with the American Red Cross, and WSMV News4 for the “Rebuilding Nashville Telethon” raising funds for those affected by the deadly tornadoes that hit the Nashville area earlier this week. Donations are still being encouraged and accepted via RedCross.org/CMT.
Some of country music’s biggest stars including Blanco Brown, Cassadee Pope, Lady Antebellum’s Charles Kelley & Dave Haywood, Devin Dawson, Gavin DeGraw, Kalie Shorr, Kid Rock, Sam Palladio, Sarah Darling, Travis Denning, Whitney Duncan and more joined CMT’s Cody Alan and WSMV’s Tom Reynolds LIVE from CMT Studios in the heart of downtown Nashville to answer phones, share personal stories and encourage support of relief efforts in Middle Tennessee.
In the first 30 minutes, the telethon raised over $100K via live phone bank donations to the American Red Cross Southern Tornado and Flood Relief Program. When the WSMV News4’s broadcast ended at 7:30 p.m. CT, some $385K had been raised. Updated totals will be posted periodically via social media @CMT.
Donations to the American Red Cross include…
$100K presented live on-air from Big Machine Label Group’s Scott Borchetta
$25K from CoreCivic
$75K from Smile Direct Club
$50K from Kid Rock Foundation
Visit CMTPress.com, CMT.com and @CMT on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for the latest updates.
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About CMT: CMT is the leading authority on country music and lifestyle, offering a mix of original series, music events and specials. CMT is everywhere its fans are including two cable channels (CMT and the 24-hour music channel, CMT Music), radio (CMT Radio), digital (CMT.com) and social (CMT on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube). CMT is a unit of ViacomCBS Inc. (Nasdaq: VIACA, VIAC) (“ViacomCBS”). For more information, please visit cmtpress.com.
CMT officially launched its CMT Equal Play, the brand’s year-long initiative to create measurable industry-wide action to dramatically increase female representation in country music and create a path for parity in 2020. The event took place in front of a standing-room only crowd at The Steps at WME’s Nashville headquarters.
To kick off the evening, Fram introduced Coleman Insights’ Sam Milkman and Jessica Lichtenfeld for an overview of CMT’s Equal Play Radio Research, debunking the myth that listeners don’t want to hear women on the radio. Released earlier on Tuesday, the new research revealed first-of-its-kind insights into country radio listeners habits and attitudes toward female artists. The duo reiterated top finding from the study, including 84% of all listeners want equal play for female artists and 7 in 10 of listeners want more female artists in country music.
Following the explanation of the research, Fram moderated an open discussion with Milkman, Dr. Jada E. Watson (University of Ottawa), Cody Alan (Host/Executive Producer, CMT Radio) and industry veterans Cris Lacy (Senior Vice President, A&R, Warner Music Nashville) and Mike Molinar (General Manager, Big Machine Music).
Watson discussed her own newly released research in partnership with CMT Equal Play, which found a consistent thread of only10 percent representation of women on country radio with women receiving one-tenth of all daily spins, annual airplay, Top 20 songs, Top 10 songs, and songs of year-end country radio charts.
CMT Radio’s Cody Alan discussed his own 50/50 pledge for female and male artists on CMT Radio Live and expressed the need for more recurrent songs to be in rotations from country legends such as Martina McBride and Reba McEntire to help acclimate listeners to hearing more female voices.
Big Machine’s Mike Molinar shared the success female songwriters are finding in the industry, pointing out they represented five of the six Number 1 singles so far in 2020. The group also discussed the need for songs to climb the charts faster, in order to make room for more music and to build strong fan bases for touring artists.
Warner Music Nashville’s Cris Lacy referenced the label’s roster of top rising female artists Ashley McBryde, Gabby Barrett and Ingrid Andress and the desire for the best talent to succeed, regardless of gender, but shared the difficulties in finding songs for female artists. She also challenged other label executives and managers to pitch songwriting demos with male voices to their female artists.
“Women are fascinating!” Lacy concluded. “I mean, that’s what is so crazy about all of this, is that women are so interesting. We have so many stories to tell…They’re so open with their feelings and they’re so honest, that it’s heartbreaking that this is a piece that’s missing when we shut them out.”
For more information, read CMT.com’s event recap HERE and visit CMTEqualPlay.com. Follow @CMT on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube and use #CMTEqualPlay to join the conversation.
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About CMT: CMT is the leading authority on country music and lifestyle, offering a mix of original series, music events and specials. CMT is everywhere its fans are including two cable channels (CMT and the 24-hour music channel, CMT Music), radio (CMT Radio), digital (CMT.com) and social (CMT on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube). CMT is a unit of ViacomCBS Inc. (Nasdaq: VIACA, VIAC) (“ViacomCBS”). For more information, please visit cmtpress.com.
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