Music News (3/2/16)

Songwriters Hall of Fame Preps June Ceremony in NYC

Songwriters Hall of Fame 2016 inductions include Elvis Costello, Marvin Gaye (posthumously), Tom Petty, Nile Rodgers, Bernard Edwards (posthumously) and Chip Taylor (“Wild Thing” and “Angel of the Morning”).

The Songwriters Hall of Fame’s 47th annual Induction and Awards Dinner will be held Thursday, June 9 in New York City. Additional special award honorees will be announced soon.

A&R Shift at Round Hill

Pictured (L-R): Penny Gattis, Kari Smith

Round Hill Music has added Penny Gattis to the position of Senior Director of A&R in the company’s Nashville office. Gattis is the former Director of Writer/Publisher Relations in BMI’s Nashville office. Previous director of the position, Kari Smith, exited to launch management company Hear Candy Music. Smith continues to work with Round Hill Music on behalf of Marti Frederiksen’s joint venture, Riding Songs.

While at BMI, Gattis developed new opportunities for BMI songwriters and publishers. She launched Sync THIS!, an exclusive, two-day networking and musical discovery gathering designed to connect Nashville talent and tastemakers with top music supervisors in 2013. Also, she helped create and coordinate BMI’s substantial calendar of local and national songwriter-focused showcases, seminars, and other events including Lollapalooza, Hangout, ACL, Key West Songwriter Festival, Fontanel Winter Songwriter Retreat, Maui Songwriter Festival, East Side Sounds and many more.

AIMP Publishing Panel

Pictured: Row One: Steve Markland, Marc Driskill, Chris Farren, Mark Brown; Row Two: Kari Barnhart (5/3 Bank) Denise Nichols (The Primacy Firm), John Ozier (AIMP Ex. Director/ole}, Ree Guyer Buchanan (AIMP Treasurer/Wrensong Music), Randy Wachtler (Warner/Chappell Production Music), Craig Currier (peermusic), Brad Peterson (5/3 Bank), John Allen (New West Records/Publishing).

The Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP) Nashville and Fifth Third Bank hosted a full house for “The State of Independent Music Publishing” panel. Held Feb. 24 at ASCAP’s Connie Bradley Board Room and moderated by John Allen, panelists Mark Brown (Round Hill Music), Marc Driskill (Sea Gayle Music), Chris Farren (Combustion Music), and Steve Markland (Downtown Music Publishing) discussed current trends in music publishing, changing royalty environments and plans for 2016.

Ben Caver Signs To Black River Publishing

Pictured (L-R): Kelly Bolton, Catalog Manager, Black River Publishing; Dave Pacula, Creative Director, Black River Publishing; Ben Caver; Celia Froehlig, Vice President of Black River Publishing; Gordon Kerr, CEO, Black River Entertainment.

Vice President of Black River Publishing Celia Froehlig has announced the signing of Ben Caver to the Black River Publishing roster. Ben Caver grew up in Hoover, Alabama, and moved to Nashville after graduation to attend Belmont University. Prior to signing with Black River Publishing, Caver had business relationships with Sony/ATV, UMPG, and Patrick Joseph Music.

Caver penned “Relapse” for Carrie Underwood’s Storyteller project, “Aftermath” for Rascal Flatts’ Rewind, “I Remember You” for Trisha Yearwood’s Prizefighter album, and “‘Merica,” from Kenny Rogers’ You Can’t Make Old Friends.

Banner Music Signs Jerry Salley

From Left to Right: James Robert Webb, Camilla Kleindienst, Jerry Salley and Daniel Kleindienst. Photo: Bev Moser/Moments By Moser

Banner Music has signed singer/songwriter Jerry Salley, co-writer “Outlaw State of Mind” on Chris Stapleton’s Grammy-winning country album, Traveller.

SESAC’s Country Songwriter of the Year in 2003, Salley has penned over 400 cuts in country, bluegrass and gospel genres. His extensive talent has garnered him recordings by multiple artists such as Sir Elton John (“Where We Both Say Goodbye”—a duet with Australian artist Catherine Britt), Reba McEntire (“I’m Gonna Take That Mountain” and “Close To Crazy”), and includes the Dove Awards’ 1990 Inspirational Song of the Year, “His Strength is Perfect”, co-written with and recorded by Steven Curtis Chapman and now found in church hymnals. In 2015, Salley released the bluegrass/gospel project Gospel From My Grassroots that includes guest vocals from Chapman.

UMG Nashville Signs ole Songwriter Jordan Davis

Pictured (Front Row, L-R): UMG Nashville Chairman & CEO Mike Dungan; Jordan Davis; UMG Nashville Vice President A&R Stephanie Wright. (Back Row, L-R): UMG Nashville Senior Vice President A&R Brian Wright; UMG Nashville Vice President Business and Legal Affairs Rob Femia; UMG Nashville Senior Vice President Promotion Royce Risser; UMG Nashville President Cindy Mabe; UMG Nashville Senior Vice President and COO Mike Harris. Photo: Alain Poizner

Universal Music Group Nashville has signed singer/songwriter Jordan Davis, who is currently working on his debut album.

A native of Shreveport, Louisiana, Jordan attended LSU where he studied resource conservation. He moved to Nashville after graduating and in 2015 signed a publishing deal with ole. Davis has opened for Chase Rice, Josh Abbott Band, Tracy Lawrence, David Nail and more.