ACM Tempo Spring/Summer 2020

TEMPO ACM

SPRING/SUMMER 2020

ACM AWARDS NOMINEES

A COMPLETE LIST

LIFTING LIVES COVID-19 RESPONSE FUND HELPS THE COUNTRY MUSIC COMMUNITY

UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT

New Academy CEO Damon Whiteside on his vision for the ACM’s future

Heart and

HITS

Host KEITH URBAN brings the 55th ACM AWARDS to fans LIVE FROM NASHVILLE

TUNE IN | THE 55TH ACM AWARDS | WED SEPT 16 8/7c

Contents 4

Editor’s Note

6

CEO’s Note

10

ACM News

36

In Memory

46

ACM Moment 30

16 | INTERNAL COMBUSTION Meet the smart and energetic interns that helped keep the ACM engine running 20 | SUPPORTING THE COUNTRY MUSIC COMMUNITY ACM Lifting Lives COVID-19 Response Fund provides more than $1 million to those in need 22 | HOLDING ON TO THE REINS In an unprecedented year, new ACM CEO Damon Whiteside is a steady force in the middle of pandemic chaos

On the Cover

Reigning ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR KEITH URBAN steps into the role of host for the 55th Academy of Country Music Awards®

30 | ACM NOMINEES A complete list of this year’s contenders

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PAGE 24

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34 | GIVING TREE ACM Lifting Lives names grant recipients 36 | CELEBRATING THE LIVES AND MUSIC OF Kenny Rogers, Charlie Daniels, Joe Diffie, John Prine and more

ON THE COVER: ACM Entertainer of the Year Keith Urban photographed February 27th in Nashville. Photograph by Russ Harrington/CBS

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TEMPO ACM

E D ITO R ’ S N OTE

E ditor

Lisa Lee A ssistant E ditor

Libby Gardner

Hello in There

C ontributors

Tricia Despres, Craig Shelburne D esign

Randi Karabin, Karabin Creative P rinting

Graphic Visions

ow are you?”

“I’m fine, hanging in there.”

How many times have you had that same conversation since life as we knew it ground to a halt last spring? We say “fine” because we don’t want to admit what we’re really feeling. That we’re scared of what lies ahead. And let’s face it, most of us don’t like asking for help. Living in a world during a pandemic has been a roller coaster of panic and jumbled thoughts.

“If I go to the grocery store, will I catch the virus?”

“What’s going to happen when the kids go back to school?”

“Are my parents going to be okay?”

But then, after all the worry, that one song comes on, the one that always makes us feel that everything is somehow going to be OK. The melody that quiets our minds and gives us peace. That song is different for everyone, but whether ballad or rocker, it reminds us of the power of music and gives us what we need most right now: comfort and hope.

We’ll feel that same comfort and hope when the 55th Academy of Country Music Awards airs Sept. 16th on CBS. This year’s amazing slate of nominees is proof that Country Music is as strong as ever, with more interesting voices joining the chorus every year. Wait till you see what the awards show producers have in store for you! Dubbed A Night of Heart and Hits — LIVE From Nashville, it’ll be just the boost you need from your favorite artists. Not only are we going to Nashville for the first time in the Academy’s history, but we’re also coming from three iconic Music City venues: The Grand Ole Opry House, the Ryman Auditorium and the Bluebird Café. The ACM Awards will officially become part of those hallowed venues’ echoes. Our host, reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year Keith Urban, has played every one. For our cover story, he shares memories of those stages, talks about his new hosting gig and fills us in on what he’s been doing in quarantine.

Even in the midst of a lockdown, so many great things have come together for this year’s show. The ACM Awards New Artist Nominees’ cover of “On The Road Again,” with a special cameo by legend and ACM Award winner Willie Nelson, the launch of our new online site THE HUB and a stellar list of awards show performances to come. We thank all the artist camps for helping gather footage for us and making great content to promote the upcoming show. We appreciate you!

We might not get to hang out or hug each other like we used to, but we’re still a Country Music family. These days we need to spread that feeling around as much as possible. Coronavirus stole the brilliant John Prine from us, but not his words.

As he used to sing, “…people just grow lonesome Waiting for someone to say, “Hello in there, hello.”

Stay safe everyone.

Sincerely,

Lisa Lee Editor

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P hotos

ACM, Getty Images, Country Radio Seminar ACADEMY STAFF CEO

Damon Whiteside S enior Vice P resident/C reative & C ontent

Lisa Lee

S enior Vice P resident/Events

Erick Long

S enior Vice P resident/M arketing

Brooke Primero

Vice P resident/Finance & O perations

Alexa Fasheh

Vice P resident/A rtist & I ndustry R elations ; G overnance & B oard A dministration

Tommy Moore

E xecutive D irector/ACM L ifting L ives

Lyndsay Cruz

D irector/Strategic Partnerships

Jen Heaton

S enior Video M anager/C reative & C ontent

Brandon Campbell

S enior M anager/M arketing

Melissa Moldovan

M anager/Awards & M embership

Carrie Tekautz

M anager/M arketing

Jessica Curtis

M anager/Events

Lanni Gagnon

M anager/A rtist & I ndustry R elations ; G overnance & B oard A dministration

Maddy Stessman

M anager/Finance & O perations

Mary Pambukyan

C oordinator/Events

Danielle Bardier

C oordinator/M arketing

Bridget Cirone

C oordinator/Strategic Partnerships

Jenny Dunn

C oordinator/C reative & C ontent

Libby Gardner

C oordinator/ACM L ifting L ives

Taylor Wolf

A ssistant/ Finance & O perations

Gloria Chavez

A ssistant/C reative & C ontent

Hannah Kellis

A ssistant/M arketing

Dayna Poskanzer I nterns

Albany Alexander – Marketing Danielle Chade – Strategic Partnership Danaya Dews - Creative & Content Megan Dunn - Marketing Jake Eisenman - Events Carrie McDonough - Marketing Hannah Morrow - ACM Lifting Lives Nicole Tancredi - Operations & Events Madison Young - Artist & Industry Relations

FRO M TH E CEO

To Our Valued Academy Members, When I started in January as your new CEO, I would never have imagined the year would have turned out the way it has! Our staff was focused on executing a successful 55th ACM Awards ceremony in April in Las Vegas along with the two sold-out Party for a Cause® events benefitting ACM Lifting Lives®. Our two favorite words at the Academy have become “pivot” and “innovate” and that’s just what we did this year, time and time again. I am proud that as we are on the brink of finally bringing our ACM Awards® show to life in Nashville for the first time in our history, that through the passion and dedication of our Board of Directors and staff, we have been able to make lemonade out of lemons (another one of our favorite sayings) and create one of the Academy’s most landmark years.

The first quarter of 2020 brought a devastating tornado that hit Nashville with little warning and ultimately destroyed homes, offices and businesses. Our ACM Lifting Lives Board sprang into action by creating a tornado fund via the Diane Holcomb Emergency Relief Fund to support those who were affected by the tornado and also literally got their hands dirty by helping to clear debris in a flattened neighborhood as part of an ACM Volunteer Day. It was not long after that a mysterious and scary virus, named COVID-19, hit America and quickly shut down much of our music industry. ACM Lifting Lives sprung into action again by quickly creating, funding and distributing nearly $1.4 million directly to hundreds of Country Music professionals that were suddenly in financial crisis.

When it became certain that the ACM Awards and the weekend that “Vegas Goes Country™” were going to have to be postponed, the Academy, our Executive Producer RAC Clark and our partners at dick clark productions and CBS quickly pivoted in an effort to safely bring our artists into the homes of our fans on April 5, and produced one of the first at-home specials, ACM Presents: Our Country. The innovative show featured 21 performances taped by the artists themselves in their own homes. While this has become a very popular format since then, this show was unique and brought comfort to over 10 million fans during the uncertain times.

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As artists became prolific with live stream concerts and were looking for ways to connect with their fans while live shows were cancelled, in July the ACM launched The Hub, an online destination for fans to discover new music, online events, playlists, photos, social content and merchandise from their favorite artists.

The biggest pivot of this year by far was the decision to move the 55th ACM Awards to Nashville.

Not only will the show broadcast live from Music City on September 16, it will celebrate its legacy by taking place at the city’s most iconic music venues — The Grand Ole Opry House, the Ryman Auditorium, and the Bluebird Café. Now the innovation comes into play — the Academy’s first awards show in Nashville and the first time an awards show has broadcast from these three venues. This strategy allows the ACM to celebrate the important history of Country Music while also keeping our artists and industry safe by hosting the show in their hometown.

With all of the uncertainty and safety measures changing daily, there is much to still be determined about the show, but what is certain is that it will be a memorable night of heart and hits that will bring some of our greatest artists live into the homes of our fans for the first time since the pandemic, and doing what only Country Music can do — creating comfort and happiness across America.

I am thankful to represent this industry to the world, and I thank all of our Board, Staff, members, artists and industry who are giving their time to support the Academy through this challenging year, and I hope you feel supported in return. I encourage you to let me know about your ACM experiences and share your feedback or ideas for the future.

Once we successfully deliver this year’s Awards show, I look forward to tackling the other critical strategic priorities that have been identified by our Board of Directors. I will work hard to represent you and the best genre in the world — Country Music!

Thank you for being my partner in this adventure.

Damon

kelsea

the new album from kelsea ballerini featuring the hit singles hole in the bottle and the other girl (with halsey)

biggest debut week for a country album released by a female in 2020 “kelsea ballerini is definitely one of the most influential women in country right now... she’s defining the sound of the genre.”

- npr all songs considered

INTRODUCING

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55th ACM Awards Makes Historic Move

T

he year 2020 has been one for the record books in many ways, and the Academy of Country Music also set a milestone. The 55th ACM Awards were scheduled for April at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, but the show had to be postponed for the first time in Academy history.

When the Covid-19 pandemic hit in the spring, stay-at-home orders were established in midMarch. All tours and concerts were postponed, keeping Country artists off the road. That forced show producers to come up with an alternative plan. After an exhaustive nationwide search for a new venue, the show landed in Music City in three of its most iconic venues: The Bluebird Café, The Ryman Auditorium and the Grand Ole Opry House.

“While we were disappointed to postpone our April show in Las Vegas, we couldn’t be more thrilled to host the rescheduled 55th ACM Awards in the home of Country Music for the first time in the Academy’s history,” said ACM CEO Damon Whiteside.

“First and foremost, we want to

ensure the safety of our artists and industry, and to ease the burdens of traveling large teams; therefore, we decided to bring the ACM Awards to them this September in Nashville. Now, more than ever, is the time to bring our community together to honor the best in our genre, and there is no more special place to do that than three of the most revered venues in Country Music — The Grand Ole Opry House, The Ryman Auditorium and The Bluebird Cafe.”

As always, the health and safety of the artists, fans, industry, staff and partners is of the utmost importance. All guidelines set forth by national, state and local health officials will continue to be closely followed and implemented during the production along with additional safety measures to be instated by dick clark productions and the Academy of Country Music.

The 55th ACM Awards, hosted

by Keith Urban will broadcast Wednesday, Sept. 16 (live 8pm ET/7pm CT/delayed PT) on the CBS Television Network and will stream live and on demand on CBS All Access.

WATCH THE ACM AWARDS IN STYLE The 55th ACM Awards will head to Nashville for the first time in the Academy’s history taking on three iconic venues including the Grand Ole Opry, the Ryman Auditorium, and the Bluebird Café. While you may not be able to attend the show in style, you can still watch in style at home.

Get your exclusive 55th ACM Awards merchandise NOW to remember this historic night and don’t forget to tune in to the 55th ACM Awards on Wednesday, ADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC | September 16 atA C8/7c only on CBS.

2020 ACM Awards Nashville T-Shirt

Shop now at acmcountry.com.

55 TH

front : lighter palet te

K AR ABINCRE ATIVE

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COUNTRY COMFORTS With the postponement of the 55th ACM Awards, the Academy and partners at dick clark productions joined with Country artists for a new two-hour music special called ACM® Presents: Our Country.

The broadcast special, which aired April 5 on CBS, featured conversations and memorable at-home acoustic performances with top Country artists including Kelsea Ballerini, Dierks Bentley, Kane Brown & John Legend, Luke Bryan, Brandi Carlile, Eric Church, Luke Combs, Sheryl Crow, Florida Georgia Line, Lady A, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town, Tim McGraw, Old Dominion, Brad Paisley & Darius Rucker, Thomas Rhett, Blake Shelton & Gwen Stefani, Shania Twain, Carrie Underwood and Keith.

This not only kept fans entertained, but also served as a reprieve and source of familiarity during these uneasy times.

During the broadcast, artists weren’t the only ones giving intimate glances into their lives. Through social media, fans shared their own moments as they danced and sang along during the performances, proving once again that music connects and comforts us all.

STAY CONNECTED WITH “ACM: THE HUB” As the coronavirus left many people in quarantine and feeling disconnected from society, artists responded by taking to social media. Live stream performances and direct artist engagement with fans flooded the internet. The Academy, quick to recognize this plethora of content, and fans’ desire for more, created “ACM: The Hub.” In addition to housing the latest artist content in one accessible place including curated artist videos, latest artist merch, a comprehensive calendar and livestreams, The Hub is also the home of original content like concert series The ACM Weekly, artist doc series Next Stop: ACM Awards and ACM Wine Down Wednesday, a music series presented by 1000 Stories® Bourbon Barrel-Aged Wine, the Academy’s official wine partner.

On behalf of each artist featured on the ACM Wine Down Wednesday Series, 1000 Stories® Wine is contributing a $2,000 donation towards the ACM Lifting Lives COVID-19 Response Fund to be disbursed to individuals in the Country Music community who are currently on the waitlist for pandemic relief assistance. To learn more about ACM Lifting Lives COVID-19 Response Fund, visit ACMLiftingLives.org.

Enjoy this great content at thehub.acmcountry.com.

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acmcountry.com

“On The Road Again (ACM Lifting Lives Edition)” Hits the Airwaves ®

ACM Award winner and Country Music legend Willie Nelson lent his voice to a new recording of his classic “On The Road Again (ACM Lifting Lives® Edition),” The timeless hit benefits the Lifting Lives Covid-19 Response Fund and features this year’s ACM New Female and New Male Artist nominees Ingrid Andress, Gabby Barrett, Jordan Davis, Russell Dickerson, Lindsay Ell, Riley Green, Caylee Hammack, Cody Johnson, Tenille Townes and Morgan Wallen. Produced by Ross Copperman and Jimmy Robbins, the single is available via Warner Music Nashville across all digital platforms and Country radio.

The official music video for “On The Road Again (ACM Lifting Lives Edition)” made its exclusive broadcast premiere August 14 across all CMT channels. The music video will also be available on the newly launched ACM®: The Hub, a destination for artists of all levels in Country Music to reach fans with music, upcoming virtual livestream concerts and performances, and easy access to artist

merchandise — a one-stop-shop for quality curated content for music fans, worldwide. (thehub.acmcountry.com) A special thanks to all the producers, musicians and engineers who gave their time to make this possible: Produced and mixed by Ross Copperman and Jimmy Robbins; Production Assistance by Scott Johnson. Willie Nelson vocals recorded by Steve Chadle at Pedernales Recording Studio (Spicewood, TX) Digital Editing by Brian David Willis. Mastered by Daniel Bacigalupi at Infrasonic Sound (Nashville) Musicians: Danny Rader — Acoustic & Electric Guitar, Mandolin, Piano, B-3, Programming, Percussion, Banjo; Tony Lucido — Bass Proceeds from the single will benefit ACM Lifting Lives COVID-19 Response Fund to be disbursed to individuals in the Country Music community who are currently in need of pandemic relief assistance. To date, the fund has awarded $1.4 million to those in need.

To learn more about ACM Lifting Lives COVID-19 Response Fund, visit ACMLiftingLives.org.

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Academy Hires and Promotions

Born and raised in Douglas, Massachusetts, Danielle Bardier joined the Academy of Country Music in the beginning of 2019 as assistant, events and has most recently been promoted to coordinator, events. In her new role, Bardier will continue to work on several facets of the ACM Awards®, ACM Party for a Cause® events and ACM Honors™.

Bardier graduated from the University of Southern California (USC), where she received a degree in Business Administration with a focus on Marketing. During her time at USC, Bardier interned for the Academy of Country Music in the events department and served as a production assistant following her 2017 graduation.

After graduating, Bardier moved back to Massachusetts, where she worked as a sponsorship and event coordinator at Harpoon Brewery and helped to produce several of Harpoon’s charitable events. When an ACM position opened in 2019, she returned to Los Angeles.

Bardier reports to Erick Long, senior vice president, events.

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Gloria Chavez joins the Academy of Country Music as assistant, finance & operations. A Los Angeles native, Chavez has an extensive background in accounting and finance with diverse work experience in both the mortgage banking industry and property management. She applies the same passion toward her personal life as she does in her work life, volunteering for organizations such as Habitat for Humanities and recreation park youth mentoring, while also obtaining her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Phoenix. Chavez is also an accomplished hiker and takes advantage of the California sun and beautiful landscapes. In her role as assistant, finance & operations, Chavez will help oversee all aspects of general office and building operations, as well as act as office receptionist. She will also work alongside vendors to ensure the upkeep of both the office and building maintenance, including managing office inventory, all technological system processes and assisting in the finance department with various projects. She reports to Alexa Fasheh, vice president of finance & operations.

Hannah Kellis joins the Academy of Country Music as assistant, creative & content production.

Originally from Maine, Kellis graduated from Pepperdine University in Malibu where she studied Media Production. Upon graduating, she interned with companies such as A Rocha USA and Therapy Studios, where she assisted with both production and post-production. She then began to work at Vendetta/Apartment 3B Productions, where she handled script coverage and event preparation. In her new position at the Academy, Hannah will oversee administrative tasks and other projects for the creative & content production department.

She reports to Lisa Lee, senior vice president, creative & content production.

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Intern Introductions

They were eager and ready to roll before the coronavirus lockdown

E

BY DANAYA DEWS

very year in January

1. | Megan Dunn

2. | Carrie McDonough

as we shake-off the

MARKETING

MARKETING

Megan is from Shawnee, Kan., and studied public relations at Pepperdine University before graduating at the end of the spring semester. While at Pepperdine, she was vice president of Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA), which brings in outside professionals to share their knowledge with students who are aspiring to be in the field. Last year, Megan interned at three different companies including Metro Public Relations, Wayfarer Entertainment and Picture Shop Post. Megan’s ultimate goal is to find a job in Los Angeles. On her off days, Megan loves going to the beach, traveling and going to the theater to see musicals. Her favorite musical is Next to Normal.

Carrie, a senior at Millersville University is from York Springs, Penn.

She is a member of PRSSA and Relay for Life on campus. Previously, she interned for the Governor’s Office of Crime Control and Prevention in Maryland.

Her love of art and Country Music are what drew her to the Academy. Growing up, Country Music was always playing in her home, and she would watch the ACM Awards every year. So, she felt that working at the ACM was a match made in heaven. Carrie plans on pursuing a career in marketing or publicity for artists in the industry and is excited to gain firsthand experience.

Carrie is either admiring art or creating it by drawing and painting whenever back at home.

FUN FACT

FUN FACT

If you could star in any artist’s music video, whose would it be?

If you could star in any artist’s music video, whose would it be?

I would love to star in a Kacey Musgraves music video because she would have the best costumes.

I would love to star in a Luke Bryan music video.

holidays and gear up for another awards season, the Academy

of Country Music® staff grows

considerably as interns from across the country arrive at the Los Angeles office. As the world shifted with the Coronavirus lockdowns and our show was postponed until September, the Academy unfortunately had to say goodbye to these incredibly helpful interns. However, before the doors to our office closed in mid-March, these eager young professionals learned everything they could about the various aspects of what it takes to put on a successful awards show. Here, you can learn more about them.

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3. | Albany Alexander

4. | Madison Young

MARKETING

ARTIST AND INDUSTRY RELATIONS

Albany comes from Orlando, Fla., and is a senior journalism major at Emerson College. Between athletics and fighting for equality, Albany is a woman on a mission. She has played volleyball during her entire college career, earning her a spot on the team as captain. In her time away from school, she interned with Boston City Council President Michelle Wu in the communications department. She was also a marketing intern with Cru, one of the country’s largest non-profit organizations. As mentioned previously, Albany is very passionate about charity work and focuses her efforts on the fight against sex trafficking. She supports organizations like the International Justice Mission and says her life goal is to become a mentor to women in need of an inspirational figure.

In her personal life, Albany explains the importance of Country Music throughout her childhood. She recalls listening to it on the radio while grooming horses. Albany shares her excitement to be in an environment surrounded by people who share her love of Country Music and the passion to spread it to others.

Madison is a recent graduate from the University of Southern California in the music industry program. Previously, she was a board member of Music Industry Connection and worked at The Greek Theatre as a VIP concierge in the fall of 2018. In August of 2019, she went on to intern with public relations company BB Gun Press.

When she gets time to herself, Madison binge watches her favorite television shows like The Office, How I Met Your Mother and Friends. Madison also loves spending time with her family, who are avid Country Music fans. Aspiring to be a songwriter, she has recorded a demo of a song. She dreams of one day writing for some of her favorite artists.

FUN FACT

What Country Music song can you listen to repeatedly and never get tired of?

I would never get tired of hearing “When It Rains It Pours” by Luke Combs.

FUN FACT

What Country Music song can you listen to repeatedly and never get tired of?

I would never get tired of listening to “Better Man” by Little Big Town

5. | Dani Chade STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS

A business administration major at the University of Southern California (USC), Dani takes on many leadership roles, such as being an athletic tutor and sitting on the advisory board for the senior gift of USC. Dani was also a member of Greek Life Crossing, which is a bible study for students involved in Greek life. Dani’s love of the ACM Awards led her to spearhead her sorority house’s tradition of watching the show together each year. Dani was interested in strategic partnerships specifically because she likes having a

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holistic view of the company and the understanding of how a partnership can act as the missing puzzle piece.

Aside from her professional career, Dani enjoys working out, spending time with family, traveling and scuba diving. Recently she received her scuba certification. She lives by the mindset of reminding herself to remain positive and take every opportunity as it comes.

FUN FACT

If you could star in any singer’s music video who’s would it be?

I would star in a Luke Bryan music video because he is just so darn fun.

6. | Nicole Tancredi EVENTS AND OPERATIONS

A recent graduate of Belmont University, Nicole studied music business and was an active member of the sorority Alpha Sigma Tau. Nicole was diligent in ensuring she had numerous opportunities following school by working with companies like Big Machine, ASCAP and Ryan Seacrest Studios, all located in Nashville. In addition, Nicole would volunteer for the ACM Awards each year in her hometown of Las Vegas.

Nicole also is fond of taking spin classes and exploring each new city she visits. When she isn’t being active, Nicole loves watching shows on Netflix like You and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

FUN FACT

Who was your favorite artist growing up?

My favorite artist growing up was Taylor Swift because that was the first CD I bought.

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Interns, continued from P. 17

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7. | Danaya Dews

8. | Hannah Morrow

9. | Jake Eisenman

CREATIVE AND CONTENT

LIFTING LIVES ®

EVENTS

PRODUCTION

Aspiring videographer and natural hair connoisseur Danaya is from Bear, Del., and is a senior television-radio major at Ithaca College. Danaya loves to make positive changes wherever she goes, which is why she started a natural hair organization on her campus so that students can learn the proper ways to take care of their hair. Additionally, she is on the executive board for the Bureau of Concerts at Ithaca, which puts on shows and events for the students throughout the academic year. Danaya thought that the ACM would allow her to apply her knowledge of the music industry within the internship while also gaining practical experience, like learning about the technical production of large-scale events.

When taking a break from creating, Danaya enjoys yoga, learning about filmmaking and listening to music.

Some of her favorite films are Coming to America, The Notebook and Set it Off.

Alpha Delta Pi’s very own Hannah is here to fundraise like nobody’s business. A Chicago native, Hannah is a junior at Iowa State University majoring in event management and public relations. She loves to stay busy by being involved in programs both inside and outside of school. Apart from her sorority, Hannah works on TREND magazine and is a volunteer for Habitat for Humanity at Iowa State.

She also interned with Space 519 in downtown Chicago, where she focused on merchandising. Hannah loves thrift shopping and scrapbooking with her Polaroid camera. She also thoroughly enjoys ramen and says her goal while she’s in Los Angeles is to try every ramen restaurant in the area. Hannah loves to give back, which is what drew her to ACM Lifting Lives. She says it is a dream come true to be a part of the Lifting Lives team since she has experience organizing fund-raisers for non-profit organizations.

An alumnus of Northern Kentucky University (NKU), Jake not only brings his extensive experience in event planning to the table, but also his prowess as a baker. Jake studied marketing at NKU after going to culinary and pastry school at Cincinnati State. He worked in the pastry industry for a few years in Colorado as a food and beverage director. There, he traveled around the country working at different properties until he finally interned with Kroger Co. in their hospitality department assisting with marketing, branding and event planning for Kroger restaurants. Jake’s favorite desserts to make are candies such as peanut brittle and derby pie.

Jake was intrigued to intern at the ACM as he has a desire to learn more about event planning, and he loves Country Music. Jake hopes, that following this internship, he can obtain a full-time position either in large-scale event planning or marketing within the entertainment industry.

FUN FACT

FUN FACT

What Country Music song can you listen to repeatedly and never get tired of?

If you could be best friends with any Country Music singer, who would it be?

A Country Music song I could never get tired of is “Our Song” by Taylor Swift.

I would be best friends with Thomas Rhett because his wife and I share the same sorority, and I would love to baby-sit his children.

acmcountry.com

FUN FACT

If you could know anything about your favorite artist, who and what would it be?

I would want to know what Reba McEntire’s favorite desserts are so that I can make them for her and we can be friends.

T H E N E W A L B U M F E AT U R I N G A I N ’ T B A D F O R A G O O D O L’ B O Y LOCAL HONEY and M AT T R E S S O N T H E F LO O R

AVA I L A B L E N O W

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“ACM Lifting Lives has made a world of difference for our family.

Every day I have been carefully planning and worrying and taking multiple steps to make sure we stay afloat until the world starts again — last night was the first night I got a deep, full night’s sleep. I have never been more thankful and proud to be a part of our musical community.”

—GRANT RECIPIENT

“Thank you to all of you at the Academy for helping me out. As an independent engineer, these times are very tough. You have no idea how much that has lifted some of my load. Thank God for the ACM!”

ACM LIFTING LIVES C R E AT E S C O V I D - 1 9 RESPONSE FUND

®

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o matter the state of the world, music remains a source of healing, comfort, and even escape, and this holds true especially in trying times. When COVID-19 first struck, it affected people

around the globe, putting unprecedented stress on many peoples’ lives and livelihoods. ACM Lifting Lives was quick in creating the ACM Lifting Lives COVID-19 Response Fund to help alleviate some of the burden the music community faces.

The ACM Lifting Lives COVID-19 Response Fund began with an initial endowment of $250,000, and grew thanks to partners, sponsors and

—GRANT RECIPIENT

“This will help us so much as we weather this storm and re-build our life, tour schedule and career. It gives me precious time to plan/reschedule new tour dates while we're all waiting for this crisis to pass (while staying safe for myself, my family and the world). You have no idea how much this means to me and my family. I'll always be grateful for the ACM and the entire country music community.

What a beautiful community of human beings and artists.”

—GRANT RECIPIENT

third-party donors including The Bobby Bones Show, FirstNet, Built with AT&T, and Amazon Music. To date, the fund has given more than $1 million to those in the Country Music community directly affected by the pandemic including musicians, bus drivers, songwriters and more.

—LIBBY GARDNER

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For more on the ACM Lifting Lives COVID-19 Response Fund, please visit ACMLiftingLives.org.

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Geting to know CEO DAMON WHITESIDE

QUARANTINE

COUNTRY Academy of Country Music CEO DAMON WHITESIDE was thrown into a year no one could have imagined

J

ust a couple of months into his new ob, Academy of Country Music CEO Damon Whiteside was thrust into a topsy-turvy world.

In March, the whole world snapped to a halt as the deadly Coronavirus

began to spread, and with the 55th ACM Awards planned for April, Whiteside, the ACM Board of Directors and production partners at dick clark productions had to ponder postponing the show for the first time in Academy history.

“At first it was disbelief — how are we going to move an entire weekend of activities that were already sold out?” Whiteside said of his initial reaction. “It had never happened in Academy history and it had to happen in my first three months on the job?! I was also very disappointed as the staff had worked so hard and all the plans were in place. I was excited to experience my first ACM Awards in this role. Then it became fear, as I wasn’t sure how, when and where we were going to do a postponed Awards show.”

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“I think job opportunities and candidates find each other. I think it’s kind of the way that the universe brings those opportunities together.”

The postponed show meant a mad search across the country for a new venue as well.

“The venue in Vegas was not available for our postponed dates so we literally scoured the country to find an available arena. We were narrowing our options and upon further discussions with our Executive Committee it was concluded that for the safety and financial relief of our artists and industry that we should try to hold the show in Nashville where most of them are based,” Whitehead explained. “We were highly concerned about encroaching on our friends at CMA whose home is Nashville because we would be just two months before the CMA Awards. However, they were so understanding and gracious about our need to be there.”

While juggling several big decisions around the 2020 awards show, Whiteside’s new gig brought the exec back to his roots. He grew up outside L.A. in Riverside.

Not everyone can claim a grandpa that helped found the world-famous Hollywood Bowl, but Whiteside can.

He is a fourth-generation Southern Californian on both sides of his family. “Actually, my dad’s grandfather moved here to L.A. and started a family. He was into music. He opened the first recording studio on the West Coast that was doing a lot of jazz music — like New Orleans jazz — kind of in more in that genre.”

So, it seems music was always in his blood, and although he grew up listening to all kinds, Country Music is now front and center.

“It was a good mix because Riverside, while being in Southern California, it was very rural back then”, he said.

So, I got to grow up with the rural lifestyle and living out with acreage and motorcycles and animals and all that kind of stuff. Then I moved to the “big city” when I moved to L.A., once I got into college and then started my career.

After 16 years at The Walt Disney Company, three years running his own artist management and marketing company, Nomad Entertainment Group, and a six-year tenure in Nashville as the Country Music Association’s Sr. Vice President of Marketing and Strategic

Partnerships, and eventually its Chief Marketing Officer, Whiteside joined the Academy as CEO in January 2020.

“I think job opportunities and candidates find each other, I think it’s just kind of the way that the universe brings those opportunities together. I was very uniquely qualified for this opportunity and conversely this opportunity was very uniquely appealing to me.”

On the personal side, Whiteside was set to marry Nashville-based Collective Artist Management’s Craig Dunn this fall in Florida. The Coronavirus lockdown has forced the couple to postpone the ceremony to October 2021.

Whiteside has many goals for the Academy, some of which were turned upside down this year because of the pandemic. The organization will turn back to that plan soon, but the most important goal right now is to produce a great 55th ACM Awards on September 16th. The change in city will give the show a new look and feel coming from the Bluebird Café, the Ryman Auditorium and The Grand Ole Opry House.

“This is going to be a one-of-kind show being set in Nashville’s three most iconic venues and will allow us to have a lot of different production looks that will also bring a feeling of comfort, familiarity and Country history throughout the show. Health and safety are our No.1 priority and our partners at dick clark productions have done a stellar job in creating an extensive protocol to protect the crew and artists.

Show elements will continue to change up until the last moment, so the only certainties are that we need to remain completely nimble, but also that this is going to be one of the best shows in Academy history despite the pandemic!” ●

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A CONVERSATION WITH

Keith Urban I

BY LISA LEE

In a crazy year of epic proportions, the reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year steps into a new role — ACM Awards Host

n August, Keith Urban spent most of the month locking down in Australia with wife, Nicole Kidman, and their girls. It’s a brief respite before he launches his new album The Speed of Now Part 1 and hosts the 55th ACM Awards, both coming up in September. He’s busy now, but when the COVID-19 lockdown first started in the early spring, he spent his free time relaxing with his family.

“I didn't want to do anything, I just wanted to sit on the couch and watch TV and hang with the family and do nothing,” Urban remembered. “Slowly but surely, you know, I realized, ‘Hey I've got to finish my album. I’ve got to work. I’ve got to be creative.’”

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LIVE FROM NASHVILLE

WED SEPT 16 8/7c 26

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He did indeed finish his new record, but the pandemic forced the rescheduling of the ACM Awards®. Originally set for April in Las Vegas, the show will now broadcast from Music City in September, which has the ACM Male Artist of the Year nominee excited about the historic night.

TEMPO: We’re having the ACM Awards in three iconic Nashville venues, which I know that you know very well. How would you describe your connection is to those places?

KU: “My very first trip to Nashville in 1989, I went to the Bluebird Cafe and I saw [legendary songwriters] Thom Schuyler, Craig Wiseman, Fred Knobloch and Don Schlitz, all sitting facing each other telling stories and singing songs. I couldn’t have been more wide-eyed! You’re on hallowed ground.

I can’t remember the first time I went to the Ryman because it seems like I’ve been there so many times now. I remember seeing a little band that had just put out a brand-new album, they were called Coldplay. (laughs) I remember sitting in the balcony just thinking ‘this band’s really good but the lead singer is unusual’ because he keeps laughing like in between songs, just looking around at the band and giggling, and I’m thinking ‘What’s going on?’ And after about six songs, lead singer Chris Martin, who I didn’t know at the time, says ‘I’m so sorry I keep laughing but this is how it’s supposed to sound!’

TEMPO: Whether it’s on an awards show or on tour, you’ve always collaborated a lot with other artists, and you’ve supported a lot of the young artists coming up especially in the last few years. Why has that been important to you to step out with your celebrity and your success and support these other new artists who look up to you?

KU: “I just think it’s what we do as a as a tribe, as a community. It’s the way I was raised in the Country Music community in Australia. Honestly, I don’t see it any different from when you’re trying to hit up your friends at school to check out some band or an artist or something you just heard. You want to tag it, you know, put up a social media post about it.”

That has always stayed with me because that’s so true! Every real artist I know that’s ever played on that stage is amazed at how great it sounds in the venue.

I’ve heard it described as performing inside an acoustic guitar and I think that’s a perfect description. I saw Merle Haggard there twice and I’ll tell you what, oh my gosh! The first time I saw him and The Strangers, I felt like I had my head inside the speakers of my dad’s record player because growing up, my dad had a lot of Merle Haggard albums. That was surreal.

Also, for me, the Opry House has so many memories, playing there and then becoming a member of the Opry family. What a journey.”

TEMPO: Now you’ll be hosting the ACM Awards on those stages. What are you looking forward to the most about the show?

KU: “Uh, the fact that it’s going ahead!” (laughs) I’m just super glad to be feeling like we’re moving back into some familiar territory, you know, just familiar things which I think we all miss for sure. I was saying to a friend of mine, ‘I guess my own personal silver lining is I may end up being the longest running one-time winner of Entertainer of the Year in ACM history!’

TEMPO: Can you give us a tease of what you might be performing on the ACM Awards?

KU: “Uh, some of the newer music! (laughs)” TEMPO: Okay! that narrows it down to 16 [the tracks on his new album].

KU: “That’s true! We’re still working on that right now.

I think there are some logistics to work out. If there’s a particular song that we can’t do because of logistical reasons, we’ll do something else.

ACM Awards Executive Producer RAC Clark with Urban at a previous show rehearsal.

TEMPO: When you were starting out like some of these other youngsters are doing now, what do you wish you had known then that you know now?

KU: “I wouldn’t want to change anything. I’m glad I didn’t know it was going to take as long as it did! (laughs) You know, it was years of just beating my head against walls in Nashville before I started to figure a way around things or through things. It just took what it took, but it gave me a great foundation to have the career and life I have now. You don’t ever get out of paying your dues. You’re either going to have to figure out how to work a crowd in a tiny club or you’re gonna have to work it out in an arena, or on a Grammy stage and you’ll be working it out in front of everybody. I think the only advice I have for any artists is to always make sure you have people around you that are brutally honest, not sycophants, because you’ll never grow if you have people around you that only say ‘Oh, that’s fantastic!’ and aren’t really honest with you. I was very grateful that I always had people around me who will say, ‘That sounds good. That sounds terrible. That song could be better.’ You just have to have at least a couple of people that you could really trust to give you the honest answer.”

KEITH’S ACM AWARDS MOMENTS

1

Visiting with legend Dick

2

Making a red carpet

Clark after winning

appearance with

his first ACM trophy

his soulmate, wife

in 2000.

Nicole Kidman.

3

Winning ACM Entertainer of

the Year in 2019.

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OUT THE CAGE Keith and his team try to transverse new territory by releasing his latest album in the middle of a pandemic

TEMPO: Has this been a weird experience having to do all this in lock down? I know you've done the album release thing several times, but I would imagine that's probably a little weird this year, huh?

KU: Yeah, I had most of my record recorded and the songs that I had left to do I could do sort of remotely. There's a track on the album called “Live With” that came late, actually, got that song I think around April. It was a really great demo track but I wanted real drums. I wanted a real bass player. I wanted real players. So, I sent the [audio] files to the guy who played drums on it and then the guy that played bass on it, and everybody just recorded at their homes and sent files back. I have a little studio at my house, so I did all my overdubs there and everything was just done remotely, and the song came together.

TEMPO: Were you writing the whole time you were off the road?

KU: Honestly, I had the closest thing to a sort of artistic creative paralysis that I've had in a long, long, long time. When the lock down really set in, I'm like ‘Oh, okay uh, no touring. Can't go to any studios. I've got my home studio but nobody can come here.’ Then we started talking about doing the drive-in concert for healthcare workers, so I just slowly eased back into it. And then after that drive-in concert, I just kicked into gear in my studio and really, really got a whole rush of creativity going and not only finished the record but wrote new songs. The song on the album called ‘Out the Cage’ is brand new. It was completely inspired by being in lockdown with a sense of confinement, and humans are not meant to be confined. It's the way I felt about just all kinds of people in situations of confinement, whether that's oppression, whether

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it's a dead-end job, or whether it's a broken relationship or just an unfulfilled life. But it became apparent that it can really apply to many, many situations for humans everywhere and ‘Soul Food’ was written like the next day. So yeah, there's quite a few things on the record that wouldn't have happened had the album come out sooner.

I'm glad from a creative standpoint that I had a little bit of extra time.

TEMPO: I would imagine that's probably the first time you've had time off to sit on the couch in probably what, 15 years?

KU: Yeah, a long, long time. I love being in the studio.

I've definitely said probably foolishly a few times I'd love to not to tour for a year and just be able to bury myself in the studio. [After quarantine] I was like, ‘I didn't mean that literally!’ But, I feel fortunate that I love being in the studio almost as much as I love being on stage. I know a lot of artists that I don't have the same love affair with the studio that I do, but I love it in there. I just love building tracks and arranging and overdubbing and creating and capturing. I just absolutely love it. Every bit of it. It's been quite the journey for me, I'm so glad [the new album] is finally coming out. ●

“It just took what it took, but it gave me a great foundation to have the career and life I have now. You don’t ever get out of paying your dues.”

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NOMINATIONS

Old Dominion, Maren Morris, Thomas Rhett and Producer Dann Huff Lead ACM Awards Nominations The 55th ACM Awards nominees were revealed online via the ACM Awards Nominations Digital Press Conference on Feb. 27th. Reigning Entertainer of the Year Keith Urban, along with ACM Award-winning artist Lauren Alaina, this year’s ACM Radio Award National On-Air Personality of the Year winner Bobby Bones, Entertainment Tonight’s Cassie DiLaura and Kevin Frazier, CBS This Morning’s Gayle King and reigning ACM New Female Artist of the Year Ashley McBryde all announced select categories via video postings to the Academy’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.

Maren Morris earned five nominations in four categories, including her fourth Female Artist of the Year nomination and first Group of the Year nomination

ALBUM OF THE YEAR

Awarded to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/ Record Company–Label(s)

Center Point Road

Thomas Rhett PRODUCERS: Julian Bunetta / Jesse Frasure / Dann Huff / Thomas Rhett / The Stereotypes / Cleve Wilson RECORD LABEL:

The Valory Music Co.

GIRL

Maren Morris PRODUCERS: busbee / Greg Kurstin / Maren Morris RECORD LABEL:

Columbia Nashville

Heartache Medication Jon Pardi

PRODUCERS: Bart Butler / Ryan Gore /

Jon Pardi

RECORD LABEL:

Nashville

Capitol Records

What You See Is What You Get Luke Combs PRODUCER: Scott Moffatt

River House Artists/ Columbia Nashville RECORD LABEL:

Wildcard

Miranda Lambert PRODUCER: Jay Joyce

Vanner Records/ RCA Records Nashville RECORD LABEL:

SINGLE OF THE YEAR

Awarded to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/ Record Company–Label(s)

“God’s Country”

Blake Shelton PRODUCER: Scott Hendricks RECORD LABEL: Warner Bros.

(Nashville)

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“One Man Band”

Old Dominion PRODUCERS: Shane McAnally / Old Dominion RECORD LABEL: RCA Records Nashville

“Rainbow”

Kacey Musgraves PRODUCERS: Ian Fitchuk / Kacey Musgraves / Daniel Tashian RECORD LABEL: MCA Nashville

“Rumor”

Lee Brice

PRODUCERS: Lee Brice / Dan Frizsell / Kyle Jacobs / Jon Stone RECORD LABEL: Curb Records

“What If I Never Get Over You” Lady A

Dann Huff RECORD LABEL: BMLG Records PRODUCER:

SONG OF THE YEAR

Awarded to Songwriter(s)/ Publisher(s)/Artist(s)

“10,000 Hours”

Dan + Shay with Justin Bieber WRITERS: Justin Bieber / Jason “Poo Bear” Boyd / Jessie Jo Dillon / Shay Mooney / Jordan Reynolds / Dan Smyers

Beats and Banjos (ASCAP), WB Music Corp.

(ASCAP) / Shay Mooney Music (BMI), Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp. (BMI) / Big Ass Pile Of Dimes Music (BMI), Big Machine Music (BMI) / Buckeye 26 (ASCAP), Jreynmusic (ASCAP), WB Music Corp. (ASCAP) / Bieber Time Publishing (ASCAP), Universal Music (ASCAP) / Poo B Z Inc. (ASCAP), BMG Gold Songs (ASCAP).

PUBLISHERS:

as a member of The Highwomen. Reigning Male Artist of the Year Thomas Rhett received five nominations in four categories, including his first-ever Entertainer of the Year nomination and Video of the Year nomination for "Remember You Young."

Reigning Group of the Year Old Dominion earned five nominations, including their fifth nod for Group of the Year. They are also nominated for Single of the Year and Video of the Year, plus twice in the Single of the Year category as both artist and producer for “One Man Band.”

Producer Dann Huff received five nominations, including a nod for Album of the Year with Thomas Rhett as a producer for Center Point Road.

“Girl Goin’ Nowhere”

Ashley McBryde WRITERS: Jeremy Bussey / Ashley McBryde PUBLISHERS: Songs of Song Factory (BMI) / Universal Tunes (SESAC).

“God’s Country”

Blake Shelton Devin Dawson / Michael "HARDY" Hardy / Jordan Schmidt WRITERS:

PUBLISHERS: Relative Music Group (BMI), Administered by Songs of Kobalt Music Publishing (BMI) / WB Music Corp. / Georgia Song Vibez / We-volve Music (ASCAP) / Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp. / Neon Cross Music (BMI).

“One Man Band”

Old Dominion WRITERS: Josh Osborne / Matthew Ramsey / Trevor Rosen / Brad Tursi

PUBLISHERS: WB Music Corp/ Smackville Music/Smack Songs LLC (ASCAP) adm by Kobalt Songs Music Publishing.

Rezsongs/Reehits World/ Smacktown Music, a division of Smack Blue, LLC adm.

by Me Gusta Music. Unfair Entertainment/Twelve6 Dogwood (ASCAP) adm. by Downtown DLJ Songs. We're Really Doin’ It Publishing (ASCAP) adm by Words & Music.

Sony/ATV Cross Keys Publishing/ Smackville Music/Smack Songs LLC (ASCAP) adm. by Kobalt Songs Music Publishing.

“Some Of It”

Eric Church Eric Church / Clint Daniels / Jeff Hyde / Bobby Pinson WRITERS:

PUBLISHERS: Sony / ATV Tree Publishing / Longer and Louder Music, admin. by Sony / ATV Music Publishing LLC; Mammaw’s Fried Okra Music /Little Louder Songs, admin. by Songs of Kobalt Music Publishing; New Writers Of Sea Gayle Music, admin. by ClearBox Rights; New Writers Of Sea Gayle Music / Not A Track Guy Music, admin. by ClearBox Rights (BMI).

VIDEO OF THE YEAR

Awarded to Producer(s)/ Director(s)/Artist(s)

“10,000 Hours”

Dan + Shay with Justin Bieber DIRECTOR: Patrick Tracy PRODUCER: Christen Pinkston

“God’s Country”

Blake Shelton DIRECTOR: Sophie Muller PRODUCERS: Jamie Amos / Patrick Kennedy

“One Man Band”

Old Dominion DIRECTOR: Mason Allen PRODUCER: Mason Allen

“Remember You Young” Thomas Rhett DIRECTOR: TK McKamy PRODUCER: Dan Atchison

“Sugar Coat”

Little Big Town DIRECTORS: Alexa Kinigopoulos / Stephen Kinigopoulos PRODUCERS: Wes Edwards / Carlo Glorioso / Angie Lorenz

ACM R ADIO AWARDS Winner indicated by ,

Blake Shelton received four nominations, including Single of the Year, Song of the Year and Video of the Year for “God’s Country.” First-time Academy of Country Music Award nominee Justin Bieber earned four nominations for “10,000 Hours” with Dan + Shay.

Eric Church, Luke Combs, Miranda Lambert, Ashley McBryde and Kacey Musgraves each receive 3 nominations.

Enjoy the full nominees list:

SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR

Ashley Gorley Michael "HARDY" Hardy Hillary Lindsey Shane McAnally Josh Osborne

MUSIC EVENT OF THE YEAR

Awarded to Artist(s)/ Producer(s)/Record Company–Label(s)

“10,000 Hours”

Dan + Shay with Justin Bieber PRODUCER: Dan Smyers RECORD LABEL: Warner Music Nashville

“Dive Bar”

Garth Brooks Featuring Blake Shelton PRODUCER: Garth Brooks RECORD LABEL: Pearl Records, Inc.

“Fooled Around And Fell In Love”

Miranda Lambert Featuring Maren Morris, Ashley McBryde, Tenille Townes, Caylee Hammack & Elle King PRODUCER: Jay Joyce RECORD LABELS: Vanner Records / RCA Records Nashville

“Old Town Road”

Lil Nas X Featuring Billy Ray Cyrus PRODUCERS: Michael Trent Reznor / Atticus Matthew Ross / YoungKio RECORD LABEL: Columbia Records

“What Happens In A Small Town”

Brantley Gilbert Featuring Lindsay Ell PRODUCER: Dann Huff RECORD LABEL: The Valory Music Co.

NATIONAL ON-AIR PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR Luke Bryan Eric Church Luke Combs Thomas Rhett Carrie Underwood

Blair Garner, “Off Eric” Garner The Blair Garner Show

Charlie Chase and Lorianne Crook The Crook & Chase Countdown

Ben & Arnie – Ben Butler and Arnie Andrews WCOW-FM (Sparta, WI)

FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR Kelsea Ballerini Miranda Lambert Maren Morris Kacey Musgraves Carrie Underwood

Buzz Brainard The Music Row Happy Hour

Big Rick In The Morning –“Big” Rick Daniels WGGC-FM (Bowling Green, KY)

MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR Dierks Bentley Luke Combs Thomas Rhett Chris Stapleton Keith Urban

Bud and Broadway WIL-FM (St. Louis, MO)

DUO OF THE YEAR Brooks & Dunn Brothers Osborne Dan + Shay Florida Georgia Line Maddie & Tae GROUP OF THE YEAR Lady A Little Big Town Midland Old Dominion The Highwomen NEW FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR Ingrid Andress Gabby Barrett Lindsay Ell Caylee Hammack Tenille Townes NEW MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR Jordan Davis Russell Dickerson Riley Green Cody Johnson Morgan Wallen

,Bobby Bones, Amy, Lunchbox,

Eddie, Morgan and Ray The Bobby Bones Show

Storme Warren, Mary Carlisle Callahan and Thomas Massad The Storme Warren Show

ON-AIR PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR (Major Market)

Kelly Ford in the Morning Kelly Ford WNSH-FM (New York, NY) Mason & Remy WIL-FM (St. Louis, MO) The Morning Wolfpack with Matt McAllister Matt McAllister, Emily Raines and Slow Joe Wallace KKWF-FM (Seattle, WA)

,The Rob and Holly Show – Rob Stone and Holly Hutton WYCD-FM (Detroit, MI) ON-AIR PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR

ON-AIR PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR (Small Market)

Adam & Jen in the Morning KIOK-FM (Kennewick, WA)

Scotty & Catryna in the Morning – Scotty Cox and Catryna Craw KCLR-FM (Columbia, MO)

, Steve & Jessica –

Steve Waters and Jessica Cash WFLS-FM (Fredericksburg, VA)

RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (Major Market)

KAJA-FM – San Antonio, TX KFRG-FM – San Bernardino, CA

,KILT-FM – Houston, TX

WNSH-FM – New York, NY WSOC-FM – Charlotte, NC

RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (Large Market)

CKRY-FM – Calgary, AB WDSY-FM – Pittsburgh, PA WIRK-FM – West Palm Beach, FL

(Large Market)

WMIL-FM – Milwaukee, WI

Lexi And Banks KUBL-FM (Salt Lake City, UT)

,WUBE-FM – Cincinnati, OH

Marty McFly WSM-FM (Nashville, TN)

RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR

Q Morning Crew with Mike and Janie WQDR-FM (Raleigh, NC)

KATM-FM – Stockton, CA

(Medium Market)

KUZZ-AM/FM – Bakersfield, CA

Robyn & Roger in the Morning CKRY-FM (Calgary, AB)

KXKT-FM – Omaha, NE

,The Big Dave Show – Big Dave,

,WUSY-FM – Chattanooga, TN

Chelsie, Statt and Ashley WUBE-FM (Cincinnati, OH)

ON-AIR PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR

WQMX-FM – Akron, OH

RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (Small Market)

(Medium Market)

KKNU-FM – Eugene, OR

Brent Michaels KUZZ-AM/FM (Bakersfield, CA)

KTHK-FM – Idaho Falls, ID

, Clay & Company

WPAP-FM – Panama City, FL

WYRK-FM (Buffalo, NY) Kenn McCloud KUZZ-AM/FM (Bakersfield, CA)

WBYT-FM – South Bend, IN

,WYCT-FM – Pensacola, FL

Steve & Gina in the Morning – Steve Lundy and Gina Melton KXKT-FM (Omaha, NE) The Cowboy Kyle Show –Cowboy Kyle WUSY-FM (Chattanooga, TN)

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NOMINATIONS FAIR/RODEO OF THE YEAR

INDUSTRY AWARDS

THEATER OF THE YEAR

California Mid-State Fair Paso Robles, CA Cheyenne Frontier Days Cheyenne, WY

CASINO OF THE YEAR — THEATER The Colosseum at Caesars Palace Las Vegas, NV The Joint: Tulsa Tulsa, OK

Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo Houston, TX Minnesota State Fair St. Paul, MN San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo San Antonio, TX

Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort Mt. Pleasant, MI The Venetian Resort Hotel Casino Las Vegas, NV

FESTIVAL OF THE YEAR Boots and Hearts Music Fesitval Oro-Medonte, ON

WinStar Global Event Center Thackerville, OK

Stagecoach Indio, CA

CASINO ARENA OF THE YEAR — ARENA

Tortuga Music Festival Fort Lauderdale, FL

Mark G. Etess Arena Atlantic City, NJ

Watershed Festival George, WA

MGM Grand Garden Arena Las Vegas, NV

Windy City Smokeout Chicago, IL

Sandia Amphitheater Albuquerque, NM

CLUB OF THE YEAR

Stir Concert Cove Council Bluffs, IA T-Mobile Arena Las Vegas, NV

Billy Bob’s Texas Fort Worth, TX

Ruth Eckerd Hall Clearwater, FL

OUTDOOR VENUE OF THE YEAR Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion Gilford, NH Greek Theatre Los Angeles, CA Innsbrook After Hours Glen Allen, VA Red Rocks Amphitheatre Morrison, CO Rose Music Center Huber Heights, OH The Wharf at Orange Beach Orange Beach, AL

David Dorn

Miles McPherson

Tony Harrell

Greg Morrow

Charlie Judge

Jerry Roe

Tim Lauer

Nir Zidkyahu

Gordon Mote

Tom Bukovac

Tim Marks

Dann Huff

Michael Rhodes

Rob McNelley

Jimmie Lee Sloas

Adam Shoenfeld

Kell Houston Houston Productions Nina Rojas Neste Live!

Todd Boltin Variety Attractions

PROMOTER OF THE YEAR Adam Weiser AEG Presents Brian O’Connell Live Nation Jered Johnson Pepper Productions Stacy Vee Goldenvoice, MTG Troy Vollhoffer Country Thunder

VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena Jacksonville, FL

Fred Eltringham

Mike Brignardello

Gil Cunningham Neste Live!

Van Andel Arena Grand Rapids, MI

PIANO/KEYS PLAYER OF THE YEAR

GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Gary Osier Gary Osier Presents

Staples Center Los Angeles, CA

DRUMMER OF THE YEAR

Eli Beaird

Mike Rojas

SPECIALTY INSTRUMENT(S) PLAYER OF THE YEAR

STEEL GUITAR PLAYER OF THE YEAR Dan Dugmore Paul Franklin Josh Grange Russ Pahl Justin Schipper

AUDIO ENGINEER OF THE YEAR Chuck Ainlay

Stuart Duncan

Jeff Balding

Jenee Fleenor

Tony Castle

Jim Hoke

Julian King

Danny Rader

Steve Marcantonio

Joe Spivey

Justin Niebank

Charlie Worsham

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Rialto Square Theatre Joliet, IL

Clay Campbell Triangle Talent

Madison Square Garden New York, NY

Grizzly Rose Denver, CO

Ilya Toshinskiy

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DeJoria Center Salt Lake City, UT

DON ROMEO TALENT BUYER OF THE YEAR

Infinite Energy Center Duluth, GA

Coyote Joe’s Charlotte, NC

Losers Bar & Grill Nashville, TN

BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR

The Chicago Theatre Chicago, IL

ARENA OF THE YEAR

Joe’s Live Rosemont, IL

STUDIO RECORDING AWARDS

The Beacon Theatre New York, NY

PRODUCER OF THE YEAR busbee Buddy Cannon Dann Huff Michael Knox Joey Moi

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NOTE: Many of the organizations have pivoted during the pandemic to continue delivering music to the populations they serve.

A

ACM Lifting Lives Names

Grant Recipients CM Lifting Lives announced

Programs funded through this grant cycle include:

its 2020 grant cycle

CAMP SUNSHINE INC. — Camp Sunshine enriches the lives of Georgia’s children with cancer and their families through year-round recreational, educational and support programs.

This year, support will go to the Music Program, with funds being used directly to pay for the musician hired for two weeks of summer camp and two 2 weeks of Sunshine 2U, a hospital-based program for children too ill to attend summer camp. | mycampsunshine.com

beneficiaries in December of 2019 with funding for a selection of organizations including Camp Sunshine

Inc., CreatiVets, California State University Northridge Foundation, GRAMMY Museum Foundation Inc., The KEYS Program, The Miracle Project, Multiple Sclerosis Achievement Center at Kansas University, Operation Song, Personal Counseling Services, Project C.A.M.P. and Save The Music Foundation.

“We are excited to share the 2020 grant recipients and thrilled to be able to help fund these organizations that make an impact for so many,” says Lyndsay Cruz, ACM Lifting Lives executive director. “We are grateful to the Country Music community which supports ACM Lifting Lives in many ways and allows us to contribute to these worthy charities.”

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®

CREATIVETS — CreatiVets provides combat veterans struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury with opportunities to use art, music and creative writing to heal their unseen wounds of war. Funds will support instructor expenses and tuition for veterans for both a new and an ongoing songwriting program related to CreatiVets central songwriting programs. | creativets.org CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE FOUNDATION — California State University, Northridge (CSUN) Foundation serves as an auxiliary organization to CSUN providing leadership and guidance for the university’s fundraising efforts, which helps to maintain the margin of excellence in CSUN’s programs. This grant will support CSUN’s Music Therapy Wellness Clinic, which provides individually designed music activities for children and adults with disabilities and special challenges, and serves as a teaching clinic for the CSUN Music Therapy option. Funds will support the personnel and technology costs for new music therapy services for adults at Choice Hospital Care. | csun.edu/foundation

GRAMMY MUSEUM FOUNDATION INC. — The GRAMMY Museum Foundation is dedicated to cultivating a greater understanding of the history and significance of music. The GRAMMY Museum launched monthly Sensory Friendly Saturdays with The Autism Society and Your Ears Rock to offer a more sensory-friendly environment and experience for guests of all ages and abilities. Funds will support the implementation of a quarterly concert series during the Sensory Friendly Saturdays program. | grammymuseum.org

THE KEYS PROGRAM — The KEYS Program delivers music, hope and smiles to children impacted by cancer, and those in need of healing, through music therapy outreach, education and advocacy. Funding will be used to offset the cost of a board-certified music therapist to provide 900 sessions of free music therapy to pediatric cancer patients and their families, special needs sites and nursing homes in two New York counties. | thekeysprogram.org THE MIRACLE PROJECT — The Miracle Project is a fully inclusive, neurodiverse music, theater, film and expressive arts program focused on building communication and self-esteem, as well as job and social skills for people with autism, other disabilities and all abilities — speaking and non-speaking. This grant will fund music professionals to help produce an original musical created by and starring 20–30 individuals with autism, down syndrome, cerebral palsy and other disabilities in summer 2020. | themiracleproject.org

MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS ACHIEVEMENT CENTER AT KANSAS UNIVERSITY — The Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Achievement Center exists to enhance the quality of life for people with progressed MS. Support will assist with expenses associated with a music therapist, instruments and additional needs for an experimental music therapy program studying the effects of music therapy on depression, fatigue and sleep in clients with chronic progressive MS. | kumc.edu

OPERATION SONG — Operation Song empowers veterans, active duty military and their family members to tell their stories through the process of songwriting. Funding will cover expenses for a 10-week program that focuses on using songwriting for PTSD symptom reduction and improvement of emotional well-being and life satisfaction for those with service-related injuries, illnesses and issues. | operationsong.org

PERSONAL COUNSELING SERVICES, INC. — Personal Counseling Services, Inc. has a mission to offer mental health care to everyone desiring wellness of body, mind, spirit and community. This grant will be used to provide music therapy services to underserved populations including the homeless, veterans, seniors, children with disabilities and children of low-income families. | pcs-counseling.org

PROJECT C.A.M.P., INC. — Project C.A.M.P., Inc. strives to instill inspiration and empowerment while enhancing the lives of children with serious illnesses. Funds will be used to support the Music Therapy Program for special needs, disabled and seriously ill children who attend the 2020 summer camps and family retreats. | courageouskids.org

SAVE THE MUSIC FOUNDATION — Save The Music Foundation helps kids, schools and communities realize their full potential through the power of making music. Funds will support the purchase of a piano and other music therapy resources for the delivery of a targeted Keys + Kids Grant to John F. Kennedy School, a middle-secondary special education school serving students with autism, students who are medically fragile, and students with mental and physical disabilities. | savethemusic.org ●

Learn More about ACM Lifting Lives ACM Lifting Lives is the philanthropic arm of the Academy of Country Music® dedicated to improving lives through the power of music.

Through partnerships with artists and strong ties in the music industry, ACM Lifting Lives funds music health programs while also serving members of the music community who face unexpected hardships through its Diane Holcomb Emergency Relief Fund and its COVID-19 Response Fund. With generous donations and the support of artists and fans, ACM Lifting Lives has funded national music therapy programs serving various mental and physical health organizations.

Some of the recipients have included patients at children’s hospitals and other healthcare facilities, recovering veterans, people with Williams syndrome and individuals suffering with mental illness.

For more information, please visit ACMLiftingLives.org. acmcountry.com

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The Gambler Breaks Even Ten-time ACM Award winner Kenny Rogers decorated our lives with joy and soul

K

enny Rogers, the 1978 ACM Entertainer of the Year whose husky baritone brought forth country classics like “The Gambler” and “Islands in the Stream,” died March 20, 2020. He was 81.

Rogers charted 36 Top 10 country hits between 1977 and 1989 — then secured a comeback No. 1 with “Buy Me a Rose” in 2000. He sold more than 50 million albums in the U.S., though his fan base stretched around the world.

Rogers was born Aug. 21, 1938, in Houston, Texas. As a teenager, he sang in a popular local band called the Scholars. A smooth 1958 solo hit, “That Crazy Feeling” (credited to Kenneth Rogers) led to a spot on American Bandstand. In the 1960s, Rogers sang in a jazz trio and joined a folk group, the New Christy Minstrels. With other former members of that band, Rogers formed the First Edition and secured a trippy pop hit in 1967 with Mickey Newbury’s “Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In).” That band charted more pop hits through the remainder of the 1960s, including “But You Know I Love You” (later a No. 1 hit for Dolly Parton)” “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town” (written by Mel Tillis), and “Reuben James.” The latter two songs also charted modestly at country radio, while the group landed three more Top 40 pop hits. A Greatest Hits package arrived in 1971 and the band broke up in 1976.

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Larry Butler, a studio musician turned Nashville label executive, signed Rogers to a contract with United Artists.

That partnership led to hits like “Lucille” and “Daytime Friends,” which both hit No. 1 in 1977. In his first year to be nominated, Rogers claimed four ACM Awards: Top Male Vocalist, Song and Single (both for “Lucille”), and Album (for his self-titled debut). In addition, “Lucille” won a 1977 Grammy for Best Male Country Vocal Performance and rose to No. 5 on the pop chart. Although he wasn’t a consistent songwriter, he did climb to No. 9 on the country chart with his own composition, “Sweet Music Man,” at the end of the year.

More hits followed in 1978: “Every Time Two Fools Collide” (with labelmate Dottie West), “Love or Something Like It,” and his signature hit, “The Gambler.” With that momentum, Rogers picked up his second ACM trophy for Male Vocalist, as well as the 1978 Entertainer award. Written and originally recorded by Don Schlitz, the iconic story song also claimed 1979 Grammy for Best Country Male Vocal Performance.

Rogers maintained his superstar status with No. 1 country singles such as “She Believes in Me,” “You

Decorated My Life” and “Coward of the County,” while pop star Kim Carnes partnered with him on “Don’t Fall in Love With a Dreamer.” All four tracks were Top 10 pop singles as well.

During this era, Rogers and Dottie West also teamed up for “Anyone Who Isn’t Me Tonight,” “All I Ever Need Is You” and “Til I Can Make It On My Own.” Rogers’ final Top 10 hit for the label, “Love the World Away,” landed on the bestselling soundtrack to the 1980 film, Urban Cowboy. Rogers also starred in Western-themed TV movies named after “The Gambler” and “Coward of the County.”

Rogers ushered in a new contract with Liberty Records (following its corporate merger with United Artists) with the biggest pop hit of his career, “Lady.” Written by Lionel Richie, it topped the country chart for just a single week, yet spent six weeks at No. 1 on the pop chart. The ballad

keenly showed a more sensual side to the singer, while the exposure on pop radio broadened his fan base significantly. The 1980 compilation, Greatest Hits, went on to be certified 12-times platinum.

More hits quickly followed: “What Are We Doin’ in Love” (with Dottie West), “I Don’t Need You,” “Share Your Love With Me,” “Through the Years,” and “Love Will Turn You Around,” from Rogers’ film, Six Pack.

Meanwhile, Sheena Easton proved a formidable duet partner with the 1983 No. 1 hit, “We’ve Got Tonight,” written by Bob Seger.

A move to RCA Records brought Rogers and Dolly Parton onto the same roster, prompting the dazzling duet, “Islands in the Stream,” written by the Bee Gees. The single shot to No. 1 on the pop and country chart while picking up 1983 ACM trophies for Single of the Year and Vocal Duet. Along with headlining arena shows, Rogers kicked off another hot streak of hits: “Crazy” (a co-write with Richard Marx), “Real Love” (a duet with Dolly Parton), “Morning Desire” (produced by George Martin), “Tomb of the Unknown Love,” and “Twenty Years Ago.” A Christmas album with Dolly Parton, titled Once Upon a Christmas, arrived in 1984. A year later, he sang on “We Are the World,” along with the era’s biggest pop stars. Rogers won his

third Grammy for his 1987 duet with Ronnie Milsap, “Make No Mistake She’s Mine,” then charted two more Top 10 hits before switching to Reprise Records. The partnership yielded only one Top 10 single, “The Vows Go Unbroken” (Always True to You).”

But he continued to collaborate with female artists such as Anne Murray, Holly Dunn, Dolly Parton, Dottie West, Linda Davis, and Wynonna, the latter on 1997’s beautiful holiday single, “Mary Did You Know.”

Rogers lent his name to the restaurant chain Kenny Rogers Roasters in 1991 and landed smallscreen roles in The Return of Spinal Tap, Rio Diablo (with Naomi Judd and Travis Tritt), and Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. But it wasn’t until 1999 that a single on his own label, Dreamcatcher, caught a break at country radio. Written by Don Schlitz, “The Greatest” inched up the chart to No. 27. A year later, with harmony from Billy Dean and Alison Krauss, Rogers secured his final No. 1 hit with “Buy Me a Rose,” leading to an appearance on TV show Touched by an Angel.

After a few more singles on Dreamcatcher, Rogers signed with Capitol and logged a modest hit with “I Can’t Unlove You” in 2006.

After signing to Warner Bros.,

he reunited with Dolly Parton in 2013 for a Grammy-nominated duet, “You Can’t Make Old Friends.” The sweet single served as the title track for his final album of new material.

Rogers married his wife, Wanda, in 1997. They welcomed twin boys in 2004. Rogers had three children from previous marriages. He made a guest appearance on American Idol in 2006 and published his memoir, Luck or Something Like It, in 2012.

Rogers showed off his comic timing by reprising his role as “The Gambler” in a Geico commercial in 2014.

The Academy of Country Music celebrated Rogers’ remarkable legacy with the 2000 Career Achievement Award and the 2008 Cliffie Stone Pioneer Award. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers announced his farewell tour, The Gambler’s Last Deal, in 2015. His legion of famous admirers gathered for an all-star send-off in Nashville in 2017.

—CRAIG SHELBURNE

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Charlie Daniels

C

harlie Daniels, the iconic fiddler and legendary entertainer, died July 6 in Nashville following a hemorrhagic stroke. He was 83.

Daniels charted 34 country singles at country radio across five consecutive decades, though his signature song will always be “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” the No. 1 single from 1979 by the Charlie Daniels Band. An epic showdown between a fiery fiddler and his wicked competitor, the instant classic vaulted Daniels to country stardom and international recognition.

Born on Oct. 28, 1936, in Wilmington, North Carolina, Daniels taught himself to play guitar at 15, started touring with a rock band after high school, and emerged in the 1960s as a promising songwriter and studio musician. Elvis Presley cut one of Daniels’ compositions, “It Hurts Me,” in 1964. Daniels co-wrote the song with producer Bob Johnston, who would later hire Daniels to play electric bass on three albums by Bob Dylan: Nashville Skyline, Self Portrait and New Morning.

By the early 1970s Daniels had earned his stripes as a fledgling recording artist on the Kama Sutra label, a fiddler on many of Marshall Tucker Band’s recordings, and a festival organizer of the seminal Volunteer Jam. “Uneasy Rider,” a novelty hit in 1973, carried the Charlie Daniels Band into the Top 10 at pop radio, with minor crossover success at country (peaking at No. 67). A year later, Fire on the Mountain proved to be the band’s

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platinum breakout album, offering essential CDB tracks like “Long Haired Country Boy,” “The South’s Gonna Do It Again,” and “Trudy.”

Moving to Epic Records, Daniels’ pop fortunes faded but country radio started paying more attention.

“Wichita Jail,” a Daniels original, rose to No. 22 in 1976. Finally, his fifth album for the label, 1979’s Million Mile Reflections, solidified his star power in country music. “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” with writing credit shared among the band, showcased the ensemble’s instrumental power; to capture the intensity of the duel with the devil, Daniels overdubbed seven fiddle parts on the recording.

The Charlie Daniels Band claimed two ACM trophies as Band of the Year (Touring) for 1979 and 1980, while “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” received a 1979 Grammy. The Charlie Daniels

Band also performed the song in the pivotal 1980 film, Urban Cowboy.

Daniels stayed with Epic through the ‘80s and ‘90s, with singles ranging from “In America” and “Simple Man” to “Drinkin’ My Baby Goodbye” and “Boogie Woogie Fiddle Country Blues.” In the 2000s he recorded with a new generation of admirers and charted a final time with 2011’s “Country Boy,” a track with Aaron Lewis and George Jones that received an ACM Vocal Event nomination. He remained an outspoken and generous advocate for veterans and military families throughout his career.

His numerous honors include the 1997 ACM Pioneer Award, two Dove Awards, and a 2005 BMI Icon Award.

He was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 2008 and the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2016.

—CRAIG SHELBURNE

Hello in There Loved by fans and generations of music artists, singer/songwriter John Prine shared his unique view of the world to great acclaim

J

ohn Prine, the revered performer known for writing “Angel from Montgomery,” “I Just Want to Dance With You,” and “You Never Even Called Me By My Name,” died April 7, 2020, from complications of COVID-19. He was 73.

Across five decades, Prine released an array of eloquent albums that showcased his gift for wordplay, his distinctive voice, and his irrepressible personality.

His wholly original music truly transcended genres — and generations.

Prine grew up in Maywood, Illinois, and learned to play guitar as a teenager. After returning from the Army, he picked up a mail route in the Chicago area, then started gigging around the city’s folk venues.

The young reporter (and future film critic) Roger Ebert happened to catch one of Prine’s earliest sets and wrote a glowing review, the first of many more to come. Equally impressed after seeing a club performance, Kris Kristofferson helped Prine secure a recording contract. Almost immediately, Prine grabbed attention for his singular songwriting and engaging stage presence. He earned a 1972 Grammy nomination for Best New Artist following the release of his self-titled debut album, which entered the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2015. A stunning number of its songs remained concert staples, such as “Hello in There,” “Sam Stone” and “Paradise.”

In the 1970s, Prine landed two of his most enduring cuts, as Bonnie Raitt offered a flawless rendition of “Angel From Montgomery” and David Allan

Coe captured the humor and honkytonk spirit of “You Never Even Called Me By My Name.” (Prine didn’t want to offend the country music industry with the pointed and perhaps accurate lyrical observations, thus giving Steve Goodman sole credit.) By 1980, Prine had recorded seven albums for major labels. In a bold step for that era, he opted to create his own label with his manager and a friend. The strategy?

Mail personal letters to fans asking them to pre-purchase the label’s first release, 1984’s Aimless Love. The money poured in and Prine remained with Oh Boy Records for the rest of his career.

The ‘80s led to even more success as a country songwriter, particularly with Don Williams’ “Love Is on a Roll,” a No. 1 hit from 1983. Fifteen years later, Prine returned to No. 1 as a songwriter with George Strait’s “I Just Want to Dance With You.” He wrote both compositions with good friend Roger Cook.

Prine won his first of two career Grammys for 1991’s The Missing Years, then concluded the decade with 1999’s In Spite of Ourselves, an exceptional collection of duets with female country singers. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2003. One of Prine’s wittiest songs, “That’s the Way That the World Goes Round,” appeared on Miranda Lambert’s Revolution, the 2009 ACM Album of the Year. Oh Boy Records published a fascinating Prine songbook and career overview, Beyond Words, in 2017. Prine’s final album, The Tree of Forgiveness, arrived in 2018, a year before his induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. The last song on the album was the humorous “When I Get to Heaven.” After his passing, Prine surprised his fans again with the last song he recorded, the poignant “I Remember Everything.”

—CRAIG SHELBURNE

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Joe Diffie

J

oe Diffie, the ‘90s country star who built his broad fan base with traditional weepers and novelty songs alike, died on March 29 from COVID-19. He was 61.

Between 1990 and 2004, Diffie placed 37 hit songs, with most of them from his decadelong tenure at Epic Records.

His debut single for that label, the lonesome ballad “Home,” also became the first of his five No. 1 hits.

Born on December 28, 1958, in Tulsa, Okla., Diffie grew up absorbing a multitude of musical styles, including country, bluegrass, gospel, and rock.

After moving to Nashville in 1986, he divided his time between working at Gibson Guitars, writing songs and singing demos. By 1989, Holly Dunn sent one of his compositions, “There Goes My Heart Again,” to No. 4.

Diffie’s other chart-topping singles include “If the Devil Danced (in Empty Pockets),” “Third Rock From the Sun,” “Pickup Man,” and “Bigger Than the Beatles.” He joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1993, the same year he released the crowd favorite, “John Deere Green.” One of the most versatile vocalists of his generation, Diffie could deliver a heartache song such as “Ships That Don’t Come In” as comfortably as a fun sing-along like “Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox (If I Die).” He

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received ACM nominations in five different categories in the ‘90s, along with earning two platinum and two gold albums. Diffie’s final Top 10 single, “In Another World,” appeared in 2002. However, he landed a multi-week No. 1 as a co-writer of Jo Dee Messina’s 2005 smash, “My Give a Damn’s Busted.”

Admired by today’s country artists, Jason Aldean namechecked Diffie in “1994” and Chris Young saluted him in “Raised on Country.” In 2019, Diffie helped to induct Luke Combs (who loved Diffie’s music as a toddler) into the Grand Ole Opry.

—CRAIG SHELBURNE

Right: Joe Diffie at the 30th Annual ACM Awards

BY T R I C I A D E S P R E S

Biff Adam

Jimmy Capps

Paul English

1936 – 2020

1939 – 2020

1932 – 2020

Biff Adam, longtime member of Merle Haggard’s backing band The Strangers, passed away on March 7 as a result of congestive heart failure. He was 83.

Originally named Clair Adam, Adam was born in Reading, Pennsylvania in April of 1936 and lived in an orphanage after both of his parents died. In 1954, Adam graduated from high school and joined the Navy. However, music continued to tug at his heart, and he would soon begin playing in a number of bands before joining and backing Haggard on his albums through the seventies and beyond.

Of course, Adam was not only known for his distinctive ‘double shuffle beat’ style of drumming in Haggard’s band, but also served as everything from Haggard’s publicist to Haggard’s bus driver throughout the years.

Adam also served as the session drummer on the soundtrack for the 1967 animated Disney film The Jungle Book.

Musician Jimmy Capps, who played on hit songs such as Kenny Rogers’ “The Gambler,” George Jones’ “He Stopped Loving Her Today” and George Strait’s “Amarillo by Morning” passed away on June 1 at 81.

Capps was born on May 25, 1939, in Fayetteville, North Carolina and started picking at age 12 after his parents bought him his first guitar.

After working a variety of jobs in television and radio, Capps got a gig playing guitar for The Louvin Brothers.

In 1958, Capps moved to Nashville and began making his mark on the history of country music. In addition to playing on the songs of legends such as Johnny Cash, Reba McEntire and Alan Jackson, Capps also played in the house band at the Grand Ole Opry for more than 50 years.

A member of the Musicians Hall of Fame and the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame, Capps was honored in 2018 when the Opry named a music room after him.

Paul English, Willie Nelson’s longtime drummer, passed away on February 12 after a bout with pneumonia. He was 87.

Dwight Yoakam tweeted out a day after English’s death, “His lore and legend as one of the most fabled of the ‘outlaws’ will remain forever an enduring legacy in country music.”

Born in 1932 in Vernon, Texas, English would had his first meeting with Nelson in 1955 and eventually joined Wilson’s iconic Family Band in 1966. From the start, English became instantly recognizable thanks to his ever-present black clothes, crimson cape and goatee. That signature cape would go on to be displayed in the Country Music Hall of Fame’s “Outlaws & Armadillos” exhibit.

As the story goes, English was much more than just Nelson’s drummer. The two were quite the pair, with English taking on the role as confidant, body-guard and Willie’s very own ‘enforcer.’ Their close relationship was chronicled in the 1971 song “Me and Paul” from the album Yesterday’s Wine.

In 2010, English suffered a minor stroke, but continued to perform right up until his death, sharing drumming duties with his younger brother Billy English.

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Benny Garcia

Alex Harvey

Jan Howard

1956 – 2020

1941 – 2020

1929 – 2020

Musician and beloved guitar tech Benny Garcia passed away May 9 at his home in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma following a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 64.

Born in Oklahoma, music ran through the blood of Garcia from the very start. His father was the legendary jazz and swing guitar player Benny Garcia, Jr., and from an early age, Garcia enjoyed playing music with various groups. Yet, it was his talents as a guitar tech that made him so loved within the country music community.

Garcia served up his guitar tech talents for a slew of country music’s biggest artists, including Crosby, Stills & Nash, the Chicks, Trisha Yearwood, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Reba McEntire and his longtime friend Vince Gill.

“Benny and I had a 50-year friendship,” said Gill shortly after Garcia’s death. “We met as kids and played in our first garage bands together, and for the last 30 years, he traveled with me everywhere.

And for the last 50 years we’ve been inseparable.”

Singer/songwriter/actor Alex Harvey passed away April 4 at the age of 73.

Harvey was best known for penning songs such as the iconic Tanya Tucker smash “Delta Dawn” in 1972.

“The song started everything off for me and has kept me going ever since,” Tucker said after his death. “I thank God for him, his song, my life, my career and my fans.”

Thomas Alexander Harvey was born in Dyersburg, Tennessee and attended Murray State University in Kentucky. Under the careful watch of songwriting mentor Billy Edd Wheeler, Harvey moved to Nashville after college graduation and eventually landed his first Top 30 hit “Reuben James” with Kenny Rogers and the First Edition in 1969. From there, he would write a bevy of hits including David Houston’s “Baby, Baby I Know You’re a Lady” in 1970, Cymarron’s “Rings” in 1971 and also served as a co-writer on T. Graham Brown’s “Hell and High Water” in 1986.

His songs were also recorded by artists such as Anne Murray, Andy Williams, Eydie Gorme, Merle Haggard and Peggy Lee. Harvey also worked as a recording artist, recording 12 albums over a five-decade career.

Harvey also was an accomplished actor, appearing in shows such as Dallas, The Dukes of Hazzard and Walker, Texas Ranger as well as such movies such as The Blue and the Gray, The Dollmaker, Parent Trap II and Country.

Beloved Grand Ole Opry member Jan Howard died peacefully on March 28 in Gallatin, Tennessee. According to her son, Howard had battled pneumonia before her death. She was 91.

Howard began her music career in 1960 when she landed her first major country hit “The One You Slip Around With.” She would follow-up that single with an impressive list of 20 Top 40 hits, including “Evil on Your Mind,” “Bad Seed” and “Count Your Blessings, Woman.” She also routinely collaborated with Bill Anderson on a number of hits, including the number one smash “For Loving You.” One of Howard’s most heartwarming and poignant songs was her single “My Son,” which she wrote in tribute to her son Jimmy, who was killed in action in Vietnam in 1968.

Howard also saw success as a songwriter on songs such as Kitty Wells (“It’s All Over But the Crying”), Connie Smith (“I Never Once Stopped Loving You”) and Bill Anderson’s (“Love Is a Sometimes Thing”).

Howard was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 1971, and would go on to be a proud member of the Opry for the next 49 years.

Friend Crystal Gayle tweeted shortly after Howard’s death, “Jan is one of the legendary artists who paved the way in country music for all of us ladies who followed.”

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Jimmy Jay

Ramsey Kearney

1935 – 2020

1933 – 2020

Best known as country music recording artist and songwriter Jimmy Jay, ames Troy Pickard, Sr. passed away on April 6 following a battle with cancer.

He was 84.

Jimmy Jay was best known for songs he recorded back in the sixties, including “You’re Still with Me,” “I Might as Well Go Home” and “Bayou Girl.”

His songwriting talents could also be seen in songs he wrote such as “Neon Row” by Eddy Raven and George Strait, “Why Not Tonight” by Neal McCoy, and “You Put It There” by Conway Twitty. In addition, Jimmy Jay toured with artists such as Twitty and Eddy Raven.

In his later years, Pickard enjoyed relishing in the simple things in life, including boating, gardening and fishing. He also loved spending time with his family, his friends and his beloved dog Schatzi.

Nashville songwriter and independent recording artist Ramsey Kearney died on March 14. He was 86. Kearney is best known for co-writing with Mel Tillis the Brenda Lee 1961 smash “Emotions,” which was covered by country greats such as Juice Newton and Pam Tillis throughout the years.

Kearney was born in October of 1933 in Bolivar, Tennessee, and was the oldest of seven children. He began his music career on the radio at the age of 15 as a DJ on WDXI in Jackson. After joining the Army in 1954, Kearney returned to Nashville and found work as a writer at Cedarwood Publishing.

He would also write for Acuff-Rose before trying his hand as a vocalist, performing Fred Rose’s “I Never Let You Cross My Mind” at the Grand Ole Opry in the 1960’s.

Kearney would go on to release over 25 albums and put out more than 20 singles as a vocalist.

Jacqueline “Jackie” McEntire 1927 – 2020 Jacqueline “Jackie” McEntire, mother of Country legend Reba McEntire, died March 14 after a battle with cancer.

She was 93.

McEntire paid tribute to her on social media, saying her mother “made that wonderful cross over into Heaven today.”

“She had a wonderful, full, healthy life and was absolutely ready to go,” Reba wrote. “The cancer might think it won the battle but we’re giving God all the credit on selecting the time for her to go home to Him. She was ready to see our Daddy, her mama and daddy and all her family and friends.

We’re all going to miss her, but we have so many wonderful memories.

Thank you, Lord, for that.”

Marty Martel 1939 – 2020

Bill Mack 1932 – 2020 Bill Mack, a Country Music DJ Hall of Fame member who was known to overnight truck drivers as the Midnight Cowboy, died on July 31 from COVID19. He was 91. Mack found minor success as a producer and recording artist prior to launching his overnight radio show at WBAP 820-AM in Fort Worth in 1969. As a songwriter, Mack received a 1996 ACM Award and a Grammy for “Blue,” which introduced Texas teenager LeAnn Rimes to the world. He also wrote the gospel favorite “Clinging to a Saving Hand,” as well as “Drinking Champagne,” a 1990 hit for George Strait.

Industry veteran Marty Martel passed away peacefully in his sleep on March 29. He was 81 years old at the time of his death.

Born in the town of Ogdensburg, New York in March of 1939, Donald Robert “Marty” Martel was inspired to get involved in country music as a young man, and would enjoy a life in which he served many roles within his beloved genre of music. From a touring artist to a book agent to a show promoter to a business owner of Midnight Special Productions, Martel was indeed a man of many talents. He would even manage the career of Johnny Paycheck before his career was through.

Martel is survived by his children Brittney Amara Martel, Kristopher Martel, Deron Martel, Tami West, Dennis Morefield and Shannon Martin along with his 15 grandchildren.

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Craig Martin

Gary McSpadden

David Olney

1967 – 2020

1943 – 2020

1948-2020

Country music songwriter Craig Matthew Martin Sr. passed away July 3 suddenly as a result of a ‘sudden cardiac event.’ He was 52.

Martin was born in Wheeling, West Virginia and started his own band when he was just 15 years old. After high school graduation, Martin briefly worked as a correctional officer before moving to Nashville in 1991.

Best known in Nashville as Craig J. Martin, the natural wordsmith was signed as a recording artist from 1992-1994. Throughout the years, he released songs such as “I Have a Dream,” “Let Him Walk You Home” and “I’m a Kid in Trouble.”

However, the accomplished songwriter may be best known as the co-writer of Tim McGraw’s smash hit “Don’t Take the Girl.”

The heart-wrenching song ended up being McGraw’s breakthrough hit, reaching the top of the country charts and selling more than two million copies. Martin and his co-writer on the song Larry Johnson went on to receive a BMI Award for their lyrical masterpiece.

In a sad chain of events, Johnson passed away exactly three weeks before Martin.

Martin also wrote alongside the likes of Hank Cochran, Billy Don Burns, Marty Haggard and Kent Blazy and wrote songs for everyone from Rod Stewart and The Back-street Boys to George Jones and Clinton Gregory.

Singer/songwriter Gary McSpadden passed away on April 15 in Tulsa, Oklahoma following a battle with pancreatic cancer. Throughout his career, McSpadden was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame and was also a Grammy and GMA Dove Award winner. He was 77.

Born on January 26, 1943, McSpadden’s musical career began in the early ‘60s, when he was asked to fill in for singer Jake Hess while he was on medical leave from the gospel group The Statesman Quartet.

He later joined what was then known as The Oak Ridge Quartet, who would soon be known as The Oak Ridge Boys. McSpadden would go on to record three albums with them.

In 1977, McSpadden joined The Bill Gaither Trio and a few short years later, became a member of The Gaither Vocal Band.

In addition to releasing 20 solo projects throughout his career, McSpadden also shined as a songwriter on songs such as “Jesus Lord to Me,” “Hallelujah Praise the Lamb” and “No Other Name but Jesus.” Away from the stage, McSpadden could be found leading the Faith and Wisdom Church in Branson, Missouri, serving as a pastor alongside his wife, Carol.

Besides being survived by his loving wife of 57 years, Carol McSpadden, he is also survived by children, Michelle Smith (Ron) and Shawn McSpadden; grandchildren, Chase Smith, Cole Smith, Carley Smith, Taylor McSpadden, and Brooks McSpadden; and sister, Cheryl Kartsonakis (Dino.)

Songwriter David Olney passed away while playing the 30A Songwriter Festival in Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., on January 18 of an apparent heart attack.

He was 71.

“David was playing a song when he paused, said ‘I’m sorry’ and put his chin to his chest,” Scott Miller posted on Facebook shortly after Olney’s death. “He never dropped his guitar or fell of his stool. It was as easy and gentle as he was. The world lost a good one last night. But we still have his work. And it still inspires. And always will. RIP.” Olney recorded more than 20 records over 40 years, penning songs for legendary artists such as Emmylou Harris, Steve Earle, Joe Ely, Del McCoury, Johnny Cash, and Linda Ronstadt. He also separately received much acclaim as a cinematographer.

In 1973, Olney moved to Nashville and in 1978, he began playing with Dave Olney & The X-Rays. He also performed and recorded with The Nashville Jug Band. His career would take him to tour stops around the world, even opening shows for Bonnie Raitt, Kris Kristofferson and Nanci Griffith.

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Knox Phillips

Harold Reid

Little Richard

1945 – 2020

1939 – 2020

1932 – 2020

Memphis Music Hall of Fame member Knox Phillips passed away April 13 after a long battle with cancer. The studio owner, engineer and producer was 74.

The son of the legendary Sun Records founder Sam Phillips, Knox Phillips was born in Memphis in 1945 with some obvious musical genes.

However, he soon began shining on his own, even as a youngster.

“He was a chip off the old block,” brother Jerry Phillips said. “Being Sam’s son, that is not the easiest thing in the world, but Knox was able to thrive because he was genuine and real. There was nothing phony about his enthusiasms or the charge he was trying to lead.”

In his early years, Phillips recorded with various rock/pop groups within the Memphis music scene, including Randy & The Radiants and The Gentrys.

He also served as a sound engineer in the studio alongside artists such as Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker and The Amazing Rhythm Aces. But perhaps Knox’s most well-known accomplishment occurred back in 1979, when he co-produced John Prine’s Memphis LP Pink Cadillac.

The Statler Brothers co-founder Harold Reid passed away surrounded by his wife and children on April 24 at his home in Staunton, Virginia. Known best as the deep bass tone behind the one of the most awarded acts in the history of country music, Reid was a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. He was 80.

Born on August 21, 1939 in Augusta County, Virginia, Reid’s iconic voice soon became a fixture within the choirs at his church, and he began his first band when he was in high school. And it was this band that would eventually evolve into The Statler Brothers.

During his time with The Statler Brothers, Reid and his fellow members would chart a total of 52 singles on the country charts, with 32 of those singles reaching the coveted Top 10. Many of the group’s songs were co-written by Reid himself.

“We took gospel harmonies and put them over in country music,” Reid said.

Richard Wayne Penniman, best known as the iconic Little Richard, passed away in Nashville on May 9 at the age of 87 after a battle with bone cancer.

The unforgettable performer was best known for hits such as “Tutti Frutti,” “Long Tall Sally” and “Good Golly, Miss Molly”.

Born in Georgia on December 5th, 1932, Little Richard kicked off his musical career on the streets of Nashville, working the clubs in the 1950s and making a name for himself thanks to his enthusiastic vocal delivery, unsurpassed showmanship and his talents on the piano.

“I used to work in Nashville quite a bit when I was young,” he said once in an interview about his early days.

“That’s where I really made my $100 a week at. I didn’t make $100 a week nowhere but [Nashville], really.”

Soon, all of those traits would make quite the impression on the foundation of Rock and Roll, inspiring artists such as including the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Prince and Michael Jackson.

In 1986, Little Richard became one of the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Fame and in 2019, Little Richard was honored at the Tennessee Governor’s Arts Awards.

In the later years of his life, Little Richard split his time between his home in Lynchburg, Tennessee and a hotel on Nashville’s Lower Broadway, overlooking his star on the Music City Walk of Fame.

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ACM M O M E NT

Keith Urban with Nicole Kidman & Taylor Swift ACM Artist of the Decade Special MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas | April 6, 2009 Our Host, Keith Urban, sure was a lucky guy backstage in 2009 at the ACM Artist of the Decade Special honoring George Strait. He’s taking a moment here with wife Nicole Kidman and buddy Taylor Swift.

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