MIDPOINTS
Music U.
Scott and Craig joined another former MTSU student and two Recording Industry alumni in being nominated for their work at the 59th Grammy Awards: Chris Young, Brad King (’15), and Pete Fisher (’87). Young’s No. 1 single, “Think of You,” which he co-wrote and which features singer Casadee Pope, was a nominee in the best country duo/group performance category. King was assistant engineer on the team that recorded Poets & Saints by the group All Sons & Daughters. The album competed with Scott in the best contemporary Christian album category. Fisher, the Grand Ole Opry’s former longtime vice president and CEO who was recently named CEO of the Academy of Country Music, was an executive producer on a team that created American Saturday Night: Live from the Grand Ole Opry, a concert film released in theaters in 2015 and a nominee in the best music film category. MTSU was represented at several pre-Grammy events. For the fourth consecutive year, MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee and College of Media and Entertainment Dean Ken Paulson brought a delegation to the Grammys to underscore MTSU’s industry ties and celebrate its alumni receiving award nominations. MTSU sends delegati
• a gathering for Southern California MTSU alumni followed by a special concert at the L.A. music venue The Hotel Café, presented by MTSU’s Americana public radio station, WMOT-FM Roots Radio 89.5, and The Bluegrass Situation in a first-time partnership. • a reception honoring Scott at L.A.’s Standard Rooftop Lounge, followed by a return to the historic Troubadour club in West Hollywood for an evening concert co-sponsored by the Franklin, Tennessee-based Americana Music Association. Both Young and Scott, who attended MTSU in the 2000s, have previously established scholarships in the University’s Department of Recording Industry to help students working toward careers in the music industry. “MTSU helped to give me a foundation for the music business, and I want this scholarship to help other students who are looking to take a similar path,” said Young, a Murfreesboro native. Young’s gift allows the Department of Recording Industry to award a yearly scholarship, starting this fall, for a rising junior or senior. “Chris has remained a loyal and connected MTSU alumnus through the years,” said Joe Bales, vice president of university Chris Young advancement. “He’s returned to perform several times in MTSU’s Murphy Center as his music career ascended and remains generous with his time and talent, even donating some of his touring audio equipment and accessories a few years ago.” MTSU wrapped up its 2017 Grammy trip by announcing an educational partnership with the Grammy Museum, one of the nation’s top educational venues devoted to the music industry. MTSU became just the 10th university in the nation to become a Grammy Museum affiliate. The partnership will allow MTSU to collaborate on research and use the museum as a teaching tool for students. MTSU is the only university affiliate in Tennessee. The museum in downtown Los Angeles occupies four floors of cutting-edge exhibits, interactive experiences, and films to provide a one-of-akind visitor experience—engaging, educational, celebratory, and inspirational. MTSU
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Department of Recording Industry alumnus Josh Craig (’15), an Audio Production cum laude graduate, also was part of a Grammy-winning project: Hymns by the duo Joey & Rory, which won this year’s Grammy for best roots gospel album.
Events included:
photo: David McCliste
Former MTSU student Hillary Scott branched out into contemporary Christian music last year and brought home two Grammy Awards in February 2017, in her inaugural venture with her group The Scott Family. Scott, also a member of country super group Lady Antebellum, won both her nominations in her new field: best contemporary Christian album Hillary Scott for Love Remains, released in July 2016, and best contemporary Christian music performance/song for “Thy Will,” which she co-wrote, off that album. The Scott Family includes Scott’s parents— country singer Linda Davis and songwriter-musician Lang Scott—and her younger sister Rylee.