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Kim Copeland Productions


The Artists Connection                                                Oct 28, 2013
Welcome to The Artists Connection E-Tip, sponsored by Kim Copeland Productions.
 
This newsletter is for sharing information with all of you who are performing, recording and selling CD's. If you also write, you might also consider signing up for The Songwriters Connection E-Tip
 
As always we look forward to hearing from you, so always feel free to drop us a line! EMAIL 
FEATURED ARTICLE
 Helping You Prepare for Great Photographs!
 
The more people I photograph, the more I’ve come to realize something: a great portrait is a collaboration between photographer and subject. When both are working together the result is far more than what comes from direction alone. Our subjects often aren’t experienced in having their photo taken, and don’t know a lot about the process.
 
The number one thing I always start out with when I meet a new client is to explain my style and what to expect from me and what I expect from them; as well as any others they may have with them, as many have spouses, management team, wardrobe stylists, hair and makeup team etc. I encourage them to be themselves... talk, move, and most importantly, relax and have fun! The shoot is often quite nerve wracking for folks, so the more information I can give them the more comfortable and confident they’ll feel.
Below are the top five things to keep in mind as you make your plans:
  1. What are photos to be used for?
    1. Headshots for business and promotion?
    2. Family photography for framing and enlargement?
    3. Live performance photography?
    4. Websites for social media and / or business?
There are countless uses, but know what your end results “could be” this makes a world of difference on the “look” we will encourage out of you to achieve the goals.
  1. Do you have a location in mind or examples of others you like?
    1. Do not ever hesitate to share ideas of looks you like – just like a haircut you see in a magazine, yours will never be “exactly” like the one you saw, but we strive to give you the feel and style with personalization to make it uniquely you!
    2. We will gladly help “scout” a location for you and chances are we have some in mind but knowing item one will give us a lot of ideas on what might works best to achieve what you want the photographs for.
  1. Are you planning on using props? (guitars, hats, special items to compliment the location or the reason for the photograph)
    1. We strongly encourage you to have items in your photographs to make them more “you” and more “personal”... and if you are using the photographs for a promotional reason, regardless if it is just you or for your business, is there a tie in or theme you need to keep in mind or something you can bring along that might really bring a special meaning to the photo?
    2. Discuss and show us the props you have and what they mean to you. Are you wanting the prop to be something you are singing about on the title cut of your CD? Did the item belong to someone special to you? The more we know, the more creative we will be able to be.
  1. Clothing!
    1. Think ahead on what you want to wear. It is usually one of the biggest challenges. But laying out your clothes and including all accessories, shoes, socks, hats, whatever you need and packing it accordingly will ensure you are photo ready.
    2. How many different looks are you hoping to photograph – we love it when we have more to work with than one outfit... different colors and textures create a new you, and a new feel.
  1. Keeping all the above in mind, give yourself time to achieve all you hope to capture.
    1. Rushing and squeezing too much into a short session will only frustrate you. You know how much you enjoy getting photos taken – so keep in mind your tolerance level as well – if you are not wanting to be there, it will show. We want happy customers. Some individuals will stay all day, all week! They love posing, changing looks... and that is not easy either... so set a goal on a time frame as this helps everyone achieve the best session possible.
Check out Bev Moser at momentsbymoser.zenfolio.com
For a limited time, we are offering a free photo shoot to artists who record a full CD project with us!   More INFO on our KCPartners promotion page.

MUSIC ROW MAGAZINE: APA Coverage


APA agents and artists celebrate the kick-off of the 43rd Annual IEBA Conference during their showcase Sunday night in Nashville at the new Omni Hotel. The show, hosted by Goldy Locks, featured performances by Sundy Best, Tonic, Tom Keifer of Cinderella, Charlie Daniels and Chris Cagle.
Pictured (Back row L-R): Chris Looney (Agent), Heath Baumhor (Agent), Craig Newman (Agent), Jim Gosnell (President/CEO), Jackie Knobbe (Agent), Frank Wing (Senior Vice President), Steve Lassiter (Senior Vice President/Partner), Bonnie Sugarman (Senior Vice President) and Andrew Buck (Agent). APA Artists/Agent (Front Row): Nick Jamerson (Sundy Best), Kris Bentley (Sundy Best), Lee Greenwood, Charlie Daniels, Tom Keifer, Lee Roy Parnell and APA's Ray Shelide.
Pictured (Back row L-R): Chris Looney (Agent), Heath Baumhor (Agent), Craig Newman (Agent), Jim Gosnell (President/CEO), Jackie Knobbe (Agent), Frank Wing (Senior Vice President), Steve Lassiter (Senior Vice President/Partner), Bonnie Sugarman (Senior Vice President) and Andrew Buck (Agent). APA Artists/Agent (Front Row): Nick Jamerson (Sundy Best), Kris Bentley (Sundy Best), Lee Greenwood, Charlie Daniels, Tom Keifer, Lee Roy Parnell and APA’s Ray Shelide.

APA Kicks Off IEBA Week In Nashville



APA agents and artists celebrate the kick-off of the 43rd Annual IEBA Conference during their showcase Sunday night in Nashville at the new Omni Hotel.  The SRO show hosted by Goldy Locks featured performances by Sundy Best, Tonic, Tom Keifer of Cinderella, Charlie Daniels and Chris Cagle.

 
APA Staffers: Back row L-R: Chris Looney(Agent), Heath Baumhor (Agent), Craig Newman (Agent), Jim Gosnell (President/CEO), Jackie Knobbe (Agent), Frank Wing (Senior Vice President), Steve Lassiter (Senior Vice President/Partner), Bonnie Sugarman (Senior Vice President) and Andrew Buck (Agent). 
APA Artists/Agent Front Row: Nick Jamerson (Sundy Best), Kris Bentley (Sundy Best), Lee Greenwood, Charlie Daniels, Tom Keifer, Lee Roy Parnell and APA's Ray Shelide.

 
Showcase emcee - Goldy Locks                    Charlie Daniels

 
Lee Greenwood, Lee Roy Parnell, Charlie Daniels and APA's  President/CEO Jim Gosnell.


Photo Credit:
Bev Moser, Moments By Moser

TENNESSEAN: Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Adds Four At Annual Ceremony


Taylor Swift receives the NSAI Songwriter/Arist of the Year Award
From “Tennessee River” to “I Knew You Were Trouble,” the Nashville songwriters behind several decades worth of instantly recognizable tunes were honored Sunday night at the Music City Center.
Four new members were welcomed into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the writers responsible for the past year’s biggest hits were honored by the Nashville Songwriters Association International.
Alabama frontman Randy Owen and songsmiths Will Jennings, Layng Martine Jr. and Jeffrey Steele are the Hall’s 2013 inductees, and all (save Jennings, who was unable to attend) gathered for dinner with hundreds of Music Row colleagues, friends and family members Sunday night to accept the honor — and hear their songs performed by a surprise cast of musical stars.
Speaking to The Tennessean before the ceremony, Owen called his induction “the most special thing that ever happened to me individually.” It was an honor that made him think back to Alabama’s earliest gigs — and even earlier, when he was first inspired to write a song.
“My daddy taught me to love poetry, and he used to read me poetry. I just loved the way words flowed.” He said. “He would also (play) the Hank Williams stuff, and Hank was just so perfect with the way he wrote. It was very inspiring to me, to get a guitar and think, ‘You know, I might could do that.’”

Owen and his fellow inductees saw firsthand how their songs inspired scores of other artists, as more than a dozen performers — kept secret from the inductees and the audience — performed their songs in tribute. That included some of Nashville’s most familiar faces: Vince Gill and Emmylou Harris on Jennings’ “Tears In Heaven” and Ray Stevens saluting Martine with “Rub It In”; as well as newcomers rocker Aaron Lewis (Steele’s “What Hurts the Most”), “American Idol” alum Kree Harrison (Owen’s “Feels So Right”).
Bluebird Cafe founder Amy Kurland, who was given the Frances Williams Preston Mentor Award, was saluted not with a song, but with a speech and a shush, in a nod to the Nashville songwriter’s haven’s famous practice of quieting chatty audience members during its concerts.
Other young artists, including Taylor Swift, also got to shine early in the evening as the Nashville Songwriters Association International presented its annual Songwriter Achievement Awards.
It was an emotional occasion for songwriters Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington and Jimmy Yeary as they accepted the song of the year award for “I Drive Your Truck,” inspired by the real-life story of a father and his son, who was killed in action in Afghanistan and posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.
Songwriter of the year winner Rodney Clawson was a writer on “Crash My Party,” “Drunk On You” and “Sure Be Cool If You Did” among many recent hits.
Swift broke a record for the association this year as the pop/country star was named artist/songwriter of the year for the sixth time since 2007. Though she was hours away from flying to South Africa to film her scenes for the upcoming film, “The Giver,” Swift made a point to attend Sunday night’s ceremony.
“I get really excited to meet the writers, because I wouldn’t be able to do this as a career if I wasn’t a writer,” she said. “I don’t see a world where I would have been a singer without a writer. That’s definitely the most important part of what I do, and that’s where my biggest heroes lie, in the songwriting. I will probably have a few geek-out moments tonight.”
As of May, those heroes now have a home — just a few floors below the ballroom that hosted Sunday’s ceremony, the hall’s near-200 members are set in stone in the new Songwriters Square, and visitors can learn about their work in a new interactive digital museum. Sunday night’s inductees reminded the audience that their work is still in progress.
“It’s been a long journey,” Steele said from the podium. “And I’m hoping it keeps going.”
Contact Dave Paulson at dnpaulson@tennessean.com or call 615-664-2278.
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame 2013 inductees
Randy Owen
Will Jennings
Layng Martine, Jr.
Jeffrey Steele
Frances Williams Preston Mentor Award
Amy Kurland
Song of the Year
“I Drive Your Truck” by Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington and Jimmy Yeary
Songwriter of the Year
Rodney Clawson
Songwriter/Artist of the Year
Taylor Swift
The writers of NSAI's Professional Songwriters Division also singled out 10 songs and their writers for the organization's 2013 awards, informally dubbed "The Songs I Wish I'd Written." Recipients were:
“Better Dig Two” (Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally, Trevor Rosen / recorded by The Band Perry)
“Cruise” (Tyler Hubbard, Brian Kelley, Joey Moi, Chase Rice, Jesse Rice / recorded by Florida Georgia Line)
“Hard To Love” (Ben Glover, Billy Montana, John Ozier / recorded by Lee Brice)
“Highway Don’t Care” (Mark Irwin, Josh Kear, Brad Warren, Brett Warren / recorded by Tim McGraw & Taylor Swift)
“I Drive Your Truck” (Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington, Jimmy Yeary / recorded by Lee Brice)
“Like Jesus Does” (Casey Beathard, Monty Criswell / recorded by Eric Church)
“Mama’s Broken Heart” (Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally, Kacey Musgraves / recorded by Miranda Lambert)
“Merry Go ’Round ” (Shane McAnally, Kacey Musgraves, Josh Osborne / recorded by Kacey Musgraves)
“Pontoon” (Barry Dean, Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird / recorded by Little Big Town)
“Wagon Wheel” (Bob Dylan, Ketch Secor / recorded by Darius Rucker.
Taylor Swift receives the NSAI Songwriter/Arist of the Year Award

CMT News: Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Inducts Four New Members

Randy Owen, Jeffrey Steele, Layng Martine Jr., Will Jennings Honored
Pat Alger (left), Layng Martine, Jr., Randy Owen, Jeffrey Steele and Mark Ford
Pat Alger (left), Layng Martine, Jr., Randy Owen, Jeffrey Steele and Mark Ford
Photo Credit: Bev Moser
Friends, family and music industry insiders filled the grand ballroom of Nashville's Music City Center to witness Sunday night's (Oct. 13) induction of Jeffrey Steele, Layng Martine Jr., Will Jennings and Alabama's Randy Owen into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Among those honoring the four new members by performing their songs were Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris, Connie Smith, Ray Stevens, Richard Leigh, Craig Wiseman, the Shuggah Pies, Aaron Lewis, Jamey Johnson, Striking Matches and American Idol runner-up Kree Harrison.

Before the inductions, Nashville Songwriters Association International -- the Nashville Songwriter Hall of Fame Foundation's sister organization -- presented Taylor Swift her sixth songwriter-artist of the year award and revealed its member-voted list of "The 10 Songs I Wish I'd Written."

In addition, NSAI named Rodney Clawson its songwriter of the year and "I Drive Your Truck" its song of the year.

Amy Kurland, the founder and former owner of Nashville's Bluebird Café, the internationally fabled songwriters' haven, was given the Frances Williams Preston Mentor Award.

Counting the cocktail party, which commenced at 4:30 p.m., the event ran for almost six hours.

Songwriter Bob DiPiero, himself a member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, welcomed Steele into the ranks.

Chronicling Steele's trajectory from growing up in Southern California as the son of an aspiring songwriter up through Steele's membership in the group Boy Howdy, DiPiero said, "It's amazing. It's life-affirming what he can do onstage."

Then DiPiero turned to the great tragedy in Steele's life, the loss of his 13-year-old son, Alex, in an ATV accident in 2007. That loss, DiPiero noted, ultimately led to the formation of the Alex LeVasseur Memorial Fund to aid underprivileged children.

Once the introduction was over, the spotlight shifted to Al Anderson, Craig Wiseman and the Steele-produced trio, the Shuggah Pies, who formed a line onstage to sing some of Steele's biggest hits.

It was a long and vigorous sampling that included "My Wish," "When the Lights Go Down," "Unbelievable," "The Cowboy in Me," "Love Is a Beautiful Thing," "International Harvester," "Something to Be Proud Of" and "Brand New Girlfriend."

Aaron Lewis completed the segment with a wistful rendition of "What Hurts the Most."

Steele recalled when he first played the Bluebird Café in 1987, hoping to gain a foothold in Nashville, he lost his voice, tried to restore it by drinking pickle juice and wound up being sick at his stomach. He observed wryly that the appearance failed to get him a record deal.

He said his dad had been a steel worker -- and that's inspired his name.

"My [real] last name is LeVasseur," he said, "which is French for 'Smith.'"

Steele reserved his highest praise for his wife, Stephanie.

"She's the reason I'm standing here and why I'm still alive," he said. "And she's still the hottest chick in the room."

Hall of Famer Waylon Holyfield presented Martine for induction. He recounted that Martine, his wife Linda and their two small children moved to Nashville in 1972.

The fledgling songwriter's first hit came two years later when Billy "Crash" Craddock took his "Rub It In" to No. 1 on the country chart and No. 16 on the pop list.

"Rub It In" -- changed to "Plug It In" -- also spent several years as the theme for an air freshener commercial, Holyfield said.

Martine had the Elvis Presley single "Way Down" when Presley died in 1977. The song went on to top the country chart and reached No. 18 on the pop rankings.

Holyfield pointed out that Martine wrote a less-heralded song Jerry Lee Lewis recorded called "Don't Boogie Woogie (When You Say Your Prayers Tonight)."

That song, Holyfield observed, represented the writer's penchant for "twinkle-in-your-eye kind of lyrics."

Richard Leigh, also a Hall of Fame member, came out to sing "The Greatest Man I Never Knew," which he co-wrote with Martine.

It was easily the most moving performance of the evening. The crowd was reverently quiet as Leigh, accompanying himself on guitar, sang the story of a father who was too busy at the business of providing to say "I love you" to his child.

Reba McEntire sent her congratulations to Martine via video. In addition to having a No. 3 hit with "The Greatest Man I Never Knew" in 1992, she also noted that Martine had written the first song she ever charted, "I Don't Want to Be a One Night Stand." It peaked at No. 88 in 1976.

Ray Stevens, Martine's first Music Row supporter, then came to the stage to sing "Way Down" and "Rub It In."

He began his performance with a story. He said a couple was shopping at a mall when they heard the most glorious music they'd ever listened to. They traced the sounds to a pet shop and saw is was coming from a bird with beautiful plumage that sat proudly on its perch, enchanting every ear turned its way.

The couple asked the proprietor how much the bird cost, and he replied, "Fifteen hundred dollars, but you've got to take that other bird, too." They looked down at the bottom of the cage and saw a pitiful creature lying on its side, with its feathers awry and gasping for breath. "Why do we have to take that bird?" the couple protested, revolted by the shabby specimen. "Because he writes the songs," the proprietor said.

"I just want to say how honored I am to be among you wounded birds," Stevens told the cheering crowd.

Martine thanked Stevens for giving him a hearing and then becoming his publisher. He said that 43 years ago he flew from Connecticut to Nashville to play his songs for Stevens, who had long been an inspiration to him. But he flew in on faith. He didn't have an appointment.

Luckily, Stevens was in his office that day and agreed to listen to his songs. That launched his career.

Martine also credited most of his success to his wife.

"Linda made me feel like I was a valuable and good person when I didn't think I was either," he said.

Then he thanked the Hall of Fame electors "for allowing me to be in the coolest frigging clubhouse in the universe. Amen!"

Music publisher Lance Freed inducted Jennings, who was kept from traveling to the ceremony by doctor's orders.

Although Jennings got his start as a songwriter in Nashville, Freed said, he had his biggest successes in pop music with such songs as "Up Where We Belong," "Higher Love," "Tears in Heaven" and "My Heart Will Go On."

"He always believed that the best songs were the simple ones," Freed said. "He's more than a lyricist. He's a Renaissance poet."

The duo Striking Matches sang "Please Remember Me," a song Jennings co-wrote with Rodney Crowell and which Crowell recorded. Tim McGraw had a five-week No. 1 with the song in 1999.

Steve Winwood, with whom Jennings wrote "Higher Love," sent video greetings.

With Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer Vince Gill accompanying her on electric guitar, Emmylou Harris sang "Tears in Heaven."

In a short video clip, Jennings expressed his gratitude for the induction and his apologies for being unable to attend.

Music journalist and country music historian Robert K. Oermann spoke in honor of Owen. He told the crowd that in spite of having written a sheaf of songs that would later become classics -- including "Tennessee River," "Feels So Right" and "My Home's in Alabama" -- Owen was still roundly rejected by Music Row publishers during the 1970s, just before Alabama exploded onto the music scene.

He pointed out that the only one who believed in Owen as a songwriter was the late Maggie Cavender, a founder of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Raising his eyes to the heavens, the reliably dramatic Oermann shouted, "Hey, Maggie, check it out."

After Alabama performed at the New Faces Show in 1980, Oermann continued, the band got offers from three major record labels.

Oermann stressed that Owen's songs never involved drinking, smoking or cheating and that he never disrespected women in them.

"In Randy's songs," he said, "love is something that lasts."

Oermann then called Owen's wife, Kelly, to the stage. She said she met Owen when she was 15 and Alabama was singing at the Bowery nightclub in Myrtle Beach, S.C. She confessed she was instantly attracted to both him and his music.

"His voice was so seductive," she said.

However, she continued, her father was in the military at that time and moved the family around a lot. So she didn't know if she would ever see Owen again. At 17, she married him.

"I never really thought about the songwriter part," she said, "because I was in love with the guy who sang the songs."

But she became intimately aware of what it meant to be a songwriter's wife, she explained, after the young couple began to raise a family. She said she would go to bed exhausted from her motherly duties and he would awaken her to jot down lyrics he'd just thought of.

She remembered him coming home from a gig Alabama had at the Red Roof Inn in Bowling Green, Ky., and her husband telling her the story that became "Lady Down on Love."

"I want to say I am so glad I was patient through all the lean years," she said. Her husband's creative efforts had not only brought joy to thousands of people, she observed with a sly grin, but had also given her the wherewithal to shop at Saks and Macy's.

After 38 years together, she said to her husband, "You still turn me on. ...You are my never-ending song of life."

Kree Harrison sang "Feels So Right." Jamey Johnson followed with "My Home's in Alabama." Before starting, he told the crowd, "I tried to learn this song when I was 12 years old. I'm 38 now, and I still don't know it all."

Connie Smith did the final musical honors, singing an emotionally rich version of "Lady Down on Love."

"When I first started writing songs, people kind of poked fun at me," Owen told the crowd. "I kept writing because I had to. ... I didn't write songs for money, and I still don't. ... I can't just write. It has to be personal for me. It has to touch my heart."

But money helped in those early days, he admitted. He said Frances Preston from BMI, the performance rights organization, called him after Alabama had scored some early hits and asked if he needed "some money" from the royalties his songs were earning.

As he recalled it, she said, "I think I could advance you quite a bit of money," and she asked him what he would do with it. He told her he had always wanted to have enough to build his family a house, and she said the advance should be sufficient for "a really nice home."

Later, he said, he decided he wanted to install a pool at their house so he could "swim without being afraid of snakes."

He said he once answered the phone at his home and was greeted by a deep voice. It was Conway Twitty calling to see if he could record "Lady Down on Love." Owen told him that the song had already been selected as Alabama's next single.

"That's what I was afraid of," Twitty told him.

As a consequence, Owen sighed, he never got a Conway Twitty cut. But he noted that few other artists had recorded his songs.

Among the other inductees, who were all widely recorded, he said, "I count myself the lowliest of you."

Owen concluded by saying, "This, without a doubt, is the highest honor and award I've received in my life."

The 10 songs awarded earlier in the evening had been the top vote-getters among 175 nominees.

Those winners were: "Better Dig Two" (written by Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally, Trevor Rosen); "Cruise" (Tyler Hubbard, Brian Kelley, Joey Moi, Chase Rice, Jesse Rice); "Hard to Love" (Ben Glover, Billy Montana, John Ozier); "Highway Don't Care" (Mark Irwin, Josh Kear, Brad Warren, Brett Warren); "I Drive Your Truck" (Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington, Jimmy Yeary).

Also, "Like Jesus Does" (Casey Beathard, Monty Criswell); "Mama's Broken Heart" (Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally, Kacey Musgraves); "Merry Go 'Round" (Shane McAnally, Kacey Musgraves, Josh Osborne); "Pontoon" (Barry Dean, Natalie Hemby, Luke Laird) and "Wagon Wheel" (Bob Dylan, Ketch Secor).

In response to "I Drive Your Truck" winning the song of the year award, a tearful Harrington said, "People, our songs are important. Things that happen in our lives are important." She dedicated the award to Jared Monti, the soldier whose death inspired the song, and to his father, Paul.

"For me, songwriting is the most exhilarating part of this [process]," Swift said. "I thank you for honoring the favorite part of my job."

Kurland came up with the best line of the evening. She thanked Democratic U.S. Rep Jim Cooper and Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn for attending the ceremony.

Then she added, "When dinner is over, please go back to Washington and open the government."

Harford Teen Is a Rising National Music Talent



Image by Bev Moser/Moments By Moser
Image by Bev Moser/Moments By Moser
Since picking up a guitar at age 9, 15-year-old Harford County, Md. native, Chris Monaghan’s music career has flourished to remarkable heights. Over the past year, Monaghan has recorded and released his first album titled “Shameless” and signed an exciting artist development deal with a top Nashville-based producer, Kim Copeland.

The development deal is a milestone in advancing Monaghan’s musical career as he works toward gaining a signed record deal. Copeland is renowned in the country music capital of Nashville, Tenn., having worked with artists such as Rachel Williams, Drake Jensen and Lisa Lambert. As part of her Artist Showcase, Chris performed in front of a sold-out crowd at Nashville’s Listening Room Cafe in August 2013. With well over 100 solo acoustic shows under his belt, Monaghan’s impressive resume of performance venues includes Ripken Stadium, Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure and Nashville’s iconic Bluebird Cafe where country superstars such as Garth Brooks and Taylor Swift were discovered.

“Chris is one of those rare artists who possess both amazing raw talent and a deep passion for music,” says Copeland. “He has a rich, honest, emotional delivery that connects with his audience. He is a young artist on the verge of stardom!”

Monaghan’s music has an acoustic pop-rock feel and has been compared to the likes of singer-songwriters, John Mayer and Dave Matthews.

Among his numerous upcoming performances, Monaghan will lend his musical talents to the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure for a second time, singing in front of 30,000 people as they walk or run to support breast cancer awareness on Oct. 20, in Hunt Valley, Md. He will return to Nashville’s Blue Bird Cafe for a sold-out Saturday night performance on Oct. 26.

For Monaghan, music is not just a hobby, it’s his passion, and his first single is an expression of his ardor. Featured as the official song of the 2013 Cal Ripken World Series, “Shameless” encourages everyone to chase their dream. Monaghan says the message of the song is, “To not give up. If you love something enough, get up and go get it.”

This inspirational message is prevalent not only in his musical works, but also in his community and charitable work. Monaghan wants to use his music for community outreach. He hopes to partner with a charitable organization in the near future to help raise funds and awareness for one of the many causes he cares about. In performing at an organization event and donating 100 percent of proceeds from albums sold to the charity’s cause, he wishes to spread the encouraging message “Shameless” describes.

Organizations interested in partnering with Chris Monaghan to raise funds and elevate awareness for their cause can contact his management at mgmt@chrismonaghanmusic.com. They are considering various options at the moment and are open to new ones.

Visit Monaghan’s website www.chrismonaghanmusic.com to listen to song samples or purchase his new album, “Shameless.” The album is also available for purchase on iTunes, CD Baby or through his website.

Mark Ford Named First Executive Director of The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Foundation



 Photo Credit: Bev Moser / Moments by Moser

                                Mark Ford Named First Executive Director of
                           The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Foundation                                          
Nashville, TN  October 7, 2013 -- The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Foundation (NaSHOF) announced today that industry veteran Mark Ford has been named to the newly created position of Executive Director. In his new post, Ford will be responsible for strategic planning, fund raising, education, operations and brand development for the non-profit.

“It's been a remarkable year for the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Foundation,” said Hall of Fame songwriter and NaSHOF Board Chair Pat Alger.  "Following the celebration of the new Hall of Fame in the Music City Center, we are excited to welcome Mark as our organization's first Executive Director.  His long-standing personal relationship with our music community - and songwriters especially - coupled with his knowledge, experience and commitment to the Hall of Fame, make him the ideal person to lead us into the future.”

Prior to joining the Foundation, the South Carolina native spent 23 years at the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI), most recently in the position of Associate Executive Director.  During his NSAI tenure, Ford worked closely with NaSHOF, directing the Foundation’s annual hall of fame induction dinner since 2001 and serving as that organization’s manager of affairs since 2004. 

“I’m honored to represent this hall of fame and such an amazing group of songwriters,” said Ford.  “The creative genius of these talented men and women has influenced American culture, added to the nation’s economy and launched countless careers – all while marking the most memorable moments of our lives.  I look forward to working with Pat and the board to preserve and promote such a unique songwriting legacy.”

Ford can be reached at markford@nashvillesongwriters.com or by phone at 615-256-3354.

About the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame:

The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Foundation (NaSHOF) is a non-profit dedicated to the mission of educating, archiving and celebrating the songwriting profession uniquely associated with Nashville.  In 2013, NaSHOF realized a long-held dream with the opening of a physical presence in Nashville’s new Music City Center.  The steps from Songwriters Square at the corner of Fifth and Demonbreun lead up to the Hall of Fame Gallery, which features songwriting memorabilia as well as touch screens that allow visitors to access information about the history of Nashville songwriting.

More information is available at http://www.nashvillesongwritersfoundation.com/.


Media contact for the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Foundation:
Jennifer Bohler/Alliance
615 292 5804