Pictured at the BMI booth are (l to r): Delmarva Broadcasting Station WXCY-FM's Bob Bloom, Rushlow Harris members Tim Rushlow and Doni Harris, Delmarva Broadcasting Station WXCY-FM's Dave Hovel and BMI's Dan Spears.

BMI offered the radio industry a hearty welcome to Nashville on Thursday, March 1 with "WCRS Live!," an intimate, in-the-round showcase hosted by hitmaking machine Jeffrey Steele. Songwriter/artists Sarah Buxton ("Stupid Boy"), Pat Green ("Wave on Wave"), Mac Davis ("Texas in My Rearview Mirror") and Steele himself ("What Hurts the Most") treated the audience to acoustic performances of country radio's contemporary hits and perennial favorites.

Pictured are (l to r): BMI's Mason Hunter, Jamie Lee Thurston with BMI's Margaret Vann, Glenn Brannen and Dan Spears.

The artists and songwriters featured on CRS's Friday, March 2 "New Faces" showcase bill may have be relatively new, but "auspicious" may better describe this year's round of participants. BMI affiliates snagged every coveted slot of the line-up, and Miranda Lambert, Eric Church, Jack Ingram, Rodney Atkins and Trent Tomlinson gave the packed house at the Nashville Convention Center five strong reasons to feel good about country music's present and future.

Pictured before the WCRS Live! set are (l to r): BMI's Dan Spears, Pat Green, Mac Davis, Sarah Buxton, Jeffrey Steele and BMI's Jody Williams.

Pictured are (l to r): New Faces host Kix Brooks, Rodney Atkins, BMI's David Preston, Jack Ingram, Miranda Lambert, Trent Tomlinson and Eric Church, with BMI's Jody Williams and Shelby Kennedy.

Photos by Jerry Bailey

BMI songwriter Marc Broussard and BMI's Ben Tischker

The high-profile, high-energy four-day NACA National Convention provides networking opportunities with other professionals, students and associate members, and features three dynamic components, including showcases that give delegates the opportunity to view more than 80 live performances ranging from music and comedy to lecture and novelty/interactive programs; educational programs that focus on topics such as professional and student leadership development, programming, multicultural education, campus organization dynamics and advising, and identification of current trends in the field of campus activities; and the Campus Activities Marketplace, or exhibit hall, where students and staff have the ability to meet member agents and artists face to face, enhancing familiarity with the marketplace and facilitating campus bookings. Attracting more than 2,000 delegates from nearly 450 member schools, NACA's National Convention is the nation's largest campus activities marketplace.

Pat Green performs at the NACA National Convention

BMI songwriter Pat Green and BMI's Ben Tischker

Anguilla hosted two nights of intimate acoustic shows attended by native islanders and tourists alike, featuring sets by Grammy Award winner and 2006 BMI Country Songwriter of the Year Vicky McGehee ("All Jacked Up"), along with Wendell Mobley (“Fast Cars and Freedom”), Chuck Jones ("Cadillac Ranch"), James Slater ("In My Daughter’s Eyes"), Chuck Cannon ("How Do You Like Me Now") and Rivers Rutherford (“When I Get Where I’m Going”), along with three-time Grammy nominee Pat Green (“Wave on Wave”), for.

All proceeds from the event help local children in Anguilla head to college in the United States. So far, four students have paid their tuition with funds generated by the Festival, and the success of this year’s run promises more dollars for the education of Anguilla’s youth.

Above: Pictured in Anguilla are (l-r): BMI’s Jody Williams, BMI songwriter Pat Green and BMI’s Mark Mason. Photo by Sean Murray

BMI and the Los Angeles Times will present “How I Wrote That Song,” a panel discussion with some of music’s most successful songwriters. The panel will be held Saturday, Feb. 10 at 2 p.m. at the Key Club (9039 Sunset Blvd.) in Los Angeles in celebration of Grammy Week. Tickets are $10 and are on sale now through Ticketmaster at KeyClub.com, or at the Key Club box office.

Scheduled to participate are top BMI songwriting talents including Cee-Lo (Gnarls Barkley), Dallas Austin, Patrick Stump (Fall Out Boy), Sean Garrett, Kara DioGuardi, Butch Walker and Jeffrey Steele. The panel will be moderated by BMI Writer/Publisher Relations VP Catherine Brewton and Los Angeles Times music critic Ann Powers. Attendees can expect an inside look at the creative process, featuring performances of hit songs by each panelist and a Q&A session on the business of songwriting and music.

Panelists:

As lead singer and frontman for the breakout group Gnarls Barkley, Cee-Lo continues to bring his American hip-hop, funk, soul and r&b style to the world. He is a singer, rapper, songwriter and record producer, best known as a member of Goodie Mob before Gnarls Barkley, and has also recorded two critically acclaimed solo LPs. His successes as a songwriter and producer also include the 2005 hit “Don’t Cha” by The Pussycat Dolls, as well as tracks and guest appearances on upcoming releases from Kelis and Amerie.

At the age of 35, Grammy Award-winning hitmaker Dallas Austin is one of the most sought-after producers in the entertainment business. His creativity and innovative style have shaped the sound of today’s pop and r&b music. He has had the opportunity to work with such legendary stars as Aretha Franklin, Madonna, Usher, Pink, Shakira, Janet Jackson and Gwen Stefani. In 2002, he began a foray into film serving as the executive producer and musical director of the hit Drumline, and then as a producer and composer for ATL. He was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame last fall, an honor he received alongside R.E.M., Jermaine Dupri and Gregg Allman.

Patrick Stump is lead vocalist and guitarist for Grammy-nominated band Fall Out Boy, an American pop-rock band from Wilmetter, Ill. Stump and band members Pete Wentz, Joe Trohman and Andy Hurley released their 2005 major label debut and third full-length album, From Under the Cork Tree, which went double platinum. Their first single, “Sugar We’re Goin’ Down,” peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and reached No. 1 on MTV’s TRL. The video also won the MTV2 Award at the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards. A 2006 “Best New Artist” Grammy nominee, Fall Out Boy’s next album, Infinity on High, is scheduled for release on Feb. 6. The lead single, “This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race,” debuted at the 2006 American Music Awards.

Sean Garrett got his start after college as a mortgage broker. After the loss of his mother, he realized his heart was in music and he turned his passion of songwriting into his profession. Nicknamed “The Pen” by Jay-Z, the four-time Grammy Award nominee earned the moniker by having three songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two consecutive weeks and helping to ink a majority of Destiny’s Child’s last album, Destiny Fulfilled. He’s responsible for smash singles like Chris Brown‘s “Run It,” Ciara’s “Goodies” and Usher’s “Yeah,” Garrett’s biggest composition to date. Upcoming projects slated for 2007 include works from Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani and Cassidy.

Kara DioGuardi is a Los Angeles-based singer, songwriter, producer and entrepreneur. She has had charting singles with a variety of artists, including Christina Aguilera ("Aint No Other Man"), Gwen Stefani ("Rich Girl"), Ashley Simpson ("Pieces Of Me"), Kelly Clarkson ("Walk Away"), Pussy Cat Dolls ("Beep"), Enrique Iglesias ("Escape") and Hilary Duff ("Come Clean"). Kara’s collaborators include Lil Jon, Danja, Dr. Dre, Jon Shanks, Glen Ballard, Scott Storch, Polow, Matt Serletic and will.i.am. She has new releases on albums by Katharine McPhee, Avril Lavigne, Hilary Duff, Taylor Hicks, Nicole of Pussycat Dolls, Britney Spears, Daddy Yankee and Ashley Tisdale. Kara is also co-owner of Arthouse Entertainment, which was ranked the No. 7 music publishing company of 2006 by Billboard/Nielsen.

Hitmakers fill Nashville’s publishing houses, churning out the twangy sing-alongs that blanket country airwaves. Standing out in such a talented community can’t possibly be as easy as songwriter, artist and producer Jeffrey Steele makes it look. Rascal Flatts, LeAnn Rimes, Montgomery Gentry, Gretchen Wilson, Pat Green, Trace Adkins, Tim McGraw and numerous others have all turned to Steele for a hit or two, a list that covers a virtual “who’s who” of contemporary country’s elite who have wisely come to trust the energetic songwriter with the easy, infectious grin. Steele’s own impassioned performances make him a constant favorite at songwriter festivals and his full-band gigs, where his rugged, boisterous vocals breathe new life both into songs made famous by the stars and other tunes that are patently his. The 2003 BMI Songwriter of the Year’s new album, Hell on Wheels (February 2007), showcases some of those patented Steele tunes, thrusting Jeffrey Steele the artist into a deserved spotlight.

Butch Walker is a recording artist, performer, songwriter and record producer. He formed the popular pop-rock band Marvelous 3, which spawned the hit “Freak of the Week.” Butch then began a solo career in 2000, releasing the albums Left of Self-Centered in 2002 and Letters in 2004, finishing 2005 playing over 200 live shows across both the U.S. and Japan. Several of his songs have been hits for other artists, including Bowling for Soup’s “Girl All the Bad Guys Want.” He has written and produced records for such artists as Pink, Simple Plan, Sevendust and the All-American Rejects. He also co-wrote the song “My Happy Ending” with Avril Lavigne. Walker was named Rolling Stone Producer of the Year in 2005, and having served as a judge on the reality TV series “Rock Star,” he was the producer for the new “Rockstar: Supernova” group.

About the Los Angeles Times:

The Pulitzer Prize-winning Los Angeles Times is the largest metropolitan daily newspaper in the country, with a daily readership of nearly 2.2 million and about 3.3 million on Sunday. The Los Angeles Times and its media businesses and affiliates, including latimes.com, TheEnvelope.com, Times Community Newspapers, Recycler Classifieds, Hoy, and California Community News, are read by approximately 8.1 million-or 62% of all adults in the Southern California marketplace-every week.

The Los Angeles Times has been covering Southern California for over 125 years and is part of Tribune Company (NYSE: TRB), one of the country’s leading media companies with businesses in publishing, the Internet and broadcasting. Additional information about the Los Angeles Times is available at www.latimes.com/mediacenter.

Vicky McGehee	Wendell Mobley	James Slater

The two-night musical smorgasbord kicks off on Saturday, Jan. 13 on private island Scilly Cay, only 150 yards off Anguilla's island harbor. Local artists will join Nashville hitmakers for an intimate, eclectic performance of country music hits paired with Anguilla's native sounds. Sunday, Jan. 14 brings Texas favorite Pat Green to the island's legendary Dune Preserve for a rare, acoustic performance.

Chuck Cannon	Pat Green

All proceeds from Country in the Caribbean events will go towards furthering the education of the island's children. Four local students have already earned full scholarships to attend universities in the United States, thanks to funds generated by Country in the Caribbean alone.

GAC's Country Music Across America will be on hand to cover the festivities. Executive Producer Greg Travis explains, "Anguilla is a magical island with wonderful people and they have welcomed the Nashville music community with open arms. It is a great getaway for the artists and songwriters to create and relax, as well as for fans to see intimate performances on some of the world's most beautiful beaches."

Tickets are still available to see Pat Green and Nashville's award-winning songwriters jam in this unique and intimate paradise setting. Log on to CountryInTheCaribbean.com or call 264-476-0697 for more information and tickets. Airline tickets are available through American Airlines, while hotel accommodations can be made at Anguilla-Vacation.com.

The band was formed almost five years ago by Mike Eli, who grew up just outside of Houston, and James Young, who hails from Irving, Texas. After playing together as a duo, they were later joined by drummer Chris Thompson and bassist Jon Jones, who all met while students at the University of North Texas at Denton, about 50 miles north of Dallas/Fort Worth. After graduating the group decided to stay in Denton and to this day make their home in the town.

Late in 2003 producer Frank Liddell (Jack Ingram, Miranda Lambert, Chris Knight) attended a show at the Gypsy Tea Room where EYB was playing on the bill with Miranda Lambert. He was impressed with their live show and wound up signing them to Carnival Recording Company soon after and released their debut, Level.

Level has drawn comparisons to The Jayhawks on the plaintive “When It Rains.” The band members, all in their early 20s, have proven to be adept at blending their musical influences into a cohesive sound on this effort. You can hear the heartland rock of John Mellencamp in the autobiographical “Small Town Kid” and the crying-in-your-beer band on the road saga “Highways and Broken Hearts.” There’s the grinding blues of The Black Crowes in “Bring It On Home,” and the romantic lament of “That’s the Way” and “Everything Is You.”

“Our sound is a blend of all of our influences. For example, I was raised on blues and rock, guitarists like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Joe Perry, Jimmy Page… all the greats.”

You can hear a bit of James’s early influences on Level’s title track, a blues-rocker that lends itself to the sound of Lenny Kravitz, ending with a rave up guitar riff that sounds like a tribute to one of Young’s guitar heroes, Jimmy Page. You can also hear that he was inspired by Stevie Ray Vaughan when listening to the solo in “So Close Now.”

‘Musically speaking we all come from different places,” says Eli. “I grew up on singer/songwriters like Rodney Crowell and Paul Simon. Jon’s major influences on bass were Jaco Pastorius and Stefan Lessard, while Chris studied drummers like John Blackwell, Matt Chamberlain and Steve Gadd,” he adds. “Whether we’re playing ‘When It Rains’ or a track like ‘Bring It On Home,’ the blend of my vocals and James on guitar mixed with Chris and Jon laying down the rhythm makes each song sound distinctly like EYB.’

“We really wanted to stretch and push ourselves,” says Eli about the band’s approach to recording the album, co-produced by Texas native Erik Herbst in his Denton studio as well as JJ Lester. 

Indeed, Level is a search for higher ground after years of playing before larger and larger audiences, both on their own and opening for bigger acts. In five short years the Eli Young Band has gone from small club dates to playing in front of 6,000 people at a time opening for the likes of Jack Ingram, Pat Green and Cross Canadian Ragweed.

Songs like “Small Town Kid” and “So Close Now” capture the frustrations of being trapped in a small town and wanting to get out ("I’ve got the streets memorized/I see the faces in my mind… I have nothing in common with the town I’ve come to know").

“Oklahoma Girl” and “Girl in Red” deal with the titillation of love at first sight. “When It Rains,” “That’s the Way” and “Everything in You” capture the downside of relationships, the loneliness after they end, while “I Call The Tune” is a lighthearted track written in a tongue and cheek manner that has become a crowd favorite.

“Whether I’m having a bad day or going through a difficult time, writing has become a way for me to deal with my frustrations and work through my emotions,” says Eli. “Music is a great outlet; most of the songs on ‘Level’ are a reflection of the bands personal experiences over the last few years.”

In the end, the Eli Young Band is about going out on the road and playing their music for their fans.  You can hear that in the lonesome twang of “Highways and Broken Hearts” and the undaunted optimism of “Bottom Line.”

“There are a lot of ups and downs being on the road in a working band,” says James, adding with a laugh. “I can’t think of anything I’d rather do.”

“We love getting out there and exposing new people to our music. That’s why we play four and five shows a week. We’re in this for the long haul, building up our fan base one audience at a time…and that’s our bottom line.”

Following the presentation of their BMI cups, the honorees paused for a quick photo. Pictured (l to r) are: BMI's Jody Williams, Windswept's Steve Markland, BMI songwriter Jeffrey Steele and producer Dann Huff

The composer of five No. 1 singles and a barrage of hits for country's biggest stars, his role as producer for artists Montgomery Gentry, Keith Anderson and Trick Pony provides yet another creative outlet for the industrious artist. Brand New Girlfriend (Steve Holy), Me and My Gang (Rascal Flatts) and Something To Be Proud Of (Montgomery Gentry) are just three of a staggering eight albums named after songs penned by Steele. His tracks on upcoming releases by Gretchen Wilson, Pat Green, Montgomery Gentry and Craig Morgan promise to keep the ball rolling.

GAC's Storme Warren snagged a few minutes with the man of the hour, Jeffrey Steele

Steele's indisputable enthusiasm for his work proved infectious. He coached 12 hungry newcomers through his first-ever Songwriting Boot Camp held in Nashville Sept. 22-24. The attendees were hand-selected from hundreds of applicants and worked through an intense three-day, two-night writing seminar closely guided by Steele. For Jeffrey, the goal was simple: "We hope these writers leave challenged with a new perspective on the craft and grow into better writers as a result of their experiences," he shared.

Friends and family gathered to celebrate Steele's 4th no. 1 hit. Pictured are (l to r): Billy Block with Jeffrey and Stephanie Steele

When the two-time NSAI Songwriter of the Year and 2003 BMI Songwriter of the Year celebrated the chart-topping success of Rascal Flatts' "What Hurts the Most" at BMI's Music Row offices recently, the packed room reverberated with the easy chatter of hit songwriters, publishers and well-wishers. Jeffrey Steele relayed the song's back story, voiced his sincere thanks and moved about the room, perhaps already formulating the hook for his next hit song.

Steele's bootcampers took the opportunity to mingle with some of Nashville's top writers. Pictured is (center): BMI hit songwriter James Slater flanked by eager attendees Jeffrey Steele's songwriter bootcamp

Photos by Eric England]]> 2006-09-29T05:00:00-05:00 http://www.bmi.com/news/entry/234496 Artists, Green, Pat, Sackley, Kylie, Musical Styles, Country Pat Green and his publishing company Greenhorse Music earned BMI Million-Air certificates for "Wave on Wave," which has received over one million broadcast performances. Written by Green with David Neuhauser and Justin Pollard, the song was the debut single from Green's 2003 Universal Records album of the same name.

Pictured (l-r) are BMI award-winning songwriter Pat Green, "Wave" co-writer Justin Pollard and BMI's Mark Mason. photo by Kylie Sackley

BMI's Mark Mason surprised Green with the awards after his set at a concert at Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center in Birmingham, Alabama. Based on an average length of three minutes, one million broadcast performances is the equivalent of 50,000 hours or 5.7 years of continuous airplay.