Shelby Lynne

BMI & SXSW Offer Roots Music Ambrosia at Austin Music Hall

2008-03-21T15:04:00-05:00

BMI firmly underscored its widespread presence at SXSW 2008 with a red-letter bill Friday, March 14, at the newly refurbished Austin Music Hall. The indisputably marquee lineup featured revered singer/songwriter Bruce Robison, the incomparable Shelby Lynne, wry swing king Junior Brown and twang-rock favorites Reckless Kelly.

Diverse Lineup at BMI 2008 ‘Sundance Snowball’ Showcase

2008-01-08T18:59:00-05:00

BMI and Sundance will host the sixth annual Sundance Snowball showcase on Wednesday, January 23 during the 2008 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. Scheduled to perform are Los Angeles “dirty reggae”/rock group The Aggrolites, Nick Urata from “gypsy punk” band DeVotchKa, Steve Smith from rock group Dirty Vegas and Six Degrees recording artist Cheb i Sabbah. The showcase will take place from 6-9 p.m. at the Sundance House at the Kimball Art Center (638 Park Avenue).

This is an official 2008 Sundance Film Festival event and is open to festival badge holders, press and invited guests only; tickets will not be sold.

Showtimes for the Snowball showcase will be:

6 p.m. Cheb i Sabbah with Salar Nader, Mitch Hyare and special guest Gingger Shankar

6:30 p.m. Steve Smith from Dirty Vegas

7:15 p.m. Nick Urata from DeVotchKa

8:15 p.m. The Aggrolites

Songwriter/Artist Bios

BMI is a committed partner of the Festival, having showcased vital musical talent there for the past 15 years. BMI is a founding sponsor and participant of the Sundance Composers Lab and music program. Past BMI Sundance shows have included BMI songwriters DEVO, Shelby Lynne, Keb Mo, Vanessa Carlton, Terrence Blanchard, Minnie Driver, The Neville Brothers, Van Hunt, Cheap Trick and many more. For more information on BMI events at Sundance as well as on-site coverage of the Festival, please visit bmi.com/sundance.

The Sundance Film Festival is the premier showcase for U.S. and international independent film. Held each January in and around Park City, Utah, the Festival is a core program of the Sundance Institute, a nonprofit cultural organization founded by Robert Redford in 1981. Presenting 120 dramatic and documentary feature-length films in seven distinct categories and 80 short films each year, the Sundance Film Festival has introduced American audiences to some of the most innovative films of the past two decades, including American Splendor, Clerks, Hustle and Flow, Maria Full of Grace, Napoleon Dynamite, Sex, Lies and Videotape, Smoke Signals and Super Size Me. Beyond the streets of Park City, the official website of the Sundance Film Festival, www.sundance.org, shares the Festival experience with a global audience through the streaming of short films, filmmaker interviews, and current news and box office information.

BMI, A&E Networks Team for ‘Bio Country’ Series

2005-05-31T18:00:00-05:00

BMI has teamed with A&E Television Networks to produce a breakthrough series of on-air promotional commercials for The Biography Channel's new "Bio Country" series. The series of documentaries explores the life stories of leading country artists, including songwriting greats Sam Phillips, Willie Nelson, Loretta Lynn, Tim McGraw, Buck Owens, Barbara Mandrell, Brenda Lee, Clint Black, Dixie Chicks, the Everly Brothers, George Jones, Glen Campbell, Hank Williams, Merle Haggard, Patsy Cline, Ronnie Milsap, Shania Twain, Tammy Wynette, Tanya Tucker and many more.

Clint Black

BMI and A&E created an innovative on-air campaign to promote the series. Titled "Country Crossroads," the campaign features additional BMI writers sharing original anecdotes about the musical influences that the Biography subjects had on their work. The original campaign was shot on location in Los Angeles, New York and Nashville and featured a broad spectrum of BMI writers, including Clint Black, Isaac Hayes, Rosanne Cash, Lorrie Morgan, Shelby Lynn, Buddy Jewell, Julie Roberts and Louie Perez sharing their reflections on their personal musical icons. BMI contributed to the creation of the campaign concept and supplied talent relations, research services, archival footage and logistics support to the shoots. A&E Networks shot and produced the spots.

"Bio Country" can be seen on The Biography Channel Wednesdays at 8 ET/9 PT. Check your local listings for more information.

Isaac Hayes

Rosanne Cash

Shelby Lynne

Nashville Divas Take Manhattan

2005-04-12T18:00:00-05:00

BMI New York will host "Nashville Divas in the Round" at the Living Room (Ludlow Street between Stanton & Rivington) on April 20 at 6pm. This unique showcase will feature some of Music City's best female singer/songwriters including Kylie Sackley, Shelly Fairchild, Stephony Smith and Lisa Carver. Admission is free.

Kylie Sackley
Kylie Sackley, 22, currently resides in Nashville, more than 10,000 miles from her hometown in Port Douglas, Queensland, Australia where she conquered the Aussie country music world, winning the 2002 Country Music Association of Australia's coveted "Best New Talent" Award. Shortly after the CMAA, the award-winning Sackley ventured to Nashville to further develop her talents as a songwriter and explore the possibility of breaking into the US market as a performing artist. She currently works in Nashville as a staff songwriter for Faith Hill producer Scott Hendricks' Big Tractor Music Publishing, where she is already making waves in Music City. Sackley co-wrote LeAnn Rimes first single "Nothin 'Bout Love Makes Sense" with Gary Burr and Joel Feeney off her new album This Woman, which was a top 5 single on Billboard and R&R. She has also secured a song written with Big and Rich's John Rich and Rodney Clawson to be released on the upcoming Faith Hill record.

Shelly Fairchild
Her voice conveys the blues of her Mississippi Delta home and the soulful power of a passionate woman who has been "singing with everything I've got" since she began performing as a child. Her edgy style conveys the confidence of a small-town girl from Clinton, Miss., bold enough to head out on her own and earn lead roles in major musicals and national theatrical tours, yet sensitive enough to write heart-tugging stories about love and family as well as steamy tales about desire and living life to the hilt. Her dynamic stage presence conveys the experience of a stage actress and the live-wire energy and hot-blooded emotion of a risk-taker who can open the throttle and roar or slow down to caress a lyric with intimate conviction. Her Columbia Records debut, Ride, is a one-of-a-kind introduction that suggests this country singer won't be held back by preconceptions about Nashville or contemporary country music. Shelly co-wrote four songs on her album, including "You Don't Lie Here Anymore." Her influences range from Patsy Cline and Dolly Parton to Hank Williams Jr. and Travis Tritt.

Stephony Smith
BMI Award-winning songwriter Stephony Smith's list of accolades is unparalleled. An eight-time BMI Million-Air Award winner, she was named both Songwriter of the Year and her Faith Hill and Tim McGraw #1 hit "It's Your Love" was named Song of the Year at the 1998 BMI Country Awards. The song also earned a ACM Award for Song of the Year, as well as a Grammy and CMA nomination. She was named NSAI's Songwriter of the Year and has four NSAI #1 awards. Her other #1 cuts include "Back When" (Tim McGraw), "Sin Wagon" (Dixie Chicks), "Perfect Love" (Tricia Yearwood), "Yes!" (Chad Brock), "Big Star" (Kenny Chesney) and "How Was I to Know" (Reba McEntire). Smith has also written over 100 songs for artists such as Shania Twain, Wynonna, She Daisy, Barbra Streisand, Martina McBride, Shelby Lynne, Diamond Rio, Lonestar, Montgomery Gentry, and many others.

Lisa Carver
Lisa carver is a native Charleston, South Carolina girl, who has been part of the Nashville underground music scene for years. She is a songwriter first and foremost, but has always enjoyed entertaining audiences worldwide with her eclectic, three-dimensional story songs. However, over the last few years, after becoming a grand prize winner in the John Lennon Songwriting Fest, she began getting her collection of audial art cut by today's country artists ranging from Tim McGraw, Shelly Fairchild, Julie Roberts and Jessica Andrews, to Willie Nelson. Her vocal style is pretty much school of Prine, while her writing style lies somewhere between Kinky Friedman and Kris Kristofferson. Her irreverence and originality are refreshing in today's white-washed, politically-correct country music climate, and she's grateful for the chance to be making her mark on Music Row.

Darcy Argue Wins BMI Foundation’s Charlie Parker Jazz Prize

2004-07-21T18:00:01-05:00

The BMI Foundation has named jazz composer Darcy Argue the winner of the 5th Annual Charlie Parker Jazz Prize for his work, "Transit." The $3,000 award, given to the writer of the best new work composed in the BMI Jazz Composers Workshop, was presented during the Workshop's 16th annual showcase concert at Merkin Hall on July 15. Argue has also been commissioned to write another piece to be premiered at next year's concert. The commission is named in memory of the late Manny Albam, the Workshop's longtime Musical Director who passed away in 2001.


Charlie Parker Jazz Composition Prize winner Darcy Argue (center) is congratulated by Workshop Musical Directors Michael Abene and Jim McNeely	Charlie Parker Jazz Composition Prize winner Darcy Argue conducts his winning piece, "Transit," during the BMI/New Jazz Orchestra's 16th annual showcase concert

Argue's winning piece was selected from among three compositions by a panel of jazz experts, including Dan Morgenstern, eminent jazz historian and Director of the Institute of Jazz Studies at Rutgers University; noted jazz pianist, composer and author Kenny Werner; and big band arranger/composer David Matthews. Previous winners of the Charlie Parker Jazz Composition Prize include Rufus Reid, Jamie Begian, Noriko Ueda and Jon Schapiro.

Last year's Charlie Parker Jazz Composition Prize winner, Jon Schapiro, conducts the 2003 Manny Albam Commission entitled "The Road To Nowhere"

Darcy James Argue leads New York's newest jazz orchestra, Secret Society, whose members include Ingrid Jensen, Joel Frahm, Jon Wikan and Rob Wilkerson. He is a founding member of Pulse, a composers' collective featuring current and former BMI Jazz Composers Workshop members. Before joining the Workshop in September 2002, he studied with Workshop co-founder Bob Brookmeyer at the New England Conservatory where he graduated with a Master of Music degree. Argue was awarded the Down Beat Student Music Award for Best Extended Composition in 2002 and the SOCAN Prize for Composition at the 2000 Montreal International Jazz Festival. He has written arrangements for various artists including Renee Rosnes, Shelby Lynne, the Klezmer Conservatory Band and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. His original compositions have been performed by many high school and college ensembles including the Eastman Jazz Orchestra and the McGill Jazz Orchestra. His compositions are published by www.reallygoodmusic.com.

The BMI Jazz Composers Workshop is directed by jazz greats Jim McNeely and Michael Abene. The Workshop offers an environment where composers have the freedom to explore all avenues in the creative process with a focus on innovative large ensemble compositions in a collaborative environment. The BMI/New York Jazz Orchestra, an adjunct of the Workshop, is a 16-piece modern repertory ensemble featuring top New York musicians who showcase new works regularly in concert and nightclub appearances.

Photos by Gary Gershoff

BMI Music is Hot at Sundance

2004-02-05T17:00:00-05:00

BMI, a proud sponsor and supporter of the Sundance Film Festival for more than 15 years, once again made music in film the hot topic at this year's event. Held in Park City, UT from January 15-25, BMI hosted a number of special events throughout the week including the BMI Songwriters Snowball and the BMI Roundtable entitled "Music & Film, The Creative Process."

Shown at the second annual BMI Songwriters Snowball held during the 2004 Sundance Film Festival are (back row): musician Joan Wasser, BMI's Linda Livingston, Doreen Ringer Ross, Alison Smith, Myles Lewis and Barbara Cane. Front row: BMI's Tracie Verlinde, composer/artist Nathan Larson, artists Nina Persson, Allison Moorer and Shelby Lynne, and composer/artist Will Calhoun.

Since songs are the key element for an outstanding and unforgettable soundtrack, the Songwriters Snowball featured acoustic, intimate performances by some of the most stirring singer/songwriters in contemporary music including Grammy winner Shelby Lynne, Academy Award nominee Allison Moorer, composer Nathan Larson with Nina Persson of the Cardigans, and dj/musician/composer Will Calhoun of Living Colour.

Shown at the BMI Roundtable held during the 2004 Sundance Film Festival are (back row): composer David Julyan ("Momento"), composer George S. Clinton, BMI's Doreen Ringer Ross, composer Rolfe Kent, Sundance Institute/composer Peter Golub, composer Mark de gli Antoni and composer Richard Marvin. Front row: Director Chris Eyre, composer BC Smith, director Jessica Yu, composer Jeff Beal, director Nicole Kassell and composer Nathan Larson. photos: Randall Michaelson

The role of music in independent film and the relationship between composer and director took center stage at the BMI Roundtable. Entitled "Music & Film, The Creative Process," the panel featured BMI's Vice President of Film/TV Music, Doreen Ringer Ross, as the moderator. The impressive list of participants included composers Rolfe Kent ("About Schmidt," "Legally Blonde"), George S. Clinton ("Austin Powers," "The Santa Clause 2"), Nathan Larson ("Boys Don't Cry," "The Woodsman"), Mark de gli Antoni ("Marie & Bruce"); Peter Golub ("The Laramie Project"), Jeff Beal ("Pollack," "In The Realm of the Unreal"), David Julyan ("Memento," "Insomnia") and B.C. Smith ("Smoke Signals," "Edge of America"), as well as filmmakers Jessica Yu ("Breathing Lessons," "In The Realm of the Unreal"), Chris Eyre ("Smoke Signals," "Edge of America") and Nicole Kassell ("The Woodsman").

Through its ongoing support of the Sundance Composers Lab held at the Sundance Institute during the summer and the many events it hosts at the festival and throughout the year, BMI continues to look for new and innovative ways to help enhance the composer and director relationship. Click here for more information on BMI's activities at Sundance.

Performs

2004-01-19T17:00:00-05:00

Shelby Lynne performs Performs