Country
Taylor Swift Wins Entertainer of the Year and More at 2009 CMA Awards

The night after she took home her second consecutive BMI Song of the Year crystal, Taylor Swift swept the 43rd Annual CMA Awards, winning Entertainer, Female Vocalist, Album and Video of the Year honors. The youngest performer to ever earn the Entertainer of the Year crown, Swift is also the first female to capture the coveted prize since Shania Twain in 1999. The Album…
Kris Kristofferson, Taylor Swift, Bobby Pinson, and More Honored at 2009 BMI Country Awards

The 57th Annual BMI Country Awards celebrated the genre’s top hit-makers tonight in Nashville. In addition to toasting the writers and publishers of the past year’s 50 most-performed country songs from the BMI repertoire, the ceremony honored Kris Kristofferson as a BMI Icon; named Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” Song of the Year, Bobby Pinson Songwriter of the Year, and Sony/ATV Music Publishing Publisher of…
Holly Williams, Upholding and Enhancing a Family Tradition

Singer-songwriter Holly Williams, grandchild of legendary honky-tonk provocateur Hank Williams Sr. and daughter of hard-charging country star Hank Jr, is a long, tall siren with an intense, smoldering style and a fabled bloodline that affords her both a tremendous advantage and some built-in, inescapable challenges. On her current Here with Me album (Mercury Nashville), she excels at gracefully navigating between the extremes such a…
NSAI Honors Swift, Keith, Fleming, Varble and More at Annual Awards

BMI country chart-toppers received accolade after accolade during the 2009 NSAI Awards dinner, held Sunday, October 18 in Nashville. Record-breaker Taylor Swift was named Artist/Songwriter of the Year; beloved Music Row songwriter Wynn Varble earned the Songwriter of the Year crown, while “Waitin’ on a Woman,” which Varble co-wrote, was voted Song of the Year; and genre giant Toby Keith was…
Musicians Hall of Fame Inducts BMI Pioneers

Industry admirers, peers, and contemporary stars gathered to salute the 2009 class of virtuosos inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame on Monday, October 12 at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville. BMI legends Chet Atkins, Fred Foster, Charlie Daniels, Billy Cox, and band Toto all became members of the prestigious club that already includes…
Nashville Music Awards Honor Landmark Digital Services, Taylor Swift and More

After an almost decade-long hiatus, the Nashville Music Awards rebooted this year to recognize the best in a city teeming with talent. Presented by Leadership Music and Next Big Nashville, the 2009 Nashville Music Awards were staged at the Cannery Ballroom on Wednesday, October 7—the first night of the Next Big Nashville music festival. BMI artists and songwriters swept the awards, winning in all but two of the categories, while…
New York Songwriters Circle Now Accepting Submissions for Songwriting Contest

The New York Songwriters Circle (NYSC) is currently accepting submissions for the organization’s 2009 Songwriting Contest. While each entry’s lyrics must be in English, NYSC encourages composers from all over the world, who create original tunes in every genre—and every musical gray area in between—to enter. 2008 2nd-place winner Gillian Grassie, a harpist, singer and BMI songwriter based in Philadelphia, has nothing but praise for the contest, and marvels over…
Marty Dodson Must be Doing Something Right

Marty Dodson scored one of the biggest country hits of 2008 with “Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven,” recorded by Kenny Chesney, as well as George Strait. With a title like that, it comes as no surprise that his first job out of college was as a youth minister. Although he grew up in the church, Dodson says, “I'm at a point in my…
Dailey and Vincent, Dan Tyminski, Michael Cleveland and More Dominate IBMA Awards

BMI’s bluegrass family dominated the 2009 International Bluegrass Music Awards, walking away with almost every trophy in every category. Dailey & Vincent, Dan Tyminski, and Michael Cleveland garnered the most honors, as they all made return trips to the stage during the ceremony on Thursday, October 1 at the legendary Ryman Auditorium. Dailey & Vincent claimed the Entertainer of the Year crown for the…
Solo and Strong, Jessica Harp Makes Her Dream Album

To change career direction in the wake of a smash success is hardly a standard formula in the music world. But Jessica Harp is doing just that. Having scored a chart-topping single and a gold album with the Wreckers – the country-pop duo she co-founded with Michelle Branch in 2004 – Harp is striking out on her own with her new…
