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APA Nashville has signed singer/songwriter Maggie Rose, it was announced today by Steve Hauser, SVP of APA Nashville. Rose, whose new CUT TO IMPRESS CD from iconic producers James Stroud and Blake Chancey includes the two Top 30 Mediabase singles I Ain’t Your Mama and Better, was named one of the four best Country albums of 2013 by Amazon.com. Her new single, Looking Back Now, from RPM Entertainment will be released on January 21. “Maggie is an amazing young woman with a wealth of talent,” commented Hauser in making the announcement. Her song-writing is top-drawer and her live show is remarkable. We are thrilled to have her join our APA family.” Inspired by a diverse list of artists such as Bonnie Raitt, Tracy Chapman, The Beatles and The Dixie Chicks, Rose’s music is an intriguing mix of sass and simplicity that displays an endless range of emotion and depth. “I think that everything I do as an artist now should be with a purpose,” she notes. “I believe my writing should reflect intent – just like my decision to sign with RPME and APA represents my consideration of what’s best for me as an artist. I’m excited to see what the future brings.”

The latest performers for the 56th Annual Grammy Awards have been announced. Keith Urban, Taylor Swift and Kacey Musgraves with join an all-star lineup, including John Legend, Paul McCartney and Ringo Star. Other special performances include nominee Sara Bareilles together with four-time Grammy winner and 2014 MusiCares Person of the Year, Carole King. Two-time Grammy winner LL COOL J will return as host. The iconic event will take place live on Sunday, January 26, 2014 in Los Angeles. Additional performers, presenters and special segments will be announced soon. www.grammy.com

The 30A Songwriters Festival, held in South Walton, Florida, is a three-day music festival beginning January 17, 2014. It will feature 150 artists and over 200 performances at 25 different venues. Proceeds from the Festival benefit the Cultural Arts Alliance of Walton County. The Americana Music Association is proud to announce a sponsored showcase at this year’s event. “Americana Music Association Night” will take place on Saturday, January 18, 2014 at Caliza. The showcase will begin at 6:00 PM and will highlight fantastic songwriters such as Sugarcane Jane, Grant-Lee Phillips, Andrew Combs and Peter Mulvey. Mary Gauthier, Allison Moorer, Gretchen Peters and Kim Richey are slated to hit the stage and close the night at 10:30. If you are attending the 30A Songwriters Festival, you will not want to miss this. www.30asongwritersfestival.com

Celtic Connections 2014 begins this Thursday. The festival will last 18 days and this is its most exciting programme to date. This will be the festival’s 21st year and it has certainly developed and grown according to Donald Shaw, Artistic Director of Celtic Connections: “The festival is really coming of age this year, as can be seen from the expansion into Scotland new leading venue and also in the diversity of this year’s programme. Although Celtic Connections still stays true to its roots it has definitely become more adventurous and brings music from all over the world to Glasgow’s stages. The festival also continues to embrace other musical genres as can be seen in the line-up of this year’s Opening Concert. Who’d have thought 20 years ago that one of the world’s most incredible classical musical stars would be premiering new collaborative work alongside Scottish traditional musicians at the opening night of the festival?” 2014 will see the festival expanding into Scotland’s SSE Hydro with two very special shows. Glasgow’s Del Amitri will play their first UK show since 2002 on the city’s newest and biggest stage on Friday 24th January. On Saturday 25th January a star-studded line-up will take the Hydro’s stage for the Celtic Connections International Burns Night which has been made possible thanks to support from Homecoming Scotland 2014. Musical greats such as Capercailllie, Rachel Sermanni, Dougie MacLean, The Mahotella Queens and Raghu Dixit will explore Burns’s influence throughout the Commonwealth and beyond. The line-up is ever growing and there will be some surprise appearances on the night, as well as celebrations of the lives of Nelson Mandela and Northern Irish Poet Seamus Heaney. Celtic Connections International Burns Concert will be aired on BBC Scotland later that night. Indie folk band Admiral Fallow, Scottish alternative folk rock band Kassidy, songstress Eddi Reader, founder member of The Delgados Emma Pollock, Horse McDonald, Hue & Cry, Little Fire, Siobhan Wilson, Joe Nisbet Jnr and Tommy Reilly are among the acts taking part in tge Alliance Scotland celebration concert – Letters, Life and Love Stories: A Celebration of Caring. This show will pay tribute to the love and complete dedication of Scotland’s 660,000 carers, by bringing some of their inspiring stories to life with music.

The iconic ‘Gentle Giant’, country music’s Don Williams, is set to debut his new, 10-track studio album, REFLECTIONS on March 11 via Sugar Hill Records. Williams, a Country Music Hall of Fame member, dominated for decades as a country hit maker and earned the name the Gentle Giant because of his unique blend of commanding presence and that laid-back, easy style—cutting across national and genre boundaries. Those personal and musical qualities that stood out strongly across the 1970s, ‘80s and ‘90s, came full circle both in 2012, as Williams delivered the masterful And So It Goes, and now, as he releases Reflections. REFLECTIONS yields Williams at his finest, with his classic, often-copied-but-never-duplicated baritone front and centre. With a healthy touring schedule and his second album in two years, Williams works hard to maintain that voice beloved by so many. His days off from a busy touring schedule are spent on his farm, where his voice is rested and his downtime very quietly enjoyed. Featuring cuts from some of the song-writing craft’s finest including the legendary Townes Van Zandt, Merle Haggard and Jesse Winchester, Reflections finds Williams still incredibly tuned in to finding the songs that will touch his audience. As he has said about selecting songs: “The only description I’ve ever had for songs I choose to do is that they affect me emotionally and that, hopefully, they have something to say that will touch other people.” Don Williams’ greatest asset has always been his impressive and diverse catalogue of songs. The hundreds of memorable tunes in his still-growing repertoire—over 50 of them major hits—whether contemplative ballads, affecting love songs or change-up rhythm numbers, have always been a core Don Williams strength and focus. Williams and long-time producer Garth Fundis, who returns in the co-producer role on Reflections, each nod to the other with having contributed to their own song selection and sequencing skills. Every song honours the storytelling history pure country fans have come to expect from Don Williams. “Stronger Back,” “Back to The Simple Things,” and “Working Man’s Son” celebrate the strength and integrity of everyday men and women and “I’ll Be Here In The Morning” and “I Won’t Give Up On You” are incredible narratives of love, delivered with understated complexity the way only Don Williams can. Reflections, a newly minted part of a nearly 30-album career, proves once again that Don Williams’ music transcends genres and generations. Digging deeper into his natural, everyman approachability and revered musical style, Williams delivers a new collection of songs on Reflections that are sure to become instant classics.

Phil Everly, half of the 1950s and ’60s pop duo the Everly Brothers passed away this month. Everly died at the age of 74, due to complications from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, according to his wife Patti Everly. “We are absolutely heartbroken,” Patti said, noting her husband’s disease was caused by a cigarette smoking. “He fought long and hard.” The Everly brothers were one of the most influential bands of their time – influencing the work of stars including The Beatles and Simon and Garfunkel. Together with his brother Don, who survives him, Everly rose to fame in the late 1950s and 1960s for smash hits such as “Wake Up Little Susie,” “All I Have to Do is Dream” and “Bye Bye Love” thanks to the close-harmony singing they are best known for. In 1957, the Everly Brothers signed their first record deal and soon after produced hits that spawned the genres of pop, rock and country. They were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, into which the Everly Brothers were inducted in 1986, described their harmonies as “one of the musical treasures of the 1950s and a major influence on the music of the 1960s.”

Country Music Hall of Fame group Alabama has signed a new management deal with Tony Conway’s Ontourage Management. After signing with RCA in 1980, Alabama soared to the top with 21 consecutive Number 1 hit singles, a feat most likely never to be equaled in any genre. During their career, they have had 43 singles that have topped the country charts and have sold more than 73 million albums worldwide. They are one of the most celebrated groups, scoring more than 150 major industry awards including two GRAMMY Awards, the Minnie Pearl Humanitarian Award, Entertainer of the Year Awards three times from the CMA and five times from the ACM, as well as ACM Artist of the Decade. They have earned 21 Gold, Platinum, and Multi-Platinum albums and were named the RIAA Country Group of the Century. Band members Randy Owen, Jeff Cook, and Teddy Gentry stated: “We have known Tony Conway for 30 years, and his reputation and major accomplishments in the music industry made this a natural fit. We want to continue our journey, and we feel Tony can help us accomplish that.” Tony Conway, an industry veteran with more than 38 years of experience, spent 33 years with Buddy Lee Attractions, eventually becoming CEO and co-owner. In 2010, Conway launched his own companies, Conway Entertainment Group and Ontourage Management. Through the years, Conway has represented a veritable “Who’s Who” roster of clients including George Strait, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Garth Brooks, George Jones, Lorrie Morgan, The Dixie Chicks, Miranda Lambert and Jason Aldean, to name a few. “I have had the pleasure of knowing the members of Alabama for many years, and I am extremely proud they have chosen us to help further their endeavors and work with them on future projects. New music, selected tour dates, a film documentary, and a book are in the plans. Alabama has created an incredible legacy through both music and philanthropy. We are honored to be part of their team,” said Conway. For more information on the band, please visit www.thealabamaband.com.

Fans eagerly anticipating the upcoming Eric Church album The Outsiders are getting another taste of what’s to come on the much buzzed-about project. Church and EMI Records Nashville have released the album’s second single, “Give Me Back My Hometown.” The wistful song, written by Church and Luke Laird, is currently playing on radio stations across the country and available now for purchase at all digital retailers. “Give Me Back My Hometown” follows first single and title cut “The Outsiders,” which Billboard magazine noted in a cover story on the ACM and CMA award winner, “Church was already at the vanguard of contemporary country’s rock movement… Like a modern-day Lynyrd Skynyrd, Church manages to be simultaneously more rock’n’roll and good-old-boy than anyone else out there – no easy task.” Rolling Stone named “The Outsiders” one of the “100 Best Songs of 2013” raving, “Leave it to the classic rock-loving Nashville badass to cook up the heaviest ‘country’ song in years – a radio hit that plays like some demon spawn of Def Leppard, Black Sabbath, and ‘Born to Be Wild.’” Church and longtime producer Jay Joyce once again collaborated on The Outsiders, which will be released on Feb. 11. Fans can pre-order album bundles directly from www.ericchurch.com, which include The Outsiders album and exclusive merchandise. The Outsiders will be Church’s fourth studio album. It follows the Platinum-certified Chief, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200, stayed atop the Billboard Country Albums Chart for two weeks, and received the Album of the Year Award from both the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music. Chief spawned five hit singles, including two No. 1 smashes: the Platinum-certified “Drink in My Hand” and Double Platinum-certified “Springsteen.” For more information please visit www.ericchurch.com or follow on Facebook and Twitter @ericchurch.

Tickets are now on sale for the Diamond Anniversary of Sidmouth FolkWeek August 1st – 8th, 2014. The festival’s Diamond Anniversary celebrations promise a dazzling week of music, dance and song, tapping a rich seam of vintage talent that has contributed to the festival’s success. FolkWeek means so many different things to different people, so organisers have planned special events in each part of the festival – gems from the archives as well as stars of the future – including a special retrospective concert at The Ham Marquee with legendary traditional singers The Copper Family at the helm, some familiar faces in the Diamond Geezers shows and an English Folk Dance & Song Society-curated series, Folk Rising Plus showcasing the best in rising talent.

Pat Higdon, Founder of Patrick Joseph Music, a joint venture with SONGS Music Publishing, announced a renewal of a long term publishing agreement with Nashville Songwriter Hall of Fame member, Matraca Berg. The music industry veteran and revered songwriter have been working in a publishing capacity together for over 25 years. “At PJM/SONGS, nothing is more important than our relationships with our songwriters,” said Higdon. “For the majority of my career as a publisher, I have had the pleasure of working alongside Matraca who I consider to be one of the most talented and successful writers in contemporary country music. I am so pleased we were able to sign her to the company so that she and I can continue our great run together.” Berg wrote her first number one record at 18, Faking Love, sung by T.G. Shepard and Karen Brooks. Since then, she has penned 10 more Number One Country singles, including Strawberry Wine, which was named CMA Song of the year in 1997. Her songs have garnered three GRAMMY Award nominations. Matraca has become one of the most respected songwriters in Nashville and her songs have been sung by artists including Reba McEntire, Patty Loveless, Kenny Chesney, Linda Ronstadt, Trisha Yearwood, Martina McBride, The Dixie Chicks, Randy Travis, Faith Hill, Keith Urban, Clint Black, Deana Carter, and many more.