SINGER-SONGWRITERS JOIN FOR AN INTIMATE NIGHT OF MUSIC IN ANTICIPATION OF THE COUNTRY THROWDOWN TOUR

FROM:            LIBBY COFFEY/MITCH SCHNEIDER/CHELSI SCHRIVER

IN ANTICIPATION FOR THIS YEAR’s
COUNTRY THROWDOWN TOUR®
SINGER-SONGWRITERS JOIN FOR AN INTIMATE NIGHT OF MUSIC AT
THE LEGENDARY BLUEBIRD CAFÉ IN NASHVILLE

In anticipation for this year’s COUNTRY THROWDOWN TOUR®  Presented by Rockstar Energy Drink–which runs from May 14 in Tampa, FL  through June 20 in Mountain View, CA–eight of the nine eclectic singer-songwriters came together March 24 for a magical night of acoustic music at the legendary Nashville music club the Bluebird Café.

ASHLEY RAY, BRAD TURSI, DAVE PAHANISH, HEATHER MORGAN, JEDD HUGHES, SARAH BUXTON, TROY OLSEN and WALKER HAYES all joined in for two rounds of inspiring music and stories (CORY BRANAN was unavailable due to a touring commitment). To view images of the intimate night at the Bluebird Café, click here:
http://www.gettyimages.com/Search/Search.aspx?contractUrl=2&language=en-US&family=editorial&p=country%20throwdown&assetType=image&ebd=2010-03-24.

While crafting the concept of the COUNTRY THROWDOWN TOUR, the producers came across some of Nashville’s most talented emerging artists in intimate local venues. After learning about the historical importance and impact the Bluebird Café has had on so many artists' lives and watching the songwriters perform “In The Round,” the tour decided this unique performance style was something magical that more people across the U.S. needed to see.

“The Bluebird Café has been presenting songwriters, in the round, for over 25 years. Some of the most significant songwriters and artists have performed at the club including Mary Chapin Carpenter, Faith Hill, Trisha Yearwood, and Townes Van Zandt.  Both Garth Brooks and Taylor Swift talk about how The Bluebird was instrumental in the development of their careers,” said Erika Wollam Nichols, C.O.O. of The Bluebird Café.  “We’re so excited for music-lovers across the U.S. to have the opportunity to hear these amazing performers present their songs in a personal and intimate way on the Country Throwdown Tour–just like they do at The Bluebird itself!”

The COUNTRY THROWDOWN TOUR® Bluebird Café tent will feature these nine emerging singer-songwriters. Concertgoers will get to see these up-and-coming-artists perform “In the Round” or “Guitar Pull”-type sets–whereby musicians take turns performing together–in the Bluebird Café Tent throughout the day. In addition, the artists will perform nightly on a specially designed stage during the main stage set changes.

In the Bluebird Café tent, fans will see the obvious talent in these artists, but what they’ll soon discover is the long list of top songs they have made famous for so many country superstars. Check out the songs and additional artist info here:

ASHLEY RAY:
     -Wrote Wade Bowen’s current single “Matches.”
     -Performed on stage with massive acts Dierks Bentley, Miranda Lambert and Cross Canadian Ragweed, in addition to a
     40-city jaunt with Eric Church.
BRAD TURSI:
     -Formerly guitarist for the rock group Army of Me.
     -Brad, a recent Nashville resident, just signed a publishing deal with two companies (a joint venture), Propel Music and
     Wright of Center Music.
CORY BRANAN:
     -Received national recognition from Rolling Stone and performed on The Late Show with David Letterman with his debut
     The Hell You Say and its follow-up 12 Songs.
     -Cory just recorded his third album with American Music Club’s Tim Mooney; stay tuned for release info.
DAVE PAHANISH:
     -Wrote Toby Keith’s number one hit “American Ride.”
     -Wrote Jimmy Wayne’s #1 hit “Do You Believe Me Now?” and his #13 hit “I Will.”
     -Wrote two recent Tim McGraw cuts and songs for Emily West, Adam Brand, more for Jimmy Wayne.
HEATHER MORGAN:
     -Wrote songs for Sara Evans, Ashley Ray, The Randy Rogers’ Band, Jesse Lee, Universal South Recording artist Bailey
     Brown, American Idol finalist Kristy Lee Cook and most recently Terri Clark and Emma Mae Jacobs.
     -Signed a publishing deal with Sony ATV.
JEDD HUGHES:
     -Performed onstage and in the studio with Patty Loveless, Rodney Crowell, Alison Krauss, Guy Clark, and Keith Urban.
     Sarah Buxton performed background vocals on Jedd’s debut and he has teamed with Sarah to co-write her debut release
     Sarah Buxton, out now. Jedd is currently signed to indie Carnival Recording Company
SARAH BUXTON:
     -Co-wrote "Stupid Boy" which went on to win Keith Urban a Grammy for “Best Male Country Vocal Performance” in 2007.
     -Just released her debut album Sarah Buxton, February 23 on Lyric Street.
TROY OLSEN:
     -Co-wrote “I’ll Just Hold On,” the Top 5 single by Blake Shelton.
     -His song “Ghost Town Train” can be found on the current Tim McGraw album Southern Voice.
     -Troy’s debut single-on EMI Records Nashville is titled “Summer Thing” and will be released May 3^rd.
WALKER HAYES:
     -Recording artist for Capitol Records whose debut single will be released June 2010. Walker wrote or co-wrote all 12
     songs on his debut album.

Check out the COUNTRY THROWDOWN TOUR® Bluebird Café tent artists at: http://www.countrythrowdown.com/bands and listen to music here:

The COUNTRY THROWDOWN TOUR®  Presented by Rockstar Energy Drink is anchored by headliners MONTGOMERY GENTRY, JAMEY JOHNSON, LITTLE BIG TOWN and JACK INGRAM. Other artists confirmed for the first annual multi-stage country tour include ERIC CHURCH, the ELI YOUNG BAND, THE LOST TRAILERS, HEIDI NEWFIELD, RYAN BINGHAM AND THE DEAD HORSES, JONATHAN SINGLETON & THE GROVE and EMILY WEST. The artists will perform on three stages, one main stage and two side stages.   

Pre-sale tickets are available now in all cities via: http://media.musictoday.com/ticketing/CountryThrowdown/registration.htm. Tickets are available at all Ticketmaster locations and www.CountryThrowdown.com.

For a full list of tour dates and venues, visit:
http://www.countrythrowdown.com/dates

The COUNTRY THROWDOWN TOUR® is made possible through the support of presenting sponsor Rockstar Energy Drink, supporting sponsors such as: Wrangler, Affliction, media sponsors GAC TV and PEOPLE Country, NAMM, BMI, Capitol, Warner Bros Nashville and Show Dog Universal.

For COUNTRY THROWDOWN TOUR publicity contact, MSO, (818) 380-0400:

Libby Coffey                                        LCoffey@msopr.com                         ext. 224
Mitch Schneider                                  MSchneider@msopr.com                   ext. 235
Chelsi Schriver                                    CSchriver@msopr.com                      ext. 231

www.CountryThrowdown.com

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