BUSINESSES & ASSOCIATIONS
Lori Badgett
Diane Pearson
SENIOR VPs/TEAM LEADERS, ENTERTAINMENT DIVISION, NASHVILLE, CITY NATIONAL BANK
“We are entering our 12th year in Nashville, and I think it is indicative of our success that we are moving to a brand-new office on Music Row,” Pearson says. City National is a leading financier of music intellectual property deals and, she adds, “our clients in the country music industry, particularly publishing, are expanding rapidly.” Badgett adds that City National works with more than 80% of music entities in Nashville, ranging from artists to concert venues. “Touring for our clients is bigger than ever,” she says, “with venues of all sizes booked solid for the next few years and demand from concertgoers at all-time highs.”
Andy Moats
DIRECTOR OF MUSIC AND ENTERTAINMENT, PINNACLE FINANCIAL PARTNERS
Nashville-based Pinnacle provided a “recordsetting amount of capital to the music industry in 2022, issuing nearly $1 billion in new loans,” says Moats, adding that “the same pace continues into 2023.” Among them: $100 million in new financing for Cutting Edge Media Music, a company that provides music for films, TV shows and advertising. Pinnacle has also “deepened our business with international record labels,” says Moats, including a recent investment with the Amsterdam-based independent label Armada Music, which announced the launch of investment fund BEAT (for “Best
Ever Acquired Tracks”) Music with $100 million in backing from Pinnacle.
Sarah Trahern
CEO, COUNTRY MUSIC ASSOCIATION
Tiffany Kerns
SENIOR VP OF INDUSTRY RELATIONS AND PHILANTHROPY/ EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CMA/CMA FOUNDATION
The CMA has recognized that its membership had to evolve in a number of ways, including recruiting new professionals, expanding qualifications and developing inclusivity among existing members. “We needed to reach professionals before they even entered the business to make up for the loss of key personnel post-pandemic,” says Kerns.
As a result, the association developed a student membership, as well as an industry membership tier for “music professionals outside of country music because of the ever-morphing gig economy that allows a professional to work in more than one genre,” says Kerns. “But most importantly, we wanted to build connection and community while fostering greater inclusivity.”
Damon Whiteside
CEO, ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC
Lyndsay Cruz
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ACM LIFTING LIVES
Whiteside wrangled two of the biggest country stars ever, Dolly Parton and Garth Brooks, to co-host the ACM Awards in May. “Last year, the academy pioneered the future of awards shows in moving to streaming platform Prime Video and producing an entirely commercial-free show,” he says. “This year, we brought back a robust ACM Awards week lineup of events, including a free fan festival.” Whiteside also points to the recent ACM Lifting Lives Topgolf tournament with an all-star concert that raised funds for the organization’s mission-critical work, with a focus on mental health. The academy also launched a new partnership with the Black Music Action Coalition for Black artists and professionals. “We’re overjoyed with the work we’ve done to bring value to members,” Whiteside says, “as well as our groundbreaking [diversity, equality and inclusion] work.”