The Country Music Association Announces New International Artist Touring Series, 'Introducing Nashville'

The Country Music Association has announced its new international artist-focused touring series, aptly titled Introducing Nashville, which launches in March of 2019 in Australia and New Zealand featuring Brandy Clark, Devin Dawson, Lindsay Ell and Tenille Townes (Australia leg only) followed by an industry event in Tokyo, Japan including Frankie Ballard. Tickets for Australia and New Zealand are on sale here.

As part of CMA's mission to support the expansion of Country Music around the globe, Introducing Nashville will provide a platform to introduce exciting current artists to international audiences for the first time. Each tour stop will replicate a Nashville writer's round, with artists appearing on stage together in an acoustic lineup, introducing their songs and talking about their careers and personal stories.

As international touring opportunities and global streaming continues to grow for Country artists, CMA will continue to use strategic research and tactics in an effort to bring Country artists to fans in foreign territories eager to discover and learn more about the Country genre. Introducing Nashville builds on the remarkable response CMA has seen with artists presented alongside hit songwriters during international tours of the CMA Songwriters Series. Since 2012, CMA has invited more than 40 songwriters and artists overseas to familiarize audiences with the breadth and rich heritage of the Country genre. The CMA Songwriters Series will continue to present songwriters to international fans with a focus on the importance of the craft of songwriting.

"We are excited to invest in artists who are building international careers and to help place them in front of fans in multiple cities who seldom experience Nashville artists live," said Milly Olykan, CMA Vice President, International Relations and Development. "Launching the first Introducing Nashville tour with these distinct artists, each of which occupy such different lanes musically, illustrates the broad range of sounds coming out of Nashville and the Country genre."

Introducing Nashville 2019:
March 18 - Lismore, Australia - Lismore City Hall
March 19 - Brisbane, Australia - The Old Museum
March 21 - Sydney, Australia - The Factory Theatre
March 22 - Canberra, Australia - The Abbey
March 23 - Melbourne, Australia - Athenaeum Theatre
March 26 - Auckland, New Zealand - Tuning Fork

The Nashville, Tennessee based Brandy Clark received her first of an impressive six career Grammy nominations in 2013 in the Best Country Song category for co-writing the Miranda Lambert No. 1 hit "Mama's Broken Heart." Her talent as a storyteller has quickly propelled her into critical acclaim as one of Nashville's best tunesmiths, subsequently writing songs for Sheryl Crow, Billy Currington, Reba McEntire, Kacey Musgraves, LeAnn Rimes, Darius Rucker and The Band Perry, to name a few. In 2013, Clark independently released her debut album, 12 Stories, which was embraced by music lovers and critics alike and garnered two Grammy nominations including Best New Artist and Best Country Album. 12 Stories went on to be named Best Album of 2013 by The Boston Globe, New York Magazine, NPR, New York Post and more. In 2014, Clark won the CMA Award for Song of the Year ("Follow Your Arrow"), which she co-wrote with Shane McAnally and Musgraves, in addition to being nominated for New Artist of the Year. Her sophomore album, Big Day In A Small Town, was released in 2016 and garnered two Grammy nominations for Best Country Album and Best Country Solo Performance ("Love Can Go To Hell") and once again topped critics' "Best Of" lists including NPR, Rolling Stone, Entertainment Weekly and Billboard, among others, cementing Clark as one of Country Music's most talented artists, beloved by fans, critics and fellow entertainers alike. Famed music critic and author, Ann Powers, calls Clark "a storyteller of the highest caliber." This past year, Clark has been honing her craft on the road playing with the likes of Brandi Carlile, Willie Nelson, Sugarland and Dwight Yoakam. Read more at BrandyClarkmusic.com.

Atlantic Records/Warner Music Nashville breakout Devin Dawson co-wrote every track on his debut album Dark Horse, which scored high marks on the charts this year, landing Top 5 on Billboard's Top Country Albums chart. Produced by CMA Awards winner Jay Joyce, the album features Dawson's current single "Asking For A Friend," which he's performed on both "TODAY" and "Late Night with Seth Meyers," alongside the Gold-certified hit "All On Me." Dawson was recently presented with MusicRow's Breakthrough Artist-Writer award, having already been recognized with multiple nominations this year including ACM's New Male Artist, CMT's Breakthrough Video of the Year and Radio Disney's Best New Country Artist, among others. The California native has made additional TV appearances on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" and "ELLEN" and has received critical praise from outlets such as Billboard, Huffington Post, Entertainment Weekly, People, ELLE, The Tennessean, AXS, HITS and more. Dawson recently toured with Tim McGraw & Faith Hill and just wrapped the second leg of The Long Way Tour with labelmate Brett Eldredge. His first headlining run, the Stray Off Course Tour, began in November and continues into 2019. Read more at DevinDawsonmusic.com.

Lauded as "one of the most exciting and talented young artists in country music" (Forbes), Lindsay Ell is a triple threat: accomplished musician, unique vocalist and songwriter. The Calgary native learned to play guitar while traveling with her father to Country/Bluegrass camps as a young girl. Ell honed her craft as a musical stylist and songwriter after being discovered at the age of 13 by BTO and The Guess Who's Randy Bachman ("American Woman," "Taking Care of Business"). The multi-instrumentalist has toured alongside the likes of Luke Bryan, Buddy Guy, The Band Perry and Keith Urban, as well as impressing audiences as Carrie Underwood's guitar player live on "The 50th Annual CMA Awards" and holding her own alongside icon Melissa Etheridge on "Skyville Live." This year alone, Ell exhilarated audiences as part of Brad Paisley's Weekend Warrior World Tour, Sugarland's Still The Same Tour and select dates of Keith Urban's Graffiti U World Tour. Ell's first full-length album The Project debuted at No. 1 on the Nielsen Soundscan Country Albums Chart and was named Billboard's Best Country Album of 2017. Her single "Criminal" was the most added song at U.S. Country radio upon impact and became her first-ever Top 20 hit in the U.S., in addition to becoming her first No. 1 single on the Canadian Country radio charts. Read more at LindsayEll.com.

While Canadian-born Tenille Townes has the lyrical fortitude of Griffin or Lori McKenna, the soulful nature of Chris Stapleton or even Adele, she is paving ground all her own. Working on her debut LP with Jay Joyce, Townes started her journey to becoming one of Country's most promising new artists back in rural Canada, in the backseat of a car. Once settled in Nashville, Townes spent her days songwriting and her nights at guitar pulls or at the Bluebird Café, studying everything she could. Eventually, she scored a publishing deal with Big Yellow Dog and headed into the studio with Joyce. Together, they tapped into her organic nature and her sheer ability to tell a story and emote it through the visceral range of her vocals - tender, bluesy, wise and full of wonder but never naive. Read more at TenilleTownes.com.

Founded in 1958 and celebrating its 60th Anniversary in 2018, the Country Music Association is the first trade organization formed to promote a type of music. In 1961, CMA created the Country Music Hall of Fame to recognize artists and industry professionals with Country Music's highest honor. More than 7,400 music industry professionals and companies from around the globe are members of CMA. The organization's objectives are to serve as an educational and professional resource for the industry and advance the growth of Country Music around the world. This is accomplished through CMA's core initiatives: the CMA Awards, which annually recognize outstanding achievement in the industry; CMA Fest, which benefits the CMA Foundation and music education and is taped for a three-hour network television special, "CMA Fest"; and "CMA Country Christmas." All of CMA's television properties air on the ABC Television Network.

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