Memphis, Tenn.– Now in its seventh year, the 2008 Mountain Stage NewSong Contest is one of the premier showcases for performing songwriters in North America. This year the Folk Alliance is highlighting its own 20th anniversary year by sponsoring this, and other events around North America, that foster and promote folk music. Chosen from hundreds of entries, 10 finalists have been selected to compete in each NewSong Regional Round. Come out to hear them perform - their best milieu.

Regional Rounds to be held:

August 24 Eddie’s Attic, Decatur, GA – Southeast Round (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, VA, W V) w/ Caroline Herring
515 N McDonough St., 7:30 p.m., $15/$18(404) 377-4976, www.eddiesattic.com

August 28 Cactus Café, Austin, TX – Southwest Round (CO, NM, OK, TX, UT) – TBD
24th & Guadalupe Sts., 8:00 p.m., !) 512/475-6515, www.utexas.edu/txunion/ae/cactus

September 2 The Mint, Los Angeles, CA – West Round (AK, AZ, CA, HI, ID, MT, NV, OR, WA, WY) w/ TBD
6010 W. Pico Blvd., 8 p.m., (323) 954-9400 or www.themintla.com

“The Folk Alliance is pleased to be associated with one of the most respected songwriting contests on the planet, NewSong, and the legendary Mountain Stage Radio Show. I know that this contest can change the career path for its winners and we are proud to be a part of that process,” says Louis Meyers, Executive Director, The Folk Alliance

“The partnering of the Mountain Stage NewSong Contest with the Folk Alliance is a natural,” says Mountain Stage Executive Producer Andy Ridenour. “The result will be an even greater impact on the two institution’s missions of promoting the song AND the songwriter.”

The contest is open to all genres of music, reflecting the diversity of performers on “Mountain Stage with Larry Groce.” NewSong is dedicated to finding, promoting, and working with the most talented performing songwriters regardless of style. This year NewSong is introducing a new ‘Youth’ Category to artists 21 or younger.

“NewSong made everyone feel like we were there for a purpose and that we were being celebrated for what we do. Everyone was treated so well and told that NewSong would always be a resource for us … even one year later they are still in touch. It’s much more than a songwriting contest.” Rose Cousins, 2007 NewSong Contest Winner

The winner of each round will advance to the international finals held October 11, 2008 in Charleston, West Virginia. Then five co-winners winners will be chosen. They will perform in a ‘Feature Showcase’ and be registered to attend the 21st International Folk Alliance Conference in Memphis, Tenn. February 18-22, 2009. There are also cash prizes for the five co-winners, and one of them will perform on Mountain Stage.

NewSong’s partner Mountain Stage^® is a live performance music program heard worldwide on over 125 radio stations, XM Satellite Radio and the “Voice of America.” Now in its 25th year, the show has a long and storied tradition of featuring national and international acts in all styles of music and of launching emerging acts to stardom.

For full contest rules and guidelines, see www.newsong-music.com/contest. Time to still compete for the General Round until September 1!

Folk Alliance Mission: The North American Folk Music and Dance Alliance exists to foster and promote traditional, contemporary, and multicultural folk music, dance, and related performing arts in North America. The Folk Alliance seeks to strengthen organizational and individual initiatives in folk music and dance through education, networking, advocacy, and professional and field development. (www.folk.org)

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Memphis, Tenn. — Supporting the classic folk traditions from live performances, guitars, banjos, songs and dances to the new world of podcasts, blogs, Youtube, and VideoRanch, over 2,000 people, both young and old, will gather in Memphis, Tennessee to celebrate the 20th year of the North American Folk Music and Dance Alliance (The Folk Alliance) at the International Folk Alliance Conference February 18 - 22, 2009. Catch up on what’s the best - best performances, best events, best technology, best advice. Roger McGuinn (The Byrds) will be the keynote speaker for the opening session of the conference which is held at the Memphis Marriott Downtown and Cook Convention Center. All showcase entries, early registrations, sales, sponsorships, private showcases, and hotel bookings, begin July 1. Details at www.Folk.org.

The Folk Alliance provides a vital network of activity for the performing folk-arts world on an international and regional level. The regional conferences are ideal for artists, presenters, business people, journalists & bloggers, folk societies, folklorists, and DJ’s to help build a stronger music community in focused geographic areas.

2008 FOLK ALLIANCE CONFERENCES

October 2-5 SWRFA - Southwest Regional Folk Alliance, www.swrfa.com
Location: TBA (Region: TX, OK, NM, CO)
Showcase deadline: August 15 - Registration open

October 10 - 12 FARM - Folk Alliance Region Midwest, www.farmfolk.org
Location: Techny Towers Conference & Retreat Center in Northbrook, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. (Region: IL, IN, IA, KS, MI, MN, MO, NE, ND, OH, SD, WI)
Showcase deadline: Passed - Registration open

October 17-19 SERFA - Southeast Regional Folk Alliance, www.serfa.org
Location: Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN
(Region: AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, VA, WV)
Showcase deadline: TBA

October 24-26 FAR-West - Folk Alliance Region West, www.far-west.org
Location: Phoenix Marriott Mesa Hotel & Convention Center, Ariz.,
(Region: AK, AZ, CA, HI, ID, NV, OR, MT, WY)
Showcase deadline is July 31, 2008 - Registration open

November 13-16 NERFA - Northeast Regional Folk Alliance, www.nerfa.org
Location: Hudson Valley Resort, Kerhonkson, NY
(Region: CT, DE, ME, MD, MA, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT)
Showcase deadline: July 25 - Registration open

February 18 - 22, 2009 International Folk Alliance Conference www.folk.org
Location: Memphis Marriott Downtown, Memphis, TN
Showcase deadline: November 20, 2008 - Registration open

Above and beyond the conferences the Folk Alliance offers wonderful programs through their year-round services including arts advocacy, health and instrument insurance, an online music business directory, newsletters, and workshops. Contact www.Folk.org for information on membership and all conferences or call 901/522-1170.

Folk Alliance Mission: The North American Folk Music and Dance Alliance exists to foster and promote traditional, contemporary, and multicultural folk music, dance, and related performing arts in North America. The Folk Alliance seeks to strengthen organizational and individual initiatives in folk music and dance through education, networking, advocacy, and professional and field development.

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Memphis, Tenn. — The North American Folk Music and Dance Alliance (The Folk Alliance) will celebrate its Twentieth Anniversary with an evening of music at the Kerrville Folk Festival, Quiet Valley Ranch, Texas, Sunday, May 25, 2008. The KF Festival salutes the Folk Alliance with a show featuring Anthony da Costa, Sara Hickman, Eliza Gilkyson, Kevin Welch and Tom Russell. “We appreciate Kerrville’s salute to our 20th anniversary and their support,” says Louis Meyers, Executive Director, Folk Alliance. For information and tickets: www.kerrvillefolkfestival.com.

XM’s live broadcast will enlarge the rare atmosphere of the outdoor event to reach across North America. “The XM15 – The Village channel is growing in listenership. We want to go and be a presence, so to share this special festival with our USA and Canada community.” Robert Aubrey Davis - Program Director XM 15 The Village

Dalis Allen, Producer of Kerrville Folk Festival, Mary Sue Twohy, XM15 Music Director, and Louis Meyers, Executive Director of the Folk Alliance will be on hand to help raise awareness of the many benefits folk music has to offer.

The Folk Alliance recently hosted an evening at the Bluebird Café in Nashville and has two shows at the Orphem in Memphis: Judy Collins, Oct. 25, 2008 and the Carolina Chocolate Drops, January 24, 2009. Along with the online directory, interactive website (folk.org), insurance and other membership benefits the Folk Alliance works with its regions to help their internal events.

The regional conferences are interesting and helpful in developing intelligent and worthwhile fans and friends who support American contemporary and traditional music and dance. Including workshops, panels and showcases, the 2008 conferences will be:

• Oct. 2-5 - SWRFA - Southwest Regional Folk Alliance (www.swrfa.com) Location: TBA
• Oct 10 - 12 - FARM GATHERING - Folk Alliance Region Midwest, (www.farmfolk.org) Techny Towers Conference & Retreat Center, Northbrook, Ill.
• Oct. 17 - 19 - SERFA – Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (www.serfa.org) Murfreesboro, TN
• Oct. 24 - 26 - The 5th Annual FAR-West Regional Conference, (www.far-west.org) Phoenix Marriott Mesa Hotel & Convention Center, Ariz.
• Nov 13-16 – NERFA - Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (www.nerfa.org) Hudson Valley Resort, Kerhonkson, NY
• FACanada – no event.

The 21st International Folk Alliance Conference will be held in Memphis, Tenn., February 17-22, 2009. Roger McGuinn will be the keynote speaker.

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Nashville, Tenn. — The Folk Alliance Board of Directors and Staff cordially invite you to a special early evening Meet & Greet followed by a concert at the legendary Bluebird Café on Thursday, May 1 at 5 p.m. (concert at 6 p.m.). Please join us for an after work drink and nosh followed by a very special “in the round” performance from our musical Board of Directors: Dan Navarro, Wendy Waldman, Joel Rafael, and James Lee Stanley. Open to all, with no admission charge, the Bluebird is at 4104 Hillsboro Road, Nashville. For info: 615/383-1461.

Founded in 1989, The North American Folk Music and Dance Alliance (The Folk Alliance) exists to foster and promote traditional, contemporary, and multicultural folk music, dance, and related performing arts. Their International Folk Alliance conference, held each February, has become the annual “town hall” of the folk community. Over 2000 attend to conduct business, connect with their peers, and simply recharge their batteries for the coming year. The 21st International Folk Alliance Conference will be held February 18-22, 2009 at the Downtown Marriott in Memphis Tenn. The keynote speaker is Roger McGuinn.

Bluebird Concert Artists:
Dan Navarro Imbued early in life with a love of music, art, drama, comedy and incisive writing, he has spent the past 30 years of his life working and playing as a singer, songwriter, recording and touring artist, voice actor and media activist. With his longtime partner Eric Lowen and other collaborators, he has composed songs for artists as diverse as Pat Benatar (1984’s Top Five “We Belong”), The Bangles, Dionne Warwick, Dave Edmunds, and Dutch superstar Marco Borsato. Individually, Dan has had great success as a session singer and voice actor in English and Spanish, and his resume includes the recent #1 films “Happy Feet” and “Ice Age 2: The Meltdown”, “Robots” and “Man On Fire” television shows. (www.lownav.com)

Wendy Waldman is a critically acclaimed recording artist, as well as a writer of multi-platinum songs for other singers in musical genres ranging from country to pop, film, jazz, children’s music and R&B. She is one of the first woman record producers to have a major impact in the music industry. Wendy Waldman’s career in the music business started with her band, Bryndle, in the early 1970s in Los Angeles with Karla Bonoff, Kenny Edwards, and Andrew Gold. (www.wendywaldman.com)

Joel Rafael, whether telling his own tales or wrapping his artistry around the songs of Woody Guthrie and others, Joel Rafael mixes traditional folk idioms with contemporary ideas and sensibilities in a way that both transcends the moment and is fully present in it. (www.joelrafael.com)

James Lee Stanley, a true renaissance man, has been recording and performing since he was fourteen. He has toured consistently since he returned from the USAF (as a Chinese linguist) and has performed hundreds of dates a year with such diverse acts as Bonnie Raitt, Robin Williams, Nicolette Larson and Bill Cosby. (www.jamesleestanley.com)

Please join us and learn about the wonderful opportunities the Folk Alliance offers through its conference plus their year-round services including arts advocacy for the field on a regional and international basis, health and instrument insurance, a music business directory, newsletters, workshops, and regional events.

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Uncle Earl - “Waterloo Tennessee” (Rounder)

Memphis, Tenn. — The Folk Alliance Awards show was held last night at the Cook Convention Center, kicking off the 20th annual International Folk Alliance Conference in Memphis, Tenn.. Uncle Earl’s CD “Waterloo, Tennessee” (Rounder) took home the “Album of the Year” award at the ceremonies.

Also among the evenings award winners were the Carolina Chocolate Drops, named as the “Emerging Artist of the Year” and “The Ark” in Ann Arbor, Michigan, named as the “Best Large Folk Venue.”

Rounder Records, along with Mavis Staples and Tommy Jarrell were presented with this years “Elaine Weissman Lifetime Achievement Award.”

The Folk Awards Show was hosted by Folk Alliance Board President Dan Navarro with appearances by Janet Reno, Kathy Mattea, Tom Russell, Eilen Jewell, Twilight Hotel, and Anthony DaCosta.

The 2008 Folk Alliance Award Winners are:

• Song of the Year: “Who’s Gonna Build Your Wall” - Tom Russell
• Album of the Year: Waterloo, Tennessee - Uncle Earl
• Legacy Recording: The Live Wire - Woody Guthrie in Performance 1949
• Traditional Artist: Levon Helm
• Contemporary Artist: Susan Werner
• World Music Recording: Loreena McKennitt
• Emerging Artist: Carolina Chocolate Drops
• Booking Agency: The Roots Agency
• Broadcaster: Rich Warren, WFMT
• Small Folk Venue: Cafe Lena and The Freight & Salvage Coffeehouse (tie)
• Large Folk Venue: The Ark
• Folk Festival: Falcon Ridge Folk Festival

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