CMA and the City of Nashville Celebrate "Flatts Tuesday"

CMA and the City of Nashville Celebrate "Flatts Tuesday"

By Wendy Pearl

Let the good times roll as the Country Music Association and the City of Nashville celebrated the 2006 best-selling act of all genres, Rascal Flatts, at a Mardi Gras-style event on Tuesday, Feb. 20, at the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum in Nashville.

"An accomplishment like this calls for a celebration," said CMA Chief Operating Officer Tammy Genovese. "And we were delighted to partner with the City of Nashville to acknowledge the significance of this career milestone and the positive impact that this outstanding group has had on Country Music, Tennessee, and Rascal Flatts' hometown - Music City, USA."

"We take seriously the art of making music and try to put a lot of hard work and dedication into our albums," said Jay DeMarcus, Rascal Flatts bassist and background vocalist. "We are very thankful to our fans who have given us the best jobs in the world and are grateful to CMA, the City of Nashville and the Country Music community for making this our special day."

Me and My Gang, was the highest debuting album in 2006 with more than 721,000 units sold in its first week, and when the cash registers stopped ka-chinging at year's end, the album was the top selling artist album of the year with 3.4 million copies sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan. And that figure continues to rise with a current tally of more than 4 million copies. These sales combined with the continued strong sales of previous albums, including Feels Like Today, earned Rascal Flatts the title of being the best selling artist of 2006 in all musical genres.

This marked the first time in the era of monitored music sales that a Country group had the top selling artist album of the year, according to Nielsen SoundScan research.

"We are happy to join CMA and the Nashville community in celebrating Rascal Flatts' many outstanding accomplishments in 2006 and the attention these achievements have brought to both the country music industry and the city of Nashville" said Lyric Street Records President and CMA Board President-Elect Randy Goodman.

Me and My Gang, features two chart-topping singles, including the band's first crossover hit, the multi-week Adult Contemporary (AC) No. 1, "What Hurts the Most," and the group's sixth No. 1 Country single, "My Wish." Rascal Flatts became one of only three Country artists (including the Dixie Chicks and Faith Hill) in the 45 years of shared Country and AC radio chart history to land two different songs in the No. 1 position on two different genre's radio charts in the same week, when "What Hurts the Most" topped the Radio & Records AC chart in the same week that "My Wish" went to No. 1 on the Mediabase Country chart.

"It's just an honor to be here, another exciting and proud moment for Nashville, Tennessee," said Nashville Vice Mayor Howard Gentry. "Were it not for the Country Music industry, we would not be able to stand here as proud as we do as a City. On behalf of Mayor Bill Purcell and the Metro Council, we thank the industry for providing these opportunities to grow nationally and also to grow at home in our own community."

The honors are outstanding, but just as incredible is Rascal Flatts' commitment to giving back to their community. In September, the group held its second concert in support of the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt, donating $1.4 million since 2005 (the largest donations in the hospital's history).

"The Children's Hospital is such a special place," Gentry continued. "And I have a personal experience. My daughter has been diagnosed with an arthritic condition, and the Children's Hospital has been treating my daughter and doing such outstanding work and if it had not been for contributors such as Rascal Flatts and others of you in this community, I dare say that she would not be getting the level of treatment that she is. She's fine and she's going to be great, but it's because of these kinds of commitments to the Children's Hospital that they can do the great work that they do."

They are on a roll, with no signs of stopping the enormous momentum and support from the fans and industry. On. Feb. 11 they performed at the GRAMMY Awards where they were nominated for Best Country Performance by a Country duo or Group for "What Hurts The Most." Rascal Flatts has been nominated for 10 CMA Awards, winning five times including Horizon (2002) and Vocal Group of the Year four years in a row (2003-2006).

"I'm not surprised at the success they've had," said Kix Brooks of Brooks and Dunn and Co-Chairman of the CMA Artist Relations Committee. "I'm really excited for them. They've got hearts as big as this building and more talent than we can talk about. I'm here to give them a really big pat on the back. Continued success fellas and congratulations."

Rascal Flatts just hit the highway with their "Me and My Gang 2007" concert tour, playing 21 cities before wrapping in early April to work on their next album. The band's 2006 tour played to more than 1 million fans in 74 cities. A total of 61 of those dates were sold out including LA's Staples Center and New York's Madison Square Garden.

"As a longtime friend and supporter of Rascal Flatts, it is gratifying to see all their hard work rewarded by becoming the best selling artist of 2006," said Connie Bradley, ASCAP Senior Vice President and Co-Chairman of the CMA Artist Relations Committee. "This is an accomplishment that the entire Nashville music community and City of Nashville can celebrate. Their albums are recorded and produced here and feature many Nashville-based songwriters and musicians. Nashville continues to live up to its title as Music City USA, and Rascal Flatts is one of our main musical ambassadors."

Rascal Flatts has sold more than 13.7 million units in the six years since the release of their self-titled debut. Feels Like Today is certified quadruple Platinum for sales of more than 4 million units, while Rascal Flatts and Melt are each certified double Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Me and My Gang is the band's fastest selling title to date.

On the Web: www.rascalflatts.com

February 21, 2007

Pictured (l-r): Doug Howard (Sr. VP of A&R, Lyric Street Records); Connie Bradley (CMA Board Member and Sr. VP, ASCAP); LeVox (member Rascal Flatts); John Evans (Assistant To The Governor of Tenn. For Technology And Community Affairs); Dr. Pedro Garcia (Director, Metro Nashville Public Schools); Kyle Young (Museum Director, Count ry Music Hall of Fame & Museum); Jody Williams (CMA Board Member and VP, Writer/Publisher Relations, BMI); Tammy Genovese (CMA COO); DeMarcus (member Rascal Flatts and CMA Board Member); Vice Mayor Howard Gentry; Rooney (member Rascal Flatts); Randy Goodman (CMA Board Member and Pres., Lyric Street Records); Clarence Spalding (CMA Board of Directors Pres. and Pres., Spalding Entertainment, LLC); and Dann Huff (CMA Board Member and Owner, Dann Huff Productions).

Photo: John Russell / CMA