Grand Ole Opry Group President Steve Buchanan has been named the new Country Music Association Board of Directors President. The election meeting was held earlier this week, but the new Board year will not go into effect until January 1, 2010. At that time, current President AEG Sr. VP Steve Moore will transition to the Chairman of Board role.

“I hoped that someday I would have the opportunity to serve as President or Chairman of the Board,” says Buchanan. “I would say that I only recently understood the overall complexity of that responsibility and the many aspects that go into making this organization tick.

“I feel that I’ve gone through an apprenticeship of sorts over the past year working with Randy Goodman and Steve Moore, attending committee meetings, and weekly leadership meetings, to really get a better understanding of what’s involved, what the important issues are, and hopefully what will serve me in the coming years to do a better job of helping make the right decisions for the organization.”

Buchanan joined the CMA Board in 2003, serving as committee chair for several years, including his current role as chair of TV Marketing Strategies Committee. He joined Gaylord Entertainment as Marketing Manager of the Grand Ole Opry in 1985 before being appointed to the President of the Grand Ole Opry group in 1998.

Directors By Membership Category

Advertising Agency/PR/Marketing
• Jessie Schmidt, Schmidt Relations
• Jeff Walker, AristoMedia/Marco Promotions

Affiliated/Producer
• Connie Bradley, ASCAP
• Steve Buchanan, Gaylord Entertainment Co.

Artist
• Troy Gentry, Montgomery Gentry
• Kix Brooks, Brooks & Dunn

Broadcast Air Talent
• Storme Warren, Different Drummer Productions, LLC

Composer
• Steve Bogard, One Music Group
• Victoria Shaw, AvaRu Music

Entertainment Services
• Frank Bumstead, Flood, Bumstead, McCready, & McCarthy, Inc.
• Mike Vaden, The Vaden Group

International
• Rob Potts, Rob Potts Entertainment Edge, Five Dock, Australia
• Ron Kitchener, RGK Entertainment, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Music Publisher/PRO
• Troy Tomlinson, Sony/ATV Music Publishing
• Gary Overton, EMI Music Publishing

Musician
• John Hobbs
• Randy Scruggs, Randy Scruggs Productions

Personal Manager
• Clarence Spalding, Spalding Entertainment, LLC
• Doc McGhee, McGhee Entertainment

Producer/Engineer/Studio
• Mark Wright, Universal Records South

Radio
• Mike Moore, Entercom Communications, Portland, OR
• Becky Brenner, KMPS-FM, CBS Seattle, Wash.

Record Company
• Joe Galante, Sony Music Entertainment
• Randy Goodman, Lyric Street and Carolwood Records

Talent Agent/Promoter
• Tony Conway, Buddy Lee Attractions
• Joey Lee, 360 Artist Agency

Talent Buyer/Venues
• John Juliano, Eastern States Exposition, West Springfield, Mass.
• Jeff Krueger, FACE, Inc./WE Fest, Detroit Lakes, Minn.

Television/Video/Media
• Lon Helton, Country Aircheck
• Brian Philips, Country Music Television (CMT)

Lifetime Directors
• J. William Denny
• Ralph Peer II
• Frances Preston

Ex-Officio Members
• Jim Free, The Smith-Free Group, Washington, D.C.
• Kyle Young, Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Directors at Large

Jaye Albright, Albright & O’Malley, Bainbridge Island, Wash.
Bruce Allen, Bruce Allen Talent, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Charlie Anderson, Anderson Merchandisers, Knoxville, Tenn.
Scott Borchetta, Big Machine Records/Valory Music Company
Luke Bryan, artist
Barry Coburn, Ten Ten Music Group, Inc.
Pat Collins, SESAC
Charlie Cook, KKGO Radio, Los Angeles, Calif.
Jay DeMarcus, Rascal Flatts
Bob DiPiero, Love Monkey Music
Tim DuBois, Dottore-DuBois Management
Mike Dungan, Capitol Records
Kitty Moon Emery, KittyMoon Enterprises
John Esposito, Warner Bros. Records
Mike Evans, SMG, Philadelphia, Penn.
Karen Fairchild, Little Big Town
Larry Fitzgerald, the Fitzgerald Hartley Company
Craig Fruin, HK Management
Jeff Garrison, KILT, Infinity Broadcasting, Houston, Texas
Ed Hardy, Great American Country (GAC)
Pat Higdon, Universal Music Publishing Group
Clint Higham, Morris Management Group
Greg Hill, Red Light Management
Dann Huff, Dann Huff Productions
John Huie, Creative Artists Agency
Brett James, Cornman Music
Ken Levitan, Vector Management
Luke Lewis, UMG Nashville
Jay Liepis, Apple, Inc., iTunes Store
Scott Lindy, Clear Channel Communications, Atlanta, Ga.
Erik Logan, Harpo, Inc., Chicago, Ill.
Ralph Mastrangelo, Clair Bros. Audio Ent. Inc.
JD May, Ticketmaster Entertainment
Deb McDermott, Young Broadcasting, Inc.
Steve Moore, AEG Live!
John Rich, Big & Rich
David Ross, Music Row Publications, Inc.
Ron Sakamoto, Gold & Gold Productions, LTD., Alberta, Canada
Victor Sansone, Irving, Texas
Rick Shipp, William Morris Agency
Denise Stiff, DS Managment
Trey Turner, Turner & Nichols and Associates
Rusty Walker, Rusty Walker Programming Consultant, Inc., Iuka, Miss.
Jody Williams, BMI
Larry Wilson, Alpha Broadcasting Corporation, Portaland, Org.
Tim Wipperman
Lee Ann Womack, artist
Erv Woolsey, The Erv Woolsey Company