Orchard Road: Industry vet Heather Vassar has been named SVP/Nashville at The Orchard. She will continue to operate her company, Casual Media Partners/Casual Records, which she launched last year after departing the SVP/Operations position at Empire/Nashville (Breaking News 5/2/25). "Casual Records did a partnership deal with The Orchard and will be [run] out of the Nashville office," she tells Country Aircheck. Vassar joined Empire in 2019, rising to SVP in 2024 (Breaking News 5/6/24). In her new role, Vassar reports to The Orchard Pres./COO Colleen Theis. Saying it's "an exciting time as genre lines blur and independent artists scale globally,” Vassar adds, “I look forward to elevating our footprint to support this momentum." Reach her here.

Hey Day: “Together they create something more connected and more focused, allowing us to move with intention, operate with clarity and build real audience platforms around our artists," says Hey Now Records Pres./Co-Founder Kris Lamb of the label's newly announced VP/Promotion Brooke Diaz, National Dir./West Coast Bill Lubitz, National Dir./East Coast Jane Staszak and Dir./Streaming Anna Scott Welch. The group, as well as Lamb, worked at BMLG before its restructure last month (CAT 2/13); reach Diaz here, Lubitz here, Staszak here and Welch here.

Ms. Worldwide: Former Audacy COO Susan Larkin has been named CEO for RCS Worldwide, succeeding Philippe Generali, who retired last month after nearly three decades with the company (CAT 1/28). Larkin departed Audacy after five years in 2025 amid an executive lineup change (CAT 3/24/25). Prior to Audacy, she held senior leadership roles at Cox Media Group, including Regional VP.

Gig Alert: The Stephens Media Group cluster in Medford, OR, which includes KAKT and Classic Country KAKT-HD2, is seeking a PD, which will also include an on-air role on two stations. Current OM/PD and KAKT afternoon host Casey Baker is seguing to a remote position. Future opportunities for the position could include a Dir./Operations role for the right candidate. A minimum of three years of experience as a PD or APD, or three years of on-air experience is required. Apply to SVP/Programming & Technology Bob Thornton here.

Middle Tennessee State University is seeking a tenure track faculty member for its Recording Industry (Music Business) program. The Assistant or Associate Professor position starts Aug. 1, and requires five years of music/entertainment industry experience and a masters degree or higher in law or legal studies, business administration, recording industry or a closely related field. Find details and apply here.

Mix & Shingle: Zach John King and Aniston Pate will kick off the eighth season of BMI’s Rooftop On The Row series April 21. The invitation-only event, hosted on the rooftop of BMI's Nashville office, will feature subsequent performances by Avery Anna, Drew Baldridge, Pynk Beard, Tyler Halverson, Bryan Martin, Chase Matthew, Julianna Rankin and DJ Smoke.

Radio Active: CRS '26 takes center stage in this week’s Country Aircheck Weekly, with a recap of New Faces and the biggest conversations of the week. From evolving roles and relationships to a clear warning against playing it safe, panels including "The New R&R: Roles And Relationships," “Creative Talent: Why ‘Playing It Safe’ Is The Death of Your Radio Career” and “Cycle of a Song: High Road" offer a snapshot of where the industry stands and where it’s headed next.

Tex In Effect: The 16th annual Texas Regional Radio Music & Radio Awards were presented Monday (3/23) in Arlington. Winners in the fan-voted Texas/Red Dirt radio categories were:

• Radio Station, Super Market: KFWR/Fort Worth
• Radio Station, Large Market: KMWX/Abilene
• Radio Station, Medium Market: KZAH/Kerrville
• Radio Station, Small Market: KTTX/Brenham
• Radio Station, Out Of Region: KERP/Dodge City, KS
• Internet Station: RedDirtTexasCountry.com
• Air Personality, Super Market: Shayne Hollinger, KFWR
• Air Personality, Large Market: Rudy Fernandez, KMWX
• Air Personality, Medium Market: Justin McClure, KZAH
• Air Personality, Small Market: Buzz Russell, KNES/Fairfield
• Air Personality, Out Of Region: Josh Roesener, KERP
• Internet Air Personality: Robert Miguel, UvaldeRadio.net
• Syndicated/Specialty Show: Red Dirt Proud

Tour Support: Willie Nelson's Outlaw Music Festival will hit 12 markets in July and August, kicking off July 3 in Irving, TX. Performers on various dates include Nelson, The Avett Brothers, Sheryl Crow, Wilco, Lukas Nelson, Stephen Wilson Jr., Margo Price and Sierra Hull. The July 4 show in Austin also includes Rodney Crowell and Billy Strings. Tickets (3/27) for all shows here.

Turnpike Troubadours have extended their Wild America Tour through the fall, adding new shows in Nashville, Chicago, Atlanta and more. Find the full itinerary and tickets for the new dates (3/27) here. The band will also partner with Cross Canadian Ragweed for more The Boys From Oklahoma co-headline shows in Stillwater, OK and Lincoln, NE this spring.

Lonestar will embark on their 18-show Keeps Getting Better Tour April 11 with an appearance at Country Thunder Arizona in Florence. Tickets here.

Stories Of The Week: Search for news and people in the archives at countryaircheck.com.

• Dave Russell joined WVVR/Clarksville, TN as PD and morning co-host. (3/23)
• Scott Wiggins was named Golden Isles Broadcasting/Brunswick, GA GM. (3/23)
• Chronicle: Ronnie Bowman.

Bits & Pieces: In the wake of deadly tornados that affected parts of Michigan earlier this month (CAT 3/10), Midwest Communications stations in Battle Creek (including WNWN) and Kalamazoo have teamed with the Home Builders Association of Western Michigan and St. Joseph County United Way for a fundraising campaign in which listeners can select which city will receive their donation. Every dollar raised will go directly to the families affected.

Country Aircheck Today Top 5: Here are the Top 5 songs for March 23, according to Mediabase.

1. SHABOOZEY & JELLY ROLL/Amen (Empire/Magnolia/Stoney Creek) 4624 points
2. ELLA LANGLEY/Choosin' Texas (Sawgod/Col. NY/Triple Tigers) 3990 points
3. JUSTIN MOORE/Time's Ticking (Blue Highway) 3743 points
4. THOMAS RHETT f/JORDAN DAVIS/Ain't A Bad Life (Blue Highway/MCA) 3679 points
5. DYLAN SCOTT/What He'll Never Have (Curb) 3432 points

Country Aircheck Top Point Gainers: Here are the top point gainers for March 22-23, compared with the same days last week, according to Mediabase.  

1. ELLA LANGLEY/Be Her (Sawgod/Col. NY/Triple Tigers) +819 points
2. KANE BROWN/Woman (RCA) +402 points
3. JASON ALDEAN/Don't Tell On Me (Macon Music/Broken Bow) +328 points
4. JOHN MORGAN/Kid Myself (Night Train/Broken Bow) +317 points
5. CODY JOHNSON/The Fall (CoJo/Warner/WRN) +314 points

Tomorrow's Birthdays (3/25): Meghan Patrick, Jimmy Harnen, Scott Robinson, the late Hoyt Axton.

Clay Station: RCA's Red Clay Strays with the Audacy team at CRS. Pictured (front, l-r) are Chad Fitzsimmons, Drew Bland, the group's Zach Rishel, Justin Cole, Tim Roberts, Holly Hutton, Sarah Frazier and Bruce Logan; (back, l-r) Mark Anderson, and the group's Andrew Bishop, Brandon Coleman, John Hall, Sevans Henderson and Drew Nix.

'Roo-Mate: Music Soup/Darkroom's Waylon Wyatt is surprised by Santa Anna's Bayker Blankenship with a gold certification plaque for "Jailbreak" during CMC Rocks in Australia. Pictured (l-r) are management's Anna Kellam, The Team's Yitzi Peetluk, management's Marc Caceres, Wyatt, Blankenship and 7S' Jarrid Bell.

Reer View: Clint Black (l) is presented the 2026 CRB Career Achievement Award by the CRB's RJ Curtis during Bob Kingsley’s Acoustic Alley at CRS '26 on March 19.