April 17, 2026 News@CountryAircheck.com

KKBQ's Sproet Departs: Radio One KKBQ/Houston midday host Gerardo Sproet has departed. He joined the station in promotions in 2019 before moving to nights in 2023, then middays last year (CAT 1/27/25). No word on plans for the position. Reach Sproet here.

In Sync: Big Yellow Dog Music Mgr./Sync Jonah Gordon has joined Jody Williams Songs as Mgr./Sync & A&R. Additionally, Dir./Creative Tenasie Courtright has been upped to Dir./Creative & A&R. “Jonah is the right person at the right time to ramp up our sync business and enhance creative services for our writers,” says VP/GM Nina Fisher, who adds, "When we discovered Tenasie’s natural abilities for A&R we encouraged her in this area and were extremely pleased with the results." Gordon joined BYDM in 2022 and rose to his most recent position last year (CAT 4/20/25); reach him here. Courtright was onboarded in 2022 and rose to Dir. in 2025 (CAT 4/3/25); reach her here.

Different Stokes: Ryman Hospitality Properties Sr. Mgr./Brand Communications Alyson Stokes has joined Live Nation Entertainment in Nashville as Mgr./Regional Communications. Prior to her six years with Ryman Hospitality, Stokes was Sr. AE/Entertainment Marketing at Rogers & Cowan in Los Angeles.

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

Country Aircheck’s ACM Voter’s Guide is available here.
Morning shows doubling as therapy sessions and prep for the impending “semiquincentennial” in Country Aircheck Weekly.
Louie Newman launched Saddle Up Records. (4/16)
Cumulus' restructuring was approved. (4/15)
Jury found Live Nation and Ticketmaster operated as a monopoly and overcharged fans. (4/15)
Cindy Mabe launched Joan of Arc Music.
iHeartMedia Dir./Country Programming, Kentucky/West Virginia Rachel Elliot exited. (4/13)
Black River's Bill Macky, Joe Carroll and Jim Malito departed. (4/13)
Sadie Young and Jeff McBrayer joined KUAD/Fort Collins, CO in mornings. (4/13)

Bits & Pieces: Former iHeartMedia/Huntsville SVPP and WDRM PD Erich "West" Brukner, who joined Alabama Public Television as Division Dir./Radio & GM of WLRH/Huntsville last year (CAT 3/20/25), is now hosting a morning show on the noncommercial station. Backroad Frequencies features indie-country, Americana, roots rock and up-and-coming new artists on major labels. The playlist includes Tyler Childers, Sturgill Simpson, Koe Wetzel, Sierra Ferrell, Wyatt Flores, Turnpike Troubadours, Red Clay Strays, Austin Snell and 49 Winchester. He's looking for record service from those formats; reach him here.

Chronicle: "His work, including timeless classics like 'The Gambler,' helped shape our genre and rightfully earned him some of its highest honors," says CMA CEO Sarah Trahern, reacting to the April 16 death of songwriter Don Schlitz. The Country Music Hall of Famer passed away at age 73 following a sudden illness, as reported this morning via Breaking News. In addition to "The Gambler," his first hit, the Grammy-winner's best-known songs include Alabama’s “40 Hour Week (For A Livin’),” Mary Chapin Carpenter’s “He Thinks He’ll Keep Her,” The Judds’ “Turn It Loose,” Collin Raye’s “I Think About You,” Garth Brooks’ “Learning To Live Again,” Tanya Tucker’s “My Arms Stay Open All Night,” Keith Whitley’s “When You Say Nothing At All,” and Randy Travis’ “Deeper Than The Holler,” “Forever And Ever, Amen” and “On The Other Hand.” Named ASCAP's Country Songwriter Of The Year every year from 1988 through 1991, Schlitz was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame in 2010, the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2017 and became the first songwriter invited to join the Grand Ole Opry in 2022. Services are pending. Saturday night's Opry performance will be dedicated in his honor.

Country Aircheck Today Top 5: Here are the Top 5 songs for April 16, according to Mediabase.

DYLAN SCOTT/What He'll Never Have (Curb) 4782 points
LUKE COMBS/Sleepless In A Hotel Room (Columbia) 4294 points
LUKE COMBS/Days Like These (Columbia) 3679 points
CODY JOHNSON/The Fall (CoJo/Warner/WRN) 3335 points
RILEY GREEN/Change My Mind (Nash. Harbor) 3197 points

Country Aircheck Top Point Gainers: Here are the top point gainers for April 12-16, compared with the same days last week, according to Mediabase.

DYLAN SCOTT/What He'll Never Have (Curb) +4294 points
ELLA LANGLEY/Be Her (Sawgod/Col. NY/Triple Tigers) +2233 points
LUKE COMBS/Days Like These (Columbia) +1553 points
MEGAN MORONEY/Beautiful Things (Col. NY/Columbia) +1394 points
TUCKER WETMORE/Brunette (Back Blocks/Mercury) +1148 points

Tomorrow's Birthdays (4/18): Kyle Lehning, Jim Scholten (Sawyer Brown), Terry Eldredge (The Grascals), Marvin Evatt (Carolina Rain), Randy Guidry, Steve Kelly, Glen D. Hardin.

Sunday's Birthdays (4/19): Matt Stell, Bekka Bramlett, Tenille Arts, Allen Mitchell, Jackie Stevens.

Monday's Birthdays (4/20): Kassi Ashton, Wade Hayes, Clay Cook (Zac Brown Band), Buddy Cannon, Skip Bishop, Holly Hutton.

Three Haw: Broken Bow's John Morgan and his label team celebrate his CMA Triple Play Award. Pictured (front, l-r) are Shelly Hargis, JoJamie Hahr, Morgan and Katie Kerkhover; (back, l-r) Misti Douglas, Krista Hayes, Camille Kenny and Lee Adams.

Hootielicious: Triple Tigers' Scotty McCreery celebrates his seventh No. 1, "Bottle Rockets," at BMI's Nashville office. Pictured (back, l-r) are SESAC’s Abbey Watson, Studio Bank’s Kari Barnhart, songwriter Derek George, the label's Annie Ortmeier, songwriter Bobby Hamrick, ASCAP’s Mike Sistad, songwriter Jeremy Bussey, Sony Music Publishing’s Tom Luteran, BMI’s Shannon Sanders, songwriter Brent Anderson, Fluid Music Revolution’s AJ Burton, songwriter Monty Criswell, the label's Kevin Herring and UMPG’s Troy Tomlinson; (front, l-r) Hootie & The Blowfish’s Dean Felber, Jim Sonfeld and Darius Rucker, McCreery and producer Frank Rogers.

If Haven Wasn't So Far Away: Blue Highway's Justin Moore at opening night of Riley Green's 2026 Cowboy As It Gets Tour in Southaven, MS. Pictured (l-r) are the label's Adam Burnes, WGKX/Memphis' Derrill "Argo" Jr. and Beth Argo, Moore, WLFP/Memphis' Erin Austin and guest Lindsay.

You Had Me At Merlot: 30A's Bradley Gaskin (c) with the label's Cheryl Broz, KUPL/Portland’s Dylan Salisbury, Connoisseur/San Jose's J. Love and Westwood One's George King (l-r) at Backstage Access Presents' inaugural Napa Valley.