Un-B-lieveable: Here are select Nielsen Audio Continuous Diary Measurement (CDM) ratings for July 2026 (three-month rolling average, 4/30-7/22) compared with May and June. Ranks (in parentheses) are among subscribers. Unless otherwise noted, all figures are Persons 12+, Monday-Sunday, 6am-midnight.

Hi-Fi Guy: DBC Radio/Savannah, GA OM and WUBB PD/afternoon host Nathan James has joined Super Hi-Fi as Mgr./Station Operations, reporting to Dir./Radio Services Bo Matthews. “Super Hi-Fi is experiencing tremendous growth in the broadcast space, and as that footprint expands, so does our investment in people who understand how exceptional radio is actually made,” says CEO Zack Zalon. James joined DBC in 2022 after two years as Dir./Marketing, Promotions, Events & Digital for Summit/Richmond, and was promoted to OM for DBC's six-station cluster in 2024 (CAT 2/13/24). Reach James here. No word on plans for the DBC position.

Lead On: City National Bank SVP/Entertainment & Sports Division Diane Pearson has been elected Pres. of the Leadership Music board for the 2026-27 fiscal year, succeeding Spielberg Entertainment's Neal Spielberg. Officers joining Pearson are Pres.-Elect Steve Eggart (Ground Control Business Management), Past Pres. Spielberg, Treasurer Catherine Moore (Farris, Self and Moore) and Secretary Jackie Patillo (Gospel Music Association). Additional members of the Executive Committee include veteran agent Brad Bissell, Andrew Kautz (Kautz & Associates), Manuel Delgado (Delgado Guitars), Scott Gerow (Battery Lane Music), Tera Healy (The Recording Academy) and Rondal Richardson (Music Community Foundation). Newly-appointed board members are Mitch Glazier (RIAA), Scott Jungmichel (SESAC), Stacy Blythe (Big Loud) and Kris Ahrend (The MLC). See the full board here.

Move Ahead: The first full day of airplay following the Aug. 25 passing of Dolly Parton finds seven of her songs in the top 10 Gold titles at Country radio, as measured by Mediabase. They are, with spin counts in parentheses:

• 1. "9 To 5" (497)
• 2. "Jolene" (413)
• 3. "Islands In The Stream" (405)
• 4. "I Will Always Love You" (364)
• 5. "Why'd You Come In Here Lookin' Like That" (217)
• 7. "Coat Of Many Colors" (199)
• 8. "Here You Come Again" (178)

Need AI Favor: The Stan Marczewski-presented CRS360 webinar series “Prompt Me Like You Mean It: From Vague Requests To Powerful AI Conversations” is available to stream here. The conversation explores "the rapidly evolving role of artificial intelligence (AI) and how industry professionals can begin incorporating AI tools and prompt engineering into their everyday workflows."

Festive All: Jon Pardi and Warren Zeiders have been added to the 2027 lineup for Gulf Coast Jam, set for June 3-6 at Frank Brown Park in Panama City Beach, FL. They join as direct support to previously announced headliners Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Zach Top and Bailey Zimmerman (CAT 8/13). Tickets here.

The Sept. 18-19 iHeartRadio Music Festival at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas will include a Kenny Chesney-themed "House Of Music" immersive experience, which is free and open to the public from 4pm-1am both days. Set in a lake-inspired environment, guests can create a personalized postcard and enter for a chance to see Chesney at a stadium show next summer. Festival tickets here.

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

• Dolly Parton passed away at 80 years old. (8/25)
• Highlights from ACM Honors are in Country Aircheck Weekly.
• Rick Thomas was named SVP/Programming for Mālama Media Group. )8/26)
• Saga SVP/Content Pat Paxton resigned, and Scott Chase and Ryan Ploeckelman were named co-Group PDs. (8/24)
• Anna Widmer was named Riser House VP/Promo. (8/24)

Bits & Kibbles: Walker Hayes partnered with dog food brand Canidae Heartland (available at Walmart) to launch a new anthem written about his dogs, “Love Is A Four Legged Word,” in celebration of National Dog Day. Listen here. Canidae is donating 1% of every purchase to the American Red Cross.

Cole Swindell has partnered with spring water brand Free Bird as both a brand ambassador and investor. The water is sourced from the Blue Ridge Mountains in Swindell's home state of Georgia, and is available in more than 2,500 retail locations.

ICYMI: Kane Brown hosted a Shania Twain lookalike contest at his bar, Kane Brown’s on Broadway.

Chase Rice and Gabby Barrett are on the lineup for the inaugural Nate Burleson and Melanie Collins-hosted America's Tailgate in Nashville, airing on CBS Sept. 7.

Chronicle: Duncan Media WIFE/Rushville, IN PD/afternoon host Ted Cramer (real name Cary Tricarico) died Aug. 25, three days after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He was 65. Cramer also did mornings at Classic Hits sister WLPK, which shared on Facebook, "There was no one more dedicated to serving the people of Connersville and Rushville ... His hours on air during bad weather, keeping people safe were just a small part of what he brought to the airwaves." Cramer worked behind the mic since he was 14, according to his station bio. His family has created a GoFundMe to help pay for funeral expenses here. A celebration of life will be held from 11am-4pm Sept. 5 at Ox Bow Park, at the Cottonwood Shelter in Goshen, IN. See his full obituary here.

Country Aircheck Today Top 5: Here are the Top 5 songs for Aug. 26, according to Mediabase.

1. LUKE COMBS/Be By You (Columbia) 4345 points
2. KANE BROWN/Woman (RCA) 4272 points
3. STELLA LEFTY/Boston (Sandlot/Atlantic Outpost) 3795 points
4. TAYLOR SWIFT/I Knew It, I Knew You (Disney/Republic/MCA) 3270 points
5. KENNY CHESNEY/Carry On (Hey Now) 3250 points

Country Aircheck Top Point Gainers: Here are the top point gainers for August 23-26, compared with the same days last week, according to Mediabase.  

1. KANE BROWN/Woman (RCA) +3469 points
2. MORGAN WALLEN/Been By Now (Big Loud) +1285 points
3. ELLA LANGLEY/Loving Life Again (Sawgod/Col. NY/Triple Tigers) +1232 points
4. JOHN MORGAN/Kid Myself (Night Train/Broken Bow) +961 points
5. KOE WETZEL f/ELLA LANGLEY/Jaded (Col. NY/Records Nashville) +631 points

Tomorrow's Birthdays (8/28): Shania Twain, Jake Owen, LeAnn Rimes, Cassadee Pope, Laci Kaye Booth, Layna Bunt, Sherrié Austin, Kevin Bonner, Susan Heard, Ken Johnson, Tom Kouchoukos, Jo McFadden, Areeda Schneider-Stampley.  

Good & Drunk: Red Street's Taylor Austin Dye gathers her label team after a showcase in Nashville Monday (8/24) to launch new single "Bad Drunk." Pictured (back, l-r) are Tyrus Baynum, Andy Elliott, Alex Valentine, Jay DeMarcus and Patrick Waters; and (front, l-r) Mike Craft, Brooklynn Gould-Bradbury, Dye, Sally Allgeier, Cambria Sojka, Dottie Chamberlain and Olivia Vardy.