Asheville, NC – In conjunction with the Economic Development Coalition for Asheville – Buncombe County (EDC) and Venture Asheville, NewSong Music Group, an independent music production and management firm, announced its Asheville office, located within the Echo Mountain Recording Studios. The Asheville space will serve as NewSong’s southern outpost, with an additional location in Brooklyn, New York.
Asheville, NC – In conjunction with the Economic Development Coalition for Asheville – Buncombe County (EDC) and Venture Asheville, NewSong Music Group, an independent music production and management firm, announced its Asheville office, located within the Echo Mountain Recording Studios. The Asheville space will serve as NewSong’s southern outpost, with an additional location in Brooklyn, New York.
NewSong Music is an independent music company founded in 2001. Its mission is to build and service a supportive community of performers and songwriters across all genres of music and levels of skill, and to identify the truly exceptional artists within the community. It then works closely with these talented artists to develop their careers and introduce their music to a broader, international audience.
The Asheville office is being headed by producer and NewSong director and co-founder Gar Ragland, a native of North Carolina. “I’m very excited with this development,” says Ragland. “It’s great to be here in Asheville and back in North Carolina after so many years. Asheville is such a creative and vibrant community, and we’re looking forward to contributing to its cultural and entrepreneurial fabric in many different ways.”
The Asheville office will complement NewSong’s office and studio facility in Brooklyn’s Gowanus neighborhood. NewSong’s programs include the Mountain Stage NewSong Contest, its national performance and songwriting competition produced in collaboration with National Public Radio’s Mountain Stage show, a record label (NewSong Recordings) and an artist management division. It also produces and curates concerts with partners that include Arts Brookfield and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York and the Milton Rhodes Center for the Arts in Winston-Salem, NC.
NewSong and Echo Mountain’s partnership first originated in the spring of 2012 with Echo Mountain’s sponsorship of the Mountain Stage NewSong Contest. As sponsors, Echo Mountain hosted the recording of the fully-funded grand prize album awarded to this year’s overall contest winner.
“We are grateful to Gar for choosing to locate an office in Asheville. NewSong is currently providing jobs in our community; as important, its global profile draws others’ eyes to Asheville. NewSong’s relocation to Asheville helps highlight our attractiveness to entrepreneurs and the growth potential of this sector of our economy,” stated Paul Szurek, Board Chairman for the EDC. For more information on NewSong, please visit www.newsong-music.com.
The EDC for Asheville-Buncombe Countyis a public-private partnership committed to: creating and retaining high quality jobs, community leadership, and being a resource for better business decisions. The EDC accomplishes this mission through its four core services: business retention and expansion, small business and entrepreneurship, research, and marketing and recruitment. The EDC is funded by Buncombe County, the City of Asheville, the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce and the AVL 5×5 Campaign.
The Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce is a 2,000+ member organization representing 86,000 employees. Chamber members collaborate with community organizations and coalitions to support the community and each other with the mission of increasing the region’s livability by advancing its economic vitality. The Asheville Chamber works diligently to ensure that Asheville continues to prosper while also protecting the natural beauty of the area. In 2006, the Chamber moved to a new location and is now home to the 4,000 square foot Visitor Center which welcomes 200,000 visitors per year.
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