IMPORTANT NOTE: These are the archived stories for Belmont News & Achievements prior to June 26, 2023. To see current stories, click here.

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Alumna Alysa Vanderheym Signs with Major Bob Music

Staff Writer
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Alumna Alysa Vanderheym Signs with Major Bob Music

Songwriting alumna Alysa Vanderheym recently signed an exclusive, worldwide songwriting deal with Major Bob Music.

Of her new position, Vanderheym said, “I am incredibly blessed to be apart of the Major Bob family. Jesse Frasure is one of the most well-respected and innovative producers in this town, and I am honored to learn from and build my brand alongside him. I signed at the beginning of this month and already have already gotten to write with some incredible songwriters.”

Alysa Vanderheym 2Vanderheym’s first Major Bob write was with Cary Barlowe and Josh Thompson, and that song is already on hold. Frasure asked her to remix his hit, “Crash & Burn,” for Thomas Rhett’s album release party just last week.

With a few accomplishments already under her belt, Vanderheym is excited for her future with Major Bob. “My publisher, Tina Crawford, is incredible and has such a good ear and great taste in music. My focus for the next couple years will be on developing my sound as a producer, and simply writing those outstanding songs that come from a genuine place,” she said.

Vanderheym says she owes a lot of her opportunities to her time in Belmont’s songwriting program. “Belmont has been so crucial for my launch. I graduated in December of 2014 and immediately bought pro tools and learned how to make tracks for six months, knowing I needed something to set myself apart and make myself valuable as a writer,” she said.

“Drew Ramsey in the songwriting department, in particular, has been great about giving advice like that. My internships, going to shows and developing and deepening relationships with publishers and other industry folks has really been the foundation of the opportunities I have now.”

Read more on the story on Music Row.

Slow Food Belmont Volunteers at Nashville Food Project

Hope Buckner
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(L to R Bariangela Segovia, Gabi Gumucio, Mohamed Darwish, Savannah Weeks and Morgan Bailey)
(L to R Bariangela Segovia, Gabi Gumucio, Mohamed Darwish, Savannah Weeks and Morgan Bailey)

Students from Slow Food Belmont and their faculty advisor Dr. Kimberlee Daus volunteered at the Nashville Food Project on Saturday, September 19.

Working with the smaller of the organization’s two gardens, students pulled weeds to save raspberry bushes and transferred compost to new beds. The Project uses food from the gardens to prepare more than 2300 meals per month for distribution.

For more information on Slow Food Belmont, click here.

 

Curb College Students Interview Cast, Crew of ABC’s ‘Nashville’ Before Premiere

April Hefner
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Curb College Students Interview Cast, Crew of ABC’s ‘Nashville’ Before Premiere

The new, large theater in the Johnson Center played host to its biggest event yet Wednesday night as cast and crew members from ABC’s “Nashville” came to campus to conduct a Q&A session with Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business students before enjoying the show’s Season Four Premiere.

Hanna Seymour, coordinator of student enrichment for the Curb College, said, the event came together after Instructor of Music Business Dan Keen threw out the idea of Belmont hosting the premiere viewing party to the show’s music supervisor, Frankie Pine. “Once the ABC team saw our new 250-seat theater and learned more about our motion pictures program,” Seymour continued, “they were excited to host a viewing party that included our students and faculty. ABC Nashville’s Bridgett McGuire suggested we host a panel prior to the showing as the cast and crew were eager to get face time with, and hear from, our students. The event was a great night for the Curb College, bringing industry professionals into our new space, intermingling with our students, and hopefully the beginning of many more collaborations with ABC Nashville and our local TV/film community.”

Nashville PremierePrior to the 9 p.m. season premiere viewing party, Belmont students participated in a Q&A session with Pine and the show’s creator/director/writer Callie Khouri, actor and Belmont parent Charles Esten (“Deacon”), screenwriter Taylor Hamra and music producer Buddy Miller.

Esten gave insight into how the show’s shooting schedule works, operating on an eight-day schedule to produce two episodes every three weeks. Khouri responded to a student’s question about the frustration fans feel as characters appear to experience positive developments, only to slide back into negative traits: “That’s part of what drama is… getting your hopes up and then having your expectations dashed.”

Pine, meanwhile, shared her experiences finding songs for all kinds of projects, from films like Magic Mike to TV productions like “Secrets and Lies” and “Army Wives.” However, with music playing such a central role in “Nashville,” finding the right song takes on even more significance. “‘Nashville’ is such a different animal and such a different level. I have to envision what those songs are going to do for our characters, which is emotional. The big joke on set is I’m the one crying all the time.”

Annual Humanities Symposium Focuses on Cuisine in Culture, Community

April Hefner
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Annual Humanities Symposium Focuses on Cuisine in Culture, Community

Following months of preparation, Belmont’s School of Humanities is prepared to host the 14th annual Humanities Symposium Sept. 28-Oct. 5, centering the week-long event around the theme “Many Tables Fayre: Cuisine in Culture and Community.” The symposium will involve a variety of offerings, including more than 30 presentations, a cooking demonstration and class, service events, a writing workshop and readings from the symposium’s writing contest winners.

Assistant Professor of English Dr. Jason Lovvorn, who is chairing this year’s symposium planning committee, noted, “Our title, ‘Many Tables Fayre,’ comes from one of English literature’s most celebrated epics, Edmund Spenser’s The Faerie Queene, wherein two valiant knights tour Alma, the soul of mankind represented allegorically as both castle and as human body. The intrepid knights visit, among other places, the ‘many tables fayre’ of Diet and Appetite, also represented as allegorical figures. Like Spenser’s poem, this year’s symposium takes up themes of diet, appetite and consumption by examining cuisine and its related food practices. Drawing on multiple perspectives— some local, others much more global—the symposium explores cuisine as a common denominator for the humanities. Food unites us at the same time that its intricacies provide useful distinctions between cultures and communities. We eat to live, but we also live to eat and to cook, oftentimes in markedly different fashion. As the focus of artistic representation, cultural commentary, and even scientific inquiry, food practices unquestionably shape what it means to be human.”

The symposium will begin with this year’s Monteverde Plenary Address, given by Associate Professor of Italian Dr. Francesca Muccini and titled “Italian Cuisine and Cultural Identity.” Featured speakers include local health coaches Elizabeth Moore and Rachael Moore discussing “The End of Dieting: Healthy, Sustainable Living On A Budget”; acclaimed Nashville chef, Jeremy Barlow talking about how “Chefs Can Save the World” through fixing the food system; artist and food author Michael Krondl speaking on “Sugar and Show: Conspicuous Consumption in the Age of Medici”; and two noted professors connected to food studies, Dr. Alice Julier and Dr. Marcie Cohen Ferris, discussing “The Moral Entrepreneurship of Cooks” and “The Edible South: The Power of Food and the Making of an American Region,” respectively.

In conjunction with the Symposium, students can take advantage of two volunteer opportunities, both offering community-service convocation credit.  One opportunity is with the Nashville United Way (4928 Edmondson Pike, Suite 204, Nashville)  and will involve kitchen prep and academic enrichment work.  The other opportunity is with Hands On Nashville’s urban garden (361 Wimpole Drive, Nashville) and will involve working in and learning about the garden.  Advance sign-up is required.  To sign up for either opportunity, please contact Misty Wellman (615-460-6069).

For more information, visit the Humanities Symposium page, download the program or check the Campus Calendar.

Mulraine Presents at National Symposium

Hope Buckner
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Loren MulraineLoren Mulraine, associate professor in the College of Law, recently presented a panel entitled, “Assessing and Protecting Intellectual Property Rights Globally” at The New Global Paradigm Entertainment, Arts and Sports Symposium.

Held September 18 and 19 in Washington D.C., the event addressed cutting-edge facets of the entertainment and sports fields by engaging with the country’s leading experts in a way that leads to new and innovative ways to improve these fields and addresses the challenges that confront those in the fields.

Mulraine said, “The title of this symposium, ‘The New Global Paradigm for Entertainment, Arts and Sports,’ indicates that practitioners must adjust their strategies to handle the challenges, advantages and inherent disadvantages of the new models for delivering content. At the same time, there is no debate that income is still being generated – so the question is how do you make sure your clients are best positioned to exploit their works and reap the accompanying benefits?”

Tennessee Health Care Hall of Fame Announces Inaugural Induction Ceremony

Hope Buckner
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Tennessee Health Care Hall of Fame Announces Inaugural Induction Ceremony

The Tennessee Health Care Hall of Fame has announced its inaugural induction ceremony and luncheon, scheduled for Monday, October 12 at 11:30 a.m. in Belmont University’s Curb Event Center.

(L to R: Belmont President Dr. Bob Fisher, McWhorter Society Chairman, Inductee Clayton McWhorter and William Carpenter, Former Nashville Health Care Council Chairman)
(L to R: Belmont President Dr. Bob Fisher, McWhorter Society Chairman Dr. Harry Jacobson, Hall of Fame Inductee Clayton McWhorter and Former Nashville Health Care Council Chairman William Carpenter)

With a mission to honor men and women who have made significant and lasting contributions to the health and health care industry, the Hall of Fame seeks to recognize and honor the pioneers and current leaders that have formed Tennessee’s health and health care community and encourage future generations of health care professionals.

Created by Belmont University and Belmont’s McWhorter Society with the support of the Nashville Health Care Council, a Founding Partner, the Hall of Fame announced its eight inaugural inductees at an event in May. These individuals include:

 

  • Dr. Thomas F. Frist, Jr.: Physician and Flight Surgeon in U.S. Air Force, Co-Founder, Past Chairman and CEO of Hospital Corporation of America, Co-Founder of China Healthcare, Corporation, Member of National Healthcare Hall of Fame
  • Dr. Thomas Frist, Sr.: Cardiologist and Internist, Founder of Park View Hospital, Co-Founder of Hospital Corporation of America
  • Dr. Ernest William Goodpasture: Pathologist and Physician, Past Dean of Vanderbilt School of Medicine, Past Director of Armed Forces Institute of Pathology
  • Jack C. Massey: Co-Founder of Hospital Corporation of America, Founder and Past Board Member of Baptist Hospital
  • Clayton McWhorter: Pharmacist and Co-Founder of HealthTrust and Clayton Associates, Past President and CEO of Hospital Corporation of America, Lifetime Achievement Award from Federation of American Health Systems Recipient
  • Dr. David Satcher: 16th U.S. Surgeon General, Past Director of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Past President of Meharry Medical College and Morehouse School of Medicine
  • Dr. Mildred T. Stahlman: Pediatrician and Pathologist, Founder of the country’s first modern neonatology intensive care unit, Pioneered the use of respiratory therapy on infants with damaged lungs, Past President of the American Pediatric Society, Distinguished Alumna of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
  • Danny Thomas: Founder of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and ALSAC

“We are honored to celebrate the upcoming induction of the leaders who have contributed to the success and growth of Tennessee’s booming health care industry. As an educational institution with ever-growing programs in the health care sector, we are exceedingly grateful for the work done by the inaugural inductees,” Belmont University President Dr. Bob Fisher said. “As we commemorate the University’s 125th year and continue to celebrate our ‘belief in something greater’,’ it is only fitting that we look back on those who have paved the way by establishing innovations in health care across our city and state. We are honored to join in acknowledging the practitioners, researchers, educators, innovators and pioneers who have contributed to Tennessee’s status as our nation’s health care capital.”

The induction ceremony will feature acceptance speeches from a number of inductees, both in person or by video. For more information on the Hall of Fame, click here.

Belmont Hosts Copyright Review Listening Tour

April Hefner
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Belmont Hosts Copyright Review Listening Tour

The U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee kicked-off a copyright review listening tour with a roundtable discussion in Belmont’s Wedgewood Academic Center Tuesday. The event included a wide range of professionals from the music industry offering their thoughts on copyright, fair pay and streaming issues while a number of interested students, faculty, media and community members were in attendance to listen in on the conversation.

Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and Ranking Member John Conyers (D-Mich.) issued the following statement prior to the start of the listening tour:“America’s copyright industries – movies, television programming, music, books, video games and computer software – and technology sector are vitally important to our national economy.  The House Judiciary Committee’s copyright review is focused on determining whether our copyright laws are still working in the digital age to reward creativity and innovation in order to ensure these crucial industries can thrive. In the coming weeks the House Judiciary Committee will conduct several roundtable discussions to hear directly from the creators and innovators about the challenges they face in their creative field and what changes are needed to ensure U.S. copyright law keeps pace with technological advances.”

 

Alumnae Host Dress Up for St. Jude Fundraiser

Staff Writer
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From left to right: Hannah Showmaker, Sarah Feldman (Writer's Den Music Group), Ciara Gardner, Chelsea Kent, Jessica Turri, Teri Watson
From left to right: Hannah Showmaker, Sarah Feldman, Ciara Gardner, Chelsea Kent, Jessica Turri (St. Jude), Teri Watson (St. Jude)

Dress Up for St. Jude, an evening featuring new and gently-used high-end fashion timed right before the fall fashion awards season, recently raised thousands of dollars for St. Jude’s music therapy program.

The fundraiser was hosted by a group of alumnae that calls themselves the Crazy Pitches including Chelsea Kent, Still Working Music, Ciara Gardner, Disney Music Publishing, Sarah Feldman, Writer’s Den Music Group and Hannah Showmaker, Parallel Entertainment. The girls asked artists and industry executives to clean out their closets of formal dresses, jewelry, shoes, hanging racks, hangers and other accessories for donations that were sold at the September 10 event.
Following the success of this year’s proceeds, Kent was proud to announce the decision to make Dress Up for St. Jude an annual event. “After a year of planning, it was really amazing to see the turn out we had from the community, as well as the amount of money that we were able to raise for the music therapy program at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. We are excited to do it again next year,” she said.
The St. Jude music therapy program helps patients learn to express themselves and cope with their illnesses by writing and performing songs and discussing song lyrics.

Alumna Leslie Mosier Builds Worldwide Brand with ‘Doug the Pug’

Staff Writer
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Alumna Leslie Mosier Builds Worldwide Brand with ‘Doug the Pug’

When music business alumna Leslie Mosier graduated from Belmont in May 2014, she accepted her dream job at a local record label and artist management company. Happily employed, Mosier’s personal Instagram began garnering major attention when she posted pictures and videos of her dog, Doug. Noticing the trend, Mosier’s passion for this side project could not be ignored. Now, Doug the Pug’s social media accounts have gone viral, and Mosier has left her *once* dream job to pursue a new one: Doug’s full-time “momager.”

Mosier has talked about her journey in many national articles including Huffington Post, and Doug has made appearances on late night shows, concerts and “Good Morning America.” In fact, for many Doug the Pug has become a household name, with more than 2.3 million likes on Facebook.
doug the pug 2

“When I began Doug the Pug’s social media accounts, I was consistently testing the waters and figuring out what exactly it was that set Doug apart from the thousands of other Instagram dogs. I tried collaborating, experimenting with different photo and caption techniques and partnering with dog-related brands. Once his following started growing and I began introducing funny videos to his account, one of them went viral with more than 30 million views. Millions of people were now looking at Doug the Pug for the first time,” said Mosier. “Since I had already been so consistent and placed such a high standard on the content I put out, many of those viewers became intrigued enough to ‘follow’ him, and they are now dedicated, product-buying fans. Consistency and staying true to his ‘voice’ is the most important part… people feel like they know him.”

Now a celebrity of sorts, Doug’s a fad-dieter as he follows a strict, all-raw regimen. Mosier laughed, saying, “He lost three pounds and is proud of it! Doug gets a ton of exercise during all of his crazy adventures. But, I actually don’t take Doug to the groomer – he gets an old fashioned bath in our home!”

“Momager” Mosier said her first job, as well as her classes at Belmont, taught her a lot about about public relations, marketing and artist relations. Taking full advantage of her internships, Mosier said it’s very important to make a strong first impression. She began interning her junior year and treated it as a job, rather than a temporary internship, ultimately leading to a full-time position.

Mosier also took Belmont’s Marketing in the Music Business class, where students create marketing plans and present them to record label heads. As the project’s group leader, Mosier was able to take the reigns, giving her the experience she needed to be prepared for the industry. She attributes her success with Doug to lessons learned while working and being a student.

Doug the Pug 1Mosier also has a big passion for graphic design. “I do a lot of design for bands such as Mat Kearney and PVRIS, and have designed a lot of the Doug merchandise as well. No matter how busy the Doug stuff gets, I want to continue my design work. I firmly believe that I can never be too busy to help out the artists that I’ve worked with for years,” she said.

Mosier’s words of advice to others who would like to develop a brand is to “Be consistent and work as hard as you possibly can. It took several months of posting Doug photos every day for people to finally notice him, and even still I’m working around the clock to differentiate him from the rest of the internet,” she said. “I don’t see ‘Doug the Pug’ as being a fad. I want him to continue to surprise people each and every year.”

Stay up to date with Doug and ‘momager’ Leslie’s adventures on Doug the Pug’s Facebook and Instagram accounts.

Honors Students Present at ‘Tolkien and Lewis Celebration’

April Hefner
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Honors Students Present at ‘Tolkien and Lewis Celebration’

Aquinas College’s Center for Faith & Culture hosted the “Tolkien and Lewis Celebration,” an all-day event on the 20th century’s greatest Christian literary figures, J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, on Saturday, September 19.

Director of the Center for Faith and Culture Joseph Pearce invited noted speakers and scholars who talked about their research on the 20th century’s most influential Christian writers, J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis.  Speakers included Dale Ahlquist, creator and host of EWTN’s Apostle of Common Sense; Kevin O’Brien, founder of Theater of the Word Incorporated; and Devin Brown, professor at Asbury University and author of nine books on Lewis and Tolkien. Belmont Honors Program Director Jonathan Thorndike and three of his students presented on “Tolkien and Peter Jackson: Creative Legacy or Hollywood Disgrace?” Pictured (l-r) are junior music business major Caleb Theriot, senior chemistry major Daniel Beagan, Thorndike and sophomore music business major McKenna Risch. The students discussed their research and divergent views of The Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies made based on the books by J. R. R. Tolkien.

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