Lindsay Ell, Lanco + More Tapped for 2019 CRS New Faces Showcase
Country Radio Seminar (CRS) has announced its New Faces of Country Music Class of 2019, and it's a wide range of up-and-coming talent. Jimmie Allen, Russell Dickerson, Lindsay Ell, Lanco and Dylan Scott will all perform as part of the New Faces showcase on Feb. 15 at Omni Nashville in the CRS Performance Hall.
The five artists were selected from an initial list of 13 nominees, revealed last month. That list was narrowed down to five acts after being voted on by full-time radio employees.
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Ell — the only female in the 13 nominees — previously recounted to Taste of Country the feedback she got once after the news was announced initially.
"At the end of the day, I'm very proud that I get to represent the women in this lineup," she said. "The criteria is the criteria, so it's nothing against CRS. It sort of highlights the state of where our format is. Do we need more women in our format? Yes we do, and are there incredible women in our format? Yes, there are. So I feel like next year, it’s hopefully going to be taking another step in the right direction."
The criteria to be nominated as a candidate for New Faces is such that "acts must have had at least one but no more than five Top 25 singles on the Mediabase Country Chart as published in Country Aircheck or at least one but no more than five Top 25 singles on the BDS-based Country Chart during the qualification period."
You also can't have been a New Faces artist previously, which wipes out a lot of young female artists still considered by most to be "new," resulting in Ell being the sole female on the lineup next year.
CRS is an industry event that takes place each February in Music City.
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