Michael J Media Group

07/22/2025

Ross Thorn has a new song "Far Away." We premiered it. Enjoy our quality music reviews and coverage on Americana Highways.

07/01/2025

JULY NEWSLETTER OUT!
Here is a sneak peak:

Hey everyone—I hope you're enjoying your summer so far. Remember when 2024 turned into 2025? Feels like two weeks ago, right? Surprise—we’re already halfway through the year. Time to revisit those New Year's resolutions.

Now, I want to talk about something important: contact information. Or more accurately, the lack of it.

Using bands or record labels as an example—because that’s my world—there are times I hear a great act or get approached to represent someone. I check out their music on Spotify or a link, and I’m impressed. Then I go to their website to follow up… and there’s no contact page. No email. No management info. Sometimes, no tabs for tour dates, videos, or even a bio.

Sure, there may be social media icons, but that’s not always helpful—especially for folks not on every app. You need clear contact info: booking agent, publicist, manager—or at the very least, a working band email.

If you're an indie or mid-level act, don’t make it hard for people to connect with you. That includes fans, media, venues, managers, and labels. You don’t have to list a phone number, but no email at all? That’s a missed opportunity—and looks unprofessional.

I’ve had countless journalists, radio programmers, and podcasters ask me how to reach a band they’re trying to cover. When they can’t find info, it reflects poorly on the act—and sometimes costs them press.

I’ll save my rant about missing bios for another day. For now, take a look at your own site. Can someone easily reach you?

Thanks for listening, and wishing you all a safe and happy 4th!
—MJF

(P.S. I always welcome replies. Got a story about contact info fails? I’d love to hear it.)

06/16/2025

ACCLAIMED ROUNDER RECORDS ARTIST
ANNOUNCES STRIPPED BACK FALL TOUR
BUY TICKETS HERE

Nashville, TN (June 16, 2025)– Today, acclaimed Rounder Records artist Katie Pruitt has announced a special acoustic run of fall tour dates, beginning in Decatur, GA on September 4th and wrapping up in Woodstock, NY on October 25th. The tour will be making stops in Nashville, Washington DC, New York City and Philadelphia, among elsewhere. See a full list of dates below.

“A gritty soft rocker that nevertheless sparkles.” – NPR Music

“…stellar lyricism and earth-shattering vocal prowess…Mantras exhibits exponential growth in every aspect.” – Nashville Scene

Pruitt has been highlighted as a Rolling Stone “Artist You Need To Know,” one of NPR Music’s “Slingshot: 20 Artists To Watch,” and has performed as part of CBS Mornings’ “Saturday Sessions” series, as well as NPR Music’s “Tiny Desk (Home Concert).”

Visit KatiePruitt.com for news and updates

KATIE PRUITT UPCOMING TOUR DATES:
September 4, 2025 – Decatur, GA – Eddie's Attic ^
September 5, 2025 – Asheville, NC – Diana Wortham Theatre ^
September 6, 2025 – Nashville, TN – The Blue Room at Third Man Records ^
September 9, 2025 – Newport, KY – The Southgate House Revival - Sanctuary ^
September 10, 2025 – Ann Arbor, MI – The Ark ^
September 11, 2025 – Evanston, IL – SPACE ^
October 14, 2025 – Washington, DC – Union Stage ^
October 15, 2025 – Annapolis, MD – Rams Head On Stage ^
October 16, 2025 – New York, NY – Joe's Pub
October 17, 2025 – Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church ^
October 18, 2025 – State College, PA – The State Theatre
October 20, 2025 – Providence, RI – Fete Lounge ^
October 21, 2025 – Portsmouth, NH – The Music Hall ^
October 23, 2025 – Portland, ME – One Longfellow Square ^
October 24, 2025 – Northampton, MA – Iron Horse Music Hall ^
October 25, 2025 – Woodstock, NY – Levon Helm Studios ^
^ supported by Jess Nolan

Photo/credit Alysse Gafkjen

06/10/2025

Congrats to Ron Sowell Music for making the TOP 10 on the May FAI Folk Music Charts!

https://www.folkradio.org/chart/may-2025/

06/07/2025

Mike Farley Band and friends to reunite in celebration of their signature halfaworldaway album
Show is planned for Saturday September 6 at Brothers Lounge

Cleveland, OH (June 6, 2025)—Mike Farley remembers something specific about the last time his Mike Farley Band (MFB) performed on stage. “I remember when we hit that last note, I said, ‘We’re gonna take a short break, we’ll be back in ten years,’” he said. “Everyone laughed, including us. Then we had a reunion show booked in 2020 which was ten years.”

But then Covid-19 happened, and the show did not, in 2020. Instead, MFB cobbled together an album release of some previously unreleased songs and demos, B-Sides and Rarities.

So now, five years later, the boys from MFB (Farley on guitar and vocals; Jeff Nagel on lead guitar; Jeff Beam on bass; and Joe Rohan on drums) have just announced another try at this reunion thing. The show is set for Saturday, September 6 at Brothers Lounge in Cleveland. Tickets are $10 each, with all of the band’s proceeds going to the Cleveland Food Bank to help those in need during some very difficult times.

As they had planned in 2020, the show will be a celebration of MFB’s signature halfaworldaway album, but it will be a 25-year anniversary instead of 20. Released in July of 2000, the opening track “Can’t Be Your Man” is still the band’s most popular song. “To this day, I still hear from fans of the band that they heard the song on WSTB in Streetsboro,” said Farley, “and it blows my mind that the station has been playing it for that long.” Also on the album is “Far Away,” which was in regular rotation on WAPS in Akron when halfaworldaway was released.

And while MFB did release an album of new music in 2016, Where We Stand, that project was more or less pieced together. Farley and Nagel shared ideas via e-mail and text, then finished co-writing the songs using Skype. After that, the recording took place at various studios across the country as the four members lived in four different cities at the time—Cleveland, Seattle, Portland, OR, and Madison, WI.

06/06/2025

Ross Thorn and The Spine Stealers announce co-headlining late summer tour dates
Upper Midwest Folk-Americana groups team up along with select support

Folk-Americana artists Ross Thorn (from Duluth, MN) and The Spine Stealers (Madison, WI) will hit the road for a three-week co-headlining tour beginning on August 6. Thorn's brand new album, Fitting In, is set for release August 8, so these dates are to promote the new music.

Ross Thorn .thorn
With a pastoral upbringing in northern Wisconsin, Ross Thorn’s music emanates as a warm and soulful hymn, waking up optimistically beside a snow-covered window. His sharply crafted and often humorous lyrics—distinctly reminiscent of great folk artists like John Prine—reveal internal struggles of empathy, questions of human character and virtue, and a search for hope, often finding solace in some unanticipated truth. In 2023, Thorn released his debut album, Hugo, a thoughtful exploration into mortality, loss, and identity. The 9-track record leans heavily into his folk and country roots, showcasing introspective and melancholic songwriting along with political fervor and compassion for others—an album for anyone that appreciates an old sound with a forward-looking message. These songs caught the attention of Trampled By Turtles, who selected Thorn to open for them and Jenny Lewis at their annual sold-out show in Duluth. He will be releasing his new album, Fitting In, on August 8.

The Spine Stealers
The Spine Stealers make spooky folk inspired by dark lakes, brain-burned nostalgia and a melancholic hue. The band grew from the duo of Kate Ruland and Emma O’Shea, who learned guitar together during the height of the pandemic.

2025 began with opening for Basia Bulat at the Majestic Theater in Madison, WI as well as their first tour to Nashville, TN in April. The band is working in the studio recording their second EP and several features coming out this year. They will be traveling outside of the Midwest, eager to take on their first national tour with Ross Thorn in August taking them out to the Pacific Northwest and rugged Western United States.

06/04/2025

Check out this feature of The Barlow in 303 Magazine

Red dirt country band The Barlow brings their hometown of Denver their latest country-fusion album, High Spirits.

06/02/2025

>>>> JUNE NEWSLETTER OUT NOW

05/27/2025

Michael J. Media video release

https://youtu.be/UwcnHLW0qNU?si=xsbe1YQBBfGU971w

Artist: Ron Sowell
Song/video title: "I Never Knew"
Album title: Dance Till the Music Stops
Released May 9, 2025

About the video (from description on YouTube)
"This entertaining, whimsical, animated video captures the rollicking spirit of the infectious 'I Never Knew' with all of its Tex Mex rhythms and southwestern flavors. This is not a product of AI. The animation is hand drawn by Scott Baucan and edited by Sarah Rudy. The song was co-written by Ron Sowell & Jon Wikstrom and features legendary musician Joel Guzman (Joe Ely, Paul Simon, Azteca) on accordion."

Sarah and Scott have been collaborating on animation/short films for a few years now. Outside of the projects that they've collaborated on, Scott has worked in both film and animation, and he's also a skilled painter. Scott has also spent time animating for a company that creates video games. The work that Sarah and Scott have done together, though, tends to center around their mutual love of and respect for music.

The following are video collaborations they've completed:
Brittany Kellam - Ghost
Hello June - Sometimes
Ron Sowell - I Never Knew

Scott Baucan and Sarah Rudy are currently collaborating on a 90's style indie rock musical called "Marra" which features Scott's whimsical animation style and unreleased music and score by the indie rock band, Hello June. The rock musical tackles mental health and intrapersonal struggles and looks like it came straight from the 1990's. They will release the short animated film in late 2025. For updates, see SarRudyDesigns.com

"I Never Knew" from the album 'Dance Till the Music Stops' by Ron SowellThis entertaining, whimsical, animated video captures the rollicking spirit of the in...

05/22/2025

Tribute band born in Rhode Island have begun making their own music. Where to see them.

Badfish - Sublime Tribute

Badfish, inspired by the music of Sublime, will play shows May 23 and 24 at The Levitate Backyard in Marshfield.

05/05/2025

Love that client Ron Sowell Music is included in this fun video list! Thank you The Alternate Root Magazine!!!
http://www.thealternateroot.com/latestvideos-314261.html

05/01/2025

One of the things I love about watching sports or attending a sporting event is that you have no idea how things are going to play out. We are witnesses to the action in real time, and spring is a great time of year for many reasons in this regard--the start of baseball season, the basketball and hockey playoffs, March Madness, the Masters, the NFL Draft. All of these sports and events are broadcast live, not played in advance and replayed on TV like cooking competitions are.

The same holds true for concerts. Sure, you have a general idea of what a band is going to play, but not the construction of a setlist; or how a song might be arranged differently with or without alternate vocal or instrument parts or breaks; or how long a singer might hold out a single note. Things like this lead to us having stories to tell our friends, spouses, or kids; or things to tell fellow fans of a band when you're on line a decade later to see that same band.

Part of what we pay for is to be wowed and surprised, and to be able to say, "I was there when....." Of course, some fans don't like it when bands play songs a bit differently at a concert. To me, that's like eating at a chain restaurant when traveling because you like the familiarity, but at the expense of not finding a gem of a restaurant that is a singular entity in a big city or even a small town.

I bring this up, of course, because we are heading into prime festival and outdoor concert season time. It's a privilege for me to work in the music industry, and I don't take for granted that consumers who are fans of the acts we work with represent the ultimate job security. So hopefully you will see one of our artists touring near you and go check them out. Links to tour dates are shown for every band that's on the road or will be soon.

Happy spring everyone, and enjoy what's going to feel like the first month of summer! And of course, thanks for listening.--MJF

Check out the rest of our May newsletter on our website!