Mike Dungan’s UMG Nashville has ruled the roost in marketshare this year, thanks to giant hits from Sam Hunt, Chris Stapleton and Keith Urban, chart-topping breakout Jon Pardi, and continued big action on Luke Bryan, Dierks Bentley, Darius Rucker and more. What’s more, Team Dungan inked superstar Carrie Underwood, adding a diva supreme to his stellar roster of male acts (and co-ed hitmakers like Little Big Town and Lady Antebellum). Hunt’s “Body Like a Back Road,” one of the biggest songs of the year in any genre, has proved that a huge Nashville hit can crack the code of the streaming world (Bryan is still the most-streamed country act). Stapleton, for his part, has conquered an audience that extends well beyond the accustomed country constituency; his double-platinum, award-magnet 2015 set Traveller continues to sell, and his recent From A is already gold. At radio, UMGN’s Capitol Nashville was named Country Aircheck Label of the Year for the eighth year running. With President Cindy Mabe showing masterful chops on the marketing and operations side, Team UMG continues to dominate. Add a partnership with Ken Bunt and Disney for the new Buena Vista Records (which has inked country sibling duo CB30) and you have a recipe for further growth in the younger demo.

Mike Dungan’s UMG Nashville has ruled the roost in marketshare this year, thanks to giant hits from Sam Hunt, Chris Stapleton and Keith Urban, chart-topping breakout Jon Pardi, and continued big action on Luke Bryan, Dierks Bentley, Darius Rucker and more. What’s more, Team Dungan inked superstar Carrie Underwood, adding a diva supreme to his stellar roster of male acts (and co-ed hitmakers like Little Big Town and Lady Antebellum). Hunt’s “Body Like a Back Road,” one of the biggest songs of the year in any genre, has proved that a huge Nashville hit can crack the code of the streaming world (Bryan is still the most-streamed country act). Stapleton, for his part, has conquered an audience that extends well beyond the accustomed country constituency; his double-platinum, award-magnet 2015 set Traveller continues to sell, and his recent From A is already gold. At radio, UMGN’s Capitol Nashville was named Country Aircheck Label of the Year for the eighth year running. With President Cindy Mabe showing masterful chops on the marketing and operations side, Team UMG continues to dominate. Add a partnership with Ken Bunt and Disney for the new Buena Vista Records (which has inked country sibling duo CB30) and you have a recipe for further growth in the younger demo.