» Capitol Changes: The North American restructuring of EMI America reached Nashville today, as VP/Sales Bill Kennedy, VP/A&R Larry Willoughby and Mgr./Production Denise Arguiyo were released. They had been with the company 14, nine and nine years, respectively. No word as yet on how those duties will be redistributed through the label.

» Lobby Hoarse: Intense lobbying by the NAB has now tilted the House of Representatives against supporting a performance royalty on radio broadcasters, according to the trade association. Those opposed now stand at 219, giving them a majority of the 435-member House but only 21 of the 81 in California, New York and Tennessee, where most labels are based. A companion Senate resolution has the support of 13 senators.

» A Whole New Whirl: Nashville artists perform classic and contemporary Disney songs on the July 8 release Country Sings Disney. Billy Ray Cyrus, Rascal Flatts, Brad Paisley, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Alison Krauss, Martina McBride, Bucky Covington, Little Big Town, Josh Gracin, Phil Stacey and SHeDAISY all perform selections on the album.

» Hitskrieg: Oklahoma Congressman Tom Cole introduced a resolution to Congress June 10 in honor of Toby Keith's commitment to the United States Armed Forces. Keith has performed on six USO tours to Cuba, Germany, Belgium, Kosovo, Italy and parts of Africa, playing for more than 135,000 troops. "The real glory belongs to those men and women I've met who leave their families and put it on the line for the rest of us," Keith says. "Getting to visit with them once a year is the biggest honor for me, and I will continue to encourage other artists and performers to make that USO trip."