Remembering Connie Bradley
• Connie Bradley, one of the pioneering women of the music business in Nashville, and who ran ASCAP’s Nashville office for 34 years, died Wednesday, March 24 at the age of 75.
In a statement, ASCAP Chairman & President Paul Williams said, “As head of ASCAP’s Nashville office for more than three decades, Connie Bradley was a mentor to so many of Country music’s greatest songwriters and an indelible part of ASCAP’s history. She was a maverick leader in Country music with an enormous heart who passionately advocated for the songwriters she loved so much. ASCAP and Country music lost an iconic leader today. Our hearts go out to her family and the large community of songwriters who loved her.”
A native of Shelbyville, TN, Bradley’s lengthy and impressive media career includes stints with Nashville’s WLAC-TV, Dot Records and RCA, among other companies, before joining ASCAP in 1976 as a Membership Representative, rising through the ranks to become Senior Vice President and Nashville Head. Under her leadership, ASCAP signed and supported the careers of Dierks Bentley, Garth Brooks, Kenny Chesney, Rodney Crowell, Billy Currington, Alan Jackson, Reba McEntire, Brad Paisley, Kellie Pickler, Rascal Flatts, John Rich, George Strait and Chris Young, among many others.
Bradley retired in 2010 and assumed the role of senior advisor. She also served on the CMA Board of Directors from 1983 to 2012, serving as President and Chairperson in 1989 & 1990. She was also awarded CMA’s Irving Waugh Award of Excellence in 2018.
“I am so saddened to hear the news of Connie’s passing,” said Sarah Trahern, CEO of the Country Music Association (CMA). “She was one of the many trailblazers, along with Frances Preston and Jo Walker Meador, for women in the Nashville music business. Her passion for artists, songs and the Country Music industry as a whole paved the way for so many. Personally, I will miss her class, her stories and her humor. I am heartbroken for Jerry, and offer my deepest condolences to him and their family during this time.”
Bradley is survived by her husband, former RCA Records head Jerry Bradley (pictured here with Connie during his March 2019 induction as a non-performer into the Country Music Hall of Fame), and her son, Clay Bradley, a BMI executive. [Photo Credit: Donn Jones/CMA, head shot courtesy of ASCAP]
