- Chuck Taylor (writer and editor)
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Chuck Taylor (born 28 September 1962 in Lynchburg, Virginia) is an American music journalist. He was a writer and senior editor at Billboard magazine from 1995 to 2009. There, he held the titles of Senior Editor/Talent, Senior Writer, Radio Editor, columnist of AirWaves and, perhaps most notably, Single Reviews Editor since 1998;[1] as well as Managing Editor of Top 40/AC for affiliated publication Billboard Radio Monitor, and senior editor/features and AC format editor for Billboard sister Radio & Records.[2]
Life
He graduated from James Madison University (journalism and speech/English), then lived and worked in Washington, D.C., for 11 years, including journalism jobs at the Washington Business Journal and Radio World.
In 2009, he signed on to co-author memoirs for Liz Derringer, the "rock wife" of musician Rick Derringer and an acclaimed music writer for such publications as Interview, Oui and High Times; and singer/songwriter Tinatin Japaridze, a native of the UUSR nation of Georgia, whose co-written Eurovision entry representing Iceland, "Is It True," came in second in the 2009 competition. It was sung by artist Yohanna. Both projects are aligned with literary agencies, with pending book publishing deals in 2010.[3]
Taylor has written profiles for Billboard on numerous artists, including Celine Dion, Britney Spears, Diana Krall, Elton John, Sheena Easton, Bette Midler, James Taylor, Tony Bennett, Barry White and Karen Carpenter.[4] In all, he has interviewed more than 400 entertainers and music executives. He also penned liner notes for "N Sync's Greatest Hits" and has been a regular contributor to Time-Life's multitude of themed music compilations.[5]
He has been interviewed on an array of music and pop culture topics on such programs and networks as ABC's “20/20,” “CBS Evening News,” CNN FN, VH1's “Behind the Music,” MTV, BBC, A&E's Biography" and E!; and has been quoted in the New York Times, USA Today, TV Guide, People, Parade, Us, Entertainment Weekly and numerous others. He was extensively interviewed in the career manual, "How To Get A Job in the Music Industry," written in 2007 by Keith Hatschek.
Taylor's artist specialty over the past decade has been Céline Dion. He has penned five front-page articles in Billboard about the singer, most recently for her 2007 "Taking Chances" disc, released Nov. 13. He wrote liner notes for the re-release of both Dion's "These Are Special Times" Christmas album and "A New Day Has Come" on Sony Records, and has been a media spokesman on VH1's "Behind the Music" and E!'s "True Hollywood Story" on Dion, and has been quoted in several publications regarding the artist, including The New York Times.
He is a voting member of NARAS (the Grammy Awards) and a published songwriter for Young Pals Music/BMI. His lyrical composition "Lost and Found," performed by Miz Metro, with music by Ayhan Sahin and Eve Nelson, was featured in an episode of MTV's "Made" in March 2008.
Broadcasting experience includes an on-air stint at country WWOD-AM/WKZZ-FM in Lynchburg, Virginia, his hometown, as well as voiceover work for commercials and theater. He hosted Billboard's weekly online countdown at billboardradio.com, from its inception in March 1998 through January 2006. The show was scripted by legendary Billboard veteran and author Fred Bronson.
He lives in Brooklyn Heights, New York.
References
- ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=DBEEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA24&lpg=PA24&dq=Chuck+Taylor+billboard&source=bl&ots=MfoI2DY1ng&sig=cgkFwmPXPk9ysEucTHDWKmadpvw&hl=en&ei=pT-2S4b7FIaBlAfdgpDpCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CBAQ6AEwBTgU#v=onepage&q=Chuck%20Taylor%20billboard&f=false
- ^ http://www.billboard.com/news/chart-beat-chat-1003019652.story#/news/backstage-at-the-grammys-news-notes-1823798.story
- ^ http://wordsneatlyarranged.blogspot.com/2009/06/chuck-taylor-words-neatly-arranged-20.html
- ^ http://chucktaylorblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/karen-carpenter.html
- ^ http://www.billboard.com/specials/hot100/charts/top50-no1s-70s.shtml
External links
Categories:- American music journalists
- American magazine editors
- American columnists
- James Madison University alumni
- Radio editors
- Living people
- 1962 births
- People from Lynchburg, Virginia
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