NASHVILLE, Tenn. – May 9, 2024 – The Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum recently welcomed Jon Freeman and Allison Moorer as writer-editors in the Museum Services department. The museum also promoted Brad Henton to senior director of culinary, event and museum sales; Paige Maillet to director of guest experience; and Kayleigh Shoemaker to director of public programs. Details below.

Museum welcomes two new staff writer-editors to the Museum Services department

Jon Freeman and Allison Moorer

In their roles as writer-editors, Freeman and Moorer will contribute to exhibitions, museum publications, public programs, online offerings, social media channels and other educational initiatives that interpret and illuminate the country music genre and explore the broad and ever-evolving narratives of its history and its contributions to culture.

Jon Freeman is a Nashville-based writer and editor who most recently spent seven years working for Rolling Stone and helping oversee the publication’s Rolling Stone Country online section. Freeman’s media career began with the Nashville trade publication MusicRow. In 2012, he joined the staff of Country Weekly magazine as an editor and remained there through the company’s rebrand to Nash Country Weekly. Freeman joined Rolling Stone full-time as a writer-editor in 2016, where he wrote daily news stories and interviewed numerous artists from country music and beyond for features and reported pieces, as well as penned numerous album reviews for the magazine. A graduate of Auburn University, Freeman’s writing has appeared in Spin, NPR Music, the Nashville Scene and Vinyl Me Please, in addition to Rolling Stone.

Allison Moorer is a singer-songwriter, producer and author who has released ten albums and published two memoirs, “Blood” and “I Dream He Talks to Me.” She has been nominated for many prominent musical recognitions, including an Academy Award, Grammy, Americana Music Association and Academy of Country Music awards. Moorer’s work has been published in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, American Songwriter, Guernica, No Depression, Literary Hub and The Bitter Southerner. She also received the Hall-Waters Prize for Excellence in Southern Writing in 2020 and the Alabama Library Association’s Authors Award in 2022. Moorer holds a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from The New School.

Museum promotes three

Event and Museum Sales

Brad Henton has been promoted to senior director of culinary, event and museum sales. In this role, he will continue to lead the museum sales and reservations department in overseeing daily admissions to the museum, Hatch Show Print and Historic RCA Studio B, while taking on new areas of responsibility. They include CMA Theater concerts and operations, private event sales and services, as well as the museum’s food and beverage operations, which services private event clients and museum’s public restaurant, Red Onion. His oversight also includes the many events hosted by the museum, including its annual Medallion Ceremony. Since joining the museum in 2004, Henton has held many positions, most recently director of museum sales and guest experience. He currently sits on the American Bus Association Foundation’s Board of Governors. Henton has a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Alabama and a Certified Travel Industry Specialist Professional certification from Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.

Museum Sales

Paige Maillet has been named director of guest experience. Maillet oversees all aspects of the visitor experience for the museum, Hatch Show Print, Historic RCA Studio B tours and CMA Theater shows, as well as other publicly ticketed events and programs. Her oversight includes box office sales, information and membership desks, greeters, tour guides and ushers. In this new role, she will report directly to the vice president of revenue. During her nine-year tenure with the museum, Maillet has served in many positions, most recently as associate director of guest relations. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Texas Christian University.

Public Programs

Kayleigh Shoemaker has been promoted to director of public programs. In this position she develops and oversees the museum’s programs for general audiences, working closely with staff writers, editors and historians to present over 200 programs annually that showcase the beauty and cultural significance of country music.  Public programs presentations formats include interviews and performances with renowned session musicians and acclaimed songwriters, exhibition-related programs that feature content experts, as well as diverse programs developed in partnership with other cultural and community organizations. Since joining the museum in 2017, she has served in many roles, most recently as senior public programs manager. Prior to joining the museum, Shoemaker worked with Nashville Songwriters Association International, Agency for the Performing Arts and Bluewater Music. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Middle Tennessee State University’s recording industry program with a concentration in music business.