Nekst.biz To Debut Top 60 Country Songwriter Chart

Nekst.biz, the branded content industry site sponsored by HitShop Records and edited by David M. Ross, will debut a Top 60 Country Songwriter chart, beginning Tuesday, Nov. 12.

The weekly chart will rank Country songwriters based on a proprietary algorithm that draws upon airplay, digital track sales and streaming. The Top 60 Country Songwriter chart will also incorporate a social media function that enables the posting and sharing of each writer’s chart position across various social media outlets.

Total weekly points earned by each song will be evenly split by its number of co-writers.

“When we envisioned NEKST,” says HitShop President Skip Bishop, “we wanted to create an information source that would be of value to the industry. Publishing is the bedrock of Nashville’s music industry so when the idea of a songwriter chart surfaced, we jumped on it immediately.”

HitShop’s digital department head Tim Gerst assembled a team of designers and programmers to create the software and presentation for the new chart. “We wanted this to reflect the evolving nature of our industry,” says Gerst. “So it was essential to factor streaming and track sales into the formula.”