Lauren Alaina Pushes New Tour Back To January

Lauren Alaina is shifting her That Girl Was Me Tour to a January kickoff following the news that she will be a contender on the latest season of ABC’s Dancing with the Stars.

The tour, originally scheduled for Fall, will now launch Jan. 15-16 in Nashville with special guest Filmore and is set to visit Boston, New York, Atlanta and more including some additional previously unannounced markets. Additional dates will be announced soon.

That Girl Was Me Tour Dates:
Jan. 15: Nashville, Tenn.
Jan. 16: Nashville, Tenn.
Jan. 18: Indianapolis, Ind.
Jan. 23: Columbia, Mo.
Jan. 24: Rosemont, Ill.
Jan. 25: Warrendale, Pa.
Jan. 27: New York, N.Y.
Jan. 30: Boston, Mass.
Feb. 1:  Columbus, Ohio
Feb. 6:  Richmond, Va.
Feb. 8:  Atlanta, Ga.

* Additional Dates to be Announced

 

The Other Nashville Society Features Dashboard Confessional’s Chris Carrabba

Chris Carrabba performs.

Chris Carrabba, a Nashville resident best known for his work in Dashboard Confessional, recently spoke about his career before an invite-only crowd of Nashville music creators and industry members. The Other Nashville Society (TONS) hosted the conversation at Analog at Hutton Hotel in Nashville on Aug. 19.

Carrabba and Brooklyn-based artist pronoun took part in the intimate, one-on-one conversation, where the two artists discussed their experiences in the music industry, songwriting, and life as an musician. Carrabba also performed several selections, including “The Best Descriptions.”

The Other Nashville Society, which launched in 2017, now boasts over 1,000 members. The organization aims to offer community to and promote the work of Nashville’s creators and industry professionals in the pop, rock, singer/songwriter, emo, soul, hip hop, R&B, jazz, orchestral, electronic and Christian music scenes.

First Company Management Adds Josh Wilson To Roster

Pictured (L-R): First Company Management’s Dave Wagner, Josh Wilson, and First Company Management’s Mike McCloskey

Black River Christian singer/songwriter Josh Wilson has been added to the roster at First Company Management. Wilson was named ASCAP’s Christian Songwriter/Artist of the Year in 2012 and has earned two No. 1 singles including “Before The Morning” and “Jesus Is Alive,” as well as multiple Top 10 singles. He wrote or co-wrote all five tracks on his latest release, Don’t Look Back and is set to headline “The Roadshow Futures Tour” this fall

“Our First Company team couldn’t be more excited and honored to partner with Josh Wilson,” said the company’s GM Mike McCloskey. “The success he’s achieved so far is remarkable, and we know he’s only getting started!”

“I’ve been searching for the right manager for a while now, and I can say that Mike McCloskey was well worth the wait,” said Wilson. “He’s insightful, talented, creative and kind. He knows the music business well and knows that at the end of the day, it’s all about people and relationships. I’m honored to be working with him and can’t wait to see what’s next.”

First Company Management was established in 1995 by Wes Campbell. Under the guidance of Campbell and Dave Wagner, the firm’s roster includes Newsboys, Ryan Stevenson, Rhett Walker, Martin Smith, 7eventh Time Down, Jordan St. Cyr, Adam Agee, Stephen Christian, Cochren & Co., Londan Gatch, Conrad Johnson, Tasha Layton, Stillman and Joshua Micah, and Jordan Lee Dooley.

Jerry Flowers Signs Worldwide Publishing Deal With Twelve6 Entertainment

(L-R): Travis Myatt (Twelve6 Entertainment Sr. Director, Publishing), Jerry Flowers, and Heidi Hamels (Twelve6 Entertainment, Partner). Photo credit: Annelise Loughead

Jerry Flowers has signed a worldwide publishing agreement with Twelve6 Entertainment.

Flowers has penned No. 1 hits for Sam Hunt (“House Party”), Jason Aldean (“A Little More Summertime”) and Billy Currington (“Do I Make You Wanna”). He’s also had cuts by Keith Urban, Carrie Underwood, Lady Antebellum, Jason Derulo, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, among others.

As a touring musician, Flowers has played bass and served as musical director in Keith Urban’s band since 2005. His working relationship with Urban extends back to the ‘90s when Urban, Flowers and Peter Clarke formed the trio, The Ranch. They released their self-titled debut album on Capitol Records in 1998 before disbanding. Flowers played bass on three tours with the Dixie Chicks and also toured with the Counting Crows before reuniting with Urban on the road.

Flowers is the latest signing at Twelve6 Entertainment following their recent deal with Old Dominion’s Trevor Rosen. Additional writers joining the Twelve6 roster will be announced in the coming weeks.

Midland Deepen Their Honky-Tonk Roots On Sophomore Effort ‘Let It Roll’ [Interview]

Midland. Photo: Harper Smith

For album number two, country trio Midland take a page from George Strait’s playbook, with no need to shift too far away from their retro-country sound, or mix in more pop-country confections into each new project. Instead, they lean harder into their neo-traditional vibe, drenched in inspiration from ‘70s country music, with more than a tinge of ‘80s and ‘90s honky tonk stylings made popular by artists like Strait and Brooks & Dunn.

When Midland’s Mark Wystrach, Cameron Duddy and Jess Carson released their debut album, On The Rocks, in 2017 on Big Machine Label Group, the project’s retro grooves proved somewhat of a shock to a country music scene saturated by slick pop-country and hip-hop. Their debut single “Drinkin’ Problem” was certified Platinum, and the trio earned two Grammy nominations, as well as a win for New Vocal Duo or Group of the Year at last year’s ACM Awards.

“We try to write timelessly, and this whole album feels timeless,” says Carson, seated in a dressing room at the Ryman Auditorium, hours before they would honor the album’s co-producer and co-writer, Shane McAnally, with his latest ACM honor. “It could have been a lost album from the late ‘70s and there are songs that could be from the ‘90s and there is something fresh about it, too.”

Since the release of their debut project, they’ve continued to fine-tune their sound before live audiences, graduating from the Texas barrooms to theaters, festivals and arenas across the country. The decision to dedicate that amount of time performing in the past couple of years necessitated that the album be piecemealed in Nashville recording sessions scheduled between tour dates.

However, the hours spent touring resulted in the road-tested, tightly-constructed, gems found on their sophomore project, Let It Roll, out today.

Photo: Collin Duddy

“As soon as we wrote ‘21st Century Honky Tonk American Band’ we were playing it live, and that was about a year ago,” says Duddy, referring to a track on the new project. “We were basically a couple of days of from having to deliver the album, and we went back to hear a the mix of that song and the whole performance was just wrong. Through the process of playing it live for a year, we discovered things that we loved about it and a tempo that worked better and parts that were just gelling differently.” The group went into their own studio with their band in Austin, Texas, and re-recorded the track in about two hours.

The album’s lead single, “Mr. Lonely,” holds a swagger, relishing in being the guy that women turn to when their men treat them wrong. I’m the number that you know by broken heart, Wystrach sings. But beneath the delightfully irreverent mashup of honkytonk and rock ‘n’ roll, the song serves as a word of caution to people to treat their lovers well.

“That was one of the songs when we were writing it we were chasing a little bit of Brooks & Dunn, a little bit of [Strait’s]  ‘The Fireman’ and a bit of Dwight Yoakam’s ‘Fast as You,'” Wystrach notes.

Elsewhere on the album, “Put The Hurt On Me” makes for a silky slow jam, while Carson takes the lead on the hazy, lilting album closer “Roll Away.”

Some of the best numbers center on a classic country music mainstay that has somewhat fallen out of favor in recent years—the cheatin’ song.

“Cheatin’ By The Rules” portrays a guy caught between a dying relationship and his own desires, trying to shield an old flame from the reality of the situation in all the usual ways, as he lays out guidelines to his lover not to call after 5 p.m., or hiding the car around back.

Elsewhere, they sing, She’s lying with him and she’s lying to me/She’s bringing back diamond rings kept in the pocket of her tight fittin’ jeans, in “Cheatin’ Songs,” complete with a reference to Conway Twitty’s 1981 hit.

“In this day and age, Midland is the best cheating song band out there,” Duddy says.

“We are one of one,” quips Carson.

“Those songs have been lost a little bit in the more popular writing and there is a nuance to writing a cheating song,” Wystrach says. “There is a way to approach the gray area and the darker, seedier side of life. That’s part of the great tradition of songwriters we admire. They are able to approach these subjects in a way that’s palatable. It’s catchy, but the subject is an uglier side of life.”

“I grew up with cheating in my family,” says Duddy. “My mom ended up having three or four different husbands and you grow up understanding, ‘Oh shit, that guy wasn’t the worst guy in the world.’ Or, that my mom is not a terrible person because these things happen in life. This isn’t Christian rock, it’s country music and since the beginning it’s been part of the history of it—“

“Your Cheatin’ Heart,” interjects Carson.

“But it’s not condoning it,” Wystrach says. “It’s an observation. It’s part of life.”

While their contemporaries have increasingly turned to songs that provide literal, moment-by-moment recollections of their lives, the members of Midland gravitate toward broader themes and characters.

“To me ‘Cheating By The Rules’ is really tough because when you first listen to that song, it’s like, to my wife especially, ‘Are you really going to record this song?’” Duddy says. “It’s about this guy who is caught between this fear of doing the right thing, which is breaking it off, or doing the easier thing, hiding. It’s a complicated scenario.”

“Everything goes through our collective experiences, so to do something so first-person would be a little bit strange, and I think that’s where the artistry comes in. There are a couple of songs Jess wrote [solo] on this album, but they relate to a collective experience,” says Wystrach.

“Those literal songs, there’s not a lot of depth to that stuff,” says Duddy. “Sometimes you start chasing trends because look, that’s your job and you’re going to survive one way or another as a songwriter in Nashville. Jamey Johnson, he wrote ‘Honkytonk Badonkadonk.’ You stick around Nashville long enough and you have to do what you have to do to survive. We are not begrudging anyone who takes part in the exercise of mass popular music like that. It’s a means and if you can do it, then power. But that’s not something we are interested in.”

Aside from a one-off collaboration on Brooks & Dunn’s recent Reboot album, Midland hasn’t engaged in another favorite album staple among today’s country artists—collaborating with other hit artists on a project, though Duddy acknowledges those studio pairings can be difficult for a band that still makes its home in Texas instead of Nashville.

“There are certain songs on the album that the idea from conception was to be a collaboration and it turned out it was difficult to…”

“We wanted to do ‘Drinkin’ Songs’ as a duet,” remarks Carson.

“We talked about doing something with Brothers Osborne. If we lived here it would be a different thing,” Wystrach says. “But with Brooks & Dunn, we were in the studio with them as we were traveling through Nashville. For Brooks & Dunn, you make room in your schedule.”

“And there’s nothing on-brand for us, and I hate to say it like that,” Duddy adds. “It doesn’t matter who we would have gone with, it would have seemed out of left-field because we are kind of on…”

“Maybe Margo Price, someone we really look up to musically, would have worked well,” Carson says.

Midland’s members had a hand in writing every track on the album, with plenty of material stored up from album number three. Wystrach notes that another Let It Roll track, “Fourteen Gears,” was written for their debut.

“There’s other songs that didn’t make this album, but we know we want to record them. That gives you confidence and takes the pressure off of the third album, because we already have songs in mind.”

However, Duddy notes they wouldn’t mind having some of those unrecorded songs in their arsenal recorded by other artists.

“Hell yeah. We love money.”

Taylor Swift Releases Seventh Album ‘Lover’ Today

Taylor Swift released her seventh studio album today, launching new project, Lover, in an explosion of pastel glory stretching from the artwork, to the cassette tape version, to the exclusive merch (including a limited time partnership with Stella McCartney).

In the album’s liner notes, Swift describes the collection of songs as a “love letter to love itself—all the captivating, spellbinding, maddening, devastating red, blue, gray, golden aspects of it (that’s why there are so many songs).”

Yes, it’s her longest album to date, with 18 tracks, all of which she co-wrote, and co-produced, including three solo writes (“Lover,” “Cornelia Street,” “Daylight”). Frequent collaborator Jack Antonoff co-produced 11 of the tracks and also co-wrote several. Other producers on the project include Joel Little, Louis Bell, Frank Dukes and Sounwave. Notably absent are producers Max Martin and Shellback, who worked with Swift on previous albums.

Guests on Lover include Brendon Urie of Panic! At the Disco on “ME!” and the Dixie Chicks on “Soon You’ll Feel Better.”

Swift has been making the rounds in recent weeks, carrying on her tradition of Secret Session listening parties with fans, including one in Nashville.

Lover marks the first time a Swift album has been made available to streaming services on the same day it was released.

Lover tracklist

“I Forgot That You Existed”
“Cruel Summer”
“Lover”
“The Man”
“The Archer”
“I Think He Knows”
“Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince”
“Paper Rings”
“Cornelia Street”
“Death by a Thousand Cuts”
“London Boy”
“Soon You’ll Get Better” (featuring Dixie Chicks)
“False God”
“You Need to Calm Down”
“Afterglow”
“Me!” (featuring Brendon Urie of Panic! at the Disco)
“It’s Nice to Have a Friend”
“Daylight”

 

peermusic Nashville To Relocate Offices [Exclusive]

peermusic Nashville is set to relocate its office, beginning Aug. 29. The company will move to 55 Music. Sq. E. in Nashville, which formerly housed the SESAC offices.

Michael Knox, Senior Vice President, peermusic Nashville commented: “With all the changing parts going on in Nashville architecture, it was great to find a piece of old Music Row to move into.”

peermusic Nashville recently contributed to hit songs including Jason Aldean’s “Girl Like You” and “Rearview Town,” Riley Green’s “There Was This Girl,” and Cole Swindell’s “Love You Too Late.”

The company can be reached at 55 Music Sq. E., Ste. C, Nashville, TN 37203. The office phone number remains the same.

Boudleaux and Felice Bryant Exhibition Opens Next Month

The songwriting mastery of Boudleaux and Felice Bryant will be featured in an upcoming Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum exhibition, opening Sept. 27 and running through Aug. 2, 2020.

As Nashville’s first full-time professional songwriters, the Bryants sold over half a billion records by one estimate, received 59 BMI awards and composed more than 6,000 songs, of which over 900 were recorded by artists in many different musical genres, including country, rock & roll, pop and R&B. Among the Bryants’ hits were the Everly Brothers’ “Bye Bye Love,” “Wake Up Little Susie” and “All I Have to Do Is Dream.” Additionally, their works include Little Jimmy Dickens’ “Country Boy,” Jim Reeves’ “Blue Boy” and Roy Orbison’s “Love Hurts,” which later became an international hit for the rock group Nazareth. The Bryants also wrote “Rocky Top,” a bluegrass standard named one of Tennessee’s state songs and a favorite at University of Tennessee sporting events.

Items featured in We Could: The Songwriting Artistry of Boudleaux and Felice Bryant include handwritten lyrics, music and personal artifacts. Highlights include:

  • Complete collection of bound ledgers containing the Bryants’ original, handwritten lyrics and music for most of their songs
  • Violin used by Boudleaux Bryant when he was a young professional musician
  • Felice Bryant’s childhood prayer book, with a handwritten inscription noting her First Holy Communion at Wisconsin’s St. Casimir Church in 1937
  • Felice Bryant’s handwritten recipe for her renowned pasta sauce
  • The 1961 Martin 0-16NY guitar used by Boudleaux Bryant to write “Rocky Top”
  • Wollensak 3M T-1500 reel-to-reel tape recorder, built in the 1950s and used by the Bryants to record song ideas and home demos

The Bryants established an influential benchmark for songwriters when, in 1957, they negotiated a 10-year deal with music publisher Acuff-Rose that returned to the Bryants all publishing rights for their songs at the end of the agreement—the first of its kind in Nashville. During this time, the Bryants began writing for Acuff-Rose client the Everly Brothers. The Everly Brothers recorded 29 Bryant songs. In 1967, in accordance with their contract, the Bryants began reclaiming domestic copyrights for the songs they wrote for Acuff-Rose and moved the titles to their House of Bryant publishing company. Today, House of Bryant, owned by the Bryants’ sons, Dane and Del, continues to thrive.

In support of the exhibition’s opening, Del Bryant, musicians and historians Bill C. Malone and Bobbie Malone and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member Dennis Morgan will take part in a panel discussion focused on the legacy and influence of the Bryants in the museum’s Ford Theater on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019, at 2 p.m. Morgan was the only songwriter with whom Felice worked following Boudleaux’s death.

AIMP Nashville Gets The Scoop From Music Supervisors

The AIMP Nashville Chapter hosted “Inside Scoop From Music Supes, V5” on Aug. 20 at The Basement East in Nashville. The annual event gathers top music supervisors and decision makers in television, film, and advertising and puts them together with Nashville’s most successful independent music publishers.

A panel featured moderator Mike Ladman (Droga5), Janine Scalise Boyd (Starz), Chris Mazur (Netflix), Andy Ross (Exit Strategy Productions), and director/producer Jay Russell in which they discussed the clients they represent, as well as current projects and music needs. Performances by Colin Elmore, Ivory Layne, and The Weeks followed.

Pictured (L-R): Cain Barnes (The Weeks), Mark Brown (Round Hill), Colin Elmore, Ree Guyer (AIMP Nashville VP; Wrensong), Mike Ladman (Droga5), Cyle Barnes (The Weeks), Jay Russell (Director/Producer), Chris Mazur (Netflix), Janine Scalise Boyd (Starz), Chris Van Belkom (Combustion Music), Kendall Lettow (peermusic), Courtney Kruckeberg (Mojo Music & Media), Dale Bobo (AIMP Nashville Treasurer; Big Deal Music), Andy Ross (Exit Strategy Productions), Scott Cresto (Reservoir Media), Damien Bone (The Weeks), and Samuel Williams (The Weeks). Not Pictured: Ivory Layne. Photo: Rebecca Ward.

Industry Ink: Alison Brown/IBMA, Ryan Stevenson, Warehouse West

Alison Brown To Deliver Keynote At IBMA Business Conference

The International Bluegrass Music Association has announced that Grammy-winning banjoist and IBMA Distinguished Achievement Award recipient Alison Brown will deliver the Keynote Address at this year’s IBMA Business Conference, Sept. 24, at the Raleigh Convention Center in downtown Raleigh, NC. The Business Conference kicks off IBMA’s annual World of Bluegrass event, running Sept. 24-28.

Ryan Stevenson Celebrates Golden ‘Eye Of The Storm’ Success

GabeReal, Ryan Stevenson, Bryan Fowler

Gotee Records’ Ryan Stevenson has received his first RIAA Gold Certified single as an artist for his record-breaking song, “Eye of the Storm.” The hit features GabeReal of TobyMac‘s DiverseCity Band. “My heart is full,” said Stevenson. “I’m thankful for the success and impact of this song, but as I looked around the room last night and into the eyes of everyone who has been on this journey with me, I was reminded that the most important aspect of life are the people we get to live it out with. I consider myself a very blessed guy to be able to say that my team is my family.” “Eye of the Storm” was No. 1 for 16 total weeks in 2016 including nine weeks at Billboard’s Christian Airplay/Audience and 14 consecutive weeks at Billboard’s Christian AC. The song also won a Dove Award for Christian Pop Contemporary Song of the Year in 2017.

 

Maggie Miles Inks With Warehouse West

Warehouse West Entertainment has signed Maggie Miles for publishing, development, and management services. This is the company’s first signing that includes artist management, representing an expansion of the company’s services. Miles, a Virginia native, joins the company’s growing roster of artists, including Jordan Brooker, Alana Springsteen and Willie Shaw.

Warehouse West Entertainment was founded by Grammy award-winning producer/engineer Luke Wooten and entrepreneur Bruce A. Gates.