AIMP Honors Indie Songwriters & Publishers At 2024 Nashville Country Awards
Jordan Davis, AIMP Artist-Writer of the Year. Photo: Hunter Berry for AIMP
The Association for Independent Music Publishers (AIMP) held its ninth annual AIMP Nashville Country Awards on Monday night (April 1) at the Ryman Auditorium, honoring the best of Nashville’s independent songwriters and publishers. Presented by Spotify, the evening was emceed by Storme Warren.
Tim Hunze, AIMP Song Champion Award of the Year. Photo: Hunter Berry for AIMP
This year’s Song of the Year was “Next Thing You Know,” performed by Jordan Davis who co-wrote the song with Josh Osborne, Chase McGill and Greylan James. Davis also took home Artist-Writer of the Year.
“I moved here in 2012 and dreamed about getting in the room to write songs with some of these people sitting in the front rows,” Davis said. “I never dreamed I would find the community and family that I have here in Nashville. I’m blessed to get to do this for a living—we all are.”
Morgan Wallen was awarded with the Songwriter of the Year honor. Big Loud Publishing was named Publisher of the Year, and the company’s Rocky Block took home the 2024 Rising Songwriter of the Year. Mae Estes won the Rising Artist-Writer of the Year.
John Byron, Josh Miller and Travis Wood, the writers of AIMP’s Publisher Pick of the Year “’98 Braves.” Photo: Hunter Berry for AIMP
“I’ve been independently published my whole career,” Block said when he took to the mic stand. “I want to thank Bob DiPiero for taking a chance on me a long time ago and Big Loud for doing such a great job with me the last few years.”
“This is unreal,” Estes said. “I’ve got to thank Kendall Warren and Stephanie Cox at Plaid Flag Music and Kobalt Music for believing in me.”
Wallen’s “’98 Braves,” written by Travis Wood, John Byron and Josh Miller, was selected as this year’s Publisher Pick. “Last Night,” written by Byron, Ashley Gorley, Charlie Handsome and Jacob “JKash” Kasher Hindlin, was recognized as the Most Streamed Country Song of the Year.
Big Loud Publishing team, AIMP’s Publisher of the Year. Photo: Hunter Berry for AIMP
Big Machine Music’s Tim Hunze was presented with the coveted 2024 AIMP Song Champion Award for his enduring and significant contributions to the independent publishing and songwriting community.
“[Early in my career] Tom Shapiro told me, ‘Take care of the creatives and writers and you’ll always have a job.’ That is the best part of what I get to do,” Hunze says. “One of the greatest thing about our industry is that we’re a community.”
As is tradition, awards presentations were flanked by past and present Rising Artist-Writer of the Year and Artist-Writer of the Year nominees performing the songs nominated in the Song of the Year category. “Next Thing You Know” was performed by Russell Dickerson, “’98 Braves” was sung by George Birge, Davis performed “Fast Car” and “Human” was sung by Dylan Marlowe. Dylan Scott and songwriters Trannie Anderson and Dallas Wilson took on “Heart Like A Truck,” while Estes brought the house down with “Tennessee Orange.”
“The awards are always a magical night with artist nominees performing Song of the Year-nominated songs,” shared Ree Guyer, Owner of Wrensong Entertainment and President of AIMP Nashville. “It is always fun seeing our indie publishers come together to celebrate one another in a laid-back, intimate setting.”
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