MusicRow’s Top 100 Songwriters Of 2024
Zach Bryan. Photo: Trevor Pavlik
Since 2018, MusicRow has published a weekly Top Songwriter Chart that ranks the week’s top 60 songwriters based on song activity according to airplay, digital download track sales and streams.
Through the use of proprietary software, the points awarded to each song are evenly distributed among its co-writers, mirroring the revenue and ownership structures common in Music City’s publishing industry. This system highlights the overall success of active songs for each songwriter. As a result, the MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart provides a weekly snapshot of the most active and successful songwriters in Nashville.
Zach Bryan accumulated the highest number of points on the MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart in 2024, securing the top spot on the year-end rankings.
After earning the top spot in 2023 with songs from his American Heartbreak, Boys of Faith and self-titled projects, which stayed near the top of the charts throughout 2024, Bryan continued to release new music in 2024. The Warner Records artist released his The Great American Bar Scene album in July, consisting of mostly solo-written tunes, allowing Bryan to collect all of the points those songs earned.
Songs that contributed to Bryan’s dominance on the MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart include his Grammy-winning collaboration with Kacey Musgraves “I Remember Everything,” “28,” “American Nights,” “Bass Boat,” “Bathwater,” “Better Days,” “Boons,” “Funny Man,” “High Road,” “Like Ida,” “Lucky Enough,” “Mechanical Bull,” “Memphis, The Blues,” “Northern Thunder,” “Oak Island, “Pink Skies,” “Sandpaper,” “Sun To Me,” “The Great American Bar Scene,” “The Way Back,” “This World’s A Giant,” “Towers” and more.
Ashley Gorley. Photo: Katie Kauss
Ashley Gorley ranks No. 2 on MusicRow‘s Top 100 Songwriters of 2024 list. A continuous mainstay on the country charts, Gorley added numerous hits to his songbook over the past year, including “Bulletproof,” “Fix What You Didn’t Break,” “Hell Or High Water,” “I Am Not Okay,” “Liar,” “Love Somebody,” “Park” and “Whiskey Whiskey,” among others.
He also snagged multiple charting cuts on Post Malone’s F-1 Trillion album, which made waves in the country music industry this year. Throughout 2024, Gorley was recognized with numerous accolades, including ASCAP Country Songwriter of the Year for the 11th time, iHeartRadio Award’s Songwriter of the Year, MusicRow‘s CountryBreakout Songwriter of the Year and Male Songwriter of the Year, NMPA Top Gold & Platinum Songwriter and a TICUA Hall of Fame induction. Gorley currently has over 80 No. 1 hits.
Landing at No. 3 on MusicRow‘s Top 100 Songwriters of 2024 list is Chris Stapleton. Stapleton has his own “It Takes A Woman,” solo-penned “Think I’m In Love With You,” “What Am I Gonna Do” and the Grammy and CMA Award winning “White Horse” all from his Higher album featured on the charts this year, as well his collaboration with Post Malone, “California Sober.” Stapleton was also named the Artist-Songwriter of the Year at the 2024 ACM awards and the 2024 ASCAP Country Music Songwriter-Artist of the Year.
Chris Stapleton. Photo: David McClister
Josh Phillips placed at No. 4 this year, largely attributed to his solo-penned Cody Johnson cut, “Dirt Cheap.” The tune was awarded the MusicRow Song of the Year last summer and was nominated for many other awards. Phillips also earned points with his Luke Combs’ recorded “The Man He Sees In Me.”
Jessie Jo Dillon rounds out the top five songwriters of 2024. Dillon had two charting cuts on Megan Moroney’s Am I Okay? album this year, with credits on “Am I Okay?” and “No Caller ID.” Dillon also was recorded by a bevy of Nashville artists throughout the year, writing on “Baggage,” “Friday Night Heartbreaker,” “Lies Lies Lies” and “Messed Up As Me.” She was named the 2024 ACM Awards Songwriter of the Year, and is nominated for Songwriter of the Year, Non-Classical at this year’s Grammy Awards.
Dillon is also the highest-ranking female on the list. This year’s data remains predominantly male, with only 16 other female songwriters appearing in the top 100, which includes 121 names due to tied scores. This marks a slight increase from last year’s total of 15 female songwriters.
MusicRow’s Top Songwriters of 2024:
1. Zach Bryan
2. Ashley Gorley
3. Chris Stapleton
4. Josh Phillips
5. Jessie Jo Dillon
6. Charlie Handsome
7. Taylor Phillips
8. Hunter Phelps
9. Jason DeFord
10. Riley Green
11. Jordan Minton
12. Jessi Alexander
13. Jonathan Singleton
14. Rocky Block
15. Luke Combs
16. Randy Montana
17. Ernest Keith Smith
18. Casey Brown
19. Austin Post
20. Ben Johnson
21. Louis Bell
22. Chayce Beckham
23. Lainey Wilson
24. Shane McAnally
25. Morgan Wallen
26. Bryan Martin, Vernon Brown
27. Tucker Wetmore
28. John Byron
29. Kacey Musgraves
30. Michael Hardy
31. Chase McGill
32. Chris LaCorte
33. Tom Petty
34. Jesse Frasure
35. Bailey Zimmerman
36. Aaron Raitiere
37. Thomas Archer
38. Matt Jenkins
39. Megan Moroney
40. Paul Sikes
41. Jordan Dozzi
42. Josh Thompson
43. Adam Wendler, Anna Dasha Novotny, Cheyenne Rose Arnspiger, Kenneth Travis Heidelman
44. Michael Tyler
45. Dave Turnbull
46. Tracy Chapman
47. Joe Fox
48. Carson Chamberlain, Zach Top
49. Jared Keim
50. Warren Zeiders
51. Pete Good
52. Ella Langley
53. Shaboozey, Sean Cook
54. Carly Pearce
55. Nevin Sastry
56. Chase Matthew
57. Kane Brown
58. Micah Wilshire
59. Zach Abend
60. Grant Averill, Joe Spargur
61. David Garcia
62. Jerrel Jones, Joe Kent, Mark Williams
63. Hoskins
64. Thomas Rhett
65. Justin Ebach
66. Chris Tompkins
67. Daniel Ross, Josh Miller
68. Jaron Boyer
69. Tyler Hubbard
70. Jacob Kasher
71. Brent Anderson
72. Allison Veltz Cruz
73. Ashley Cooke, Mark Trussell
74. Aaron Eshuis, Marc Beeson, Tony Lane
75. Rhett Akins
76. Ryan Beaver
77. Beyoncè
78. Trannie Anderson
79. Jacob Rice
80. Jessie Murph
81. Dylan Gossett
82. Mentor Williams
83. Jacob Davis
84. Josh Jenkins
85. Dylan Marlowe, Seth Ennis
86. Abram Dean, Andy Sheridan, David Fanning, Matt Thomas
87. David Bowie
88. Chandler Walters
89. Ben Stennis
90. Wyatt McCubbin
91. James Maddocks
92. Geoff Warburton
93. Jordan Davis
94. Nick Gale
95. Milan Modi
96. Emily Weisband
97. Amy Allen, Gabe Simon, Ropyr Wetzel
98. Jeremy Stover, Justin Moore, Paul DiGiovanni
99. Rodney Clawson
100. Michael Lotten
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