In This Issue: MusicRow Highlights Trailblazing Leadership With Women Of Music Row Issue

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Last week, MusicRow unveiled its first-ever Women of Music Row Issue at the 12th annual Rising Women on the Row breakfast. With over 700 industry members in attendance, the moment was more than a celebration—it was a reflection of the incredible strides women are making in Nashville’s country music community.

This special edition of MusicRow Magazine highlights the stories, challenges, and achievements of women shaping the future of the industry—from boardrooms to writing rooms, and everywhere in between.

On the cover is rising Warner Music Nashville artist Avery Anna, who is gearing up to release her sophomore album, let go letters. The moving LP comprises songs all inspired by real-life situations shared by her fans via the “Let Go Letters.” The letter series has long been a safe space for Avery’s listener community, where she invites fans to “let go” of real-life experiences that may be troubling them by putting them on paper and sending them off.

Inside the issue, two powerhouses leading major labels—Cris Lacy at Warner Music Nashville and Taylor Lindsey at Sony Music Nashville—share their career evolution and how they’re reimagining leadership at the highest level.

Celebrating 10 years in business, the women of Farris, Self & Moore reflect on founding and growing one of Nashville’s premier business management firms. Their story offers a powerful blueprint for sustainable success rooted in trust, strategy and vision.

Industry veteran Jennie Smythe, founder and CEO of Girlilla Marketing, reveals a more personal side in a conversation about her upcoming memoir, Becoming Girlilla. Her story is one of reinvention, resilience and showing up authentically—both online and in real life.

In a raw look at the songwriting landscape, hitmakers Jessie Jo Dillon, Jessi Alexander, Trannie Anderson and Allison Veltz Cruz reflect on the joys and challenges of navigating Nashville as female songwriters. The conversation is underscored by recent data from MusicRow’s own Top Songwriter Chart: Of the 121 writers who made the list last year, only 17 were women—a stark reminder of the ongoing need for equity.

MusicRow also speaks with Todd Cassetty in this issue, the visionary behind Song Suffragettes, whose weekly writers round has become a vital pipeline for rising female artists and writers. With over 4,500 applicants, 500 curated performers and 54 record deals, the numbers speak volumes about the demand—and the talent.

The issue also honors the Rising Women on the Row Class of 2025—Lydia Schultz Cahill, Rakiyah Marshall, Michelle Tigard Kammerer, Katie Kerkhover, Jessi Vaughn Stevenson and Julie Sturdivant—whose work is paving the way for the next generation of industry leaders.

Single copies of MusicRow’s Women of Music Row Issue are available now at musicrow.com for $25 and are included with all yearly MusicRow subscriptions.

LB Cantrell
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