Pictured (L-R, back row): Chapel Hart, Clare Dunn, Roberta Lea, Twinnie. (L-R, back row): Kylie Frey, Stephanie Quayle, HunterGirl, Priscilla Block, Leslie Fram, Abbey Cone. Photo: Gina Di Maio
CMT held their latest Next Women of Country showcase Wednesday night (April 24) at City Winery Nashville. Co-hosted by CMT’s Leslie Fram and UMG Nashville artist Priscilla Block, the evening featured performances from Abbey Cone, Chapel Hart, Clare Dunn, HunterGirl, Kylie Frey, Mackenzie Carpenter, Reyna Roberts, Roberta Lea, Stephanie Quayle and Twinnie. Block, along with Grammy-winning artist and CMT Next Women of Country mentor Colbie Caillat, also treated the crowd to a special performance.
Roberta Lea. Photo: Gina Di Maio
When welcoming the crowd, Fram shared, “We’ve been doing these Next Women of Country shows here at City Winery [for a while now] and they’ve been amazing to us. Everyone here is supporting women and female artists. That’s why we keep getting bigger and bigger.”
Block, an alumni of the CMT Next Women of Country program, shared some words about her journey in Music City. “I’ve been in Nashville for 11 years now,” she said. “You hope one day you can come here, be recognized by the industry [and selected as a] CMT Next Women of Country. It’s taken some time to get here, but I’m so thankful for the journey.”
Fram and Block then welcomed the first round of performers on stage, consisting of Carpenter, Roberts, Twinnie, Lea and Dunn. Each singer performed two songs each, and shared a little bit about their journey with the audience.
Up first was Carpenter, who has found great success as a songwriter in Nashville with cuts by Megan Moroney, Lily Rose and more. She reflected on her journey and told the story of getting her record deal with The Valory Music Co.
Carpenter’s first song, “Huntin’ Season,” got the crowd warmed up for the night. She also performed a love ballad dedicated to her husband called “Only Girl.” Carpenter shared she has new music on the way, and is performing at Stagecoach, opening for Cole Swindell and has some upcoming headlining dates in her home state of Georgia.
Before performing, Roberts was asked about how she landed on Beyoncé‘s “Blackbiird.” Roberts shared how she always believed it would happen. “In November of last year, I said, ‘God, can you please put me on a song with Beyoncé next year?’ I know that sounds pretty wild,” she admitted. “Here we are six months later and thankfully my prayers have been answered.” Roberts played the title track of debut album Bad Girl Bible, and an up-beat, catchy breakup anthem “Another Round.”
Twinnie. Photo: Gina Di Maio
Originally from the U.K., Twinnie now resides in Nashville full-time. While reflecting on her path to Music City, she recognized fellow performer Lea for her help in the journey.
“I was coming back and forth for seven years, as I was with a label here at the time. I actually have to thank Ms. Roberta,” she said, addressing her. “I came to your release party and met Jamey Johnson. I sent him music and he made it happen. It’s just a true testament to how people have really shown up for me.” Twinnie’s first song was the sassy ballad “Girl In Your Songs.” She closed with a show of her powerful vocals on “Last Song.”
Up next was Lea, who has seen support from big artists such as Brandi Carlile and Allison Russell. When Fram asked about her sound, Lea shared, “Someone once told me [I sound like] ‘country neo-pop with a delicious folky flair,'” she said. “Music is an art. Art has multiple colors and multiple expressions, and that’s the way music should be.”
Lea released her debut album Too Much of a Woman in 2023, and her first song of the night was the album’s girl power anthem”Girls Trip.” She then finished her set off with another track from the record, “Dinner, Sunset, Nina Simone.”
Dunn was the final performer in the round. “I’ve been fortunate to be in the right place at the right time and fall into some cool stuff,” she shared with the crowd, adding that she got to tour with Bob Seger. She opened up her performance slot with sentimental track “Out of the Blue,” and closed round one with “Wasn’t Looking.”
Before the next round of performers from the CMT Next Women of Country Class of 2024, co-host Block returned to the stage to bring out Caillat, this year’s Next Women of Country mentor.
Priscilla Block and Colbie Calliat. Photo: Gina Di Maio
Caillat sang her hit song “Bubbly,” before turning it back over to Block for her current radio single “Good On You.” The crowd roared in admiration of the women.
The second round of performers included Next Women class-members Frey, Chapel Hart, Quayle, HunterGirl and Cone. First up was Frey, who has had 10 No. 1 hits on Texas radio.
Frey kicked off the round with her dynamic track “So You Think You Want A Cowboy?” and then shared emotional ballad “Woman Outta Love,” which dropped today (April 26). She spoke about growing up near Texas, which aided her in her journey to radio success in the Lone Star state.
Trio Chapel Hart received a big look in 2022 on America’s Got Talent, and have been building their momentum ever since. The three reflected on when they first showed up to the AGT set, “We were not ready for TV, but the minute that we started singing, every person that was there was [excited]. It was a moment of validation for us.” Chapel Hart shared their upcoming single “Perfect For Me” before going into fan-favorite “This Girl Likes Fords,” which they first debuted on AGT.
Quayle was up next. She got to share the exciting news that she is now a published author, with her book Why Do We Stay?: How My Toxic Relationship Can Help You Find Freedom due out on April 30. Quayle opened up her performance with “Charmed,” before sharing the powerful song she wrote to encapsulate her book, “Why Do We Stay?”
American Idol alum HunterGirl was next up. “It’s scary sometimes just putting it all out there,” she shared about songwriting. “But with releasing my song, ‘Ain’t About You,’ I found that being as honest as possible—saying all the scary things about yourself—resonates more than the picture-perfect life.” She sang two unreleased tunes, “Clockwork” and “Bad Boy.”
Chapel Hart. Photo: Gina Di Maio
Closing out the night was Cone, who marked 10 years in Nashville this year. “I moved here when I was 16. I was lucky enough to get a publishing deal that young. I signed my first record deal a month before the pandemic,” she shared. “I ended up leaving the record label at the beginning of last year and have been a fully independent artist since then. It has been better for my creativity and also for my career. I had the biggest song I’ve ever had as an independent artist.”
Cone then shared her vulnerable track “Talk of the Town,” before closing the night with “If You Were a Song,” which currently has 16 million Spotify streams.
