Decade honorees Taylor Swift (Songwriter-Artist of the Decade) and Ashley Gorley (Songwriter of the Decade) pictured on the red carpet. Photo: Savannah Grimm for NSAI
The annual Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) songwriter awards honored nearly 40 writers Tuesday evening (Sept. 20) during a four-hour extravaganza staged at the Ryman Auditorium.
Major awards were given to Matthew West (Songwriter/Artist of the Year), Garth Brooks (Kris Kristofferson Lifetime Achievement Award), Ashley Gorley (Songwriter of the Year) and the double-brother team consisting of Jacob & Jordan Davis with Josh & Matt Jenkins (Song of the Year). Gorley was also crowned the organization’s Songwriter of the Decade.
Taylor Swift performing “All Too Well (10 Minute Version).” Photo: Jason Davis for NSAI
At the end of the night, it became clear that the sold-out crowd was there to see Taylor Swift win Songwriter/Artist of the Decade. The superstar was greeted by a shrieking standing ovation and repeated shouts during her speech. Then, the Swifties sang along with every word of her Grammy-nominated, 10-minute opus “All Too Well.”
The show was hosted by the NSAI’s Bart Herbison, Jennifer Turnbow, Lindsay Glover and board president Steve Bogard. The event began with West and CCM artist Anne Wilson performing “Me on Your Mind” (West/Wilson/Jeff Pardo). West’s win was only the second time in the NSAI’s 33-year awarding history that the honor has gone to a Christian-music artist.
“It is an understatement to say how humbled I am before this audience of songwriters,” he said. “Who am I that God has blessed me so much?”
The celebration of Gorley’s songwriting began with Parmalee doing “Take My Name” (Gorley/Matt Thomas/David Fanning/Ben Johnson) and Hardy singing “Give Heaven Some Hell” (Gorley/Hardy/Johnson/Hunter Phelps). Then Bogard presented the President’s Keystone Award to Sony Music Publishing’s Jon Platt. The executive gave $500,00 to aid the songwriting community during the pandemic. In his honor, Little Big Town performed the touching “Rich Man,” penned by the group’s Jimi Westbrook.
Song of the Year winners Jordan Davis, Jacob Davis, Matt Jenkins and Josh Jenkins accept their award. Photo: Jason Davis for NSAI
One of the NSAI’s annual traditions is to salute the “10 Songs I Wish I’d Written,” as voted on by its songwriter members. Songwriters Matt McGinn, Jenn Schott and Nathan Spicer sang their co-written “7500 OBO” (recorded by Tim McGraw) as the first of these 10 tunes. Nashville pop artist Gayle rocked out on her hit “ABCDEFU,” co-written by her with Sara Davis and Dave Pittenger. Sam Hunt sang “23” along with his co-writers Chris LaCorte and Josh Osborne (collaborator Shane McAnally was absent).
Alana Springsteen sang the Chris Stapleton hit “You Should Probably Leave” (Stapleton/Gorley/Chris DuBois). The delightfully goofy phenom “Fancy Like” was sung by its writers Walker Hayes, Shane Stevens, Josh Jenkins and Cameron “Cambo” Bartolini (who broke out a kazoo). The Kenny Chesney hit “Knowing You” was performed by its creators, Brett James, Kat Higgins and Adam James.
Garth Brooks accepting the Kris Kristofferson Lifetime Achievement Award. Photo: Jason Davis for NSAI
Trisha Yearwood took the stage to present hubby Garth with his Lifetime Achievement award. “This is really fitting, because it honors what he cherishes most, the songwriter,” she said. “No one will ever deserve this honor more….a poet, a good man, a song’s best friend and my best friend, Garth Brooks.”
Pat Alger sang their co-written “The Thunder Rolls.” Kent Blazy did “Ain’t Goin’ Down,” which he and Brooks co-wrote with Kim Williams. Tony Arata sang his own “The Dance.” Luke Combs performed “The Beaches of Cheyenne” (Brooks/Bryan Kennedy/Dan Roberts).
“Songwriters—there are no bigger dreamers on the planet,” said Brooks in accepting his honor. “There is nobody more important to music than the songwriter.” Turning to Yearwood, he added, “You are the greatest award I ever got to hold.”
The 10-songs countdown continued with the Morgan Wallen hit “Sand In My Boots” (Gorley/Hardy/Osborne), performed by Larry Fleet. Each of these performances was accompanied by a video interview with its writers explaining how the song came to be. “Half of My Hometown” was sung by Kelsea Ballerini, Nicolle Galyon and Jimmy Robbins, who wrote the song with McAnally and Ross Copperman. The sister duo Tigirlily did “Never Wanted to Be That Girl” (McAnally/Ashley McBryde/Carly Pearce). Co-writers Matt Rogers and Ben Stennis sang their Cody Johnson hit “’Til You Can’t.”
There was a tie in the voting, so the 11th song of the “10 Songs I Wish I’d Written” was “Things a Man Oughta Know.” It was performed by Jonathan Singleton, who co-wrote it with Lainey Wilson and Jason Nix. The NSAI’s Song of the Year was “Buy Dirt,” sung by Jordan Davis, Jacob Davis, Josh Jenkins and Matt Jenkins. “This song has been a life changer for me,” said Jordan Davis, who recorded it with Luke Bryan.
Ashley Gorley, Songwriter of the Decade and 2022 Songwriter of the Year in the audience. Photo: Savannah Grimm for NSAI
The NSAI’s previous Songwriter of the Decade was Craig Wiseman (2000-2009). “I am here tonight to pass the torch,” he said, citing the fact that Ashley Gorley has written 63 No. 1 hits. Thomas Rhett sang “What’s Your Country Song” (Rhett/Gorley/Jesse Frasure/Rhett Akins/Parker Welling). Then Johnson, Phelps and Wyatt McCubbin sang a five-song medley of Gorley’s hits. Babyface crooned Rhett’s hit “Unforgettable” (Gorley/Rhett/Frasure/McAnally) and gave a well-deserved shout-out to the house band featuring lead guitarist Colin Linden.
“What a strange dream,” marveled Gorley. “I don’t know what’s going on. I’m blown away. You all make me feel special. A wild ride it’s been.
“Ten years is a long time,” added the Songwriter of the Decade honoree. “But it’s not as long as 11 years, which is how long I was in Nashville before I had a hit on the radio. And I’m grateful for those years, because it teaches you how hard it is.
“Being a part of a community with people like me, you feel like you’re part of a family…. It’s a huge deal to have somebody believe in you. I am very, very honored. You really, really made me feel loved tonight.”
Jon Platt, Sony Music Publishing Chairman and CEO, watching on as Little Big Town performed “Rich Man” in honor of him receiving the President’s Keystone Award. Photo: Savannah Grimm for NSAI
Pandemonium broke out when Swift was introduced as the Songwriter/Artist of the Decade. “For me, tonight is brimming with camaraderie,” she began. “This is an award that celebrates my family, my co-writers, my team and my fiercest friends. When it comes to songwriting and my life, they are one and the same.”
Swift recalled her teen years on Music Row, learning to write, and thanked the Nashville songwriting community for its generosity toward her 15 years ago. She described her categorization of her songs as “quill lyrics,” “fountain-pen lyrics” and “glitter-gel pen lyrics,” and cited mega-hit examples of each writing style.
“I love doing this,” Swift added. “Writing songs is a calling. I’d still be doing it if I’d never been recognized for it.”
With just her acoustic guitar for accompaniment, she moved to the center-stage mic and delivered “All Too Well” (Swift/Liz Rose). The audience stood and enthusiastically sang/shouted the song with/to her to climax the marathon night of music.
Bobby Bones Signs With UTA
/by Lorie HollabaughBobby Bones. Photo: Courtesy of The GreenRoom
Radio and TV personality Bobby Bones has signed with UTA for representation. The company will help Bones continue to build on his career across several verticals, including radio, television, touring, and books.
Bones serves as host of the award-winning, nationally syndicated iHeartRadio Bobby Bones Show, which broadcasts to 185 stations and is the No. 1 morning show in the country category with millions of monthly listeners. His work on the show resulted in Bones becoming the youngest-ever inductee into the National Radio Hall of Fame.
On the TV side, Bones currently serves as host of the USA Network competition series, Snake in the Grass. He has previously been host and executive producer for the National Geographic series, Breaking Bobby Bones, as well as Opry, which features exclusive highlights from the Grand Ole Opry stage each week. Additionally, he’s served as an in-house mentor on ABC’s American Idol for four seasons, and was crowned champion of Dancing with The Stars’ 27th season.
As an author, Bones is a two-time New York Times No. 1 best-seller following the success of his books Bare Bones and Fail Until You Don’t: Fight. Grind. Repeat. Bones also recently wrote his first-ever children’s book, Stanley the Dog: The First Day of School.
The multi-hyphenate personality also founded the Nashville Podcast Network, a collection of podcasts providing listeners with an inside look at Nashville’s lifestyle and pop culture, which is home to his popular BobbyCast that currently has over 20 million downloads. An avid sports fan, Bones also recently launched 25 Whistles with Bobby Bones (A Football Podcast), a 25-episode series focused on college and NFL football.
Bones is also an avid philanthropist, giving back to communities through various avenues, including helping raise over $16 million for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital; leading efforts for a range of causes, including natural disaster relief, COVID-19, frontline workers, veteran care and support, and more; and partnering with Purina to bring awareness to the benefits of service dogs in helping veterans with PTSD and other post-combat challenges.
Bones will continue to be represented by Red Light Management and The GreenRoom PR.
NSAI Honors Songwriters At Ryman Marathon
/by Robert K OermannDecade honorees Taylor Swift (Songwriter-Artist of the Decade) and Ashley Gorley (Songwriter of the Decade) pictured on the red carpet. Photo: Savannah Grimm for NSAI
The annual Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) songwriter awards honored nearly 40 writers Tuesday evening (Sept. 20) during a four-hour extravaganza staged at the Ryman Auditorium.
Major awards were given to Matthew West (Songwriter/Artist of the Year), Garth Brooks (Kris Kristofferson Lifetime Achievement Award), Ashley Gorley (Songwriter of the Year) and the double-brother team consisting of Jacob & Jordan Davis with Josh & Matt Jenkins (Song of the Year). Gorley was also crowned the organization’s Songwriter of the Decade.
Taylor Swift performing “All Too Well (10 Minute Version).” Photo: Jason Davis for NSAI
At the end of the night, it became clear that the sold-out crowd was there to see Taylor Swift win Songwriter/Artist of the Decade. The superstar was greeted by a shrieking standing ovation and repeated shouts during her speech. Then, the Swifties sang along with every word of her Grammy-nominated, 10-minute opus “All Too Well.”
The show was hosted by the NSAI’s Bart Herbison, Jennifer Turnbow, Lindsay Glover and board president Steve Bogard. The event began with West and CCM artist Anne Wilson performing “Me on Your Mind” (West/Wilson/Jeff Pardo). West’s win was only the second time in the NSAI’s 33-year awarding history that the honor has gone to a Christian-music artist.
“It is an understatement to say how humbled I am before this audience of songwriters,” he said. “Who am I that God has blessed me so much?”
The celebration of Gorley’s songwriting began with Parmalee doing “Take My Name” (Gorley/Matt Thomas/David Fanning/Ben Johnson) and Hardy singing “Give Heaven Some Hell” (Gorley/Hardy/Johnson/Hunter Phelps). Then Bogard presented the President’s Keystone Award to Sony Music Publishing’s Jon Platt. The executive gave $500,00 to aid the songwriting community during the pandemic. In his honor, Little Big Town performed the touching “Rich Man,” penned by the group’s Jimi Westbrook.
Song of the Year winners Jordan Davis, Jacob Davis, Matt Jenkins and Josh Jenkins accept their award. Photo: Jason Davis for NSAI
One of the NSAI’s annual traditions is to salute the “10 Songs I Wish I’d Written,” as voted on by its songwriter members. Songwriters Matt McGinn, Jenn Schott and Nathan Spicer sang their co-written “7500 OBO” (recorded by Tim McGraw) as the first of these 10 tunes. Nashville pop artist Gayle rocked out on her hit “ABCDEFU,” co-written by her with Sara Davis and Dave Pittenger. Sam Hunt sang “23” along with his co-writers Chris LaCorte and Josh Osborne (collaborator Shane McAnally was absent).
Alana Springsteen sang the Chris Stapleton hit “You Should Probably Leave” (Stapleton/Gorley/Chris DuBois). The delightfully goofy phenom “Fancy Like” was sung by its writers Walker Hayes, Shane Stevens, Josh Jenkins and Cameron “Cambo” Bartolini (who broke out a kazoo). The Kenny Chesney hit “Knowing You” was performed by its creators, Brett James, Kat Higgins and Adam James.
Garth Brooks accepting the Kris Kristofferson Lifetime Achievement Award. Photo: Jason Davis for NSAI
Trisha Yearwood took the stage to present hubby Garth with his Lifetime Achievement award. “This is really fitting, because it honors what he cherishes most, the songwriter,” she said. “No one will ever deserve this honor more….a poet, a good man, a song’s best friend and my best friend, Garth Brooks.”
Pat Alger sang their co-written “The Thunder Rolls.” Kent Blazy did “Ain’t Goin’ Down,” which he and Brooks co-wrote with Kim Williams. Tony Arata sang his own “The Dance.” Luke Combs performed “The Beaches of Cheyenne” (Brooks/Bryan Kennedy/Dan Roberts).
“Songwriters—there are no bigger dreamers on the planet,” said Brooks in accepting his honor. “There is nobody more important to music than the songwriter.” Turning to Yearwood, he added, “You are the greatest award I ever got to hold.”
The 10-songs countdown continued with the Morgan Wallen hit “Sand In My Boots” (Gorley/Hardy/Osborne), performed by Larry Fleet. Each of these performances was accompanied by a video interview with its writers explaining how the song came to be. “Half of My Hometown” was sung by Kelsea Ballerini, Nicolle Galyon and Jimmy Robbins, who wrote the song with McAnally and Ross Copperman. The sister duo Tigirlily did “Never Wanted to Be That Girl” (McAnally/Ashley McBryde/Carly Pearce). Co-writers Matt Rogers and Ben Stennis sang their Cody Johnson hit “’Til You Can’t.”
There was a tie in the voting, so the 11th song of the “10 Songs I Wish I’d Written” was “Things a Man Oughta Know.” It was performed by Jonathan Singleton, who co-wrote it with Lainey Wilson and Jason Nix. The NSAI’s Song of the Year was “Buy Dirt,” sung by Jordan Davis, Jacob Davis, Josh Jenkins and Matt Jenkins. “This song has been a life changer for me,” said Jordan Davis, who recorded it with Luke Bryan.
Ashley Gorley, Songwriter of the Decade and 2022 Songwriter of the Year in the audience. Photo: Savannah Grimm for NSAI
The NSAI’s previous Songwriter of the Decade was Craig Wiseman (2000-2009). “I am here tonight to pass the torch,” he said, citing the fact that Ashley Gorley has written 63 No. 1 hits. Thomas Rhett sang “What’s Your Country Song” (Rhett/Gorley/Jesse Frasure/Rhett Akins/Parker Welling). Then Johnson, Phelps and Wyatt McCubbin sang a five-song medley of Gorley’s hits. Babyface crooned Rhett’s hit “Unforgettable” (Gorley/Rhett/Frasure/McAnally) and gave a well-deserved shout-out to the house band featuring lead guitarist Colin Linden.
“What a strange dream,” marveled Gorley. “I don’t know what’s going on. I’m blown away. You all make me feel special. A wild ride it’s been.
“Ten years is a long time,” added the Songwriter of the Decade honoree. “But it’s not as long as 11 years, which is how long I was in Nashville before I had a hit on the radio. And I’m grateful for those years, because it teaches you how hard it is.
“Being a part of a community with people like me, you feel like you’re part of a family…. It’s a huge deal to have somebody believe in you. I am very, very honored. You really, really made me feel loved tonight.”
Jon Platt, Sony Music Publishing Chairman and CEO, watching on as Little Big Town performed “Rich Man” in honor of him receiving the President’s Keystone Award. Photo: Savannah Grimm for NSAI
Pandemonium broke out when Swift was introduced as the Songwriter/Artist of the Decade. “For me, tonight is brimming with camaraderie,” she began. “This is an award that celebrates my family, my co-writers, my team and my fiercest friends. When it comes to songwriting and my life, they are one and the same.”
Swift recalled her teen years on Music Row, learning to write, and thanked the Nashville songwriting community for its generosity toward her 15 years ago. She described her categorization of her songs as “quill lyrics,” “fountain-pen lyrics” and “glitter-gel pen lyrics,” and cited mega-hit examples of each writing style.
“I love doing this,” Swift added. “Writing songs is a calling. I’d still be doing it if I’d never been recognized for it.”
With just her acoustic guitar for accompaniment, she moved to the center-stage mic and delivered “All Too Well” (Swift/Liz Rose). The audience stood and enthusiastically sang/shouted the song with/to her to climax the marathon night of music.
Gatlinburg Songwriters Festival Doubles Attendance In Successful Second Year
/by Lorie HollabaughLarry Gatlin performs during the 2022 Gatlinburg Songwriters Festival on Aug. 20, 2022. Photo: R. Diamond/Getty Images
The second annual Gatlinburg Songwriters Festival 2022, which took place Aug. 18-21, wrapped with a successful event that saw doubled attendance, more stages, and new panels and professional writing sessions.
Nestled in the heart of The Great Smoky Mountains, the three-day conference and music event featured a variety of talent spanning multiple genres, and included more than 25 No. 1 hit writers and 60 selected songwriters. Highlights from this year’s festival included the opening night celebration at Ober Gatlinburg with the induction of the late multi-award-winning hit songwriter Kim Williams into the Gatlinburg Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Brady Seals shares the stage with guitarist, Andrew “Ziggy” Zendejas during his release party at Ober Gatlinburg. Photo: Jack Boucher
Brady Seals of Little Texas wowed concert-goers as he performed a full-band show and release party. The entertainer played his current single, “Farm Boy,” as well as his recent remake of the ’70s smash hit “I’d Really Love To See You Tonight,” and more.
The special Legends of Bluegrass show at Ole Smoky featured Jerry Salley, Irene Kelley, Carl Jackson, and Thom Jutz. On Saturday night, attendees were treated to “An Intimate Evening with Larry Gatlin,” who performed a string of hits he’s written during his four-decade career. Also on the show were Tommy “C. Thomas” Howell, and Onoleigh.
In addition to these events, the weekend was filled with performances from top songwriters including Shane Stevens, Tony Arata, Danny Wells, Steve Dean, Will Nance, and more.
“This year far exceeded our expectations,” notes Cara Hogan, Executive Director of The Gatlinburg Songwriters Festival. “We’ve already received a tremendous amount of positive feedback including repeated compliments from attendees about how much fun they had, that the connections they made were invaluable, how unique the event is, and that they are already looking forward to next year. We expect 2023 to be even bigger and better!”
The 2023 Gatlinburg Songwriters Festival will take over The Great Smoky Mountains from Aug. 17-20.
Jerry Salley & Carl Jackson perform at Ole Smoky. Photo: Rick Diamond
Matthew West Wins Big At 2022 ASCAP Christian Music Awards
/by Liza AndersonMatthew West. Photo: Sean Hagwell.
ASCAP is holding its 44th annual Christian Music Awards today (Sept. 21) across all social media platforms. The event celebrates the past year’s most performed ASCAP Christian songs, and the awards feature exclusive photos, performances and interviews from some of the winning songwriters and publishers posted with the hashtag #ASCAPAwards on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Singer-songwriter Matthew West clinched the ASCAP Christian Songwriter of the Year for the fifth time, recognizing his work on hits “Look What You’ve Done,” “My Jesus,” “Scars in Heaven,” “Weary Traveler” and “What If.” Co-written by West, “My Jesus” has been named the Christian Song of the Year. The debut single from artist Anne Wilson topped both the Christian Airplay and Hot Christian Songs charts. The track was also nominated for Top Christian Song at the 2022 Billboard Music Awards.
For the 20th consecutive year, Capitol CMG Publishing claims the title of ASCAP Christian Music Publisher of the Year for songs such as “Be Alright,” “Child of Love,” “In the House,” “Next to Me” and more. The Capitol CMG publishing team will come together to celebrate the honor and accept the award on an ASCAP social media-shared video.
Additionally, the virtual ceremony will present an exclusive video performance by David Spencer of “In Jesus Name (God of Possible),” his hit song for Katy Nichole. Blessing Offor and Sam Ellis will tell the story behind the award-winning “Brighter Days,” and Jordan St. Cyr and co-writer A.J. Prius will explain how they created “Weary Traveler” with West.
For the full list of ASCAP Christian Music Awards winners, click here.
Rachel Fontenot Exits UMG Nashville
/by Sherod RobertsonRachel Fontenot
UMG Nashville Vice President of Marketing & Artist Development, Rachel Fontenot, will exit her post at the end of this month to pursue new opportunities. Her last official day set for Sept. 30, 2022 .
She was promoted to her current position at Universal Music Group Nashville in 2020. In this role, she lead the artist projects and development team while continuing to oversee her roster.
Fontenot initially joined UMG Nashville in 2019 to oversee day-to-day artist development and marketing efforts for Lauren Alaina, Gary Allan, Eric Church, Vince Gill, Sam Hunt, Brandon Lay, Parker McCollum, Kylie Morgan, Jon Pardi, Shania Twain, Brothers Osborne and others.
Fontenot began her career with BMG Nashville and held several positions within the company including production, sales, artist development and marketing. She served as Director of Marketing at Sony BMG where she oversaw the marketing campaigns and international marketing efforts for the entire Sony Music Nashville roster. Fontenot also launched her own artist consulting firm in 2017 where she focused on marketing strategy and artist development while maximizing her well-established relationships with record labels, artists and managers.
Fontenot can be reached at rachel.fontenot@comcast.net.
Chris Tomlin, Crowder, Phil Wickham, More To Perform On GMA Dove Awards
/by Lorie HollabaughThe Gospel Music Association has announced the first round of artists performing on the upcoming 53rd Annual GMA Dove Awards on Oct. 18 at Nashville’s Allen Arena.
Erica Campbell, Jekalyn Carr, Crowder, Chris Tomlin, Phil Wickham, and Gateway Worship Español featuring Daniel Calveti, Becky Collazos, Christine D’Clario and Josh Morales have all been tapped to perform on the awards, which will air exclusively on TBN and the TBN app on Oct. 21, with an encore presentation on Oct. 28.
The sold-out event will be hosted by multi-chart toppers and award-winning superstars Erica Campbell and Chris Tomlin.
Further details, including more performers and presenters, will be announced in the coming weeks.
CMT To Honor Luke Combs, Carly Pearce, More At 2022 Artists Of The Year Celebration
/by Lydia FarthingCMT has revealed the country stars slated to be honored at its 2022 CMT Artists of the Year celebration held at Nashville’s Schermerhorn Symphony Center and premiering Oct. 14 at 8 p.m. CT on CMT.
Among them are Carly Pearce, Cody Johnson, Kane Brown, Luke Combs and Walker Hayes, who collectively dominated the last 12 months in country music by notching chart-topping albums and singles, and giving performances that entertain and inspire their millions of fans. Pearce, Johnson and Hayes will celebrate their first time as honorees for their outstanding achievements, while Brown and Combs will each nab their third evening of honors (2019, 2021 & 2022).
Margaret Comeaux, CMT’s Senior Vice President of Production, Music & Events notes, “We are honored to recognize the astounding achievements of this illustrious group of artists over the past year. Carly, Cody, Kane, Luke and Walker all represent the vibrant future of the country music format, as they defy convention and blaze new trails, breaking industry records and genre barriers. We can’t wait to celebrate their extraordinary accomplishments alongside their fellow artists and friends.
The 90-minute special will feature some of music’s biggest stars celebrating the group of honorees with performances, collaborations and congratulatory moments.
Musical pairings, special guests, additional honorees, performers and presenters will be announced in the coming weeks.
SOLID Celebrates Its 25-Year Legacy Of Community-Building & Giving Back On Music Row [Interview]
/by LB CantrellPhoto: Courtesy of SOLID
In 1997, a small group of rising music industry professionals in Nashville started the Society of Leaders In Development, or SOLID.
The goal of SOLID was to develop a community for its membership that combined social networking with community service and educational opportunities. The ideal membership for such an organization was to be entry to mid-level industry professionals who may not have the resources or opportunities to belong to other organizations in the music industry, such as Leadership Music or the CMA Board.
25 years later, SOLID has become a vibrant organization for future leaders of the music industry. Through its community-building events, educational opportunities and philanthropic efforts, SOLID has continued its mission to improve the future of Music Row.
In addition to general organization and committee meetings, SOLID brings industry members together for events such as happy hours, the annual crawfish boil, writer’s rounds, and other networking opportunities.
To honor its tenant of education, SOLID holds Q&A sessions with industry leaders and panels focused on issues facing the community. It also facilitates mentorship opportunities for members to mentor students, as well as opportunities to be mentored by other industry professionals.
Photo: Courtesy of SOLID
With community service as another key point of its mission, SOLID creates a multitude of ways for members to serve the community. Whether it be by its Music Row Madness fundraiser or by smaller initiatives, it’s clear that the organization sees investing in the community as paramount. In the last 25 years, SOLID has raised over $1,000,000 for other industry non-profits.
Members of SOLID come from all areas of the music business community, therefore contributing to the diversity, productivity and integrity of the group. The organization’s board of directors is continually adapting to meet the changing needs of their membership, working tirelessly to fulfill SOLID’s mission of helping, teaching and leading others.
To celebrate SOLID’s 25th anniversary, the organization will hold a gala on Thursday (Sept. 22). Ahead of the gala, SOLID President and Director of Publicity at Elicity Public Relations, Avery King, spoke to MusicRow about her experience with the organization.
Photo: Courtesy of SOLID
“When I first got started in the music industry, I was trying to network with as many people as I possibly could, and after taking countless meetings—I discovered that the common denominator between so many of the professionals I was meeting with was SOLID,” shares King.
After being encouraged by Elicity’s Elise Anderson to join the organization, King applied and was accepted in 2016. She spent two years leading SOLID’s communications committee before becoming Vice President in 2020 and President the following year.
“I would contribute the majority of my professional growth to SOLID because of the amount of people I have been able to connect and build relationships with,” King explains. “Most of these relationships have developed to be very meaningful friendships and are not just relationships that check a box of ‘networking.’ I’ve gotten the chance to meet hundreds of people that are all spending their free time wanting to grow within their careers—through our membership and also through our board.
“SOLID stands for the Society of Leaders in Development, and that couldn’t be a more accurate representation of what happens when you get involved with such a powerful group,” she adds.
Photo: Courtesy of SOLID
When looking back on the growth and achievements SOLID has seen over the last 25 years, King says that honoring the legacy of the organization is of the utmost importance.
“I believe that the legacy of SOLID is what it stands for: Society of Leaders in Development. Everyone is involved in SOLID for similar reasons—to expand their knowledge within the industry with people from all sides and to develop their own skills and leadership styles. We are all the leaders in development and our founders really thought through the name when they created the organization in 1997.
“In fact, we kicked off this year by hearing from our founding members during our new member retreat,” King adds. “They spoke to the fact that they couldn’t have ever imagined SOLID accomplishing all that we’ve been able to achieve. What started as a handful of people getting together to talk about what they wanted to accomplish within the music industry has now turned into over a thousand current members and alumni. That network has helped us grow year after year in our programming.
“To be in the 25th year and be able to say SOLID has raised over a million dollars for other nonprofits is something that they couldn’t have ever imagined.”
Reba Gears Up For ‘Big Sky’ Debut With TV Appearances
/by Lorie HollabaughReba McEntire is gearing up for her debut on ABC’s drama Big Sky: Deadly Trails this week with multiple national TV appearances.
Big Sky: Deadly Trails airs tomorrow (Sept. 21) at 9 p.m. CT, but McEntire kicked things off today with an appearance on Good Morning America to chat about the new show. Fans can also catch the country starlet on Late Night with Seth Meyers tonight (11:35 p.m. CT) and on LIVE with Kelly and Ryan Thursday, Sept. 22 (9 a.m. local time).
No stranger to the stage and screen, the Oklahoma native and Golden Globe-nominated actress has 11 movie credits to her name, a lead role on Broadway in Irving Berlin’s Annie Get Your Gun, and six-seasons in the TV sitcom Reba.
McEntire was named the first female and musician to portray KFC’s iconic founder Colonel Harland Sanders in their celebrity colonel campaign, and recently announced The Hammer, a Lifetime movie starring and executive produced by the superstar, set to release in 2023.
In addition to her role on Big Sky this fall, McEntire is kicking off her “Reba Live In Concert” trek on Oct. 13 in Lafayette, Louisiana.
Breland Will Head Cross Country On His ‘Here For It Tour’ This Fall
/by Liza AndersonBreland. Photo: Jimmy Fontaine.
Platinum-selling artist Breland has announced his fall headline “Here For It Tour,” which will start in Oxford, Ohio on Nov. 16, and continue throughout December with more dates to come.
This announcement follows the CMA Award nominee’s release of his debut album, Cross Country, via Bad Realm Records, Atlantic Records and Warner Music Nashville.
Breland fans can get their tickets early starting tomorrow (Sept. 21) at 10 a.m. CT through Thursday, Sept. 22. Tickets will open to the public on Friday, Sept. 23 at 10 a.m. CT on brelandmusic.com.
Breland’s debut single, “For What It’s Worth,” written by Breland, Rocky Block, Jacob Durrett and Greylan James, will hit country radio on Oct. 17. This release follows his feature on Dierks Bentley’s No. 1, Gold-certified collaboration “Beers On Me” with Hardy.