Growing up in a middle class family just outside of Houston, Texas, Carlton Anderson watched his father, and plenty of others in the community work in “black gold,” the oil rigs. Anderson even tried his own hand at it.

“I did that just long enough to know it wasn’t what I wanted to do,” says Anderson. “I did a lot of odd jobs before picking up a guitar.”

Blessed with a talent for songwriting and a confident baritone, Anderson played in honkytonk bars around Texas, mixing originals with songs made famous by his heroes such as George Strait, Willie Nelson, and Alan Jackson. Soon knew he had a choice to make.

Instead of following his father into the oil business, Anderson enrolled in Belmont University’s music business program in Nashville. He became the first in his family to graduate college.

Along the way, he auditioned for The Voice, but didn’t make the final cut for the televised portion of the audition, for which he is now grateful.

“It got to the last 100 people and then all the teams filled up, but that was a blessing in disguise.”

Meanwhile, he was also knocking on doors around Music City.

 

 

“As a songwriter, you are used to being told ‘no’ before you are told ‘yes,’” he says. “I think I got told no by every publishing company in this town before Warner/Chappell said ‘yes’ in 2015.”

It didn’t take long for others in Nashville’s music community to take note of the warm Texas twang in Anderson’s baritone voice, and his throwback country sound.

Earlier this year, it was announced Anderson had joined Sony Music Nashville’s Arista Nashville imprint. He is managed by Morris Higham’s Robert Filhart and is aligned with ASCAP.

Anderson also earned his first official cut as a writer, having co-written “Where Cowboys Are King,” a track on Cody Johnson’s upcoming debut album for WMN, Ain’t Nothin’ To It.

During a visit to the MusicRow Magazine office, Anderson poured his own Texas-to-Tennessee story into the track “Raised,” penned with Trent Willmon and Phil O’Donnell.

He also offered his debut major label single, “Drop Everything,” penned by Rhett Akins, Matt Dragstrem, and Ashley Gorley. He penned another track, “Keep Abilene Beautiful,” with Tony Lane and Tom Douglas.

“It’s amazing to get into rooms with songwriters who are my heroes,” Anderson says. “I remember as a kid, thinking that George Strait was writing all this stuff, like a typical fan. I’ve been very blessed to write with some of these guys.”

 

Mary Ann McCready, co-founder of FBMM (Flood, Bumstead, McCready & McCarthy), has been honored with Variety’s 2018 Business Managers Elite Award. The Business Managers Elite Award honors business leaders and recognizes professional success, a high level of commitment to the community, and a strong involvement in philanthropic efforts. McCready is the first woman and first person outside of Los Angeles and New York to be honored with this award.

“This is a well-deserved honor for Mary Ann, and all of us at FBMM are extremely proud of her,” said Frank Bumstead, FBMM co-founder. “Her genuine passion for our clients and those in the community is evident in everything she does. She has left an indelible mark on Music City, and she continues to be a force in the industry.”

Her distinguished career includes becoming the first female vice president of national sales at CBS Records, and being the first female recipient of the CMA President’s Award. She is also an inaugural member of the Country Music Hall of Fame’s Circle Guard, among other honors.

McCready is heavily involved in the Nashville community as well. She was the first co-chairperson of the Music City Music Council and has served as a longtime trustee, finance committee member and investment committee chairwoman for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. She was at the forefront of the establishment of the CMA’s Horizon Award, and she also dedicates her time to the community as an Advisory Council member for the W.O. Smith Community Music School, among other organizations.

On Tuesday (Nov. 27), as the top-played country artist on the Pandora platform, Jason Aldean headlined a celebration concert in Nashville. He was also surprised with a Billionaire plaque, commemorating billions of airings of his music on the Pandora platform.

Steven Lee Olsen, known for penning hits including Keith Urban’s “Blue Ain’t Your Color,” opened the show.

“In the last year, Pandora has served up billions of listening hours for country music,” said Jeff Zuchowski, Vice President of Artist Marketing and Industry Relations at Pandora. “Jason Aldean fans have contributed to many of those hours and we’re thrilled to have him be part of Backroads along with Steven Lee Olsen, giving our loyal country fans an opportunity to experience them live.”

“It’s cool to get to play shows like this where you know the fans are all going to be some of the biggest out there” stated Jason Aldean. “We’re looking forward to having a chance to thank them for all their support.”

In April 2018, Aldean became the first of only three country artists to have their album debut at No. 1 on the overall Top 200 albums chart this year–the feat marked Aldean’s fourth consecutive album debut at the peak of the Top 200. Rearview Town, released on April 13 via Macon/Broken Bow Records, earned 183,000 equivalent album units during its debut week, according to Nielsen Music, of which 162,000 were in traditional album sales. Aldean is the reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year, and earned four CMA nominations in 2018.