Chris Kappy
The “My Music Row Story” weekly column features notable members of the Nashville music industry selected by the MusicRow editorial team. These individuals serve in key roles that help advance and promote the success of our industry. This column spotlights the invaluable people that keep the wheels rolling and the music playing.
This edition of “My Music Row Story” is sponsored by Worldwide Stages.
Chris Kappy is the founder and owner of management company Make Wake Artists, and is in his sixth year as manager for superstar Luke Combs. During that time, he has grown the Make Wake roster by adding the talents of Niko Moon, Hailey Whitters, Drew Parker, Flatland Cavalry, Jackie Lee, Tyler Dial, Red Shahan, The Panhandlers and Keller Cox.
MusicRow: Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Stone Mountain, Georgia. I was born in Texas and lived there for two years. We moved to St. Louis and lived there for two years. My dad worked for the airlines. We moved to Georgia when I was five so I grew up in Stone Mountain.
I ended up going to Georgia State University. It was a commuter school then, now it’s a traditional campus. That’s where my love for music started. I grew up in a household of music. My mom was a big believer in The Temptations, the Four Tops, Otis Redding, and Gladys Knight. My dad listened to big band music. As I was coming up, I was listening to pop radio. Z-93 and 96 Rock out of Atlanta were the stations I was listening to.
Pictured (L-R): Kappy, Luke Combs, Niko Moon
What got you interested in country music?
I met a girl in college that introduced me to the band BlackHawk, and I was like, “What is this magic?” The harmonies were insane. “Goodbye Says It All” was the first song of their’s I ever heard. Then I started digging into country music and I really fell in love with bands like Shenandoah, Diamond Rio, and Little Texas. That’s the world I got into as I was listening to everything from Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Hootie and The Blowfish, and Sister Hazel. I fell in love with country.
How did you get into the music business?
In 2000 I was working in IT selling web hosting and stuff like that. I was killing it, I was doing very well for myself for my late twenties. A good friend of mine, Andy Levine, said, “You should come work for me. We’re gonna do this thing called The Rock Boat where we put bands on a cruise ship and go out to sea with their fans. I’ll pay you a third of what you’re making now, but you’ll be in the music business.” I was like, “Man, that’s a great idea. I should do this.” And I did. I quit my job and I went to go work for Andy. That started a 15-year relationship with bands and their fans on a cruise ship in the ocean.
Sister Hazel was the catalyst. They were my college band that I fell in love with. I would travel to go see them play anywhere and everywhere. To this day, I still am very close with all the guys in the band. We’re all very good friends and I still love their music. I learned from them how important it was to have the relationship with the fan. Their big hit was “All For You.” They had all these unbelievable songs, but they had a relationship with their fans that was beautiful. They cared so much about them and then they created The Rock Boat. From that event, it spawned off to Kiss, John Mayer, Florida Georgia Line, Paramore and 311. So for 15 years, I traveled with rabid fan bases, took 2,500 of their biggest fans on vacation, and essentially gave them a backstage pass for four days in the Caribbean. I thought I had the greatest job in the world.
Pictured (L-R): Kappy, Drew Parker
How did you end up in management?
I was living in Huntington Beach, California when I got a phone call from a buddy of mine named Bradley Jordan. Bradley calls me and says, “You’ve always wanted be a manager your whole life. That’s all you’ve ever talked about and you’re not doing it. You’re in your early forties. If you don’t do this, you’re going to regret it.” I was like, “Man, you’re right.” You have to have a friend like that to be able to tell you that. I packed everything up, broke my lease and moved to Athens, Georgia in November of 2014.
Bradley was [promoting] a Sam Hunt show at the Georgia Theater. This is when Sam was just blowing up. He put the show up for sale on Oct. 31 and it sold out in four minutes. He had me that day as the runner for that show, so I’m driving Brad and Sam all over town. I saw the kind of relationship they had and I was like, “I can do this.” I didn’t know what a point was on an album, I had no idea what a publishing deal was, but I remembered [a conversation I had] on a cruise with Brandi Carlile. Brandi and I had become very good friends and I remember talking to her asking, “Do you think I could do this?” She goes, “Kappy, I don’t even know what points are. I don’t care. You can do this.” That’s what I needed to hear.
[A little while later], I get a phone call and it’s Bradley. He said, “I found your guy. His name is Luke Combs.”
What was your first meeting with Luke like?
[We organized a show for Luke.] He shows up with the band in the van. They unload and start loading in and I meet Luke. He’s a nice guy. They’re starting to soundcheck and I’m like, “This guy can flat out sing!” I got to experience that moment that you have when you see Luke for the first time. The charisma and the passion that he had was there without even being in show mode. The show was awesome. I was like, “This is the guy. I want to manage this guy. I’ve got to get him another show to show him that I have some yank.”
[After another show,] I told him, “I’d like to manage you.” He goes, “What do you know about management?” I said, “Not a lot, but I got you this show. I’ve been around a lot of managers. I know that I can work just as hard as they can. I can be just as passionate as they can. Nobody will out-care me or out-appreciate what you bring to the table and we’ll do this together.”
He said, “Let me go talk to three managers in Nashville.” So he came to talk to three managers here in Nashville and all of them said he was a songwriter. He calls me up and says, “Hey, I met with all three managers.” I said, “What’d they say?” He goes, “You tell me what you want then I’ll tell you what they want.” I was like, “I want you to stand on stage every night and sing your songs, just like you do, and connect with the crowd. I’ll handle everything else.” He goes, “You’re my manager.”
I moved here Sept. 6 of 2016 and we got started.
Pictured: Kappy and Luke Combs embrace after Combs wins the CMA Entertainer of the Year
What was it like when you guys got to Nashville?
Early on I asked Luke what one of his goals were. He’s like, “Man, I drive this piece of crap Dodge Neon. I need a safe car. I don’t know if the brakes are going to work, it doesn’t have AC, and I have to drive this to writes and I hate it because people see me in this and this isn’t indicative of who I am.” I was like, “Alright, I won’t take any commission from you until we can buy you a new car—however long that takes.” I wasn’t rich. I had a small amount in savings and thought things would get going pretty quickly.
So we started and we had no money coming in. We had just enough money to pay the bills and if we didn’t have enough, I would pull money out of my savings to put gas in the van and stuff like that. Soon I am destitute. I have less than $50 to my name. Every night I’m taking the merch bin to the green room and taking all the food and water and stuff that’s left behind and putting it in there so I have something to eat. No one ever knew. Every penny that came in that was left over went into a Maxwell House coffee can that sat on top of Luke’s refrigerator. We would just stack cash in there. We were doing that and I was bleeding my account dry trying to figure it out. I sold stuff and did whatever I could to just make it work. I was driving our Sprinter van everywhere because I [had to sell] my car. I was going to meetings in this giant Sprinter and people were just laughing at me, but I couldn’t let Luke know that.
We saved enough money. We had $15,000 and we bought a 2013 Ford Fusion for him. That next weekend we did a show. We had $500 left over and Luke goes, “I got my car now. Take commission.” It was $75 bucks and I felt like I was Mark Cuban. The very next day we got a phone call that somebody had pulled out of an ATV park show and they were desperate to get somebody, so we got a $10,000 offer. Three days later we got an offer to play a private for a guy whose daughter was graduating high school. He offered us an obscene amount of money. Instantly we made all this money and I was like, “We’re gonna make it.”
Pictured (L-R): Hailey Whitters, Kappy
Now Luke is one of the biggest stars in our format, and you’ve added more artists and team members to your management company. Did you ever see yourself building out Make Wake to what it is now?
Absolutely not. I had no idea that it was going to turn into this. As I sit around my office and see the Niko Moon plaques, and I see the shows for Hailey Whitters, Flatland Cavalry and Drew Parker… I never thought I’d come to town and create a management company that would have 10 artists on the roster and 17 full-time employees. That was never a part of the plan. I have the weight of the careers of our artists on my shoulders and the weight of the employees that I have to take care of for them and their families. I never thought that I would ever have to worry about that stuff.
It doesn’t scare me, it’s just a lot to deal with. I’m lucky I have fantastic people out there that I can call on. I’m the first person to say if I don’t know something. I have great people that I can pick up the phone and call. I talk to either Kerri Edwards, John Peets, Clarence Spalding, or Marion Kraft once a week.
What’s something people might not know about you?
I lost 200 pounds. That’s something people might not know about. I ended up having gastric bypass surgery. I didn’t have good control of my weight, it was an unhealthy relationship. I knew that I needed to get control of it.
I remember being in the hospital after getting it done and being so depressed. I was thinking, “I can’t believe I just had to do this. You were such a loser. You couldn’t get this done.” Then I thought, “No, this is not how you need to be thinking. You just didn’t have a handle on it. You didn’t have control. You needed to get control and you got control.” I’ll see people now who haven’t seen me in forever and they’ll be like, “Woah, I didn’t even recognize you.” I talk about it because I want people to know that there shouldn’t be a stigma around it.
If someone was to ask you what your definition of success was, what would you say?
Being able to shop at Whole Foods without looking at prices. (Laughs)
When you sit with an artist and you’re like, “What are your dreams? What are your passions? What are your goals?,” and you can accomplish those. Some of them are extremely realistic, some of them are over the moon, but if you’re able to do that, that’s success. Seeing an artist on stage, seeing their fans sing their songs back to them—they’re so elated and they come off the stage and they’re like, “They were singing my songs!” That’s it, man. There’s nothing better than that.
Industry Ink: Ghostwriter, Michelle Wright, Demolition Music, Troy Gentry Foundation
/by Lydia FarthingGhostwriter Music Adds Tim Hare As Senior Director Of Sync
Tim Hare
Ghostwriter Music, a production, publishing and sound design company, has added Tim Hare as the organization’s Senior Director of Synch.
In his role, Hare will lead the synch department for advertising and television, work in tandem with internal A&R staff to develop the company’s catalog and artist series, and maintain a strong focus on business development for the entire company. He will split his time between LA and Nashville.
“Tim was brought in to focus on expanding and promoting the Ghostwriter catalog with a focus on TV/Advertising/Trailers,” says Chris Bragg, Founder/CEO of Ghostwriter. “His business development acumen and experience in production music make him a valuable asset to the Ghostwriter family. We’ve often talked about working together someday and finally, we made it happen.”
Hare has worked in the music industry on the creative side as a musician/composer and on the business side for a combined 20 years. Prior to this role, he grew to VP of Business Development for Alibi Music Library and before that worked for Extreme and Sonic Librarian. Hare has also worked in tour production and artist management for Foreigner, Wiz Khalifa, Mac Miller, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers and The Smashing Pumpkins. In 2015, he transitioned to working in Production Music on the Business Development and Synch side while composing many tracks for Sonic Librarian, Megatrax, Flavorlab, and Alibi Music.
Adding to their Los Angeles presence, the company’ opened its second office in Nashville last year. The new middle-Tennessee office contains a mix stage and full post-production capabilities with Bragg and COO Travis Michaud spearheading the location. The Nashville office concentrates on catalog growth and new artist development, while the Los Angeles location remains focused on custom music production.
Michelle Wright Rejoins PLA Media’s Artist Roster
Michelle Wright. Photo: Gina R. Binkley
PLA Media has welcomed back Canadian country artist Michelle Wright to its roster. For the first time in nine years, Wright has a new album on the way via BFD / Audium Nashville titled Milestone.
Wright has been part of the music industry since the ’90s, with PLA Media Founder Pam Lewis helping launch her Now & Then album in 1992. Since their initial time working together, the Merlin, Ontario native has earned multiple awards and a coveted induction into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 2011.
“It is such a timely honor to be reunited with Michelle having worked her seminal CD, Now & Then. She has it all: a strong female role model, looks, talent, well-written songs, good production, smarts and oh…did I mention? She is so nice!” says Lewis.
This summer, fans will find Wright appearing across North America with performances at the Country Music Association of Ontario Week and her return to downtown Nashville for CMA Fest.
Alyssa Smeykal Named A&R Manager At Demolition Music
Alyssa Smeykal
Alyssa Smeykal has joined Demolition Music as A&R Manager. Her responsibilities will include managing the catalog, setting up sessions, and pitching songs.
After graduating with a degree in Advertising from Penn State University in 2017, Smeykal moved to Nashville and landed a job at Bandtwango assisting in artist development. She moved into her role as Assistant Tour and Merchandise Manager for country songwriter and artist Chase Bryant in the spring of 2018. Smeykal spent the next two years on the road, which led her to explore the world of publishing. Soon after, she landed the title of Creative Manager at Liv Write Play where she helped manage the catalogs of Skip Black, Olivia Lane, and Matt Nolen.
“We considered many candidates and Alyssa was the unanimous choice. She has a perfect balance of experience, hunger and a winning attitude that makes her a perfect fit with our team, and will help get our young company to the next level,” says Demolition President, Jon D’Agostino.
“I could not be more excited to start working with such a talented roster at Demolition. This team feels like a big family already, and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with this incredible company,” Smeykal adds.
The Troy Gentry Foundation Celebrates Inaugural “Salute 2 Service” Concert
Pictured (L-R, back row): Dillon Carmichael, Jon Pardi, Matt Chase and Chris Rogers of Southerland; (L-R, front row): Kaylee Gentry, Angie Gentry, Robby Maschhaupt of Operation Wake Surf, Event Host Storme Warren. Photo: Tyler Leaman
The Troy Gentry Foundation recently held its first “Salute 2 Service” concert featuring performances from Jon Pardi, Dillon Carmichael, and Southerland.
The concert took place after a day of wake surfing organized by Operation Wake Surf and powered by Centurion Boats. Gentry’s wife, Angie, presented a $10,000 check to Operation Wake Surf.
“It was an honor to partner with Operation Wake Surf. Troy loved surfing because it was a great way to spend time with his family and he had a huge heart for the military so today was a no brainer for us,” Angie notes. “I am honored to have met everyone that participated and thank them for their service.”
The Troy Gentry Foundation, named after one half of country duo Montgomery Gentry, aims to keep Gentry’s legacy and personal beliefs of “Love God, Love Others” alive after his tragic death in a helicopter crash in 2017. The foundation produces events to raise funds and support various organizations that aid in cancer research, assist military families and families in need, and help provide music education to future generations.
Bobby Karl Works The Room: Grammy Party Showcases Nashville Diversity
/by Bobby KarlPictured (L-R, standing): Chris Fryar, Coy Bowles, John Driskell Hopkins, Jimmy De Martini, Clay Cook, Daniel De Los Reyes, Caroline Jones, Matt Mangano; (L-R, seated): Alicia Warwick, Senior Executive Director, Recording Academy Nashville Chapter, Zac Brown, Ruby Amanfu, Recording Academy Nashville Chapter President. Photo: Courtesy of the Recording Academy / Ed Rode, Getty Images
Bobby Karl Works The Room
Chapter 656
For decades, I have been preaching to folks in L.A. and New York that Nashville is more than country music — if only those folks could have been with me on Tuesday evening (May 17).
That was the date of this year’s Grammy Block Party. This event is always in sync with my testimony, in that it purposefully showcases Music City’s diversity.
Staged at the 6th & Peabody Brewery & Distillery, the party had it all — food, games, dancing, drinks, fellowship and music, music, music. We got there at the perfect time to catch openers The War & Treaty. Put simply, the act’s Michael and Tanya Trotter are two of the most sensational vocalists — of any genre — who reside in our fair city. Their neo-soul pyrotechnics practically burned the place to the ground. By the time they finished their finale “Five More Minutes,” attendees were bopping all over the artificial turf.
Grammy-winning Gramps Morgan was up next. That’s right: Nashville is home to a major star of reggae music. His rhythm-happy set included a cover of Eddy Grant’s “Electric Avenue,” and he worked like crazy to engage the jaded Music Biz crowd.
Pictured: Gayle performs. Photo: Courtesy of the Recording Academy / Frederick Breedon, Getty Images
Current teen-pop “it” girl Gayle favored the party people with her breakthrough smash, “abcdefu.” For most of us, it was our first time to see her in action, and she did not disappoint. Again, this is kind of artist that the outside world would not necessarily associate with the capital of country music. Her full name, by the way, is Taylor Gayle Rutherford, and she is “just 17, you know what I mean/And the way she looked was way beyond compare.”
The left-field country greats of the Zac Brown Band were billed as show closers. Their strikingly original vocal harmony work, stoner vibe and groove-saturated tunes have made them among the most innovative and original groups on the current country scene. The warm late afternoon eased into a balmy evening as they were scheduled to worked their audio magic.
Pictured: The War And Treaty perform. Photo: Courtesy of the Recording Academy / Frederick Breedon, Getty Images
Guests dined on Prince’s Hot Chicken, chips & salsa, hot dogs and/or a build-your-own taco bar that was so generously laid out that you had your choice of chicken, beef or pork with just about any topping you can imagine. The hot chicken was so popular that they ran out after the first 90 minutes.
The venue’s brewery produces Yee-Haw Beer, and and its distillery makes Ole Smoky spirits. We had the latter in a light & lively blackberry-lemonade cocktail topped with lemon wedges.
Grammy logos were everywhere, most conspicuously as two shiny, massive Grammys that flanked the outdoor stage. The indoor stage was manned by a cool deejay.
Working the room(s) were current Recording Academy chapter president Ruby Amanfu, Earle Simmons, Jules Wortman, Frank Liddell, Debbie Carroll, Shane Tarleton, Mike Delevante, Shelly Fairchild, Chandra LaPlume, Fletcher Foster, Susan Stewart, Ronna Rubin, Chuck Ainlay, Dan Keen, Phil Thornton, Bobby Cudd, Daniel Hill, Leslie Fram, Doug & Linda Edell Howard, Jed Hilly, George Flanigen, Beverly Keel, Karen Clark, Alicia Warwick and Eddie Perez of The Mavericks.
Pictured (L-R): Alicia Warwick, Gramps Morgan, Susan Stewart, Managing Director, Recording Academy Songwriters & Composers Wing, Ruby Amanfu, John Loken, Executive Vice President, Marketing, Recording Academy. Photo: Courtesy of the Recording Academy / Ed Rode, Getty Images
Garth Fundis was glowing in the aftermath of that morning’s announcement that the late Keith Whitley has been chosen for induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Fundis produced Whitley’s classics.
I complimented Cody Belew on his recent release, a creative cover of Dolly’s “Here You Come Again.” It turns out, he was over the moon about its review in MusicRow.
Similarly, Chapel Hart were tickled by their MusicRow reviews. I told the trio — sisters Danica Hart & Devynn Hart, and their cousin Trea Swindle — that I was particularly smitten by their sense of humor (“Jesus and Alcohol,” “You Can Have Him Jolene”). “The music business takes itself way too seriously,” quipped Danica. “You have to be able to laugh.”
Newlyweds Jenny Tolman & Dave Brainard are trying to come back to earth. Jenny issued her Married in a Honky Tonk album just before they went to Jackson Hole to tie the knot on March 19, and now she realizes she has to come down off her cloud and get back to work promoting it.
Neal Spielberg is now managing the epic blues vocalist Tracy Nelson. He got her a deal on BMG, and now she’s working on a new album that will feature a duet with Willie Nelson (no relation), harmonies by Dianne Davidson and Vickie Carrico, plus other stellar participants.
Because of the COVID pandemic, the Grammy Block Party has not been held for the past two years. Kudos to the Recording Academy for requiring vax proof for entrance to its comeback event.
Dolly Parton To Star In Special Holiday Film On NBC Later This Year
/by Lydia FarthingDolly Parton. Photo: Rob Hoffman
Dolly Parton will star in a special holiday film, Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas, later this year on NBC.
According the film description, the film depicts the backstage story and on-camera results of Parton’s desire to share the unique “mountain magic” she has always found in and around Dollywood at Christmas. Throughout the production, the country icon takes a private journey into her past, guided by the mysterious appearances of her own personal Three Wise Men. Parton aims to show the world that the real magic of the season lies in the realization that Christmas is about the people we share it with, and how her faith remains the common thread between Christmases past, present, and future.
Parton will write and executive produce with David Rambo and Sam Haskell. Billy Levin and Bobby Kelly will produce while Hudson Hickman will also co-executive produce.
More information is expected to be released in the coming months.
Platform Artists Announces Staff Additions, Strategic Partnership
/by Lorie HollabaughPlatform Artists talent agency has expanded with a new strategic partnership, as well as new staff additions after launching at the height of the pandemic in 2020.
Founded by veteran agents Bryan Myers and Tony Johnsen, Platform Artists has formed a partnership with Emma Yarborough to build the speakers and comedians division for the agency. The company has also hired veteran agent Randy Humphries, booking coordinator Conner Osswald, and company coordinator Heather Jones.
“We could not be more thrilled to announce these new hires,” shares Myers. “Emma comes from a booking, artist management, and touring background and is a true self-starter. She is the perfect person to launch this new division and has already hit the ground running.
“And with Randy Humphries joining our team and bringing his decades of experience in booking Christian music artists, it is an exciting time for our team,” he continues. “We are also announcing coordinators Heather Jones and Conner Osswald. Tony and I are truly honored to give Emma, Randy, Heather, and Conner a new home and affirm the work they have already done in this industry. We see a very bright future ahead for all of us.”
“Platform represents the top artists in the Christian music industry, and I am unbelievably excited and honored to lead this new division representing speakers and comedians,” Yarborough adds. “My passion lies in elevating unique voices to the stage that need to be heard, and I can’t wait to see what is ahead for our artists as we expand into this new territory.”
“I’m excited and grateful to join Platform Artists,” notes Humphries. “We have an amazing roster full of talented artists, and I look forward to continuing to help change hearts and lives through Christian music.”
CMA Fest Unveils Fan Fair X Slate Of Programming
/by Lorie HollabaughFan Fair X is returning in a big way this year following the festival’s two-year hiatus due to the pandemic with plenty of entertainment and fan connection festivities.
The experience will deliver more than 173,000 square feet of air-conditioned fun inside Music City Center daily from June 9-12, with appearances from dozens of artists including Tyler Dial, Everette, Ben Gallaher, Madison Kozak, Miko Marks, Redferrin, Southerland, Jenny Tolman, Twinnie, Kasey Tyndall, and more.
The CMA Close Up Stage will offer fans the chance to interact with their favorite artists via interactive panels, informative presentations, intimate performances and more. Featured Artists of the Day will be Kelsea Ballerini, Luke Bryan, and Chris Tomlin.
Additional highlights include a special conversation and reading of Jimmie Allen‘s first children’s book My Voice is a Trumpet; “Up Close and Personal” with Trisha Yearwood, Lauren Alaina and Caitlyn Smith; “For Love & Country,” an Amazon Music special featuring Breland, Blanco Brown, Shy Carter and Frankie Staton; Brian Kelley and the Castaways; Larry, Steve & Rudy: The Gatlin Brothers – 65+ Years of Music; and more.
Meet-and-greet sessions are first-come, first-served. The full Fan Fair X schedule will be released in the Official CMA Connect App before the end of May. All CMA Fest four-day passes include entry into Fan Fair X.
Fan Fair X tickets are available for purchase now.
Mackenzie Carpenter Signs With The Valory Music Co.
/by Lorie HollabaughPictured (L-R): Big Machine Label Group Chairman, CEO and Founder Scott Borchetta, Mackenzie Carpenter, Valory’s George Briner
Mackenzie Carpenter has signed with The Valory Music Co. Her new single “Can’t Nobody” will be available on all streaming platforms this Friday (May 20).
The 22-year-old Georgia native attended Belmont University, and while there immersed herself in the Nashville songwriting community, which led to her co-writing Lily Rose’s breakthrough “Villain.” On the road Carpenter has opened for Parker McCollum, Craig Campbell, Ryan Hurd, and fellow The Valory Music Co. labelmate Conner Smith, among others.
“In today’s world,” Big Machine Label Group Chairman, CEO and Founder Scott Borchetta says, “it is extremely rare to find a voice–as a songwriter or a vocalist–that is truly unique. Not only is Mackenzie both a completely original writer, capturing the experience of being a young woman from an authentic place, her voice is immediately recognizable. But even more uncommon is the mystery around her: where everyone is everything on social media, Mackenzie was a mystery who required actual seeking out. We are so proud to welcome her into the BMLG family.”
“I’ve always been all about the music and writing,” Carpenter adds. “My dad told me if I was going to do this, I needed to write the songs before anything else could happen. So, I’ve been really focused on that, on trying to be the most true I could be to who I am…Scott, Allison [Jones], George [Briner] and the team at BMLG really got to know me, so they understand my vision. Partnering with them is more than a dream come true.”
Carpenter joins the Valory roster that includes Tim McGraw, Thomas Rhett, Lady A, Carly Pearce, Sheryl Crow, Brantley Gilbert and Brett Young.
Steve Moakler’s Seventh Studio Project, ‘Make A Little Room,’ Set For August
/by Lorie HollabaughSteve Moakler
Steve Moakler has announced he’ll release his new album Make A Little Room on Aug. 12. A first glimpse into the project will be available this Friday (May 20) with the release of the record’s title track.
“It really is the overarching theme of the record,” Moakler explains. “You can hang it all on that, this shift toward what ultimately matters. It’s the people around you and the little things. Having some margin in your life, and some space for magic to happen.”
Produced by Andy Skib, Make A Little Room features tracks co-written or solely penned by Moakler with Luke Laird, Marcus Hummon, Neil Medley, and Lucie Silvas, among others. The 10 songs showcase an easy-going spirit, rootsy rhythms and tender vocals.
Moakler has enjoyed songwriting success for other artists as well, having penned songs for Reba McEntire, Jake Owen, Ben Rector, and Dierks Bentley’s Gold-certified track “Riser,” among others.
Make A Little Room Track List:
Make A Little Room (Steve Moakler/Kelly Archer/Nathan Spicer)
Tennessee Girl (Steve Moakler/Oscar Charles)
Pack It Up (Steve Moakler)
Autumn Came Back (Steve Moakler/Andrew DeRoberts/Lucie Silvas)
Start A Band (Steve Moakler/Neil Mason)
Better Days (Steve Moakler/Marcus Hummon/Neil Medley)
Let’s Go To The Lake (Steve Moakler/Luke Laird/Barry Dean)
Northerner (Steve Moakler/Stephanie Chapman)
You Being You (Steve Moakler)
Numbered (Steve Moakler/Andy Skib/Jacob Davis)
SOLID Raises $28,000 At Annual Music Row Madness Fundraiser At Topgolf
/by Lorie HollabaughPictured (L-R, front row): Jenna Smith, Darcie Van Etten, Maddy Sundquist, Chantrel Reynolds, Tatiana Angulo, Rio Van Risseghem; (L-R, back row): Rachel Guttmann, Jenn DiChiara, Avery King, Sean Fallon. Photo: Kenzie Leigh
The Society of Leaders in Development (SOLID) recently held its annual Music Row Madness fundraiser at Topgolf, raising over $28,000 for its 2022 SOLID Shares partners.
Proceeds from the event will go to ACM Lifting Lives, Equity Alliance, Music Makes Us, The Onsite Foundation, and The Store. Music Row Madness was led by Solid’s Community Outreach chairs, Maddy Sundquist of Madkat Management and Chantrel Reynolds of mtheory.
“We’re grateful for another great Music Row Madness season and to all the teams, donors, and friends that contributed to this amazing cause,” Reynolds states. “It was truly a great night and we’re already looking forward to next year!”
“Every time we have the chance to bring together our peers to fundraise for the community is a special opportunity,” adds Sundquist. “We’re so thankful for everyone who donated and our committee who made this whole event possible.”
The young leadership organization has been able to donate over $430,000 to local charities and nonprofits and in the past four years members have donated more than 500+ hours of their time to the Nashville community.
My Music Row Story: Make Wake Artists’ Chris Kappy
/by LB CantrellChris Kappy
This edition of “My Music Row Story” is sponsored by Worldwide Stages.
Chris Kappy is the founder and owner of management company Make Wake Artists, and is in his sixth year as manager for superstar Luke Combs. During that time, he has grown the Make Wake roster by adding the talents of Niko Moon, Hailey Whitters, Drew Parker, Flatland Cavalry, Jackie Lee, Tyler Dial, Red Shahan, The Panhandlers and Keller Cox.
MusicRow: Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Stone Mountain, Georgia. I was born in Texas and lived there for two years. We moved to St. Louis and lived there for two years. My dad worked for the airlines. We moved to Georgia when I was five so I grew up in Stone Mountain.
I ended up going to Georgia State University. It was a commuter school then, now it’s a traditional campus. That’s where my love for music started. I grew up in a household of music. My mom was a big believer in The Temptations, the Four Tops, Otis Redding, and Gladys Knight. My dad listened to big band music. As I was coming up, I was listening to pop radio. Z-93 and 96 Rock out of Atlanta were the stations I was listening to.
Pictured (L-R): Kappy, Luke Combs, Niko Moon
What got you interested in country music?
I met a girl in college that introduced me to the band BlackHawk, and I was like, “What is this magic?” The harmonies were insane. “Goodbye Says It All” was the first song of their’s I ever heard. Then I started digging into country music and I really fell in love with bands like Shenandoah, Diamond Rio, and Little Texas. That’s the world I got into as I was listening to everything from Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Hootie and The Blowfish, and Sister Hazel. I fell in love with country.
How did you get into the music business?
In 2000 I was working in IT selling web hosting and stuff like that. I was killing it, I was doing very well for myself for my late twenties. A good friend of mine, Andy Levine, said, “You should come work for me. We’re gonna do this thing called The Rock Boat where we put bands on a cruise ship and go out to sea with their fans. I’ll pay you a third of what you’re making now, but you’ll be in the music business.” I was like, “Man, that’s a great idea. I should do this.” And I did. I quit my job and I went to go work for Andy. That started a 15-year relationship with bands and their fans on a cruise ship in the ocean.
Sister Hazel was the catalyst. They were my college band that I fell in love with. I would travel to go see them play anywhere and everywhere. To this day, I still am very close with all the guys in the band. We’re all very good friends and I still love their music. I learned from them how important it was to have the relationship with the fan. Their big hit was “All For You.” They had all these unbelievable songs, but they had a relationship with their fans that was beautiful. They cared so much about them and then they created The Rock Boat. From that event, it spawned off to Kiss, John Mayer, Florida Georgia Line, Paramore and 311. So for 15 years, I traveled with rabid fan bases, took 2,500 of their biggest fans on vacation, and essentially gave them a backstage pass for four days in the Caribbean. I thought I had the greatest job in the world.
Pictured (L-R): Kappy, Drew Parker
How did you end up in management?
I was living in Huntington Beach, California when I got a phone call from a buddy of mine named Bradley Jordan. Bradley calls me and says, “You’ve always wanted be a manager your whole life. That’s all you’ve ever talked about and you’re not doing it. You’re in your early forties. If you don’t do this, you’re going to regret it.” I was like, “Man, you’re right.” You have to have a friend like that to be able to tell you that. I packed everything up, broke my lease and moved to Athens, Georgia in November of 2014.
Bradley was [promoting] a Sam Hunt show at the Georgia Theater. This is when Sam was just blowing up. He put the show up for sale on Oct. 31 and it sold out in four minutes. He had me that day as the runner for that show, so I’m driving Brad and Sam all over town. I saw the kind of relationship they had and I was like, “I can do this.” I didn’t know what a point was on an album, I had no idea what a publishing deal was, but I remembered [a conversation I had] on a cruise with Brandi Carlile. Brandi and I had become very good friends and I remember talking to her asking, “Do you think I could do this?” She goes, “Kappy, I don’t even know what points are. I don’t care. You can do this.” That’s what I needed to hear.
[A little while later], I get a phone call and it’s Bradley. He said, “I found your guy. His name is Luke Combs.”
What was your first meeting with Luke like?
[We organized a show for Luke.] He shows up with the band in the van. They unload and start loading in and I meet Luke. He’s a nice guy. They’re starting to soundcheck and I’m like, “This guy can flat out sing!” I got to experience that moment that you have when you see Luke for the first time. The charisma and the passion that he had was there without even being in show mode. The show was awesome. I was like, “This is the guy. I want to manage this guy. I’ve got to get him another show to show him that I have some yank.”
[After another show,] I told him, “I’d like to manage you.” He goes, “What do you know about management?” I said, “Not a lot, but I got you this show. I’ve been around a lot of managers. I know that I can work just as hard as they can. I can be just as passionate as they can. Nobody will out-care me or out-appreciate what you bring to the table and we’ll do this together.”
He said, “Let me go talk to three managers in Nashville.” So he came to talk to three managers here in Nashville and all of them said he was a songwriter. He calls me up and says, “Hey, I met with all three managers.” I said, “What’d they say?” He goes, “You tell me what you want then I’ll tell you what they want.” I was like, “I want you to stand on stage every night and sing your songs, just like you do, and connect with the crowd. I’ll handle everything else.” He goes, “You’re my manager.”
I moved here Sept. 6 of 2016 and we got started.
Pictured: Kappy and Luke Combs embrace after Combs wins the CMA Entertainer of the Year
What was it like when you guys got to Nashville?
Early on I asked Luke what one of his goals were. He’s like, “Man, I drive this piece of crap Dodge Neon. I need a safe car. I don’t know if the brakes are going to work, it doesn’t have AC, and I have to drive this to writes and I hate it because people see me in this and this isn’t indicative of who I am.” I was like, “Alright, I won’t take any commission from you until we can buy you a new car—however long that takes.” I wasn’t rich. I had a small amount in savings and thought things would get going pretty quickly.
So we started and we had no money coming in. We had just enough money to pay the bills and if we didn’t have enough, I would pull money out of my savings to put gas in the van and stuff like that. Soon I am destitute. I have less than $50 to my name. Every night I’m taking the merch bin to the green room and taking all the food and water and stuff that’s left behind and putting it in there so I have something to eat. No one ever knew. Every penny that came in that was left over went into a Maxwell House coffee can that sat on top of Luke’s refrigerator. We would just stack cash in there. We were doing that and I was bleeding my account dry trying to figure it out. I sold stuff and did whatever I could to just make it work. I was driving our Sprinter van everywhere because I [had to sell] my car. I was going to meetings in this giant Sprinter and people were just laughing at me, but I couldn’t let Luke know that.
We saved enough money. We had $15,000 and we bought a 2013 Ford Fusion for him. That next weekend we did a show. We had $500 left over and Luke goes, “I got my car now. Take commission.” It was $75 bucks and I felt like I was Mark Cuban. The very next day we got a phone call that somebody had pulled out of an ATV park show and they were desperate to get somebody, so we got a $10,000 offer. Three days later we got an offer to play a private for a guy whose daughter was graduating high school. He offered us an obscene amount of money. Instantly we made all this money and I was like, “We’re gonna make it.”
Pictured (L-R): Hailey Whitters, Kappy
Now Luke is one of the biggest stars in our format, and you’ve added more artists and team members to your management company. Did you ever see yourself building out Make Wake to what it is now?
Absolutely not. I had no idea that it was going to turn into this. As I sit around my office and see the Niko Moon plaques, and I see the shows for Hailey Whitters, Flatland Cavalry and Drew Parker… I never thought I’d come to town and create a management company that would have 10 artists on the roster and 17 full-time employees. That was never a part of the plan. I have the weight of the careers of our artists on my shoulders and the weight of the employees that I have to take care of for them and their families. I never thought that I would ever have to worry about that stuff.
It doesn’t scare me, it’s just a lot to deal with. I’m lucky I have fantastic people out there that I can call on. I’m the first person to say if I don’t know something. I have great people that I can pick up the phone and call. I talk to either Kerri Edwards, John Peets, Clarence Spalding, or Marion Kraft once a week.
What’s something people might not know about you?
I lost 200 pounds. That’s something people might not know about. I ended up having gastric bypass surgery. I didn’t have good control of my weight, it was an unhealthy relationship. I knew that I needed to get control of it.
I remember being in the hospital after getting it done and being so depressed. I was thinking, “I can’t believe I just had to do this. You were such a loser. You couldn’t get this done.” Then I thought, “No, this is not how you need to be thinking. You just didn’t have a handle on it. You didn’t have control. You needed to get control and you got control.” I’ll see people now who haven’t seen me in forever and they’ll be like, “Woah, I didn’t even recognize you.” I talk about it because I want people to know that there shouldn’t be a stigma around it.
If someone was to ask you what your definition of success was, what would you say?
Being able to shop at Whole Foods without looking at prices. (Laughs)
When you sit with an artist and you’re like, “What are your dreams? What are your passions? What are your goals?,” and you can accomplish those. Some of them are extremely realistic, some of them are over the moon, but if you’re able to do that, that’s success. Seeing an artist on stage, seeing their fans sing their songs back to them—they’re so elated and they come off the stage and they’re like, “They were singing my songs!” That’s it, man. There’s nothing better than that.
Bonnie Marquez Named Senior VP, Marketing At Premier Productions
/by Lorie HollabaughBonnie Marquez has been named Senior Vice President of Marketing at live event promoter Premier Productions.
Marquez joins Premier with over 20 years of experience in the entertainment industry. She most recently worked as the Executive Vice President of Marketing at Activated Events, the company behind Boots in the Park, Wet Electric, Fiesta De Taco and Coastal Country Jam.
“We’re excited to have Bonnie on our team,” says Michael Pugh, CEO and Owner of Premier Productions. “Her experience, personality and excitement for the industry will only be able to push Premier and live music forward.”
“Premier Productions embraces faith, family and country,” adds Marquez. “All three of those values are extremely important in my life. I’m excited to work with this passionate group of people in taking Premier to the next level.”
In the first half of 2022, Premier launched the “Blippi The Musical Tour” and the “2022 Elevation Nights Tour.” This summer, Premier is behind tours for some of the entertainment industry’s biggest names, including Chris Tomlin with United, Dude Perfect and Baby Shark.