Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real. Photo: Alysse Gafkjen

Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real are launching an extensive headline tour this fall beginning Sept. 3 that includes newly confirmed shows at Chicago’s The Vic Theatre, Boston’s Royale, Brooklyn’s Brooklyn Steel, Atlanta’s Roxy, Seattle’s The Showbox, two nights at Los Angeles’ El Rey Theatre, and Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, among several others.

Tickets go on sale this Friday, June 25 at 10 a.m. local time at lukasnelson.com. Ahead of the fall run, the band will also perform special shows in Nashville at the Basement East on June 23 and in Austin at Antone’s on June 26.

“I’m from what one might say is the ultimate road family—I’ve been on the road my entire life,” shares Nelson. “I’ve never been anywhere longer than three months, and suddenly here we are, the four of us together. And thank god we were together. I can’t remember the last time we had that much time together as a family. We had a lot of really important bonding that happened during that time. And I have to say, as terrible as the pandemic has been in so many ways, for my inner peace, I was able to take a lot of good from this time. I was able to pause and reflect.”

He continues, “It took me a really long time to come back to the home in my heart. In a physical sense, that’s Texas and Hawaii. But in a spiritual sense as well—I think I finally decided not to run from who I am and who I am destined to be. First and foremost, that’s a songwriter. That’s what this record means to me. There’s a story being told through the whole record. A story about connection and coming home.”

The new tour supports the band’s new album, A Few Stars Apart, out now on Fantasy Records. Produced by Dave Cobb, the album was inspired by the stillness Nelson found while riding out the beginning of the pandemic with his family in Texas, and was recorded with the full band live on eight-track tape over three weeks at Nashville’s historic RCA Studio A.

Joe Clemmons. Photo: Nathan Zucker

Universal Music Publishing Nashville has signed Joe Clemmons to an exclusive, worldwide publishing agreement. The songwriter has had cuts with Gabby Barrett, Hardy, Brian Kelley, Ryan Hurd, Kameron Marlowe, Catie Offerman, and Josh Abbott Band.

The east Texas native moved to Nashville in 2008, where he developed his passion for guitar and songwriting while attending Belmont University. He spent several years on the road as a touring musicians with artists Hurd, Hardy, Maren Morris, Steve Moakler, and more, before choosing to focus solely on songwriting in 2017. Clemmons co-wrote “Rose Needs A Jack” on Barrett’s highly acclaimed debut album as well as Hurd’s “Wish For The World,” which earned the writers a 2020 AIMP Nashville Awards Publisher’s Pick nomination.

“A true song crafter and exceptional player, Joe is one of the most exciting talents for his generation of songwriters. We are beyond excited to be representing him at UMPG,” says Senior Director A&R, UMPG Nashville Missy Roberts.

“I have always been such a fan of the UMPG Nashville team. They consistently succeed at developing songwriters and taking them to the next level,” shares Clemmons. “After meeting with Missy and Terry Wakefield, I felt like I found a place where I could really thrive as a songwriter. I have such respect for them and all they have accomplished, and it’s an honor to join the Universal Music Family.”

Jennifer Smestad. Photo: Ryan Noble

RECORDS Nashville singer-songwriter Jennifer Smestad wasn’t new to the spotlight when her tender ballad “Half The Man” blew up on TikTok.

Smestad had garnered a wealth of performing experiences, from singing the National Anthem at ballparks across Arizona to competing in the Miss America Competition in Atlantic City, New Jersey as Miss Arizona in 2013. Smestad was compelled by country music from a young age, and made the move to Nashville in 2016.

“I knew I was going to do music since I basically could talk, since I was 3 years old. And I always wanted to do country, I grew up on ’90s country,” Smestad said in a recent virtual visit with MusicRow. “When I posted ‘Half The Man’ on TikTok, it was honestly one of the first real songs I’ve written. I moved here and I was afraid of emotions and felt like I didn’t want to write about my life because it’s too scary. So I was writing a bunch of hypothetical stories and some turned out awesome, but some I just didn’t connect to.

“My sister actually had miscarried twins and I knew I needed to write about it. It took me seven months to finally write it and I was scared to death. So finally I did and the song turned out incredible and it was powerful and I ended up releasing it for Mother’s Day. Then in that same week I wrote ‘Half The Man.’ I was on this kick of writing stuff that actually meant a lot to me.”

Her breakthrough debut single “Half The Man,” co-written with Josh Metheny and Erik Halbeg, caught fire on TikTok in 2020. Inspired by her father, a longtime pilot for United Airlines, it has now earned over 18 million streams to date.

“I’ve always lost it at weddings with the father-daughter dance song and I’ve always had this incredible bond with my dad. But it’s interesting because ever since I wrote this song, I’ve haven’t cried at a father daughter dance again. I feel like it was a therapeutic thing that needed to happen for me, but it’s a very personal, meaningful song to me.”

Smestad’s current single is another emotionally powerful song, this time about a breakup. “Can’t Have Mine,” co-written with Shelby Darrall and Noby Sidez, shows Smestad setting a boundary with an ex flame. “You can’t take one step forward and sixteen back, have my heart and treat it like that / You took your time, and now you can’t have mine,” she sings.

“When we were writing this song, I can’t speak for the other writers, but I felt like it was just a sad breakup song. I put a little teaser on TikTok and until people started saying this I didn’t realize it, but it’s actually pretty empowering because even though you experienced someone who doesn’t value you, you’re being able to realize it and step back and away from something toxic. People started messaging me saying because of the song they left a toxic relationship or they got out of an abusive relationship. That’s pretty awesome, I had no idea that this song would do that.”

Part of Smestad’s inspirational story is that she has overcome several mental health struggles. She was diagnosed with Tourette’s Syndrome, OCD and social anxiety at only 10 years old.

“There’s no cure to it and it never fully goes away, but there’s a couple of things that can happen. A lot of people can grow out of the majority of their ticks or a majority of their symptoms; or they only come out when you’re extremely stressed or tired,” Smestad explained. “But I also did natural Chinese acupuncture when I was about 15 and it changed my life. I wouldn’t say I’m cured and everything’s 100% okay, but it really did change my life starting at 15. I have slowly worked with the social anxiety since then, but as far as the Tourette’s goes, between herbs, acupuncture, prayer and my family, it has changed my life.”

Pictured (L-R, top row): Monarch Publicity’s Heather Conley, MusicRow‘s Alex Parry, LB Cantrell; (L-R, middle row): MusicRow‘s Lydia Farthing, Jennifer Smestad, MusicRow‘s Sherod Robertson; (L-R, bottom row): MusicRow‘s Haley Crow

Broken Bow Records recording artist Chase Rice has released a reimagined version of his recent project, The Album. Available now, The Album (Acoustic) includes stripped-down versions of all 15 songs that found their home on the original project, including fan-favorites “Lonely If You Are” and “Forever To Go.”

Rice’s journey for The Album began in early 2020, when he surprised fans with a diverse collection of music. As the year progressed and Rice returned to his roots with an acoustic guitar while spending time off the road, he was inspired to reimagine the project in a whole new way. Included among the 15 stripped-down tracks is Rice’s current chart-topper “Drinkin’ Beer. Talkin’ God. Amen.” featuring Florida Georgia Line, which has become Rice’s fastest trip to the Top 10 at country radio so far and marks his 5th Top 10 to date.

“As we all slowed down this year, I found myself gravitating back to how it all began for me – writing songs with just myself and a guitar,” shares Rice. “I started sharing videos of me playing some of the new music that way and fans really loved it, so that inspired me to go back to each song and create these acoustic versions, which give The Album a whole new perspective.”

The Album (Acoustic) Track List:
1.   American Nights – Kevin Griffin, Martin Johnson, Francois Tetaz; Produced by Martin Johnson
2.   Lonely If You Are – Chase Rice, Lindsay Rimes, Hunter Phelps
3.   Everywhere – Chase Rice, Zachary Kale, James McNair; Produced by Zachary Kale
4.   Best Night Ever – Chase Rice, Chris DeStefano, Matt Jenkins
5.   Messy – Seth Ennis, Kylie Sackley
6.   In The Car – Chase Rice, Jesse Rice, Hunter Phelps, Mark Holman
7.   Forever To Go – Jordan Minton, Casey Brown, Geoffrey Warburton; Produced by Casey Brown
8.   You – Chase Rice, Jon Nite, Zach Kale
9.   Break. Up. Drunk. – Chase Rice, Hunter Phelps, Jordan Schmidt
10. Down Home Runs Deep – Daniel Ross, Michael Hardy, Mike Walker, James McNair
11. Belong – Chase Rice, Chris DeStefano, Jon Nite
12. The Nights – Chase Rice, Zach Kale, James McNair; Produced by Zach Kale
13. Bedroom – Chase Rice, Jon Nite, Jimmy Robbins; Produced by Corey Crowder
14. If I Didn’t Have You – Chase Rice, Channing Wilson, Jonathan Singleton; Produced by Jimmy Robbins & Jonathan Singleton
15. Drinkin’ Beer. Talkin’ God. Amen. (feat. Florida Georgia Line) – Chase Rice, Hunter Phelps, Cale Dodds, Corey Crowder; Produced by Chase Rice, Florida Georgia Line & Corey Crowder
*Produced by Chris DeStefano & Chase Rice unless otherwise noted.

Clay Walker and Toby Keith performing at the 17th Annual Toby Keith & Friends Golf Classic

After a year hiatus, the Toby Keith & Friends Golf Classic raised $1,427,000 dollars for the OK Kids Korral, the cost-free home for families of children being treated at Oklahoma City area hospitals. The event was held on June 11-12 and raised the second-highest total in the classic’s 17 year history. In all, the event has now raised more than $15 million.

The biggest single bid was $100,000 for an AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am experience where the winner will get to walk the course with Keith during the tournament. Additional top bids came in for a chance for two to play in the 2021 Lexus Champions For Charity tournament ($62,000), a Fleetwood Mac signed electric guitar ($50,000), and a trip to Iceland ($30,000). Beyond the auctions, multi-platinum Show Dog Nashville recording artist Clay Walker performed with Keith. As for the double-shotgun-start golf tournament, the team from Ace Hardware won the morning round, with the afternoon round taken by Tier 1 Contracting. Mark VanHoose won the closest-to-the-hole contest and the Harley Davidson prize that went with it.

Pictured (L-R): Toby Keith, The Howard family – Lawsyn, announcing she is cancer free, Josh, Harlow, and Destiny