Gabby Barrett

Gabby Barrett‘s journey from the American Idol finals to country radio success could be the epitome of the lyrics featured in one of her songs, “Jesus and My Mama”: I don’t break and I don’t bend.

Barrett recently performed an acoustic rendition of the song, which she wrote at age 16, during a visit to the MusicRow Magazine offices in Nashville. The song showcased her soulful voice, which can be velvety and full, or piercing and grainy when called for, soaring over the crunchy guitar work.

“That’s a fun one to open shows with, because you see the girls with their cups, holding them up like, ‘Yeah!!'”

Pennsylvania native Barrett began perfecting that unique vocal style at age 9, when she joined a gospel choir.

“That group of women really helped carve my voice and helped show me what I was capable of doing with singing,” Barrett said. “I really like R&B, and you also get a lot influence from what your parents play around the house when you are young, so I grew up loving country, too.”

From age 11-16, she and her family sacrificed so Barrett could pursue her musical ambitions, “grinding it out” on the touring circuit (“like getting the power pulled at my house because we were putting all the money into singing…that kind of grind,” she recalls candidly), before she was scouted to compete on American Idol at age 17.

Though Barrett placed third on Season 16 of American Idol and soon began working with Red Light Management’s Tom Lord, she found that television success doesn’t always translate easily—or quickly—with Nashville labels.

“I think there are times the town is a bit jaded,” Lord said. “Tons of people have come off of these shows and have knocked on the doors in town. Understandably so, the labels wanted to see what she could do outside of the show.”

Eager to prove that she had artistry and songwriting talent to match her attention-grabbing voice, Barrett began working on music in the midst of a grueling post-Idol tour in 2018. Barrett would perform three or four days on the tour, then book red eye flights back to Nashville to work on writing for a day or two, before returning to the Idol tour for another three-four day run.

“She challenged the stigma a bit,” Lord said. “She’d be on the road, then in the writing room and working on mixes.”

One of those writing sessions resulted in her breakthrough “I Hope,” a sultry song that takes the all-too-nice story of forgiving an ex-lover and wishing them well, and turns it on its head with a surprising, satisfying twist, as Barrett sings, I hope she’s wilder than your wildest dreams/She’s everything you’re ever gonna need…And then I hope she cheats.

“I Hope” currently sits in the Top 20 on the Billboard Country Airplay Chart. She penned the song alongside Zachary Kale and Jon Nite; Kale and Ross Copperman produced the track.

“I wrote from a point of view of being in high school relationship that was bad and hopefully I’ve grown from that,” Barrett says. “I feel like everyone has gone through these types of emotions, people who haven’t gotten over it.”

MusicRow Magazine owner/publisher Sherod Robertson and Warner Music Nashville’s Gabby Barrett.

Barrett and her team decided to not wait on labels, and put out “I Hope” independently. Once outlets such as CMT, Radio Disney and SiriusXM jumped on board, Lord says the phones started ringing. In June 2019, Barrett announced she’d inked a label deal with Warner Music Nashville, with the label’s radio promo team engaging to further push “I Hope” to radio.

While “I Hope” stakes its claim on the upper regions of the Country Airplay chart, Barrett also released “The Good Ones,” inspired by her now-husband (the couple wed in October 2019) and fellow Idol finalist Cade Foehner.

“When I was on American Idol, we were secretly dating and the people that knew would ask, ‘How is your boyfriend doing?’ And I’d say, ‘He’s good. He’s a good one, a keeper.’ So when I got to the writing room, I knew I had written a song about the bad ones but I was like, ‘There are still good ones out there, because I found mine.'”

The sweet, elegant piece with the lilting melody is made all the more touching by the the accompanying music video, which shares the story of a young woman in a wheelchair, who hopes to be able to dance with her boyfriend. Throughout the video, the boyfriend is shown crafting a a project, which turns out to be a harness swing for the young woman to use so they can dance together.

“I wanted to make it really special and pull on the heartstrings a bit. I wanted to make it a 360-degree turn from the [“I Hope”] video,” Barrett says. “My cousin has autism and my nephew has cerebral palsy and I just wanted people to know that they feel left out, but that there is still a possibility for you to be loved the same as anyone, no matter what deficiency you have. I just wanted to reaffirm people with that message for the video.”

Lord said, “When the idea started floating around, there were some of us who were like, ‘We want to be cautious with this, it’s a little different twist,’ and Gabby just felt firm on this and she said this felt like a story she wanted to tell. That speaks to the courage she has on her creativity and direction. She has a strong maturity and awareness, and there was an amazing reaction to the video.”

Most recently, Barrett released another song inspired by her relationship with Foehner, the track “Hall of Fame,” which she wrote alongside Trannie Anderson, Adam Doleac and Zachary Kale.

Gabby Barrett with MusicRow Magazine staffers.

Craig Wiseman will be roasted and toasted as The T.J. Martell Foundation 2020 Ambassador Of The Year at this year’s charity event set for April 14. Special guests who will be “roasting and toasting” the guest of honor will be announced soon.

With over 350 cuts, 125 singles, and 27 No. 1 songs to his credit, Wiseman is one of the most celebrated songwriters in Nashville with a long list of genre-defining hits like Tim McGraw’s “Live Like You Were Dying,” Kenny Chesney’s “The Good Stuff,” and Blake Shelton’s “Boys ‘Round Here.” The recipient of ASCAP’s first-ever Heritage Award as the most-played country songwriter of the century, he was also named the Songwriter of the Decade by the Nashville Songwriters Association International.

Presented as part of the Nashville Comedy Festival, sponsorship opportunities, tables, and individual tickets are now available and benefit cancer research through the T.J. Martell Foundation. Hosted at Nashville’s ZANIES Comedy Night Club, doors open at 4:45 p.m. with all the fun beginning at 5:30 p.m.

For the seventh year in a row, the event celebrates an individual who has risen to the top of their field through commitment, dedication, and perseverance. This recognition is presented to a gifted professional who is respected by seasoned industry veterans and serves as a mentor to the next generation of rising young executives who are following in their footsteps. Past “Ambassador of the Year” honorees who have been roasted and toasted include Shane McAnally (2019), Jay Williams (2018), John Esposito (2017), Mike Dungan (2016), Ali Harnell (2015), and Rob Beckham (2014).

Photo credit: Taylor Kelly

Bobby Bones has signed on as host and executive producer of Opry, a new weekly, one-hour Circle Network TV program featuring exclusive highlights from the Grand Ole Opry stage each week. Beginning Feb. 26 at 8 p.m. CT, Opry will bring the Grand Ole Opry experience to viewers nationwide with the week’s live-recorded performances, backstage conversations with Opry performers, comedy and more. A new one-hour episode will premiere each Wednesday at the same time, and Opry will re-air each Wednesday night at Midnight ET/11 p.m. CT.

“Bobby is a terrific entertainer and music enthusiast who has been a friend of the Grand Ole Opry for many years, and a fan for much longer,” said Scott Bailey, president of Opry Entertainment. “As both an executive producer and host, Bobby will have the opportunity to collaborate with our Grand Ole Opry team and present the Opry in a way that will complement the live radio broadcast by providing an insider’s unique perspective into what goes on behind the curtain of country’s most famous stage.”

“As a kid from Mountain Pine, Arkansas who grew up listening and loving the Opry with my grandma…I’m very honored by this opportunity. The rich history and tradition is second to none, and I’m thankful the Opry has not only trusted me to play music and tell jokes on its famed stage so many times, but to also invite me into this next chapter along with so many great country artists,” Bones said.

Penske Media Corporation has announced a strategic equity investment in London-based Music Business Worldwide, which first entered into a global content partnership with Rolling Stone and Rolling Stone owner PMC in November 2018. With the addition of MBW to PMC’s family of brands, PMC will enable MBW to collaborate more closely with PMC’s portfolio of 19 media brands, particularly Rolling Stone, PMC’s music analytics platform Alpha Data, and Variety.com. The deal expands PMC’s investment in the music business, with the combination of MBW’s editorial voice and Alpha Data’s analytics providing deeper insights and breadth of analysis.

“Five years into MBW’s story, we are confident that in PMC we have found the perfect partner with which to join forces,” said MBW Founder and Publisher Tim Ingham. “PMC’s brands, content and people are defined by quality, with the power to lead industry conversations across entertainment. MBW is excited to work closely with Alpha Data to generate must-read industry insights, and we look forward to building on our alliance with Rolling Stone, exploring further strategic opportunities that bring tangible value to the music business.”

Since its founding in 2015, MBW has become a source of dependable breaking news and influential analysis for execs across the music industry. This more comprehensive partnership paves the way to launch innovative content and revenue models driven by both MBW’s respected coverage and PMC’s ability to utilize innovative technology to scale quality content.

“We continue to be impressed with Tim and MBW’s strong relationships and expertise in covering the business of music,” said PMC Chairman and CEO Jay Penske. “In particular, Tim and his talented team have tapped into a top tier global audience with quality well above and beyond offerings by competitors. We see significant potential in what we will build together.”

PMC made a strategic investment in state-of-the-art music analytics service Alpha Data in 2018 and in 2019 launched the Rolling Stone Charts powered by Alpha Data, customized for specific content verticals that incorporate digital and physical sales as well as on-demand streaming activity. In December 2017 Rolling Stone joined PMC and the brand relaunched with a revamped print magazine and website, innovative live events schedule, and larger roster of editorial talent.