Pictured (L-R): Matt Turner, Natalie Osborne
Downtown Music Publishing has announced a round of hirings and promotions in its Nashville office.
Matt Turner, formerly of Big Loud, has joined Downtown as Sr. Director, A&R, where he will oversee management of writing sessions and opportunities for the Nashville roster, securing song placements for Downtown’s songs and signing/developing songwriters. Turner’s career also includes time at ole.
“We are so excited to have Matt Turner at Downtown Nashville,” said Steve Markland, Senior VP of A&R, Nashville. “Matt brings very valuable and rich experience from his time at Big Loud Music. He is a champion of writers and will add a fantastic balance to our team.”
Natalie Osborne has been promoted to Director of A&R. She was hired in September 2015 as Creative Coordinator/Admin. Assistant, and was promoted to Creative Manager in 2017.
Additional new hires including Garrett Stephenson as office coordinator, Caylan Hays as Sync Licensing Assistant, and Kyle Coker as copyright assistant. Katie Roth has been promoted and joined the A&R team as creative coordinator.
MusicRow spoke with Osborne about her promotion and about some of the recent developments at Downtown Music Publishing.
MusicRow: What has the learning curve been like as you progressed through those roles?
Osborne: I was Downtown’s first intern, and we really had to figure it out as we went. I remember in the very beginning, it was simple things like using Google Calendar to manage writers’ schedules as a Creative Coordinator. But then it was learning all the details of publishing, in going from an assistant role into a more creative role. The great thing about Steve Markland is that he always gives me the freedom to prove myself creatively. While I was a coordinator, he said to come to him with new ideas or pitch ideas of writers to consider signing.
MR: Downtown has focused on having country and pop artists do a lot of collaborating, and one of your best-known signings has been Fancy (Jake Hagood). How has that affected what you do?
Our other offices in London, Paris, Los Angeles, New York, and Amsterdam have supported us so much. While they might have more of an outreach in the pop world, their support is very important. They are always sending us songs and asking, “Would this song work in your world?” Or, “Is this writer somebody you think we should send to Nashville?”
While we live in Nashville, there is a pop industry growing here. It’s definitely a goal of mine to diversify our roster. My heart is in country music, but there is so much great music here in Nashville and I want to be a champion for those who might have a bit of a harder time because they are not your standard country writer.
With Fancy, I saw him open for Emily West like six years ago. It completely stopped me in my tracks. You just couldn’t take your eyes off of him and he had everyone laughing and he was getting standing ovations after every song. We became good friends over the years and I’ve always been a fan of what he does.
MR: You were also very involved in launching the Kendell Marvel Honkytonk Experience.
I go to those shows because we work with Kendell, but also because they are so fun. Kendell writes with Keith Gattis a lot and Keith was like, “You are one of the best country singers I know, you should do a record.” He also pulled songs from years ago that he had written with Chris Stapleton. The album was rockin’ and it was Kendell and Keith were like it would be fun to do this. Kendell is really connected, and it just came together organically.
I believe the first show, Jamey Johnson and Alison Krauss were the special guests and that brought a lot of attention to the people of Nashville and the music fans here. So each month, it was like, ‘Who can we get up there?’ I set him and Natalie Hemby up to write so we had her as a featured guest. It’s been really fun seeing the evolution of it. You just never know who is going to show up—although I do, usually.
MR: How do you see the role of A&R developing going forward?
I see A&R playing even more of a role in bringing genres together. I want to work with writers I’m passionate about and I feel that way about our entire roster. I feel really lucky to have landed at a company like Downtown that is small, where we all get to work together, but it is a global company with so much outreach and the ability to travel to all these other cities. Songwriters Without Borders came about after we planned a trip to C2C and hosted a writer’s round. It went over so well, we had our writers writing with writers in those cities, that we thought we should do more of that.
Lauren Daigle To Lead VOICES Musicians On Call Benefit
/by Lorie Hollabaugh“When I ventured away from corporate America, I wanted my business to consistently give more then we get, in all areas,” shares Redjett co-founder Leigh Holt. “We are excited to live this out and present our first benefit concert supporting Musicians on Call. We fell in love with this organization a few years ago and I’m so grateful that our entire roster of artists, friends and partners have jumped on board to raise as much money as possible for the cause!”
Tickets are on sale now, and a VIP package is available that includes early entry and a Q&A with the artists at 6 p.m. as well as a special gift at the door.
Bobby Bones Debuts At No.1 On ‘New York Times’ Best Seller List
/by Lorie HollabaughBobby Bones poses with the crowd at his comedy show in Tampa, where he stayed after and signed books for fans until almost 1:00 am
Bobby Bones has made a second trip to the top of the New York Times Best Seller list as his new book Fail Until You Don’t: Fight. Grind. Repeat debuts at No.1 on the list after the book’s June 19 release. In between sold-out comedy shows for his Red Hoodie Comedy Tour, Bones appeared at several book store events with hundreds of fans showing up and breaking store records.
The book is a primer on how to fight your way through failures to achieve success, and is Bones’ second book to top the New York Times list, following his debut memoir Bare Bones: I’m Not Lonely If You’re Reading This Book. His latest book features anecdotes from some of his famous friends who open up about their own missteps, including Brooklyn Decker, Charlamagne Tha God, Andy Roddick, Chris Stapleton and more.
Weekly Chart Report (6/29/18)
/by Alex ParryClick here or above to access MusicRow’s weekly CountryBreakout Report.
DISClaimer: Dierks Bentley, Brothers Osborne, Mags Top New Releases
/by Robert K OermannIt’s a country-rocking day here at DisClaimer.
Ashley McBryde, Luke Combs, newcomer Chuck Edson and Darius Rucker and his pals are all offering tempo tunes for your summer playlists.
So are Disc of the Day winners Dierks Bentley & Brothers Osborne, as well as DisCovery Award winner Mags.
Rock on, citizens.
RYAN SIMS/American Things
Writer: Ryan Sims; Producer: Justin Gray; Publishers: none listed; High 4
– There is something muffled and cloudy about this sound. He has a rather raspy vocal delivery to start with, and a mix this muddy doesn’t enhance it in the least. The abundant, rocking electric guitar and too-busy drumming are also demerits.
DIERKS BENTLEY & BROTHERS OSBORNE/Burning Man
Writers: Luke Dick/Bobby Pinson; Producers: Ross Copperman & Jon Randall Stewart; Publishers: Emileon/Little Louder/Songs of Kobalt/New Writers of Sea Gayle/Not a Track Guy/ClearBox Rights, BMI; Capitol (BMI)
– A frothing inferno of excitement. Fiery, intense, furiously rocking, blazing, fabulously sweaty and brilliant. If this isn’t a No. 1 country summer hit, I’ve never heard one.
MAGS/Strong Enough
Writers: Mags McCarthy/Michael Anthony/Ryan Martinez; Producer: Michael Anthony; Publishers: none listed; Emerald Fields
-Upbeat in the face of heartbreak. He might be splitting, but she’s a tough cookie. “You took my time, but not my heart.” A stuttering, nervous rhythm track and a propulsive arrangement underscore her survivor mood.
ASHLEY MCBRYDE/Radioland
Writers: Ashley McBryde/Autumn McEntire/Chris Roberts; Producer: Jay Joyce; Publishers: Songs of Song Factory/Catch This, BMI/ASCAP; Atlantic (track)
– The joys of living in the heavenly audio of the family’s car radio. The peppy production and her sunny delivery put a big ol’ smile across my face. This is one dreamy, dynamite performance. Play the heck out of it.
SHENANDOAH/That’s Where I Grew Up
Writers: Neil Thrasher/Ashley Gorley/Kelley Lovelace; Producer: Jay DeMarcus; Publishers: Sony-ATV/Warner-Chappell/BMG Rights Management, no performance rights listed; BMG/WMG
– Marty’s voice can still melt solid rock. And given a solidly country lyric this powerful and heartfelt, this band still stands head and shoulders above the rest. This is lump-in-throat stuff. It also blows the earlier Kenny Chesney version of the song right out of the water.
LUKE COMBS/She Got The Best Of Me
Writers: Luke Combs/Rob Snyder/Channing Wilson; Producers: Scott Moffatt; Publishers: Big Music Machine/50 Egg/Straight Dimes/Little Extra Songs and Such/No Cats Round Here/Kobalt/Heart Scarred/Super LCS/Warner Tamerlane, BMI/ASCAP; River House/Columbia (track)
– His hearty singing voice has never sounded better. The song is a super hooky heartache lament with plenty of oomph in the tempo. He’s a mighty, mighty man.
CHUCK EDSON/Let’s Go For A Ride
Writer: Chuck Edson; Producer: David Hammonds; Publisher: none listed; Charles Eugene Edson (track)
– The throbbing, steady tempo sets the “outlaw” mood from the get-go. His drawling, urgent delivery of the wanderlust-biker lyric is solid. A little bit of echo would give the vocal a “wet” quality it needs to be more effective.
SHOOTER JENNINGS/Rhinestone Eyes
Writers: none listed; Producer: Dave Cobb; Publishers: none listed; Low Country Sound
– And speaking of outlaws, here’s a strummy, jangling, toe-tapping evocation of that era from a man who grew up in it. Unless I miss my guess, that’s his mom Jessi Colter singing harmony. Classic sounding.
DAVID FRIZZELL/MARTY HAGGARD/Lefty, Merle & Me
Writers: none listed; Producer: none listed; Publisher: none listed; Nashville America
-More nostalgia. This time recalling honky-tonk great Lefty Frizzell and working-man poet Merle Haggard. Both singers phrase like their illustrious relations, but with more vibrato. The arrangement is languid and perhaps a tad too slow. The Hawaiian steel is super.
DARIUS RUCKER & THE TROUBLEMAKERS/Straight To Hell
Writer: Kevin Kinney; Producer: Ross Copperman; Publisher: Universal Songs of Polygram, BMI
– The Troublemakers are Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan and Charles Kelley. The four whip up a bad-boy, rebel-rousing, honky-tonk sound. The religious right might bristle at this celebration of sin. But it sure is catchy.
Will Hoge Surveys Political, Cultural Realities On ‘My American Dream’
/by Jessica NicholsonWill Hoge
Nashville singer/songwriter Will Hoge returns with a new album, My American Dream, on Oct. 5. The release features eight songs of political commentary, turning a critical eye on today’s crisis of conscience and culture.
The first track completed for the album is “Thoughts & Prayers,” a song inspired by recent mass school shootings and the response from politicians. Throughout the album, he delves into the situations of homeless heartland workers (“My American Dream”) and immigrants crossing the border (“Illegal Line”).
“At the end of the day, that’s really what folks are after, is just to be treated with some respect,” he says. He knows how fragile life can be, having been left in critical condition by a scooter accident 10 years ago. “I was on the brink of things being a disaster. I started to see how quickly, even someone who’s working hard, can end up in a situation and not see a way out.”
Recorded in Nashville at Sound Emporium, Hoge incorporated his touring band into his permanent lineup, including Thom Donavan (lead guitar), Chris Griffiths (bass) and Allen Jones (drums). Hoge oversaw production, while producer Ray Kennedy (Steve Earle, Ray Davies) was enlisted for mixing duties.
Hoge’s My American Dream tour starts Sept. 18 in Washington DC. Prior to that, he will perform at the Americana Music Festival in Nashville. In October, he joins Social Distortion for a U.S. run.
Gilded Walls
Stupid Kids
Still A Southern Man
Oh Mr. Barnum
Thoughts & Prayers
My American Dream
The Illegal Line
Nikki’s A Republican Now
Downtown Music Publishing Nashville Announces Six New Hires, Promotions
/by Jessica NicholsonPictured (L-R): Matt Turner, Natalie Osborne
Downtown Music Publishing has announced a round of hirings and promotions in its Nashville office.
Matt Turner, formerly of Big Loud, has joined Downtown as Sr. Director, A&R, where he will oversee management of writing sessions and opportunities for the Nashville roster, securing song placements for Downtown’s songs and signing/developing songwriters. Turner’s career also includes time at ole.
“We are so excited to have Matt Turner at Downtown Nashville,” said Steve Markland, Senior VP of A&R, Nashville. “Matt brings very valuable and rich experience from his time at Big Loud Music. He is a champion of writers and will add a fantastic balance to our team.”
Natalie Osborne has been promoted to Director of A&R. She was hired in September 2015 as Creative Coordinator/Admin. Assistant, and was promoted to Creative Manager in 2017.
Additional new hires including Garrett Stephenson as office coordinator, Caylan Hays as Sync Licensing Assistant, and Kyle Coker as copyright assistant. Katie Roth has been promoted and joined the A&R team as creative coordinator.
MusicRow spoke with Osborne about her promotion and about some of the recent developments at Downtown Music Publishing.
MusicRow: What has the learning curve been like as you progressed through those roles?
Osborne: I was Downtown’s first intern, and we really had to figure it out as we went. I remember in the very beginning, it was simple things like using Google Calendar to manage writers’ schedules as a Creative Coordinator. But then it was learning all the details of publishing, in going from an assistant role into a more creative role. The great thing about Steve Markland is that he always gives me the freedom to prove myself creatively. While I was a coordinator, he said to come to him with new ideas or pitch ideas of writers to consider signing.
MR: Downtown has focused on having country and pop artists do a lot of collaborating, and one of your best-known signings has been Fancy (Jake Hagood). How has that affected what you do?
Our other offices in London, Paris, Los Angeles, New York, and Amsterdam have supported us so much. While they might have more of an outreach in the pop world, their support is very important. They are always sending us songs and asking, “Would this song work in your world?” Or, “Is this writer somebody you think we should send to Nashville?”
While we live in Nashville, there is a pop industry growing here. It’s definitely a goal of mine to diversify our roster. My heart is in country music, but there is so much great music here in Nashville and I want to be a champion for those who might have a bit of a harder time because they are not your standard country writer.
With Fancy, I saw him open for Emily West like six years ago. It completely stopped me in my tracks. You just couldn’t take your eyes off of him and he had everyone laughing and he was getting standing ovations after every song. We became good friends over the years and I’ve always been a fan of what he does.
MR: You were also very involved in launching the Kendell Marvel Honkytonk Experience.
I go to those shows because we work with Kendell, but also because they are so fun. Kendell writes with Keith Gattis a lot and Keith was like, “You are one of the best country singers I know, you should do a record.” He also pulled songs from years ago that he had written with Chris Stapleton. The album was rockin’ and it was Kendell and Keith were like it would be fun to do this. Kendell is really connected, and it just came together organically.
I believe the first show, Jamey Johnson and Alison Krauss were the special guests and that brought a lot of attention to the people of Nashville and the music fans here. So each month, it was like, ‘Who can we get up there?’ I set him and Natalie Hemby up to write so we had her as a featured guest. It’s been really fun seeing the evolution of it. You just never know who is going to show up—although I do, usually.
MR: How do you see the role of A&R developing going forward?
I see A&R playing even more of a role in bringing genres together. I want to work with writers I’m passionate about and I feel that way about our entire roster. I feel really lucky to have landed at a company like Downtown that is small, where we all get to work together, but it is a global company with so much outreach and the ability to travel to all these other cities. Songwriters Without Borders came about after we planned a trip to C2C and hosted a writer’s round. It went over so well, we had our writers writing with writers in those cities, that we thought we should do more of that.
Mike Farris Project ‘Silver And Stone’ Set For September
/by Lorie HollabaughProduced at Nashville’s Compass Sound Studio by Compass Records co-founder, Garry West, the collection features 12 tracks, including a cover of Bill Withers’ “Hope She’ll be Happier.” Among the album’s standouts are Joe Bonamassa‘s searing solo on “Movin’ Me” (Bonamassa became a fan and friend while opening for Farris’ band Screamin’ Cheetah Wheelies in the 90’s), and “Golden Wings,” written for his son, Christian.
Farris is also hitting the road in support of the new project, visiting cities through the end of November including Sacramento, Lexington, Chattanooga, Charleston, Seattle, and more.
Silver And Stone Track Titles:
1. Tennessee Girl
2. Are You Lonely For Me Baby?
3. Can I Get a Witness?
4. Golden Wings
5. Let Me Love You Baby
6. Hope She’ll Be Happier
7. Snap Your Fingers
8. Breathless
9. Miss Somebody
10. When Mavis Sings
11. Movin’ Me
12. I’ll Come Running Back To You
Dolly Parton Receives Public Service Award At L.A. Press Club Gala
/by Lorie HollabaughDolly Parton and Lester Holt pose prior to receiving their LA Press Club honors. Photo: Gary Leonard
Dolly Parton was honored with the Bill Rosendahl Public Service Award by the Los Angeles Press at the 60th SoCal Journalism Awards Gala in LA on Sunday evening.
The event, held at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel, highlighted Parton’s philanthropic efforts of her Imagination Library, the book gifting organization that has mailed over 100 million books to children in Australia, Canada, the U.K. and U.S., as well as her Smoky Mountains Rise telethon, which raised more than $12.5 million dollars for her My People Fund and provided financial assistance to victims of the massive wildfires that impacted Gatlinburg, Tennessee in 2016.
The awards gala, which was attended by over 500 journalists and media executives, also honored NBC News’ Lester Holt, LA Times Business Editor Kimi Yoshino and Saudi Arabian Blogger Raif Badawi. Holt received the Joseph M. Quinn Award for Lifetime Achievement, Yoshino the President’s Award for impact on media and Badawi the Daniel Pearl Award for courage and integrity in journalism.
Parton is currently working on a collaboration with Linda Perry on the upcoming soundtrack for the film Dumplin’. Perry produced the album and produced and wrote the film’s score, and Parton is executive producer. Together, they co-wrote six new songs for the project. Dumplin’ , starring Jennifer Aniston & Danielle MacDonald, is based on the best-selling book of the same name by Julie Murphy, about a girl who struggles to find herself.
On The Cover: MusicRow Awards 2018
/by Jessica NicholsonMusicRow Magazine releases its annual MusicRow Awards issue today (June 28). The latest issue honors the winners of the 30th annual MusicRow Awards, who were celebrated during an industry party on Wednesday (June 27).
The event was held at BMI’s Nashville office; BMI’s Nashville Creative Team, led by Jody Williams, graces the cover of this year’s MusicRow Awards Issue.
This issue also delves into country music’s ever-expanding overseas presence, as well as the state of musician royalties in 2018. Warner Music Nashville’s Shane Tarleton is profiled in this issue, as is Tyler Mahan Coe‘s popular country music history podcast, Cocaine & Rhinestones.
Additionally, Anderson Benson’s Brent Daughrity and Miller Insurance Services’ Jonathan Sale discuss contingency insurance in today’s touring market.
Single copies of MusicRow Awards are available for purchase online (www.musicrow.com) for $20, and are included with yearly subscriptions at no additional cost.
Artist Growth, Pinnacle Financial Partners Launch Program To Streamline Access To Touring Capital
/by Jessica NicholsonThis tour financing program marks the first offering arising from Artist Growth’s strategic partnership with Nashville-based Pinnacle Financial Partners, announced in May.
The program allows agencies to upload event routing and confirmed guarantees into Artist Growth. Pinnacle will then approve an advance ranging from thousands of dollars to millions, based on tour dates, guarantees, insurances terms and more. This allows artists to get capital quickly, without the need to submit personal financial documents generally required for a bank loan.
The lending program will remain in pilot through at least the third quarter, available only to a small number of invited users. Full access to Artist Growth clients is expected in the fourth quarter.
“Our mission has always been to help artists manage and grow thriving businesses, and as capital is at the center of all business, it is a natural service for us to provide to our clients,” says Matt Urmy, Artist Growth’s founder and Chief Strategy Officer. “This program brings friction-free access to cash to any artist at a participating agency that is touring. Sometimes an artist’s tour support budget from the label runs out, and opportunities are lost due to a shortage of cash on hand, or artists have to enter agreements that limit their options in order to access the funding they need. We believe that if artists are working hard on the road playing for their fans, access to capital should not be a problem in today’s industry.”
“This is exactly what we wanted to accomplish when we partnered with Artist Growth,” says Andy Moats, Pinnacle’s head of music, entertainment and sports. “It’s an extension of the work we’ve done for years to support artists and help them bring their music to the fans. The speed and agility offered by Artist Growth will expand our reach by matching our lending capabilities to the unique needs of musicians on the road. It’s a nontraditional business model, and we’ve built our reputation on understanding that and tailoring our processes to them so we can meet their needs. Our industry expertise combined with the Artist Growth platform is a powerful combination.”