On Thursday (Aug. 16), friends and family joined Dierks Bentley to celebrate his 17th career No. 1, “Woman, Amen,” which is the lead track to his ninth studio album, The Mountain. The party, hosted by ASCAP, BMI, Pinnacle and First Tennessee Bank, was held at Bentley’s very own Whiskey Row venue in downtown Nashville. The single was co-written by Bentley, Josh Kear, and Ross Copperman. Copperman co-produced the single with Jon Randall.

Cindy Mabe of Universal Music Group praised Brentley’s single by stating, “At a time when the world seems to want to take everything it can, people are at odds with each other for differences of opinions, and our brains are so full that we can’t see the road in front of us, ‘Woman, Amen’ cut through the noise and clutter, and it took us back to what matters most. It all starts with family.”

Family was the main theme surrounding the party. Copperman thanked his wife, his co-writers, his co-producer Randall, and mixer/engineer Reid Shippen. Kear echoed this message by thanking his wife for being his inspiration, his publisher Big Yellow Dog, Bentley, Copperman and everybody involved in the project from playing on it to those who promoted the single to radio.

Kear added, “These things never happen by themselves by any far stretch of the imagination. So thank you to everyone along the chain that enjoyed it or fought for it.”

Bentley took the industry crowd on a trip down memory lane to the title track from his second studio album, 2005’s Modern Day Drifter. He described himself as a drifter always being on the road before he met his wife, Cassidy, who gave the drifter’s heart a home, as stated in the first verse of “Woman, Amen.”  

“When Josh threw this song title out, I felt like I needed this song in my life,” Bentley said. “One of the few times in my life where I had really just known, like when I [knew I] wanted to be a country singer. A very special song, a very special day; one of those days that comes along very infrequently. As much as this song is about my wife, [“Woman, Amen”] can be applied to so many different women in my life. That’s why I love this song; it recognizes how many women it takes for one male country singer to have success.”

Among those celebrating with Bentley were producer Arturo Buenahora, ASCAP’s Evyn Mustoe Johnston, ASCAP’s Mike Sistad, BMI’s Josh Tomlinson, Rezonant’s Tim Wipperman, Big Yellow Dog’s Carla Wallace and Sony/ATV’s Josh Van Valkenburg. 

In addition to his No. 1 celebration, Bentley will be honored with the Merle Haggard Spirit Award at the upcoming 12th Annual ACM Honors.

Jillian Jacqueline has teamed with Keith Urban on her latest single, “If I Were You.” The track is the first glimpse of her upcoming SIDE B EP, with a release date soon to be announced.

“I couldn’t wait to share this song. I wrote it — with Sarah Buxton and Jordan Reynolds — about meeting and falling for someone new very soon after a heartbreak and feeling unprepared to love again,” shares Jacqueline. “The song was very real to me when I wrote it, and is now one of the most special songs of my career because Keith is part of it with me. His voice and guitar playing took this song to the next level, and I am so proud of it.”

An accompanying vertical video of the introspective track is now available exclusively on Spotify’s New Boots playlist. “If I Were You” has also been added to the streaming platform’s New Music Friday collection.

Beginning next month, Jacqueline will join Kip Moore as a special guest on the After The Sunburn Tour. She’ll round out the summer by joining the bill at festivals including Bumbershoot in Seattle (Sept. 2) and Pilgrimage in Franklin, TN (Sept. 22).

Singer-songwriter Heather Morgan, who has penned songs including Brett Eldredge‘s “Lose My Mind” and “Beat of the Music,” will release her own debut album, Borrowed Heart, on Oct. 5.

The album was produced by Paul Moak, who also co-wrote the album’s “We Were A Fire,” “A Hundred Miles” and “Paper.”

Lori McKenna offers vocals on “Arms of A Lion,” which Morgan and McKenna co-wrote. McKenna also co-wrote the album’s title track. Other co-writers on the album include Ross Copperman, Trent Dabbs, and Jonathan Singleton.

Her songwriting has earned her a BMI Country Song of the Year Award.

‘Borrowed Heart’ tracklist:
1. We Were A Fire (Paul Moak, Heather Morgan)
2. Arms of A Lion ft. Lori McKenna (Lori McKenna, Morgan)
3. Your Hurricane (Morgan)
4. Morning Light (Morgan)
5. Highway Robbery (Morgan)
6. Fall Like Rain (Ross Copperman, Morgan)
7. A Hundred Miles (Moak, Morgan)
8. Still Think About You (Trent Dabbs, Morgan)
9. Paper (Moak, Morgan)
10. Speckled Bird (Jonathan Singleton, Morgan)
11. I Always Did ft. Ross Copperman (Copperman, Morgan)
12. Borrowed Heart (McKenna, Morgan)

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Thomas Rhett, Old Dominion, Brothers Osborne, and Brantley Gilbert have been added to the list of performers for the upcoming Nashville Songwriter Awards slated for Sept. 19 at the Ryman Auditorium. Previously-announced artists set to appear during the evening include Blake Shelton, Jamey Johnson, Scotty McCreery, Bill Anderson, Chris Janson, and LANCO.

Song, Songwriter, and Songwriter-Artist of the Year will be named during the event, along with the coveted “10 Songs I Wish I’d Written” awards.

Bill Anderson will receive the Kris Kristofferson Lifetime Achievement Award. Additionally, two supporters of the songwriting community will be recognized, including RIAA Chairman/CEO Cary Sherman and congressman Doug Collins. Sherman will receive the Stephen Foster Award in honor of his support for songwriters, the music industry, and NSAI. Collins will be honored with the NSAI White Hat Award, given by the NSAI Board of Directors to an individual who has significantly served the interests of the songwriting community and is therefore recognized as “one of the good guys” (who wear white hats).

Tickets to the show are available at ryman.com.