Country star Walker Hayes will headline “Melodies For Minds,” an event of stories and songs from artists and champions for mental health and brain health. “Melodies For Minds” will take place on Feb. 6 at the Loveless Cafe in Nashville.

The lineup for the intimate evening also includes Hilary Williams, Jana Kramer, Michael Tyler, Lana Scott and Jason Wahler. The event will be hosted by artist Chuck Wicks. Dr. Daniel Amen of the Change Your Brain Foundation and Amy Alexander of The Refuge Center will also be attending.

In collaboration with the Change Your Brain Foundation, “Melodies For Minds” aims to make a difference for those battling mental health challenges. Proceeds from the event will be contributed to a joint scholarship fund with the Amen Clinic. They provide crucial mental health assessments, brain scans (SPECT), diagnoses, treatment plans and counseling services to those in need.

Tickets are on sale now.

Nothing says “Music City” like the community’s annual Grammy nominee party.

The diversity of Nashville’s sounds was nowhere better illustrated than at this event, a cocktail supper staged Wednesday (Jan. 24) at the Analog nightspot in the Hutton Hotel. That is because this year’s nominees for music’s top honor span 41 different categories, including folk, metal, blues, bluegrass, Americana, arranging and musical theater, as well as the country and gospel fields.

“Our chapter celebrates diversity, equity and inclusion,” said Nashville’s Recording Academy chapter board president Armand Hutton. ”A Grammy nomination recognizes music excellence. This year, the Nashville chapter has 94 nominees representing 164 nominations… We are so proud to see so many in this room tonight… We are, indeed, Music City.”

Celebrants at the event included such 2024 nominees as John Carter Cash, Dierks Bentley, Blessing Offor, Carly Pearce, Larkin Poe, Sam Bush, Michael Trotter of The War and Treaty, Ketch Secor of Old Crow Medicine Show, Kelsea Ballerini, Lainey Wilson, Joel Smallbone of For King and Country, Tracy Nelson, Hank Bentley and Reggie Smith of The Gaither Vocal Band.

“Nashville is a very special music market,” said Nashville’s Recording Academy senior executive director Alicia Warwick. “We see you coming together tonight. So many friendly faces out there. Thank you for being here.”

Among Nashville’s major Grammy achievements this year are three Best New Artist nominees, The War and Treaty, Noah Kahan and Jelly Roll. Of the five Songwriter of the Year nominees, two of them are Nashvillians, party attendee Jessie Jo Dillon plus Shane McAnally.

These last two were celebrated with music at the party. McAnally signed the sister duo Tigirlily Gold to his Monument Records. The women — Kendra and Krista Slaubaugh —  performed “I Should Have Married You,” which McAnally cowrote and produced for/with Old Dominion, as well as their own single “Shoot Tequila,” which he produced.

Megan Moroney and Kristian Bush (her producer) took the stage to salute Dillon with “Girl in the Mirror” and the current single “No Caller ID,” both of which Jessie Jo Dillon co-wrote with Moroney. “I love writing songs with you,” she told the Grammy-party honoree.

“All you nominees, take a breath and take this all in,” advised Warwick. “The Grammys are only a week away.”

The 66th annual Grammy Awards will take place on Sunday, Feb. 4 in Los Angeles with CBS airing the ceremony. Among those who have been announced as performing is Luke Combs.

Chase McDaniel released his debut EP, Blame It All On Country Music, today (Jan. 26) via Big Machine Records.

The six-track EP includes a handful of previously released tracks like “Your Daughter” as well as two new songs including “Somebody Like Me,” all of which were co-written by the rising artist. The project’s final track “Somebody Like Me,” brings the conversation of feeling lost in the struggle of mental health to the forefront.

The title track of the collection is an origin story wrapped up into a love letter to country music that references legends such as Willie Nelson, George Strait and Johnny Cash, along with honky-tonk imagery and a nod to the “Chattahoochie” guitar riff. Penned by McDaniel alongside Clay Barker, Justin Holt and track producer Jerry Jacobs, the rowdy tune tells listeners how much country music has shaped him and his life.

“Everybody has those things that make them who they are—my papaw raised me on the classics and I felt their beat in my DNA. From sneaking in to play in smokey bars, the memories/mistakes I made on crazy nights, to chasing the dream of singing my own songs in Nashville, I can blame it all on country music,” shares McDaniel. “This EP is a little bit of a mosaic of who I am, each song was written about a thought, situation or mood I’ve experienced or observed. It’s a brief introduction—and I look forward to sharing even more.”

Blame It All On Country Music Track Listing:
1. “Blame It All On Country Music” (Chase McDaniel, Clay Barker, Jerry Jacobs, Justin Holt)
2. “Relapse” (Chase McDaniel)
3. “Your Daughter” (Chase McDaniel, Jerry Alan Jacobs)
4. “Drop Your Tailgate” (Chase McDaniel, Jerry Alan Jacobs)
5. “Project” (Chase McDaniel, Jerry Alan Jacobs)
6. “Somebody Like Me” (Chase McDaniel, Jerry Alan Jacobs)

Rising country singer-songwriter Georgia Webster performed for a sold-out crowd at The Basement on Wednesday night (Jan. 24). The show was the singer’s first stop on her “Town Talks Tour,” and was also her first-ever headline show. The night was filled with extraordinary storytelling, catchy melodies and new music previews.

First up during the night was opener Dasha. The singer-songwriter came out on stage sporting a University of Tennessee crewneck, which instantly caught the attention of the crowd. She grabbed her guitar and started off with “King of California” and unreleased track “Share This City” from her debut country album, releasing Feb. 16. After welcoming the audience, Dasha shared a fun story about the next song, “Talk of the Town,” which was written with the guy it is about. Her strong lyricism kept shining through as she performed her newly released single “42.”

Dasha put her guitar down for the next track. As she started moving around the stage, the crowd instantly felt the depth of “Drown Me.” She continued her set with “Even Cowboys Cry” and fan-favorite “Olivia,” a song off her last album that originally was not on the set list for the night. Dasha shared that she received a request from someone to play the song that night, and texted her guitar player just two hours beforehand that they were going to add it. After taking a shot with the crowd and thanking everybody for coming, the singer ended her set with “Austin,” which had the room dancing along to the fun beat.

When Webster took the stage for her headline show debut, she instantly had the support of the crowd with her. Walking out under red lights and guitar in hand, the audience was extremely enthusiastic. Webster started off her set with her hit track “Tell Your Mom,” which instantly got everyone dancing. During the chorus, she had stopped singing all together to hear the crowd singing along.

As she thanked the audience for coming to the show, she went into “Push & Pull,” where she really showed off her vocal ability. “This is just crazy that you guys came to see me,” Webster marveled. “I wrote ‘Push & Pull’ my sophomore year of high school, and it’s really full circle playing it for you guys now.”

When strumming the chords to the next tune, fans instantly got excited as they recognized “Tattoos,” a track about—thankfully—not getting a tattoo with her ex. Webster capped off the string of fan-favorites with “X’s.”

“I’ve been working on a lot of new music,” she shared. “And I want to play you guys a couple of songs tonight that I’ve been working on.” Webster then began to explain the story behind the next track “Delusional,” a song about a situationship breakup which is to be her next single. The lights turned green as the crowd soaked in the new lyrics. She also played more unreleased tracks, such as “Two Truths and a Lie” and “Jupiter,” both with catchy hooks and witty lyrics.

To start off the last part of the set, Webster covered “Linger” by The Cranberries. As she prepared to go into the next track, she checked in with the crowd and applauded Dasha for opening the show, as well as her own band. She then went into the namesake of the tour “Town Talks,” where she decided to sit down on stage for the intimate performance. The emotional song held the attention of the whole room.

The last song of the night was Webster’s latest single release, “Attention,” which sent the crowd into a frenzy. A group of her fans planned a sweet surprise for Webster during the performance, where attendees held up signs that said “we would care” as she was playing, answering the lyrics in the song that repeatedly ask, “would you care then?” She was extremely grateful for the surprise, and thanked everyone who came out to the show.

More dates are to be announced for Webster’s “Town Talks Tour.”