Jimmy Buffett. Photo: Julie Skarratt
Jimmy Buffett, one of the biggest pop icons Music City ever produced, died Friday night (Sept. 1) at age 76.
The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member parlayed his good-time, beach-bum persona into a business empire encompassing restaurants, hotels, resorts, bars, casinos, clothing, packaged food, spirits, books, outdoor furniture, home goods and merchandise. Much of it was branded “Margaritaville,” after the 1977 pop and country hit that was his signature song.
Despite its fame and inclusion in the Grammy Hall of Fame, “Margaritaville” was not Buffett’s biggest hit. “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere,” a 2003 duet with Alan Jackson, topped the country hit parade and remained at No. 1 for eight weeks. He also scored a No. 1 country hit with 2011’s “Knee Deep,” a collaboration with the Zac Brown Band.
But Buffett’s career was not defined by hit records. Rather, it rested on his phenomenally successful concert tours. At his shows, throngs of fans wearing Hawaiian shirts and/or shark-fin hats tossed beach balls and sang along to songs that were never radio favorites. These perennially faithful devotees were dubbed “Parrotheads.”
Born on Christmas Day in 1946, Buffett was raised in Mobile, Alabama. He began playing guitar as a college student at Auburn University and was soon playing folk clubs. In 1969, Buffett moved to Nashville. He became a reporter at Billboard magazine while peddling his songs on Music Row. His big scoop as a journalist was breaking the news that Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs were dissolving their bluegrass act. In 1971, he became the first artist to play the new Exit/In nightclub.
After recording two failed albums in Music City in 1970-71, Buffett accepted Jerry Jeff Walker’s invitation to come to Florida. The two became buskers on the streets of Key West, and Buffett decided to stay there. He returned to Nashville to record 1973’s A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean and 1974’s Living and Dying in 3/4 Time. The latter contained “Come Monday,” his first pop hit.
“I was sort of a pioneer,” he observed. “I guess I was one of the few pop acts that came outta here. And I’m not a crossover act [from country music]. I’m my own thing.”
Between 1970 and 1985, Jimmy Buffett recorded 13 albums in Nashville. In 1975, he formed his Coral Reefers Band. Over the years, the group included such Nashvillians as Josh Leo, Mac McAnally, Vince Melamed and Tim Krekel with Marshall Chapman, Bergen White, Buzz Cason, Shane Keister, Kenny Buttrey, Reggie Young, Randy Goodrum and various other Nashvillians along for the ride at various shows. Music Row’s Don Light was Buffett’s first manager.
By the mid 1970s, the entertainer had developed his musical niche purveying island escapism and Caribbean sunshine. Working with Nashville producers Don Gant, Norbert Putnman, Jimmy Bowen and Tony Brown, as well as McAnally, Buffett issued a string of Platinum-selling albums that celebrated Boats, Beaches, Bars and Ballads, as the title of his Quadruple Platinum boxed set put it.
In 1983, he performed at Nashville’s Fan Fair country festival. The following year, he moved his song-publishing business to Nashville. So the income from “Volcano,” “Cheeseburger in Paradise,” “Why Don’t We Get Drunk (and Screw),” “Changes in Attitudes, Changes in Latitude,” “Fins,” “Son of a Son of a Sailor,” “Coconut Telegraph,” “One Particular Harbor” and the rest of his catalog was managed by Cason’s Southern Writers Group. Buffett’s songs have been recorded by such country stars as Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, Tompall & The Glaser Brothers, Willie Nelson, Clint Black, Lefty Frizzell and Crystal Gayle.
“Nashville is the last place where a good melody and a good lyric are appreciated and can be a commercial success,” he said. “I’ve always maintained close friendships with everyone I’ve been involved with in Nashville… I have a lot of roots here and made a lot of records here over the years.”
In 1991, he bought a home in Music City. Then, beginning in 1992, Music Row became the home of his record labels, Margaritaville Records and Mailboat Records.
His songs appeared on the soundtracks of the films Rancho Deluxe, FM, Goin’ West, Summer Rental, Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Urban Cowboy. He did cameo appearances in a number of movies and had a recurring role as a helicopter pilot on TV’s Hawaii Five-O in 2011-2020.
His books have all made the New York Times best-sellers lists. They have included Tales From Margaritaville (short stories), Where Is Joe Merchant (a novel), A Pirate Looks at Fifty (a memoir) and A Salty Piece of Land (a novel). Buffett also wrote two musicals and two children’s books.
He co-owned two minor-league baseball teams and three retirement communities. He had his own cannabis brand, as well as a video game. He owned luxury real estate in five states. According to Forbes, he was worth more than $1 billion.
In 1993, Jimmy Buffett played the Tennessee Ball at the Bill Clinton inauguration. A lifelong Democrat, he campaigned for Hillary Clinton in 2016. He was an avid supporter of nature conservation. Buffett was a major donor to the Gulf Specimen Marine Laboratory, and in 1987 he’d lobbied for the reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act.
Back in Nashville, he recorded a 1999 duet version of “Margaritaville” with Alan Jackson, which returned him to the country charts. In 2003, he won his first music-industry honor, a CMA Award for the team’s “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere.” The CMA also nominated him for 2004’s “Hey Good Lookin,” a collaboration with Kenny Chesney, George Strait, Toby Keith and Jackson. Buffett’s ties to Music City were underscored in 2004 when he returned to town for his induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.
That is the same year that he resumed recording in Nashville. His album License to Chill on his Mailboat label, featured collaborations with Clint Black, Nanci Griffith and Bill Withers, as well as Strait, Chesney, Keith and Jackson. The collection hit No.1 on the country charts, and its “Trip Around the Sun” duet with Martina McBride became a top-20 country hit.
“This is where I belong,” he decided. “I don’t think I’ve changed that much, but Nashville sure has….There’s more room for versatility than there ever was before, more room to fluctuate musically than in any other form of music….All kinds of people are coming back into this town, from musicians to producers to writers.
“All I’m doing is following my market. I am as old as the people who like me….Finally, it’s gotten to the point where people don’t ask me what it is that I play anymore. They say I’m uncategorized; and to that I say, ‘Thank you.’
“I don’t care what you call it, it’s still folk. I don’t want to give up my acoustic guitar. We’re folky, but you can call it anything you want to.”
In 2005, his Songs You Know By Heart greatest-hits collection was certified by the RIAA for sales of seven million copies. In 2006-20, he issued five more studio albums. There is reportedly a sixth, tentatively titled Equal Strain on All Parts, that has yet to be released. He continued to tour and perform, almost to the end of his life. His last appearance was on July 2 at a McAnally show in Rhode Island.
In late August, Jimmy Buffett entered hospice care. He had an aggressive form of skin cancer and died of its complications at his waterfront estate in Sag Harbor on Long Island. According to his website and social media, he was “surrounded by family, friends, music and his dogs.
“He lived his life like a song till the very last breath and will be missed beyond measure by so many.”
Jimmy Buffett is survived by his wife Jane, son Cameron Marley, daughters Savannah Jane and Sarah Delaney, two grandchildren and two sisters. Funeral arrangements have not been announced.
The family has asked that donations be made in his name to the foundation Singing for Change, to Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, both in Boston, and to the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.
On The Cover: Jelly Roll Featured On 2023 MusicRow Awards Issue Cover
/by MusicRow StaffNashville’s leading music industry publication, MusicRow Magazine, has released its 2023 MusicRow Awards print issue, which highlights this year’s MusicRow Awards nominees in a range of categories, including Producer of the Year, Label Group of the Year, Talent Agency of the Year, Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year, Breakthrough Artist-Writer of the Year, Male Songwriter of the Year, Female Songwriter of the Year, Song of the Year, Discovery Artist of the Year, Breakthrough Artist of the Year, Female Artist of the Year, Male Artist of the Year, Group/Duo Artist of the Year and Entertainer of the Year.
The winners for the 35th annual MusicRow Awards will be announced virtually among multiple MusicRow platforms on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. Presenting Sponsor of the 2023 MusicRow Awards is City National Bank. This print issue also honors the Top 10 Album All-Star Musicians Awards, which will also be announced on Sept. 12, recognizing the studio players who played on the most albums reaching the Top 10 of Billboard’s Country Albums Chart during the eligibility period.
“Now in its 35th year, the MusicRow Awards are Nashville’s longest running music industry trade publication honors and celebrate the achievements of songwriters, artists, producers and more,” says MusicRow owner/publisher Sherod Robertson. “With awards selected by insiders in the industry, it’s these nods from peers, who know first-hand what it takes to get to that level, that serve as a well-deserved pat on the back and recognition for a job well done.”
Stoney Creek Records’ genre-blending artist Jelly Roll graces the cover of the 2023 MusicRow Awards print issue.
Entertainment phenomenon singer-songwriter Jelly Roll independently built a remarkable career, under the radar and on his own terms. Since his days selling his mixtapes out of his car, he has been constantly releasing new music, touring relentlessly, consistently topping various charts, engaging a rabid fanbase and creating videos that have amassed more than four billion views on YouTube. He pairs deeply personal lyrics with music to create a sound that is therapeutic, raw and tackles the heaviness of life: Real Music for Real People With Real Problems.
Jelly Roll released his debut country project, Whitsitt Chapel, in June of 2023. It became the largest country debut album in Billboard Consumption chart history–earning the singer-songwriter another milestone after he topped Billboard’s Emerging Artists chart for more than 28 weeks, the longest reign for an artist in the chart’s existence. Jelly co-wrote all 13 tracks on the album, including his breakthrough viral single “Save Me”—a confessional, vulnerable expression of self-doubt—which has earned RIAA Platinum certification, as well as his multi-week chart-topping single, “Need A Favor.”
Born and raised in Nashville’s Antioch neighborhood, the former drug addict and dealer draws from his personal experiences to tell the story of a man who has been through the ringer and isn’t afraid to share his raw truth. The three-time CMT Award winning artist has had a history-making “breakthrough year” (American Songwriter), selling out the Ryman Auditorium as well as his hometown’s Bridgestone Arena, which he filled with over 18,000 fans, earning two No. 1s at country radio and multi-week hits at rock radio simultaneously, launching his 44-date arena “Background Baptism Tour,” and releasing an all-access documentary of his life at home and on the road, Jelly Roll: Save Me, on Hulu.
The 2023 MusicRow Awards print issue also delves into the sales, streaming and social media impact that major country music awards shows have on an artist’s career, and highlights the upcoming inaugural People’s Choice Country Awards.
In this issue, Lainey Wilson looks back on the past two years after receiving her first industry award—a MusicRow Award in 2021. The MusicRow Awards print issue also contains an informative roundup of all the awards applicable to the Nashville music industry.
Single copies of the 2023 MusicRow Awards print issue are available for purchase at musicrow.com for $20, and are included with yearly MusicRow subscriptions.
Remembering ‘Margaritaville’ Mogul Jimmy Buffett
/by Robert K OermannJimmy Buffett. Photo: Julie Skarratt
Jimmy Buffett, one of the biggest pop icons Music City ever produced, died Friday night (Sept. 1) at age 76.
The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member parlayed his good-time, beach-bum persona into a business empire encompassing restaurants, hotels, resorts, bars, casinos, clothing, packaged food, spirits, books, outdoor furniture, home goods and merchandise. Much of it was branded “Margaritaville,” after the 1977 pop and country hit that was his signature song.
Despite its fame and inclusion in the Grammy Hall of Fame, “Margaritaville” was not Buffett’s biggest hit. “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere,” a 2003 duet with Alan Jackson, topped the country hit parade and remained at No. 1 for eight weeks. He also scored a No. 1 country hit with 2011’s “Knee Deep,” a collaboration with the Zac Brown Band.
But Buffett’s career was not defined by hit records. Rather, it rested on his phenomenally successful concert tours. At his shows, throngs of fans wearing Hawaiian shirts and/or shark-fin hats tossed beach balls and sang along to songs that were never radio favorites. These perennially faithful devotees were dubbed “Parrotheads.”
Born on Christmas Day in 1946, Buffett was raised in Mobile, Alabama. He began playing guitar as a college student at Auburn University and was soon playing folk clubs. In 1969, Buffett moved to Nashville. He became a reporter at Billboard magazine while peddling his songs on Music Row. His big scoop as a journalist was breaking the news that Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs were dissolving their bluegrass act. In 1971, he became the first artist to play the new Exit/In nightclub.
After recording two failed albums in Music City in 1970-71, Buffett accepted Jerry Jeff Walker’s invitation to come to Florida. The two became buskers on the streets of Key West, and Buffett decided to stay there. He returned to Nashville to record 1973’s A White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean and 1974’s Living and Dying in 3/4 Time. The latter contained “Come Monday,” his first pop hit.
“I was sort of a pioneer,” he observed. “I guess I was one of the few pop acts that came outta here. And I’m not a crossover act [from country music]. I’m my own thing.”
Between 1970 and 1985, Jimmy Buffett recorded 13 albums in Nashville. In 1975, he formed his Coral Reefers Band. Over the years, the group included such Nashvillians as Josh Leo, Mac McAnally, Vince Melamed and Tim Krekel with Marshall Chapman, Bergen White, Buzz Cason, Shane Keister, Kenny Buttrey, Reggie Young, Randy Goodrum and various other Nashvillians along for the ride at various shows. Music Row’s Don Light was Buffett’s first manager.
By the mid 1970s, the entertainer had developed his musical niche purveying island escapism and Caribbean sunshine. Working with Nashville producers Don Gant, Norbert Putnman, Jimmy Bowen and Tony Brown, as well as McAnally, Buffett issued a string of Platinum-selling albums that celebrated Boats, Beaches, Bars and Ballads, as the title of his Quadruple Platinum boxed set put it.
In 1983, he performed at Nashville’s Fan Fair country festival. The following year, he moved his song-publishing business to Nashville. So the income from “Volcano,” “Cheeseburger in Paradise,” “Why Don’t We Get Drunk (and Screw),” “Changes in Attitudes, Changes in Latitude,” “Fins,” “Son of a Son of a Sailor,” “Coconut Telegraph,” “One Particular Harbor” and the rest of his catalog was managed by Cason’s Southern Writers Group. Buffett’s songs have been recorded by such country stars as Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, Tompall & The Glaser Brothers, Willie Nelson, Clint Black, Lefty Frizzell and Crystal Gayle.
“Nashville is the last place where a good melody and a good lyric are appreciated and can be a commercial success,” he said. “I’ve always maintained close friendships with everyone I’ve been involved with in Nashville… I have a lot of roots here and made a lot of records here over the years.”
In 1991, he bought a home in Music City. Then, beginning in 1992, Music Row became the home of his record labels, Margaritaville Records and Mailboat Records.
His songs appeared on the soundtracks of the films Rancho Deluxe, FM, Goin’ West, Summer Rental, Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Urban Cowboy. He did cameo appearances in a number of movies and had a recurring role as a helicopter pilot on TV’s Hawaii Five-O in 2011-2020.
His books have all made the New York Times best-sellers lists. They have included Tales From Margaritaville (short stories), Where Is Joe Merchant (a novel), A Pirate Looks at Fifty (a memoir) and A Salty Piece of Land (a novel). Buffett also wrote two musicals and two children’s books.
He co-owned two minor-league baseball teams and three retirement communities. He had his own cannabis brand, as well as a video game. He owned luxury real estate in five states. According to Forbes, he was worth more than $1 billion.
In 1993, Jimmy Buffett played the Tennessee Ball at the Bill Clinton inauguration. A lifelong Democrat, he campaigned for Hillary Clinton in 2016. He was an avid supporter of nature conservation. Buffett was a major donor to the Gulf Specimen Marine Laboratory, and in 1987 he’d lobbied for the reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act.
Back in Nashville, he recorded a 1999 duet version of “Margaritaville” with Alan Jackson, which returned him to the country charts. In 2003, he won his first music-industry honor, a CMA Award for the team’s “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere.” The CMA also nominated him for 2004’s “Hey Good Lookin,” a collaboration with Kenny Chesney, George Strait, Toby Keith and Jackson. Buffett’s ties to Music City were underscored in 2004 when he returned to town for his induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.
That is the same year that he resumed recording in Nashville. His album License to Chill on his Mailboat label, featured collaborations with Clint Black, Nanci Griffith and Bill Withers, as well as Strait, Chesney, Keith and Jackson. The collection hit No.1 on the country charts, and its “Trip Around the Sun” duet with Martina McBride became a top-20 country hit.
“This is where I belong,” he decided. “I don’t think I’ve changed that much, but Nashville sure has….There’s more room for versatility than there ever was before, more room to fluctuate musically than in any other form of music….All kinds of people are coming back into this town, from musicians to producers to writers.
“All I’m doing is following my market. I am as old as the people who like me….Finally, it’s gotten to the point where people don’t ask me what it is that I play anymore. They say I’m uncategorized; and to that I say, ‘Thank you.’
“I don’t care what you call it, it’s still folk. I don’t want to give up my acoustic guitar. We’re folky, but you can call it anything you want to.”
In 2005, his Songs You Know By Heart greatest-hits collection was certified by the RIAA for sales of seven million copies. In 2006-20, he issued five more studio albums. There is reportedly a sixth, tentatively titled Equal Strain on All Parts, that has yet to be released. He continued to tour and perform, almost to the end of his life. His last appearance was on July 2 at a McAnally show in Rhode Island.
In late August, Jimmy Buffett entered hospice care. He had an aggressive form of skin cancer and died of its complications at his waterfront estate in Sag Harbor on Long Island. According to his website and social media, he was “surrounded by family, friends, music and his dogs.
“He lived his life like a song till the very last breath and will be missed beyond measure by so many.”
Jimmy Buffett is survived by his wife Jane, son Cameron Marley, daughters Savannah Jane and Sarah Delaney, two grandchildren and two sisters. Funeral arrangements have not been announced.
The family has asked that donations be made in his name to the foundation Singing for Change, to Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, both in Boston, and to the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.
Dierks Bentley’s Live At Red Rocks To Stream Globally
/by Lorie HollabaughOne of Dierks Bentley‘s upcoming shows at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheater on Sept. 5 will be available to stream live to fans across the world on Veeps.com.
The live stream will also be available on the Veeps app, Roku, Apple TV, iOS, and Android starting at 10 p.m. CT.
Across the two night stint Sept. 5-6, Bentley will welcome opening acts Ashley McBryde, The Red Clay Strays, Harper O’Neill, The Infamous Stringdusters, Tanner Usrey and Kaitlin Butts.
Over the past three months, Bentley and his “Gravel & Gold” tour have welcomed a multitude of special guests, including Jordan Davis, Elle King, Ashley McBryde, Tracy Lawrence, Tyler Braden, Caylee Hammack, Kameron Marlowe, Caitlyn Smith, Hailey Whitters, The Cadillac Three, Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway, The Red Clay Strays, Shane Smith & The Saints.
Vince Gill & Paul Franklin Honor Ray Price On ‘Sweet Memories’ Album [Interview]
/by LB CantrellPaul Franklin and Vince Gill
10 years after the two musicians came together to release Bakersfield, their tribute album to heroes Buck Owens and Merle Haggard and their bands, multi-talented singer-songwriter Vince Gill and lauded steel guitar wizard Paul Franklin have come back together to honor another musical giant and his band, Ray Price & The Cherokee Cowboys.
Price, a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, was an essential figure in country music in the 1950s and ’60s. He impacted the genre with hits such as “Crazy Arms,” “City Lights,” “Heartaches by the Number,” “I Won’t Mention It Again” and “For the Good Times.”
Six years following Price’s death in 2013, Gill and Franklin began recording tracks for the album. Both of them had recorded with the legend before. In 2002, Gill sang harmony on “What If We Say Goodbye” for Price’s album, Time, as well as on “Heartaches By the Number” for 2007’s Last of the Breed. Gill and Franklin both worked on Price’s Beauty Is: The Final Sessions in 2013. Franklin also recorded with Barbara Mandrell when Price joined her in 1990 for a version of “Crazy Arms.”
“He was a real gentleman,” Franklin tells MusicRow. “We both got to play on his last record. He was having his health issues, but he was so courteous. He was such a nice man.”
Gill says, “It’s rare for someone to keep their voice until the end of their life. He was still singing like Ray Price until the end. It was magical.”
Gill points out that Price had a unique gift for phrasing in his vocal delivery, which is one of many of Price’s attributes that have inspired the Hall of Fame singer. “He sang like no one else. That’s what people yearn for these days, to hear a singer and know who it is right away,” he shares.
For the track list, Gill and Franklin wanted to expand their material deeper than Price’s hits to reimagine. In fact, Sweet Memories includes some songs that the two heard for the first time in the searching process. They had help from one of country music’s most vibrant minds, former Grand Ole Opry announcer, WSM disc jockey and music scholar Eddie Stubbs.
“We landed on the possibility of not doing the obvious choices,” Gill says. “People may ask why we didn’t do certain songs, but it was because they’ve been done. Why wouldn’t you dig a little deeper?”
“Eddie has one of the deepest wells in town. He kept bringing songs, I learned so much about Ray Price,” Franklin says.
With Stubbs informing the tune selection, Gill and Franklin reimagined Price’s “One More Time” (originally recorded in 1960), “I’d Fight the World” (1966), “You Wouldn’t Know Love” (1970), “Walkin’ Slow (And Thinking ‘Bout Her)” (1962), “The Same Two Lips” (1967), “Weary Blues from Waitin’” (1951), “Kissing Your Picture (Is So Cold)” (1958), “Sweet Memories” (1971), “Danny Boy” (1967), “Your Old Love Letters” (1965) and “Healing Hands of Time” (1966).
In addition to bringing lesser-known Price songs out of the history books, it was special to the men that they were able to highlight the work of such songwriters as Hank Williams, Mel Tillis, Hank Cochran, Joe Allison, Dave Kirby, Bobby Bare, Marty Robbins, Wayne Walker, Mickey Newbury, Willie Nelson, Lance Guynes, Fred Weatherly and Price, himself.
“Back then, you might release three albums in a year because they basically sold their product from the stage. So you had young Roger Miller, Mel Tillis, Willie Nelson, Harlan Howard, Hank Cochran and all these iconic writers writing so many songs,” Franklin says. “In that whole library of his discography, therein lies incredible songwriting.”
When it came to the recording of the project, it was important that the men did not do sound-alike records, which is something Gill learned when making a record with Rodney Crowell. The two were covering Buck Owens‘ “Above And Beyond,” and stuck close to the original recording.
“Buck heard it and said, ‘You didn’t change one note.’ We did it pretty verbatim. They’re both worthy, but what are you going to prove doing a note-for-note adaptation of something somebody’s already done?
“I don’t sound like Ray Price,” he adds. “I can emulate him, and I did in small doses. I think that’s just right, to take the spirit of it but don’t overkill it.”
Gill points out that something that he learned from making this record is Price’s mastery of editing himself.
“He was so patient and reserved as a singer. Even though he could go up and bust that high note, he didn’t do it nine times in the song—he did it once. He was patient,” Gill says. “As a young musician, I learned a valuable lesson. I played a solo on something and [the engineer] said, ‘That was nice. Now play me half of what you know.’
“That’s what everybody who is worth their weight do: they edit themselves. You gather yourself with musicians that know what not to do. Everybody gets to have that freedom to be sparse and patient,” Gill says. “Ray was not in a hurry to show you how great he could sing.”
Ultimately, Gill and Franklin hope that their selections of Price’s extensive catalog shines a lot on the vibrancy of country music in the ’50s and ’60s.
“If a young musician hears Vince or me on a record and love it, hopefully they dig in deeper and they’ll hear us talking about all these greats,” Franklin says.
“The beautiful thing about our musical history is that you can keep tracing it back further and further. Country music has been recorded now for close to 100 years, and it’s evolved quite a bit,” Gill shares. “It’s healthy that it changes. If it was the same thing over and over, it would wear thin.”
Click here to listen to Gill and Franklin’s Sweet Memories: The Music of Ray Price & The Cherokee Cowboys.
Industry Ink: Ashley McBryde, Scotty McCreery, Bowen Invitational, ACM
/by Caela GriffinAshley McBryde Celebrates Upcoming Album Release
Pictured (L-R): Anna Pittman (VP Artist Development, WMN); Tim Foisset (SVP Commercial Partnerships, WMN); Shane Tarleton (EVP Artist Development, WMN); John Peets (Q Prime); Ashley McBryde; Cris Lacy (Co-Chair & Co-President, WMN); Ben Kline (Co-Chair & Co-President, WMN); Kristen Williams (SVP Radio, WMN); Torie Mason (SVP Strategic Marketing & Analytics, WMN). Photo: Hayley Gjertsen
Ashley McBryde gathered with friends and industry members to celebrate her upcoming album The Devil I Know (due out Sept. 8) at Nashville’s Analog at Hutton Hotel on Wednesday night (Aug. 30).
Performing the album in its entirety, McBryde entertained the packed room with engaging behind-the-scenes stories about each song. Warner Music Nashville Co-Chair & Co-President Cris Lacy welcomed the crowd, describing McBryde as “absolutely essential in our format.”
Scotty McCreery Performs at Memorial Stadium for ‘Volleyball Day in Nebraska’
Pictured: Scotty McCreery with University of Nebraska Ladies Volleyball Team and Coach John Cook. Courtesy of University of Nebraska.
Triple Tigers recording artist Scotty McCreery performed a concert following the University of Nebraska Ladies Volleyball Team’s winning match against Omaha at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska on Aug. 30.
The event set a new world record for the highest attendance at a women’s sporting event with 92,003 fans in attendance and was designated “Volleyball Day in Nebraska.”
“That was something I will never forget,” said McCreery after coming off stage. “It’s the biggest crowd I’ve ever played in front of, and they were fantastic. Hearing 92,003 people sing along and watching them dance and enjoy themselves is something I will never forget. Congrats to the Nebraska Volleyball Team on their win and setting the new world record. Those ladies are amazing athletes and it was exciting to watch their games. I thank them for having me be a part of the event!”
Randy Rogers, Williams Clark Green, More Attend Wade Bowen Invitational Raising Nearly $1 Million
Pictured (L-R): Wade Bowen, Jamey Johnson. Photo: Andrew Quinn.
Wade Bowen hosted his annual two-day, invite-only golf tournament, Bowen Invitational in San Antonio, Texas, raising nearly $1 million for the Bowen Family Foundation on Aug. 27 and 28. Guests at the event included Robert Earl Keen, Randy Rogers, William Clark Green, Jamey Johnson, Heather Morgan, William Beckmann and more.
The Bowen Family Foundationwas started by Wade and his family to support worthy causes in and around Texas that directly affects families in the community all year round. To-date, the organization has raised more than $6 million.
In true Wade fashion, the Bowen Invitational was a lot of golf, with a little bit of music too. A major highlight of the weekend was an impromptu, one-of-a-kind jam session on Sunday night (Aug. 27) with Rogers, Morgan, Green, Johnson, Beckmann and Bowen.
Monday evening featured a spectacular performance from Keen in what was a full circle moment for Bowen. This year’s live auction featured a George Strait autographed guitar and Vegas show tickets, Sunday passes to the 2024 Masters and a private acoustic performance from Bowen. The live auction alone raised more than $600, 000 for the Bowen Family Foundation.
ACM Celebrates Hip-Hop’s 50th Anniversary with OnRamp Showcase
ACM will celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop at a special celebration show, “Music City Hip Hop,” on Wednesday, Sept. 6. Presented by its much-heralded OnRamp program, the event will feature live performances by four members of the OnRamp inaugural class: Roz Malone, Daisha McBrirde, Qualls, and Kendall Warner aka “Ken-Say.”
The show will be at The Basement in Nashville at 7:00 p.m. and tickets are on sale now.
OnRamp is a partnership with the Black Music Action Coalition (BMAC) focused on improving inclusivity and equity within Music City and aiming to empower the next generation of leaders in the early stages of their careers by granting access to informational panels, professional development opportunities, 360º mentorship, industry exposure, and other opportunities.
Additionally, through the program, each participant receives a monthly stipend for one year. Half of the inaugural class are artists; the other half come from across the industry and range from attorneys to audio engineers, publicists to business managers.
Mark Your Calendar—September 2023
/by Liza AndersonSingle/Track Release Dates:
September 1
Colt Ford & Krizz Kaliko/Big Yeah/Average Joes Entertainment
Riley Green/Damn Country Music/BMLG Records
Parmalee/Boyfriend/Stoney Creek Records
Kylie Morgan/Making It Up As I Go/EMI Records Nashville
Austin & Colin/Guilt Tippin’/BMG/BBR Music Group
September 5
Jelly Roll/Save Me (with Lainey Wilson)/Stoney Creek Records
Pat Boone & Crystal Gayle/You and I/The Gold Label
September 6
Wyatt Putman/Back Road Country Music (feat. Frank Foster)
September 8
Josh Mirenda/In A Beer/Average Joes Entertainment
Adam Warner/Boots in the Bed/ONErpm
Levi Hummon/Rock Bottom (feat. Sam Tinnesz)
Skip Ewing/Road Dog
September 14
Julia Cole/Be The Whiskey
September 15
Wade Bowen/Lovin’ Not Leavin’/Thirty Tigers
EmiSunshine and The Rain/The Boy I Never Loved/Little Blackbird Records
Matt Jordan/Steel Away the Night/ONErpm
September 18
Lauren Alaina/Thicc As Thieves/Big Loud Records
Old Dominion/Can’t Break Up Now (with Megan Moroney)/Columbia Nashville
Ty Gregory/Easy Loving You/Ole Buster Music
American Blonde/A Man Like You
September 25
Neon Union/This Side of the Dirt/Red Street Records
Luke Kelly/Front Porch Swing/General Records
September 29
Sam Grow/Had It For A While/Average Joes Entertainment
Album/EP Release Dates:
September 1
Larry Fleet/Earned It/Big Loud Records
Brandon Davis/Life’s Too Short
September 8
Ashley McBryde/The Devil I Know/Warner Music Nashville
Josh Turner/Greatest Hits/MCA Nashville
Tyler Childers/Rustin’ In The Rain/Hickman Holler Records/RCA Records
Jon Langston/Heart On Ice/32 Bridge Entertainment/EMI Records Nashville
Reyna Roberts/Bad Girl Bible: Vol. 1/EMPIRE Nashville
Allison Russell/The Returner/Fantasy Records
Steep Canyon Rangers/Morning Shift
Pat Boone/Country Jubilee/The Gold Label
September 15
Willie Nelson/Bluegrass/Legacy Recordings
Dan + Shay/Bigger Houses/Warner Music Nashville
Brothers Osborne/Brothers Osborne/EMI Records Nashville
Travis Tritt/Country Chapel/Gaither Music Group
Alex Hall/Side Effect Of The Heart/Monument Records
Stephen Wilson Jr./Søn Of Dad/Big Loud Records
Tyler Booth/Keep It Real/Sony Music Nashville
Walker Montgomery/Work To Do/Clear Creek Productions
Voth/Memories Of You
Jim Lauderdale & The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys/The Long And Lonesome Letting Go
September 22
Carrie Underwood/Denim & Rhinestones (Deluxe Edition)/Capitol Records Nashville
Colbie Caillat/Along The Way/Blue Jean Baby Records
Parmalee/For You 2/Stoney Creek Records
Charles Wesley Godwin/Family Ties/Big Loud Records
Ben Goldsmith/The World Between My Ears/Sony Music Nashville
Brent Cobb/Southern Star/Ol’ Buddy Records/Thirty Tigers
Riley Clemmons/Church Pew/Capitol Christian Music Group
Buddy & Julie Miller/In The Throes/New West Records
Emily Ann Roberts/Can’t Hide Country
The Dryes/Raisin’ Beers & Hallelujahs
September 29
Thomas Rhett/20 Number Ones/The Valory Music Co.
Jason Isbell/Southeastern 10th Anniversary Edition/Southeastern Records/Thirty Tigers
Boy Named Banjo/Dusk/Mercury Nashville
Tony Jackson/I’ve Got Songs To Sing/Bob Frank Distribution (BFD)/Audium Nashville
Charlotte Morris/Wild Child
Jade Eagleson/Do It Anyway
Industry Events:
September 12
MusicRow Awards (Online)
September 19 – 23
AmericanaFest
September 20
Americana Honors & Awards
September 23 – 24
Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival
September 26
Nashville Songwriter Awards
September 26 – 30
IBMA World of Bluegrass
September 28
People’s Choice Country Awards
Eric Church Wraps Two Nights As Country Music Hall Of Fame’s Artist-In-Residence
/by Lorie HollabaughEric Church performs as Artist-in-Residence at Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. Photo: Jason Kempin/Getty Images for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Eric Church wrapped a two-night stand as the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s 2023 artist-in-residence Aug. 30.
Accompanied by his nine-piece band with a trio of backing vocalists, Church performed sold-out shows on Aug. 29 and 30 in the museum’s CMA Theater offering a chronological, retrospective journey through his life and career.
The shows featured many of Church’s biggest hits as well as unreleased new music in a setlist representing his career milestones and life events, from the earliest days of carving his own path and chart-topping success, to personal trials including his brother’s death and his own medical emergency in 2017. Song performances chronicling the two-decade journey were interspersed with video and audio commentary, including news headlines, album and concert reviews, personal voicemails and even Church’s own words.
Pictured (L-R): Brandon Schneeberger, Museum CEO Kyle Young, Vince Gill, Robert Oermann, Eric Church, VP of Museum Services Michael Gray, John Peets, Museum Board Chair Mary Ann McCready and Marshall Alexander. Photo: Jason Kempin/Getty Images for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Journalist and country music historian Robert K. Oermann welcomed Church to the stage each night to complete a “full circle” moment, harkening back to 2006 when Oermann introduced Church at his debut album showcase at the museum. Church was also joined by a special guest for both performances, with Country Music Hall of Fame member and past museum artist-in-residence Vince Gill taking the stage to perform a stirring, solo rendition of his song “Go Rest High on that Mountain” in honor of Church’s late brother, Brandon.
The show will air in its entirety during a special on Church’s Outsiders Radio channel on the SXM App. The special, “Eric Church LIVE! From the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum,” will premiere on Monday, Sept. 4, at 8 p.m. ET. Replays will air Wednesday, Sept. 13, at 5 p.m. ET; Friday, Sept. 22, at 8 p.m. ET; and Tuesday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. ET.
The artist-in-residence shows were produced by Church’s longtime manager, John Peets, with proceeds benefiting the nonprofit museum’s educational mission.
Austin & Colin Ink With BMG/BBR Music Group
/by Lorie HollabaughPictured (L-R): Mac & Cheese Media’s Sean Webster, BMG/Marathon Talent’s Peter Strickland, BMG’s Jon Loba, Colin Cooper, Austin Bever, BMG’s Chris Oglesby, Katie Kerkhover, Chris Poole and Marathon Talent’s Craig Campbell
Comedy/music duo Austin & Colin has signed with BMG/BBR Music Group.
The signing announcement coincides with the release of “Guilt Tippin’,” their new anthem tackling the excessive guilt of inappropriate tipping in a post-Covid world, out now.
Friends from Cincinnati, Austin & Colin began their careers in Nashville after attending Lipscomb University and Belmont University. Drawing inspiration from Lonely Island, Bo Burnham and Weird Al Yankovic, they satirize life’s quirks through catchy and anthemic jams blending EDM beats with electric guitars, spicy synth melodies, and hilariously relatable lyrics.
The duo have built a reputation for their comedic chemistry, delivering side-splitting sketches and satirical commentary. With a passion for laughter and a knack for capturing the absurdities of everyday life, they have amassed a dedicated fanbase with over six million views on their “Welcome To Nashville” series and collaborations with Jake Owen, Walker Hayes and Ryan Hurd.
“We are thrilled to unleash the incredibly creative breakout comedic and music duo Austin & Colin to the world. This song [‘Guilt Tippin”] is just the beginning of a new chapter at BMG,” says Peter Strickland, General Manager, BMG. “Personally, I’m still waiting on my team jacket.”
“We’re thrilled to be joining the BMG family and can’t wait to work with their talented team to take our music to the next level!,” says Austin & Colin. “It’s a dream come true that the wonderful people at BMG believe in our wild vision to bring joy and laughter to the world, and we cannot wait to reach new heights together.”
Kelsea Ballerini To Perform At 2023 Video Music Awards
/by Liza AndersonKelsea Ballerini. Photo: Daniel Prakopcyk
Kelsea Ballerini will celebrate her 30th birthday by taking the MTV/Video Music Awards (VMA) stage for the first time on Tuesday, Sept. 12. The multi-Platinum country star plans to treat fans to a world premiere performance of the expanded version of her latest critically-acclaimed EP Rolling Up The Welcome Mat (For Good).
This has been a record-breaking year so far for Ballerini, who just wrapped three sold-out legs of her headlining “Heartfirst Tour” as well as a successful trio of coast-to-coast fan screenings for the EPs short film, which she wrote and co-directed.
Other acts slated to perform at the event include Anitta, Doja Cat, Tomorrow x Together and Lil Wayne, who will return to the VMA stage for the first time in over a decade.
Jason Aldean’s ‘Try That In A Small Town’ Tops MusicRow Radio Chart
/by LB CantrellJason Aldean‘s “Try That In A Small Town” is the No. 1 song on the MusicRow CountryBreakout Radio Chart after 15 weeks on the chart.
Last month, the controversial song topped the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 songs chart, marking Aldean’s first Hot 100 No. 1. Written by Kelley Lovelace, Neil Thrasher, Tully Kennedy and Kurt Allison, “Try That In A Small Town” notched the largest digital sales week for a country song since Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise” featuring Nelly, released in July of 2013.
“Try That In A Small Town” currently sits at No. 12 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart and No. 9 on the Mediabase chart.
Click here to view the latest edition of The MusicRow Weekly containing the MusicRow CountryBreakout Radio Chart.