Mike Molinar
The “My Music Row Story” weekly column features notable members of the Nashville music industry selected by the MusicRow editorial team. These individuals serve in key roles that help advance and promote the success of our industry. This column spotlights the invaluable people that keep the wheels rolling and the music playing.
Mike Molinar is the President and Co-Founder of Big Machine Music (BMM), where he brings over 25 years of experience as a music publisher and advocate for creatives. Molinar has led BMM since inception in 2011—overseeing the continued growth of the diverse roster and dynamic catalog as well as driving the company’s impact well-beyond its Music City roots with the addition of a West Coast division based in Los Angeles.
Molinar, who was named one of Billboard’s Country Power Players each of the last four years, oversees all aspects of BMM which was named 2021 Publisher of the Year by the Association of Independent Music Publishers Nashville. BMM has been ranked as a Billboard Top 10 Hot Country Publishing Corp for six years running and recently notched its 50th Airplay No. 1 song in its history. BMM’s roster includes the 2023 nominee for the inaugural Grammy Songwriter of the Year (non-classical) Laura Veltz, as well as hitmakers Jessie Jo Dillon, Brett Young, Maddie & Tae, Geoff Warburton, Ryan Hurd, Matt Dragstrem, Sara Davis, Eric Paslay, Matt Roy, Anna Vaus and Daniel Ross, among others.
Molinar was named one of the 2021 Nashville cohorts for Harvard Business School’s Young American Leaders Program. He is currently serving his 3rd term on the board of the National Music Publishers’ Association and is a founding member of the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) board. In June, he was invited by the House Judicial Subcommittee on IP to testify at their Nashville field hearing reviewing the fifth anniversary of the Music Modernization Act (MMA).
Molinar also serves as a board member for the Academy of Country Music, Music Health Alliance and sits the Country Music Hall Of Fame Education Council. He was named a Rider Scholar while attending Westminster Choir College in Princeton, N.J. He graduated from Middle Tennessee State University in 1998 where he was inducted into the College of Media and Entertainment’s Wall of Fame in 2021. He is a graduate of Leadership Music (2015) and a member of the CMA, ACM, AIMP and Recording Academy.
Prior to BMM, Molinar began his career at the original Starstruck Writer’s Group and Cal IV Entertainment before launching his own startups including Effusion Entertainment. Born and raised in El Paso, Texas, Molinar is a second generation immigrant of Mexican descent. He and his wife, Amanda, are proud parents of two boys, Ryman and Ellis.
MusicRow: Where did you grow up?
I was born and raised in El Paso, Texas.
Reba McEntire, Mike Molinar, Narvel Blackstock
Were you musical as a kid?
I’m the youngest of five kids from a fairly low income family, but there was always music in the house. My dad was from southern California—he could sing and was always a musical force in the house. My mom loved music, but she couldn’t carry a tune whatsoever. My brothers and sisters all played instruments. We’re spaced pretty far apart, so I got the musical influences of all of them.
My sister started taking voice lessons. As you do when there’s a lot of kids, you drop a kid off wherever another one is, so I would go to her voice lessons. I was in first or second grade around that time, and her teacher would always have me run a scale at the end of her voice lesson. As she continued going over the next few years, he would always give me more and more time. He knew that we couldn’t pay for more lessons, so he went to my parents and said that he would teach me for free, and if one day they could ever pay him back, that would be great, but he wanted to go ahead and work with me. By fourth or fifth grade, I’m taking voice lessons and learning how to read music. By middle school, I could read music pretty well. He started helping me get opportunities to audition for operas, operettas and musicals.
What did that lead to?
In those productions, there were some roles that were made for kids, but usually they’re played by women called pants roles. I started to play those roles. I was probably the only kid in middle school with a day planner with where I was supposed to be.
I did that until my voice changed in high school. I ended up going to conservatory in New Jersey. My teacher’s voice studio had a pipeline to a school called Westminster Choir College in Princeton, so I went there. That’s where I met one of my best friends, Martha Earls.
Mike Molinar, Jeff Stevens, Rusty Gaston, Luke Bryan, Rodney Clawson
Did you enjoy college?
Yeah! It was a small school, so it felt a little claustrophobic. It is a performance school so you would prepare to perform at the New York Philharmonic, the Philly Orchestra or the Jersey Symphony. In addition to your school load, you were also learning music to go out and perform. As a freshman, you would do a spring tour representing the school.
That taught me about chasing excellence and the effect that can come when you get it right. Not only just the technical, but when you hit that emotional peak of performance and you see the audiences with you—the vulnerability of performers when they meet the vulnerability of the audience and the emotional flood that can come with that is amazing.
How did you know you wanted to work in the music business?
I always liked songs and songwriters. I had a CD collection that I brought with me to school, and Martha would steal my CDs. I was having conversations about songwriters because I knew a lot of them. One day Martha said, “Why are you here? After we finish freshman year, I’m going to transfer to somewhere in Nashville. You should look into that, too.” I came down to look at Belmont and MTSU, and we both decided to leave full scholarships to pay out-of-state tuition at MTSU and finish our degrees there.
The good thing is when you make that kind of commitment, you put yourself on stun. We moved here January of ’96 and immediately hit Country Radio Seminar where we get to meet Garth Brooks, The Mavericks and The Chicks. We were there as MTSU volunteers but we were also super sneaky and we brought clothes to change into so we could go to the parties. Back then, the only thing separating you from being a volunteer was how you looked. So we go dressed, crashed a bunch of parties and met a bunch of people.
Maddie Font, Mike Molinar, Tae Kerr
That’s awesome. How did you start your career?
I didn’t really know what publishing was, but I interned at Zomba Music Publishing that summer of ’96. My first real job was at Starstruck Writer’s Group. They brought me in as an intern and then a week later, I became the tape guy. They let me go through my senior year, commuting back and forth to MTSU and doing the tape catalog. I would come in on Saturdays and make up for the work that I missed [while I was in class].
It was a such a great music publishing company. Mike Sebastian led it. Kos Weaver was the hot plugger. Molly Reynolds had wonderful artist ears and great service instincts to the executives. She taught me how to be a song sniper—she didn’t really care about volume, she cared about making sure that we connected the right thing. Autumn House was brand new. It was a great group of executives to be around and the catalog was rocking as I came in. It was a wonderful place to start and see a really great roster of writers at a mid-size independent company that had a really engaged team with good leadership. I think everything I’ve ever wanted was to model that. So much of what Big Machine Music is is modeled off of that.
How long were you there?
I was there for three years before they sold to Warner Chappell. At that point, Universal Music was being formed out of the combination of MCA Music and PolyGram. Daniel Hill and Billy Lynn had left PolyGram and found funding to start Cal IV Entertainment. They were looking for a young plugger to be on the street and made me an offer. They had bought a trunk catalog of songs from Buddy Killen—most of the songs were not great or weren’t in country music, but it did have “Breathe” in it, so that got the company going.
There were some incredible veterans on the roaster and a couple of young guys like Odie Blackmon. I brought over Dave Berg and then Jim Collins as well, so Odie, Jim and Dave became my core group to work with. I owe those guys so much, they taught me a lot.
That time was a lesson in setting goals and trying to accomplish them. When we brought Jim over, he told me he’d never had a 20-cut year or a George Strait cut. The next full year, we had a 23-cut-year and a George Strait No. 1. Odie also had George Strait’s 50th No. 1 We all shared Strait as a hero and we ended up having his 50th and 52nd No. 1s.
Dave Berg was just so amazingly talented and we were just waiting for it to be his time. As much as we were banging on the doors and everybody in this town believed in him and his talent, he just needed that one hit to get us started. That song for Dave ended up being “Somebody” for Reba McEntire. Interestingly, Scott Borchetta was the promo guy on it. After that, they all came: “Stupid Boy,” “If You’re Going Through Hell,” “Don’t Make Me” and “These Are My People.”
Janet Weir, Alex Heddle, Jessie Jo Dillon, Laura Veltz, Mike Molinar, Maren Morris, Ryan Hurd
What was next for you?
As everybody was peaking, it felt like it was the right time to do something. It was tough for me to think about staying at that spot. It was an independent where you were capped at a certain level of income. Even though there were opportunities offered to go to other places, including some majors, I never felt like I was a major kind of guy. Martha and I started to think about starting something. I took a year to write a business plan, put the concept together and shop it out. We found some funding and we started our own little company.
Ultimately, we got our ass kicked. The bravado of a 30-year-old, cocky song-plugger certainly met a true education of what it takes to function in all of the roles of a publisher. We were painfully understaffed and it was the phase in town where we really pivoted from outside songs into a lot more artist co-writes. To top it all off, the sound changed. A new generation of writers came in and everyone was listening for something different. We had wonderful writers. They were incredibly patient with us. We still had 35 cuts and one top 10 hit.
How did you transition out of that?
The [investor] ended up buying our share of it. With some of that money, we kept ourselves afloat. We did a couple of joint ventures and one of those was with Greg Bates and Big Machine. Allison Jones and Andrew Kautz brought him to us. We signed him together and went away for a year to work on it. We came back and had a top five with “Did It for the Girl.”
[Around the time that song was being released], it was fall of 2011. It was CMA week and I had just gotten married on that Saturday. At the BMI Awards of 2011, Andrew Kautz sat next to me and said, “We’re thinking about opening a publishing company [at Big Machine]. I know you’re fairly independent and you don’t like corporate situations, but would you be interested in doing this?” By that point, I had enough of being on our own. I was like, “Yes! That sounds great.”
Scott and I had some conversations with Andrew and Malcolm Mimms. I was at a point where I was even questioning whether I was going to stay in publishing or not, so to me, it was important that if we were going to do it, that we did it right. It was important to me that it wouldn’t be a pocket company to a record label. I wanted it to be a standalone independent and be able to attract the best talent so that I could also service all of the other labels, too. I asked Scott if he was going to be okay with watching us having hits with other companies. I think it really took it to be in practice for him to start to like it and now he loves it. He’s been a huge supporter. You could not ask for better partners than Scott and Andrew.
Alex Heddles, Michelle Attardi, Scott Borchetta, Luke Combs, Mike Molinar, Chris Kappy
Tell me about the first few years of Big Machine Music.
Martha had come in to help start it, but I knew she had aspirations of being a manager. A couple months in, we had a conversation [about her going to chase that], so I started looking for someone to help me. I had known Alex Heddle for a little while. He had brought me a business plan at one point and wanted me to look at it. I was so impressed that he had that type of entrepreneurial spirit. I knew he was a hustler—I knew he hit the streets pretty hard—but it showed me that he was a hard worker, had big aspirations and really wanted it. He was the first and only person that I turned to for that spot. He turned me down three times before he took it. On the third call, I told him, “You’re going to come here and you’re going to make your name here. We’re going to do it.” He trusted me and, man, he is absolutely the best creative that I’ve ever had the privilege to work with.
[As far as a writers go], we got a running start. Luckily, what was in the cupboards when we got there was Justin Moore and Dustin Lynch, and we had been working on Greg Bates. In that first year, Justin popped a hit with “Til My Last Day,” Dustin had “Cowboys and Angels” and Greg had “Did It For The Girl.”
You guys have since grown a roster exponentially and had a lot of hits. How do you feel when you look at what you guys have accomplished?
It’s been exactly what we wanted to do. We work with that tip of the spear talent at the top level. You just naturally wake up wanting to go fight for them every day. That keeps you passionate when you are now 27 years into your publishing career.
Mike Molinar, Scott Borchetta, Lucian Grainge, Andrew Kautz
Who have been some of your mentors along the way?
My original voice teacher Prentice Loftin. Mike Sebastian at Starstruck was incredible. Tim Wipperman for sure at Warner Chappell. We owe Pat Higdon so much. Pat was good to Martha, Rusty [Gaston] and I when we were all vetting our ideas for starting our companies. Obviously, Andrew Kautz and Scott. Scott will leave the most indelible mark on me and the industry. Malcolm Mimms put me through bootcamp and I am such a better person for it—I feel like I graduated from the Malcolm Mimms School of Music Business Law.
What is the biggest challenge in your role?
It’s the income pipeline. That’s why I am on the NMPA Board now and The MLC Board. During the first CRB Phonorecords I [trial], I remember telling a friend at the time that this will determine whether I have a feasible career or not. It went the right way and we’ve continued to see some progress along the way.
When you look back over all of it, what are the songs that stand out?
That’s super tough. “Stupid Boy” was a big moment. I remember going to the Fox Theater in Atlanta for a sneak peak live performance of it that Keith Urban did. I cry all the time now, but I didn’t back then. I was so emotional that night. I was so happy and proud for Dave.
I think my persistence paid off on “She’ll Leave You with a Smile.” I’m always proud of how many times I pitched that song to everybody in Strait’s camp. He cut a song with the same title on the prior album, so I had a big hump to get over. Tony Brown was patient with me for pitching it as many times as I did.
Taylor Courtney, Grayson Stephens, Lizzy Rector, Alex Heddle, Mike Molinar, Michelle Attardi, Tim Hunze, Randy Patton
“Girl In A Country Song” has a really special place in my heart. The girls turned it into me on St. Patrick’s Day. I cannot rewrite history, so I’ll tell you that I wasn’t immediately running towards it. I wasn’t quite sure if we should go for it. That Saturday, I was walking my dog and I had it in my headphones. I started feeling that chill I get when I feel like it’s worth it. We had a program planned for the company on Monday or Tuesday of the following week, and we knew Scott would be there. We had baseball signs [on if they should play it or not]. Scott came in and he was engaged in the first round of songs, so we gave the sign to go for it and they played it. They did it and it was atomic—it blew the entire room away. Scott ran over to me in the room and later that night, called me and said “We’re going for it. Buckle up.”
Another is “What If I Never Get Over You.” I was driving on the highway when they sent me the work tape from the room. I pulled over, listened to it again, called them back and said, “This is a big hit.” I got it to Allison. Allison got it to Lady A, but it kind of sat there for a few months and we weren’t sure if it was going to catch on. At our end-of-year retreat, I had Laura [Veltz] play it at a writer’s round night. She played it and, again, I see Jimmy [Harnen] and Scott coming over to me, saying, “This is our song, right?” [Laughs]
I have to include “Yours If You Want It.” It meant so much to so many of us because we had lost our good friend and the co-writer, Andrew Dorff.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever gotten?
The best advice I have wasn’t given to me as advice. It was summed up so beautifully by the soundtrack that is Encanto, but my writers and my team hear me say this a lot: you are more than just your gifts. The gift is you. The miracle is you—not your gifts, just you. We all feel like we have to be prove our value. We measure our worth by the songs that are on the charts, by market share or whatever else. It’s about remembering that this is a business that we are blessed to do and a passion that we are blessed to pursue, but it is not our value. That has soothed me and helped me be a better human over the past couple years.
Jordan Davis & Crew Celebrate Latest Chart-Topper ‘Next Thing You Know’
/by LB CantrellPictured (L-R, back row): Evyn Mustoe (ASCAP), Mike Harris (UMG), Miranda McDonald (UMG), Josh Tomlinson (BMI). (L-R, front row): Paul DiGiovanni, Josh Osborne, Jordan Davis, Chase McGill and Greylan James. Photo: Larry McCormack for ASCAP
Music industry members gathered at The Electric Jane earlier this week for a ASCAP and BMI-hosted No. 1 party for Jordan Davis‘ sixth No. 1 song, “Next Thing You Know,” as well as the Gold certification of his Bluebird Days album.
“Next Thing You Know” is Davis’ third consecutive No. 1 single from Bluebird Days. He co-wrote the meaningful tune with Josh Osborne, Chase McGill and Greylan James, and it was produced by longtime collaborator Paul DiGiovanni.
ASCAP’s Evyn Mustoe Johnston got things kicked off by congratulating affiliates Davis and Osborne, who was celebrating his 29th No. 1. BMI’s Josh Tomlinson spoke on 11-time-chart-topper McGill and artist-writer James, who was celebrating his first No. 1 hit.
UMG Nashville’s VP of Promotion, Miranda McDonald, was on hand to present Davis and his crew with plaques. She let the crowd know that every single that Davis has released has been certified Gold or better, and that “Next Thing You Know” was certified Platinum.
Pictured (L-R): MusicRow’s LB Cantrell; Josh Osborne, Jordan Davis, Chase McGill and Greylan James with their MusicRow No. 1 Challenge Coins; MusicRow’s Sherod Robertson. Photo: Larry McCormack for ASCAP
Davis’ publisher, Anthem Music Publishing, was represented when Senior Director of Creative Noah Dewey spoke. He thanked Davis’ entire village for their hard work.
Sony Music Publishing Nashville’s Executive VP of A&R, Josh Van Valkenburg, was on hand to say a few words about Osborne. He pointed out that the Music Row hitmaker was just as nice of a person as he is a successful songwriter.
Ron Stuve, UMPG Nashville’s VP of A&R, spoke on the publishing company’s McGill, who received multiple compliments on his integrity and work ethic. Stuve also shared his stories about James, and congratulated the young writer on his first No. 1. Everyone was glad to see UMPG’s Terry Wakefield in the crowd, as he has been undergoing health issues. Stuve pointed him out to a big applause.
Osborne was the first songwriter to speak. He talked about each of his collaborators, paying special compliments to each one. Osborne also highlighted that “Next Thing You Know” could not have been an easy song to push at radio, as it never repeats the same chorus.
“We had a lot of conversations about that,” he said. “The four os us sat in that room and wrote what was on our hearts that day. Luckily it was this song.”
James and McGill later added that when the writers joined Davis in the room that day, they had been given instructions to write an uptempo song, and specifically “no life songs.”
“As soon we started writing this song, I started looking around the room like, ‘Are we sure we’re supposed to be doing this?'” James said.
James also thanked his family, team, co-writers and Davis for his first No. 1. He told a bit of his story, sharing that he came to Nashville after graduating from high school, signed a publishing deal and eventually got dropped. When he thought that he should pack it up and go back to east Tennessee, he met Stuve and Wakefield.
When McGill spoke, he thanked God, his family, his collaborators, publishers and the Davis team, and spoke more about the risk of writing the non-traditional structure of the song. “At the risk of sounding smarter than I am, I’m going to quote Picasso,” he said.
“Not that I actually know any of Picasso’s work… he was a great singer,” McGill quipped. “There’s this quote that says, ‘Learn the rules like a professional so you can break them like an artist.’ That quote stood out to me with this song.”
When Davis spoke, he recognized several champions that have been in his corner since the beginning. He thanked everyone from his family, band and crew, co-writers, management team, UMG Nashville and MCA, Anthem Music Publishing, ASCAP and more.
UMG Nashville EVP & COO Mike Harris helped to close the event by focusing on the success of Bluebird Days as a whole, letting the crowd in on the nitty gritty of Davis’ impressive data.
Davis then took a moment to thank every writer on his Bluebird Days album by name, sharing, “You guys are what make Nashville special. It’s a great feeling to be able to write in rooms with you and cut these songs.”
Jordan Davis poses with many of the songwriters featured on his Bluebird Days album. Photo: Larry McCormack for ASCAP
He added a specific mention to the writers who have album cuts aside from the current single. “I know you don’t always get to see what happens with people at the shows in a meet and greet line or hear them singing every word to songs like ‘What I Wouldn’t Do’ or ‘Fishing Spot,’ or have fans come up and say how much a song helped them. I wish that you could every time. Because these songs really matter to people. Thank you. Thank you for making Bluebird Days what it is. Thank you for making it the first Gold album I’ve ever had. And please keep writing with me.”
Before we left the songwriters and team members to do a little celebrating, attendees were also treated to a live performance of “Next Thing You Know,” “Tucson Too Late” and “Damn Good Time” at the First Horizon Bank and Studio Bank sponsored event.
Tauren Wells ‘Takes It All Back’ With New EP Out Today
/by Caela GriffinTauren Wells‘ new EP Take It All Back is out today via Capitol Records/CCMG. The four-song EP includes a powerful new version of “Crazy About You” which impacts radio today, plus three brand new songs.
The title track “Take It All Back” with We The Kingdom and Davies is a bold battle cry, an anthem for escaping despair and reclaiming joy. Wells teamed up with Grammy winner Fred Hammond on “Breath Away” and contemplates the wonder of unconditional love on “Seen,” a duet with Katie Torwalt.
Wells will perform on Fox & Friends on Sunday, Aug. 20, and recently wrapped a 40-city U.S. headline tour in support of his new album, Joy In The Morning. The four tracks on the Take It All Back EP are included on the deluxe edition of the album, Joy In The Morning (Horizon Edition), released today by Capitol Records/CCMG.
Wells has amassed over 1.1 billion combined global streams in his career to date, including 130 million streams worldwide for Joy In The Morning.
Take It All Back Track List
Take It All Back (with We The Kingdom + Davies)
Breath Away (with Fred Hammond)
Seen (with Katie Torwalt)
Crazy About You (Radio Version)
Fifth Annual Charlie Daniels Patriot Awards Set For September
/by Lorie HollabaughThe fifth annual Charlie Daniels Patriot Awards Dinner is set for Sept. 13 at Nashville’s City Winery.
This year’s Patriot Award recipients are Lee Greenwood, Hunt Brothers Pizza and Operation Song founders Bob Regan, Don Goodman (also Freedom Sings co-founder) and John Taylor (entertainment director at Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge).
Chris Young and Darryl Worley, both previous recipients of the Patriot Award, will perform live. Special guest speakers will include former New York City Police Commissioner Bernie Kerik and decorated military veterans Major General (Ret.) Max Haston, Master Sergeant (Ret.) Joel Pruitt (a previous Patriot Award recipient), Master Sergeant (Ret.) Steven Nisbet (co-founder of Shields & Stripes) and Sergeant Major (Ret.) Jesse R. Horsley.
Storme Warren of The Big 615 Radio will co-host with Young, and the dinner ceremony will also include a silent and live auction.
“This is a very special time of the year for the The Charlie Daniels Journey Home Project,” says TCDJHP co-founder and Daniels’ longtime manager David Corlew. “It’s a time to join our community as we recognize those who have gone above and beyond in supporting the return, rehabilitation, and the reintegration of our returning veterans. It is an ongoing mission and we believe it to be and honor and obligation as Americans to help our vets.”
The Patriot award honors a person, persons or group that fulfills and exemplifies the efforts and dedication of TCDJHP’s purpose to continuously care, support and encourage the men, women and families who have served our nation. Previous recipients include Young, Worley, Gary Sinise, Mike Huckabee, Jude Seale, William Horton, Donnie Mingus, The Shepherd’s Center and more.
All proceeds from the evening will benefit the late Country Music Hall of Fame member’s veterans non-profit, The Charlie Daniels Journey Home Project.
Mitch Rossell Signs With Dreamcatcher Artists
/by Lorie HollabaughMitch Rossell has signed a record deal with Dreamcatcher Artists.
The signing news comes just before Rossell’s live performance on NBC’s America’s Got Talent this Tuesday, Aug. 22. In advance of his upcoming performance, Dreamcatcher Artists has digitally released the radio edit of his most-streamed song to date, “All I Need To See.” The track has already racked up over 30 million global streams, and resonated with audiences worldwide.
During Rossell’s audition that aired on the June 6 episode of America’s Got Talent, his heartfelt delivery and the emotionally charged lyrics of his song “Son” resonated deeply, earning him an emphatic “yes” from all four judges and propelling him to the next round of the competition. “Son” rapidly climbed the iTunes charts just days after his televised performance, and rose to the No. 1 position across all genres.
“We are thrilled to welcome Mitch Rossell to the Dreamcatcher Artists family. His talent and dedication are truly exceptional, and we are committed to providing him with a platform to share his music with the world. As Mitch’s journey on America’s Got Talent continues and his music resonates with an expanding audience, we look forward to the remarkable moments that lie ahead,” says Powell Hedley, CEO of Dreamcatcher Artists.
“I am so grateful for this opportunity to join the Dreamcatcher Artists family. The journey so far has been incredible, and I am beyond excited to work alongside this amazing team. The belief they have in me and my music gives me full confidence that we can accomplish some incredible things,” says Rossell.
Lainey Wilson Tops MusicRow Radio Chart With ‘Watermelon Moonshine’
/by LB CantrellLainey Wilson jumps from No. 5 to No. 1 this week on the MusicRow CountryBreakout Radio Chart with “Watermelon Moonshine.” This is Wilson’s fifth MusicRow No. 1.
Wilson wrote the summer-love tune with Jordan Schmidt and Josh Kear. It appears on her ACM Album of the Year Bell Bottom Country.
“Watermelon Moonshine” currently sits at No. 17 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.
Sara Evans Invited To Become Member Of The Grand Ole Opry
/by Lorie HollabaughPictured (L-R): Charles Kelley, Carly Pearce, Sara, Bill Anderson, Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood. Photo: Chris Hollo for Grand Ole Opry
Sara Evans was invited to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry last night (Aug. 17) during her sold-out show at the Ryman Auditorium. She was asked the special question by the Opry’s longest-serving member, Country Music Hall of Famer Bill Anderson.
The pair was joined by Opry members Lady A and Carly Pearce for the special moment. Evans was surprised onstage during the show that celebrated the release of Sara Evans Still Restless – The 20 Year Celebration, which commemorates the 20th anniversary of her Platinum album Restless.
Following a collaboration between Evans and Pearce on “Suds In The Bucket,” Pearce introduced Lady A to present a Platinum plaque for the song. Immediately after that surprise presentation, Lady A’s Hillary Scott welcomed Anderson to the stage. He recalled how he had gone to see Evans perform in a small warehouse showcase before her first album was released because she had included his song “Walk Out Backwards” in her project.
After being asked to become a member of the Opry by Anderson, Evans acknowledged she’d hoped for Opry membership for many years and tearfully accepted. Thanking her mom in the audience for pushing her and her siblings to perform as they were all growing up, Evans said to the crowd, “God is so good.” Evans will be inducted into the Opry on Oct. 7 as part of the Opry’s 98th Birthday Weekend.
“I remember clearly watching Sara’s Opry debut live on television before I ever made the move to Nashville,” says Opry Executive Producer Dan Rogers. “Like nearly anyone about to take that stage for the first time, she was both thankful and overwhelmed, and she said in an interview minutes before her performance that to help with her jitters, she was going to pretend to be Patsy Cline. Watching as a fan at home, I thought that was a pretty incredible approach. More than 25 years later, I think she was once again tonight both thankful and overwhelmed. All of us at the Opry have appreciated her great performances every time she’s visited us and look forward to celebrating official Opry membership with her during what is going to be a great October Opry Birthday Weekend.”
LAST DAY: Voting For 35th Annual MusicRow Awards Ends TODAY
/by LB CantrellToday is the last day to vote for the 35th annual MusicRow Awards. Ballots can be cast until 5:00 p.m. CT on Friday, Aug. 18.
This year’s winners will be announced online on all MusicRow platforms on Tuesday, Sept. 12. Presenting Sponsor of the 2023 MusicRow Awards is City National Bank.
To receive a ballot to vote in the MusicRow Awards, become a MusicRow subscriber here.
Click here to view the full list of MusicRow Awards nominees.
Nominees for the MusicRow Awards are determined by a committee. For the categories of Breakthrough Songwriter and Breakthrough Artist-Writer, outside nominations are also considered. For the Male and Female Songwriter of the Year categories, nominees are based on data from MusicRow’s Top Songwriter Chart. All nominations are based on projects that were active between the period of June 1, 2022 through May 31, 2023.
Top 10 Album All-Star Musician Awards for Bass, Drums, Engineer, Fiddle, Guitar, Keyboards, Steel, and Vocals will also be announced on Tuesday, Sept. 12, recognizing the studio players who performed on the most albums reaching the Top 10 of Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart during the eligibility period.
2023 MusicRow Awards Category Profile: Entertainer Of The Year
/by LB CantrellFollowing the announcement of this year’s nominees for the 35th annual MusicRow Awards, we take a closer look at the Entertainer of the Year category. This category is voted on by MusicRow’s subscribers to honor outstanding achievements by a Nashville artist during the eligibility period.
This year’s winners will be announced online on all MusicRow platforms on Tuesday, Sept. 12. Presenting Sponsor of the 2023 MusicRow Awards is City National Bank.
Click here to see the full list of MusicRow Awards nominees.
Winners are determined solely by MusicRow Magazine subscribers. Voting is now open and closes on Aug. 18 at 5:00 p.m.
To receive a ballot to vote in the MusicRow Awards, become a MusicRow subscriber here.
Since the arrival of his self-titled, 2x Platinum debut album in December 2016, Kane Brown has continued to expand the perception of country music and break musical boundaries. Named to the Time100 list of the most influential people in the world, five time American Music Award winner. Brown has over 13 billion streams, multiple multi-Platinum certifications, sold out arenas all across the world with more than four million tickets sold internationally, and made history as the first artist ever to lead all five of Billboard’s main country charts simultaneously. With the release of his most recent album, Different Man, Brown earned his ninth career No. 1 hit , the 3x ACM-nominated Platinum-selling single, “Thank God,” as well as hits with “Like I Love Country Music,” “One Mississippi” and “Bury Me in Georgia.” Brown earned his first-ever nomination for the ACM’s Entertainer of the Year this year and became the first Black artist to headline Boston’s iconic Fenway Park solo.
A seven-time ACM Award winner, four-time CMA Award winner and 10-time Grammy nominee, Eric Church has amassed a passionate fan base around the globe known as the Church Choir, as well as a beloved catalog of music. His most recent critically acclaimed and chart-topping project, the Heart & Soul triple album, yielded the Gold-certified No. 1 “Hell of a View” and recent Top 5 hit “Heart On Fire” as well as his latest single, “Doing Life With Me,” climbing the charts at country radio now. Through the fall, Church will trek across North America on “The Outsiders Revival Tour,” bringing with him a rotating lineup of emerging artists along for the first fully outdoor tour of his career. Church is currently the 18th artist-in-residence at Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, where he also is the subject of a new exhibition. He will soon open Chief’s, a six-story venue on Nashville’s famed lower Broadway.
Reigning two-time CMA Entertainer of the Year Luke Combs has notched 16 consecutive No. 1 hits at country radio and over 337 million global streams to date. The Grand Ole Opry member is also an eight-time CMA, three-time ACM and threetime Billboard Music Award winner. He recently topped the charts with his version of Tracy Chapman’s Grammy Award-winning song, “Fast Car,” which was certified RIAA Platinum just 16 weeks after it was released. The track is from Combs’ fourth full-length album, Gettin’ Old, following Growin’ Up, 2019’s 3-time Platinum What You See is What You Get and his 4-time Platinum debut This One’s For You. Known for his electric live shows, Combs also recently expanded his massive sold-out “World Tour,” adding four new US stadium shows due to overwhelming demand. With 44 shows across three continents and 16 countries, the record-breaking run is the largest tour ever for a country artist. Partnered with Opry Entertainment Group, Combs plans to open a massive multilevel entertainment complex in downtown Nashville during summer of 2024.
One of the country’s most respected and beloved musicians, Chris Stapleton celebrated a year full of achievements this past year. He was named Entertainer of the Year at the 58th ACM Awards, resulting in a prestigious ACM Triple Crown Award, an elite honor that has been presented to only seven country acts in the history of the Academy of Country Music Awards. He also won his sixth Male Vocalist of the Year at the 2022 CMA Awards, setting the record for most wins ever in the category, and gave a rousing performance of the National Anthem at Super Bowl LVII. Currently in the midst of his extensive “All American Road Show” tour, Stapleton recently announced his new album, Higher, will release in November. The new album follows 2020’s acclaimed Starting Over, which went on to win three awards at the 67th Annual Grammys–Best Country Album, Best Country Solo Performance (“You Should Probably Leave”) and Best Country Song (“Cold”) – in addition to earning Album of the Year honors at both the CMA and ACM Awards.
Carrie Underwood is a multi-format, multi-media superstar, spanning achievements in music, television and film, and as a New York Times bestselling author and successful entrepreneur. She has sold more than 85 million records worldwide and recorded 28 No. 1 singles–14 of which she co-wrote. She is the most-awarded female country artist for singles in RIAA history and has seven albums that are certified multi-Platinum or Platinum by the RIAA, with over 72 million total RIAA certifications to date, all while continuing to sell out arena tours across North America and the UK. Underwood released her most recent album, Denim & Rhinestones, in 2022, and she also recently completed her 43-city U.S. arena tour, “The Denim & Rhinestones Tour.” In addition to becoming the first artist to perform at the new Resorts World Theatre with her ongoing “Reflection: The Las Vegas Residency,” Underwood just launched her exclusive year-round SiriusXM channel, Carrie’s Country. Her deluxe edition of Denim & Rhinestones, featuring six new tracks, will be out on Sept. 22.
With over 18 billion on-demand streams and nine chart-toppers at country radio, Morgan Wallen has had unparalleled success since his debut in 2016. His second full-length project, Dangerous: The Double Album, topped 2021’s all-genre Billboard 200 Albums year-end chart and notched historical chart status as Billboard’s longest running Top 10 album in history for a solo artist. Wallen followed the 5-time Platinum, ACM Album of the Year with 2023’s 36-song, deeply personal third studio album, One Thing At A Time, which reigned atop the all-genre Billboard 200 chart for 12 consecutive weeks, the most weeks at No. 1 for a country album in over 30 years. Wallen recently became first artist to have three singles simultaneously in the top 10 on country radio with “Last Night,” “One Thing At A Time” and “Thought You Should Know.” He is currently on his “One Night At A Time World Tour,” crisscrossing the globe and breaking attendance records in his wake.
My Music Row Story: Big Machine Music’s Mike Molinar
/by LB CantrellMike Molinar
Mike Molinar is the President and Co-Founder of Big Machine Music (BMM), where he brings over 25 years of experience as a music publisher and advocate for creatives. Molinar has led BMM since inception in 2011—overseeing the continued growth of the diverse roster and dynamic catalog as well as driving the company’s impact well-beyond its Music City roots with the addition of a West Coast division based in Los Angeles.
Molinar, who was named one of Billboard’s Country Power Players each of the last four years, oversees all aspects of BMM which was named 2021 Publisher of the Year by the Association of Independent Music Publishers Nashville. BMM has been ranked as a Billboard Top 10 Hot Country Publishing Corp for six years running and recently notched its 50th Airplay No. 1 song in its history. BMM’s roster includes the 2023 nominee for the inaugural Grammy Songwriter of the Year (non-classical) Laura Veltz, as well as hitmakers Jessie Jo Dillon, Brett Young, Maddie & Tae, Geoff Warburton, Ryan Hurd, Matt Dragstrem, Sara Davis, Eric Paslay, Matt Roy, Anna Vaus and Daniel Ross, among others.
Molinar was named one of the 2021 Nashville cohorts for Harvard Business School’s Young American Leaders Program. He is currently serving his 3rd term on the board of the National Music Publishers’ Association and is a founding member of the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) board. In June, he was invited by the House Judicial Subcommittee on IP to testify at their Nashville field hearing reviewing the fifth anniversary of the Music Modernization Act (MMA).
Molinar also serves as a board member for the Academy of Country Music, Music Health Alliance and sits the Country Music Hall Of Fame Education Council. He was named a Rider Scholar while attending Westminster Choir College in Princeton, N.J. He graduated from Middle Tennessee State University in 1998 where he was inducted into the College of Media and Entertainment’s Wall of Fame in 2021. He is a graduate of Leadership Music (2015) and a member of the CMA, ACM, AIMP and Recording Academy.
Prior to BMM, Molinar began his career at the original Starstruck Writer’s Group and Cal IV Entertainment before launching his own startups including Effusion Entertainment. Born and raised in El Paso, Texas, Molinar is a second generation immigrant of Mexican descent. He and his wife, Amanda, are proud parents of two boys, Ryman and Ellis.
MusicRow: Where did you grow up?
I was born and raised in El Paso, Texas.
Reba McEntire, Mike Molinar, Narvel Blackstock
Were you musical as a kid?
I’m the youngest of five kids from a fairly low income family, but there was always music in the house. My dad was from southern California—he could sing and was always a musical force in the house. My mom loved music, but she couldn’t carry a tune whatsoever. My brothers and sisters all played instruments. We’re spaced pretty far apart, so I got the musical influences of all of them.
My sister started taking voice lessons. As you do when there’s a lot of kids, you drop a kid off wherever another one is, so I would go to her voice lessons. I was in first or second grade around that time, and her teacher would always have me run a scale at the end of her voice lesson. As she continued going over the next few years, he would always give me more and more time. He knew that we couldn’t pay for more lessons, so he went to my parents and said that he would teach me for free, and if one day they could ever pay him back, that would be great, but he wanted to go ahead and work with me. By fourth or fifth grade, I’m taking voice lessons and learning how to read music. By middle school, I could read music pretty well. He started helping me get opportunities to audition for operas, operettas and musicals.
What did that lead to?
In those productions, there were some roles that were made for kids, but usually they’re played by women called pants roles. I started to play those roles. I was probably the only kid in middle school with a day planner with where I was supposed to be.
I did that until my voice changed in high school. I ended up going to conservatory in New Jersey. My teacher’s voice studio had a pipeline to a school called Westminster Choir College in Princeton, so I went there. That’s where I met one of my best friends, Martha Earls.
Mike Molinar, Jeff Stevens, Rusty Gaston, Luke Bryan, Rodney Clawson
Did you enjoy college?
Yeah! It was a small school, so it felt a little claustrophobic. It is a performance school so you would prepare to perform at the New York Philharmonic, the Philly Orchestra or the Jersey Symphony. In addition to your school load, you were also learning music to go out and perform. As a freshman, you would do a spring tour representing the school.
That taught me about chasing excellence and the effect that can come when you get it right. Not only just the technical, but when you hit that emotional peak of performance and you see the audiences with you—the vulnerability of performers when they meet the vulnerability of the audience and the emotional flood that can come with that is amazing.
How did you know you wanted to work in the music business?
I always liked songs and songwriters. I had a CD collection that I brought with me to school, and Martha would steal my CDs. I was having conversations about songwriters because I knew a lot of them. One day Martha said, “Why are you here? After we finish freshman year, I’m going to transfer to somewhere in Nashville. You should look into that, too.” I came down to look at Belmont and MTSU, and we both decided to leave full scholarships to pay out-of-state tuition at MTSU and finish our degrees there.
The good thing is when you make that kind of commitment, you put yourself on stun. We moved here January of ’96 and immediately hit Country Radio Seminar where we get to meet Garth Brooks, The Mavericks and The Chicks. We were there as MTSU volunteers but we were also super sneaky and we brought clothes to change into so we could go to the parties. Back then, the only thing separating you from being a volunteer was how you looked. So we go dressed, crashed a bunch of parties and met a bunch of people.
Maddie Font, Mike Molinar, Tae Kerr
That’s awesome. How did you start your career?
I didn’t really know what publishing was, but I interned at Zomba Music Publishing that summer of ’96. My first real job was at Starstruck Writer’s Group. They brought me in as an intern and then a week later, I became the tape guy. They let me go through my senior year, commuting back and forth to MTSU and doing the tape catalog. I would come in on Saturdays and make up for the work that I missed [while I was in class].
It was a such a great music publishing company. Mike Sebastian led it. Kos Weaver was the hot plugger. Molly Reynolds had wonderful artist ears and great service instincts to the executives. She taught me how to be a song sniper—she didn’t really care about volume, she cared about making sure that we connected the right thing. Autumn House was brand new. It was a great group of executives to be around and the catalog was rocking as I came in. It was a wonderful place to start and see a really great roster of writers at a mid-size independent company that had a really engaged team with good leadership. I think everything I’ve ever wanted was to model that. So much of what Big Machine Music is is modeled off of that.
How long were you there?
I was there for three years before they sold to Warner Chappell. At that point, Universal Music was being formed out of the combination of MCA Music and PolyGram. Daniel Hill and Billy Lynn had left PolyGram and found funding to start Cal IV Entertainment. They were looking for a young plugger to be on the street and made me an offer. They had bought a trunk catalog of songs from Buddy Killen—most of the songs were not great or weren’t in country music, but it did have “Breathe” in it, so that got the company going.
There were some incredible veterans on the roaster and a couple of young guys like Odie Blackmon. I brought over Dave Berg and then Jim Collins as well, so Odie, Jim and Dave became my core group to work with. I owe those guys so much, they taught me a lot.
That time was a lesson in setting goals and trying to accomplish them. When we brought Jim over, he told me he’d never had a 20-cut year or a George Strait cut. The next full year, we had a 23-cut-year and a George Strait No. 1. Odie also had George Strait’s 50th No. 1 We all shared Strait as a hero and we ended up having his 50th and 52nd No. 1s.
Dave Berg was just so amazingly talented and we were just waiting for it to be his time. As much as we were banging on the doors and everybody in this town believed in him and his talent, he just needed that one hit to get us started. That song for Dave ended up being “Somebody” for Reba McEntire. Interestingly, Scott Borchetta was the promo guy on it. After that, they all came: “Stupid Boy,” “If You’re Going Through Hell,” “Don’t Make Me” and “These Are My People.”
Janet Weir, Alex Heddle, Jessie Jo Dillon, Laura Veltz, Mike Molinar, Maren Morris, Ryan Hurd
What was next for you?
As everybody was peaking, it felt like it was the right time to do something. It was tough for me to think about staying at that spot. It was an independent where you were capped at a certain level of income. Even though there were opportunities offered to go to other places, including some majors, I never felt like I was a major kind of guy. Martha and I started to think about starting something. I took a year to write a business plan, put the concept together and shop it out. We found some funding and we started our own little company.
Ultimately, we got our ass kicked. The bravado of a 30-year-old, cocky song-plugger certainly met a true education of what it takes to function in all of the roles of a publisher. We were painfully understaffed and it was the phase in town where we really pivoted from outside songs into a lot more artist co-writes. To top it all off, the sound changed. A new generation of writers came in and everyone was listening for something different. We had wonderful writers. They were incredibly patient with us. We still had 35 cuts and one top 10 hit.
How did you transition out of that?
The [investor] ended up buying our share of it. With some of that money, we kept ourselves afloat. We did a couple of joint ventures and one of those was with Greg Bates and Big Machine. Allison Jones and Andrew Kautz brought him to us. We signed him together and went away for a year to work on it. We came back and had a top five with “Did It for the Girl.”
[Around the time that song was being released], it was fall of 2011. It was CMA week and I had just gotten married on that Saturday. At the BMI Awards of 2011, Andrew Kautz sat next to me and said, “We’re thinking about opening a publishing company [at Big Machine]. I know you’re fairly independent and you don’t like corporate situations, but would you be interested in doing this?” By that point, I had enough of being on our own. I was like, “Yes! That sounds great.”
Scott and I had some conversations with Andrew and Malcolm Mimms. I was at a point where I was even questioning whether I was going to stay in publishing or not, so to me, it was important that if we were going to do it, that we did it right. It was important to me that it wouldn’t be a pocket company to a record label. I wanted it to be a standalone independent and be able to attract the best talent so that I could also service all of the other labels, too. I asked Scott if he was going to be okay with watching us having hits with other companies. I think it really took it to be in practice for him to start to like it and now he loves it. He’s been a huge supporter. You could not ask for better partners than Scott and Andrew.
Alex Heddles, Michelle Attardi, Scott Borchetta, Luke Combs, Mike Molinar, Chris Kappy
Tell me about the first few years of Big Machine Music.
Martha had come in to help start it, but I knew she had aspirations of being a manager. A couple months in, we had a conversation [about her going to chase that], so I started looking for someone to help me. I had known Alex Heddle for a little while. He had brought me a business plan at one point and wanted me to look at it. I was so impressed that he had that type of entrepreneurial spirit. I knew he was a hustler—I knew he hit the streets pretty hard—but it showed me that he was a hard worker, had big aspirations and really wanted it. He was the first and only person that I turned to for that spot. He turned me down three times before he took it. On the third call, I told him, “You’re going to come here and you’re going to make your name here. We’re going to do it.” He trusted me and, man, he is absolutely the best creative that I’ve ever had the privilege to work with.
[As far as a writers go], we got a running start. Luckily, what was in the cupboards when we got there was Justin Moore and Dustin Lynch, and we had been working on Greg Bates. In that first year, Justin popped a hit with “Til My Last Day,” Dustin had “Cowboys and Angels” and Greg had “Did It For The Girl.”
You guys have since grown a roster exponentially and had a lot of hits. How do you feel when you look at what you guys have accomplished?
It’s been exactly what we wanted to do. We work with that tip of the spear talent at the top level. You just naturally wake up wanting to go fight for them every day. That keeps you passionate when you are now 27 years into your publishing career.
Mike Molinar, Scott Borchetta, Lucian Grainge, Andrew Kautz
Who have been some of your mentors along the way?
My original voice teacher Prentice Loftin. Mike Sebastian at Starstruck was incredible. Tim Wipperman for sure at Warner Chappell. We owe Pat Higdon so much. Pat was good to Martha, Rusty [Gaston] and I when we were all vetting our ideas for starting our companies. Obviously, Andrew Kautz and Scott. Scott will leave the most indelible mark on me and the industry. Malcolm Mimms put me through bootcamp and I am such a better person for it—I feel like I graduated from the Malcolm Mimms School of Music Business Law.
What is the biggest challenge in your role?
It’s the income pipeline. That’s why I am on the NMPA Board now and The MLC Board. During the first CRB Phonorecords I [trial], I remember telling a friend at the time that this will determine whether I have a feasible career or not. It went the right way and we’ve continued to see some progress along the way.
When you look back over all of it, what are the songs that stand out?
That’s super tough. “Stupid Boy” was a big moment. I remember going to the Fox Theater in Atlanta for a sneak peak live performance of it that Keith Urban did. I cry all the time now, but I didn’t back then. I was so emotional that night. I was so happy and proud for Dave.
I think my persistence paid off on “She’ll Leave You with a Smile.” I’m always proud of how many times I pitched that song to everybody in Strait’s camp. He cut a song with the same title on the prior album, so I had a big hump to get over. Tony Brown was patient with me for pitching it as many times as I did.
Taylor Courtney, Grayson Stephens, Lizzy Rector, Alex Heddle, Mike Molinar, Michelle Attardi, Tim Hunze, Randy Patton
“Girl In A Country Song” has a really special place in my heart. The girls turned it into me on St. Patrick’s Day. I cannot rewrite history, so I’ll tell you that I wasn’t immediately running towards it. I wasn’t quite sure if we should go for it. That Saturday, I was walking my dog and I had it in my headphones. I started feeling that chill I get when I feel like it’s worth it. We had a program planned for the company on Monday or Tuesday of the following week, and we knew Scott would be there. We had baseball signs [on if they should play it or not]. Scott came in and he was engaged in the first round of songs, so we gave the sign to go for it and they played it. They did it and it was atomic—it blew the entire room away. Scott ran over to me in the room and later that night, called me and said “We’re going for it. Buckle up.”
Another is “What If I Never Get Over You.” I was driving on the highway when they sent me the work tape from the room. I pulled over, listened to it again, called them back and said, “This is a big hit.” I got it to Allison. Allison got it to Lady A, but it kind of sat there for a few months and we weren’t sure if it was going to catch on. At our end-of-year retreat, I had Laura [Veltz] play it at a writer’s round night. She played it and, again, I see Jimmy [Harnen] and Scott coming over to me, saying, “This is our song, right?” [Laughs]
I have to include “Yours If You Want It.” It meant so much to so many of us because we had lost our good friend and the co-writer, Andrew Dorff.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever gotten?
The best advice I have wasn’t given to me as advice. It was summed up so beautifully by the soundtrack that is Encanto, but my writers and my team hear me say this a lot: you are more than just your gifts. The gift is you. The miracle is you—not your gifts, just you. We all feel like we have to be prove our value. We measure our worth by the songs that are on the charts, by market share or whatever else. It’s about remembering that this is a business that we are blessed to do and a passion that we are blessed to pursue, but it is not our value. That has soothed me and helped me be a better human over the past couple years.
DISClaimer Single Reviews: Carly Pearce Proves Again That She Was ‘Born To Wear A Country Crown’
/by Robert K OermannPhoto: Courtesy of Big Machine Records
The most noteworthy country music tracks in this edition of DISClaimer are collaborations.
They’re all pretty unusual. Hip-hopper Flo Rida is with Russell Dickerson, Will Hoge is joined by his fellow country “outsiders” of the Black Opry. Billy Ray Cyrus is singing along with pop singer Firerose. Old Dominion has forged an audio partnership with Megan Moroney. Old Crow Medicine show is making merry with Sierra Ferrell, and Morgan Wade is steaming things up with her hot girlfriend.
Carly Pearce is known as a willing collaborator (Lee Brice, Ashley McBryde, Matthew West, Patty Loveless, Chris Stapleton), but she’s flying solo on the Disc of the Day, “Country Music Made Me Do It.” Kasey Tyndall, also a solo, wins the DISCovery Award.
KYLIE MORGAN / “A Few Hearts Ago”
Writers: Kylie Morgan/Casey Brown/James McNair; Producer: Casey Brown; Label: EMI Nashville
– Pop-ish, pretty and lively. There’s a lot of audio compression and electronics going on here, but her vocal still cuts through. Despite missteps and past failures, she finds romance with a hopeful heart.
CHASE RICE / “Bench Seat”
Writer: Chase Rice; Producer: Oscar Charles; Label: Broken Bow Records
– This is a touching ballad about a man and his dog. Its video is a cautionary tale about suicide that is becoming a film-festival favorite. As usual, Rice sings with conviction.
KASEY TYNDALL / “Dirt Road to Hell”
Writers: Kasey Tyndall/Faren Rachels/Gary Garris/Josh Mirenda/Nick Columbia/Reid Haughton; Producer: Derek Wells; Label: River House Artists
– He’s been fooling around, and boy is she pissed off. The country rocker blazes with fiery attitude. The track is thunderous and overwhelming.
CARLY PEARCE / “Country Music Made Me Do It”
Writers: Carly Pearce/Josh Osborne/Shane McAnally; Producers: Carly Pearce/Josh Osborne/Shane McAnally; Label: Big Machine Records
– Charming. This lilting, endearing performance is an ode to the soundtrack of her life, and Pearce sings every note with truth and authenticity. She was born to wear a country crown.
RHIANNON GIDDENS / “Too Little, Too Late, Too Bad”
Writers: Rhiannon Giddens/Dirk Powell; Producer: Jack Splash; Label: Nonesuch
– Giddens takes a left turn and attempts Aretha-style soul music. She doesn’t really have the voice for it. Pass.
OLD DOMINION & MEGAN MORONEY / “Can’t Break Up Now”
Writers: none listed; Producers: none listed; Label: Sony Music Nashville
– Nicely done. The voices blend well on this well-crafted power ballad about how two souls are too intertwined to separate. It might not be hit material, but it’s smooth listening all the way.
HEARTLAND / “No Tomorrow”
Writers: Brett Beavers/Adam Sanders/Jordan Schmidt; Producer: Jimmy Ritchie; Label: Yellowhammer
– Since the heyday of “I Loved Her First,” the group has acquired a new lead singer. This live-for-today anthem is their first new single in more than 10 years. On it, the band’s harmonies are still potent, and the production is just as polished as ever. Well worth your spins.
JESSI COLTER / “Standing on the Edge of Forever”
Writer: Jessi Colter; Producer: Margo Price; Label: Appalachia Record Co.
– This is a snappy, gospel-ish country rocker with cool wah-wah guitar, soul-sister backing vocals, organ-piano underpinning and an echoey lead vocal. A welcome return for the legendary, outlaw-country queen.
MORGAN WADE / “Fall In Love With Me”
Writer: Morgan Wade; Producer: Sadler Vaden; Label: Ladylike Records/RCA Nashville
– Bopping and cheerful. It makes falling in love sound like the easiest, most pleasant thing in the world. The video is a smiling, erotic outing featuring Wade as a seductress.
RUSSELL DICKERSON & FLO RIDA / “Beauty and the Beach”
Writers: Russell Dickerson/Ashley Gorley/Jon Nite/Ben Johnson; Producers: Ben Johnson/Johnny Reno; Label: Triple Tigers
– Dickerson’s current single is the ultra-country romance tune “God Gave Me A Girl.” This new tempo track has a hip-hop collaborator, but you can’t take the country outta this guy. A summertime good time.
BILLY RAY CYRUS & FIREROSE / “Plans”
Writer: Diane Warren; Producer: Justin Morgan; Label: Kind Music Group
– This wooshy, romantic pop ballad is pretty much a female solo performance with barely-there vocal backing by the Nashville star.
WILL HOGE & BLACK OPRY / “Can I Be Country Too?”
Writer: Will Hoge; Producer: Will Hoge; Label: EDLO Records
– Hoge’s chorus collaborators here are The Kentucky Gentlemen, Michael Allen, Cheryl Deseree, Carmen Dianne and the Any Way Collective. Everyone takes a turn on the lyric, which asks for inclusion and tolerance. If you read literature, don’t drive a pickup truck, can’t watch college football, aren’t a practicing Christian, vote Democratic, believe that Black Lives Matter, don’t drink beer on a tailgate, eat sushi rather than steak and are okay with gay marriage, can you still be “country?” Very catchy and very jolly. Proceeds benefit MusiCares.
OLD CROW MEDICINE SHOW & SIERRA FERRELL / “Belle Meade Cockfight”
Writers: Ketch Secor/Mason Via/Matt Ross-Spang; Producers: Old Crow Medicine Show/Matt Ross-Spang/Sally Williams; Label: ATO Records
– Old Crow had a blow-out album-release party at the new Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery this week. The collection is titled Jubilee. This fabulously hillbilly track from it features dynamic show-woman Ferrell kicking up her heels on a winking, hilarious hoedown with the Opry’s star string band. A bluegrassy, old-timey delight.