Songwriter Jordan Minton has sold a portion of his catalog to SMP Nashville and inked a new go-forward deal with the publisher.
The agreement, which covers #1 hits like “Good Time” by Niko Moon and “Best Thing Since Backroads” by Jake Owen, was coordinated by catalog sales brokerage Hit Ranch.
Having secured cuts by Keith Urban, Kane Brown, Morgan Wallen, Dustin Lynch and more, Minton’s latest song, “Save Me the Trouble” by Dan + Shay, is currently climbing the Country charts.
“I am so pumped to have landed with an incredible team at Sony and can’t wait to see what we will do together,” said Minton. “I’m grateful to my buddies at Hit Ranch for their expertise in guiding me through the catalog sale process.”
“We are so proud to welcome Jordan to the SMP family. He is such a talented songwriter and an even better person. We are excited to see what this new chapter of his career brings,” added SMP Nashville VP of creative, Anna Weisband.
“Jordan is such a talented writer, and we worked hard to find the right deal for him, not only in catalog value but in finding the right partner moving forward,” shared Hit Ranch’s Jordan Reynolds. “We believe this is a great fit for Jordan and can’t wait to watch his career continue to thrive.”
Grab your holiday-themed beer cozies, the eighth annual All for the Hall benefit concert is slated for 12/5 at the Bridgestone Arena.
Hosted by Keith Urban and Vince Gill, the show includes a star-studded lineup with performers like Trisha Yearwood, Brooks & Dunn, Kelsea Ballerini, HARDY, Patty Loveless, The War and Treaty, Riley Green, Mickey Guyton, Stewarts Creek High School Senior Abigail Sowards and more surprise guests.
As part of with this year’s “The Song Remembers When” theme, artists will perform a track that defines a memorable moment in their life, in addition to one of their own hits. Since its launch, All for the Hall has raised $4.3m in support of the nonprofit museum and its educational programs.
This year’s All for the Hall is presented by City National Bank and produced by Live Nation. Contributing sponsors include the Academy of Country Music, Country Music Association, Chris and Maggie Stewart and the Willard & Pat Walker Charitable Foundation.
For tickets, VIP packages and more, click here.
The Grand Ole Opry kicked off the third season of its Opry Country Christmas on 11/26 with Jon Pardi.
As the first in a series of nine shows, Pardi’s spotlight performance celebrated his first Christmas album release, Merry Christmas From Jon Pardi. During the show, he was also joined by special guest The War and Treaty for three songs.
Over the next few weeks, the Opry will welcome to the stage Lauren Alaina, Scotty McCreery, Trace Adkins, Chris Young, Lady A, Steven Curtis Chapman and Chris Janson, among others, as well as special guests like Hailey Whitters, Maddie & Tae, Chapel Hart, Jeannie Seely and more.
Hosted by Grammy-winning Opry member Larry Gatlin, each Opry Country Christmas show will also feature members The Gatlin Brothers, Riders in the Sky, Mandy Barnett and Country Music Hall of Famer Charlie McCoy.
All shows will air on WSM radio as well as WSM and Opry digital platforms. For tickets and more info on the full schedule, click here.
SMP Nashville, in partnership with Verse 2 Music, has inked two-time RIAA Gold country artist/songwriter Dylan Schneider to a global pub deal.
The BBR Music Group/Wheelhouse Records up-and-comer made waves with his single “Ain’t Missin’ You,” which is climbing country radio after topping TikTok’s viral country music playlist and amassing 121m+ views, 121k+ videos creations and 30m+ streams—contributing to his 300m+ global streams. He also earned his stripes as a Top 5 songwriter on Dustin Lynch’s “Momma’s House.”
Now, Schneider is on tour with Scotty McCreery, after wrapping dates with Kane Brown and Tyler Hubbard, and he’s set to join Nate Smith’s 2024 tour that will kick off in January. Previously, he’s hit the road with Morgan Wallen, Dan + Shay, LANCO, Mitchell Tenpenny, Niko Moon and more.
“It’s an honor to have Dylan in the family. He’s such a talented artist and songwriter,” said Brown.
“I’ve respected Kane for so long, so I’m thrilled to join the Verse 2/SMP family. Writing songs for myself and other artists is so rewarding, I can’t believe I get to call this work,” added Schneider.
“Dylan is not only an incredible artist but an equally talented songwriter,” said Verse 2 Music partner Kent Earls. “We are excited to partner with him and his team to create some musical history.”
“Dylan Schneider is a proven hitmaker who is poised for even more, and he will be a great addition to the Verse 2 family. I’m also very excited about what Kane and Kent are building at Verse 2 – with three #1 singles in their first three years of business, I look forward to seeing what they will accomplish next,” shared SMP Nashville CEO Rusty Gaston.
Seen above not missing us, even in the slightest, are (l-r) Neon Coast’s Joey Russ; Earls; Schneider; Brown; Neon Coast’s Martha Earls; and Gaston.
Photo Credit: Alex Alvga
Award-winning singer-songwriter Shy Carter has teamed up with breakout country artist Frank Ray for their collaboration, “Jesus at the Taco Truck.”
Released via Warner Nashville, the anthemic track—penned alongside Ben Burgess and Nathan Chapman—was first teased on TikTok last month and garnered more than 2m views.
Arriving with a music video, the track's vivid storyline is inspired by the hardships of Ray’s brother-in-law and detail the life of an undocumented immigrant working at a taco truck.
“This song is about loving your neighbor and giving that love freely, without judgement. We never know what someone is going through. Just like Jesus, we want to meet people where they are. And I met Jesus at a taco truck,” said Carter.
“I'm grateful that Shy and the boys invited me to be a part of this song. It's such an important message and it helps elevate the people of my culture. We're in the business of telling stories and giving a voice to those looking for representation,” added Carter.
Peep the vid for “Jesus at the Taco Truck” below.
BJ Hill, who has been with Warner Chappell for more than decades, has been promoted to senior vice president, A&R. He is based in Nashville.
Hill has worked with Nicolle Galyon, Jordan Reynolds, Charles Kelley and Dave Haywood of Lady A, Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney of Dan + Shay, Wendell Mobley, Matthew Ramsey, the720, Zack Dyer, and Sophia Scott.
“I’ve been lucky enough to work with BJ for over a decade, and he’s always been an unwavering supporter, resource, and friend to our songwriters and the whole Warner Chappell team,” Warner Chappell Music Nashville President and CEO Ben Vaughn said. “He has some of the best ears in the business, he’s a master of puns, and he can mix a drink with the best of them.”
Hill started with Warner Chappell in 2002 as an associate catalog manager on the team, moving to the A&R department in 2005.
Newly installed Big Loud Texas honchos Miranda Lambert and Jon Randall are wasting no time making moves after launching their imprint with Seth England's Big Loud last week. Today (11/17), they’ve announced their first signing in fast-rising Texas musician Dylan Gossett, who will join the imprint in collaboration with Mercury Records and Range Media Partners. Seen above just before discovering that a ten-gallon hat does not, in fact, hold ten gallons of bourbon are (l-r) RMP Nashville managing partner Shawn McSpadden, Homebase Management's Sam Katz, Big Loud partner-producer and President of A&R Joey Moi, Big Loud CEO/partner England, Randall, Lambert, Gossett, Mercury President Tyler Arnold, Republic EVP and Mercury head of marketing Alex Coslov, RMP Director of A&R Federico Morris and managing partner Matt Graham and Mercury Manager, A&R Jake Levensohn.
Gossett’s latest single, “Coal,” has crept north of 42m plays on Spotify, where it went Top 5 on the Global chart. It anchors his latest EP, No Better Time, which was self-released in late October. Even in a genre filled with memorable lines, the song's refrain—"They say pressure makes diamonds / How the hell am I still coal?"—cuts deep.
Fresh off the road with Wyatt Flores and Brent Cobb (and having performed “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the F1 U.S. Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas), Gossett will wind down the year with dates alongside Kolby Cooper and Luke Grimes. A run of shows with Midland is also set for April.
“When I first heard Dylan’s song ‘Coal,’ I played it a few times because I wanted to catch all the ways he was sharing his life with us,” says Lambert. “To write and deliver something that is complex yet elegant lyrically and to also make it vulnerable is an art. After Jon and I spent time with Dylan, we both agreed he is an artist Big Loud Texas was created to champion and support.”
Mercury prez Arnold hailed Gossett as "an incredible artist and songwriter, and it’s been a really memorable process getting to know him over the last few months. We truly believe he’s going to be a game-changing artist for this generation.”
England added his praise for "a songwriter’s songwriter and incredible vocal talent who’s got something compelling to say through his music," adding that he was "thrilled to have him as the flagship artist launching our newest venture, Big Loud Texas, and honored to be part of telling his story.”
For RMP's Graham, Gossett is "a unique artist who clearly draws his inspiration from his Texas country roots, but showed a clear desire to cross genres and have global appeal."
Now if you'll excuse us, we're going to go scare up 27 more executive quotes.
UTA has signed Warner Music Nashville singer/songwriter Charlie Worsham for worldwide representation in all areas. His latest release, the Compadres EP, arrived last month and sports guest turns from Lainey Wilson, Dierks Bentley, Luke Combs, Elle King, and Kip Moore. Pictured mentally willing the publicist not to send us this picture are (l-r): UTA's Greg Janese, Scott Clayton and Nick Barnes, Worsham, UTA's Josh Garrett and Justin Hill, and Friends at Work managers Matt Shay, Dani Reis and Jaime Nabrynski.
Worsham, who was nominated for Musician of the Year at the CMAs, is also the host of Apple Music Country’s Pickers Radio and a member of Bentley’s touring band.
The Mississippi native’s past credits include Kacey Musgraves, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, and Eric Church, as well as the 2022 ACM Award for Acoustic Guitar Player of the Year.
Worsham has also been playing themed shows “every damn Monday” for several years at Nashville’s Basement East, with the next one coming up on 12/11. He will be back on the road beginning 2/15 in Birmingham, Al.
