Paramore’s Hayley Williams and her twin Chvrches’ Lauren Mayberry gave fans an epic collaboration last night in Nashville. Williams joined the Scots onstage Tuesday night in her hometown of Nashville for a performance of “Bury It,” off Chvrches’ new album. Watch below.
Last year we saw the youngest McGraw daughter, Audrey, sing, but this time the oldest Gracie took the stage with her dad.
Gracie joined her father to belt out his new song “Here Tonight,” which will be featured on his upcoming album.
Originally Posted on Billboard
Hitmakers are the lifeblood of country music. “Songwriting is sort of a 9-to-5 job in Nashville,” says Michael Dulaney, who has collaborated on singles with Tanya Tucker and Jason Aldean. Unlike in other genres, where artists and producers disappear into studios or rented mansions for months, Nashville’s most successful treat the craft more like a profession than a mystical experience. “I write at least 150 songs a year, so there’s really not a ‘writing ritual,’ ” says Rhett Akins, who has 18 career No. 1 singles. “You just hope and pray on the way to the writing session that you’ve got a good idea — or that the person you’re writing with does.”
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1. Chris DeStefano*
Known for: “Good Girl” (Carrie Underwood); “Kick the Dust Up” (Luke Bryan)
A personal song I’ve written: “ ‘Something in the Water’ [Carrie Underwood]. When I’m singing it, sometimes I get a lump in my throat.”
2. Josh Osborne, 35
Known for: “Take Your Time” (Sam Hunt); “Sangria” (Blake Shelton)
Word I overuse in lyrics: “ ‘Ceiling fan.’ When [Eli Young Band’s] ‘Drunk Last Night’ went to No. 1, Rhett [Akins] sent me a text that said, ‘ “Ceiling fan” must be the new “tailgate.” ’ ”
3. Luke Laird, 37
Known for: “American Kids” (Kenny Chesney); “Give Me Back My Hometown” (Eric Church)
Why there aren’t more women on country radio: “Some of the best writers are female, but as far as writers in Nashville getting paid to write songs, it’s still more guys. That may have something to do with it.”
4. Nathan Chapman, 38
Known for: “Better Than You Left Me” (Mickey Guyton); “Homegrown Honey” (Darius Rucker)
Why there aren’t more women on country radio: “I don’t know. I’ve had 16 No. 1s as a producer and songwriter — and 12 of my No. 1s have been with female lead singers. It’s an important issue for me.”
5. Lee Thomas Miller, 46
Known for: “Southern Girl” (Tim McGraw); “In Color” (Jamey Johnson)
A personal song I’ve written: “My grandfather was in World War II, and we did a whole verse of ‘In Color’ [“In the middle of hell/In 1943”] about it.”
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6. Barry Dean, 48
Known for: “Pontoon” (Little Big Town); “Where We Left Off” (Hunter Hayes)
Most surprising place I’ve heard my song: “[At] my wife’s high school reunion, they were doing karaoke, and somebody did ‘Pontoon.’ They didn’t know I’d written it.”
7. Marv Green, 50
Known for: “Amazed” (Lonestar); “Who I Am With You” (Chris Young)
Dream collaborators: “Tom Petty, Don Henley, Jackson Browne, Merle Haggard, Mick Jagger.”
8. Natalie Hemby, 38
Known for: “Tornado” (Little Big Town); “Automatic” (Miranda Lambert)
I wish I wrote: “ ‘Burning House’ by Cam. It reminds me of something the Dixie Chicks would sing.”
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9. Michael Dulaney, 51
Known for: “The Way You Love Me” (Faith Hill); “Night Train” (Jason Aldean)
I wish I wrote: “[Chesney’s] ‘American Kids.’ The language is very smart, like a little movie.”
10. Nicolle Galyon, 31
Known for: “We Were Us” (Keith Urban featuring Miranda Lambert); “Automatic” (Miranda Lambert)
Why there aren’t more women on country radio: “It’s not a lack of talent. I wish there were more women involved at the high level in record labels to help develop new female artists.”
11. Matt Ramsey, 37
Known for: “Chainsaw” (The Band Perry); “Say You Do” (Dierks Bentley)
Dream collaborator: “I’m a huge Bruce Springsteen fan, but if I was ever put in a room with him I’d probably cry.”
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12. Jon Nite, 35
Known for: “We Were Us” (Keith Urban featuring Miranda Lambert); “Beachin’ ” (Jake Owen)
Word I overuse in lyrics: “Right now, I am instructed by my publishers not to use ‘truck’ or ‘whiskey.’ The problem is, I drive an F-150 and I live in Bourbon Country.”
13. Heather Morgan, 35
Known for: “Beat of the Music,” “Lose My Mind” (Brett Eldredge)
Word I overuse in lyrics: “ ‘Baby.’ Is that too obvious?”
14. Trevor Rosen, 40
Known for: “Say You Do” (Dierks Bentley); “Sangria” (Blake Shelton)
Dream collaborator: “Eminem. I’m from Detroit, too.”
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15. Liz Rose, 57
Known for: “You Belong With Me” (Taylor Swift); “Girl Crush” (Little Big Town)
Most surprising place I’ve heard my song: “I was with a group of girls, and we’d been drinking on the beach all day. ‘You Belong With Me’ came on, so I said to the bartender, ‘I wrote that.’ She looked at me and said, ‘Sure you did, lady.’”
16. Rhett Akins, 45
Known for: “I Don’t Want This Night to End” (Luke Bryan); “Boys ’Round Here” (Blake Shelton featuring Pistol Annies & Friends)
I wish I wrote: “ ‘Sangria’ by Blake Shelton. All my friends write these songs, so I’m like, ‘Dang, how come we didn’t write that together?’ ”
17. Brad Tursi, 35
Known for: “A Guy Walks Into a Bar” (Tyler Farr)
Dream collaborator: “Pharrell. He’s been a part of so many great modern hits, I’d like to see how that works.”
18. Shane McAnally, 40
Known for: “Merry Go ’Round” (Kacey Musgraves); “Take Your Time” (Sam Hunt); “American Kids” (Kenny Chesney)
I wish I wrote: “ ‘Teenage Dream’ by Katy Perry. I’m obsessed with that song.”
Most surprising place I’ve heard my song: “Kacey Musgraves had her album-release party at a Nashville bar called Play. She had drag queens come out and each do a song, so I watched nine of my songs performed by drag queens.”
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19. Josh Kear, 40
Known for: “Need You Now” (Lady Antebellum); “Drunk on a Plane” (Dierks Bentley)
Most surprising place I’ve heard my song: “I was in Sri Lanka last year. I was holding my daughter, waiting in the bathroom line inside a marketplace, and I heard ‘Need You Now’ over the intercom.”
20. Ross Copperman, 32
Known for: “Pirate Flag” (Kenny Chesney); “Tip It on Back” (Dierks Bentley)
Word I overuse in lyrics: “We’re all trying to stray from the bro thing, you know? So ‘truck,’ I guess.”
Listen to songs from Nashville’s biggest songwriters (and more music from this issue) in the Spotify playlist below:
This story originally appeared in the Aug. 1 issue of Billboard.
The first song from Xtina’s guest arc on Nashville was released on April 14 and the powerhouse singer absolutely kills it on the track. Give it a listen and let us know what you think!
My favorite singing sisters have done it again!
Nashville‘s youngest stars covered Charli XCX’s “Boom Clap” just in time for their show to come back on air.
Lennon and Maisy’s rendition of the song is so magical that we can almost guarantee you will get the chills. Enjoy.
Originally Posted on Billboard.com
Playing aspiring singer-songwriters-turned-lovers-turned-friends, Nashville’s Clare Bowen and Sam Palladio regularly perform together on ABC’s hit musical drama. So when it came time to find a male and female lead to sing “Beauty and the Beast” for a behind-the-scenes special about the creation of Disney’s eight Broadway musicals, including the long-running Broadway version of the studio’s hit animated movie, the show’s director thought he found the perfect pair when he was watching Nashville, an idea that the show’s production team quickly liked.
“We were looking for something that felt a little unexpected, and to do the young stars of a show about Nashville singing this very famous Broadway duet together seemed surprising and interesting,” said Backstage with Disney on Broadway: Celebrating 20 Years senior executive producer and lead writer Jeanmarie Condon.
Condon said in determining which songs and performers to feature to celebrate shows like Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Mary Poppins, Newsies andAladdin, picking ballads was a natural choice as the show’s team wanted to find people who could do a different take on these songs than the Broadway rendition.
“The ballads [are] usually the heart and soul of each show, so we chose the ballads that got right to the emotional core of whichever show it was in,” Condon said. “In terms of why we chose the people we did, we were looking for, because you’re seeing a lot of the stage and the Broadway performances of these numbers, we were looking to contrast them with the acoustic-feeling performances, one because they’ve [provide] a very surprising rendition of these very famous songs, when you’re hearing it in that acoustic setting, and two to give some texture to the show in general.”
Indeed, Bowen and Palladio’s rendition of “Beauty and the Beast,” is more stripped down than the stage version or either of the two versions from the 1991 movie: the Angela Lansbury one in the film and the Celine Dion–Peabo Brysonone on the soundtrack. Bowen, who’s a musician as well as an actress, also wanted to put her own spin on the classic song, trying to pay homage to the original without trying to replicate previous renditions.
“I wanted to make it my own, and I think that’s important when you’re doing a tribute,” Bowen told THR, adding that she rearranged a few things. “What comes naturally to you I think is the best way for an individual to tell a story because you’re telling what you know.”
Bowen added that she was a fan of the song and the story of Beauty and the Beast, explaining that her parents used to read the tale to her when she was a child.
“That song in particular, it meant a lot to me growing up,” she said. “It’s really a beautiful story … and the accessibility of the characters and the music is just so beautiful.”
The Nashville star told THR that she’s also a fan of The Little Mermaid, which spent nearly two years on Broadway as a musical, and that she had planned to also sing “Part of Your World” but ran out of time.
“I’ll do it another time,” she said.
While viewers won’t get to hear Bowen singing about wanting “to be where the people are,” they will hear Toni Braxton talk about how she came to play Belle in the musical and how that led Alan Menken and Tim Rice to add a song to the show, Condon said.
Beyond that, Condon explained that Backstage with Disney on Broadway, inspired by the behind-the-scenes Frozen special that aired on ABC in September, shows how hard it often was to turn the studio’s movies into stage musicals and how the theatrical team solved those issues.
“To turn these things into the hits they became were never an easy thing,” Condon said. “There were always moments when they were filled with fear that it wasn’t going to work and then, through the storytelling, you see the way they figured out how to get around problems, sometimes big ones, in ways that became the signature of the show.”
Backstage with Disney on Broadway: Celebrating 20 Years, hosted by Modern Family star Jesse Tyler Ferguson, airs on Sunday at 7 p.m. ET on ABC and also features performances from Elton John and others.
Watch Bowen and Palladio’s “Beauty and the Beast” performance below.
Jonathan Jackson + Enation, the Nashville Star’s band with brother and fellow actor Richard Lee Jackson, is making its a big move this month.
Enation releases its fourth album, Radio Cinematic, on Oct. 14. Jackson tells Billboard, “I’m grateful we went about it that way because you learn about yourself.”
“All that time writing and producing your music, playing live and touring and everything, I think it’s prepared me not only for where we are right now as a band but also prepared me a lot for Nashville, having all that experience and understanding what a singer-songwriter goes through. But now, yeah, it’s been great to have the support from (a label) and have that team behind us to help us take it up another notch.”
Listen to the song “Cinematic”:
“I know there are people that are being introduced to the music that haven’t heard the band who say, ‘Is it country music?,’ and it’s not, obviously,” he says. “I’m sure there’s an element of transition for people, but subjectively for me it doesn’t come into play. I’ve been doing music with Enation for so long, I feel comfortable in my own skin and I don’t really think about it too much in terms of whether people will have a hard time adjusting to it. If people do, they do, and if they don’t, they don’t. I don’t concern myself with it too much.”
Good Music. Good Life. 