‘Inside Track’ Feb ’23 edition online now!

‘Inside Track on Music Row’ posted and ready to read

Check out the current edition of my column, Inside Track on Music Row, now posted here at Nashville Music Guide. A lot of ‘must read’ stuff this month, including…

  • Details on Dierks Bentley‘s new 14-track album, Gravel & Gold, set for release Feb 24…
  • Sunny Sweeney‘s new album, Married Alone, blurring the lines between Texas Country and Nashville Americana…
  • Memory Lane (Sampler) is the title of the new project from Old Dominion that they co-produced with hit songwriter Shane McAnally
  • CMT has announced the sixteen new artists that will be the Class of 2023 for the 10th Anniversary CMT Women of Country
  • Alana Springsteen has released a single from her debut album, Twenty Something, a three-part collection documenting the heartache, excitement, and immense transformation of early adulthood…
  • Colton Dixon‘s No. 1 hit “Build A Boat” is back again in a brand-new version: “Build A Boat (feat Gabby Barrett).” Dixon and Barrett are fellow American Idol alums…
  • Indie artist Andy Pursell is gearing up to release his newest tune, “Right Amount of Wrong,” produced by Mark Dreyer, March 17 via all digital and streaming platforms…
  • Mitchell Tenpenny will be touring overseas for the first time in March, playing dates in Europe and Australia…
  • Take listen to Chris Janson‘s new single “All I Need Is You,” a song that unravels what really matters in Life…
  • In May 2023, the Johnny Cash Museum will celebrate its tenth anniversary as a staple of Nashville, country music and Johnny Cash culture…
  • Check out “Drinkaby,” the new single from multi-Platinum Cole Swindell from his upcoming deluxe album Stereotype Broken, due April 28…
  • Find the details about tickets and venues for Tin Pan South; 100 shows and 400+ performances, March 28 through April 1, 2023…

Plus news about Dolly Parton, The Grand Ole Opry, Jelly Role Keith Burns, HARDY, Chris Young, Gabby Barrett, Chris Clark, ERNEST, T.G. Sheppard, Cody Johnson, Elvie Shane, tour news, music video news and so much more. Find it all here at Nashville Music Guide.

Preshias Harris  is a music journalist and music career development consultant with the emphasis on new and aspiring artists and songwriters. Her book, ‘The College of Songology 101: The Singer/Songwriter’s Need to Know Reference Handbook’ is available here.  Follow her blog and read her regular ‘Preshias On The Row’ news stories at Center Stage Magazine.

In the Christmas Spirit!

Music brings Christmas home for the holidays

By Preshias Harris

Now it’s really beginning to feel a lot like Christmas!  Music will always be part of Christmas and certain songs instantly conjure up childhood memories that stay with us throughout our lives. Here’s a roundup of some Christmas music news that might create some new memories for you and your family. Scroll down for info on Opry Country Christmas, O.N.E. The Duo, Mikayla Lane, Craig Campbell, Drew Aldridge, Chris Isaak and Opry NextStage.

Opry Country Christmas returns to Grand Ole Opry House

The Grand Ole Opry® has kicked off Nashville’s newest holiday tradition with the return of Opry Country Christmas at the Grand Ole Opry House. Hosted by Grammy®-winning Opry member Larry Gatlin, Opry Country Christmas will showcase songs of the holiday season, running on select dates through Dec. 22. Each show features Opry members The Gatlin Brothers, Riders In The Sky, Mandy Barnett and Country Music Hall of Famer Charlie McCoy. Other Opry members, special guests, and spotlight artists will round out the shows made up of artists’ original songs and timeless Christmas favorites.  Spotlight Artists for this year’s run include Lauren Alaina (Dec. 1), Scotty McCreery (Dec. 4), Steven Curtis Chapman (Dec. 8); Chris Janson (Dec. 11), Josh Turner and Chris Young (Dec 15), Lorrie Morgan (Dec. 21), and Ricky Skaggs (Dec. 22). Additional artists scheduled for various Opry Country Christmas shows include John Berry, Jason Crabb, Louise Mandrell, Kathy Mattea, Jeannie Seely, and Rhonda Vincent. Tickets are on-sale now here starting at $55.00. 

“Happy Holiday With Me” from mom/daughter duo

O.N.E. The Duo

O.N.E The Duo, Music City’s own mother-daughter Country/Americana duo (Tekitha and Prana Supreme), are ringing in the Christmas spirit with “Happy Holiday With Me,” via a new music video out now.  Inspired by Mariah Carey’s iconic “All I Want For Christmas Is You” video, the clip is reminiscent of a vintage candid home video. The song can also be found on their new holiday EP O.N.E Very Merry Christmas, available here.  “Christmas, and the holiday season in general, is my favorite time of year and that’s really what I wanted to capture for this video. Growing up, my family didn’t really celebrate Christmas in the traditional way, so it was fun to create those moments for this song,” says Prana Supreme — daughter of Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA and Wu-Tang vocalist Tekitha — who wrote “Happy Holiday With Me” with her mom, Nash Overstreet, and Shane Stevens.  Directed by Brandon Vestal, the festive clip features the duo celebrating some of their favorite Christmas traditions like baking apple pie together, while Ron Zamber (Chairman and Founding Partner, Visionary Media Group and Private Equity Group Partner) makes a cameo as Santa Claus. More info here.

Mikayla Lane shares version of “Silent Night”

Continue reading “In the Christmas Spirit!”

‘Inside Track’ Holiday edition now posted!

Included in Nashville Music Guide’s 2022 Holiday issue

It’s that time again! Where did 2022 go?! Check out the current edition of my column, Inside Track on Music Row, now posted as part of the 2022 Holiday Guide at Nashville Music Guide. Inside Track on Music Row is the longest continuously-running country music column in America. Read the entire issue and find the column on pages 33 through 39.

In the column you’ll find news items on Brantley Gilbert, Thomas Rhett, Randy Rogers Band, Chris Tomlin, Jason Crabb, Christmas 4 Kids, CMA Country Christmas, Caylee Hammack, Cole Swindell, Flat River Band, Billy Strings, Jacob Bryant, Average Joe’s, Eddie Montgomery, Elvie Shane, Cody Johnson, One Spark Entertainment, Jeannie Seely, Graciela, Allie Colleen, William Lee Golden, Kentucky Headhunters, Mandy Barnett, Luke Combs, Brett Young, Drew Aldridge, Ashley Cooke, Tucker Beathard, Ernie Haase & Signature Sound, Paulina Jayne, Jenny Tolman and more!

Find the 2022 Holiday issue of Nashville Music Guide here.

 Preshias Harris  is a music journalist and music career development consultant with the emphasis on new and aspiring artists and songwriters. Her book, ‘The College of Songology 101: The Singer/Songwriter’s Need to Know Reference Handbook’ is available here.  Follow her blog and read her regular ‘Preshias On The Row’ news stories at Center Stage Magazine.

Brett Kissel’s new project touches all points of the compass

“Watch It” single available now

By Preshias Harris 

Brett Kissel

Country music is alive and well north of the border.  If there was any doubt about that, check out the dynamic Brett Kissel, whose boots carried him through the grass and mud of the family cattle ranch in northeastern Alberta, Canada, long before they took him onto a stage.

Amazingly, at the still-young age of thirty-two, he is already two decades into a music career, having released his first album, Keepin’ It Country, when he was twelve. Now he is gearing up for the release of his latest project, a four-part album set to drop in January 2023.

The new project will follow five albums released by Warner Music Canada, three of which (Started With a Song, Pick Me Up, We Were That Song) were certified Gold in Canada and included eight Gold and three Platinum singles.  In 2020 Brett signed his first American record deal with Verge Records, the Nashville-based partner of ONErpm.

Fans both south and north of the border are getting a taste of what to expect from the new album with the release of the track “Watch It” (play / stream / download the track here).

“Watch It” follows the release earlier this year of the single “Ain’t The Same” featuring the American pop vocal group 98°

Brett talked to me about the release of his new project in 2023 and the unique concept behind it.

Continue reading “Brett Kissel’s new project touches all points of the compass”

October’s ‘Inside Track on Music Row’

Ready to read now at Nashville Music Guide

Hard to believe it’s October already! Lots of acts have just announced Fall Tours or added dates and you can catch up with them – along with plans for Holiday shows and music – in my column Inside Track on Music Row, the longest continuously-running country music column in the USA. The October edition is ready to read right now here at Nashville Music Guide. Among the many news items…

  • Conner Smith‘s acoustic version of “Take It Slow” features co-writer Ryan Hurd and gives the song a fresh, intimate vibe…
  • Ashley McBryde invited some of her favorite collaborators to a week-long songwriting retreat in a rural cabin and the result is her new album, Ashley McBryde Presents: Lindeville
  • HARDY says he’s “stoked” to take his Wall To Wall Tour out on the road. Find links to tour dates and ticket info…
  • Essex County proves country is alive and well in their native England with their new five-song EP…
  • Newsboys, the Contemporary Christian powerhouse, are serving up Stand (Deluxe), with three new recordings for a total of 14 tracks on the enhanced album, ahead of their tour…
  • Luke Bryan is inviting fans to join him for his annual concert vacation, Crash My Playa, for four nights in Cancun, January 19 – 22. We have the link for ticket info…
  • Trisha Yearwood, Easton Corbin and The Oak Ridge Boys are among the stars set for Opry Goes Pink, October 14 to benefit Susan G. Komen in the fight against breast cancer …
  • Marty Brown, Carly Pearce and Pete Goble are among the 7 inductees set to be honored at the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame, October 28. Ticket info and details in the column…
  • News items, tour alerts, new release info on albums and singles, stories about Breland, Tracy Lawrence, Lauren Reno, Jacob Bryant, Kasey Tyndall, Cole Swindell, Gene Watson, Mitchell Tenpenny, Craig Morgan, The War And Treaty and more in the October Inside Track on Music Row.

Read the column in its entirety here at Nashville Music Guide where you can also catch up with columns from previous months.

Preshias Harris  is a music journalist and music career development consultant with the emphasis on new and aspiring artists and songwriters. Her book, ‘The College of Songology 101: The Singer/Songwriter’s Need to Know Reference Handbook’ is available at   www.collegeofsongology.com   Follow her blog at  www.nashvillemusicline.com #preshiasharris @preshiasharris

Wade Bowen album is traditional country for the 21st century

Somewhere Between The Secret And The Truth buzzes like a neon sign

By Preshias harris

Wade Bowen is back with a new album titled Somewhere Between The Secret And The Truth, with twelve tracks co-written by Wade alongside writers such as Eric Paslay, Lori McKenna, Randy Montana, Heather Morgan and more. 

He premiered the album – playing all the tracks with a full band – at a pop-up album release show August 15 at Analog in Nashville’s Hutton Hotel.  Before the show, Wade and I sat down to catch up with what’s new in his world and how he dealt with the pandemic that brought his (and everyone else’s) touring to a dead stop.

Wade Bowen on stage during the pop-up album release concert. Photo credit: Preshias Harris

Initially, he told me, the shutdown and the terrible circumstances that surrounded it hit him like “a punch in the gut.”  It caused him to go into what he called a writer’s drought.

“I felt I couldn’t write a song because I didn’t know what to say or how to say it or why,” he admitted.  “I couldn’t make sense of it all.”

However, he came out of it and says that he started writing a lot.  “I think that shutdown helped me to just stop and focus on what matters, and I came out of the other side with a brand new sense of self and a brand new sense of my career and what I wanted to do and what’s important in my life.  I think you can hear that in my new stuff, specially with this new record.”

Continue reading “Wade Bowen album is traditional country for the 21st century”

August ‘Inside Track’ posted now

This month’s ‘Inside Track on Music Row’

Catch up on all that’s happening in the world of music from Nashville and beyond by checking out the August 2022 edition of my column, Inside Track on Music Row, now posted and ready to read at Nashville Music Guide here!

Among this month’s news items…

  • Callista Clark’s debut full-length album, Real to Me: The Way I Feel, to be released Oct 14 on Big Machine…
  • Kip Moore’s music video for his new track “Fire on Wheels” sees him trying some ‘risky business’ at a bowling alley…
  • Raucous southern rockers, Six Gun Sally, release “Redneck White and Badass Blue” following up on “Drunk Text” …
  • Michael Ray expresses pride and gratitude to fans over multi-week No. 1 “Whiskey and Rain” …
  • Rising songstress Mikayla Lane releases single and music video for cowgirl-themed “Ambush” …
  • Travis Denning releases six-song EP, Might As Well Be Me and single “Buy A Girl A Drink” …
  • Legendary Kentucky music duo, The Everly Brothers, honored by Gibson Guitars with limited-run Everly Brothers SJ-200 guitar…
  • Garth Brooks to be honored by NSAI with Kris Kristofferson Lifetime Achievement Award at Nashville Songwriter Awards in September…
  • CJ Solar releases his first full-length album The Future’s Neon with all 9 songs co-written, co-produced by CJ…
  • Dierks Bentley’s “Gold” is a song about gratitude, presence and the treasures to be found in the moment…

…and more! All in the August 2022 edition of Inside Track on Music Row, America’s longest continuously-running country music column. Find it here at Nashville Music Guide, and share it with your friends!

 Preshias Harris  is a music journalist and music career development consultant with the emphasis on new and aspiring artists and songwriters. Her book, ‘The College of Songology 101: The Singer/Songwriter’s Need to Know Reference Handbook’ is available at   www.collegeofsongology.com   Follow her blog at  www.nashvillemusicline.com

Inside Track on Music Row, April 2022

No foolin’! The April edition is posted and ready to read now!

It’s full of the latest news from Music Row and beyond… info about emerging artists and songwriters as well as the stars and icons of country music, plus photos and links to songs, music videos and more. My column, Inside Track on Music Row, is the longest continuously-running monthly country music column in the USA and you can find it here at Nashville Music Guide. 

Here are the headlines of just a few of the featured news items…

  • Multi-Platinum hitmakers Eli Young Band have revealed plans for a full-length album of the same name as the current single: Love Talking (The Valory Music Co.) is set for release Friday, June 3…
  • Garth Brooks is adding a brand new opening night in Nashville. The new opening night concert will be Friday, April 15th, 7:00 PM at Nissan Stadium. The second night show will be Saturday, April 16th, 7:00 PM…
  • The Les Paul Foundation, whose mission includes honoring and sharing the life, spirit and legacy of Les Paul has launched “Les Paul Thru the Lens,” an exclusive traveling gallery of photos highlighting the life and career of Les Paul, the inventor, musician and icon…
  • As more dates are added to Riley Green’s We Out Here Tour, including a stop at Nashville’s Ascend Amphitheater on July 3 to kick off one of the largest Independence Day weekends in the country, the Alabama-raised singer/songwriter is set to deliver those same concert vibes to playlists…  
  • Singer songwriter Jenny Tolman has released a new video for the title track of her sophomore album “Married in a Honky Tonk.”  The Tennessean exclusively premiered the video, which was shot at the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar in Jackson, Wyo…
  • COJO Music / Warner Music Nashville Platinum recording artist Cody Johnson landed the first No. 1 of his career in March as “’Til You Can’t” topped the Billboard Country Airplay and Mediabase charts…
  • The Grand Ole Opry is celebrating one of country music’s most influential artists, Merle Haggard, on the anniversary of both his birth and his death, Wednesday, April 6…
  • Dierks Bentley has announced details behind the Live Nation produced summer leg of his Beers On Me Tour. Bentley will host over 31-cities to an “all-night sing-along party”…
  • The best-selling duo of all time, Brooks & Dunn are returning to arenas, with their Reboot 2022 Tour, kicking off in Evansville, IN on 5/5…

And that’s just scratching the surface of this month’s column. Read the full stories teased above as well as many more news items along with the accompanying photos, videos, links and more in Inside Track at Music Row posted now here at Nashville Music Guide.

Preshias Harris  is a music journalist and music career development consultant with the emphasis on new and aspiring artists and songwriters. Her book, ‘The College of Songology 101: The Singer/Songwriter’s Need to Know Reference Handbook’ is available at   www.collegeofsongology.com   Follow her blog at  www.nashvillemusicline.com

Lady A, Luke Bryan, Mitchell Tenpenny, Gene Watson, CJ Solar in the news

Sneak peek at my February country music column!

My column, Inside Track on Music Row, is the longest running monthly country music column in America. Catch the January edition at Nashville Music Guide here, along with photos, videos, links and more.  Meanwhile, here is a sneak peek at just a few of the items I am working on for the upcoming column for February 2022.  Scroll down to read them now…

Lady A’s new single is ‘a love letter to fans’

Lady A launches into the new year with their next single “What A Song Can Do” (BMLG Records), available now and impacting Country radio on January 31. The title track from their eighth studio album serves as a love letter to fans that is steeped in music’s power to get us through and has already garnered nearly 4 million on-demand streams.

Written by the group’s Charles Kelley with Ryan Hurd, Sam Ellis and Laura Veltz, “What A Song Can Do” also illustrates the patience and optimism the trio has taken from their years together and is available at all digital retailers here.  “We have been overfilled with gratitude after releasing this album and we don’t take it lightly that after eight albums our music still resonates with so many people,” Kelley said. “This song is the summation of where our hearts are right now and how much music can really pull us through in times of need. We love writing songs about lost love and things like that, but I feel like our favorite material comes with a strong positive message.” More information here.

Luke Bryan gets personal with new video for “Up”

Continue reading “Lady A, Luke Bryan, Mitchell Tenpenny, Gene Watson, CJ Solar in the news”

‘Inside Track’ mid-month update

Elvie Shane at No. 1, Chris Young and Kane Brown celebrate… and more

By Preshias Harris

Here’s a quick round-up of some of the stories that will be in my column in November. Scroll down for news about Brad Paisley, Luke Bryan, Chris Young, Kane Brown, this year’s NSAI Annual Song Contest, the 2021 inductees into the Songwriters Hall of Fame … and “My Boy” Elvie Shane’s long climb to No. 1!

“My Boy” tops Billboard Airplay chart

Elvie Shane is No. 1 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart dated Oct. 23, 2021!  Elvie’s debut single, “My Boy” (Wheelhouse), leaps from No. 5 to No. 1 for its 54th week on the chart, according to MRC Data. That’s right: a nail-biting fifty-four week climb!

On Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart (blending airplay, streaming and sales data), “My Boy” rose from No. 7 to No. 4.  Written by Elvie along with Nick Columbia, Lee Starr and Russell Sutton, “My Boy” is a track from Elvie’s upcoming album Backslider, set for release Oct. 29.

Earlier on Instagram, I proudly posted:

Sharing a plaque of memorable photos with Elvie Shane

So excited for @elvieshanemusic. He has the #1 #countrymusic song for #Myboy. I gave him this 2021 music milestone plaque when he, Mandy and their baby stopped by the office a couple of weeks ago.  Photos are of his first tour bus, his first Grand Ole Opry appearance, Bonnaroo stage, and Elvie, Mandy and Caleb in a People Magazine exclusive. I watched him work hard all these years and wanted to give him something to remind him how truly special 2021 has been for his career and his family.  I was blessed to be there at the journey’s start. Love y’all Elvie.

“My Boy” was written from Elvie’s perspective as a stepfather. “We’ve been told for five years that this song was a No.1,” Shane told Billboard. “I always found it hard to believe that I could be part of something like that.”

Preorder/presave Backslider here.

NSAI’s Song Contest open for entries

Continue reading “‘Inside Track’ mid-month update”