It’s a banner year for Warner Music Nashville, with many of its artists marking one step after another in their careers.
Cody Johnson and Ashley McBryde kicked off 2023 with GRAMMY awards for chart-topping songs last year, though both were already hard at work on ambitious new albums to be released later this year. Both have new singles as part of those projects.
Cole Swindell has a new song on the charts after completing last year’s most significant year of her career, thanks to her ’90s-inspired hit “She Had Me at Heads Carolina. “
And Bailey Zimmerman, who burst onto the country scene with a story of dreams come true but still can’t, celebrates her third hit with “Religiously. “
The label’s executives, Ben Kline and Cris Lacy, say the good fortune of those and other Warner artists allows everyone to contribute directly to shaping their careers.
“Each of those hits is simply based on the identity of the artist,” Lacy says. “That’s what happens when you let artists be who they are and try to communicate about them, because without them, we’re nothing. “
Kline and Lacy, who have worked at WMN for years, took over as co-chairs and co-chairs in January. They run the label together, excited to build on the achievements of the artists they’ve worked with in the afterlife and mentor them to the next point in their careers, recruit new artists and work to replace what many expect from it. Record corporations in the afterlife.
“One of the cultural elements of Warner Music Nashville is that our team listens as much as they communicate when dealing with an artist. They know that no one understands a logo and a vision better than the artist himself. In the past, we wondered how, when you came to a label, how were they going to replace me?Do I have to cut my hair, do I have to look for sure in a photo, what are they going to force me to do?
Ashley McBryde remembers being stressed about losing weight and changing her appearance shortly after arriving in Nashville. He described some of what he experienced in an interview with Forbes in 2019.
“I knew I had to play the Nashville game if I wanted to be a part of this. Alright, we can all lose weight, I will. I love my hair, but anyway, if you want it to be less curly, let’s give it a try. But she sucked for looking thin and sucked for not having curly hair.
Today, McBryde shines with his own light at Warner.
Ashley McBryde plays Country Thunder Wisconsin – Day Four on July 23, 2023 at Twin Lakes, Array. [] Wisconsin. (Photo via Joshua Applegate/Getty Images)
Lacy discusses McBryde’s upcoming album, The Devil I Know, and notes that it was scheduled for release a year ago, but this was postponed when McBryde presented them with another set of work.
“Ashley completed a full album, a lovely album, which is one of the most productive things she’s ever done. And then he gave us this task called Lindeville and we stopped it. It seemed so pressing and vital that we interrupted what we were doing. The other album to release this one quickly.
McTBryde’s Lindeville would end up being nominated for a GRAMMY for Best Country Album. The Devil I Know will be released next month.
Singer, songwriter and former semi-professional rodeo rider Cody Johnson has had a negative history with record companies. He shared his opinion with Forbes in 2018.
“People have told me we’re going to make the right deal, but we need you to take off your cowboy hat or update the producers, or we’d like to analyze dissecting your band members and figure out who we need. to update them. “
The Texas local maintained the company for years, turning down several offers to sign with a label until its unprecedented 50/50 partnership agreement with WMN five years ago.
Ben Kline, Cody Johnson, Reba McEntire and Cris Lacy
“Cody is a moment of wonderful pride,” says Lacy, “because it was probably 10 years ago, we saw him play in a bar and he didn’t need a contract with a primary label. He did not accept it as true with the big stamps. He was afraid that they would replace him and that it would affect his music. Our task is to replace that belief and we make it one artist at a time. Cody created and created his logo on his own and we won’t. take credit for it in no way.
Kline totally agrees.
“He was a star and a logo before he joined Warner Music Nashville,” he says. “But now he relies on Warner and our expertise in spaces where we can grow this business. It’s scalability, that’s how you create a global medium. I think he will hear his call more than anyone else in the next six months.
One of WMN’s most unique achievements is that of Bailey Zimmerman. The Illinois venue had little musical experience when it drew attention to TikTok, but the label saw something special and signed it.
Zimmerman scored back-to-back number-one hits: “Fall in Love” and “Rock and a Hard Place. “
“It’s about feeling,” he says Lacy. La story of Bailey is crazy, but we had a feeling this guy was going to do something phenomenal. His story makes no sense on paper. He’s been doing a song for 4 months, he’s written a song, and he’s never been on tour. But we felt he had an explosive ability and that’s what we founded him on.
On a double No. 1 night to celebrate Bailey’s first two hits in June, Lacy shared that initially, with one of those songs, they asked Zimmerman and his team to make some changes.
Bailey Zimmerman plays level on the first day of CMA Fest 2023 at the Chevy Riverfront Stage onArray. [ ] June 8, 2023 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Danielle Del Valle/Getty Images)
After thinking about it, Zimmerman came back and said he wanted to move forward with the song exactly as they had already structured it. Lacy says WMN relented upon learning that Zimmerman and his producer were right, and has no problem admitting it.
“I need all of our artists to believe that Warner Music Nashville, Ben, I and our entire team have their most productive interests in mind. We may not be right, but we care, and at least if they know it’s our motivation. , then perhaps they will forgive us for our mistakes, since we invariably make them.
Kline and Lacy are committed to creating a culture in which a willingness to accept is fostered.
“Avery Anna is another,” he says Kline. Si you’re not familiar with her story, she gained a fan base by covering a song in her mother’s bathroom because of the acoustics. At 18, she is an old soul and we wanted to paint with her. We thought it would take years to expand and the best composition.
And yet, she says, she came up with two deeply meaningful songs. One is called “Self-Love,” the “Narcissist. “
“SiriusXM literally asked us to get the song right away,” Kline says. “It’s a number one single for them. We didn’t say no, no, no, we have a five-year plan for her. We’re going to let music and creativity take over.
Ben Kline, Anna Avery and Cris Lacy
Lacy describes Avery’s songs as raw and vulnerable, such as “Self-Love,” where Avery says “I’m the only user I don’t let myself love. “
“This is what we expect from our artists, brutal, honestly vulnerable. Because that’s what other people can express, and they look to others to help them tell their story when they don’t have the platform. She is an excellent example.
As they look to the future, aiming to welcome new and varied voices to the label, they will continue to be guided through songs that reflect the “storytelling” and type of “lyrical writing” that has made country music special. In doing so, they will ensure that individual artists stand out every step of the way.
“We pay attention to the artists’ vision and adapt plans accordingly,” says Kline. “That’s why no two projects are the same on this label, because no two artists are alike. “