Vince Gill, Eric Church, Keith Urban Lead Star-Studded Universal Music Group Bash
Country Radio Seminar (CRS), the gathering of radio industry professionals from all over the world, is in full swing this week in downtown Nashville. One of the highlights of the annual convention, which features country artists performing in a wide array of settings both intimate and expansive, is the Universal Music Group’s lunchtime show on stage at the venerable Ryman Auditorium.
For a little over two hours on Thursday, CRS attendees packed the Ryman and were treated to 16 UMG artists, from Hall of Famers to young country hopefuls just getting their first taste of airplay. The idea, of course, is to entice radio programmers, DJs and other industry professionals in attendance to play the artists’ new singles, many of which were premiered at the event. But it’s also a way for the already established acts to say thanks to the radio stations that have played their songs and helped give some of the artists a string of Number One singles.
The show, which featured its fair share of foot-stomping tunes, nonetheless kicked off with Josh Turner and his latest single, “Lay Low.” Next up was Kip Moore, who joked that following the deep-voiced Turner was like going on stage after Luther Vandross. Moore, who performed the new “I’m the Blame,” thanked the crowd for the hit singles that have helped him in his philanthropic endeavor to put up skate parks in low-income neighborhoods around the country.
If crowd response to the next act, Kacey Musgraves, is any indication, the first single from her follow-up to the award-winning Same Trailer Different Park LP will soon be charging up the charts. “Biscuits,” penned by Musgraves with Shane McAnally and Brandy Clark, is a modern, breezy take on Hank Williams’ “Mind Your Own Business,” telling us to “mend your own fences and own your own crazy,” and reasoning that if you “mind your own biscuits, life will be gravy.”
One theme of the afternoon’s material that could have easily derailed the proceedings was a number of tributes to lost family members. A new song from Canaan Smith pays homage to the brother he lost in a car accident. Titled “Bronco,” the tear-jerking tune, Smith said, will serve as the title track of his upcoming full-length album.
David Nail followed with “Home,” a song that was inspired by the death of his grandmother. He prefaced the tune, however, by joking that he was “out of medication that helps with anxiety.”
From the melancholy to the magnificent, the Ryman Auditorium’s acoustics offer the perfect spot to showcase remarkable vocal ability and the afternoon offered several opportunities to do just that, especially for Little Big Town, whose latest single, “Girl Crush,” is no doubt on its way to a fruitful awards season, thanks in no small part to Karen Fairchild’s mesmerizing lead vocal.