Music News (12/13/23)
Lee Thomas Miller Signs With SMACKSongs
Pictured (L-R): SMACK’s Jeremy Groves, Carly Sater, Lee Krabel, Lee Thomas Miller, SMACK’s Robert Carlton, Robin Palmer and Sam Sarno
Hitmaker Lee Thomas Miller has signed a publishing deal with SMACKSongs.
With a career spanning over three decades, Miller has earned eighteen top 20 singles, including seven No. 1s, and 13 BMI radio performance awards. His songs have collectively received more than 25 million spins and garnered hundreds of millions of streams worldwide.
“One of the first songwriters to welcome me in the publishing business 15 year ago was Lee Thomas Miller,” says Lee Krabel, SVP of Publishing at SMACK. “I’m incredibly excited to get the opportunity to work with Lee again at SMACK. He is simply one of the best songwriters to ever come to Nashville. Looking forward to seeing what we can accomplish together!”
Miller has also earned three Grammy nominations, a Teen Choice Award, and four NSAI “Songs I Wish I Had Written” trophies. Additionally, he won a CMA and an ACM Award for Song of the Year with “In Color” by Jamey Johnson. Another iconic hit, “You’re Gonna Miss This” by Trace Adkins, secured Song of the Year titles at both the ASCAP and NSAI Awards and the Single of the Year at the CMA Awards. Miller has had cuts with Tim McGraw, Garth Brooks, Brad Paisley, Thomas Rhett, Brothers Osborne and more.
“This one is really special. Lee is one of the truly great songwriters in this town,” says Robert Carlton, President at SMACK. “He could go anywhere but the fact that he entrusted SMACK with this next chapter of his career is a big win for all of us. Personally, it hits a sentimental note for me because my dad gave Lee his first deal. I grew up listening to Lee’s catalog and demos as a kid. His songs are as relevant and as timely now as they were back then. I know my dad has got to be looking down proud to have a hand in this signing.”
“It is an honor to begin the next chapter of my career writing songs at SMACK. Not only have I been a fan of Shane McAnally’s songwriting his entire career, I also love what he and Robin Palmer have built in this publishing company,” says Miller. “I could not be more impressed with their team and the close ties I have to them already. I worked with Lee Krabel for many years early in his career and Robert Carlton’s late father Jeff Carlton gave me my big break when he signed me to my first publishing deal in the ’90s. Lee and Robert are impressive publishers now who have surrounded themselves with quality professionals as well as humans. I have to think Jeff is smiling today and would tell me I’m in good hands. Everything about this feels right.”
Warner Chappell Music Signs Global Publishing Deal With Sam Backoff
Pictured (L-R): Ben Vaughn (Warner Chappell), Bethany Mako (Warner Chappell), Sam Backoff, Charly Salvatore (Underscore Works)
Warner Chappell Music (WCM) has signed a global publishing deal with songwriter Sam Backoff, in partnership with Underscore Works’ Charly Salvatore.
Backoff is an Illinois native now based in Nashville. As part of her band Avenue Beat, she signed a record deal with Big Machine Records in 2019. The group saw success in 2020 with their viral hit “F2020,” reaching over 52 million streams on Spotify, entering the top 20 on pop radio and being named the No. 1 song of 2020 by The New York Times.
After Avenue Beat disbanded in 2021, Backoff turned her focus back to her small-town country roots and zeroed in on her passion for the creation of songs. She has cuts with Charles Esten, Graham Barham, Summer Overstreet, Zoe Clark, Miki Ratsula, THE WLDLFE and others, and has recently collaborated with the likes of Ben Johnson, Jessie Murph, Ernest, Beau Bailey, Karley Scott Collins, KK Johnson, Carson Wallace and Savana Santos.
Cole Swindell & Crew Celebrate Five-Week No. 1 ‘She Had Me At Heads Carolina’
Pictured (L-R, back row): Warner-Chappell’s Spencer Nohe, Zach Crowell (ASCAP), BMI’s Josh Tomlinson, Jesse Frasure (BMI), ASCAP’s Duane Hobson, UMPG’s Cyndi Forman, Thomas Rhett (BMI), Rhythm House’s Vanna Moua, Ashley Gorley (ASCAP), Rhythm House’s Stevie Frasure and Studio Banks’ Ron Cox; (L-R, front row): Warner Music Nashville’s Cris Lacy, Mark D. Sanders (ASCAP), Cole Swindell (BMI), Tim Nichols (BMI) and Sony Music Publishing’s Rusty Gaston. Photo: Steve Lowry for BMI
BMI gathered industry members together earlier this week to celebrate Cole Swindell‘s massive, five-week No. 1 hit “She Had Me At Heads Carolina,” which marked his 12th career chart-topper as an artist and 13th as a songwriter.
As one of the biggest songs of the past year, “She Had Me At Heads Carolina” interpolates Mark D. Sanders and Tim Nichols‘ “Heads Carolina, Tails California,” which was a hit for Jo Dee Messina in the ’90s.
The new version was written by Swindell, Ashley Gorley, Jesse Frasure and Thomas Rhett and produced by Zach Crowell. The now triple-Platinum-certified track was named the 2023 ACM Single and Song of the Year, and won the 2023 iHeart Radio Music Awards Country Song of the Year trophy.
BMI’s Josh Tomlinson was emcee for the party. He congratulated affiliates Nichols, Frasure, Rhett and Swindell. ASCAP’s Duane Hobson honored affiliates Gorley, Crowell and Sanders. Publishers Vanna Moua (Rhythm House), Cyndi Forman (UMPG), Spencer Nohe (Warner Chappell) and Rusty Gaston (Sony Music Publishing) were on hand to celebrate their writers.
Gaston was very involved in forming the idea for “She Had Me At Heads Carolina.” He believed that the Messina classic was one of the most-performed karaoke songs from the ’90s, and felt like, with the right team of writers, an interpolated hit could come out of it. Gaston’s brilliance and initiative was lauded during the party.
“‘Heads Carolina, Tails California’ is an iconic ’90s anthem, but it never went No. 1,” Gaston pointed out. “Today is righting that wrong!”
Warner Music Nashville’s Cris Lacy spoke about the rush of seeing the song through from Gaston’s idea to making it onto Swindell’s Stereotype album, which was already done when the men went in to write the song.
Category: Music News
