CRS '25 Daily Buzz (2/21) by Country Aircheck

DAILYBUZZ

February 21, 2025, Issue 3

The Main Event

KYGO/Denver’s Brian Michel urged radio to view DSPs as a data opportunity rather than an adversary during CRS Thursday’s (2/20) “Sound Off: What Is ‘Mainstream’ Country?” panel. Addressing the balance between wanting to support artists who are invested in the country community versus giving more music a shot, RCA/NY’s Keith Rothschild noted that some programmers said “screw that, we’ll move on” when Tyler Childers didn’t stop by their stations. He went on to say that Childers was actually so grateful for airplay that he paid for thank-you plaques out of his own pocket.

AEG’s Adam Weiser and Spotify’s Rachel Whitney discussed the data behind artists like Zach Bryan that proves mainstream country audiences are adopting more varied sounds and styles. Encouraging radio to stay aware of what’s streaming well in a variety of genres, not just the songs they’re being worked, Michel said, “ The music fan is genre agnostic.” And while they certainly have “an expectation” of what they’ll hear on a Country station, he encouraged his fellow programmers to find out what else is out there and at least have it on their radar. “Be a contrarian at times and step out” on music, said Michel, or risk “boring your audience to death.” –Phyllis Stark

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Plaque And Diet Coke: Warner Music Nashville ’s Redferrin celebrates gold certifications for ”Just Like Johnny Diet Coke ” with his label team at his Grand Ole Opry (l-r) are Rohan Kohli , Allyson Kim , Alex Ciasnocha Nadel , Redferrin , Cris Lacy , Mike Dupree Anna Pittman , Andy Flick and James Marsh

You Never Forget Your First … Cousin

“The temp outside is what it’s like to play for you,” insurance commercial actor Brad Paisley told the audience at Team UMG at the Ryman Thursday (2/20). Paisley was among the 17 artists from the label group’s roster who took the stage to perform following a surprise appearance from Ringo Starr

Chuck Aly, Rachel Whitney, Jeff Rizzo, Brian Michel, Keith Rothschild, Adam Weiser

First-time host and MCA VP Miranda McDonald introduced Oliver Anthony’s favorite artist, Parker McCollum, who performed “Hope That I’m Enough.” “She might hate me, but Country radio doesn’t,” said Dierks Bentley, whose catalog (“Drunk On A Plane,” “What Was I Thinkin,’” “Beers On Me”) McDonald compared to radio visits.

Introducing Josh Ross, McDonald said, “Our next performer’s biggest hits, ‘Red Flags,’ ‘Trouble’ and ‘Single Again,’ sound like chapters in the book of [WIL/St. Louis’] Marty Brooks’ love life.” Bryce Leatherwood (“Shenandoah”) and the Crowe Boys (“Bootstraps”) made their Ryman debuts, as did Tucker Wetmore, whose DMs McDonald joked hold every father’s worst nightmare.

The Brothers Osborne (John Thomas and Thomas John, look it up) “squabbled over everything — toys, instruments, cars, girls — but when they made music, something magical happened,” said McDonald. The duo played “Soon As I Finish This Drink,” Vincent Mason performed “Wish You Well,” Carter Faith and Belle Frantz received standing ovations for “If I Had Never Lost My Mind…” and “For Sale,” respectively, and, according to McDonald, the “only person from California Nashville doesn’t want to return,” Jon Pardi, sang “She Drives Away.”

“If you know anything about [Tyler Hubbard], you know how important these things are to him: family, music and his faith in Rod … I mean his faith in God,” corrected McDonald, who was heckled during her intro of Jordan Davis. “Do you think you could do better?” she asked. “Then come up here.” A lot has happened since Royce Risser last hosted the event, but, he assured, “Travis Daily and Rod Phillips are still bungholes.” Paisley opened with a song he thought the audience could relate to, because you never forget your first … cousin, and played “Truck Still Works” into “Mud On The Tires.”

One of this year’s Artist Humanitarian Award recipients, Eric Church, debuted “Johnny,” written the day after the Covenant School shooting in Nashville. Inspired by Charlie Daniels’ “The Devil Went Down To Georgia,” Church said, “I remember thinking, man, we could use Johnny right now, because devil’s not in Georgia … he’s everywhere. I went home and wrote ‘Johnny.’”

10/10 on McDonald’s hosting debut. 6/10 on the Taziki’s boxed lunch. Weird bite of chicken gave me the ick. —Caitlin DeForest

Survey Says

NuVoodoo Media’s Carolyn Gilbert and Leigh Jacobs walked panelists through a series of informative graphs detailing the results of this year’s “CRS Research Presentation: The Country Fan: Reviewing, Retaining And Recruiting Your Listener” Thursday (2/20). The study was based on 1,500 country music fans, at least 1,000 of whom used Country radio. Overall, country fans listened to their favorite music via DSPs 83% of the time, with AM/FM placing second at 79% and YouTube third with 73%.

Regarding the current state of music, 44% said it’s gotten better over the past few years, 34% say it’s about the same and 16% say it’s gotten worse.

Also, where matters. In the car, 61% of country listeners chose AM/FM with 36% going to streaming, while streaming leads at-work listening with 36% and YouTube leads the in-home choice with 56%.

The top qualities for personalities were listed as: humor and entertainment, relatability, knowledge of music and artists, community engagement, music selection and interactive content. Additionally, 36% of respondents said that a DJ they enjoyed listening to had lost their job.

Gilbert and Jacobs concluded with six key takeaways: there needs to be care with music scheduling problems and high commercial load, which can both be big negatives. Fans feel the music is getting better by a nearly threeto-one margin, and radio still plays a role in music discovery, though it’s no longer the only source. Radio should work to remain a conduit connecting listeners and artists, support and nurture on-air talent and get “out of the studio” with remotes and appearances.

Additionally, the duo teased a full music test, the results of which will be revealed and discussed in a future CRS360 webinar. —Chris Huff

Carolyn Gilbert and Leigh Jacobs

Mental Health Matters

Communication, self-care, the courage to ask for or offer help and the power of vulnerability were key themes in CRS Thursday’s (2/20) CMAsponsored “Mental Health Matters.” For performers and personalities in particular, the affirmation of fans can provide an adrenal rush that’s hard to replicate. “I did not know this could blow up as fast as it did when it came to the shows,” artist Wyatt Flores said. Equating adulation to addiction, he added that it changed him permanently. “I don’t feel things the same way ... I just wish I could laugh the way I used to, [but] I’ve become numb to certain things. That’s the dark side of this industry ... [and] why a lot of people use substances.”

Being open to help takes courage, as Amazon Music’s Michelle Tigard Kammerer discovered during a tough time. “It was a tragic loss, and I made a cognizant effort to not turn to food, not turn to alcohol, not to throw myself into work and forget myself,” she said. “I really had to do the work and [develop] a routine every single day [of] things I could control. And when people asked, I didn’t say I was fine. I was like, ‘I’m not okay.’ [That] was the first time in my 22 years in this business that I had so many people reach out. I leaned in and it was so wonderful in helping me heal.”

Having to come off the road for a time to improve his mental health helped Flores see how much support is available. “I never knew how big this community was here. Every artist reached out to me ... and I’ll be forever grateful because now I do know that I’m not alone. And that didn’t used to be the thing.”

Audacy’s Tim Roberts discussed helping a child who struggles with depression, and applauded efforts to include mental health support in CRS,

noting the gathering is a natural support group that extends beyond just growing professionally: “Being better at our craft now involves being better humans to each other and helping each other mentally, because this is a very tough business.” –Chuck Aly

OD On OD

Fans of the reigning ACM and CMA Group of the Year were treated to an hour with Old Dominion at Thursday afternoon’s (2/20) CRS Artist Interview Matthew Ramsey, Brad Tursi, Trevor Rosen and Geoff Sprung were quick to point out the five-man band is still five men (drummer Whit Sellers was unable to join).

Songwriter, producer and friend Shane McAnally walked the guys from their early days to stardom. “ We were all just trying to be songwriters,” recalled Ramsey. “I just really liked the guys and liked playing, that’s why I kept showing up,” added Rosen.

Ramsey admitted the shift from songwriters to artists was challenging, “It became a tough choice of what we were going to pitch to other artists and what we were going to keep for ourselves. [‘Break Up With Him’] was the first one where we were like, ‘don’t let anyone else hear that.’”

Rosen summed up their advice for aspiring songwriters and artists, “If you chase success, you’re not going to find success. If you chase greatness, then the success will follow.” —Chris Huff

Town Square Of The Internet

The rising importance of social media in breaking artists took center stage Thursday (2/20) at the CRS session “Honky Tonk To TikTok: Country Music’s Wild Five Year Ride.”

SiriusXM/Pandora’s Alina Thompson noted that “terrestrial radio is [still] a really important part of our genre, possibly the most important part,” but said music being widely consumed via social media “is a trend that’s

Wyatt Flores, Michelle Tigard Kammerer, Tim Roberts

happening right now.” Mercury/NY’s Alex Coslov agreed that Country radio has its established way of finding listeners, but “there are many new avenues now.”

But finding fans on social media takes work too. Mandelyn Monchick, who manages Lainey Wilson, said, “ You need cultural relevance to enter the chat,” explaining that Wilson unexpectedly found that relevance – and additional exposure via hip-hop blogs – “when her butt went viral.”

Monchick added that it sometimes feels like, “ We’re not really in the music business a lot of times, we’re in the audience business,” seeking to find and retain fans.

“ The key to the internet is momentum,” agreed Coslov, saying that starts with artists engaging directly with their fans. “ TikTok is the town square of the internet,” he said. “ The riches are in the niches.”

The strategy for breaking an artist now is to “create demand and release into that demand,” added Coslov. As an example of that, YouTube’s Margaret Hart cited The Castellows, who effectively used YouTube shorts to more than double their audience on the platform before even releasing their first single.

“ We’re past the point of ‘the TikTok artist,’” Coslov said. “If you’re not on TikTok now, I can’t guarantee you’re going to be an artist.” —Phyllis Stark

Wetmore Whets More

“Probably drinking with my buddies,” was Tucker Wetmore’s quick reply when EMI/Nashville’s Jimmy Rector asked what he was doing one year ago. In the “Cycle Of A Song” panel dedicated to “ Wind Up Missin’ You” Thursday (2/20), those involved described how, in that span, Wetmore released his first song to radio and saw it climb all the way to the top.

Back Blocks’ Rakiyah Marshall discovered Wetmore on TikTok and initially hoped to grow his career on a two-year plan … then came the offer to tour with Kameron Marlowe. UMG ’s Jake Gear travelled to Nacogdoches, TX to A&R Wetmore on the tour and remembered vividly, “ They knew the words to all these songs that hadn’t even come out yet.” Soon after, Wetmore signed to EMI/Nashville. “It was like grabbing hold of a comet, he was already out of the gate and on tour, we just had to get a hold of that,” remarked Rector.

Sticks Media’s Todd Nixon was an early fan, spinning Wetmore before he was signed, saying, “You can’t deny what’s happening with some of these artists, these guys are just blowing up and you’ve got to pay attention to it, [listeners are] making the hits today.” While still soaking it all in, Wetmore’s appreciation runs deep, “you guys have changed my life a lot in the last year, truly from the bottom of my heart, thank you.” —Chris Huff

Emerson Thrive

Brad Mates, who spent 30 years as frontman for Emerson Drive, discussed the importance of long-term financial planning working in the entertainment industry in “Showcase Your Assets” Thursday morning (2/19). He took over as the group’s financial advisor eight years ago. Three panelists detailed their career paths and pivots, as well as the challenges they’ve faced in building a nest egg.

Invictus/Big Star’s Abbey White discussed his career in Canadian radio, and how he was

Mandelyn Monchick and Jordan Pettit

Jeff Gregg, Donna Hughes, Brad Mates and Abbey White

Tucker Wetmore

able to transfer his skills into new careers following downsizing. The path of Borman’s Donna Hughes involved shifts from television to radio to label to management, while Lantern Lane Farm’s Jeff Gregg made the transition from being an agent to career coaching and local public office.

Mates also stressed the importance of long-term planning and displayed several scenarios of how small, monthly investments over the last 30 years could have built up savings of six-to-seven figures. Despite the challenges they all faced, when asked if they would still get into the entertainment field if they could do it all over again, all replied in the affirmative, with Hughes’ response a resounding, “abso-f***ing-lutely!” —Chris Huff

The Human Touch

Radio tours were among the topics touched on during a brief Thursday (2/20) CRS panel, “Sustaining Momentum: How To Turn Moments Into A Career.” Asked about their importance, KKBQ/Houston’s Travis Moon said, “It’s fun to meet the artist and get their story,” but noted that the tours seem to be happening less often.

SiriusXM/Pandora’s Johnny Chiang said radio tours are “not necessary,” but agreed with Moon that, “My team and I like to meet the artists. There’s no substitute for the human touch.” Phyllis Stark

Make It Suite: The annual CRS Northeast Hang at Almost Friday Sporting Club.

Friday, 2/21

6:30 am-2pm

Red Street Records Hangover Cure Hot coffee and tea provided Bongo Java

7:30-8:45am

Women’s Networking Breakfast