Nash FM Stage 17: Jason Aldean

Jason Aldean

Flying straight from Las Vegas, where he accepted his third consecutive ACM Entertainer of the Year award to New York City, Jason Aldean continued his album release week with performances at Opry City Stage, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and finally, Hackensack Meridian Health Stage 17 in the Nash FM 94.7 Studios.

Aldean took time to chat with Katie Neal and Jesse Addy about the music and stories behind the tracks off of his new album, Rearview Town. In between broadcasting a few of the songs, Aldean was joined by his band to perform some of his biggest hits including “Take A Little Ride”, “Tattoos On This Town”, “My Kinda Party”, as well as closing the Up Close and Country Performance with “Dirt Road Anthem”. He also performed the debut single off the project “You Make It Easy” as well as the title track, “Rearview Town”.

He discussed his High Noon Neon Tour and bringing along rising stars Lauren Alaina and Luke Combs, reminiscing how in the past he has had some incredible acts open for him right before they blew up in the genre including Luke Bryan, Florida Georgia Line, and Eric Church. “We’ve tried to time it where those guys were right on the verge of becoming big stars, we looked at it and we thought Lauren was one of those people,” he told the DJs “And Luke Combs, I loved his first single, “Hurricane”, I thought that was great”.

Aldean explained that there are a few iconic venues in America, Madison Square Garden definitely being one of them and that he is excited to headline the famous arena for the second time this summer. The High Noon Neon Tour hits Madison Square Garden on August 11th, grab your tickets here.  Tune in to the full performance below. For more intimate shows, be sure to be following us on social media and subscribe to our Weekly Round-Up for chances to win your way in.

 

 

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NYCS Swag Spotlight: Lewis Brice

Lewis Brice

Yes, the last name may be familiar to country music fans, but Lee Brice’s younger brother, Lewis Brice, is paving his own way in the genre.  Growing up in a small town in South Carolina, Brice remembers being surrounded by music.  “My mom and her sisters had a group growing up called The Lewis Sisters.  My first name is my mom’s maiden name.  My mom and dad sang together too.”  As his older brother pursued a music career right out of college, he decided to take a different path and actually wanted to be a chiropractor. He loved science and anatomy, but after getting his associates degree he decided to move to Nashville instead of continuing the medical field track.

“Lee was already in Nashville and I played music around bars.  I was a young kid, came here wanting to hang out with my brother a little bit and have some fun.  Then, as soon as I got there, I was in the scene and I really loved it,” he tells us. “After about 3 years, it really came to the point where I had to figure out what I wanted to do.  I loved playing music so much, so I quit bartending and decided to make music full time and I’ve been doing it ever since.”

Brice released his debut self-titled EP last year and has been playing those songs on the road, supporting the music. He is a co-writer on all six tracks, finding inspiration from conversations he’s had or things he has heard people say.  Another way he comes up with song ideas is watching movies.  “I love going to movies I am a big movie guy, I put that in my publishing budget so I can still go to movies because I get a lot of ideas from there,” he laughs.

 

 

His first single “Messin’ With My Mind” has over one million streams on Spotify.  Brice explains it is the most personal song he’s ever written.   The second single he is promoting is going to be “Alabama” which was written with his brother Lee.  “All of our friends had farm properties and fields, so instead of us going out to bars we would just go in the middle of the fields and just have a good time,” he says. “It wasn’t a crazy deep song but it was something that we lived and since it’s a country song, you’ve gotta put a girl in it, so we named her Alabama.” The production on the track really makes it a standout on the EP, something that both Brice brothers had a hand in as well.  The background singers bring a gospel feel, really elevating the song.

Spending his time before pursuing a full-time music career as a bartender at 12th and Porter, Brice has watched countless bands take the stage and has always paid very close attention.  Now that he is able to get on the road with artists such as Hank Williams Jr, The Cadillac Three, Jerrod Niemann and of course his brother Lee, he is still learning and taking in every aspect of performing to better his own career. “Learning their grind, their persistence, I’ve learned more about their work ethic than their stage presence,” he explains.  “How they have gotten where they are, whether it’s writing every day or producing every day, it’s really being on top of their P’s & Q’s. Every one of those guys is incredible and they all work really hard.”  Later this month, Brice’s name is on the bill for Stagecoach Festival where Lee is also playing as well as Garth Brooks.

Looking ahead to the rest of 2018, Brice is excited to play his new music out on the road and to promote “Alabama”.  He lets us know that back in December he went on a writers retreat and wrote five songs, six days in a row and he can’t wait for the world to hear the new music. He is hoping to continuously draw more interest and to release new songs for the next EP. Follow Lewis on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

 

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NYCS First Impression: Jason Aldean Releases “Rearview Town”

Jason Aldean Rearview Town

Jason Aldean‘s eighth studio album Rearview Town is available today and highlights his signature sound and ability to translate music on his albums into his iconic live performances. Heavy on the electric guitar and primed for Aldean’s band to jam to during his performance, many of the songs are uptempo and showcase his mix of country and rock. “Every song I cut, I think about that,” he said at a recent press event promoting the album. “My live shows are such an important selling tool for the record for me – I’m constantly listening for things that are going to translate live.

After listening to over a hundred songs, Aldean narrowed it down to just fifteen that he felt created his next concise record. The debut single off the project, “You Make It Easy” is currently sitting in the top 5 on the country charts and showcases Aldean at his best, smooth, loving yet meaningful in his delivery and was written by Florida Georgia Line’s Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley, along with Morgan Wallen and Jordan Schmidt.

“Better At Being Who I Am” and “Drowns the Whiskey” are standouts, slowing things down, complemented by the slide guitar and sentimental lyrics. Miranda Lambert is featured on the latter, and Aldean discussed collaborating with the songstress on #JustAMinute with Bucks Stevens for B104. ” I’ve always been a big fan of her voice and her style and everything,” he explained.

Heading back to his “Dirt Road Anthem” days, Aldean raps at the end of “Gettin’ Warmed Up”.  The track would make for the perfect set opener on his next tour.  This summer, Aldean will support Rearview Town by hitting 34 tour stops on the  2018 High Noon Neon Tour. Luke Combs and Lauren Alaina will be Aldean’s special guests on the tour which hits Madison Square Garden on August 11th.

With the album dropping today and being nominated for Entertainer of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year at the 53rd ACM Awards, Sunday night, this could shape up to be quite the weekend for Aldean.  Spotify Premium members can stream the full record today, or purchase your copy on iTunes here.

 

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NYCS First Impression: Tenille Townes Living Room Worktapes

Newcomer Tenille Townes hails from Grand Prairie, Canada.  After years of playing writers rounds in Nashville including the famed Bluebird Cafe, she has finally made her music available digitally today.   The Living Room Worktapes are four songs that culminate to paint the perfect picture of what this young artist is truly capable of.  In addition to releasing her music today, Townes announced on social media that she has signed a record deal with Sony Music/Columbia Nashville.

The lyrics on this project are so well written, so thought out that it is apparent these ideas have been working their way through her life and just had to be expressed through song. Vulnerable stories coupled with Townes’ uncanny vocal ability to be strong and sweet, tender and powerful.

Teaming up with heavy hitters such as Luke Laird and Barry Dean for “Somebody’s Daughter” the story is about a woman struggling with the reality of homelessness.

“Bet she was somebody’s best friend / laughing back when she was somebody’s sister / counting change at the lemonade stand, probably somebody’s high school first kiss /  dancing in the gym where the kids all talk about someday plans / now this light will turn green and I’ll hand her a couple dollars / and I’ll wonder if she got lost or they forgot her shes somebody’s daughter” 

Another stand out is “Jersey on the Wall”, a slow ballad, burning with questions for God or a higher power including the reason for someone dying so young.

“If I ever get to heaven, you know I’ve got a long list of questions /  like ‘How do you make a snowflake?’ / ‘Are you angry when the earth quakes?’, / ‘How does the sky change in a minute?’ /’How do you keep this big rock spinning?’ / ‘Why can’t you stop a car from crashing’ /  forgive me I’m just asking”

Proving that a simple guitar and an exquisite voice can transport the listener, with very little production needed. Take a listen below to Living Room Worktapes below and follow Tenille Townes on social media here: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

 

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NYCountry Swag & Opry City Stage Present: The Country Round-Up

New York Country Swag teamed up with the new Opry City Stage in Times Square to bring you our first installment of The Country Round-Up.

In this first episode, we chat about country news, views, and all things country music in the New York metro area and beyond, including a special FaceTime chat with Jimmie Allen, recap of our Babes, Booze & Brunch event, and clips from our Swag Sessions with Aaron Watson and Ashley Campbell.

Take a look at The Country Round-Up here and let us know what you think in the comments!

 

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#TBT Our Favorite ACM Collaboration Performances

This Sunday night, live from Vegas the Academy of Country Music Awards are set to take place, bringing incredible performances from Jason Aldean, Miranda Lambert, Carrie Underwood, Florida Georgia Line, and many more.  On this #TBT let’s take a look back at some of our favorite collaboration performances and moments from the prestigious award show.

At last year’s ACM Awards, Florida Georiga Line sang their most recent single “God, Your Mama and Me” with help from boy band Backstreet Boys then they all did the iconic dance to “Everybody” together, making a memorable moment for all watching.

ACM Best Moments

Ethan Miller Getty Images

 

Back in 2014, Hilary, Charles, and Dave of Lady Antebellum collaborated with Stevie Nicks to sing the title track from their 2013 album Golden.  The addition of Nicks’ voice to their already incredible harmonies made for quite the performance.

ACM Best Moments

Getty Images

 

Power vocalist Carrie Underwood took the stage to perform with rock icon Steven Tyler.  They sang her single in 2001, “Undo It” then finished their performance with “Walk This Way”.  This moment was a definite highlight of the 2011 ACM Awards.

ACM Moments

Ethan Miller Getty Images

 

One of our all-time favorite duets, Reba McEntire and Kelly Clarkson are reviving this 2007 collaboration this Sunday night at the ACMs.  Back in 2007, they performed a heartfelt, emotional rendition of Clarkson’s “Because of You”.  Which song do you think they will sing together this year?

ACM Best Moments

Photo Credit: Mark J. Terrill

 

Brad Paisley joined by John Mayer performed “Beat This Summer” at the 49th Annual ACM Awards back in 2013.  The duo went head to head shredding on their electric guitars, wowing the viewers.

ACM Best Moments

Getty Images for ACM

 

Which collaborations would you love to see on Sunday night? Tweet us @NYCountry Swag and let us know!  Be sure to follow along as our team LIVE Tweets the show Sunday at 8 PM ET.

 

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Guess Who’s Back? Carrie Underwood Releases “Cry Pretty”

This morning Carrie Underwood joined iHeartRadio to premiere her brand new single “Cry Pretty”.  The song was written by Underwood along with the songwriting team, the Love Junkies, Liz Rose, Hilary Lindsey and Lori McKenna, also responsible for Little Big Town’s “Girl Crush”.  The ballad is heavy, but uplifting, proving that although you can fake smile and smile through a lie, crying is very real and it is hard to look beautiful when letting those emotions out.

Underwood has been out of the spotlight since taking a fall outside her Nashville home last fall, making her triumphant return with this epic anthem on Sunday night’s ACM Awards on CBS.  Be sure to be following @NYCountry Swag on Twitter as we LIVE Tweet the award show and let us know in the comments what you think about Underwood’s latest single.

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NYCS Woman of the Month: Jensen Sussman

Jensen Sussman Woman of the Month

Photo Credit: Delaney Royer

Jensen Sussman may not be a name that country music fans may know right away however her company, Sweet Talk PR, is a boutique firm specializing in entertainment and music media relations for many of country music’s biggest names such as Florida Georiga Line, Kelsea Ballerini, Dustin Lynch and more. As our April Woman of the Month, we highlight the journey Sussman took to get to where she is now as a boss of her own successful public relations company in Nashville.

Sussman moved to New York City after graduating college with a major degree in dance and a minor in biology.  She wanted to have no regrets and to pursue a career in dance in the Big Apple.  “I didn’t want to fast forward and be in my 50’s and look back and never have lived my dream of being a dancer,” she explains.  “I did the whole starving artist thing where I was teaching dance for a ballet school in New Jersey, auditioning and working retail, taking every part-time job I could to make ends meet.”  During her time hustling to live out her first dream, she landed a job working for Urban Outfitters in the women’s accessories section and fell in love with the makeup lines Hard Candy, Urban Decay and Tony and Tina.

Loving makeup, she took a job working for Bloomingdales corporate office for Tony and Tina and that is where she got her very first taste for the public relations/creative development world.  There she learned how to pitch, write press releases and work with a team of creatives on new products for the line. Realizing how much she had learned from Bloomingdales, she went on to work for a PR agency full time, Trachtenberg & Co. which repped everything from luxury brands to beauty brands and she perfected her craft, learning and truly becoming a publicist.

After a health scare forced her to move home to Nashville to be closer to the support of her family, she decided to plant some roots instead of moving right back to New York City.  Her father, who had worked in the music business, introduced her to Little Big Town at a holiday party and they just happened to be looking for a tour publicist.  Although the music industry was a change from the makeup and beauty world, Sussman gladly took the opportunity and learned all she could from their national publicist Jenny Bohler.  “Jenny ended up being my mentor and really taught me everything about country music, working music and everything about Nashville. I wouldn’t be where I am without her.” she humbly explained.

After freelancing for some time, then working for Sony Music Nashville followed by Warner Music Group, Sussman started her own company, Sweet Talk PR. One of her connections reached out to her about helping to launch an unsigned duo that was ready to release their first single to iTunes.  That duo just happened to be Brian Kelley and Tyler Hubbard also known as Florida Georgia Line. “FGL changed my life and the next thing I knew we started working, we launched “Cruise” and I had a company, a staff, and an amazing roster. All of the stars aligned and everything fell into place.”  The debut single from the duo stayed in the number one spot on the Hot Country Songs chart for 24 weeks and sold over 7 million copies in the U.S.

We discussed if starting her own company and having such a resounding success with her first client was scary at first, she explained “I don’t think so, I’ve always been that person that sees a challenge and goes after it. I think that sometimes I just jump and don’t necessarily look which is a good thing, because you don’t have fear, but when I’m soaring I’m like ‘Wait, stop? What’s happening?” she laughs. “I tend to just jump and not have much fear about that.”  Now six years later, Sweet Talk PR is home to megastars including, Florida Georiga Line, their latest restaurant/bar in downtown Nashville, FGL House, Kelsea Ballerini, Jerrod Nieman and Dustin Lynch.  The company also supports rising stars such as Chris Lane, Morgan Wallen, Dylan Scott and Tegan Marie.

She tells us that one of the things she loves so much about her industry and publicity, in general, is how every day can be different. “One day you can be on set covering a TV taping, if you have an artist that is on a late night TV show, your day can be bouncing around press interviews that you have to set up, or you can spend the day at a tour stop if it is a huge headlining show,”  she explains. “It can also be sitting in your office all day not leaving your desk and sending out a thousand press releases or pitches to set up a campaign to launch a single, tour or album.”

Jensen Sussman

Photo Credit: Delany Royer

Sussman has a team of strong women who work to make her clients happy and successful and help her company run smoothly  “For me it’s really important to surround yourself with amazing people and to create the opportunities for other women and encourage each other because we are all rising through this together, whether its male or female, we are all in this business because we love music.  As long as we put our heads down and work hard and deliver on whatever our role is in this industry, that is what will keep us motivated and keep us going.”   She credits her family and friends as well for being a great support system and tells us that they have helped her navigate working in this industry.

“I always say PR finds you, it takes a very special type of person and work ethic to be able to do this job,” she tells us.  Explaining that while people who work in the music industry do have incredible jobs, it is not always pretty and it is very hard work.  “We are so fortunate we get to do amazing things with our careers but there is the side that you have to roll up your sleeves and work, there are those days where it’s twenty-hour days, and you are up until 2 am writing a press release.  I love what I am doing so much, we are so fortunate but it’s a lot of hard work and there is a lot of ups and down through that process.”

Follow Jensen’s exciting clients through her Instagram and check out her company Sweet Talk PR here.

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NYCountry Swag Partners with Swerve for a Country-Music-Themed Fitness Class…

NYCountry Swag x Swerve Fitness

This past Saturday, New York Country Swag teamed up with Swerve Fitness in Midtown Manhattan to host a country-music-themed spin class.  Swerve classes are unlike other cycle classes in that each bike is positioned in a team setting, blue, green or red and lights above the bikes go off during the class defining your teammates.  Combining teamwork and technology, Swerve allows riders to become a part of a team and work towards a specific goal that is displayed on the boards in the front of the room. You feel accountable and motivated to spin to the best of your ability and that aspect makes the classes unique and fun.

During our country ride, riders spun along to Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise” feat. Nelly, Shania Twain’s “Man, I Feel Like A Woman” and Luke Bryan’s “Country Girl (Shake It For Me)”. Our followers enjoyed the fitness class with their favorite music.  Thanks to our friends at Swerve for working with us to create such a fun class and a great way to kick off our morning! Stay tuned for more fun events from New York Country Swag.

 

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NYCS Swag Spotlight: Brinley Addington

Brinley Addington

A Tennesee native, this week’s Swag Spotlight shines on Brinley Addington.  Growing up east of Nashville in Kingsport, TN Addington was surrounded by his parent’s musical influences.  His mother loved Alison Krauss & Union Station while his father preferred Ricky Skaggs, James Taylor, and Jim Croce.  One of the first concerts he attended just happened to be Alan Jackson and Randy Travis, starting his love for traditional country music early.

After a life-changing trip to Nashville and the Grand Ole Opry when he was just three years old, Addington tells us in a recent phone conversation that he can clearly remember being in that famous room.  “I remember the feeling, the story my parents tell me is that that day I was really cranky being a 3-year-old on a trip, whining and crying, but then when we got to the Opry and the curtain went up and I was just silent,” he recalls. “It’s just a special place. I love going and it is kind of the mark for me.”

From then on he would stand on the coffee table, pretending to be performing on the stage at the Opry.  As he got older he formed his own influences which included Tracy Lawrence, Joe Diffie, Tim McGraw, George Strait, and Garth Brooks.  Songwriting started early, Addington recalls freeform writing in English class and a poetry assignment. “I always enjoyed making things rhyme. The thing I love about country is lyrics and what they said, the thing that drew me to songs first were the lyrics I always paid attention to that,” he explains to us.  Towards the end of high school, he learned to play guitar and realized that he wasn’t just writing down rhymes, but he started writing songs.  Now looking back at his journey into songwriting he is grateful for the guidance he learned so early on. “I love songwriting, it’s a great outlet and I am very lucky that this is what I get to do every day,” he says.

His first cut came last year when Tyler Farr recorded “I Should Go To Church Sometime” as his next single.  Written by Addington along with Michael Hardy and Sarah Turner he recalls how the song completely changed his life.  Turner brought the idea to the write that day and as soon as she said it a light flip switched in Addington’s head.  “There is a lot of truth in it, if you grew up in church which I did, when you get older you maybe don’t go as much as you should and there is guilt surrounding that,” he tells us.  It’s not meant to make people feel guilty it’s just recognizing the thought that bad things go on in the world and it’s about stopping and reflecting and thinking ‘I need to pay more attention’.”  It was the first cut for all three of the songwriters and they got to experience that milestone together.

Addington’s debut single and the first off his new EP was released last Friday and is titled, “No Thanks”.  The track was written by Addington’s friends,  Ryan Beaver, Michael Tyler and Will Weatherly.  When discussing the concept for his new EP with Beaver, he heard the demo and flipped out over it and loved it. “I kept listening to it over and over and we got down to recording again and I asked if I could record it. They were gracious enough to let me,” he tells us. He loves how it is a fun and lighthearted song all about his favorite kinds of bars. “I’m really not into fancy places. I like going to hole in the walls with neon signs and Miller Lite and it works good for me,”  he laughs. “I would rather have a great time in a dive bar and any song that name drops Travis Tritt and Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in the same song, I feel like that’s just something I had to be a part of.”

“No Thanks” is the first sneak peek listeners will hear of the forthcoming EP, slated for release later this month.  Addington wrote three of the five songs and they are all fun songs, great for a live show.  Instead of doing a typical industry showcase to introduce the new music, his team decided to host the EP release at one of the first places he played when he first moved to town, Nashville Crossroads on Broadway.

As for his plans for the rest of the year, he can’t wait to play the new music for his fans and get back on the road.  Be sure to follow Brinley on his social media platforms Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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– Team NYCountry Swag