Knox Country Podcast

Ashley Gorley has written a record 64 #1 singles and has had more than 400 songs recorded by artists such as Morgan Wallen, Chris Stapleton, Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, Thomas Rhett, Dan + Shay, Kelsea Ballerini, Bon Jovi, Weezer, and more. His recent hits, “She Had Me At Heads Carolina” by Cole Swindell and “You Proof” by Morgan Wallen topped the Billboard Country Airplay charts for 14 combined weeks in 2022 - leading to a record-breaking 10-week number one for Wallen.   Gorley has been honored as ASCAP Songwriter of the Year an unprecedented nine times. He is a six-time Billboard Top Country Songwriter, six-time NSAI Songwriter of the Year, and 2021 iHeart Radio All-Genre Songwriter of the Year, landing the nomination again in 2022. He has multiple Grammy, CMA, and ACM nominations. In 2022, he signed a global publishing deal with Sony Music Publishing and Domain Capital Group.   Gorley attended Belmont University and graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1999. Since graduating, he has continued to give back to the University through leading seminars and mentoring students, as well as serving as a professor of Music Publishing from 2006-2008. Ashley is a champion of the songwriting community. He has met with Senators and The Library of Congress to promote songwriters' rights and bills such as the Music Modernization Act. In 2011, Gorley formed his own publishing and artist development company, Tape Room Music. Writers for Tape Room have already celebrated nearly 40 #1 songs, including 2018 ASCAP Country Song of the Year, “Body Like A Back Road” and 2021 ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC Country Song, “One Of Them Girls.”

With multiple GRAMMYs under her belt, a 2007 SESAC Nashville Songwriter of the Year title, as well as her own publishing company (Liz Rose Music), Liz Rose is undeniably a songwriting powerhouse. Born and raised in Texas, Rose moved to Nashville and began writing songs at the age of 37. She has since penned 16 songs with Taylor Swift, including the No. 1 crossover hits “Tim McGraw”, “Teardrops On My Guitar”, “You Belong With Me”, GRAMMY Award winning Best Country Song “White Horse”, and ACM Song of the Year “Crazy Girl”. More recently, she co-wrote Little Big Town's double platinum smash hit, “Girl Crush”, which earned the GRAMMY for Best Country Song in 2016, and the Country Music Association's Award for Song Of The Year in 2015. Rose has also written songs for many other artists including Alison Krauss, Blake Shelton, Bonnie Raitt, Carrie Underwood, Chris Young, Gary Allan, LeeAnn Womack, Miranda Lambert and Tim McGraw. Together, her songs have sold more than 20 million copies.  

Ben Vaughn is one of the most accomplished Executives in the Nashville Music Industry.  In 2019, Vaughn was appointed President & CEO for Warner Chappell Nashville.  Previously, Vaughn had already become the youngest executive to head a major publisher in Nashville (EVP & GM, EMI Music Publishing) but now claims the rare distinction of having overseen two major Nashville publishers. Prior to his work at the majors, Vaughn ran an independent music publishing company at the age of 20. Throughout Vaughn's career, he's worked with songwriters who have collectively won ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, or ACM Songwriter of the Year seventeen times and Song of the Year (across the CMAs, ACMs, PROs and Grammys) 29 times. Under Vaughn, Warner/Chappell has received the award for ASCAP Country Publisher of the Year eight years in a row and BMI Country Publisher of the Year the previous three years.  In 2019 Warner Chappell won the coveted Triple Crown for the 1st time sweeping the ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC Awards.  

Luke Laird is a GRAMMY and ACM award-winning songwriter and producer. Beginning in the early 2000’s, Laird has earned over 20 number one singles, including Little Big Town’s “Pontoon,” Jon Pardi’s “Head Over Boots” and Eric Church’s “Talladega.” He earned a GRAMMY award for Country Album of the Year, as well as ACM’s Album of the Year award, for producing Kacey Musgraves’ Same Trailer Different Park. In 2011, he and his wife Beth Laird co-founded Creative Nation, a music publishing and management company that is home to some of Nashville top songwriters, producers and artists. They are behind over 20 number one singles and over 60 radio singles, including Harry Styles’ number one pop song “Watermelon Sugar”.

The multi-talented Nicolle Galyon is one of Nashville’s top songwriters, producers and label heads. Galyon earned an ACM Song of the Year award in both 2015 and 2019 for Miranda Lambert’s “Automatic” and Dan & Shay’s “Tequila.” Other notable cuts include “Consequences” (Camila Cabello), “All The Pretty Girls” (Kenny Chesney) and “Female” (Keith Urban). In 2019, she partnered with Big Loud Records to create a female-focused record label, Songs & Daughters, that provides a platform for the next generation to tell honest stories about real life. That same year, she was named Songwriter of the Year at BMI’s Country Music Awards.

Two of the essential pieces that have created Jason Aldean’s iconic sound can be attributed to lead guitarist Kurt Allison and bassist Tully Kennedy. They have been touring/recording with Aldean since moving to Nashville, and have become some of the most in-demand studio musicians, producers and songwriters. Both Kurt and Tully produced the number one singles “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not (Thompson Square) and “Carolina” (Parmalee). To add to their long list of talents and credits, they have also co-written songs like “Blame It On You” (Jason Aldean) and “Seein’ Red” (Dustin Lynch).

David Lee Murphy is a country music artist and songwriter. Murphy, whose songs “Dust On The Bottle” and “Party Crowd” remain staples on country radio today, is also a mastermind behind many other hit songs. His credits include Jason Aldean’s “Big Green Tractor” and “The Only Way I Know,” Kenny Chesney’s “Til It’s Gone” and “Living In Fast Forward,” as well as Thompson Square’s GRAMMY-nominated “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not.”

Michael Tyler, a self-taught artist and songwriter from Thayer, MO began working with award-winning producer Michael Knox at the age of 13. He penned Dierks Bentley’s platinum-selling song “Somewhere On A Beach,” which earned him the 2016 SESAC Song of the Year Award. He also crafted Jason Aldean’s No. 1 single “Girl Like You,” “Got What I Got,” as well as five others from his new album, 9.

Adam Shoenfeld is an ACM-nominated professional guitarist, songwriter and producer. Being one of Nashville’s go-to studio musicians, he has been featured on hundreds of albums, including Jason Aldean, Keith Urban, Luke Bryan, Big & Rich, Dan & Shay and more. He is a writer on Faith Hill’s award-winning No. 1 song “Mississippi Girl,” as well as Jason Aldean’s “Laid Back.” Shoenfeld has also been the producer on albums for John Rich, Kelsey Harmon, Sarah Darling and more.

Former rodeo bull rider Shane Minor began his music career by signing a record deal with Mercury Records in 1999. After releasing a self-titled debut album that produced three hit singles, Minor transitioned fully into songwriting. He has penned hits like “Beautiful Mess” (Diamond Rio), “Chillin’ It” (Cole Swindell), “Live A Little” (Kenny Chesney) and “Brand New Girlfriend” (Steve Holy).

Rob Hatch is an award-winning hit songwriter that has had a hand in creating music for artists like Luke Bryan, Lee Brice, Justin Moore, Florida Georgia Line, Trea Landon, Randy Houser and more. Hatch earned his first No. 1 song on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart with Justin Moore’s “If Heaven Wasn’t So Far Away.” He also reached No. 1 with Lee Brice’s “I Don’t Dance” in 2014, the same year he was named SESAC Songwriter of the Year.

Jody Stevens is a hit songwriter, producer and engineer. He has composed number one songs like “Let Me See Ya Girl” (Cole Swindell), “Home Alone Tonight” (Luke Bryan feat. Karen Fairchild) and “I Was Jack (You Were Diane)” (Jake Owen). Stevens also has production and engineering credits for artists like Luke Bryan, Cole Swindell, Thomas Rhett, and newcomer Jon Langston.

The Grammy-nominated hit songwriter Dallas Davidson has crafted 24 No. 1 songs and counting, earning him the CMA Triple Play Award a total of six times. He has penned songs like “Huntin’, Fishin’, And Lovin’ Everyday” (Luke Bryan), “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk” (Trace Adkins), “I Don’t Dance” (Lee Brice), “Tonight Looks Good On You” (Jason Aldean), “Boys ‘Round Here” (Blake Shelton), and many, many more.

With 24 No. 1 singles and counting, award-winning songwriter Rodney Clawson has earned the CMA Triple Play Award a total of six times. He is known for penning hits like “Amarillo Sky” (Jason Aldean), “I Saw God Today” (George Strait - 2008 CMA Song of the Year), “Drunk On You” (Luke Bryan - 2013 ASCAP Song of the Year) and “Feel Like A Rockstar” (Kenny Chesney & Tim McGraw).   

 Jessi Alexander is an established singer/songwriter that has earned 2013 CMA Song of the Year and 2014 ACM Song of the Year for penning Lee Brice’s No. 1 single “I Drive Your Truck”. Her additional No. 1’s include “Drink On It” (Blake Shelton), “The Climb” (Miley Cyrus - RIAA Certified 4x Platinum), and “Mine Would Be You” (Blake Shelton).

Growing up in Forsyth, Georgia, Justin Weaver played in bands throughout high school and toured most of the southeast playing with Jason Aldean as a teenager. He ventured into songwriting and has garnered hits like “Bottoms Up” (Brantley Gilbert - RIAA Certified 5x Platinum), “Like I’m Gonna Lose You” (Meghan Trainor feat. John Legend - RIAA Certified 4x Platinum), “Get Off On The Pain” (Gary Allan), and “Got My Country On” (Chris Cagle).

Erik Dylan’s story-telling quality has attracted artists like Kip Moore, Riley Green, Luke Combs, Justin Moore, Brantley Gilbert, Josh Phillips, Eli Young Band and many more to his songs. The fifth generation Kansan has shared writer rooms and stages with some of the biggest heroes - from Guy Clark to Lynyrd Skynyrd. He most recently released his sophomore album, Baseball On The Moon, with songs featuring Luke Combs and Steve Earle. He recently earned his first No. 1 single with Riley Green’s “There Was This Girl”.

With over twenty major label cuts, hit songwriter and nationally-touring artist Josh Thompson has recently scored his first No. 1 singles with “I’ll Name The Dogs” (Blake Shelton), “Any Ol’ Barstool” (Jason Aldean) and “Drowns The Whiskey” (Jason Aldean feat. Miranda Lambert). As an artist, he gained traction with his RIAA Gold Certified single “Way Out Here”, as well as “Beer On The Table”.

Mickey Jack Cones is one of the most in-demand producers and engineers, and is now gaining recognition in the publishing community with COR Entertainment. He’s the producer behind eight No. 1 singles, including “Where It’s At” (Dustin Lynch) and “Sunny And 75” (Joe Nichols). As a recording engineer, he has worked on many Jason Aldean albums, including the Grammy-nominated My Kinda Party and Night Train. Cones earned his first No. 1 single as a publisher with Luke Combs’ “When It Rains, It Pours”. He has also recently taken on a lead role in the relaunched indie label, Verge Records, where he will help to leverage ONErpm’s global presence by discovering and signing new talent. 

Jaron Boyer is a 2016 SESAC Song of the Year award-winning hit songwriter/producer known for No. 1 songs like “Hell Of A Night” (Dustin Lynch - RIAA Certified Gold), “Somewhere On A Beach” (Dierks Bentley - RIAA Certified Platinum), “Flatliner” (Cole Swindell feat. Dierks Bentley), and “Girl Like You” (Jason Aldean).

Brandon Kinney is a CMA-nominated songwriter best known for co-penning the No. 1 single “Drowns The Whiskey” (Jason Aldean feat. Miranda Lambert), “Boots On” (Randy Houser), "Ain't Always The Cowboy" (Jon Pardi), “Outta My Head” (Craig Campbell) and “Love You Too Late” (Cole Swindell). He has also crafted songs picked up by Willie Nelson, Justin Moore, Chase Rice, Luke Bryan, and more.

2003 ASCAP Songwriter of the Year Award-winner Neil Thrasher has penned nine No. 1 hit singles, including “Night Train” (Jason Aldean - RIAA Certified Platinum), “There Goes My Life” (Kenny Chesney), “What Do You Say” (Reba McEntire), and “Fast Cars & Freedom” (Rascal Flatts). He has penned songs on Grammy-winning albums including Sing It Now: Songs of Faith & Hope (Reba McEntire) and Unexpected (Jason Crabb).

Jennifer Hanson began as a signed Capitol Records artist with her debut single “Beautiful Goodbye”. Since then, she has transformed into a critically-acclaimed singer-songwriter and producer penning hits like “Leave The Pieces” (The Wreckers), “Let Me Down Easy” (Billy Currington) and “Country Strong” (Gwyneth Paltrow - from the 2010 film Country Strong).

Award-winning songwriter Wendell Mobley has had songs at No. 1 for 26 weeks that have sold over 60 million records. Some of his biggest hits include “Tattoos On This Town” (Jason Aldean - Certified Platinum), “There Goes My Life” (Kenny Chesney - RIAA Certified Platinum), “Fast Cars & Freedom” (Rascal Flatts), and “How Country Feels” (Randy Houser).

With 28 No. 1 hit singles and counting, Rhett Akins is the 2018 ACM Songwriter of the Year.  Rhett is an award-winning songwriter known for chart-toppers like “It Goes Like This” (Thomas Rhett - RIAA Certified Platinum), “Honey Bee” (Blake Shelton - RIAA Certified Platinum), “Huntin’, Fishin’, And Lovin’ Every Day” (Luke Bryan - RIAA Certified Platinum), “When She Says Baby” (Jason Aldean - RIAA Certified Platinum), and many, many more.

Welcome to the Knox Country Podcast! You'll meet some of the biggest noise makers in Nashville including songwriters, artists, producers, musicians, and music execs all interviewed from the unique perspective of host Michael Knox (award-winning, multi-platinum, hit-music producer).