This is why I live in Nashville 🙂 “Music City” is not a marketing term, it’s a specification.

Craig Anderton

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From: Chris Willman

I wrote a story a little bit ago about how Stephen Wilson Jr. got signed… It’s pretty interesting and involved, and I didn’t even get into the whole thing as much as I could have. But through most of the years he’s been in the industry he had no plans to be an artist— which seems insane when you go see his show and see how multi-talented he is, and how solidly he connects with an audience.

I said right after the CMAs that he “won” the CMAs. His two performances on that show didn’t result in a deluge of radio adds, yet everyone I know was talking about him the next day, so that’s going to pay off whether or not we can say exactly when, But he’s already winning just by being on people’s lips.

When I won a CMA award a couple of months ago, it was him handing it to me, and I felt honored getting it from him…

“Stephen Wilson Jr., Best New Artist Nominee for CMA Awards, on Why His Maverick ‘Death Cab for Country’ Approach Found a Home at Big Loud Records”

https://variety.com/2025/music/news/stephen-wilson-jr-big-loud-records-country-interview-1236582486/

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I did the same as you for a while last night and came away with a similar take. I don’t think for one second people love anything Ryan Seacrest does. He is pablum. The blandest of crackers. I think of him as the ultimate risk averse commercial sell out. DC’sNYRE pretaped for his comfort. Wheel of Fortune? Same. Everything he does is something that any other talented human could do, he is far from an “only”.

I respect him for one reason, he seemingly sized up his needs/wants and took deals in the entertainment business to the tune of what, 50M$ a year in total? More with his production company? And he has the easiest shifts in the trade… I hope he is happy because if he did all this and isn’t then my heart goes out to him.

Happy New Year Bob…

Andrew Zimmern

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My wife and I laughed out loud when I read her your comment on Ryan Seacrest.

We also saw Stephen Wilson, Jr’s Stand by Me performance and agree: Outstanding!

Happy New Year – The Kimballs

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Couldn’t agree with you more. The Dick Clark thing was pure dreck; why would Anderson Cooper, a serious, hard working journalist embarrass himself with this crap.

I’ve been commuting from Philly to Nashville for the past ten years, running an indie publishing and record company. The talent level is off the chart, the artists are real. And the food scene is rapidly improving!

Come to Nashville!

Best,

David Robkin

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Just couldn’t stay with the Nashville broadcast. The sound was marginal at best and the cornpone “realness” you cite was just boring for us. At least there was some choreography on the Times Square stage and it seemed like a pro collective effort rooted in stage, theater and dance. You know the classic arts? I understand your point about authenticity but I want that, I’ll just head down to the beer bar downtown on amateur night to get it. New Year’s needs to have some sizzle and bang like a true skyrocket should, and CBS wasn’t it. I actually enjoyed Diana Ross.

Kenny Lee Lewis

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Totally agree, Nash Big Bash was where it was at. AC & AC on CNN were unwatchable, and I am just tired of watching Lip-Synched Choreography Extravaganzas like on ABC.

Happy New Year.   Let’s save the small clubs, it’s the only hope to develop new live performers.

Kelly Breaks

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Once again, your assessment is spot on. I’ve been going to rock shows since 1970 and I never liked country music with its sappy lyrics and twangy voices but today’s country is rock and roll from the late 60’s, early 70’s. I have yet to see some of my favorite acts live because tickets are not only outrageously high, they are difficult to get without going through the secondary market. As to the politics of country music I’ve always felt you have to separate the person from the performer. Thanks again for your honesty and insightfulness. I’ve read most of the books you recommend and I feel fortunate to be a recipient of your daily musings.

Tom Fitzsimmons

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I couldn’t agree with you more. My wife and I were home with the flu and did the same channel surfing. Stayed on the Nashville Bash almost the entire time  once I saw Stephen Wilson Jr. I somehow missed Keith Urban playing You Get What You Give (which is a shame since I played guitar and sang backing vocals with New Radicals of the song at the Biden inauguration).

But from a refreshing point of pure musicianship, songs you can sing with actual melodies and lyrics you can understand and it not being pre-taped (usually months in advance by the way making it even more fake) it was all REAL.

Country is the new rock.

Fred Goldring

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My wife wants to watch Andy and Anderson after five minutes, it was pretty obvious to me they’re done. They need new material or they need to Quit. Anderson gets so silly it’s embarrassing

Edward Arguijo

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Andy Cohen’s powder blue puffer jacket was the true star of the CNN show. Nicole Skyer, New Jersey

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Nashville’s story is twice as deep as it appears on the surface and I know because I’m a native Nashvillian.

Country’s culture is sticking it’s landing in pop music, finally. CNN’s daytime programming for their global 2026 NYE presentation centered not on Lower Broadway or even Bicentennial Park. Rather, it was at Anzie Blue, an intimate, female-owned independent venue located in Hillsboro Village, my husband and I have owned it since ’19.

There, it was line dancing by the instructor of the moment Justin Lee Williams, Grammy-winning songwriter Sebastian Kole (who now records as Pynk Beard — yes, because he dyed his beard neon pink, so people would be forced to pay greater attention to him, he admits), and Grammy nominated artist Maggie Rose, legend Chris Isaak, plus legacy artists including John Carter Cash (and his wife, Ana Cristina) on the same billing that highlighted where Nashville heads next.

As this story continues to expand, it’s important to be  aware that on any given week of 2025, 50 percent of Billboard’s Hot 100 pop chart reflected the American and global cultural grip that Nashville broadly — not just with country music’s industry at the forefront — is sustaining.

Sure, the downtown story is what’s leading. However, as a city, overall? The dynamic of the natural interplay between a more diverse set of pop stars authentically understanding country, Southern and Western culture foremost, with the support of legends and those deep in country and America’s legacy, overall, offers what’s potentially next — and even more impactful, for Nashville and the music industry.

When I finally woke up this morning after a 16+ hour day yesterday, my heart was full from all the messages from other independents in the music biz, and they all said the same thing. Get ready ’26, the independents are not going anywhere.

Thank you CNN for highlighting the “other” Nashville, music is all over the city, not just downtown and not just country music.  That’s what makes it MUSIC CITY.

Happy new year BOB.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DS-OXCcgMtQ/?igsh=MWZqNTl4bjZrbW81dA==

Marcie Allen

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I was at the Nashville show. What you didn’t see was when the TV cameras cut away from Lainey, Jason, and Bailey, they continued playing.  The audience at Bicentennial Capital Mall got to see one-hour shows by each of the three headliners.  As you said, it was more like a concert, because that’s what it was.

As for Stephen Wilson Jr., you should speak with the TV show’s producer Robert Deaton about him.

George Achaves

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YESSSS! So glad you got to have that SWJ experience, Bob! I’ve been waiting/hoping to see his name pop up in your emails. Stephen is such a genuine guy, an incredible talent and proof that there’s still a place in this world for authentic artistry and real songs to cut through and connect with people (let alone do it in your mid-40s). He works his ass off too.

I’ve seen him live many times, and am grateful to call him a friend, but you know someone truly has it when he’s selling out a venue in the Newcastle, UK – a true “working man’s town”, miles away from Nashville – and everyone in the room knows every word to every song, crying (including me!), laughing, galvanized and on the journey with him.

Happy New Year and thanks for all you do.

Cheers,

Richard Grewar

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Thank you for being the best blogger of 2025. My wife is growing tired of me saying, “Well my blogger says…”

But your takes are terrific. You introduce me to great books, shows and bands. (I recently loved the book on the Boston saga. Captivating.)

Peace and love to you and your wife and thanks again for your well-thought out words.

Gary Judson

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You sound like a bitter old weak out of touch sell-out has been, who’s decided it’s time to switch teams, Bob. So now you write from cowardice and contempt and have decided to get on your knees, bend over and suck up to your new team hoping they’ll invite inside’, Bob.

You’ve become a shadow of your former inspiring and insightful self in the wake of Trump / Right Wing / Hate / NAZIfication of America and it’s been a pathetic spiral.

That’s one way to end an legacy.

Have a wonderful year Bob.

Dale ‘Rage’ Resteghini

The one and only!

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/herb-alpert/id1316200737?i=1000743409644

https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9ff4fb19-54d4-41ae-ae7a-8a6f8d3dafa8/episodes/22e3678f-d81f-48c1-86f5-4e3895b73cad/the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-herb-alpert

The winner for me was Stephen Wilson, Jr.

I was bouncing around from Andy and Anderson on CNN to Ryan Seacrest on ABC to Nashville’s Big Bash on CBS.

And most of the time I stayed on Nashville’s Big Bash. Because there was an authenticity there, a direct connection between performer and viewer that I did not feel on the other two outlets.

As for Ryan Seacrest… Is there anybody who likes that guy? Anybody who is passionate about him? He’s two-dimensional and faux authentic and I find him impossible to watch. He’s the kind of character we were exposed to on television before cable and then streaming. Someone bland enough not to offend most people, yet we are looking for more edge. As for what is still billed as “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve,” immediately dating the show, the guy’s been dead since 2012, many viewers have no idea who he was and don’t care…there was a constant banner saying that sections were prerecorded, and they felt like it…taped in advance in Las Vegas where a bogus party was created for television and…this is only marginally different from Guy Lombardo (and you’ve got to be over 65 at least to remember him!). Sure, there were “live” performances in Times Square, but these were akin to performances on floats during the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade. You get face time as you don’t play completely live and nobody at home can get excited about what you’re doing, you’re just reminding the audience that you exist, and then there was…

Nashville.

As for Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper… Their moment has passed. Andy has built a career on the foibles of rich women disconnected from reality, and right now reality is piss-poor. You can say it’s a respite from politics, but the focus on wealth…is at odds with the population’s growing problem with income inequality. So Andy was the nice guy in high school…but he looked like a hungover deer in the headlights during much of this show and Anderson Cooper seemed to be asking himself what in the hell he was doing there, it undercut whatever news gravitas he possesses. Nothing lasts forever, these two cut-ups were a novelty, the antidote to the canned Dick Clark show, but now there’s a new game in town, Nashville’s Big Bash…

Would you rather hang in Times Square and wait for the ball to drop or go to a live outdoor show in Nashville?

At first I thought the Big Bash was for everybody. But then I realized the bifurcation of America still exists, North and South, Blue and Red, Democrat and Republican. But in this case, the south has risen again.

Hardy, an intelligent guy, I know from speaking with him, looked a bit uncomfortable, out of place, but Bert Kreischer was the perfect co-host for this alcohol-fueled frenzy. You had multiple stages and multiple acts. I’d be lying if I didn’t say there was a bit too much Lainey Wilson… As for the clothing…sure, it’s winter, and there’s a long history of “outfits’ in country, but that was when country was still a backwater, which it no longer is. Whereas Jason Aldean came out in jeans and a brown leather coat…he was the heir to the Allman Brothers and all the rest of the acts that played on stage in their street clothes.

Nashville’s Big Bash had the feel of a concert, a show, it was palpable. And demonstrated more depth than the pop dreck on the two other outlets. In a world where rock is dead and pop and hip-hop dominates…the seventies are gone.

But they’re fully alive in Nashville, where it was more about the playing than the image. Can elite northerners be converted? Well, some have been, but too many are categorically against these people and their music. But this is not the country of old, this is rock and roll. As for the political beliefs…you grasp your enemy tightly, you convert them from the inside. Believe me, there’s no rule against a left-leaning country star. Instead of being a rapper or a TV music contestant if you want to have an impact you should go to Nashville, which in many ways is the new L.A., it has stolen Hollywood’s thunder, however… Unlike the popsters, scratch a country star and you’ll find that they’ve been honing their chops from a very young age. Singing and playing as kids. Kenny Chesney made his bones playing in bars, kind of like Hootie & the Blowfish, but now Darius Rucker is a country star…and in case you didn’t notice, he’s Black, and Nashville has no problem with that.

There’s a whole country culture, the upstarts know the hit acts who preceded them, but none of this gets ink or traction in the left wing media…country is seen as a sideshow, when along with Latin it’s becoming the main show. It’s a disruption in the marketplace those in L.A. and New York did not foresee. Country has moved closer to the center, the acts are better, the songs are singable and now it’s on an endless course of triumph.

And where else can a 46 year old midwestern nerd bumpkin break through?

Wilson was a direct contrast to the prepackaged performers on ABC and CNN. He was wearing clothes he might don if he was working in the yard, and he had glasses that were so out of style (but with large lenses for visibility), that he seemed like a real guy, who was playing a guitar akin to that of Willie Nelson, as in beat-up. And he didn’t need no stinkin’ backup musicians to sell his song, to get it across.

I’d been following Wilson’s career in print, with the mentions and statistics, but last night he closed me. A New Year’s Eve TV appearance can be equivalent to CBS Sunday Morning, if you just don’t punch the clock, don’t call your stylist before your sound-mixer, if you rise to the occasion.

And Keith Urban was playing… “You Get What You Give”??? New Radicals’ (i.e. Gregg Alexander) smash released in 1998?? And giving it his all?

Turns out Urban has been doing this number at shows for a while now, but last night, with the energy he displayed… He was not promoting his new single, he was capturing the joy of New Year’s Eve, the energy, letting go of commerce and focusing on the music, which was a relief.

In a phony, sold-out world of people telling us they’re better than we are, and richer too…Nashville’s Big Bash was a revelation. As it has been previously, which is why I tuned in. The ratings will come down, the brain dead will have still been watching ABC and CNN, but last night all the excitement was in Nashville, beamed to us via CBS. Live music played by real musicians, songs you can sing along to, played by stars. Isn’t this the music business we loved and reveled in back in the day?

YES!

KPOP DEMON HUNTERS

The biggest musical story of the year. Outsiders base an animated film on a niche musical style and triumph. Illustrating that the mainstream music business is out of touch with the public and what it wants. The mainstream still thinks it’s the era of 80s MTV…where the obvious is hyped to success. There was nothing obvious about “KPop Demon Hunters.” If you have children as young as three in the house, you know the phenomenon. Proving the power of Netflix and availability. Launching to everybody at the same time? Genius! Which the film business abhors, it wants people to pay a lot to be the first to see their product and most people choose not to. Furthermore, unlike a lot of hip-hop, a lot of one chord “hits,” the songs from “KPop Demon Hunters” were singable, and the kids did (and still do!) This will be the biggest tour of 2026.

BAD BUNNY

You can’t argue with success. Music transcends politics, if it’s got a good beat and people want to listen to it you can’t stop them. Also, by doing all those shows in Puerto Rico…Bad Bunny showed allegiance to his roots and proved that fans will come to you.

THE SPHERE

Cost of video production keeps going down and everything sells out. It’s a unique experience you can’t get anywhere else. Seemingly no one believed but Jim Dolan, who had a vision, put his money where his mouth was and ultimately succeeded, the Sphere is heading towards the black. And, as good as the visuals are, the sound is on a par.

NO ERAS TOUR

Hit records lift all boats, and so do hit tours. They get people talking about music, excited, they want to belong, which is even more important in today’s multifarious world. In addition, the Eras Tour press was ubiquitous, getting everybody excited about Taylor Swift and belonging to her fan base and having a unique experience at the show…you had to be there. There was not an equivalent this year.

As for Ms. Swift… She tried to keep the ball rolling, via documentaries. Which garnered press at first, but not thereafter. Because a documentary is different from the live experience. And there was no record-breaking hook to hype on a continuous basis. As for Swift’s new album “The Life of a Showgirl”…despite the Taylor Easter egg promotion, despite ramping up all the press, the album has fallen flat culturally. As for success re sales/streams/chart numbers… Those numbers don’t resonate the way they used to. True fans know they’re manipulated with vinyl and everybody’s always claiming success online…so the cultural impact is more important than the statistics, and “The Life of a Showgirl” didn’t have much…it didn’t even generate a song that broke out of the Taylorsphere.

NO CHAPPELL ROAN

She broke via festival appearances, she had large mindshare, and no one came along to fill the hole this year. No breakthrough act.

DRAKE/KENDRICK LAMAR FEUD

Nothing equivalent transpired. Once again, like the Eras Tour and Chappell Roan, this feud and its tunes got people paying attention, there was not an equivalent attention-getting story in music this year.

NO SONG OF THE SUMMER

Because nothing has universal purchase, not because there were no great songs. Then again, the song of the summer is usually mindless, and in these troubled times, that does not resonate.

UNIVERSAL/DOWNTOWN

The biggest story in the music business, the end result is presently unknown. But if Universal is allowed to swallow Downtown it will put an incredible crimp in the indie world, because almost all indie lanes will be controlled by the majors. The majors will be privy to the data, and in the twenty first century, data is very important, but the real story is after twenty five years of disruption, if this deal goes through, the majors will be back in almost total control of recorded music distribution.

TICKETMASTER

Still the most hated company in America. None of the stain ever sticks to the acts. There is a government lawsuit hanging in the balance, but Live Nation, Ticketmaster’s parent, got ahead of the game, it appointed Richard Grenell to its board, a Trump crony who has overseen the havoc at what is now known as the Trump Kennedy Center. If you kiss Trump’s butt, things tend to go your way. Then again, all Kid Rock got for his support of Trump was a press conference and theoretical support of Bots Act enforcement, which so far we have not seen.

BOTS

Are here to stay. As is the secondary market. NFL game prices flex, depending on the opponent and the importance of the game. Super Bowl tickets are hugely expensive. But somehow music tickets must be cheap in order to theoretically satiate hard core fans. Until acts charge what the tickets are worth, we will continue to have this cat and mouse game between the primary ticketer and the secondary market.

VINYL

The boom ended. Revenues were only off 1%, but in an era where there is enough production, where rarity is not what it once was, there is not the same incentive to buy vinyl as a souvenir. As for buying multiple copies of the same album to boost the chart numbers of the act…the bloom is off the rose, you can only rip off the public so much. Vinyl will never die, but it appears to have peaked.

GEESE

The great white rock hope. But if you listen to the album… The singer has an affected voice and despite all the hosannas in the press, the word does not seem to be spreading. Indie rock is what oldster male writers are looking for. Youngsters? Not really.

POP CONTINUES TO DOMINATE

Ariana Grande? There’s no there there.

SABRINA CARPENTER

The public did not believe that a former Disney star was now an edgy sexpot. She pushed the envelope to unbelievability.

BRAND NAMES STILL MATTER

Can you say “Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars”? It’s nearly impossible to gain traction, so those who have it continue to maintain it, as long as they don’t blow it with substandard product.

THE WEEKND

People still don’t want to see musical stars in films. That’s a passé concept, you’ve built an identity and then you want the audience to suspend disbelief and enjoy your two-dimensional acting in a substandard project?

BEYONCÉ’S TOUR

You can only go back to the well so many times. Sure, business was ultimately very good, but usually shows of this caliber are instant sellouts. High prices and a return too soon to the marketplace hurt this tour.

PRICES GOING DOWN

Yes, in some cases they have. Prices can go in both directions based on demand.

MORGAN WALLEN

The biggest star in country whose only competitor for U.S. domination is Taylor Swift. Yet, there’s almost a news blackout amongst the liberal/left-leaning press.

COUNTRY

Is the new rock and roll and liked by many who swore off it in the past. Sure, there’s a lot of pandering in the lyrics, but the acts have identities, the songs have hooks and…

OASIS

The story is not that they did huge business in the U.K., but that it carried over to North America. This is my point about the Eras Tour…people get excited by a big story and have to go to the show!

COLDPLAY

Sells out everywhere. Stadiums. Is it that they were the beneficiary of the last gasp of the old system, music television and terrestrial radio, or is their music just milquetoast enough to appeal to everyone?

SPOTIFY GAINS MARKET SHARE

That’s where your friends are and there is innovation whereas its competitors are virtually moribund, music is an afterthought. But people still believe the company doesn’t pay the artists, which of course is blatantly untrue. But someone’s got to pay for the plight of the starving artist.

OSCARS GO TO YOUTUBE

And Grammys remain on CBS. Money isn’t everything. There’s no vision at the Grammys, however music does dominate YouTube and other streaming services…this power could be harnessed further, but…

NEW MUSIC IS A CLUB

And most people are not in it. And those in it are myopic. You’ve seen all the stories of the year’s top 25 albums… Other than the writer, no one has heard all of them, never mind heard of them! The stars are losing market share and under them it’s the Tower of Babel. New hit acts that appeal to many will lift all boats. But no one with any cash or power is willing to take the risk/put in the effort.

TIKTOK

Unpredictable. Can make the unknown a hit, but even more interesting, it can lift a hit of the past back into mainstream consciousness.