Maybe The System Is Broken?

Last night, 70,554 music fans filled NRG stadium in Houston to scream for the pride of Sebastopol, TX, Cody Johnson. He has one Country #1 hit. Repeat: one!

Has anyone ever done that? Garth Brooks, George Strait, Kenny Chesney and the rest of the stadium players had far more than one song before they sold out a stadium or even an arena.

At the recent Country Radio Seminar, one of the local label moguls said we need someone that’s a game changer, like Garth or even Eric Church to shake things up.

Maybe the Music City-based corporate listeners have gotten too woke, or maybe need to get out of their Covid bomb shelters and get to Rodeo Houston to feel the fans out and see what they are into.

A few labels have gone on TikTok and found a guy with three million followers, and no one outside TikTok seems to know his name. What we’ve got here is failure to communicate (credit to Strother Martin/“Cool Hand Luke”).

If I was in the ivory tower of the bigger record company bosses, I would be on the phone asking, “Who is your Cody Johnson, and who have you got that can get 70,000 butts in the seats on a Monday night with one #1 song?” Any other TikTok stars out there under the radar? Better have answers!

Kane Brown just did huge concerts all over the U.S. and, today, he has a #1 Country song, “One Mississippi.” Excellent video, too. Brown is getting great PR, but not over the top PR. Good job to all involved, but remember, it all starts with the song. He records and put out great songs that hit the spot and seem to have broad appeal.

Back to Cody Johnson … once before there was a guy named Pat Green. He was a mega star in rodeo land, but something never quite clicked outside that circuit. Pat was a great guy. He should have been huge. The system screwed up.

Thomas Rhett is another one. Just saw him in a great Fritos commercial. He should be a bigger star than he is. He’s another who consistently puts out great music, but doesn’t get the biggest awards.

It’s an unpredictable, screwy business. I get that 100%. The stars just have to align to create a Strait, Brooks or Chesney. Randy Travis moved the needle when he pushed the doors down. He was way too Country for the times, but, boom! He was the medicine the music needed.

The Bro Country thing turned off a lot and created some Classic Country stations. Rap/Hip Hop was polarizing too. Lifestyles have changed. The world has pandemics and mad man Communists. How do you cut through all that? That is the job of songwriters, and producers and singers. Then the gatekeepers have to get out of the way.

A total of 68,619 people saw Miranda Lambert and Dierks Bentley live at an outdoor hockey game last weekend. What a Nashville showcase that was, and done very well by the NHL.

Lainey Wilson is breaking out. Her second #1 is coming. She also has good PR, and is breaking through.

Covid is hopefully leaving us for now. This war in Eastern Europe is very bad. The price to put fuel in the jet and tour bus is way up. The inflation will be cutting into money that could be used to buy a concert ticket. Times are dangerous and complicated. Smart minds are needed to feel the pulse and do the right thing.

If your radio station sounds like a faceless machine, as way too many do, you better get with the program very quickly. You must create programming that makes people listen. It can’t just be a jukebox with sweepers. Better get into the social media and digital world yesterday.

RELATE … COMMUNICATE … ENTERTAIN!

Judgment time is now. Swim or sink. Your call.