What in the HECK EVEN IS “Music Row”?
Let’s dive in.
You may have heard of Music Row in passing, or you might be quite familiar that they have long been the gatekeepers to a songwriter’s success. When I was first wrapping my head around music publishing, the best example (and closest) of what I already knew was the parallel it had to the book publishing world, which made more sense to me initially.
With a traditional book publisher, the company is pitched a story, novel, autobiography, biography, children’s book, tragedy, or some other saga in a short form, first. It’s usually snippets of the book, wrapped together in a pitch. At this point, the book is just the bones. The author most likely has general ideas, an outline, and a plan. They sling together a book proposal and then they start on their search to find a publisher. Book publishers can help with a whole slew of things.
First, they have spent years as a collective company (or independent) making connections to libraries, book stores, online retailers, and event hosts/venues. For an author to launch a book successfully, getting their words into the hands of thousands, or potentially millions of hands—that type of push gets a whole lot easier when they leverage other people’s networks, connections, plans, and most importantly; cash.
Book deals come in many forms, but many publishing deals work similar to hiring a writer on Music Row. The book publisher sees potential in the writer and the story, but they know very well that most new writers have been, well, busy writing-- and in many cases, not making loads of money. It’s just now coming into light (with the influx of social media) that one can blow up online by going viral or getting followers and then having the ability to self-publish. Before social media, if you weren’t already famous from something else, like TV, sports, film, or cultish evangelism, you had to rely on a publisher to essentially get people interested in your ideas themselves, not just the ideas of a person they already know and admire – which is much easier!
If you think about it, J.K. Rowling has a much better chance of publishing a mediocre idea and still getting sales than Joe Shmoe does with a great one. It’s the same in music. The bigger the name, the more likely they’ll have the pull to get songs cut, not just on their album—but on other’s as well. It’s a big of a snowball effect.
Once the book proposal is accepted by a publisher, the publisher will offer them some degree of a deal. What’s a book deal? It’s typically structured around an advance. The cash advance is essentially a loan against your future profits and successes. They will often fund the process of writing, editing, publishing, and distributing the author’s work, and in return, they recoup their money in the sales of the book and then make a profit on a portion of the future sales of the book. It’s a bit of a risky investment, because, just like a song… you really can’t predict a hit.
There are things that will sway a publisher to invest in your project, though. For example, if you have a large following (even if it’s in a different arena), if you have had another successful project, if you regularly speak in front of thousands of people, if you have never sold a product—but work high up at a reputable company, or if you are wealthy already, and can take little to no advance, but just need them for admin & connections, and more or less advice, structure, and education. Like anything in life, newcomers and regular folk have it the hardest, but they often also come with the best stories of hard times, hard knocks, and rags to riches. You rarely hear of a famous country star that came from a wealthy, highly affluent, classically trained New York family. This may partially stem from the conditioning the “elite” away from the grungy life of a touring vagabond in an Americana band, but there is also a type of grit that you cannot manufacture unless you start at the bottom.
I remember my brother coming home from club basketball at 11 years old and my Dad mentioning that another kid on the team’s father mentioned he doesn’t get dinner until he practices shooting at the hoop down the block. Despite the nearly illegal parenting practice, this kid became scrappy as can be. My brother, who was taller, stronger, and always had new socks, no matter the day, was always going to have dinner on the table. When you have to fight for your food and your family paints success as a famous hooper, there’s a different kind of desire to fight for the gold. The NBA has more star athletes who came from nothing than a rich family, because you can train skills but you cannot train soul. It is harder to make a wealthy kid inspired by solely wealth itself.
In Nashville, you’ll see 13-year-olds taking up writer’s rounds; they want to get ahead of the curve… or maybe, their momager parent does, but regardless, they’re writing and performing younger and younger these days. What in the heck is that kid supposed to write about? For real. They haven’t touched whiskey, they haven’t lost their virginity, they haven’t had to stress for rent, and they haven’t had to do anything on their own. How deep can the songs go? How far can the impact reach? Aren’t their parents scared of them turning into Britney or turning into Macaulay Culkin? At the end of the day, your stories become your strength. Your saga becomes your golden ticket. Your hardships become the best songs. Your journey becomes the one thing that no one can take from you and no one can repeat. It becomes the thing that you can tell in interviews, within the songs, and on stage in front of millions.
So, when you start to feel down, like you weren’t given the plate or the silver spoon when you started; just know that the cream rises to the top. If you weren’t given a shoe-in, you’ll have to pry open every door until it’s a gosh-dang Footwear factory. You’ll have to network your hands out, play your heart out, pitch your brain out, and work your butt off. That is the deal; the real publishing deal.
When an author gets an advance, they have to pay it back somehow. There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch. When a musician gets a record deal or a publishing deal, they will also be paying it back in some way, shape, or form. For a publisher, you are a risk. Will you show up to the writes? Will you be a good hang? Will you write good songs? Will you put in the work within the writing room to make the artist feel elated, so they are on fire for the song you just wrote, and they will relentlessly call A&R begging for the cut? That publisher has to look you in the eye and trust you. They have to have a good gut feeling. Their firm needs big cuts to survive like an M&M factory needs a steady supply of cocoa. Their career is also on the line if they make a wrong turn. Many deals fall flat after a few years and that is a big loss for a publisher. Many artists don’t stick it out and the label is in the negatives for the millions they invested in getting an artist off the ground.
If you’re an artist or a songwriter, you have to be 100% in. If you are just dabbling, it’s high time you figure out if this is the game that you are going to play long term—because if you are half in, you’re going to break a lot of hearts and waste a lot of your time and other people’s money. If you’re serious, you’re going to have to pour out passion like a firehose. Can you do that? Can you be undeniably relentless and unmistakably driven to the point of no return? If the answer is yes; you have a good start.
When it comes to Music Row, just know the doors are locked. The physical door on every publishing house is locked. You essentially NEED to know someone inside and be invited to come inside. It isn’t too wild, right? Think about a person’s house. You don’t just go door to door in a neighborhood trying to make friends and crash their barbeque. If there is a No Soliciting sign on your dusty uncle’s front door, who isn’t planning on handing out money to guests, there is definitely an invisible “No Solicitation” sign on every door down 16th as well. This isn’t meant to scare you, but to encourage you to start getting crafty. Start getting out there. Start getting connected to rounds, writes, and organizations. Start learning and growing and showing up. Start getting noticed.
Every publishing house has a culture and character. When you’re shopping for a pub deal (which is a loose phrase that you can only use when you already have interest, you know), you will not just be looking for a contract that suits you, you’ll want a family that will vouch for you. A team that will champion you and support you. You’re looking for people that you get along with, a community that you will do your best work around. From personal experience, I can tell you that every single house even smells different. One looks like a dentist office and another a frat house. One seems like its old and outdated and another feels fresh and new. One doesn’t care about looks, but they have clean, poppy songs. Another has pristine edges, but rough and rowdy music with a twist. You really never know what you’re going to get, but when you start taking meetings, just know that there are just as many bad deals for publishers as they are for writers. Not every loan has a good interest rate, and not every good interest rate means you’ll be able to afford the mortgage with your high quality job until its paid off 30 years later.
Actually, a mortgage is a better way to think about a deal than a loan. A loan is just a chunk of money and you decide what to do with it—then you’re left to pay it back with interest. You can spend a loan on a boat and the bank isn’t going to help you sell it once you blow it all. A mortgage is a loan where you are also walking away with an asset at the end. The bank makes money, the builder makes money, and you have a beautiful music career and lifetime of work that you can sell in a catalog anytime.
Let’s say you’ve found a way to make the right connections and get introductions. When you’re shopping a deal, you want to make sure it’s a good fit and a good “deal” for you. Not long ago there were really raunchy deals that left many songwriters and artists with no leg to stand on, which have now been ruled out and classified illegal, but even now, you can get hooked by a deal that just isn’t right for you and your future. Like Drew Baldrige proved in 2024; now, you might not even need a deal to have a #1. You might not need a deal, but it sure does help if you want a plethora of connections. If you don’t want to do all the dirty networking, they do it for you. They set up your calendar and they place you in writes. Instead of sucking face at shows every single night, you may be able to fit in more actual writing that way.
Although I can’t speak to every situation, from what I’ve seen personally, a deal is a great option if you can get the right one. Getting a deal is essentially like getting a dream team who will fight for you to create your best songs.
If you have any more questions about Music Row and how it can serve you… or you’d like a personal introduction to a publisher, please send your pitch email to: booking@nashbashcollective.com and I will be in touch.
x chels
Celebrity Caleigh Ryan during her Nash Bash Collective Photoshoot in Hardy’s Basement circ21
