Taylor Swift, Garth Brooks, more: A night star power at Nashville Songwriter Awards

Marcus K. Dowling, Nashville Tennessean
·6 min read

Between honorees Garth Brooks, Ashley Gorley, and Taylor Swift, plus performers Luke Combs and Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, more than 100 number 1 hits were represented onstage at the Ryman Auditorium for Tuesday evening's fifth annual Nashville Songwriter Awards.

Superstar Christian artist Matthew West kicked off the event with a performance of his Anne Wilson duet "Me On Your Mind" to celebrate being honored as "Songwriter-Artist of the Year." Like numerous other artists feted during the evening, he recalled his humble artistic roots: he sang his version of Garth Brooks' "The Dance" at a karaoke contest at the Enchanted Castle amusement park in Chicago's suburbs. His goal was to win the Caribbean cruise grand prize and send his parents on a vacation.

He lost. However -- in what became a recurring theme of the evening -- he offered the multitudes of artists, songwriters, and music industry professionals in attendance some advice:

Matthew West and Anne Wilson perform at the NSAI Awards at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville , Tenn., Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022.
Matthew West and Anne Wilson perform at the NSAI Awards at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville , Tenn., Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022.

Rejection is both "preparation for more around the corner" and "isn't rejection when you know who the author of your story is." Moreover, Music City songwriter of the moment Ashley Gorley was named "Songwriter of the Year," plus shared "Songwriter of the Decade" honors with Swift.

More:Taylor Swift named 'Songwriter-Artist of the Decade' at Nashville Songwriter Awards

63 number-one hits:Ashley Gorley shares 5 country hits that defined the 'Songwriter of the Decade'

On the event's red carpet, Gorley, when asked about the consistency required to achieve 63 No. 1 hit radio singles, shared his love of the craft and that "every time he writes feels like the first time." Moreover, before realizing that he was in attendance to celebrate him, he noted the impact of 90s R&B superstars like previously mentioned Babyface and Bobby Brown (noting the importance of the latter's 1990 hits "Rock Wit'cha" and "Roni" as inspirations) as important in his career rise.

Of the 28 songs spanning three decades performed by 38 artists in the evening, it was Babyface's take on Thomas Rhett's 2017 single "Unforgettable" that proved the flexibility of great songs to span genres and diversely impact both musicians and fans.

"The best songs in Nashville take a little bit more time to find their way and take a bit more time than others to find the right voice and artist to deliver it," singer songwriter Alana Springsteen said, while standing on the event's red carpet alongside songriting superstars Gorley, Rhett Akins and Shane McAnally.

"[Great story songs] are a three minute journey," added McAnally who hopes that the industry can reinvigorate fans' attention spans to return to the 90s era wherein epic storytelling was more in vogue.

Babyface performs at the NSAI Awards at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville , Tenn., Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022.
Babyface performs at the NSAI Awards at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville , Tenn., Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022.

For Kris Kristofferson Lifetime Achievement Award honoree Garth Brooks, his wife, Trisha Yearwood, noted his "planet of influence" as an artist, performer, and songwriter, plus his nine diamond-selling albums, and sales totals eclipsing that of The Beatles. Always affable Brooks took the stage to receive his honor and noted that he was a kid who "just wanted to be George Strait," and that as "not a songwriter, but a guy who gets to hang out with songwriters, that there were "no bigger dreamers on the planet."

This was preceded by an astonishing love-in of Brooks' iconic material, sung by legendary songwriters and superstar artists. In order, Pat Alger sang "The Thunder Rolls, followed by Kent Blazy performing "Ain't Goin Down (Til The Sun Comes Up)," with Tony Arata stirring souls with "The Dance" and Luke Combs batting cleanup with "The Beaches of Cheyenne."

Taylor Swift was named the "Songwriter-Artist of the Decade" by the Nashville Songwriters Association International on Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022.
Taylor Swift was named the "Songwriter-Artist of the Decade" by the Nashville Songwriters Association International on Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022.

And then there was Taylor Swift, who appeared and sang an epic, ten-minute version of her award-winning single "All Too Well."

When asked about the impact of Taylor Swift, GAYLE, an 18-year-old songwriting star on the rise whose surge mirrors that of the "Our Song" vocalist -- and whose rocking performance of her breakout No. 1 hit "abcdefu" shook the Mother Church's upper deck pews -- noted, "I am in no way Taylor Swift, but I'm honored to be achieving success that compares me to someone so influential on my career, and others' too."

Swift's comments were the evening's ultimate music moment.

As the music industry assesses its post-COVID state, there are songs like 2022 NSAI Song of the Year "Buy Dirt" by Jordan Davis and Luke Bryan that rose via radio and traditional means and highlight every sense of classic tradition. The song is written by two sets of brothers about rooting one's self in faith and family. And then there's Walker Hayes or GAYLE, who with "Fancy Like" and "abcdefu," wrote songs about commonplace emotions -- lower middle class struggles to get by and hating everything about your ex-boyfriend save their pet -- that reflect something of the chaos that two years spent inside staring at our cellular telephone apps spawned.

Taylor Swift poses for photos at the NSAI Awards at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn., Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022.
Taylor Swift poses for photos at the NSAI Awards at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn., Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022.

Swift, via her comments, offered a visionary way forward.

"A song can defy logic or time," the seven-time NSAI Songwriter of the Year noted. "A good song transports you to your truest feelings and translates those feelings for you. A good song stays with you even when people or feelings don’t. Writing songs is a calling and getting to call it your career makes you very lucky. You have to be grateful every day for it, and all the people who thought your words might be worth listening to. This town is the school that taught me that."

NSAI Songwriter Awards Performances

Matthew West featuring Anne Wilson, "Me On Your Mind"Parmalee, "Take My Name"HARDY, "Give Heaven Some Hell"Little Big Town, "Rich Man"Matt McGinn, Jennifer Schott, Nathan Spicer, "7500 OBO" (for Tim McGraw)GAYLE, "abcdefu"Sam Hunt, "23"Alana Springsteen, "You Should Probably Leave" (for Chris Stapleton)Walker Hayes, "Fancy Like"Kat Higgins, Adam James, Brett James, "Knowing You" (for Kenny Chesney)Pat Alger, "The Thunder Rolls" (for Garth Brooks)Kent Blazy, "Ain't Goin Down" (for Garth Brooks)Tony Arata, "The Dance" (for Garth Brooks)Luke Combs, "The Beaches of Cheyenne" (for Garth Brooks)Larry Fleet, "Sand In My Boots" (for Morgan Wallen and Ashley Gorley)Kelsea Ballerini, Nicole Galyon, Jimmy Robbins, "half of my hometown"Tigirlilly, "Never Wanted To Be That Girl" (for Carly Pearce, Ashley McBryde)Matthew Rogers, Ben Stennis, "Til You Can't" (for Cody Johnson)Jonathan Singleton, "Things A Man Oughta Know" (for Lainey Wilson)Jordan and Jacob Davis, Josh and Matt Jenkins, "Buy Dirt"Thomas Rhett, "What's Your Couintry Song"Ben Johnson, Wyatt McCubbin, Hunter Phelps medley of Ashley Gorley-written songs- Carrie Underwood's "Don't Forget To Remember Me"- Jon Pardi's "Dirt on My Boots"- Luke Bryan's "Play It Again"- Trace Adkins' "You're Gonna Miss This"Cole Swindell's "Heads Carolina"Babyface, "Unforgettable" (by Thomas Rhett, for Ashley Gorley)Taylor Swift, "All Too Well (10-minute version)"

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Taylor Swift, Garth Brooks, others shine at Nashville Songwriter Awards