Second Annual ASCAP Music City Retreat

Pictured (L-R): ASCAP’s Evan Trindl, Dan+Shay’s Dan Smyers, Brett James, Dan+Shay’s Shay Mooney, Robopop and Warner/Chappell Music Publishing’s Ryan Beuschel
Photo: Ed Rode

ASCAP’s Nashville office recently hosted the second annual ASCAP Music City Retreat three-day songwriting event, held at Blackbird Studios in Berry Hill. The retreat served to highlight the unique talents of the ASCAP songwriting community in country and pop music, and combined some of the hottest ASCAP songwriters and songwriter-artists based in Nashville, New York, Los Angeles and across the country, hand-selected by ASCAP membership staff representing each genre.

The purpose of the event is to provide an intimate and focused setting for hit songs to be created, and ultimately recorded and released while developing long-lasting relationships between the songwriters involved for future collaborations.

Songwriter-artist participants included Dan+Shay, Tom and Mike Gossin of Gloriana, Jaren Johnston of The Cadillac Three, Love and Theft, Mickey G, Priscilla and David Nail. Country music songwriter participants included Jessi Alexander, JT Harding, Brett James, Josh Kear and Chris Tompkins, as well as songwriter-producers Chris DeStefano and Jimmy Robbins. Pop songwriters and producers who participated in the retreat included AC, DJ Whiteshadow, Robopop and Kyle Shearer.

Their combined songwriting and production credits include huge hits recorded by a diverse list of artists such as Rihanna, Carrie Underwood, Lady Gaga, Florida Georgia Line, Keith Urban, Kelly Clarkson, Kenny Chesney, Kesha, Lady Antebellum, Lana Del Ray, Luke Bryan, Maroon 5, Miley Cyrus, Miranda Lambert, Pitbull, Rascal Flatts, Tim McGraw and more.

Pictured (L-R): Jimmy Robbins and Gloriana’s Tom Gossin. Photo: Ed Rode

Pictured (L-R): Jessi Alexander, Kyle Shearer and Gloriana’s Mike Gossin. Photo: Ed Rode

Pictured (L-R): Chris Tompkins, Priscilla and Jaren Johnston. Photo: Ed Rode

Pictured (L-R): Josh Kear, Jimmy Robbins, Love and Theft’s Eric Gunderson, AC, (front row) ASCAP Nashville Creative Department co-head LeAnn Phelan and ASCAP Los Angeles Creative Director Evan Trindl. Photo: Ed Rode