Ashley Gorley (Photo: Ed Rode)
As ALL ACCESS first reported LAST NIGHT (NET NEWS 11/11), songwriter ASHLEY GORLEY was named Country Music Songwriter Of The Year for the seventh time at the 57th annual ASCAP Country Music Awards, held last night (11/11) at NASHVILLE’s RENAISSANCE HOTEL.
The LUKE COMBS hit, “One Number Away,” took the Song Of The Year prize, and writers MATTHEW RAMSEY and TREVOR ROSEN (both members of OLD DOMINION) shared the Songwriter-Artist Of The Year award. WARNER CHAPPELL MUSIC earned the Publisher Of The Year distinction, a seventh win for the company.
GORLEY, the only ASCAP Country songwriter to have won the award seven times, earned his top honor for having penned seven recent hits (“Life Changes,” “Eyes on You,” “Love Ain’t,” “What Makes You Country,” “I Lived It,” “Rumor,” and “Hide the Wine”). ASCAP CEO ELIZABETH MATTHEWS and Country star DIERKS BENTLEY presented GORLEY with his award. BENTLEY, GORLEY and writer JON NITE then performed their song, “Living,” a current hit for BENTLEY.
Other performers included CARRIE UNDERWOOD (“Promises”) and GARTH BROOKS, who sang “Forever And Ever, Amen” in tribute to ASCAP Founders Award honoree RANDY TRAVIS. BROOKS and UNDERWOOD then joined ASCAP Chairman/Pres. PAUL WILLIAMS to present TRAVIS with his award.
The evening also honored hit songwriter HILLARY LINDSEY, who received the Global Impact Award in recognition of the worldwide reach of her repertoire. The award was presented by KELSEA BALLERINI and ASCAP VP of NASHVILLE Membership MIKE SISTAD, and was followed by a tribute performance from LITTLE BIG TOWN singing the LINDSEY-penned “Girl Crush.”
Honorees BROTHERS OSBORNE took home the ASCAP Vanguard Award. Actors TED DANSON and MARY STEENBURGEN presented the trophy.
RAMSEY and ROSEN received their awards from 2018 honoree BRETT YOUNG and ASCAP EVP of Membership JOHN TITTA in recognition of the OLD DOMINION hits songs “Hotel Key,” and “Make It Sweet,” and their MICHAEL RAY-sung hit, “One That Got Away.”
ASCAP’s MATTHEWS presented the Country Music Publisher Of The Year Award to WARNER CHAPELL MUSIC NASHVILLE’s Pres./CEO BEN VAUGHN and COO CARIANNE MARSHALL. It came for publishing such hits as “Tequila” (performed as the show’s opening number by DAN + SHAY and singer-songwriter JORDAN REYNOLDS), “You Make It Easy” and “Hotel Key.”
Writer STEVEN BATTEY won Song Of The Year for his first Country hit, “One Number Away” and performed the song during the show.
See a full list of 2019 ASCAP Country Music Awards winners here.
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