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Country Update BILLBOARD.COM/NEWSLETTERS MARCH 25, 2019 | PAGE 1 OF 19 INSIDE BILLBOARD COUNTRY UPDATE [email protected] Luke Combs’ ‘Crazy’ Milestone Jake Owen: ‘Greetings’ From >page 4 His Honky-Tonk Trip ACM Tabs New Artist Winners The chorus of Jake Owen’s current top 10 single, “Down to career journey, which has yielded 10 Country Airplay top 10 >page 9 the Honkytonk,” playfully discounts the importance of a spot titles, including seven No. 1s. Instead of the programmed in the Country Music Hall of Fame or on the Hollywood Walk drums and plug-in effects that are fairly standard in modern of Fame: “I might not go down in history/But I’ll go down to country, Owen drapes the album in guitars — biting honky- the honky-tonk.” tonk electrics, ringing acoustics and Paul Franklin’s tangy Brooks & Dunn So it’s ironic that “Down to the Honkytonk” went down in steel — and reconnects with the twang in his Florida-bred Build On Hall history by picking up an Academy of Country Music Award accent and the rich basement tones that dominated his >page 10 nomination for single of the year. (The 54th early recordings. annual event is scheduled for April 7 in Las “He’s a classic-country-song jukebox,” Vegas.) The timing was ideal, bringing him says producer Joey Moi (Florida Georgia attention as “Honkytonk” hits the home Line, Morgan Wallen). “He can sit there Maddie & Tae stretch in its chart climb (it’s at No. 10 on and play any old, old classic country song for On The Way the Country Airplay list dated March 30) and hours and hours and hours, and he sings in >page 10 as his first Big Loud album, Greetings From… this awesome, great baritone country voice, Jake, is released March 29. which is so natural to him. I really wanted to The ACM accolade didn’t knock him off get him [to do] more [of] that: more organic, Makin’ Tracks: his game. Owen is “super flattered,” he says, more traditional, more singing down in John King’s to be on the ballot for the first time since those lower keys.” ‘Goodbye’ Earworm he won top new male vocalist in 2009, but Greetings is graphically presented as >page 14 trophy consideration is gravy for his career, a vacation postcard, intended to portray not the meat and potatoes. the 14-song project as a message from the OWEN “It’s obviously a huge honor to be current location of Owen’s career journey. nominated for something, but I just don’t But the album itself works as a journey, too. Country Coda: put much emphasis on it anymore,” he says. “I’d rather people Starting with “Down to the Honkytonk,” it travels in stages Darius Rucker’s remember me 10 years, 20 years down the road for having through classic-rock influence — represented by his John Second No. 1 good character and being a good person than remembering Mellencamp-derived “I Was Jack (You Were Diane)” and a >page 19 me because I won a single of the year award.” weed-referencing Kid Rock collaboration, “Grass Is Always That sort of practical, common-man attitude fits the tone Greener” — to Owen’s familiar beach-party brand and into more of Greetings, an album that returns Owen to the country core philosophical songs about life and love before circling back to that served as his bread and butter at the starting gate on his its traditional country starting line with “Damn.” KLEIN ROBBY BILLBOARD COUNTRY UPDATE MARCH 25, 2019 | PAGE 2 OF 19 The path includes a visit from YouTube star Lele Pons, a Venezuelan-born singer-actress with 33.8 million Instagram followers. “Senorita” is a tropical- country effort dusted with Spanglish phrases and Mexicali guitar, and it marks the biggest side trip on Greetings. “I like the fact that she’s not someone that’s expected on a country album,” he says. “It kind of gives me a little bit of cred outside of just the country genre. I know that might contradict [the foundation of] this country album, but I think that it’s important for any artist to kind of step outside the comfort zone sometimes and actually do something that does throw people for a loop.” Owen has made it a point to test roads less traveled of late. When he signed with Big Loud, he represented the first established act to join the roster, which already included newer talents Wallen, Chris Lane and Jillian Jacqueline. Dan + Shay appeared on CMT’s Hot 20 Countdown on March 23-24 Owen started work in February on his first movie, The Friend, starring Casey after catching up with host Cody Alan at St. Augustine Amphitheatre Affleck, Dakota Johnson and Jason Segal. And he established his own in Florida. From left: Dan Smyers, Alan and Shay Mooney. management firm, Good Company, with founding partners Keith Gale and Jon Andolina. Good Company created, at least temporarily, a radio promotion wing in support of RECORDS artist Matt Stell. “It’s a lot like when I left Tallahassee to move to Nashville,” says Owen of the management firm. “It was a big chance. It was something [where] people are like, ‘Wow, I can’t believe you’re doing this.’ But anything I’ve ever done in life where I’ve just taken a chance but believed in myself to do it has really flourished and worked out in a great way.” Good Company also gives Owen a bigger role in directing his business life in conjunction with his personal life, and that played into his concert plans behind Greetings. Following last summer’s tour, which focused on minor-league baseball parks, this summer’s schedule is grounded in festivals and fair dates, where the production costs are minimized and Owen is just one attraction in a ream of events and entertainers. Aaron Watson (center) performed at the KASE Live Music Lounge on It makes creative sense — he’ll be promoting an album with greater March 16 before a show in Austin. He’s pictured with KASE PD Anthony traditional country vibes by playing the kind of venues that have long been “The AntMan” Allen (left) and BIG Label Records head of promotion associated with the genre — but it also fits his domestic needs. Girlfriend Tony Morreale. Erica Hartlein is carrying his second daughter and is due in late spring. Owen indicates that his career focus has been partly responsible for damaging previous relationships; the fairs and festivals will allow him to be more casual about work for the baby’s first six months or so. “It’s a grind putting together a big show, paying for a lot of big production, paying your opening acts,” he says. “There’s a lot that goes into that, and I fully intend on doing that with this album come 2020, but for this summertime, I just felt like it was good for me to go out, make some money playing fairs and festivals and not have the pressure of having my own tour. Actually, for the first time in 10 years, it’ll give the guys in the band a little bit of a break.” In the meantime, the ACM nomination gives some validation to the approach Owen has used in his work, represented well in the country-grounded odyssey that is Greetings From… Jake. Lauren Jenkins (center) made her Grand Ole Opry debut on March 15, “I’ve had a really great journey, and I’m so proud of who I am through all of the same day Big Machine released her debut album, No Saint. From this,” he says. “The music really helps me say that for anybody who’s listening.” left: Connie Smith, Jenkins and Jeannie Seely. HOLLO) CHRIS JENKINS: BILLBOARD COUNTRY UPDATE MARCH 25, 2019 | PAGE 4 OF 19 ON THE CHARTS JIM ASKER [email protected] Luke Combs Repeats Atop All Five Country Charts And Scores His Longest Country Airplay Reign Yet Luke Combs makes history as the first artist to simultaneously lead all five of must-adds out of the box. It’s really incredible.” Billboard’s country charts for multiple weeks: Hot Country Songs, Country “Crazy” likewise paces the airplay-, streaming- and sales-fueled Hot Airplay, Country Streaming Songs, Country Digital Song Sales and Top Country Songs chart for a fifth week, as well as Country Streaming Songs Country Albums (all dated March 30). He first staged the quintuple chart for a fifth frame, essentially even week over week with 12.1 million U.S. achievement on the lists dated March 9. streams in the week ending March 21. On Country One other artist previously led all five charts Digital Song Sales, it rebounds 2-1 for a sixth total at the same time for one week: Kane Brown, on week at the summit (12,000 sold, up 15 percent Oct. 28, 2017. in the week ending March 21). Combs, who co-penned “Beautiful Crazy” Meanwhile, Combs’ debut LP, This One’s for (River House/Columbia Nashville/Sony Music You, returns to the Top Country Albums attic for Nashville) with Wyatt Durrette and Robert a 29th cumulative week, up less than 1 percent Williford, tops all four country song charts — and to 24,000 euivalent album units. makes for a personal best for himself on Country Airplay. The ballad leads that chart for a fifth BROWN LOOKS ‘GOOD’ IN TOP 10 Kane frame, down 3 percent to 39.4 million audience Brown nets his fourth Hot Country Songs top 10 impressions in the week ending March 24, as “Good as You” (Zone 4/RCA Nashville) hops according to Nielsen Music.