Dallas Davidson

‘Perspiration not Inspiration’ Ben Hayslip talks Songwriting at the Nashville Berklee Jam

Our latest Nashville Berklee Jam at the Rutledge was a great success. This was our most well attended event to date during which we were treated to a master class about songwriting and some inspired performances during the jam that followed. On this night we were very fortunate to have hit songwriter and Peach Pickers member, Ben Hayslip as our special guest. I would like to thank fellow alum and guest blogger Shantell Ogden ’05 for writing the following article.

‘Perspiration not Inspiration’ Ben Hayslip talks Songwriting at the Nashville Berklee Jam

By Shantell Ogden, ‘05

Ben Hayslip found his way from Evans, Georgia to the top of the country music charts. And, we were lucky enough to hear his story at the most recent Nashville Berklee Jam at The Rutledge in downtown Nashville, hosted by Eric Normand. Ben Hayslip 022414

Ben attributes his success in the music business to three things: refusing to fail, working hard at it every day and writing songs that he loves.

But navigating the industry wasn’t always an easy journey for Ben, who took his mom’s advice and moved to Nashville in 1994 to join his childhood friend Rhett Akins (who then had a record deal).

On one hand, Ben had three publishing offers after his first year in Nashville to choose from. He had his first cuts within a couple of years with Trace Akins and Blackhawk. Other successes in his career, though, he worked for years to see.

“I spent a lot of years trying to be someone I just wasn’t,” says Ben. “I was trying to write songs that I thought other people would like, and put more chords in them because I thought I should. The moment I started to forget about what was on the radio and just write what I loved, things started to change in my career.”

Ben had built up a successful company selling ball caps on the side while writing songs to provide for his growing family. He would sell caps from 7:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. every day, then write in the afternoon. His business was really taking off when he got a call from Rusty Gaston.

Crowd 022414Rusty was starting a new publishing company, This Music, and he wanted Ben to be his first signed writer, but there was a condition.

“Rusty told me that he would only sign me if I focused on 100 percent on writing songs, not selling ball caps,” Ben recalls. “He said that he believed that I had it in me to be a songwriter of the year. It was a really important shift in my focus and career.”

Haylip’s career really started to hit a new level when he focused on writing songs and ‘doing what he loved.’ When Ben and Rhett connected with Dallas Davidson, something even more magical started to happen.

“We just instantly knew each other because we had all grown up in Georgia,” says Ben. “They understood who I was. We started writing songs that we loved and wanted to listen to, and it turns out that other people loved them too.”

Their ‘tailgate and truck’ songs resonated with people and redefined country music. The songwriting trio, known as the Peach Pickers, has churned out dozens of hits in recent years, Ben with 15 number ones in five years to his credit.

“Even though I have a lot of songs in my catalog I can’t sing, I can sing and play every one of my hit songs,” says Ben. “I’m not the best musician or singer, but I think that if I can sing it so can Bubba driving down the road in his truck. There’s something to that kind of

Ben Hayslip performing hits with Eric Normand (guitar), Mike Chapman (bass) and Nick Forchione (drums).

Ben Hayslip performing hits with Eric Normand (guitar), Mike Chapman (bass) and Nick Forchione (drums).

simplicity.”

Ben recognizes that even though tailgates and trucks are still very real to him because of his rural roots, country music needs to shift into something different because “it’s all been done.” He’s working on figuring out what’s next every day he writes.

So what’s next for this two-time Songwriter of the Year winner?

“I’d really like to someday be inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame along with some of the legends I grew up listening to like Ray

Charles and Otis Redding,” he says.

Given his work ethic, long list of success and passion for doing what he sets out to do, I have no doubt that it’s just a matter of time.

For more information about Ben, find him on facebook or follow him on twitter. You can also watch Ben’s talk and performances in their entirety below, special thanks to Jack Zander for videotaping this event.

The Berklee Nashville Jam is a bi-monthly event held on the last Monday of every other month at the Rutledge and hosted by Berklee alum, Eric Normand ‘89. The event, which is open to the public, is free for alumni and a guest; and $5 for non-alums. After the guest speaker, attendees are welcome to jam with the house band and others from the Nashville music community. For more information about the Berklee Nashville Jam, visit www.nashvilleberkleejam.com.

Nashville Berklee Jam with Dallas Davidson – February 18, 2013 – Part II

By Eric Normand

We were only halfway through our very first Nashville Berklee Jam at The Rutledge and those in attendance had received some amazing perspective, and enjoyed an inspired performance from one of Nashville’s top songwriters, Dallas Davidson. After Dallas’s portion of the night was over we took a moment to reorganize and then began the open jam portion of this night.

Among those who performed were alums, Amanda Williams (also one of the organizers of this event), Mason Stevens, who played a Delta blues instrument known as the “Diddly Bo”, drummers, John Rodrigue and Russell Garner, and bassist, Austin Solomon (Austin took a means solo in Cissy Strut). A few others from the Nashville music community also sat in on drums, Austin Marshall and Tom Drenon.

All the performances were strong and everyone who participated had a great time, but don’t take my word for it, check out the videos below to get a better idea of what can happen at The Nashville Berklee Jam!

The Nashville Berklee Jam is held at The Rutledge on the last Monday of every other month, with the next event to take place on Monday, April 29 featuring special guest, Bassist, Bryan Beller (Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Mike Keneally) who will also be joined by his wife, Kira Small.

For more info about future events, please visit the Nashville Berklee Jam website NashvilleBerkleeJam.com

If you would like to learn more about the Nashville music industry, please check out my website and book “The Nashville Musician’s Survival Guide”.

Nashville Berklee Jam with Dallas Davidson, February 18, 2013 – Part I

By Eric Normand

A cold, damp rainy night wasn’t enough to stop Berklee alumni and others from converging on one of Nashville’s coolest venues, The Rutledge in what would be the first Nashville Berklee Jam to be held in downtown Nashville. Monday, February 18 marked the one-year anniversary of this event which had previously been held in the suburb of Kingston Springs, and the move to downtown aims to kick the event’s profile up a notch as this centrally located venue is perhaps one of the finest performance rooms in the city.

People began rolling in around 6:30, and the guest speaker on this night, 2012 NSAI, ACM, and BMI songwriter of the year, Dallas Davidson began his portion of the night shortly after 7:00 PM. Dallas, Rhett Akins, and Ben Haslip, make up the songwriting team known as “The Peach Pickers”, who in recent years have become the most successful songwriting team in the history of Nashville. Since moving to Music City from Albany, GA in 2004 Dallas has had over 100 of his compositions recorded including 13 number one hits – “Gimme That Girl”, “Just a Kiss”, “The One That Got Away”, and “I Don’t Want This Night to End”, to name a few.

I gave him a brief introduction, he spoke briefly about his journey to Nashville and how he got his start as an “in-the- trenches commercial songwriter”, and then he quickly got into some questions and answers.

In response to a question about naysayers along the way during the years leading up to his recent success, Dallas candidly responded:

“The list is long and distinguished… starting with my dad… [Laughs]… a lot of publishing companies passed on me, all of ‘em did… the first time around and the second time around.”

He went on to tell of how he got his first big break, a story which underscores the importance of a person’s character.

“A guy named Brett Jones actually signed me to a publishing deal. He started a company called Big Borassa, I was his first writer that he ever signed, and he swears that he didn’t even listen to my songs; he just got to know me and believed in me… I was very, very fortunate to have somebody like that guy come in there and give me a shot and write with me and teach me a lot of stuff.”

Dallas spoke about how he uses his small-town roots to provide topics to write about, as he wants to be “the mouthpiece” of his rural friends. He shared that he likes to write the melody first, then the groove before starting on the lyrics.

In response to “What advice would you give aspiring songwriters?” Dallas replied:

You’ve got to write a bunch of songs… I mean this in the friendliest, competitive way… your direct competition is me and Rhett Akins and were writing 100 to 150 songs a year… Work harder than us and believe in yourself, because that’s all we did… don’t take no for an answer…

Concluding his portion of the night was a mini set of four of his recent number one hits, which we were fortunate to capture on video (courtesy Jack Zander). The band behind him on this night consisted of the players who backed Dallas and Rhett Akins on the 2012 Luke Bryan Farm Tour – Tom Good on bass, Nick Forchione on Drums, and me on guitar. Dallas’s heartfelt performance was well received, and upon its conclusion I thanked him and took a few minutes to reorganize for the jam portion of this event (which will be explored in part two of this blog). Meanwhile, please enjoy the videos below from Dallas’s performance!

The Nashville Berklee Jam is held at The Rutledge on the last Monday of every other month, with the next event to take place on Monday, April 29 featuring special guest, Bassist, Bryan Beller (Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Mike Keneally) who will also be joined by his wife, Kira Small.

For more info about future events, please visit the Nashville Berklee Jam website NashvilleBerkleeJam.com

If you would like to learn more about the Nashville music industry, please check out my website and book “The Nashville Musician’s Survival Guide”.

 

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