Some of the major nominees at Sunday nights 61st annual Grammy Awards are women working in the genre of country music, from Kacey Musgraves to Margo Price. But those artists still arent gaining traction at country radio, an ongoing issue that NBCs Today Show addressed in its Sunday Spotlight segment.
The report centered on the work of the Girls of Nashville collective, a group of singer-songwriters, including Caitlyn Smith, Heather Morgan and Mags Duval, who stage regular all-women concerts in Nashville. In the Today clip, theyre shown performing at City Winery, with guests Maggie Rose and ace drummer Meg Coleman. (Their next concert is slated for March 21st at the club 3rd & Lindsley.)
This town is very relationship based, Morgan tells Today correspondent Morgan Radford. You have to be able to hang with the guys, or go to the bars, and for some of us ladies, that doesnt sound like that much fun, adds Smith.
Rolling Stone contributor Marissa R. Moss is also interviewed in the piece, along with CMTs senior vice president of music strategy, Leslie Fram.
Its a town based around a lot of old myths, says Moss. Weve been fed for a really long time that women dont want to hear women and that their singles dont do well or they dont sell out tours. No one is really willing to rock the boat.
Watch the full report above.