Benjy Davis, Kat Higgins, and Ryan Larkins awarded the 2024 NSAI ‘Song of the Year’ Honor For “The Painter”
Award winners celebrate on stage at the close of the 7th annual Nashville Songwriter Awards presented by City National Bank (credit: Jason Davis for NSAI)
September 25, 2024 (Nashville,Tenn.) – Last night, songwriters, music fans, and the entertainment industry all joined together in a celebration of songwriters, packing the house at Ryman Auditorium for the 7th annual Nashville Songwriter Awards presented by City National Bank. The performance-filled evening honored the often hidden faces behind the hit songs shared worldwide, the songwriter. The evening revealed category winners for ‘Song,’ ‘Songwriter,’ and ‘Songwriter-Artist’ of the year, as well as the 2024 ‘Legendary Song’ award and the ’10 Songs I Wish I’d Written’ awards.
The night began with a stunning performance featuring Amanda Shires to honor NSAI’s 2024 ‘Legendary Song’ - “Always On My Mind” written by WAYNE CARSON, JOHNNY CHRISTOPHER, and MARK JAMES. The program then rolled forward featuring dozens of performers as they took centerstage to celebrate the award categories and honored songs of the night.
"As songwriters still press to navigate compensation and the challenges of the era of artificial intelligence, The Nashville Songwriter Awards are an emotional reminder that the entire music ecosystem begins with the song," said NSAI Executive Director, Bart Herbison.
Ashley Gorley was honored as ‘Songwriter of the Year’ for a record eighth time, and the audience was treated to performances of “World on Fire” by Nate Smith and “Young Love and Saturday Nights” by Chris Young to honor two of Gorley’s hits from the award-winning year.
The top song honor of the night, ‘Song of the Year,’ was awarded to Benjy Davis, Kat Higgins, and Ryan Larkins for their hit song “The Painter” (recorded by Cody Johnson), and 11 additional songs and their writers were celebrated as winners in the cherished peer-voted '10 Songs I Wish I'd Written' award category!
Alan Jackson was honored with the Kris Kristofferson Lifetime Achievement Award, and audiences relished in several performances featuring songs co-written by Jackson, including “Livin’ On Love” performed by Hailey Whitters, “Here In The Real World” performed by Lee Ann Womack, and “Midnight In Montgomery” performed by Josh Turner.
Another prestigious award of the night, the NSAI President’s Keystone Award, was presented to the incomparable producer and songwriter Buddy Cannon, recognizing Cannon’s many years of significant contributions to the music industry and for the betterment of all songwriters. Cannon was honored by Jamey Johnson with a performance of “Give It Away”, a song co-written by Cannon, Johnson, and Bill Anderson.
In addition to the organizational awards and the Song, Songwriter, and Songwriter-Artist of the Year, 35 songwriters were recognized and honored throughout the evening with a ‘10 Songs I Wish I’d Written’ award, a favorite in the industry, as the peer-voted honor signifies the height of acknowledgement and admiration from fellow songwriters for their astonishing work. Many of the songwriters themselves took the stage to perform their honored songs, and guest performer Lauren Watkins participated in the evening with a performance of “Last Night” to honor writers John Byron, Ashley Gorley, Charlie Handsome, Jacob Kasher Hindlin.
LEGENDARY SONG
"Always On My Mind"
Written by Wayne Carson, Johnny Christopher, Mark James
SONG OF THE YEAR
“The Painter”
Written by Benjy Davis, Kat Higgins, Ryan Larkins
SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR
Ashley Gorley
SONGWRITER-ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Jelly Roll
KRIS KRISTOFFERSON LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Alan Jackson
Given in recognition to a songwriter whose works have made a significant
contribution to the American songbook and who has inspired the careers of others.
NSAI PRESIDENT'S KEYSTONE AWARD
Buddy Cannon
Given in recognition of significant contributions to the betterment of all songwriters, chosen by the current NSAI President.
'10 SONGS I WISH I’D WRITTEN’ AWARDS
Each year, the highly-coveted ‘10 Songs I Wish I’d Written Awards’ are voted on by Professional Songwriter Members of NSAI honoring the work of their songwriter peers. Songs eligible for the award have at least one Nashville-based writer and charted in the Top 20 of Billboard Airplay chart in the Christian, Country, Mainstream Top 40, and/or Rock genres between May 1, 2023, and April 30, 2024. The NSAI Song Of The Year is the highest vote-getter.
“Handle On You”
Written by: Monty Criswell, Parker McCollum
(recorded by: Parker McCollum)
“I’m Not Pretty”
Written by: Mackenzie Carpenter, Micah Carpenter, Megan Moroney, Ben Williams
(recorded by: Megan Moroney)
“Last Night”
Written by: John Byron, Ashley Gorley, Charlie Handsome, Jacob Kasher Hindlin
(recorded by: Morgan Wallen)
“Man Made A Bar”
Written by: Rocky Block, Jordan Dozzi, Larry Fleet, Brett Tyler
(recorded by: Eric Church and Morgan Wallen)
“Need A Favor”
Written by: Jelly Roll, Austin Nivarel, Joe Ragosta, Rob Ragosta
(recorded by: Jelly Roll)
“Next Thing You Know”
Written by: Jordan Davis, Greylan James, Chase McGill, Josh Osborne
(recorded by: Jordan Davis)
“Pretty Little Poison”
Written by: Ryan Beaver, Jared Keim, Warren Zeiders
(recorded by: Warren Zeiders)
“Standing Room Only”
Written by: Tommy Cecil, Patrick Murphy, Craig Wiseman
(recorded by: Tim McGraw)
“Try That In A Small Town”
Written by: Kurt Allison, Tully Kennedy, Kelley Lovelace, Neil Thrasher
(recorded by: Jason Aldean)
“Where The Wild Things Are”
Written by: Randy Montana, Dave Turnbull
(recorded by: Luke Combs)
“White Horse”
Written by: Chris Stapleton, Dan Wilson
(recorded by: Chris Stapleton)
Staying true to its name, the 7th annual Nashville Songwriter Awards presented by City National Bank kept the spotlight on songwriters and shared the magic behind how a song is written and heard through the creators’ mind and hearts. NSAI’s annual awards will return for the 8th annual ceremony on September 23rd, 2025 to Ryman Auditorium continuing the cherished event once again!
The 7th annual awards is presented for the 6th year in a row by City National Bank and has several incredible event partners that supported the evening of performances. Official partners include: Loeb & Loeb LLP, Renaissance Nashville Hotel, The Recording Industry Association of America, Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp, Jack Daniel’s, Musicnotes, Recording Academy Songwriters & Composers Wing, SoundExchange, Tennessee Association of Broadcasters, and The Mechanical Licensing Collective.
Produced each year by the Nashville Songwriters Association International, the event supports the world’s largest not-for-profit songwriters trade organization dedicated to protecting the rights of and serving aspiring and professional songwriters in all genres of music. Follow @nsaiofficial / #songwriterawards on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to stay up-to-date on all announcements and news year round.
About City National Bank:
City National Bank, a subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada, is the largest bank headquartered in Los Angeles with $92 billion in assets as of July 31, 2024. Founded in 1954, City National provides personalized banking, investment and trust services in select markets including Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, the San Francisco Bay Area, New York City, Nashville, Atlanta, Delaware, Las Vegas, Washington D.C. and Miami.* In addition, the company and its investment affiliates manage or administer $101 billion in client investment assets. City National is dedicated to strengthening communities, and in 2023 alone, the company made more than $11 million in charitable contributions to nonprofits that support the communities it serves.
For more information about City National, visit the company’s website at cnb.com.
*City National Bank does business in Miami and the state of Florida as CN Bank.
About the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI):
The Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI)is the world's largest not-for-profit songwriters trade organization.Established in 1967, the membership of more than 5,000 spans the United States and 10 foreign countries. For over 56 years, NSAI has been dedicated to protecting the rights of and serving aspiring and professional songwriters in all genres of music. For more information, visit nashvillesongwriters.com.
