Ten Year Town

Monty Criswell is a Grammy-nominated songwriter originally from Satsuma, Alabama. Over his 30-year career, he has over 300 cuts and his songs have been recorded by some of the most recognizable names in the format including George Strait, Eric Church, Trace Adkins, Parker McCollum, and Scotty McCreery. Criswell has received multiple award nominations, including two Grammy nominations for Country S...

This is a special bonus episode featuring some thoughts on The Writing Life by Annie Dillard.  If you'd like to dig a little deeper you can read more here: https://troycartwright.substack.com/p/finding-a-honey-tree . New Episodes every Tuesday. Find the host Troy Cartwright on Twitter , Instagram .  Social Channels for Ten Year Town: Youtube Facebook Instagram Twitter TikTok This podcast was...

Scott Friedeck is the founder of The Graphic Guitar Guys, a company based in Dripping Springs, Texas that creates custom graphic-wrapped guitars for artists, festivals, and major music brands. Originally from southeast Texas, he founded his company 13 years ago. What started as an idea while touring with Texas artists like Robert Earl Keen and Ryan Beaver has grown into a full-scale business produ...

Simon Tikhman and Chief Zaruk are the co-founders of The Core Entertainment, a music company specializing in artist management, records, and brand partnerships. Since launching in 2019, The Core has built a roster that includes Bailey Zimmerman, Nate Smith, Josh Ross, and Nickelback. In 2024, their artists had multiple chart-topping singles, sold out international tours, and were named CCMA Manage...

Originally from Bracebridge, Ontario, Deric Ruttan has written multiple No. 1 hits for artists like Dierks Bentley, Blake Shelton, and Jason Aldean. His songwriting credits include chart-topping songs such as “Mine Would Be You,” “Any Ol’ Barstool,” and “What Was I Thinkin’.” As an artist, he has released several albums of his own, earning JUNO and Canadian Country Music Award nominations. He is c...

Craig Wiseman is a Grammy-winning songwriter and one of the most successful hitmakers in country music history. Originally from Hattiesburg, Mississippi, he has written over 30 No. 1 songs for artists like Tim McGraw, Blake Shelton, Kenny Chesney, and Florida Georgia Line. His catalog includes career-defining hits such as “Live Like You Were Dying,” “The Good Stuff,” and “Summertime.” In addition...

Craig Wiseman is a GRAMMY-winning songwriter with over 30 No. 1 country hits. Originally from Hattiesburg, Mississippi, he has written songs for Tim McGraw, Blake Shelton, Kenny Chesney, and Florida Georgia Line, including “Live Like You Were Dying,” “The Good Stuff,” and “Summertime.” He founded Big Loud, now a major Nashville music company, and was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of...

Hayes Carll is a Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter originally from The Woodlands, Texas. He has written and recorded multiple albums, including KMAG YOYO, Lovers and Leavers, and Trouble In Mind. The 2010 film Country Strong featured his song “Hard Out Here,” and artists like Kenny Chesney, Lee Ann Womack, and Brothers Osborne have recorded his work. His song “Chances Are” was nominated for Best...

Adam James is a songwriter originally from Loami, Illinois. He has written songs for Kenny Chesney, Luke Combs, Cody Johnson, Jelly Roll, and many others. He recently achieved his first #1 hit with Chesney’s “Knowing You,” which was also nominated for ACM Song Of The Year. Adam is published by Universal Music Publishing Group. In this episode we discuss the "country flip," Knowing You, A...

Brandon Lancaster is an artist, songwriter, and lead vocalist of the Nashville-based band LANCO. Originally from Smyrna, Tennessee, Brandon and his bandmates garnered national attention with their debut single “Greatest Love Story,” which became a No. 1 hit on the Country Airplay chart and was just certified 5x Platinum. LANCO has toured with major acts such as Dierks Bentley, Luke Combs, and Mira...

Conner Smith is a country singer-songwriter from Nashville, Tennessee. He signed his first publishing deal at 16 and released his debut album, Smoky Mountains , in 2024. His breakout hits include “I Hate Alabama” and the Gold-certified “Take It Slow.” He has toured with artists like Thomas Rhett, Cole Swindell, Chase Rice and Parker McCollum. He is currently signed to Big Machine Records’ Valory l...

Kip Moore is an artist and songwriter originally from Tifton, Georgia. He has several multi-platinum records including songs like “Somethin’ ‘bout a Truck,” “More Girls Like You,” and “The Bull.” He is also known for his live show and a rabid touring audience that spans the US, the U.K., Australia, South Africa, and Europe. His new record “Solitary Tracks” is out February 28th; he is currently sig...

Bobby Bones is a radio and TV personality originally from Hot Springs, Arkansas, now based in Nashville. He is best known as the host of the nationally syndicated “Bobby Bones Show,” which is the top country morning show in the United States and Canada. He is also a 2x New York Times best selling author and the winner of Season 27 of Dancing With The Stars. In this episode we discuss how Bobby got...

Ryan Tyndell is a Grammy-nominated songwriter and producer originally from East Texas. He has written songs for some of the biggest names in country music, including Eric Church, Keith Urban, Dierks Bentley, Little Big Town, Hailey Whitters, and more. His song “Springsteen,” recorded by Eric Church, was nominated for Best Country Song at the Grammy Awards in 2013. In addition to his success as a s...

Dave Cohen is an award-winning session musician and producer currently signed as a songwriter to Spirit Music Nashville. Originally from Calgary, Canada, Dave has played on over 50 #1 records and has co-produced songs for Morgan Wallen, Hardy, Jake Owen, Chris Lane, and many more. In addition to his producer and session musician credits, he is a 3x ACM Award Winner for Keyboard Player of the Year....

Billy Montana has had a 30+ year career in Nashville with songs recorded by some of the biggest stars in country music, including number ones with Garth Brooks, Jo Dee Messina, Sara Evans and Lee Brice. This episode originally aired 8/1/23. On this episode, Billy reflects on both the lows (writing for 12 years before having a hit), and the highs (one of his songs entering the chart already at numb...

Originally from a Shreveport, Louisiana, Jacob Davis is a hit songwriter currently signed to Universal Music Publishing. Jacob has written songs for major label artists including Jake Owen, Kolby Cooper, Greylan James, and his brother Jordan Davis. Jacob’s latest radio number one “Buy Dirt” (recorded by Jordan Davis and Luke Bryan) earned him a CMA award for Song of the Year. This episode original...

Host Troy Cartwright and Producer Ben (Ben VanMaarth) sit down to answer to answer our Ten Year Town community submitted questions. In this episode, we discuss what a Nashville co-write is like, battling comparison, protecting your intellectual property, writing by hand vs. writing on your phone, questions about AI and many other stops along the way. If you've got a question, you can submit y...

Josh Crutchmer is a music journalist and author originally from Stillwater, Oklahoma. Josh is a writer and planning editor for the New York Times and a contributor to Rolling Stone. He is set to release his 3rd book, Red Dirt Unplugged, on December 13th. In this episode, we discuss Josh’s journey from Oklahoma to the New York Times, why music journalism is important, the stories behind red dirt le...

This episode features our host Troy Cartwright's interview on the SongTown Podcast. Learn more about SongTown at https://songtown.com/ . "Today’s guest Troy Cartwright (Singer-songwriter/ Host of the Ten Year Town Podcast) reveals his journey through a major label record deal, leaving that, and finding indie streaming success. Now he calls his own creative shots, crushing it with songs l...

Nick Wheeler is a songwriter, guitarist, and co-founder of the band “The All-American Rejects.” Originally from Stillwater, Oklahoma, Nick wrote some of the early 2000s’ biggest hits, including “Swing, Swing,” “Move Along,” “Gives You Hell,” and others. In addition to his work with the band, Nick operates and produces out of his Wheelhouse Studio in Nashville. In this episode, Nick shares why he l...

Travis Denning is an artist and songwriter originally from Warner Robbins, Georgia. Known for his creative storytelling in songs like “David Ashley Parker from Powder Springs” (certified Gold) and his first #1 song “After A Few” (certified Platinum), he has had additional success as a songwriter with cuts on Jason Aldean, Justin Moore, Chase Rice, Cody Johnson, and more. He is currently published...

Marv Green is a grammy nominated songwriter and singer originally from Southern California. Over the course of his multi-decade career, he has had cuts with legendary artists such as George Strait, Eric Church, Tim McGraw, Morgan Wallen and many, many others. His song “Amazed” recorded by Lonestar won the BMI Award for song of the year. Currently, he is signed to Warner Chappell Music and Red Door...

Harry Miree is a professional drummer originally from Birmingham, Alabama. Harry has toured with acts like Hardy, LoCash, Lindsay Ell, Ryan Follies and many, many more. He is also well known in the drumming community for his popular YouTube channel. Currently, he is the Music Director and touring drummer for Hardy. In this episode, Harry returns to Ten Year Town to discuss all that goes into creat...

Tofer Brown is a GRAMMY-nominated songwriter and producer originally from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Tofer has written songs for artists like Jon Pardi, Little Big Town, Lauren Daigle, Keith Urban, Tim McGraw, Carly Pearce and many others. He is currently signed to Concord Music Publishing.  In this episode, Tofer shares his journey, from transferring to Belmont University and then dropping out after onl...