Young Entertainment Professionals

Meet the Director of Creative/A&R at River House Artists, Zebb Luster. He is the founder of YNOT Wednesdays Songwriter Spotlight, sponsored by Futureshirts and Regions Bank, a songwriter round created to give music talent a platform to share their originals. He is also the co-owner of YNOT Lifestyle Brand, an apparel company with a purpose to inspire people to overcome life’s obstacles. In thi...

Wes Davenport is the Culture Marketing Manager for Universal Music Group, where he partners the company’s artists with brands, universities, non-profits and lifestyle outlets. His team manages UMUSIC Experience, a national network of the most driven and creative college students.  Prior to joining UMG, Wes founded marketing and PR agency ECHO AVE, serving clients like Red Bull, the Mercy Lounge co...

Session musician and producer, Derek Wells has worked with household names like Dolly Parton, Steven Tyler, and Josh Turner – his most recent project involved producing Maren Morris’ latest album, GIRL. This is a great episode about navigating industry relationships as it pertains to client projects, preparing for an audition, and why a well-crafted song is the foundation of the creative process.

In this episode, we chat with Country songwriter/artist Spencer Crandell about building an organic following through digital and in person interaction! Spencer has toured with Dustin Lynch, Chris Lane, Morgan Wallen, Josh Turner and others!

Today’s guest is the Creative Coordinator in Publishing at Creative Nation, Shaina Botwin. Shaina above all is a true fan of music. She found her dream role in the industry by way of connecting with other music fans and researching songs and the people behind them. We touch on everything from why she pursued publishing, her thoughts on company culture, especially that of Creative Nation. She share...

This episode features Bryant Urich and Josh Cross. We talk about Bryant's background in documentary films, music and why he started a company (TrustAccelerator) that creates content mostly podcasts, for businesses who want to elevate their voice. We also talk about career strategy, our favorite Netflix shows, podcasts all in a 20 min recording in the Netflix Studio at PodX.

Eddie Island claimed a spot in the Top 14 on American Idol this past season and his debut album is officially the fastest post-idol Album release ever. He won over Katy Perry from the beginning with a performance of his original “Stay Okay” which is also listed on the new album. Eddie also got the chance to perform '7 Years' with Lukas Graham on the show too. Eddie’s style, personality and music e...

Ivory grew up performing and teaching herself songwriting and production. Her music caught the attention of Grammy award-winning producer, Ed Cash and she moved to Nashville from North Carolina. And she went on to sign a record deal with Justin Timberlake’s label Villa 40 and has collaborated with writers like Chris DeStefano, Jimmy Robbins, Lori McKenna, Shane McAnally and others. She’s received...

Our Director of Community Engagement Rachel Knight Zola offers advice for balancing your personal life and career in the entertainment industry, tips to making your resume stand out, and ways to manage mental health. She shares her personal journey becoming an entrepreneur in recruiting, life coaching, and helping people become the best in their area of expertise. Rachel hosts our monthly mixers a...

Ben Danaher has spent time curating his songwriting craft from the likes of Country, Blues and Americana influences such as Merle Haggard, Ray Charles and Darrell Scott. Ben Danaher is a Texas native and comes from a musical family, specifically his father who spent time touring as a singer/songwriter and greatly impacted Ben’s decision to pursue that same career for himself. Ben has participated...

As Director of Strategy at Made In Network, Emilija Saxe specializes in digital content strategy, YouTube channel management, and video-specific media buys. She is YouTube Certified in Asset Monetization, Channel Growth, Content Ownership, and Content Strategy. She is currently a member of Belmont University's Young Professionals Advisory Board and was previously a board member for Nashville's You...

We’re following up our last episode featuring Lee Krabel and Ryan Beaver of SmackSongs. Another writer from the SmackSongs roster is here with us and her name is Renee Blair. Renee played our last holiday Rewind Show and she’s with us today to chat about her new music and songwriting journey. Renee shares the steps that led her to a publishing deal and the story behind her recent release “Gotta Qu...

In this episode, we sit down with one of YEP’s founders, Lee Krabel. He is the Senior Creative Director at SMACKSONGS. Joining him is Ryan Beaver who is a country singer/songwriter signed to SMACKSongs and BMI. Lee and Ryan have known each other for a while and in this episode their share their perspectives on industry relationships and how to let opportunities happen naturally rather than try for...

In this episode we talk all about artist management. What does it take to manage an artist and their brand well? If you are the one looking for a manager, what are the steps you need to take to prepare for that business relationship? Today we have the co-founder of YEP and artist manager, Marc Rucker with us. He current works at Big Loud Management and oversees the day to day for country artist, C...

Rocky Block is a songwriter, artist and musician. He gives a lot of great advice about booking gigs and time commitment. His father Billy Block was a huge influence on his path to choosing music as a career. Billy was a prominent executive in the music industry. Radio Host, Drummer and 'Champion of music stars here in Nashville. In 2014 YEP held an event fundraiser, Play One For Billy, at the List...

Sony/Atv songwriter, Trannie Anderson joins us in this episode. Trannie is from Waco, Texas and she moved to Nashville only a few years ago and met her first co-writers through our YEP Nashville Facebook page! Trannie speaks to her music industry community and what it was like finding the right pub deal and getting connected here in Nashville.

This episode features Alexa Simpson, the Director of Marketing at Nashville-based production company, Morris, and as the Founder & Chairman of Team Fox Nashville, a fundraising team for The Michael J. Fox Foundation. We discuss her career path, interview tips, and more!

Austin shares how he found his entire band through YEP, the steps he took to build his career, and how Garth Brooks and John Marks have played a role in his journey as well. Austin is going to tell some pretty amazing stories in this one and we cannot wait for you to hear! You can listen to his latest music including his new single “One Summer” out now at austinburkemusic.com/.

Get to know the story of YEP Nashville through the lens of the organization's founder Andrew Cohen and YEP's current Executive Director Amelia Varni! You'll hear about their music industry journey, the mission of YEP, and how all of the above has shaped their leadership roles in the entertainment industry.