Country music is all about the songwriting.
Well, it should be all about the songwriting, but that’s a rant for another time. Because today, the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame announced their 2023 class, recognizing some of the best songwriters that Music City has to offer.
The five inductees named to the class of 2023 include Keith Urban, Kix Brooks, David Lee Murphy, Casey Beathard and Rafe Van Hoy.
In announcing the class, Rich Hallworth, Chair of the Hall of Fame’s Board of Directors, said the event announcing a new class is always a highlight of the year:
“To this stellar group of songwriters, we say thank you for your songs and for your artistry. You are exceptional talents, and we are proud to honor you this fall, when you officially join your legendary peers in the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.”
While Keith Urban may not always get the credit he deserves as a songwriter, he actually wrote many of his early hits that propelled him to superstardom, including songs like “But For the Grace Of God,” “Somebody Like You,” and “Days Go By,” among many others.
Kix Brooks, meanwhile, co-wrote many of the hits that he recorded as one half of Brooks & Dunn, including “Brand New Man,” “Red Dirt Road,” and “Only in America.”
And while David Lee Murphy may be best known for ’90s hits like “Dust On the Bottle” and “Party Crowd,” he actually has quite the catalog of hits that he’s written for other artists with songs like Jake Owen’s “Anywhere With You,” Jason Aldean’s “Big Green Tractor” and several songs for Kenny Chesney including “Livin’ In Fast Forward” and “Pirate Flag.”
Casey Beathard, meanwhile, is hands down one of my favorite songwriters in Nashville. He’s written a ton of songs with Eric Church, including hits like “Mr. Misunderstood,” “Hell Of a View,” “Like A Wrecking Ball” and “Homeboy.” And his catalog also includes songs like “Don’t Blink” by Kenny Chesney, “How ’bout Them Cowgirls” by George Strait, “Ten Rounds With Jose Cuervo” and “Drinkin’ Bone” by Tracy Byrd, “Right Where I Need To Be” by Gary Allan, and “Why We Drink” by Justin Moore, which he wrote wrote with fellow member of the Hall of Fame class of 2023, David Lee Murphy.
And you may not know the name Rafe Van Hoy, but there’s no doubt you know his songs, including “Golden Ring,” which was recorded by George Jones and Tammy Wynette, and “Hurt Me Bad In a Real Good Way” by Patty Loveless.
It’s an absolutely stacked class, with hit after #1 hit between them, and personally it’s just exciting to see songwriting once again take center stage in country music.
This year’s class will be officially inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame during the 53rd Anniversary Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Gala on Wednesday, October 11 at the Music City Center here in Nashville.
