August 29, 2025 • 34 mins
In this special episode, Wayne D sits down with Big Machine Label Group’s visionary founder Scott Borchetta and President of Label Operations Kris Lamb to celebrate an incredible milestone—20 years of Big Machine. From its humble beginnings in 2005 to becoming a powerhouse in the music industry, Big Machine has shaped the careers of icons like Taylor Swift, Tim McGraw, Sheryl Crow, and Rascal Flatts.Scott and Kris reflect on the label’s journey, the evolution of country music, and the unforgettable moments that defined their legacy. They also share behind-the-scenes stories from the Big Machine 20 concert—a star-studded celebration in downtown Nashville featuring Riley Green, Brett Young, Sheryl Crow, and more, kicking off the Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix weekend.Tune in for a heartfelt look at two decades of hits, hustle, and history, and hear what’s next for Big Machine as they continue to break boundaries and champion new talent.📍 Recorded live in Nashville, this is one episode you won’t want to miss.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Listen. I'm not hyping this guy up too much, but
Music City Royalty is in the building with us. Chris Lamb.
How I'm about to get Chris Lamb part of that
twice I listen, Chris Lamb, Scott Borgetta big day for
(00:22):
y'all in general as a record label. Scott, I want
to start with you because it's been a big week
for you personally as well with the honor at MTSU.
What does that mean to you? This You've obviously put
so much into the into the music industry country, but
music industry as a whole. That MTSU was like, Hey,
we're going to rebrand the dang thing.
Speaker 2 (00:43):
Really exciting.
Speaker 3 (00:43):
You know.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Beverly Keel, who's the dean of the Media and Entertainment School,
approached me about five years ago with this idea and
just talking about legacy and you know, giving back, and
you know, it really hit me over the head about
ten years ago, maybe a little longer, that we'd become
industry leaders and we needed to give back more. And
(01:08):
so this opportunity to rename the college the scopworsh Out
of College of Meeting Entertainment was mind bending and really
the mission is to give back because when I went
to college, the irony is I dropped out after two
semesters because I couldn't learn what I wanted to learn.
I wanted to be in the record business. And so
(01:29):
for me to be able to be what I joked
as the gateway drug for these kids, like, hey, there's
a real path now and then there has been for
a while. But also to lift them up. You know,
they do such extraordinary things at MTSU, and because they're
not right here in Nashville, Belmont and Vanderbilt get a
lot of the noise and the credit. So we're just
(01:50):
going to make sure and remind everybody how important because
there's so many great alums from MTSU that are part
of our business, our artists, etc. So we're just going
to be loud about it. And it was a huge honor,
so fun walking through the campus and all the students
coming up and talking and they're so excited about what
we're doing. We've completely renovated the media and Entertainment building.
(02:12):
It's just the beginning, so thank you for bringing that
Up's a huge honor.
Speaker 1 (02:15):
Yeah, it was cool to see and it's and obviously
we are familiar with Big Machine and the success of
the artists and the success that you've had personally as well.
So it was cool to like see that, especially this week.
The timing couldn't have been better.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
Well, that wasn't by accident, So we wanted to be
really loud around the twentieth anniversary. You know, Big Machine
turns twenty Monday, September first, and so today, you know,
it's like, what's the biggest way that we give back
to Nashville and our fans. Let's do the biggest free
show with all of our biggest artists. So there's a
(02:48):
few huge surprises. I'm going to let Lamb bust out
on the on one of them, one of his favorite
duo records of the year.
Speaker 4 (02:57):
I mean, like, you're the only friend that I have
as college, so I think that's pretty incredible.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Hey, my name is on a college list of do not.
Oh yeah, yeah, that's way different.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
I was thinking about this though, because Scott probably has
like one million plaques celebrating like just platinum, Diamond awards
and like, legit, now his name is going to be
out of all of these certificates of education.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Dude, Like you figured out a way to hack the
plaque system.
Speaker 4 (03:20):
There's gonna be like a million practice hacked the plaque.
Speaker 3 (03:24):
It's sick.
Speaker 4 (03:24):
And I say that because, dude, I've had the luxury
of working with Scott for the past fifteen years, and
I feel like people are in the property environment that
they' raised in, and so like Scott's kind of like
my work daddy, you know literally, I mean, dude, I
won't be where I on if it wasn't for obviously
like Scott and the entrepreneurial spirit that he brings, the
Big Machine label group, and the opportunities that he brings
not only obviously not to students but his executives. But
(03:44):
I try to like get like, dude, do you know
how cool this is? Like he how many do you have?
Like hypothetically he probably.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
We have a few?
Speaker 3 (03:54):
Last one that he got. I'm like, hey, so what's
like the process? When a Ferrari comes? He's like, what
do you mean? Like, well, like, how does it you?
How do you see?
Speaker 4 (04:00):
It comes on like a flatbed truck. Is there like
a parade outside? I guess I don't have a.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
Fray, you know what I mean?
Speaker 4 (04:06):
I can have a twenty sixteen very nice car. I'm
excited to potentially have a car car like a fry
one day. I'm like, bro, next time you get one,
let me know. I will stand outside and a plot as.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
It comes flags cheerleaders. Now, dude, Lamb was pretty stoked
this morning because we dreamt jumped in the s F
ninety spider have top down and he's he's it was working.
It bit him. I'm like, Lamb, this car is here.
You look in this car.
Speaker 4 (04:31):
Actually like phasically fit me too, because I was like
I could like get into it. I'm like, oh right, Scott,
you have my love language gifts.
Speaker 1 (04:37):
By the way, that's really what this whole interview is for,
is exactly. Yeah, flam needs Lambo.
Speaker 3 (04:44):
Yeah exactly. That's actually funny.
Speaker 4 (04:46):
You say that though, because on my birthday he sent
me a picture of a Lambeau that said Lamba on
a license plate.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
I'm like, yo, dog, you can't be said.
Speaker 2 (04:52):
I said, happy birthdaypreaded that.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
You open up the car there's a five dollars Starbucks
in car.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Exactly.
Speaker 4 (05:00):
No, I mean, I mean, I said, because like truly
it's important, especially this week, you know, I mean, They're
not to be weird, but there will never be another
Scotpod shut up, and so like these you're almost where
we got to like take a second and recognize, like
this is cool, dude, really really cool. So I'm proud
of you for being able to do that and now
obviously be able to aspire all these people.
Speaker 3 (05:20):
The next party, Hardy came from MT.
Speaker 4 (05:22):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:23):
Well, let me while while we're on the subject of
Big Big Machine and the success. Uh they're celebrating twenty years. Lamb.
You just said you've been there fifteen What brought you
to a Big Machine? And we'll get to the history
of Big Machine and how it exists, but like what
brought you because the other thing about fifteen years at
the same record label like is not well and it's
(05:43):
like and that's not like a knock on anybody, but
sometimes people change label gigs like they've changed their shirt
in the morning.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
Well again, that's the testament to Scots. It gave me
a lot of opportunities within the label group to grow
and so you know, I came with a band that
may or may not be the special guest tonight from
a company that was owned by the Walt Disney Company handtent.
Speaker 3 (06:04):
I don't know how much more we can drop.
Speaker 2 (06:05):
That's pretty good.
Speaker 3 (06:06):
Yeah, I mean, I mean, maybe the.
Speaker 4 (06:07):
Last thing I would say is that Labor Day is
coming up on Mondays. This might be like the last
like summer night.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
Perhaps it could be.
Speaker 4 (06:13):
Yeah, but I came with those dudes over the big Machine.
I was really fortunate enough that Scott gave me the
place to the land after that, and then immediately of
course started working with Taylor right before we h dropped
Speak Now and signed Tim McGraw, and so it was
just like termendous success. I was a West Coast regional
back then. I was telling Scott about this yesterday, Like, dude,
(06:33):
being a West Coast regional like our buddy Billy, it
is a very hard job but also too and you've
got like acts like Taylor Swift, Rascal Flats and uh
Tim McGraw popping like that. I mean, dude, I was
in the my pool every day in Scott's cile, Arizona,
with I bought one of those like yellow Sony waterproof phones. Yeah,
just answer calls all day long and just receive airplay.
Speaker 2 (06:53):
But you know from that obviously, but from that, I.
Speaker 4 (06:58):
Mean, dude, we had a we had dot records with
was a jav between Scott or Republic for three years
that he gave me the opportunity to go run from
over there, and then after that we kind of merged
those teams together. So it is very unique to be
raised within like one label group, but there's been multiple
different opportunities within that label group that's obviously been kind
of somewhat similar to JO.
Speaker 3 (07:16):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
I mean you talk about Ashley Sedoti, who's our senior
vice president for the Valerie Music Company, she was an intern.
So for me, there's so much pride to give all
of these great executives the opportunity to go all the way.
Now they both lead the imprints and you know, there's
you always want to make sure that everybody's got a
(07:36):
path to what their dream is, and that really kind
of culminates what this week's all about.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
You know.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
It's like can you dream big enough? You know? And
that was really the mission back to MTSU to inspire
them and say, hey, I was a middle class kid
from the valley in California and had no idea how
to get here, but we were not going to be stopped.
And so that's what I want to offer you is
this experience and know that you can go all the way.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
So take us back to the beginning. You were going
to school, you knew you wanted to work in records,
and we all have a love for music, and especially
country music. That's why we are where we are. Did
you not have any ability to play an instiment or sing?
Speaker 2 (08:19):
Oh no, I played in bands for years.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
Oh wow? So what made you? What made you not
go that way and instead going to the label side.
Speaker 2 (08:25):
So my dad was in the record business, so it
was around so he was promotion first generation, and so
I got to learn so much about the business being
around him. But that didn't provide a path to a
real job. And so I actually came to Nashville in
nineteen eighty one to visit him. He had moved down
(08:45):
from California nineteen seventy nine and he was working an
independent country group and they needed a bass player. And
he goes, wow, you should go audition for this band.
I'm like, well, I'm not sure if I want to
play country. I'm I'm a skate punk kid from southern California.
And he goes, They're on tour, and I'm like, nineteen
years old. They're on tour. So I went and got
the gig. I never went back to California, fell in
(09:07):
love with Nashville, fell in love with country music. And
so when I I was with this group for about
a year, came back and literally went to work for
my dad in the mailroom. And so that's like, okay,
I'm doing that and playing in bands at night. And
it was one of those things once I put the
band thing to the side and put all my attention
into the business. You know, every time I put in
(09:31):
a pound, I got a two pound return, and then
at night with club owners and band members, you give
it all back. It's like, Okay, let's just see what
happens when I put everything into this, and it's been
so blessed. You know, it's it hasn't been easy by
any stretch, but you know, we got here. And so
it was really that burning desire of you know, I
want to be in this business so badly and I
want to hit One of the things I learned early
(09:51):
on too, is especially playing with this country band, there
were so many things I knew just by osmosis, by
being around it, and then go, how do you know that?
I'm like, how do you not know that?
Speaker 3 (10:02):
You know?
Speaker 2 (10:02):
This is your job, And so that was another thing
that really inspired me with musicians is to help explain
the business to them because it's a different language when
you're talking to an artist and so helping them, you know,
you look back at all my experiences and what's the
why and what's the how, and that was so important
where I was able to explain things to them early on.
Now you can go online and get an idea of
(10:24):
what to do, but back then that was experience and
fighting your way through.
Speaker 1 (10:28):
You know. The difference about reading it online too and
like going out and learning it yourself is the fact
that once you've learned it yourself, you don't have to
understand it. Once you read it, you have to understand
it and apply it. You go out and do it,
you're already applying it, right.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
Yeah, it's like driving a race car two in miles
an hour. You can do it online all day long,
but let's put your button seat and see what you
really got online.
Speaker 1 (10:51):
With the success of a big machine in twenty years,
there has to be a level of I'm not afraid
to fail, and within that success with the Ferraris and
whatever else you're able to provide for yourself and your family.
There have been failures. Oh yeah, So what about those failures,
whether it was you put money into this and it
didn't turn out, you acquired a record label, it didn't
(11:14):
turn out, Like, what are the failures that you can
stand on today knowing like they had to happen for
me to get where I'm at.
Speaker 2 (11:20):
Yeah, I've never been afraid to fail, you know, I've
I've also never really gone over my skis in all
my investments, etc. We've always built a very specific foundation.
And so you know, you've got to learn from their failures.
So if you just look at it as a lessons,
then they're not so much as failures. It's like I
learned from that, don't do that again. I'll tell an artist.
(11:41):
I'm like, you're on the train tracks. That is not
light at the end of the tunnel. That's a train.
Get off the tracks and oh no, we think it's
we think we're good. Then they get run over. I'm like,
that hurt, didn't it? So it's not my ego talking,
it's my experience talking. So every failure leads to a
learn I love that.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
It's not my ego, it's my experience and it's and
it's tough because in what we do. And on my
side too, it very much can be like, yeah, I'll
figure it out. I'll figure it out to somebody who
has doesn't have the experience. That's I like how you
worded that.
Speaker 2 (12:14):
Well. One of the things too that Lamb and our
whole team is we're students of this game every day.
If anybody comes in and says we know it all,
that's the beginning of the downfall. We don't know it all,
but I can guarantee you we will find out. If
we get an answer question that we don't know the
answer to, we'll find it. But you've got to remain
a student of the game period the end.
Speaker 4 (12:35):
I mean, even to add on to that, it's like
we know that we know what we know and that
the real obligation. That was a wake up every day
with the genuine it's of curiosity to put the puzzle
together because the world is changing every single day. Man,
one of my favorite quotes I'm going to blotch, but
it is the other side of that is the Winston Churchill.
Success is not final and failure is not futile. And
that's the whole thing about the dude fail learn you know,
(12:59):
do better, get back up, but also recognize that when
you are at that peak of success, that you're not
always going to be there. You got to keep on
reinventing yourself. And again, that's one of the things that
amazes me about Scott because obviously as a student of
him and all the things that he's done. Dude, So
after earlier this week, after obviously INTSU renamed their college,
(13:21):
he was in the office. I'm like, dude, what are
you doing? He was in my office in a chair,
we were talking. I'm like, you came back to the
office after this amazing celebration. And I say that because
it's just another testament to his character and his will
to where he's like, dude, to keep on pushing, Which
is great for our artists because I think that one
of the many things that we're fully aligned on as
well is that our greatest responsibility is to the artists
(13:43):
that we represent in the art that they create. And
that's the way in which to where we feel like
we could potentially like shape popular culture through that.
Speaker 1 (13:51):
You know, as you celebrate twenty years tonight here on
Lower Broadway, what keeps you exhibit it? Right? He said
that we're back in the office. We hear all the time,
you know, through talking to guys like Bill Luberts, who
is I've done this for twenty three years, I was
I was a PD for a short while in Vegas,
(14:12):
and Bill Luberts is like one of the most world
class guys that's ever worked a record that I've met.
But you have people like that working for you, what
makes you still want to show up to the office
Because you've made money, you've had success. I mean, you
could just let the checks roll in and catch up
with LAMB once a week and be like, how are things?
Talk to you later, I'm in the pool, like why why?
Why still show up the way you do?
Speaker 2 (14:33):
You know, I when this question comes up, it's you know,
I've worked my whole career to get here, and why
waste it. There'll be a time when I've timed out.
I know that, But right now it's still so curious,
and there's so much happening on a daily basis. You know,
when we started this band, all we needed needed was
(14:54):
all In two thousand and five, it was a different world. Yeah,
we had every lever man. You know, I'm coming out
of Universal and dream Works and the number one radio
promotion guy when radio was king. It's still one of
the crown princes, but it's not everything. Everything is everything now.
(15:15):
But the timing was so right for me in my
career to be able to go, okay, I've got enough
wait and enough goodwill at radio. When we start this label,
I know that we're going to get a few shots.
I've got a honeymoon period. So our first single went
top twenty with Danielle Peck, our second single went to
(15:36):
number one with Jack Ingram. Then we launched Taylor Swift
and so we were just so fortunate she did all right.
And then that momentum we are on such a crazy ride.
We were lamb and I were just looking at one
of our weekly reports from two from our second year,
from two thousand and seven. It was the year and
(15:58):
ironically it was a eighteen years ago this week when
we launched Garth Brooks More Than a Memory. It's the
only single in history that debuted at number one on
Billboard Airplay Chart Country Airplay Chart. It'll never happen again,
never happened before. But we just look at these things,
and you know, one of the early mantras that we
still use today is start at crazy and work backward,
and the whole idea is what's the craziest thing we
(16:20):
could do? You know who, how big can we think?
How big can we dream? And when you put that
in the ether and we talk about it every day,
it's like, Okay, we're making this become a reality. Because
one of those things you put that tent pole into
the future, it's like, what's the path to that work?
Backward from that.
Speaker 1 (16:38):
The more success that you've had on the on the
business side has let you be successful on the personal
side as well. As we talk about like the Borcetta
bourbon just a little while ago, Right, how do you
know the right time to put your name on something?
And I'll give you an example. The late Great Hulk
Hogan was first presented George four Orman's grill and he
(17:01):
passed on it and it ended up being George Forman's grill,
which is like one of the probably the hottest selling
home goods items in the history of the world. Right,
So as stuff like that pops up for you, and
you're not just a label guy like Skaboorshet is a
name out that lives outside of music as well, how
did you know this was the right thing?
Speaker 2 (17:20):
What a great question. So it was really born of
the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix, which is now
the borschhet of Bourbon Music City Grand Prix. But we've
had the distillery, Big Machine Distilleries for nearly ten years.
Speaker 1 (17:33):
And which I'm not a vodka guy in that vodkas
should be illegal. How fantastic, Oh, we have the best
vodka ever. Come down, Tequila girl.
Speaker 2 (17:41):
Our Big Machine platinum filtered vodka is so good you
can drink it like tequila.
Speaker 1 (17:45):
You can.
Speaker 2 (17:45):
It's so smooth that you can sip it straight. But
the we'd had we've been distilling bourbon, so we had
barrels of it, and so I went to the team.
I said, now's the time to launch it. Let's do
it around the Grand Prix. So this is our fifth
year of the release of the woor Shutter Bourbon and
the very specific Grand Prix versions. They've gone crazy. That
(18:05):
first bottle that retailed for three ninety nine is now
worth three thousand dollars and so it's become a thing
and it's it's a great product to begin with the packaging,
especially if you're a race fan. It's just beautiful. The label,
the very first Indy five hundred is in nineteen eleven. Yeah,
that same year, those same cars raced at the Fairgrounds.
(18:27):
So our label is actually the start of the Vanderbilt
Cup at the Fairgrounds.
Speaker 1 (18:33):
Oh, from nineteen.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
Eleven there anywhere, there's a little blurb in there, but.
Speaker 1 (18:36):
Okay, yeah, I has a little Easter Egg on the bottle. Yeah, listen,
tonight is a special night for you on Lower Broadway. Lamb.
I'm going to start with you. When you put together
a lineup like this, there's probably not many times you
get to stand back and go, damn, we make hits. Yeah,
looking at this lineup, you get to say that easily.
What was it like? I'd imagine you had your hand
in kind of building on what tonight would look like.
Speaker 4 (18:59):
Yeah, I mean it's really nostalgic, you know, because obviously
we're celebrating you know, where we've been and also of
course where we're going. But it's what Scott mentioned too,
like Danielle Pack, Jack Ingram, these are people that are
obviously part of the building blocks.
Speaker 3 (19:10):
Of what Big Machine is.
Speaker 4 (19:11):
So it's the feeling from multiple different levels one which
to where you can kind of take that trip down
memory lane to be like this is where we are,
and then also to to go celebrate monster superstars that
are just going to get bigger, like Riley Green and
Carly Pearson obviously a special guest that you know they
come to the show tonight.
Speaker 3 (19:27):
I thought to take highway, I'm going to keep on
dropping like the least or.
Speaker 1 (19:29):
Yeah, life is that type of thing exactly. They did
fix a road out here so it's not as broken,
but yeah, it's so y'all will have a smooth sailing tonight.
Speaker 3 (19:39):
Also, by the way, man Akon.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
Is going to be is that announced?
Speaker 3 (19:44):
He just announced it is going to be is going
to be on stage.
Speaker 1 (19:51):
Let me tell you, I have the worst artist picture
from when I was doing Top forty in Minneapolis with Akon.
Speaker 2 (19:59):
You need to bring it tonight.
Speaker 1 (20:01):
Get it, yes, because it's hidden in my Facebook page.
He should have punched me, but he just rolled with it.
I like grabbed his chain and I'm like.
Speaker 2 (20:09):
You grabbed his Shane, Wow, okay it was and he
didn't hit me.
Speaker 3 (20:12):
It was great, dude, Bring it tonight, man, but yeah,
it's gonna be really a super icon.
Speaker 4 (20:16):
And then like one of our new developing bands that
are absolutely crushing right now, the Jackwharft band, so we'll
have a kon, Jackwhart Band, Carl Peers, Riley Green. It's uh, dude,
it's it's honestly, man, it's the biggest show of the year.
I mean, when you look at the sack talent, like,
there's not anything that it's.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
A festival show. It is straight up on Broadway. That's nuts.
What does it do for you because obviously this is
the first time you guys have done something to this
level on Broadway.
Speaker 2 (20:42):
I'd imagine, Well, last year you might remember we did
Brandtley Gilbert's biggest, world's largest album release party, and so
that was the same Friday of kickoff for the for
the Grand Prix. So this is actually the second year
that we've done a big concert down here, and we
had so much fun last year. And and the Downtown
Partnership actually gauge's audience size by cell phone uniques. I know,
(21:06):
it's a little creepy, but that's what they do. They
usually do about forty five fifty thousand on a Friday night.
One hundred and eighteen thousand people last year, so doesn't
mean they're all there to see it, but man, you
look at the photos, it was packed, so We're gonna
have seventy five eighty thousand people tomorrow and just just celebrating,
you know, Riley Green and Cheryl Crowe, you know, Brett Young,
(21:30):
the band Perrier coming back to do If I Die Young.
So literally, from day one to day now is LAMB
touched on with the Jack Wharf Band and Preston Cooper's
playing who is on the Verge artist by the way,
that's right, and so yeah, it's but you know what
you you mentioned earlier standing back, it's one of those
pinch me moments of like, man, how did we get here?
Speaker 1 (21:53):
You know?
Speaker 2 (21:53):
Sometimes it's like, well, we dream big, but did we
dream this big?
Speaker 3 (21:56):
You know?
Speaker 2 (21:56):
And it's it's going to be a fantastic night and
I hope everyone listening will come and join us.
Speaker 1 (22:02):
That's gonna be so much fun. I want to ask
you both because Tay and I when we're talking about
like life or career stuff, like it's all about camera
angles and you guys are going through the same experience
celebrating twenty years, right, but you're you're looking at it
at a different angle, right, So over your time with
I'll start with Lamb, over your time with Big Machine.
(22:24):
What's something you're proud that you were a part of
for somebody else, and then something you were proud of,
like for you. Wow, dude, that's gotta get ready because
you're next. For that. I'm gonna let him think you've.
Speaker 4 (22:35):
Got to go again for me, for me, Like, I
love the ability that we have to be a small
part of doing something bigger. Right, Yeah, it's like six
billion people on the planet.
Speaker 3 (22:47):
What are you doing? What are you gonna be known for?
What are you gonna be remembered by? Right? And I
don't mean that to be too deep, but through the
art that we again have like a small part in
working with.
Speaker 4 (22:57):
Like we've just seen some massive call impacts and obviously
Taylor has been one of them.
Speaker 3 (23:02):
And I'll never forget dude.
Speaker 4 (23:04):
Like we were at a show it's on the Red
Tour in San Jose and this lady came out to
me and she had seen like this pass that I
had around my neck and she goes she stopped me.
She's like, hey, can I talk to you for a second.
And obviously this happened often at Taylor shows, but I
was like sure, and she's like the song that Taylor
just performed, My daughter had to listen to as she
crossed from this plane to the next. And like, it's
things like that, man, where you recognize that again point
(23:25):
zero zero zero one percent of something, but still point
zero zero zero one percent of something that had that
sort of impact.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
That's what life's about. Brother.
Speaker 4 (23:33):
And then you know, for me, honestly, dude, again, like
Scott gave me the keys to the car a couple
of years ago and we.
Speaker 1 (23:40):
Did not actual car, but.
Speaker 3 (23:44):
Maybe I'm still working on that one though.
Speaker 4 (23:47):
But obviously with the Imprint, Big Machine Records, and we
just made some significant positive changes that have been so
much fun because we have obviously we're always trying to
outpace where we are right now in terms of how
people are consuming music. And so for me, that's that
putting the puzzle together that's the most fulfilling because it's
(24:10):
what I mean, I think that I thrive in chaos
and so and I think that the times I wish
to where it kind of gets a little less chaotic,
I'm kind of always looking for, like what's what's the
next thing to kind of jump into. So it's just
been an absolute blast to be able to put this
together with you, boss, I love you, man, I.
Speaker 2 (24:29):
Think I'm most proud of that we did it. You know,
we had this idea. Everybody told us, no, don't do it.
In two thousand and five is a terrible time to
start a new label. And obviously the Tailor years were
extraordinary Florida Georgia line. You know, you look at the
crazy stats, you know, because twenty years you start digging
back and looking. You know, RIBA's only number one Billboard
(24:53):
Top two hundred album debut happened on the Valerie Music Company,
the only time Garth Brooks it's the only time he
debuted at number one. That any artist ever debuted at
number one in the Billboard airplay chart was on Big Machine.
You know, you look at so many of those first
you know, having Taylor sell a million units over and
(25:13):
over and over again hadn't been done. And so we're
also the first record company, working with your big boss
Bob Pittman, to establish a performance right for terrestrial radio.
Never had happened before. We're the first ones to do that.
So when I look at all the first and all
the things that we did to do better for our artists,
it's like I remember Collin artists saying, hey for the
(25:35):
first time you're going to get paid for your radio play.
And I know we're going way off script and it's
a little inside baseball, but those type of things of
building it up and being a place, you know where
it's so cool because all the artists came back to
want to do this show, and just having those continued
relationships and just knowing that, you know, we created thousands
(25:58):
of jobs over the last twenty years and we've been
at a place where we can give back, not only
at MTSU, but what we do at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital.
A quick crazy story. One of my physical therapists was
pregnant and on my last session with her in three
(26:19):
weeks ago, she was at Saint Thomas. I said, if
you need anything, don't forget about the big machine neighborhood
neo natal center at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital. You're not going
to believe this. She texted me. She's like, oh my god,
Jack needs to go to neo Natal. So I was
able to call the folks at Vanderbilt and said, hey,
(26:40):
my friends coming in there, make sure and everybody is
treated well. But just knowing that we were able to help,
you know, just like because that's something you never expect
that your child's going to need neonatal care. So when
we've taken everything that we've done and expanded it out
to really being part of the community and part of
(27:01):
the culture, that's that's a big deal.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (27:05):
So you know, I mean, I don't know if you
know you caught what Scott mentioned, but I know that
this is going to live in a multiple in a
few different forms than mentioned his physical therapist. Like, dude,
this man, you know, can not be stopped. Like and
you think about obviously what he's gone through over the
past couple of years. To come back from March twenty
sixth and that accident and to be here celebrating, it's
(27:28):
got to be even more special because I know that
there was a time when that wasn't certain.
Speaker 1 (27:33):
Yeah, what so, where does and I'm going long winded
here with the conversation, but where did the love for
racing come in? Because obviously you you brought up that
the accident that you had was highly publicized, and obviously
you're here alive and well, which we're all glad about.
But like, what where does racing come into to your life?
(27:54):
Or is it a family thing? Is it something that
you grew to love.
Speaker 2 (27:57):
So my dad was a fan, but he took me
to my first race when I was eight years old
and it imprinted me. And so I've loved racing and
music ever since. Those have been the two main drivers
of my life. And when you look at what we
do from an entertainment perspective, from a racing perspective, you know,
one of the things that we really try to be
(28:19):
very intentional about is becoming part of your DNA. When
we were launching Taylor, I knew that she was going
to be part of the DNA of this generation. You
couldn't predict what's happened now. I mean, she's the Beatles now.
But you know, when we get it really right, whatever
we do when we're promoting races, when we are promoting
our artists, it's so important that we have the right
(28:40):
entry into your world, and then there's a real expectation
to continue to deliver what that first DNA is because
so many times an artist will change course and you're like,
I don't get that, well, that it's not recognizable. You know,
we go real deep on this stuff. You know, we
say we're dope dealers, and what I mean by that
it's dopamine, and when you have the right setup and delivery,
(29:03):
your brain starts firing and are positive. But if something
goes the other way, you're like, don't get it. So
it's you know, you get to really deep into the
psychology of the DNA. But that's those things we you know,
pretty much everybody remembers their first concert, you know, and
so we've used that in other things that we do.
It's like, okay, like right now in real time Mackenzie Carpenter.
One of the things we talked about at the beginning
(29:24):
of the year is there's going to be a lot
of people whose first concert this is because she's out
with Megan Maroney. So we had to make up a certificate.
So she would ask everybody in the meet and the
great line, is this your first show? And you have
these little goes yeah, and she hands them a certificate.
They'll never forget that. So it's so purposeful and intentional
(29:45):
to do the right thing and be part of people's DNA.
Speaker 1 (29:49):
That's so cool man, and you guys have done a
great job of that as a record label. The last
thing I want to ask as we wrap things up here,
a big night for y'all. Twentieth Anniverse three Again, you
said achieving things that you if you put together a
vision board twenty years ago tonight wouldn't have been on it, right, No,
So knowing that that's where you're at, we talk about
(30:12):
goals a lot because some things you chase because you want,
but they don't fulfill you. And I'm sure you've learned
that as well, Like you've chased things, got them and
you're like, well that didn't do for me what I
thought it would. So over the years, how have your
goals changed to measure success? Because money is water, right like,
so that's not necessarily success. How do you and we'll
(30:34):
start with Lamb, how do you measure your success? With
the label A man?
Speaker 4 (30:40):
You know, they would be a much longer form of
interview for me. I have to jump in down to
that rabbit hole because I have this, like I don't know,
innate like desire that even once we do achieve something,
I have to also the reason I can tell Scott like, hey,
you should got to celebrate this, because I need somebody
to tell me that, hey you got to celebrate this,
because like we're just always looking for that next brass
ring and I know that that's not probably the most
(31:00):
mental healthiest thing, but ultimately, dude, if I were to
summarize it, it would be the happiness of our team.
And I mean that because, especially over the past like
twelve months, I was talking to our director of marketing
yesterday about this. I've got this video when we were
at CMA Music Fest and we were all together as
a team and someone was filming something and I could
literally like see like tears of like joy. And I
(31:23):
know that that sounds weird, but it hasn't always been
that way, and from my perspective, that's where I get
really fulfilled by seeing other people just having fun, being
able to be fulfilled in their own right, you know.
Speaker 3 (31:35):
Like you know, there's a.
Speaker 4 (31:37):
Popular term like the Sunday scaries. I don't want people
to ever have Sunday scaries when they're coming to work
with us. I want this to be an environment that
was what it is that I wanted to be at
when I grew up as a kid in Scotts Still, Arizona, wanting.
Speaker 3 (31:50):
To always work for a record label and run a
record label. You know.
Speaker 4 (31:54):
To Scott's point, what's this drive? Why does he keep
don He's doing it's because he's worked his entire life
to get to exactly where he is. Why would he
get to the top and they'd be like, oh cool,
I guess I'm done. No, man, it's like we got
to keep on redefining what the top looks like. But
I would say fulfillment all right, for others, not for me.
Speaker 1 (32:10):
Yeah it's Scott, what about to you?
Speaker 2 (32:12):
Well, at this point in my life, my career, what's
the next twenty you know that's really exciting because we've
done this, this is we're putting a bow on it tonight. Yeah,
it's like, okay, now I'm thinking about the next twenty
you know, I've never had a job this long, you know,
twenty years. Like wow, it's amazing. And so I just
look at Okay, we've done this, and I look at
(32:33):
the other opportunities that we have by being in entertainment company,
because again, we touch music, we touch spirits, we touch racing,
and you know, there's so much more. We just receeve
money for this unbelievable new AI platform that's going to
blow people's minds. So when I look at taking all
that together and building the next great marketing machine that
(32:57):
keeps me excited for the next twenty.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
Yeah, got AI we could do. I'm gonna pause because
we could have a whole conversation about if we Hardy
was you brought up Hardy Mtsu. We just talked to
him about AI and like the right ways to embrace
it versus like killing the creativity, like I heard you actually.
Speaker 3 (33:13):
Talk to me about that.
Speaker 1 (33:14):
Yeah, it was.
Speaker 4 (33:14):
We have a lot of I mean, obviously Scott has
big machine music, and we have a lot of incredible
songwriters that I've been blessed to get to know, becoming
all my best friends. Like we already you have fights together,
and yeah, I've watched how they will look at that.
You know, it's always about inspiration much of what Hardy
was saying.
Speaker 2 (33:29):
So, Yeah, because you can look at the fear of
everything going back twenty twenty five years, you know, when
start with Napster, it's like, what the hell is this now?
Speaker 1 (33:38):
And she's gonna kill radio? Yeah kill.
Speaker 4 (33:40):
Well.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
It was a very pivotal moment for me in my
career because I was at DreamWorks at that point. Yeah,
and we were on this huge company weekly call. One
of the legends of all time in the record business,
guy named moh Austin. He was Frank Sinatra's guy. He
signed Hendrix, Prince Madonna van Halen, just one of the
true legends. And I brought it up on this car
It's called I said, hey, Mo, have you been on Napster?
(34:04):
And he said, Scott, is that on your computer? I'm like, yeah,
I goes, get it off right now and do not
put it back on. In that moment, like you guys
are dead man walking. We're the next dinosaurs. And so
that was such a pivotal moment because everybody was afraid
of it. So you fast forward to right now, everybody's
afraid of AI. So we're going to jump in and
figure out how to make it a tool that works
(34:24):
for us, because if you don't, it'll work against you,
and all of them will. But this is the most
this is the biggest challenge we've ever had as a
human race as far as I'm concerned. So we've got
to get our hands around it and make sure we
understand it and make it work for us.
Speaker 1 (34:39):
Yeah, dude, I love that using the right spaces too.
Speaker 4 (34:41):
It's I guess Scott mentioned as a marketing machine, like
there's just a lot of opportunities that are well outside
of what you might just.
Speaker 3 (34:48):
Think of it, you know, as a tool. So it's
a brave new world out there.
Speaker 1 (34:51):
Man, listen to the next twenty, gentlemen, the next twenty.
Thanks guys, Thanks for you
Listen. I'm not hyping this guy up too much, but
Music City Royalty is in the building with us. Chris Lamb.
How I'm about to get Chris Lamb part of that
twice I listen, Chris Lamb, Scott Borgetta big day for
(00:22):
y'all in general as a record label. Scott, I want
to start with you because it's been a big week
for you personally as well with the honor at MTSU.
What does that mean to you? This You've obviously put
so much into the into the music industry country, but
music industry as a whole. That MTSU was like, Hey,
we're going to rebrand the dang thing.
Speaker 2 (00:43):
Really exciting.
Speaker 3 (00:43):
You know.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Beverly Keel, who's the dean of the Media and Entertainment School,
approached me about five years ago with this idea and
just talking about legacy and you know, giving back, and
you know, it really hit me over the head about
ten years ago, maybe a little longer, that we'd become
industry leaders and we needed to give back more. And
(01:08):
so this opportunity to rename the college the scopworsh Out
of College of Meeting Entertainment was mind bending and really
the mission is to give back because when I went
to college, the irony is I dropped out after two
semesters because I couldn't learn what I wanted to learn.
I wanted to be in the record business. And so
(01:29):
for me to be able to be what I joked
as the gateway drug for these kids, like, hey, there's
a real path now and then there has been for
a while. But also to lift them up. You know,
they do such extraordinary things at MTSU, and because they're
not right here in Nashville, Belmont and Vanderbilt get a
lot of the noise and the credit. So we're just
(01:50):
going to make sure and remind everybody how important because
there's so many great alums from MTSU that are part
of our business, our artists, etc. So we're just going
to be loud about it. And it was a huge honor,
so fun walking through the campus and all the students
coming up and talking and they're so excited about what
we're doing. We've completely renovated the media and Entertainment building.
(02:12):
It's just the beginning, so thank you for bringing that
Up's a huge honor.
Speaker 1 (02:15):
Yeah, it was cool to see and it's and obviously
we are familiar with Big Machine and the success of
the artists and the success that you've had personally as well.
So it was cool to like see that, especially this week.
The timing couldn't have been better.
Speaker 2 (02:27):
Well, that wasn't by accident, So we wanted to be
really loud around the twentieth anniversary. You know, Big Machine
turns twenty Monday, September first, and so today, you know,
it's like, what's the biggest way that we give back
to Nashville and our fans. Let's do the biggest free
show with all of our biggest artists. So there's a
(02:48):
few huge surprises. I'm going to let Lamb bust out
on the on one of them, one of his favorite
duo records of the year.
Speaker 4 (02:57):
I mean, like, you're the only friend that I have
as college, so I think that's pretty incredible.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Hey, my name is on a college list of do not.
Oh yeah, yeah, that's way different.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
I was thinking about this though, because Scott probably has
like one million plaques celebrating like just platinum, Diamond awards
and like, legit, now his name is going to be
out of all of these certificates of education.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Dude, Like you figured out a way to hack the
plaque system.
Speaker 4 (03:20):
There's gonna be like a million practice hacked the plaque.
Speaker 3 (03:24):
It's sick.
Speaker 4 (03:24):
And I say that because, dude, I've had the luxury
of working with Scott for the past fifteen years, and
I feel like people are in the property environment that
they' raised in, and so like Scott's kind of like
my work daddy, you know literally, I mean, dude, I
won't be where I on if it wasn't for obviously
like Scott and the entrepreneurial spirit that he brings, the
Big Machine label group, and the opportunities that he brings
not only obviously not to students but his executives. But
(03:44):
I try to like get like, dude, do you know
how cool this is? Like he how many do you have?
Like hypothetically he probably.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
We have a few?
Speaker 3 (03:54):
Last one that he got. I'm like, hey, so what's
like the process? When a Ferrari comes? He's like, what
do you mean? Like, well, like, how does it you?
How do you see?
Speaker 4 (04:00):
It comes on like a flatbed truck. Is there like
a parade outside? I guess I don't have a.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
Fray, you know what I mean?
Speaker 4 (04:06):
I can have a twenty sixteen very nice car. I'm
excited to potentially have a car car like a fry
one day. I'm like, bro, next time you get one,
let me know. I will stand outside and a plot as.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
It comes flags cheerleaders. Now, dude, Lamb was pretty stoked
this morning because we dreamt jumped in the s F
ninety spider have top down and he's he's it was working.
It bit him. I'm like, Lamb, this car is here.
You look in this car.
Speaker 4 (04:31):
Actually like phasically fit me too, because I was like
I could like get into it. I'm like, oh right, Scott,
you have my love language gifts.
Speaker 1 (04:37):
By the way, that's really what this whole interview is for,
is exactly. Yeah, flam needs Lambo.
Speaker 3 (04:44):
Yeah exactly. That's actually funny.
Speaker 4 (04:46):
You say that though, because on my birthday he sent
me a picture of a Lambeau that said Lamba on
a license plate.
Speaker 3 (04:51):
I'm like, yo, dog, you can't be said.
Speaker 2 (04:52):
I said, happy birthdaypreaded that.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
You open up the car there's a five dollars Starbucks
in car.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Exactly.
Speaker 4 (05:00):
No, I mean, I mean, I said, because like truly
it's important, especially this week, you know, I mean, They're
not to be weird, but there will never be another
Scotpod shut up, and so like these you're almost where
we got to like take a second and recognize, like
this is cool, dude, really really cool. So I'm proud
of you for being able to do that and now
obviously be able to aspire all these people.
Speaker 3 (05:20):
The next party, Hardy came from MT.
Speaker 4 (05:22):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:23):
Well, let me while while we're on the subject of
Big Big Machine and the success. Uh they're celebrating twenty years. Lamb.
You just said you've been there fifteen What brought you
to a Big Machine? And we'll get to the history
of Big Machine and how it exists, but like what
brought you because the other thing about fifteen years at
the same record label like is not well and it's
(05:43):
like and that's not like a knock on anybody, but
sometimes people change label gigs like they've changed their shirt
in the morning.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
Well again, that's the testament to Scots. It gave me
a lot of opportunities within the label group to grow
and so you know, I came with a band that
may or may not be the special guest tonight from
a company that was owned by the Walt Disney Company handtent.
Speaker 3 (06:04):
I don't know how much more we can drop.
Speaker 2 (06:05):
That's pretty good.
Speaker 3 (06:06):
Yeah, I mean, I mean, maybe the.
Speaker 4 (06:07):
Last thing I would say is that Labor Day is
coming up on Mondays. This might be like the last
like summer night.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
Perhaps it could be.
Speaker 4 (06:13):
Yeah, but I came with those dudes over the big Machine.
I was really fortunate enough that Scott gave me the
place to the land after that, and then immediately of
course started working with Taylor right before we h dropped
Speak Now and signed Tim McGraw, and so it was
just like termendous success. I was a West Coast regional
back then. I was telling Scott about this yesterday, Like, dude,
(06:33):
being a West Coast regional like our buddy Billy, it
is a very hard job but also too and you've
got like acts like Taylor Swift, Rascal Flats and uh
Tim McGraw popping like that. I mean, dude, I was
in the my pool every day in Scott's cile, Arizona,
with I bought one of those like yellow Sony waterproof phones. Yeah,
just answer calls all day long and just receive airplay.
Speaker 2 (06:53):
But you know from that obviously, but from that, I.
Speaker 4 (06:58):
Mean, dude, we had a we had dot records with
was a jav between Scott or Republic for three years
that he gave me the opportunity to go run from
over there, and then after that we kind of merged
those teams together. So it is very unique to be
raised within like one label group, but there's been multiple
different opportunities within that label group that's obviously been kind
of somewhat similar to JO.
Speaker 3 (07:16):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
I mean you talk about Ashley Sedoti, who's our senior
vice president for the Valerie Music Company, she was an intern.
So for me, there's so much pride to give all
of these great executives the opportunity to go all the way.
Now they both lead the imprints and you know, there's
you always want to make sure that everybody's got a
(07:36):
path to what their dream is, and that really kind
of culminates what this week's all about.
Speaker 3 (07:42):
You know.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
It's like can you dream big enough? You know? And
that was really the mission back to MTSU to inspire
them and say, hey, I was a middle class kid
from the valley in California and had no idea how
to get here, but we were not going to be stopped.
And so that's what I want to offer you is
this experience and know that you can go all the way.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
So take us back to the beginning. You were going
to school, you knew you wanted to work in records,
and we all have a love for music, and especially
country music. That's why we are where we are. Did
you not have any ability to play an instiment or sing?
Speaker 2 (08:19):
Oh no, I played in bands for years.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
Oh wow? So what made you? What made you not
go that way and instead going to the label side.
Speaker 2 (08:25):
So my dad was in the record business, so it
was around so he was promotion first generation, and so
I got to learn so much about the business being
around him. But that didn't provide a path to a
real job. And so I actually came to Nashville in
nineteen eighty one to visit him. He had moved down
(08:45):
from California nineteen seventy nine and he was working an
independent country group and they needed a bass player. And
he goes, wow, you should go audition for this band.
I'm like, well, I'm not sure if I want to
play country. I'm I'm a skate punk kid from southern California.
And he goes, They're on tour, and I'm like, nineteen
years old. They're on tour. So I went and got
the gig. I never went back to California, fell in
(09:07):
love with Nashville, fell in love with country music. And
so when I I was with this group for about
a year, came back and literally went to work for
my dad in the mailroom. And so that's like, okay,
I'm doing that and playing in bands at night. And
it was one of those things once I put the
band thing to the side and put all my attention
into the business. You know, every time I put in
(09:31):
a pound, I got a two pound return, and then
at night with club owners and band members, you give
it all back. It's like, Okay, let's just see what
happens when I put everything into this, and it's been
so blessed. You know, it's it hasn't been easy by
any stretch, but you know, we got here. And so
it was really that burning desire of you know, I
want to be in this business so badly and I
want to hit One of the things I learned early
(09:51):
on too, is especially playing with this country band, there
were so many things I knew just by osmosis, by
being around it, and then go, how do you know that?
I'm like, how do you not know that?
Speaker 3 (10:02):
You know?
Speaker 2 (10:02):
This is your job, And so that was another thing
that really inspired me with musicians is to help explain
the business to them because it's a different language when
you're talking to an artist and so helping them, you know,
you look back at all my experiences and what's the
why and what's the how, and that was so important
where I was able to explain things to them early on.
Now you can go online and get an idea of
(10:24):
what to do, but back then that was experience and
fighting your way through.
Speaker 1 (10:28):
You know. The difference about reading it online too and
like going out and learning it yourself is the fact
that once you've learned it yourself, you don't have to
understand it. Once you read it, you have to understand
it and apply it. You go out and do it,
you're already applying it, right.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
Yeah, it's like driving a race car two in miles
an hour. You can do it online all day long,
but let's put your button seat and see what you
really got online.
Speaker 1 (10:51):
With the success of a big machine in twenty years,
there has to be a level of I'm not afraid
to fail, and within that success with the Ferraris and
whatever else you're able to provide for yourself and your family.
There have been failures. Oh yeah, So what about those failures,
whether it was you put money into this and it
didn't turn out, you acquired a record label, it didn't
(11:14):
turn out, Like, what are the failures that you can
stand on today knowing like they had to happen for
me to get where I'm at.
Speaker 2 (11:20):
Yeah, I've never been afraid to fail, you know, I've
I've also never really gone over my skis in all
my investments, etc. We've always built a very specific foundation.
And so you know, you've got to learn from their failures.
So if you just look at it as a lessons,
then they're not so much as failures. It's like I
learned from that, don't do that again. I'll tell an artist.
(11:41):
I'm like, you're on the train tracks. That is not
light at the end of the tunnel. That's a train.
Get off the tracks and oh no, we think it's
we think we're good. Then they get run over. I'm like,
that hurt, didn't it? So it's not my ego talking,
it's my experience talking. So every failure leads to a
learn I love that.
Speaker 1 (12:01):
It's not my ego, it's my experience and it's and
it's tough because in what we do. And on my
side too, it very much can be like, yeah, I'll
figure it out. I'll figure it out to somebody who
has doesn't have the experience. That's I like how you
worded that.
Speaker 2 (12:14):
Well. One of the things too that Lamb and our
whole team is we're students of this game every day.
If anybody comes in and says we know it all,
that's the beginning of the downfall. We don't know it all,
but I can guarantee you we will find out. If
we get an answer question that we don't know the
answer to, we'll find it. But you've got to remain
a student of the game period the end.
Speaker 4 (12:35):
I mean, even to add on to that, it's like
we know that we know what we know and that
the real obligation. That was a wake up every day
with the genuine it's of curiosity to put the puzzle
together because the world is changing every single day. Man,
one of my favorite quotes I'm going to blotch, but
it is the other side of that is the Winston Churchill.
Success is not final and failure is not futile. And
that's the whole thing about the dude fail learn you know,
(12:59):
do better, get back up, but also recognize that when
you are at that peak of success, that you're not
always going to be there. You got to keep on
reinventing yourself. And again, that's one of the things that
amazes me about Scott because obviously as a student of
him and all the things that he's done. Dude, So
after earlier this week, after obviously INTSU renamed their college,
(13:21):
he was in the office. I'm like, dude, what are
you doing? He was in my office in a chair,
we were talking. I'm like, you came back to the
office after this amazing celebration. And I say that because
it's just another testament to his character and his will
to where he's like, dude, to keep on pushing, Which
is great for our artists because I think that one
of the many things that we're fully aligned on as
well is that our greatest responsibility is to the artists
(13:43):
that we represent in the art that they create. And
that's the way in which to where we feel like
we could potentially like shape popular culture through that.
Speaker 1 (13:51):
You know, as you celebrate twenty years tonight here on
Lower Broadway, what keeps you exhibit it? Right? He said
that we're back in the office. We hear all the time,
you know, through talking to guys like Bill Luberts, who
is I've done this for twenty three years, I was
I was a PD for a short while in Vegas,
(14:12):
and Bill Luberts is like one of the most world
class guys that's ever worked a record that I've met.
But you have people like that working for you, what
makes you still want to show up to the office
Because you've made money, you've had success. I mean, you
could just let the checks roll in and catch up
with LAMB once a week and be like, how are things?
Talk to you later, I'm in the pool, like why why?
Why still show up the way you do?
Speaker 2 (14:33):
You know, I when this question comes up, it's you know,
I've worked my whole career to get here, and why
waste it. There'll be a time when I've timed out.
I know that, But right now it's still so curious,
and there's so much happening on a daily basis. You know,
when we started this band, all we needed needed was
(14:54):
all In two thousand and five, it was a different world. Yeah,
we had every lever man. You know, I'm coming out
of Universal and dream Works and the number one radio
promotion guy when radio was king. It's still one of
the crown princes, but it's not everything. Everything is everything now.
(15:15):
But the timing was so right for me in my
career to be able to go, okay, I've got enough
wait and enough goodwill at radio. When we start this label,
I know that we're going to get a few shots.
I've got a honeymoon period. So our first single went
top twenty with Danielle Peck, our second single went to
(15:36):
number one with Jack Ingram. Then we launched Taylor Swift
and so we were just so fortunate she did all right.
And then that momentum we are on such a crazy ride.
We were lamb and I were just looking at one
of our weekly reports from two from our second year,
from two thousand and seven. It was the year and
(15:58):
ironically it was a eighteen years ago this week when
we launched Garth Brooks More Than a Memory. It's the
only single in history that debuted at number one on
Billboard Airplay Chart Country Airplay Chart. It'll never happen again,
never happened before. But we just look at these things,
and you know, one of the early mantras that we
still use today is start at crazy and work backward,
and the whole idea is what's the craziest thing we
(16:20):
could do? You know who, how big can we think?
How big can we dream? And when you put that
in the ether and we talk about it every day,
it's like, Okay, we're making this become a reality. Because
one of those things you put that tent pole into
the future, it's like, what's the path to that work?
Backward from that.
Speaker 1 (16:38):
The more success that you've had on the on the
business side has let you be successful on the personal
side as well. As we talk about like the Borcetta
bourbon just a little while ago, Right, how do you
know the right time to put your name on something?
And I'll give you an example. The late Great Hulk
Hogan was first presented George four Orman's grill and he
(17:01):
passed on it and it ended up being George Forman's grill,
which is like one of the probably the hottest selling
home goods items in the history of the world. Right,
So as stuff like that pops up for you, and
you're not just a label guy like Skaboorshet is a
name out that lives outside of music as well, how
did you know this was the right thing?
Speaker 2 (17:20):
What a great question. So it was really born of
the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix, which is now
the borschhet of Bourbon Music City Grand Prix. But we've
had the distillery, Big Machine Distilleries for nearly ten years.
Speaker 1 (17:33):
And which I'm not a vodka guy in that vodkas
should be illegal. How fantastic, Oh, we have the best
vodka ever. Come down, Tequila girl.
Speaker 2 (17:41):
Our Big Machine platinum filtered vodka is so good you
can drink it like tequila.
Speaker 1 (17:45):
You can.
Speaker 2 (17:45):
It's so smooth that you can sip it straight. But
the we'd had we've been distilling bourbon, so we had
barrels of it, and so I went to the team.
I said, now's the time to launch it. Let's do
it around the Grand Prix. So this is our fifth
year of the release of the woor Shutter Bourbon and
the very specific Grand Prix versions. They've gone crazy. That
(18:05):
first bottle that retailed for three ninety nine is now
worth three thousand dollars and so it's become a thing
and it's it's a great product to begin with the packaging,
especially if you're a race fan. It's just beautiful. The label,
the very first Indy five hundred is in nineteen eleven. Yeah,
that same year, those same cars raced at the Fairgrounds.
(18:27):
So our label is actually the start of the Vanderbilt
Cup at the Fairgrounds.
Speaker 1 (18:33):
Oh, from nineteen.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
Eleven there anywhere, there's a little blurb in there, but.
Speaker 1 (18:36):
Okay, yeah, I has a little Easter Egg on the bottle. Yeah, listen,
tonight is a special night for you on Lower Broadway. Lamb.
I'm going to start with you. When you put together
a lineup like this, there's probably not many times you
get to stand back and go, damn, we make hits. Yeah,
looking at this lineup, you get to say that easily.
What was it like? I'd imagine you had your hand
in kind of building on what tonight would look like.
Speaker 4 (18:59):
Yeah, I mean it's really nostalgic, you know, because obviously
we're celebrating you know, where we've been and also of
course where we're going. But it's what Scott mentioned too,
like Danielle Pack, Jack Ingram, these are people that are
obviously part of the building blocks.
Speaker 3 (19:10):
Of what Big Machine is.
Speaker 4 (19:11):
So it's the feeling from multiple different levels one which
to where you can kind of take that trip down
memory lane to be like this is where we are,
and then also to to go celebrate monster superstars that
are just going to get bigger, like Riley Green and
Carly Pearson obviously a special guest that you know they
come to the show tonight.
Speaker 3 (19:27):
I thought to take highway, I'm going to keep on
dropping like the least or.
Speaker 1 (19:29):
Yeah, life is that type of thing exactly. They did
fix a road out here so it's not as broken,
but yeah, it's so y'all will have a smooth sailing tonight.
Speaker 3 (19:39):
Also, by the way, man Akon.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
Is going to be is that announced?
Speaker 3 (19:44):
He just announced it is going to be is going
to be on stage.
Speaker 1 (19:51):
Let me tell you, I have the worst artist picture
from when I was doing Top forty in Minneapolis with Akon.
Speaker 2 (19:59):
You need to bring it tonight.
Speaker 1 (20:01):
Get it, yes, because it's hidden in my Facebook page.
He should have punched me, but he just rolled with it.
I like grabbed his chain and I'm like.
Speaker 2 (20:09):
You grabbed his Shane, Wow, okay it was and he
didn't hit me.
Speaker 3 (20:12):
It was great, dude, Bring it tonight, man, but yeah,
it's gonna be really a super icon.
Speaker 4 (20:16):
And then like one of our new developing bands that
are absolutely crushing right now, the Jackwharft band, so we'll
have a kon, Jackwhart Band, Carl Peers, Riley Green. It's uh, dude,
it's it's honestly, man, it's the biggest show of the year.
I mean, when you look at the sack talent, like,
there's not anything that it's.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
A festival show. It is straight up on Broadway. That's nuts.
What does it do for you because obviously this is
the first time you guys have done something to this
level on Broadway.
Speaker 2 (20:42):
I'd imagine, Well, last year you might remember we did
Brandtley Gilbert's biggest, world's largest album release party, and so
that was the same Friday of kickoff for the for
the Grand Prix. So this is actually the second year
that we've done a big concert down here, and we
had so much fun last year. And and the Downtown
Partnership actually gauge's audience size by cell phone uniques. I know,
(21:06):
it's a little creepy, but that's what they do. They
usually do about forty five fifty thousand on a Friday night.
One hundred and eighteen thousand people last year, so doesn't
mean they're all there to see it, but man, you
look at the photos, it was packed, so We're gonna
have seventy five eighty thousand people tomorrow and just just celebrating,
you know, Riley Green and Cheryl Crowe, you know, Brett Young,
(21:30):
the band Perrier coming back to do If I Die Young.
So literally, from day one to day now is LAMB
touched on with the Jack Wharf Band and Preston Cooper's
playing who is on the Verge artist by the way,
that's right, and so yeah, it's but you know what
you you mentioned earlier standing back, it's one of those
pinch me moments of like, man, how did we get here?
Speaker 1 (21:53):
You know?
Speaker 2 (21:53):
Sometimes it's like, well, we dream big, but did we
dream this big?
Speaker 3 (21:56):
You know?
Speaker 2 (21:56):
And it's it's going to be a fantastic night and
I hope everyone listening will come and join us.
Speaker 1 (22:02):
That's gonna be so much fun. I want to ask
you both because Tay and I when we're talking about
like life or career stuff, like it's all about camera
angles and you guys are going through the same experience
celebrating twenty years, right, but you're you're looking at it
at a different angle, right, So over your time with
I'll start with Lamb, over your time with Big Machine.
(22:24):
What's something you're proud that you were a part of
for somebody else, and then something you were proud of,
like for you. Wow, dude, that's gotta get ready because
you're next. For that. I'm gonna let him think you've.
Speaker 4 (22:35):
Got to go again for me, for me, Like, I
love the ability that we have to be a small
part of doing something bigger. Right, Yeah, it's like six
billion people on the planet.
Speaker 3 (22:47):
What are you doing? What are you gonna be known for?
What are you gonna be remembered by? Right? And I
don't mean that to be too deep, but through the
art that we again have like a small part in
working with.
Speaker 4 (22:57):
Like we've just seen some massive call impacts and obviously
Taylor has been one of them.
Speaker 3 (23:02):
And I'll never forget dude.
Speaker 4 (23:04):
Like we were at a show it's on the Red
Tour in San Jose and this lady came out to
me and she had seen like this pass that I
had around my neck and she goes she stopped me.
She's like, hey, can I talk to you for a second.
And obviously this happened often at Taylor shows, but I
was like sure, and she's like the song that Taylor
just performed, My daughter had to listen to as she
crossed from this plane to the next. And like, it's
things like that, man, where you recognize that again point
(23:25):
zero zero zero one percent of something, but still point
zero zero zero one percent of something that had that
sort of impact.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
That's what life's about. Brother.
Speaker 4 (23:33):
And then you know, for me, honestly, dude, again, like
Scott gave me the keys to the car a couple
of years ago and we.
Speaker 1 (23:40):
Did not actual car, but.
Speaker 3 (23:44):
Maybe I'm still working on that one though.
Speaker 4 (23:47):
But obviously with the Imprint, Big Machine Records, and we
just made some significant positive changes that have been so
much fun because we have obviously we're always trying to
outpace where we are right now in terms of how
people are consuming music. And so for me, that's that
putting the puzzle together that's the most fulfilling because it's
(24:10):
what I mean, I think that I thrive in chaos
and so and I think that the times I wish
to where it kind of gets a little less chaotic,
I'm kind of always looking for, like what's what's the
next thing to kind of jump into. So it's just
been an absolute blast to be able to put this
together with you, boss, I love you, man, I.
Speaker 2 (24:29):
Think I'm most proud of that we did it. You know,
we had this idea. Everybody told us, no, don't do it.
In two thousand and five is a terrible time to
start a new label. And obviously the Tailor years were
extraordinary Florida Georgia line. You know, you look at the
crazy stats, you know, because twenty years you start digging
back and looking. You know, RIBA's only number one Billboard
(24:53):
Top two hundred album debut happened on the Valerie Music Company,
the only time Garth Brooks it's the only time he
debuted at number one. That any artist ever debuted at
number one in the Billboard airplay chart was on Big Machine.
You know, you look at so many of those first
you know, having Taylor sell a million units over and
(25:13):
over and over again hadn't been done. And so we're
also the first record company, working with your big boss
Bob Pittman, to establish a performance right for terrestrial radio.
Never had happened before. We're the first ones to do that.
So when I look at all the first and all
the things that we did to do better for our artists,
it's like I remember Collin artists saying, hey for the
(25:35):
first time you're going to get paid for your radio play.
And I know we're going way off script and it's
a little inside baseball, but those type of things of
building it up and being a place, you know where
it's so cool because all the artists came back to
want to do this show, and just having those continued
relationships and just knowing that, you know, we created thousands
(25:58):
of jobs over the last twenty years and we've been
at a place where we can give back, not only
at MTSU, but what we do at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital.
A quick crazy story. One of my physical therapists was
pregnant and on my last session with her in three
(26:19):
weeks ago, she was at Saint Thomas. I said, if
you need anything, don't forget about the big machine neighborhood
neo natal center at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital. You're not going
to believe this. She texted me. She's like, oh my god,
Jack needs to go to neo Natal. So I was
able to call the folks at Vanderbilt and said, hey,
(26:40):
my friends coming in there, make sure and everybody is
treated well. But just knowing that we were able to help,
you know, just like because that's something you never expect
that your child's going to need neonatal care. So when
we've taken everything that we've done and expanded it out
to really being part of the community and part of
(27:01):
the culture, that's that's a big deal.
Speaker 1 (27:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (27:05):
So you know, I mean, I don't know if you
know you caught what Scott mentioned, but I know that
this is going to live in a multiple in a
few different forms than mentioned his physical therapist. Like, dude,
this man, you know, can not be stopped. Like and
you think about obviously what he's gone through over the
past couple of years. To come back from March twenty
sixth and that accident and to be here celebrating, it's
(27:28):
got to be even more special because I know that
there was a time when that wasn't certain.
Speaker 1 (27:33):
Yeah, what so, where does and I'm going long winded
here with the conversation, but where did the love for
racing come in? Because obviously you you brought up that
the accident that you had was highly publicized, and obviously
you're here alive and well, which we're all glad about.
But like, what where does racing come into to your life?
(27:54):
Or is it a family thing? Is it something that
you grew to love.
Speaker 2 (27:57):
So my dad was a fan, but he took me
to my first race when I was eight years old
and it imprinted me. And so I've loved racing and
music ever since. Those have been the two main drivers
of my life. And when you look at what we
do from an entertainment perspective, from a racing perspective, you know,
one of the things that we really try to be
(28:19):
very intentional about is becoming part of your DNA. When
we were launching Taylor, I knew that she was going
to be part of the DNA of this generation. You
couldn't predict what's happened now. I mean, she's the Beatles now.
But you know, when we get it really right, whatever
we do when we're promoting races, when we are promoting
our artists, it's so important that we have the right
(28:40):
entry into your world, and then there's a real expectation
to continue to deliver what that first DNA is because
so many times an artist will change course and you're like,
I don't get that, well, that it's not recognizable. You know,
we go real deep on this stuff. You know, we
say we're dope dealers, and what I mean by that
it's dopamine, and when you have the right setup and delivery,
(29:03):
your brain starts firing and are positive. But if something
goes the other way, you're like, don't get it. So
it's you know, you get to really deep into the
psychology of the DNA. But that's those things we you know,
pretty much everybody remembers their first concert, you know, and
so we've used that in other things that we do.
It's like, okay, like right now in real time Mackenzie Carpenter.
One of the things we talked about at the beginning
(29:24):
of the year is there's going to be a lot
of people whose first concert this is because she's out
with Megan Maroney. So we had to make up a certificate.
So she would ask everybody in the meet and the
great line, is this your first show? And you have
these little goes yeah, and she hands them a certificate.
They'll never forget that. So it's so purposeful and intentional
(29:45):
to do the right thing and be part of people's DNA.
Speaker 1 (29:49):
That's so cool man, and you guys have done a
great job of that as a record label. The last
thing I want to ask as we wrap things up here,
a big night for y'all. Twentieth Anniverse three Again, you
said achieving things that you if you put together a
vision board twenty years ago tonight wouldn't have been on it, right, No,
So knowing that that's where you're at, we talk about
(30:12):
goals a lot because some things you chase because you want,
but they don't fulfill you. And I'm sure you've learned
that as well, Like you've chased things, got them and
you're like, well that didn't do for me what I
thought it would. So over the years, how have your
goals changed to measure success? Because money is water, right like,
so that's not necessarily success. How do you and we'll
(30:34):
start with Lamb, how do you measure your success? With
the label A man?
Speaker 4 (30:40):
You know, they would be a much longer form of
interview for me. I have to jump in down to
that rabbit hole because I have this, like I don't know,
innate like desire that even once we do achieve something,
I have to also the reason I can tell Scott like, hey,
you should got to celebrate this, because I need somebody
to tell me that, hey you got to celebrate this,
because like we're just always looking for that next brass
ring and I know that that's not probably the most
(31:00):
mental healthiest thing, but ultimately, dude, if I were to
summarize it, it would be the happiness of our team.
And I mean that because, especially over the past like
twelve months, I was talking to our director of marketing
yesterday about this. I've got this video when we were
at CMA Music Fest and we were all together as
a team and someone was filming something and I could
literally like see like tears of like joy. And I
(31:23):
know that that sounds weird, but it hasn't always been
that way, and from my perspective, that's where I get
really fulfilled by seeing other people just having fun, being
able to be fulfilled in their own right, you know.
Speaker 3 (31:35):
Like you know, there's a.
Speaker 4 (31:37):
Popular term like the Sunday scaries. I don't want people
to ever have Sunday scaries when they're coming to work
with us. I want this to be an environment that
was what it is that I wanted to be at
when I grew up as a kid in Scotts Still, Arizona, wanting.
Speaker 3 (31:50):
To always work for a record label and run a
record label. You know.
Speaker 4 (31:54):
To Scott's point, what's this drive? Why does he keep
don He's doing it's because he's worked his entire life
to get to exactly where he is. Why would he
get to the top and they'd be like, oh cool,
I guess I'm done. No, man, it's like we got
to keep on redefining what the top looks like. But
I would say fulfillment all right, for others, not for me.
Speaker 1 (32:10):
Yeah it's Scott, what about to you?
Speaker 2 (32:12):
Well, at this point in my life, my career, what's
the next twenty you know that's really exciting because we've
done this, this is we're putting a bow on it tonight. Yeah,
it's like, okay, now I'm thinking about the next twenty
you know, I've never had a job this long, you know,
twenty years. Like wow, it's amazing. And so I just
look at Okay, we've done this, and I look at
(32:33):
the other opportunities that we have by being in entertainment company,
because again, we touch music, we touch spirits, we touch racing,
and you know, there's so much more. We just receeve
money for this unbelievable new AI platform that's going to
blow people's minds. So when I look at taking all
that together and building the next great marketing machine that
(32:57):
keeps me excited for the next twenty.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
Yeah, got AI we could do. I'm gonna pause because
we could have a whole conversation about if we Hardy
was you brought up Hardy Mtsu. We just talked to
him about AI and like the right ways to embrace
it versus like killing the creativity, like I heard you actually.
Speaker 3 (33:13):
Talk to me about that.
Speaker 1 (33:14):
Yeah, it was.
Speaker 4 (33:14):
We have a lot of I mean, obviously Scott has
big machine music, and we have a lot of incredible
songwriters that I've been blessed to get to know, becoming
all my best friends. Like we already you have fights together,
and yeah, I've watched how they will look at that.
You know, it's always about inspiration much of what Hardy
was saying.
Speaker 2 (33:29):
So, Yeah, because you can look at the fear of
everything going back twenty twenty five years, you know, when
start with Napster, it's like, what the hell is this now?
Speaker 1 (33:38):
And she's gonna kill radio? Yeah kill.
Speaker 4 (33:40):
Well.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
It was a very pivotal moment for me in my
career because I was at DreamWorks at that point. Yeah,
and we were on this huge company weekly call. One
of the legends of all time in the record business,
guy named moh Austin. He was Frank Sinatra's guy. He
signed Hendrix, Prince Madonna van Halen, just one of the
true legends. And I brought it up on this car
It's called I said, hey, Mo, have you been on Napster?
(34:04):
And he said, Scott, is that on your computer? I'm like, yeah,
I goes, get it off right now and do not
put it back on. In that moment, like you guys
are dead man walking. We're the next dinosaurs. And so
that was such a pivotal moment because everybody was afraid
of it. So you fast forward to right now, everybody's
afraid of AI. So we're going to jump in and
figure out how to make it a tool that works
(34:24):
for us, because if you don't, it'll work against you,
and all of them will. But this is the most
this is the biggest challenge we've ever had as a
human race as far as I'm concerned. So we've got
to get our hands around it and make sure we
understand it and make it work for us.
Speaker 1 (34:39):
Yeah, dude, I love that using the right spaces too.
Speaker 4 (34:41):
It's I guess Scott mentioned as a marketing machine, like
there's just a lot of opportunities that are well outside
of what you might just.
Speaker 3 (34:48):
Think of it, you know, as a tool. So it's
a brave new world out there.
Speaker 1 (34:51):
Man, listen to the next twenty, gentlemen, the next twenty.
Thanks guys, Thanks for you
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