Born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona, Joe Vitagliano has a deep passion for people, culture, and all things music. Graduating from Belmont University in 2021 with a major in publishing and a minor in law, he’s studied everything from American roots music to ancient Roman history to ‘90s hip-hop to postmodern harmonic theory and more. First joining the American Songwriter staff as a wide-eyed intern in 2019, he’s been reading the magazine since he was a child. A songwriter himself, he sees the opportunity to share these stories as something sacred. “To quote Willie Nelson, we live ‘at a time when the world seems to be spinning out of control,’” he said. “In those times, music is paramount. It’s the ultimate source of solace and tool of expression. To now be able to share it is an honor beyond my ability to articulate.”
When quarantine came around last year and Larry Fleet found himself with an excess of free time, he and his collaborators got together and started doing what they do best: write songs. At first, they were kinda just doing it to keep up their chops and pass time. “All of our shows were getting canceled,” More
While technologies, fashions, genre stylings, and streaming platforms might always be evolving, one through-line has held strong for the entirety of the music industry’s colorful history: good songwriting makes for good songs. Yet, for many songwriters around the world, the high demand for their product hasn’t exactly led to career opportunities just jumping up out More
“I needed to let go of someone who was weighing me down,” Nashville’s Brandon Calano tells American Songwriter. Flanked by an unhealthy relationship, Calano knew that he had to make a change in his life—and since he began performing under the name Becoming Young in the late 2010s, whenever it’s come to changes in his More
On Tuesday (Sept. 14), Devon Allman—son of the American music legend, Gregg Allman—announced that the annual Allman Family Revival shows will take the form of an 18-city tour kicking off in late November. First held in 2017 on what would’ve been Gregg Allman’s 70th birthday, the Allman Family Revival has grown into a yearly tradition More
From the moment you press “Play” on “Fall Down”—the latest single from Brooklyn-via-Australia punk duo, The Death Set—to the moment it ends a minute and 40 seconds later, you’re taken on an explosive mini-adventure with all the ups, downs, struggles and triumphs of a DIY punk tour. First penned a decade ago when the band More
“I’ll play one that came from sitting in a hotel room in Key West,” Charlie Worsham began. “The songwriting gods were with us.” The year was 2013 and Worsham was busy doing a lot of reflecting, writing, and recording—that August, his debut studio album Rubberband dropped on Warner Bros. Nashville. Then, just a few weeks More
“Let’s go!” Lil Nas X exclaimed Sunday evening on the stage of the VMAs. For the 22-year-old “Old Town Road” rapper, it was a big night—he took home the top prize for Video of the Year, as well as awards for Best Visual Effects and Best Direction. The wins were all for his single “Montero More
We’re all lost in the same dreamLoss and longing, from the same veinAlways wondering what it all meansTo still believe These lyrics come from the chorus of Vanishing Shores’ new single, “Believe (Every Band I Know),” which dropped September 10. An impassioned indie anthem dedicated to the unsung local bands around the world, the song More
American Songwriter launched its official Twitch channel with an inaugural broadcast of Off The Record Live featuring rising country star Ashland Craft, who spoke about the journey to her debut album, Travelin’ Kind. Dropped September 3 via Big Loud Records, the album captures Craft’s special mix of grit and charm. Like a lot of great More
“Before the pandemic, in 2018, I released Modern Hearts independently,” Paul McDonald began. “I was on the road supporting Hanson and was planning on going out and doing some of my own shows when everything just… stopped.” As it was for a lot of musicians, the COVID-19 pandemic felt like the rug was being pulled More
In 2020, one of the hottest memes on the real-world-depraved, quarantine-brained internet was Ratatouille The Musical, an ingenious—and, albeit, unintentional at first—monument to the creativity of the internet age. Dozens of TikTok users from around the world utilized their talents by writing, arranging, and performing a 12-song musical with the app keeping them all tied More
If you read the list of artists with who Swedish producer and songwriter, Rami Yacoub, has collaborated, it reads less like a resumé and more like the roster for a “pop’s greatest hits” radio station. Brittney Spears, Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande, Selena Gomez, Nicki Minaj, Madonna, Backstreet Boys, One Direction, NSYNC, 5 Seconds of Summer, More
