scuttlebutt

We’ve all likely heard that term by now, whether you’re a fan of music or someone who works in the music industry, or owns a venue which regularly hosts musical events.

Blue Dot Fever.

Empty blue dots scattered across ticket maps. That stupid little nickname that has become increasingly annoying for a very real problem that’s somehow morphed itself into everyone’s business and reality in 2026. Regardless of which side of the microphone you’re on, you’re feeling it. Tours canceled. Shows downsized. Promoters losing their asses off. Artists and managers scratching their heads for immediate solutions. Industry executives convening in their panels and board rooms to ask the essential question: What’s happening right now?

The post OP-ED: Blue Dot Fever Isn’t a Ticket Sales Problem. It’s a Good Old Fashioned American Greed Problem appeared first on JWA Media.

The music business has always had gatekeepers. Radio promoters, label executives, playlist curators, venue buyers, publicists — every era has had people deciding who gets heard and who gets buried. But somewhere along the way, the line between promotion and outright pay-for-play became so blurred that many independent artists no longer feel like they’re competing on talent, originality, or connection. They’re competing against bank accounts.

The post Pay-For-Play Industry Plants In The Music Business & How It’s Tearing Out The Heart & Soul Of Original, Human-Created Artistry appeared first on JWA Media.

The second album project from alt folk rock duo Sixteen Bones, a collaboration between two established Louisville rock music scenesters, David Sailor Bryant (My Own Victim, Surviving Thalia) and Bryan Fox (End of Me), delivers the powerful guitar punches of post-grunge acoustic rock, mixed with the simple storytelling aspects of alt-country and folk.

The post Album Review: ‘Signs, Symptoms & Other Ill Conditions’ by Sixteen Bones appeared first on JWA Media.

Veterans Day is a time we should all pause and think about the services and sacrifices made by our military service men and women, and their families. It’s likely no surprise that there have been so many country musicians who are either veterans themselves, or who’ve answered the call of duty to go above and beyond to honor and assist our active duty military personnel and veterans through charity and non-profit work. 

Today, I’m recognizing 20 selected country artists who’ve answered that call, from the modern era and decades past, and the non-profit and charity organizations which they’ve supported with their time and talents. 

The post Recognizing 20 Country Artists Who Are Military Veterans & Those Who’ve Gone Above & Beyond To Support Our Veterans Community Organizations appeared first on JWA Media.

This list of songs will inevitably grow by a metric fuck ton as I randomly procure the time to sit my ass down, listen to EVERYTHING in my mental playlist, and write about it to share my personal thoughts on all these songs which have shaped my personal perspective on a lot of things in my own life. Songs from my own life’s soundtrack based on who I grew up around and was exposed to. However brief some of these may be. Look, some of these Gen-Z kids have the attention span of a goldfish so I’ll be surprised some of them make it past song #3. 

The post The Songs Which Have Shaped Me – Looking Back On The Songs Which Have Become My Own Life’s Soundtrack appeared first on JWA Media.

Neighborly.

If you had to describe the 32nd annual Master Musicians Festival with only one word, that’d be it. Because that’s exactly what it felt like. It’s a family-friendly event that’s not yet been exploited by the big corporate machines, likely due to the careful curation by its founders: the Somerset, Kentucky-based entrepreneurs Julie Harris and Tiffany Finley.

The post Hunting & Picking The Best Country Out Of The 32nd Annual Master Musicians Festival appeared first on JWA Media.

Ahead of his headlining performance at the Master Musicians Festival in Somerset, Kentucky on Saturday, July 12th, Jamey Johnson sat down with Saving Country Music corespondent Jason W. Ashcraft to talk about his new music, his take on new artists and the current direction of country, a new foundation he started, as well as how a few weeks difference might have kept the retired Marine in the service as opposed to saving country music as a songwriter and a performer.

The post Jamey Johnson Talks Future Plans in Music, Love for Zach Top appeared first on JWA Media.

Taking a look back on The Kentucky Headhunters and their 50+ year career in the music business, along with looking ahead to their upcoming performance on July 12 at the 32nd annual Master Musicians Festival in Somerset, Kentucky.

The post The Kentucky Headhunters’ Richard & Fred Young Look Back On 50+ Year Music Career & Ahead To Their Performance At Somerset’s Master Musicians Festival On July 12 appeared first on JWA Media.

Just another day working in the music business…more to come from this I’m sure. I’m waiting to see who else got their panties in a wad about this…

The post Tell The Truth About Something & Then Watch Certain People Lose Their Minds About That Truth appeared first on JWA Media.

It’s time that I clear the air and file a written complaint about this brain dead tech zombie race of human beings that is being birthed, and the fugazi fake media types that are feeding this new beast of technological ignorance and preying upon the finances of unsuspecting artists as their method of sustainment.

The post GONZO OP-ED: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot? Filing A Complaint With All The Brain Dead Tech Zombies & The Pay-For-Play Fake Media Fugazis Out There Trying To Destroy Journalism appeared first on JWA Media.