~Nashville Christian Songwriters Caps Stellar 2021 and Rides Momentum into the New Year~
| As a founding partner and publisher with Meadowgreen Music, Cox signed and developed the songwriting careers of major Christian music songwriters including Michael W. Smith, Rich Mullins, Gary Chapman, and Lowell Alexander, and published many well-known songs, including “How Majestic Is Your Name,” “Holy Ground,” “Great Is The Lord,” “Friends,” “Thy Word,” “Via Dolorosa,” and “Was It A Morning LIke This.” Cox hit the ground running in early December 2021 as he joined Chisum and NCS Vice President Robert Till as a presenter at the organization’s popular online workshop, “God Gave Me A Song… Now What?” Originally launched as a highly successful webinar with more than 1,000 registrants, the program has since been developed into a 3-hour online workshop which is geared toward helping aspiring songwriters understand the process involved in writing and releasing original music effectively. Among other highlights in 2021, NCS launched a new online learning hub called Kingdom Songwriters Academy, featuring curated monthly masterclasses, exercises and song challenges, as well as supporting podcasts, blogs, and articles. “Our songwriting students are invited to be part of the online Facebook community, make friends all over the world, and post songs for peer feedback and support,” says Chisum. Chisum and NCS celebrated another major milestone in 2021 with the release of their Song Revolution with John Chisum podcast’s 150th episode. Since its inception in 2017, the groundbreaking podcast has featured songwriting insight and interviews with guests such as Jason Gray, Randy Cox, Buddy Greene, Don Moen, Zach Williams, Bonnie Keen, Michael Card, Francesca Battistelli, Matt Maher, Kari Jobe, NEEDTOBREATHE, Matthew West and many more. NCS is constantly reviewing and updating the company’s programs to provide their clients with the best training available. During 2021, the company rebranded its popular NCS Coaching program to NCS Pro Song Coaching, where it works with dozens of premium level clients who’ve stepped up their songwriting. And they’ve taken the process a step further with the introduction of NCS Next Level Coaching, a new 90-day program for NCS Pro Song Coaching alumni, with Chisum, Till, and Cox continuing to coach writers in co-writing, production, and publishing. Throughout 2021, NCS President John Chisum worked one-on-one providing A&R/Artist Development for a number of NCS clients, connecting them to higher level production with producers such as Sal Oliveri, Chris Springer, Jay Speight, and Jeff Nelson, resulting in a number of singles released and ministries launched. In October, 2021, Chisum released a new single of the song “How Great,” which he co-wrote with NCS student/client Tamera Perry. NCS alumni Jaclyn Huse and Carolyn Cross co-wrote “What He Says to Do” with Devin McGlammery, and the song was recorded by Ernie Haase & Signature Sound on the group’s Grammy-nominated project, Keeping On. NCS client Mark Boucot won 1st place in the CCM United song contest and is up for CCM United Songwriter of the Year. NCS member Carol Chisolm was one of the five finalists in You God’s Music 2021 Showcase and received an all-expense paid trip to San Antonio, Texas, to compete in the showcase. “As a member and client of Nashville Christian Songwriters, I have learned valuable techniques to take my songs to the next level and gained confidence in my songwriting ability,” says client Carol Chisolm. “I’m so glad I invested in my future by becoming a member of NCS.” “Since working with John and the team at NCS, I’ve now written with notable writers such as Krissy Nordhoff, Daniel Doss, Mitch Wong, Seth Mosley, Randy Cox, Kenna Turner-West, Matt Hammitt, Holly Salazar, Cedric Israel, and Sam Hart,” adds Boucot. “I recently won 1st place in the CCM United Songwriting contest for my song ‘I Will Wait,’ and I’m one of four writers in the running for Songwriter of the Year. Our song, ‘Your Ways Are Higher’ passed 35,000 streams (on Spotify) in the first month of its release, and songs from our EP release, Worship Is Warfare, produced by Seth Mosley and X O’Connor, will start dropping this month.” Nashville Christian Songwriters expects the momentum to continue to build into 2022 and beyond. To learn more about Nashville Christian Songwriters and how you can get involved, visit nashvillechristiansongwriters.com. |
