Vanderbilt Archives | American Songwriter

Learn The Nashville Number System At Vanderbilt University

Odie Blackmon On August 25th, the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University will be offering a new class for musicians and songwriters. It will be held on Thursdays from 7 to 9 pm and it will be taught by Odie Blackmon, grammy nominee and the winner of 3 ASCAP Awards. Some of his songwriting [...]

29 Years After Their First Visit, U2 Light Up Music City

In 1981, U2 played Vanderbilt’s Underwood Stadium. Then, they took a break. Until 2011, that is. On July 2nd, U2 played their second-ever gig in Music City. And it was a doozy. If there was ever a time when Bono was in better voice, or the band sounded fuller and more on their game, we’re [...]

U2 Live In Nashville, 7/2/2011

U2, with opener Florence + The Machine, Live in Nashville on July 2, 2011.

Photos: The National, Edward Sharpe And More At Nashville’s Rites Of Spring

Q&A: Sara Bareilles

Pop songstress Sara Bareilles is winding her wagon wheels for a trip down south, and will play Nashville’s Rites of Spring festival this week. We talked to the Grammy nominee and “Love Song” writer about Nashville’s charms, the challenges of co-writing, as well as her beginnings as a student at UCLA. And her favorite song? [...]

“Songwriter To The Stars” Odie Blackmon Is On A Roll WIth A New Instructional DVD And Songwriting Course At Vanderbilt University

From the press release: September 28, 2010 (Nashville, TN) — Writing hit songs for the likes of George Strait and Lee Ann Womack isn’t all that Grammy-nominated songwriter Odie Blackmon has been up to lately. He’s also been teaching other aspiring musicians how to write their own chart-topping hits — and make a living doing [...]

Snoop Dogg Boogies Down In Nashville

Bow wow wow, yippee-oh yippee-ay. On Friday night, Snoop Dogg’s tour bus rolled into Nashville. The rapper was the headliner for Vanderbilt University’s Commodore Quake concert, which also featured Passion Pit, B.o.B. and Playboy Tre. The mostly collegiate audience was well-behaved, as was the 39-year-old father of three. “How many of you was two when [...]

Catching Up With Bluegrass Icon Alison Brown

Grammy Award-winning bluegrass superstar Alison Brown will release her debut DVD tomorrow, Alison Brown Quartet With Joe Craven – Live At Blair. Shot at Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music in Nashville, the DVD captures Brown and her band getting down in front of a delighted audience, with a guest appearance by multi-instrumentalist Joe Craven. What [...]