Flanked by his co-writers and co-producers, Curb Records artist Lee Brice took to the stage at Nashville’s The Sutler Saloon on Monday (Sept. 9) to celebrate “Rumor,” his fifth No. 1 as an artist and fourth as a songwriter.
Brice’s co-writers on “Rumor” are Ashley Gorley and Kyle Jacobs, and his co-producers are Jacobs, Dan Frizsell and Jon Stone.
The celebration was jointly sponsored by the performance rights organizations SESAC, of which Brice is a member, and ASCAP, with which Jacobs and Gorley are affiliated.
SESAC’s Shannan Hatch lauded Brice’s talent as a soulful singer and his ability to pick songs with hit potential to record. She also pointed out that eight of his singles have gone platinum.
Beth Brinker spoke for ASCAP, noting that “Rumor” is Gorley’s 42nd No. 1 and that he is a six-time winner of ASCAP’s country songwriter of the year award. Jacobs, Brinker added, has written more than 1,800 songs, 150 of which have been recorded.
“Rumor” is Jacobs’ fourth No. 1 as producer. He and Brice, along with Billy Montana, co-wrote Garth Brooks’ 2007 hit, “More Than a Memory,” which was the first song in the history of Billboard’s country charts to debut at No. 1.
Publisher Ryan Beuschel said that Brice was convinced from the start that “Rumor” was a hit from his audiences’ reaction to it. “He listens to his fans,” Beuschel said. “That’s the best market research.”
Written in 2015 at a songwriters retreat in Florida, “Rumor,” apart from its other successes, can also be heard in the 2019 Hallmark movie, My One and Only, and, as Hatch observed, is “selling a lot of ringtones.”
“This guy is a producer,” said Mike Curb, founder and owner of Brice’s label. “Maybe I shouldn’t say this, but he should have his own record company. His [productions] sound like those Stax records that last forever.”
Pictured above (L-R): Jon Stone, Ashley Gorley, Lee Brice, Kyle Jacobs, Dan Frizsell