NASHVILLE, TN (CelebrityAccess) — Nashville-based music publication MusicRow announced the winners for its 29th annual subscriber-voted awards with Keith Urban's "Blue Ain't Your Color," winning song of the year.
Sony Nashville's Maren Morris was honored by the publication as 2017's breakthrough artist, while breakthrough songwriter, an award that went to Morris last year, was given this year to Parallel Music Publishing's Jesse Lee.
Universal Music Group's Lauren Alaina won the inaugural award category, breakthrough artist-writer, for co-writing her first Top 10 hit, the No. 1 "Road Less Traveled." Jay Joyce received his second plaque for producer of the year, having worked in the studio with Eric Church, Brandy Clark, Little Big Town, Carrie Underwood, Brothers Osborne, Devin Dawson, LANCO, and The Wild Feathers.
The event also recognized MusicRow's Top 10 Album All-Stars, studio whiz kids who appeared on the most Billboard Top 10 album credits in eight categories over the past 12 months. Those players include: Jimmie Lee Sloas (bass), Justin Niebank (engineer), Aubrey Haynie (fiddle), Ilya Toshinskiy (guitar), Charles Judge (keyboards), Russell Terrell (vocals) and a tie for Fred Eltringham and Greg Morrow (guitar), and Dan Dugmore, Paul Franklin and Russ Pahl (steel).
The MusicRow Awards took place on June 28th at a private gala and were hosted for the first time this year by SESAC and sponsored for the second year by Nashville-based entertainment insurance company Anderson Benson.
