Morgan Wallen’s Trio of Smash Hits —’Last Night,’ ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ and ‘Cowgirls’ — Proved That Deep Cuts Can Make a Big Impact

Morgan Wallen remains the most popular country artist in contemporary music, as the Tennessee bad boy lands four songs on this year’s Hitmakers countdown. Leading the way is “I Had Some Help,” his chart-topping collaboration with Post Malone, followed by three songs from 2023’s seven-times platinum “One Thing at a Time” album: “Last Night” and “Thinkin’ Bout Me,” as well as “Cowgirls,” featuring co-writer Ernest.

The common thread is the tight-knit team of collaborators who work on them. Joey Moi handled production on all three songs on this year’s Hitmakers list, while renowned songwriters Charlie Handsome, Ashley Gorley, Jacob Kasher Hindlin and John Byron show up repeatedly.

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“There is a really strong group of songwriters that have been using the Big Loud studios as their hub and base,” Big Loud CEO Seth England says. Part of the camp’s secret is their willingness to gamble on talented newcomers such as Ernest, a rising country star in his own right, and songwriter Rocky Block. They joined Moi, Handsome and Gorley to craft “Cowgirls,” which exploded on country radio more than a year after “One Thing at a Time” dropped.

By the time an artist gets around to releasing the eighth single from an album, it’s usually something of an afterthought. That was not the case, however, for “Cowgirls,” which proved to be an early fan favorite — a fact that wasn’t lost on Big Loud. Wallen’s team suspected it had the potential to be a big song when they heard the demo. “It was riddled with hooky elements, and the chorus was a one-listen hit,” Big Loud’s Patch Culbertson recalls.

Still, the song wasn’t promoted to radio until it had been out for a year. “It wasn’t the frontrunner in topline consumption,” Culbertson says, “but the engagement under the hood was off the charts.” As the weeks and months went by, it saw airplay and social pickup. When it was time for release, the label had a multi-pronged marketing strategy in place. “We made sure our streaming partners were aware of the reactivity and aligned with our plan,” Culbertson adds.

That involved sharing the staying power of “Cowgirls” with management, which resulted in it being added to Wallen’s live setlist. “Morgan and Ernest were performing the song every night, and the energy was electric,” Big Loud’s Stacy Blythe says. “As our country radio partners were watching this happen before them, it reinforced a confidence in the song as a radio priority.”

Cowgirls

Songwriters: Rocky Block, Ernest, Ashley Gorley, Charlie Handsome, Yung Lan, James Maddocks

Producers: Joey Moi, Jacob Durrett

Last Night

Songwriters: John Byron, Ashley Gorley, Charlie Handsome, Jacob Kasher Hindlin

Producers: Jacob Durrett, Joey Moi

Thinkin’ Bout Me

Songwriters: John Byron, Ashley Gorley, Charlie Handsome, Taylor Phillips

Producers: Charlie Handsome, Joey Moi Label Big Loud/Mercury/Republic

Hitmakers:
?Rocky Block, songwriter
?Stacy Blythe, EVP of radio promotion, Big Loud
?John Byron, songwriter
?Patch Culbertson, EVP and GM, Big Loud
?Mike Giangreco, VP of A&R, Big Loud Publishing
?Ashley Gorley, songwriter
?Charlie Handsome, songwriter-producer
?Joey Moi, producer
?Austin Neal, CEO, The Neal Agency/ Sticks Mgmt.
?Taylor Phillips, songwriter
?Lucas Romeo, EVP of pop radio, Republic Corps Collective
?Candice Watkins, SVP of marketing, Big Loud

Publishers: Cowgirls: Empire Publishing, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony Music Publishing, Warner Chappell Music / Last Night: Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp., Big Loud Mountain, Sony Cross Keys Publishing, Master Of My Domain Music, Poppy’s Picks, Rap Kingpin Music, Prescription Songs, Sony Songs LLC / Thinkin Bout Me: Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp., Big Loud Mountain, Sony Cross Keys Publishing, Michael Scott Paper Company Publishing Company, Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp., Hits From the Tape Room, TDP Publishing, Sony Songs LLC

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