Warner Chappell Music (WCM) has signed a global publishing deal with superstar and songwriter Morgan Wallen.
As a part of this deal, Wallen will have the ability to sign songwriters in partnership with WCM.
Honored as Songwriter of the Year at the 2023 BMI Country Awards, Wallen has written chart-topping hits such as the RIAA multi-platinum Chasin You, 7 Summers, You Proof and Thought You Should Know off his albums while also securing outside cuts by Keith Urban, Jason Aldean, Corey Kent and Kane Brown, among others.
Wallen’s third studio album, One Thing At A Time, broke the 30-year record for most weeks atop the Billboard 200 chart for a country album and was also recently named as Luminate’s Top Album of 2023 in the US.
Wallen shared: “I look forward to working with Warner Chappell as my new music publishing partner and would like to thank them for also offering support in signing songwriters I believe in.
“In many ways, I feel like I’ve always been a songwriter first, and because of that, the publishing community is especially close to my heart.”
Morgan Wallen
“In many ways, I feel like I’ve always been a songwriter first, and because of that, the publishing community is especially close to my heart.
“I’m honored to use this partnership as an opportunity to give other songwriters a helping hand. Thanks to Ben, Phil, Jessi, and their great team.”
According to Luminate’s 2023 Year End Report, Wallen’s One Thing At a Time registered 5.362 million Total Album Equivalent Consumption (TAC) Units last year and 6.357 billion on-demand audio streams (see below).
Ben Vaughn, President and CEO, Warner Chappell Music Nashville, said: “When you listen to the craftsmanship of songs that Morgan is writing, such as the modern-day classics 7 Summers and Thought You Should Know, and the impactful songs he’s written for other artists like You Make It Easy (Jason Aldean) and Wild As Her (Corey Kent), you start to understand that the man from East Tennessee is quickly becoming one of the most important songwriters of this generation.
“Our entire Warner Chappell team is so proud of the opportunity to represent his songs.”
“Our entire Warner Chappell team is so proud of the opportunity to represent his songs.”
Ben Vaughn, Warner Chappell Music Nashville
Jessi Vaughn Stevenson, Sr. Director, A&R and Digital, Warner Chappell Music Nashville, added: “Morgan’s songwriting style has been original and distinct from the beginning and it is so exciting to get to work with someone who has seen massive commercial success built on authenticity.”
Wallen’s One Thing At A Time has remained atop the Billboard 200 chart for 18 non-consecutive weeks, tying Garth Brooks’ Ropin’ the Wind with the most weeks at No. 1 for a Country album; and was the most-streamed album of the year on Spotify.
The album’s 6x-Platinum single Last Night attracted over 1.5 billion streams globally, becoming the most-streamed song of any genre in the U.S. across Apple Music and Spotify, and the longest-running No. 1 solo song in Hot 100 history (16 weeks total).
Music Business Worldwide