Wednesday evening at the Quonset Hut, the Mike Curb College of Entertainment & Music Business presented a Songwriting Seminar featuring Belmont Alum Rusty Gaston, owner and operator of the publishing company This Music. Gaston reigns from Texas and moved to Nashville sixteen years ago to pursue a career in the music industry and attend Belmont University. Today, Gaston is a passionate and committed music publisher who fills his time plugging the work that his nine seasoned songwriters produce.
“I’m in the passion business, I live for Mondays. I’d rather work seven days a week because I love it. If you don’t feel the same way about your profession, you need to find something else to pursue.”
This Music, a joint venture with Warner Chapel, has seen fourteen award winning songs in its six year career and has provided number one hits with artists such as Blake Shelton, Josh Turner, Chris Young and Luke Bryan. Gaston’s day to day work involves being proactive and delivering the best songs to the right people, not simply waiting for artist’s to bite.
“My job is to harpoon something, not simply fish a song. I’m in the business of knowing what artists need, and if I don’t have it, I’m not going to waste their time.”
Gaston’s relationship with his writers is professional, prolific and most importantly, reciprocal. “A songwriter needs someone to be held accountable too, a coach, one to exploit their songs, so a writer can be financially successful. We’re a team.”
Tomorrow, Gaston speculates that his most recently cut song by Luke Bryan entitled “I Don’t Want This Night To End” will move from number two to the top of the charts. Recently, This Music has written songs for Martina McBride, Dustin Lynch and Craig Morgan. Even though This Music is seeing success and growth in catalog, Gaston is content with nine writers. He says that he can give equal, genuine attention to all of his writers and run a successful business.
Gaston impresses upon the student audience that passion, diligence, and commitment is essential. Songwriters in this town must produce the best work possible at all times. “Since this is a singles business, the only way you can get a song cut today is if someone (a manager, producer, artist) thinks it is a first single contender.”
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