logo
episode-header-image
May 2024
1h 23m

Ep. 230 - CAROLYN DAWN JOHNSON ("The Day...

Scott B. Bomar, Paul Duncan
About this episode

With an ACM Top New Female Vocalist win and nearly 20 Canadian Country Music Awards, the chart-topping Carolyn Dawn Johnson chats about everything from her songwriting successes to her artist career to her co-writing with Chris Stapleton.

PART ONE
Paul and Scott dive deep on their opinions about the recently-announced Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction class of 2024.

PART TWO
Our in-depth conversation with Carolyn Dawn Johnson.

ABOUT CAROLYN DAWN JOHNSON
Canadian-born singer, songwriter, producer, and musician Carolyn Dawn Johnson moved to Nashville in the mid-1990s and started getting her songs recorded by artists such as Patty Loveless, Suzy Bogguss, Kathy Mattea, and Jo Dee Messina. Her breakthrough came in 1999 with Chely Wright’s recording of "Single White Female," which hit #1 on the country charts. Wright’s follow-up recording of Johnson’s "Downtime" also became a Top 5 hit. Carolyn was named Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year by Music Row magazine in 2000 and landed a record deal of her own with the Arista Nashville label. Her self-produced debut, Room with a View, hit the Top 10 in the US and earned Gold status in Canada. The singles "Complicated“ and "I Don’t Want You to Go“ were both Top 10 hits in the US. She won the Academy of Country Music’s Top New Female Vocalist award and swept the Canadian Country Music Awards. The follow-up album, Dress Rehearsal, also debuted in the Top 10. To date, Carolyn has earned nearly 20 Canadian Country Music Awards for songwriting, performing, and producing. As an artist she has toured with Reba McEntire, Alan Jackson, Kenny Chesney, Keith Urban, and Merle Haggard. As a backup vocalist and musician she’s toured with Ashley McBryde, Miranda Lambert, and Martina McBride. After a hiatus as an artist she has recently begun recording new music while continuing to enjoy success as a writer, including Chris Stapleton’s "The Day I Die,“ a song Carolyn and Chris wrote together that appeared on his 2023 album Higher
 

Up next
Today
Songcraft Classic: MIKE STOLLER ("Hound Dog")
We're celebrating our 10th anniversary all year by digging in the vaults to re-present classic episodes with fresh commentary. Today, we're revisiting our 2016 conversation with Mike Stoller. ABOUT MIKE STOLLERMike Stoller has written more than 60 songs that have appeared on the ... Show More
1h 31m
Jul 2
Ep. 259 - NORMAN GREENBAUM ("Spirit in the Sky")
Norman Greenbaum gave the world "Spirit in the Sky," one of the greatest records ever made. He chats with us about his iconic classic, as well as other musical adventures and misadventures over the last few decades. PART ONE: Paul and Scott chat about Instagram, artist accessibil ... Show More
1h 10m
Jun 25
Songcraft Classic: ANI DIFRANCO ("32 Flavors")
We're celebrating our 10th anniversary all year by digging in the vaults to re-present classic episodes with fresh commentary. Today, we're revisiting our 2021 conversation with Ani DiFranco. ABOUT ANI DIFRANCOSinger, songwriter, musician, producer, poet, author, spoken-word arti ... Show More
1h 30m
Recommended Episodes
Jul 2023
Pt 2 w/Jeff Carlisi from 38 Special, plus Todd Ronning from Bad Company & Paul Rodgers' new solo project
In part two of our interview, Jeff Carlisi gives us the back story on 38 Special's first big hit, Rockin' Into the Night, the writing partnerships that produced some of their biggest hits, role changes inside the band, their history with MTV, the shock of finding out th ... Show More
46m 45s
Aug 2024
Newcomers: Magdalena Bay
Few pop groups are making music as imaginative as Magdalena Bay. The Los Angeles-based duo of singer Mica Tenenbaum and multi-instrumentalist Matthew Lewin, have been steadily releasing music since 2016, eventually breaking out with their viral hit “Killshot,” four years later. I ... Show More
23m 2s
Nov 2024
Fleetwood Mac perfected turning drama into hits
In 1973, before their ascent to rock superstardom with Fleetwood Mac, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks were just two young lovers making music in Los Angeles. Their debut album, Buckingham Nicks, though commercially unsuccessful at the time, would prove to be the catalyst that ... Show More
52m 59s
Apr 2024
Backstage with Young Fathers
Back in November 2023, Host Alisha Sweeney joined Scottish trio Young Fathers in their dressing room before they opened for Depeche Mode at Ball Arena on their massive US tour. The band's 2023 album, their fourth, Heavy Heavy was nominated for the Mercury Prize in music---a prest ... Show More
17m 48s
Oct 2022
The Opus: Alice in Chains' Dirt is Coming Soon
The Opus podcast is rising out of the Dirt for a new season centered on the legacy of Alice in Chains’ sophomore album. Presented by the Consequence Podcast Network and Sony, the hit music history series is back to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the genre-changing classic.Laun ... Show More
49s
Nov 2018
Blood on the Tracks: Canonizing Bob Dylan's Human Opus
Presenting The Opus: an exploration of legendary albums and their ongoing legacy - beginning with Bob Dylan's 1975 record Blood on the Tracks; the gold standard of sharp, heart-wrenching songwriting, that spawned classics like “Tangled Up in Blue”. Join host Paula Mejia and a ... Show More
30m 41s
Mar 2024
Don’t overthink it with Bill Ryder-Jones, Anna Calvi and Poppy Hankin
Bill Ryder-Jones, Anna Calvi and Poppy Hankin discuss the first piece of music that really affected them, how their writing has changed as they’ve grown older, and how much they’re willing to give people control over their music.Bill Ryder-Jones is from West Kirby, Merseyside. He ... Show More
29m 59s
Feb 2024
From indie to pop with Chromeo, La Roux and Empress Of
Chromeo, La Roux and Empress of discuss longevity in the music world, the future of music media and the shifting notions of taste and trends.David “Dave 1” Macklovitch and Patrick “P-Thugg” Gemayel make up electro-funk duo Chromeo. The pair met in the mid-1990s at college in Mont ... Show More
26m 10s
Nov 2024
Connie Boswell - solo recordings 1950's
Connie (later Connee) Boswell was the central member of the Boswell Sisters trio in the 1920's and 30's although she had a series of solo recordings at the same time - here we will hear a few things from the 30's and early 40's (with Ben Pollack, John Scott Trotter and Frank Sigo ... Show More
1h 1m