The Jay Franze Show: Country Music - News | Reviews | Interviews

Country Scandals, Replacement Singers, and Country Music News

• Jay Franze / Tiffany Mason • Episode 183

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What happens when country headlines collide with hard radio data and a lightning-rod debate about replacement singers? We open strong with legacy-name scandals and the messy myths that follow artists, then pivot to why High Road became the most-played track and how Morgan Wallen still blankets the airwaves. From Garth Brooks saluting KISS to arena tours and heartfelt tributes, we trace the lines between genre, showmanship, and what actually moves listeners to hit replay.

We get honest about a stat no one likes: only five songs by women cracked country radio’s top 50 this year, and most were features. Is that bias, taste, or risk-aversion? We unpack the label incentives, production choices, and fan habits that tilt playlists toward male voices—and where the breakthroughs really happen when women lean into sharper narratives and bolder arrangements. If you’re a programmer, artist, or fan who wants more balance, you’ll find practical takeaways to nudge the system forward.

Then we light the fuse: name a replacement singer better than the original. The board fills with ACDC’s Brian Johnson, Journey’s Steve Perry, Van Halen’s Sammy Hagar, and Queen with Adam Lambert. We separate technical upgrades from cultural fits and show how casting can redefine a band’s destiny—just as it can in country.

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Jay Franze:

And we are coming at you live. I am Jay Franzi, and with me tonight, the John to my Paul, our beautiful co-host, Miss Tiffany Mason.

SPEAKER_02:

Alright.

Jay Franze:

If you are new to the show, this is your source for the latest news, reviews, and interviews. And if you would like to join in, comment, or fire off any questions, please head over to jfranzie.com. Alright, my friend, tradition has it. Before we get started, let me tell you about the question of the day. The question of the day. Name a replacement singer that is better than the original. Name a replacement singer that is better than the original. Do not tell me now. Wait and give me your response a little later in the show. And if you would like to put your comments in the comment section, we'll go ahead and read those off a little later in the show as well. And we would like to thank James. James for providing the question of the day. Alright, we're going to go ahead and kick it off with an article we came across. An article called Eleven Country Stars Charged with Horrifying Crimes. 11 Country Stars Charged with Horrifying Crimes. Could be interesting. Who knows?

Tiffany Mason:

I just hope they're not all Morgan Wallen.

Jay Franze:

You know what? I don't know. You know why I don't know? Because I don't read them in advance. I like to be as surprised as you are, my friend. All right. No particular order. Let's go ahead and start with David Allan Coe. He was charged with possession of burglary tools. That doesn't seem fair. I mean, if he didn't use them. If he didn't use the tools, just having the tools. It's like saying, I have a hammer. I didn't use it to smash your window in, but I have one.

Tiffany Mason:

It should be just like possession of.

Jay Franze:

Jerry Lee Lewis. Oh no, he has probably had quite a bit of charges against him, but this one says public drunkenness and gun possession.

Tiffany Mason:

Again, these are not horrifying, but this was 1976.

Jay Franze:

And to be fair, if he was in public, drunk, and had a gun all at the same time, that could be scary. Yeah. All I can remember every time I think of Jerry Lee Lewis is him playing that show through the whole show, saying he was fine, he was fine, he was fine, and then finally at the end he goes, alright, fine, I'm drinking.

Tiffany Mason:

Isn't he the one that married like his first cousin or something?

Jay Franze:

Yeah, he married his cousin.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah. That's horrifying.

Jay Franze:

They're working on making it legal. Who knows?

SPEAKER_04:

I know.

Jay Franze:

We'll see what happens. Oh, next, Steve Earl. Drugs and weapon possession.

Tiffany Mason:

That is horrifying. For the same reasons we just said it was horrifying.

Jay Franze:

Well, if he was on drugs, sure. If it was to sell the drugs, I don't know.

Tiffany Mason:

Maybe he used a knife to make people buy them.

Jay Franze:

It's true. Could be a knife. It does say weapon, it doesn't say gun.

Tiffany Mason:

I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt. I'm saying it is a knife. Based on nothing.

Jay Franze:

Based on nothing. We'll we'll go with that.

unknown:

All right.

Tiffany Mason:

You don't know how I appreciate facts, Jay.

Jay Franze:

You are. You're a very factual person. That's why we brought you on here to read the news. Next, Merle Haggard. Attempted robbery. Again, he failed. He wasn't very good at it.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, no, because they're good at singing.

Jay Franze:

It doesn't sound very horrifying.

Tiffany Mason:

Just stay in your lane.

Jay Franze:

He could have been taking a gumball from the five and dime. We don't know.

unknown:

I don't know.

Jay Franze:

Merle Haggard. Sorry. I had a chance to work with him.

SPEAKER_04:

Really?

Jay Franze:

I worked on one of his projects. He was not there.

SPEAKER_04:

Okay. Well, appreciate your chance.

Jay Franze:

So definitely before my time. However, I did get to work on one of his live recordings. Next. Billy Joe Schaefer. Aggravated Joe.

Tiffany Mason:

Billy Joe Jones.

Jay Franze:

Yes, not Billy Joe Jones. This has an E. Oh, very big difference.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah.

Jay Franze:

Billy Joe Schaefer. Aggravated assault.

Tiffany Mason:

Not good. Not good.

Jay Franze:

Ooh. Ooh. Here we go. Jelly roll.

SPEAKER_03:

Uh oh.

Jay Franze:

Aggravated robbery.

SPEAKER_03:

Yikes.

Jay Franze:

Now to be fair, it says he was 16.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh gosh.

Jay Franze:

But he had a gun. And he was charged as an adult.

Tiffany Mason:

Jelly's got a gun. No, please don't.

Jay Franze:

Oh, next, Johnny Paycheck.

Tiffany Mason:

Ooh, I've heard this name.

Jay Franze:

Assault.

Tiffany Mason:

I took you a long time to read us assault. Did you sound it all out?

Jay Franze:

I had to sound it out of my head. Johnny Paycheck, assault. I was just leaving room for conversation. I love you like a bad rash.

SPEAKER_04:

I know you do.

Jay Franze:

Johnny Paycheck again.

SPEAKER_04:

Again.

Jay Franze:

Misdemeanor, sexual assault. I'm sorry. Was that read quick enough for you? Johnny Paycheck again. Misdemeanor, sexual assault.

Tiffany Mason:

He was having sexual healing.

Jay Franze:

Apparently was not healed.

Tiffany Mason:

It was not healed.

Jay Franze:

Okay, here's a name I've never heard before.

Tiffany Mason:

That was sexual feelings. Feelings. I'm sorry, please proceed.

Jay Franze:

Well, thank you. Next on the list, Lefty Frizzle.

SPEAKER_04:

That's the artist's name.

Jay Franze:

Lefty Frizzle. It says so on his guitar as well.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh wow.

Jay Franze:

Let's see. 1945. But he looks like a cowboy. Hat, plaid, button-down shirt, jean jacket over it, holding an acoustic guitar that actually says lefty frizzle across it.

Tiffany Mason:

Wow. Classy. What was his offense again?

Jay Franze:

Statutory rape.

Tiffany Mason:

Yikes. I don't like that.

Jay Franze:

All right. Next, Johnny Rodriguez.

SPEAKER_04:

He who speaks first loses.

Jay Franze:

And you lost. So Johnny Rodriguez murder.

SPEAKER_04:

Do you have to sound it out again?

Jay Franze:

No, it's just that this is the only one that really qualifies.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, the other ones, I mean, the the aggravated assault, those are kind of scary.

Jay Franze:

Yeah, I guess.

Tiffany Mason:

The person was fired up and they're like, you know, a little deranged.

Jay Franze:

I get it.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah.

Jay Franze:

Alright. Last but not least. Spade Cooley. Spade Cooley. This is gonna be old 1961. He's dressed in an Elvis type jumpsuit with a scarf around his neck that hangs to his left and it's polka dotted. And the right side of his jacket is rhinestone. He looks like a performer from that time period. So Spade Cooley, first degree murder.

Tiffany Mason:

Yikes. That's horrifying.

Jay Franze:

It is. It really is.

Tiffany Mason:

Is it weird that none of them were like recently?

Jay Franze:

Jelly Roll.

Tiffany Mason:

One. Yeah.

Jay Franze:

He was 16 at the time. So it's still not that recent.

Tiffany Mason:

All of them are like 30 years old.

Jay Franze:

At least it is a modern singer.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah.

Jay Franze:

Somebody who's on the charts.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, let them know. Our feedback. We want current horrifying stories.

Jay Franze:

We want it to be a little bit more current, please.

Tiffany Mason:

We want to know if we're in danger or not. Okay.

Jay Franze:

All right. Well, shall we move on to the news?

Tiffany Mason:

Let's do it. Okay. I am excited about this story.

Jay Franze:

How excited are you?

Tiffany Mason:

I'm going to put myself at a 10. I mean, it's pretty real.

Jay Franze:

All right, let's hear it.

Tiffany Mason:

Cole Wetzel, Top Country Radio, the song High Road, named number one song of 2025. I am very excited about this song. The very first time I heard it was last summer, not 2025, 2024. Um, I heard it and I loved it immediately. And I learned all the words immediately, and I listened to it like, I don't even know a million times in a row because it's got Co Wetzel featuring Jesse Murph. I love the imagery. I just I love this song so much. And talking about when they like get in a fight and he knows that she's gonna freak out, and he's like, I'm not doing this, I'm gonna take the high road. You do what you gotta do. And then she comes in with that really rough and like gritty, raspy voice. Oh my god, I freaking loved it. Okay, so I was very, very, very excited about it. So I'm excited that it is being named the number one song of 2025. I concur.

Jay Franze:

It's also the most played song of 2025.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh, that's what I was supposed to say. Yeah, that's the most played song. Again, here I go with my supposed to say that. Yeah, that's the most played song. Country, yeah.

Jay Franze:

Okay, sorry. I thought I was adding a tidbit, but I'm not.

Tiffany Mason:

No. Well, regardless, you were right. And I don't say that right.

Jay Franze:

Right. Clip it. Um, producer, sir. Can you go and clip that? Thank you.

Tiffany Mason:

He's only clipping it because I never tell him that. So and he's gonna play it even when he's not right.

Jay Franze:

I'm gonna start putting it on one of these pads over here, and I'm gonna trigger that thing all the time.

Tiffany Mason:

Okay, well in the same in the same breath, in the same story, in the same vein, Morgan Wallen landed two more tracks in the top five with Love Somebody and I'm the problem, further cementing his dominance on the airwaves this year. But I am kind of excited that he got beat out by Coetzel and Jesse Murph.

Jay Franze:

So he's got beat up. I'm excited he got beat up.

Tiffany Mason:

No, no, but I will say the Co-Wetzel version by himself is kind of the quote unquote clean version. And if you play the one with featuring Jesse Murph, which is the one that has been most played, you will hear some vulgar language. You may need air muffs. So just heads on. Okay. Megan Moroni got to see her this summer with her M I O K tour. And now she has a new global tour, Cloud Nine, and it is going to begin in 2026, and it is a full arena scale run covering US major cities and international stops across Europe. The tour supports her upcoming third studio album, Strike Studio, from the recording. Uh, her third album, Cloud Nine, which she calls the most personal work yet. So that's exciting. I'm excited to hear some new music from her. Yeah. And I heard the new color is supposed to be purple.

Jay Franze:

Oh, we're back on that again.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah. Yeah. Who told you that? They did.

Jay Franze:

I believe it was one of the crew members.

Tiffany Mason:

They no, because she liked, she said she liked all the pink. Pink was the first album and then blue, and now we're on to purple.

unknown:

Oh, okay.

Tiffany Mason:

Yes.

Jay Franze:

So purple. You know what that is? That is the color of my graduate school. Go UQ.

Tiffany Mason:

Parker in kindergarten learned a very cute song. P-U-R-P-Lurple. Purple. And it had all these words that went with it. So I know purple very well. And I know how to spell it because of a song that my son learned in kindergarten.

Jay Franze:

Nice.

Tiffany Mason:

Back to the news. Legendary voice, lost Mavericks, frontman Raul Mallow, passes away at 60. Longtime frontman of the Mavericks has died at age 60 following his public battle with colon cancer. Fans and peers are mourning a defining presence whose voice and Latin rock inflected country helped reshape the genre's boundaries.

Jay Franze:

He's one of the first that fused country and rock together, so I like him.

Tiffany Mason:

Latino rock.

Jay Franze:

I like that too.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah, me too.

Jay Franze:

It doesn't get as much recognition as it should. You know, you have like one hit song that people can recall. Maybe two, but La Bamba.

SPEAKER_03:

La la la la la bomba.

Jay Franze:

I saw it, I saw it in your eyes.

Tiffany Mason:

I waited to like warn you it was coming.

SPEAKER_06:

Let's move on.

Tiffany Mason:

That's actually a movie I watched a lot as a kid. A lot.

SPEAKER_06:

It was a great movie.

Tiffany Mason:

Something that I want to watch is Christmas in Nashville. NBC's Christmas in Nashville. Uh, the duo War and Treaty moved fans to tears with their holiday performance, dressed in festive red Western gear, and the viewers were immediately beginning to clamor for a full holiday album after the emotional rendition. They were on the CMA show and they were up for an award as well, I believe. I have not really tuned into any of their music, but if you missed it like I did, you can actually catch it on Peacock. It is streaming now.

Jay Franze:

Is it streaming right now?

Tiffany Mason:

Right now. But do wait until after the Jay Franzi show is done. Then you can head over to Peacock and then you can watch.

Jay Franze:

I see. We just lost half our audience.

Tiffany Mason:

No, they're they're hanging tough.

Jay Franze:

Oh.

Tiffany Mason:

Our people are true to us.

Jay Franze:

True to form.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah. Crew members don't bail when they hear Christmas in Nashville is on Peacock.

Jay Franze:

No, if they do, they don't get paid. Somebody's gonna tear down all this gear.

Tiffany Mason:

Both microphones.

Jay Franze:

Right. That's a lot of work.

Tiffany Mason:

And two sets of headphones.

Jay Franze:

Somebody's gonna zero out the mixer. I mean, come on, there's a lot of things to do.

Tiffany Mason:

Okay, all the gear. Well, Garth Brooks showed up at the Kennedy Center, but surprised everyone with a rock tribute. So the country icon played at the 2025 Kennedy Center Awards, not for his country peers, but to tribute his rock legends, Kiss Belting Out, Shout It Out Loud. The unexpected set sparked chatter among fans and media. Some say it showed his genre crossing boldness. Others called it controversial. Why is it controversial? Garth Brooks and play country and known as a country artist, but then celebrate rock.

Jay Franze:

Trump was there and they took a picture together, and I saw a bunch of people online criticizing the president, saying, You look, even Garth Brooks and the other artists, they don't want to be there. You can tell by the look on their face. But every one of them were Republicans, and every one of them funded his campaign. First of all, if you did not support him, and that's your right, if you don't want to support him, I get it. Sure. But if you don't support him, why would you be there performing in the first place? Right. Right. So I mean, if they chose to go perform there and they chose to take the picture and they chose to do all the stuff, they chose to give their money to him during the campaign. I'm gonna assume that they wanted to be there.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah, you know, I actually took a picture.

Jay Franze:

Uh oh. It scares me when you do things like this.

Tiffany Mason:

Because I wanted to talk about it.

Jay Franze:

I don't know who it was that said they liked it when you went off script, but it kind of scares me. Never know where things are going. How far left are we going?

Tiffany Mason:

No, there was some someone else there that I wanted to make note of.

Jay Franze:

George Strait was there.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh, maybe that's what it was. That's exactly what it was.

Jay Franze:

And they said George Strait, you know, he didn't want to be there. And again, George Strait being from Texas and funded the campaign and is listed as a Republican, I think. Whether you like that or not, I think he chose to be there. And what I don't understand is I don't care which way you go, left, right, indifferent, doesn't matter to me, but we should all back whoever the final person elected is.

Tiffany Mason:

Amen to that. Yes, George Strait is exactly what I took a picture of. Yeah, I think we all need to get better at fact-checking before we share anything. Just everybody. There was a picture that was posted of oh, Dolly Parton falling. And somebody was like, You guys, it's AI. And it was funny because it shows her falling, but like you can see her boobs are straight up. Her boobs are straight up. The twins are peaked forward.

Jay Franze:

Twin peaks. Oh, I love that place.

Tiffany Mason:

But somebody was like, Come on, that's AI. And I think it's true. Like, we all just need to like you see it, and you're like, oh my gosh, do you want to tell something? You're like, wait a minute, fact-check. Okay, well, something you can fact check is Maddie and Tay press pause. The duo announces a hiatus after 15 years. Members go solo and family first. So Maddie and Tay reveal that they are taking a break, one pursuing a solo career while the other one is focusing on family and motherhood. Though they stress that it's not a permanent split, fans are already feeling nostalgic for their harmonies. I agree because that is a strong suit for them.

Jay Franze:

Yeah, it's sad. And it says, Well, I'm gonna pursue a solo career. Pursuing a solo career by default. I mean, you have no choice. If I'm gonna go raise a family, guess what? You're on your own.

Tiffany Mason:

It's probably got to be a really tough conversation, though.

Jay Franze:

Yeah. It sucks. I heard it on the radio or something just today. I heard somebody talking about it. I was like, oh, that sucks. And then I was surprised. You know, you bring it up in the news, like it's almost like you've got a real story going.

Tiffany Mason:

Hey. Nothing but facts here.

Jay Franze:

Nothing but the facts.

Tiffany Mason:

I have some more facts for you. So in 2025, country rankings are in, and Morgan Wallen, Jelly Roll, Jason Al Dean, Luke Combs, and Post Malone's reign supreme. Post Malone. There's only one of them. Post Malone's reign supreme.

Jay Franze:

Did you get the post Malone's?

Tiffany Mason:

According to iHeartRadio or iHeartRewinds, year end tally, the guys I mentioned are at the top of the list in 2025 as most listen to country artists. Their songs and collaborations, because they all collaborate with each other, also dominate streaming, radio, and radio charts. A clear signal of what's resonating with fans all year. Think that they're like, ugh, they just have such good songs, and then you like they're so amazing on their own, and then you're like, oh my god, they're together, they're collaborating. Of course, that's what the fans want to hear. They're amazing on their own, and then you put two of them together. Double the pleasure. What?

Jay Franze:

I don't know. I'm not the biggest fan of the collaboration.

unknown:

Ah.

Jay Franze:

Not all of them. I like some of them. You know, I like Kenny and Dolly when they're doing a duet. But it was because they were doing an actual duet. All right.

Tiffany Mason:

Tell me more. I want to listen.

Jay Franze:

Like a stub toe.

Tiffany Mason:

Okay, well, if you're over it, I guess I'm going to move on. Yeah, yeah.

Jay Franze:

Move on.

Tiffany Mason:

Okay. Country Thunder. Florida 2026 reveals their star-studded lineup. And that is going to be at the Trade Winds Island Grand Resort on St. Pete Beach, Florida. So not too far from me, about two and a half hours west. Tiny bit south.

Jay Franze:

I lived there for a little while.

Tiffany Mason:

You lived there for a little while?

Jay Franze:

I did.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh, fun.

Jay Franze:

I was working on a gig that we stayed there for like six months.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh. Well, St. Pete has an awesome new pier. Awesome. So if you travel back, you got to check out the pier.

Jay Franze:

They also have a Hooters.

Tiffany Mason:

Any Twin Peaks?

Jay Franze:

No, well, not that I noticed.

Tiffany Mason:

I mean, they got a lot because everyone's in their swimsuits. So different kind. All right. Well, the upcoming lineup is going to be Kane Brown, Zach Top, Gavin Adcock. The Beachfront Festival promises to be one of the biggest country music events of the year, drawing fans looking for sun, surf, and live hits. Nice. 2025, Country Radio.

Jay Franze:

2025 Country Radio.

Tiffany Mason:

A boys' club.

Jay Franze:

Imagine that.

Tiffany Mason:

So despite the surge in new female talent, data shows only five songs from female artists cracked Country Radio's top 50 in 2025, underscoring a persistent gender imbalance. So I will say of the five, and I will tell you who they are: Jesse Murph, Carrie Underwood, Ella Langley, Megan Moroney, and Dasha, Jesse Murph, Carrie Underwood, and Ella Langley were featured. It wasn't like their song, like how he said it was the Co-Wetzel song featuring Jesse Murph. Right. So it wasn't them on their own, even. So there's really only two that were on their own, Megany and Dasha.

Jay Franze:

Well, the crew has been saying they want more female artists. I don't think it's a female artist thing. I think there's plenty of female artists out there. I think listeners just typically like the male vocalists or the male fronted bands better or quicker or something. I agree. You know, I prefer female fronted rock bands. However, most people prefer the male-led stuff. And I don't know why that is, but record labels specifically. When I was working in Nashville, record labels would make the comment we already have our female artist.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh gosh.

Jay Franze:

So I mean they would have, you know, say ten artists that they were working with at that moment, but they would only have one female because you know each label, especially like when Shania Twain broke or when Faith Hill, you know, they were they all wanted to get their version of that female artist. So once one label breaks with one, then the next one copies it and the next one copies it.

Tiffany Mason:

Um, I was watching The Road, I think it was that charity, I think that's her name, The Redhead. She was saying that women have to just work that much harder in Nashville to be considered or whatever. And I do see that. I don't think it's a gender thing. I think that you're right that the fans just gravitate towards the men voices or the men music or whatever it is. I don't really know. But I think there's truth in that, and I don't think it's a gender thing.

Jay Franze:

I mean, it is a gender thing, but not like they're female, it's just how it happens to be. It's also their choice of songs. It's there's a whole list of things that go into it, but like if you get some of the rougher female artists like your Gretchen Wilsons or your Miranda Lamberts, they stand out more because of that roughness and gives more of that cowboy vibe and more of that stuff, and their music typically becomes a little bit more popular because of it. And even Carrie Underwood, she broke in with Jesus Take the Wheel, a great song, but she didn't really become mega popular until she started to get all those angry songs.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah. We got a lot of pent-up aggravation we're all trying to get out, I guess.

Jay Franze:

I like it.

Tiffany Mason:

I do too. I think that's what I started realizing about, like how I was saying I'm discovering some of the rock bands or whatever. And I would like to add Leonard Skinner to that list. I feel like that one does qualify because you disqualified a lot of the rock bands that I gave you, and so I'd like to put Leonard Skinnard in there. And I feel like he quali they they qualify.

Jay Franze:

So 38 Special.

Tiffany Mason:

Okay, I like 38 Special a lot too. But I think it has so much to do with the guitar. So much to do with the guitar.

Jay Franze:

So I think that's the thing that makes music powerful is the instrumentation, and female fronted artists typically have softer sounding music.

Tiffany Mason:

Yep. Yep, yep, yep, yep, yep.

Jay Franze:

All right. Moving on to the question of the day. Question of the day is name a replacement singer that was better than the original. Name a replacement singer that was better than the original. I'm interested to hear your choice. Would you like to go first or would you like to go at the end?

Tiffany Mason:

Um I'm gonna reserve my submission to the end.

Jay Franze:

Alright, fair enough. Let's start off with Megan. She goes right for rock. She's skipping country and saying, I'm going straight to rock.

Tiffany Mason:

I think have there been more rock bands with changes than country music. I mean, the lead singer changes, don't they just dissolve?

Jay Franze:

That's just it. Country is a lot more of the individual singer. There are bands, but you got the Tim McGraw, the Jason Al Deans. You don't typically have a band. Some of them do.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah, yeah.

Jay Franze:

But there are definitely more bands in the rock world. It's primarily bands in the rock world. But Megan says Brian Johnson.

SPEAKER_04:

You're gonna you're gonna have to help me understand.

Jay Franze:

Brian Johnson. Front man for ACDC.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh man. Okay.

Jay Franze:

That's a good one. Alright, next, Caleb. You fail. Sorry.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh now you know how it feels, Caleb.

Jay Franze:

Caleb says Arnell Pinata. Pinata, it's not pinata. Pinetta.

SPEAKER_03:

Pinetta? Pinetta.

Jay Franze:

Caleb says Arnell Pinetta. The answer is no. He replaced Steve Perry for Journey, and the answer is no. Steve Perry, the greatest voice to ever hit rock music for sure. Him and Jeff Tate to me are the like absolute standouts when it comes to rock vocals.

Tiffany Mason:

I hope that we can still be friends after I ask this question.

Jay Franze:

Queensreich.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh, thank you.

Jay Franze:

Jeff Tate, lead singer of Queensreich. Alright, Samantha says, Sammy Hagar. You know what? Samantha, that is a good one. Even though Sammy Hagar, the better singer, and definitely a better songwriter, but David Lee Roth still had the swagger and still wrote good songs, and they were just two different types of performers. I think they were both equally as good, but Sammy Hagar was definitely the better singer.

Tiffany Mason:

I do not know their voices apart from each other, so you would if you heard the songs for sure.

Jay Franze:

Especially if you ABM. Sammy Hagar can actually sing and he's got a range. Where David Lee Roth is all one range and he's not really a singer. He's just a front man, does all the you know almost gymnastics on stage and I was gonna say acrobatics, that's funny. Your mother chimed in saying there's nothing like an original singer. I agree. All right. Derek says Tim, the Ripper Owens. Judas Preacher. Oh. And I would say fail. Oh sorry, Derek. But fail. Lisa says, Chester Bennington, he stepped into Stone Temple Pilots. Oh now he is an amazing singer, or was an amazing singer. Sadly, no longer with us. He was the singer for Lincoln Park, and he stepped in and replaced the singer for Stone Temple Pilots.

Tiffany Mason:

Don't you have a connection with Lincoln Park?

Jay Franze:

No. Oh I went to see him. I went with Jenny, 8675309.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh my gosh, you guys must have had so much fun. Did you call her?

Jay Franze:

Gave her a call.

Tiffany Mason:

I mean, I know she's got your number, but you got her number.

Jay Franze:

Kara says Lawrence Gowen stepped into Styx. Oh Kara, I would also have to say hard no. Sorry. Mark says William Duvall, not the Mark. William Duvall stepped into Alice in Chains. No. No. Jerry Cantrell, by far better. Oh, and Donna, you're wrong as well. This is like a lot of rock artists.

SPEAKER_04:

Well, it's like we said, the the rock groups have an interchangeable piece, but the country ones don't.

Jay Franze:

Right, yeah. So Donna says Johnny Solinger for Skid Row. No. Like your mother said, it's hard to replace an original singer.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, right, because you get used to them, and that's the sound that you know, and then someone comes in and changes it up.

Jay Franze:

Natalie says, Okay, Miss Tiffany, you like Leonard Skinnard? I'm going with Johnny Van Zamp.

SPEAKER_02:

Alright.

Jay Franze:

Um, better equal. All right, Riley says, Jason Chef for the band Chicago. Now, I actually recorded the band Chicago with Jason. He was a nice guy. But he replaced Peter Sotera. I don't know if I would say he's better than Peter Sotera.

SPEAKER_03:

I could not tell you one way or the other, Jay.

Jay Franze:

Well, that's great.

Tiffany Mason:

I cannot cast a vote.

Jay Franze:

Okay. Now this is gonna tie in later on down the road, so I'm gonna go ahead and mention it now.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay.

Jay Franze:

Heather says Alex Lingert would L-I-G-E-R-T would.

SPEAKER_04:

Yeah. Don't hurt yourself.

Jay Franze:

Sorry. Replaced Greg Raleigh in the band Santana. Oh now Greg went on with Neil Sean to form a band called Journey. But he's a keyboard player first. Oh Dave says Van Halen, anyone but David Lee Roth. Because Van Halen has had multiple singers at this point. Nina says if you kind of go with Arnell for Journey, he wins just for showing up. Because Steve Perry stepped aside. Carl says, well, Phil Collins made dad rock cool. Toby says smash mouth. No one beats Steve Harwell. Jess says, I agree, Brian Johnson for ACDC. And Hunter says agree with Johnny Van Zant for Leonard Skinnard. And Rosa agrees with Jason Scheff for Chicago. And Mike, you're wrong. Agreeing with Arnell for Journey. Here's an interesting one.

Tiffany Mason:

Lay it on me.

Jay Franze:

Kelly says Adam Lambert, the replacement singer for Queen.

Tiffany Mason:

I could see that. He's freaking awesome.

Jay Franze:

But so is Freddie Mercury.

Tiffany Mason:

Okay. Okay, so.

Jay Franze:

I mean, Freddie Mercury, well, so is Adam. I was gonna say it has a lot of charisma. But so does Adam.

Tiffany Mason:

I agree. So this is what I think. I think I don't know if it was like best replacement or the replacement is better, but it was a uh an appropriate replacement. So I don't know if it was better. Maybe equal. It was definitely a good fit. Yeah, because he's got a lot of talent, a lot of range, he can hit all that falsetto.

Jay Franze:

He's also got the same charisma in a flamboyant way. I mean, he can actually hit and sing all those songs.

SPEAKER_06:

Mm-hmm.

Jay Franze:

But I would say that. That would be appropriate. That's a tie.

SPEAKER_03:

That's a tie. That's a tie.

Jay Franze:

Che Vicious says Brian Johnson, ACDC. Don't get me wrong. I still love Bon Scott. Okay. Fair enough. Maya Project Music, thank you. Maya Project Music, previous guest of the show, here every week. I truly appreciate it. She says, William Duvall.

Tiffany Mason:

We.

Jay Franze:

We. We really appreciate it.

Tiffany Mason:

Truly appreciate it.

Jay Franze:

I can't speak for you.

Tiffany Mason:

I am the turd in your pocket, Jay.

Jay Franze:

Producer, sir. Please clip that. I would say that is probably the best comment. Or the most truthful comment. Maya Project Music says William Duvall, Allison Chains. I'm going to have to go back now and listen to William because Lane Stanley was just awesome.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, I don't know how long it takes our crew members to get through an episode. My favorite thing to do is when I know I'm hitting the road for an hour plus. God, I love to play our episode. Go play all these songs. So the episode's playing, and then we mention a song, and I'm like, hey, lady in the phone, go play blah, blah, blah. And she cues it up, and I'm like, oh yeah, I do know this song. Oh man, this is awesome. And then sometimes it takes even longer because I'll let that song go to you know, rabbit trail to the next, to the next, to next, and then finally I'm like, ah, I gotta go back to the episode.

Jay Franze:

All right. Paul here just about every week. Thank you, Paul. You're gonna have to do a little bit better. I think you've skipped a week or two.

SPEAKER_04:

Oh, Paul.

Jay Franze:

Paul, come on. He says Sammy Hagar. Replaced David Lee Roth Van Halen, so that's another one. Liz, we're gonna come back to Liz because she has got mine. Oh John says Brian Johnson again, ACDC. Haters gonna hate, he says. The James provided our question of the day, says Bruce Dickerson of Iron Maiden. And I will say Bruce is awesome. And he was the singer of the band when I worked with them, and he is the one I was assigned to for the security detail. I think it's on Instagram. There's a picture from that night of the backstage pass in my view from the stage. But I get to pick him up at the back of the hotel and drive him through all the tunnels and do escort him to the stage and keep the crowd away from him. It was a pretty fun night. He's also a pilot. He's the one who flies their their tour plane.

Tiffany Mason:

Right. And they broke up the airplane, they made it into kitchen.

Jay Franze:

You're tying it all together. I love this.

unknown:

I know.

Tiffany Mason:

Sometimes I hate that too.

Jay Franze:

Just a be. Just a before. He says Dio for Black Sabbath. Ooh, and he says haters gonna hate. Dio is awesome, but is he better than Aussie?

Tiffany Mason:

I don't know. I'd have to go listen because I'm a pretty big fan of Aussie.

Jay Franze:

Dio's awesome. Don't get me wrong. He might even be a better singer. Like vocally talented. But Aussie created a genre. Him and the original Black Sabbath created heavy metal. Dave Gibbs, I'm gonna use his last name because he's an artist. I worked on his project. He says Paul Westerberg. I do not know who that is. Sorry, Dave. Dave Jackson, previous guest of the show, says John Karabi for Vince Neal in the band Motley Crew. I do not know John. I do know Vince. Vince was never a good singer. I mean, I think he'd be the first to tell you. He he can sing and hit some notes and stuff, but he's more of a showman for sure.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, they say that there's like uh personality hires, right? So he was the personality hire, the front man.

Jay Franze:

Okay, Lee. We're gonna go back to Lee as well. So remind me, Liz and Lee.

SPEAKER_04:

Liz and Lee.

Jay Franze:

They both have selected my choice as well. Ooh, here's a name that I'm never gonna get. I'm gonna just pronounce the whole thing.

Tiffany Mason:

Botch it.

Jay Franze:

Do it. Julio Teens and Submarines. It's all one word, all lowercase, so if that's not the way you want it broken up, I don't know. It could be Julio Teens sand submarines. I don't know, but it says Brian Johnson.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh.

Jay Franze:

Oh, here's an interesting one. Smithy the first says David Coverdale better than Ian Gillen. Uh David Coverdale's awesome for sure. Alright, now's your opportunity. Do you want to give me your choice?

Tiffany Mason:

I would feel like a big fat fraud if I gave you a choice. You guys, I don't know those things. I don't talk about lyrics, I'm all over it. Talk about something a little bit more recent, I'm all over it. But I, you guys, I missed out on the rock groups. I just missed out. So I'm trying to learn now. I took notes of all of them. I even considered in my head, I was like, maybe I'll make up note cards and I will quiz myself.

Jay Franze:

Don't struggle. Don't don't hurt yourself.

SPEAKER_04:

I've got to get better.

Jay Franze:

All right. Liz and Lee.

SPEAKER_04:

Yes.

Jay Franze:

They both say Steve Perry. Now, let's talk about that for a minute. Because people, when they think of Journey, they think of Steve Perry as the singer, but he was not the original.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah.

Jay Franze:

As I just mentioned earlier, Neil Sean was the original guitar player, and Greg Raleigh was the keyboard player for the band Santana. They had the same manager and they split off and formed a band very similar to Santana, a jam band, and they called it Journey. And Greg Raleigh was the singer. And eventually they found a lead singer. So Greg Raleigh, even though I'm sure he liked being the lead singer, was not intended to be the lead singer.

SPEAKER_02:

Right.

Jay Franze:

They were looking for a true front man.

SPEAKER_03:

Got it.

Jay Franze:

So that's when they found Steve Perry, and that's when the band actually took off. And then eventually Greg Raleigh stepped aside and Jonathan Cain came in, and Neil Shaw and Jonathan Cain and Steve Perry became the trio that wrote all of the hit songs. Although Greg Raleigh did write a couple good songs. But there you go. That's my choice. Steve Perry. Steve Perry and Jeff Tate by far the best rock singers ever, in my opinion. Eva.

Tiffany Mason:

Eva.

Jay Franze:

Alright. Shall we move on?

Tiffany Mason:

Let's move on. Do you want to talk about charts?

Jay Franze:

Alright, yeah, let's do it.

Tiffany Mason:

You want to talk about the charts?

Jay Franze:

Can we start at number 10?

Tiffany Mason:

We can start at 10. I think that's a good idea.

Jay Franze:

I like when we start at the back.

Tiffany Mason:

And we're going to start out with Hudson Westbrook and number 10 with House Again.

Jay Franze:

House Again.

Tiffany Mason:

House Again. Number nine is Mr. Blake Shelton, Stay Country or Die Trying. Okay, again, I was listening to our episode and I was like, do I know this song? I do not like this song. I definitely know this song, and I do not know how it's on the charts. And I thought it was old. So I don't know how it's on the charts, but y'all better get your hearing checked. I don't care.

Jay Franze:

I like the song. I do. I just think it's got a handful of corny lines or lyrics in it that make it a little hard, hard to tolerate.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah. Well, spot number eight is Mrs. Miss Megan Moroni.

Jay Franze:

And I do like that song.

Tiffany Mason:

Yes. I am a fan. That doesn't kill you, makes you stronger and blonder and hotter. Got it. Spot seven from number six, so he's slipping a spot. Tucker Wetmore, three, two, one. Can't wait till it's off. Just no.

Jay Franze:

You don't like it at all.

Tiffany Mason:

See ya, Tucker.

Jay Franze:

I don't mind it. You know, it's just not my favorite.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah, yeah. Now, number six, I'm a fan of. It went from eight to spot number six, so it's climbing the charts. Mr. Hardy with favorite country song. That's my favorite country song.

Jay Franze:

It's not my favorite country song. However, I see what you did there.

Tiffany Mason:

I see what you did there.

Jay Franze:

I'm pretty clever sometimes.

Tiffany Mason:

Holding steady, Parker McCollum. What kind of man? Whoa. The top five, y'all, have not changed.

Jay Franze:

So then we don't even need to review them.

Tiffany Mason:

No, we're done. We can go right on to the new charts.

Jay Franze:

All right. Fine producers in my ear saying finish the chart. Go ahead.

Tiffany Mason:

Okay. Holding steady at number four. Parmalee with Cowgirl. I do like that song. Number three, the fans have spoken. They love it too. Riley Green with Ella Langley. Don't mind if I do.

Jay Franze:

I do like that one.

Tiffany Mason:

I do. I do. The in-person performances have been just as good as you hear on the radio. They look great together. They have good chemistry. Great song. Great video. Great everything.

Jay Franze:

I just like the story.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah. All of it's great. Okay. Uh, spot number two, holding steady, Miss Laney Wilson, somewhere over Laredo.

Jay Franze:

What's a Laredo?

Tiffany Mason:

I don't know. Ask Hannah, maybe she knows.

Jay Franze:

Hannah No H.

Tiffany Mason:

Hannah No H. Uh, I did come across a documentary on Hulu, and it's really good. And it starts in 2023. So she's still like kind of fresh. She can't believe it's happening. It's really good. So I don't know. It said season one, episode one. I was like, how many seasons are there of Lainey Wilson? But I'm going to give it a go. I liked it so far.

Jay Franze:

Send it to me, I'll check it out.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, and she talks on there too about how um she's just like grinding and she's just like doing whatever she can to um get her name out there.

Jay Franze:

What's the rating of it?

Tiffany Mason:

She's not being a lot lizard. But she is sleeping in a camper. But it's really sweet. I'm not gonna give the story away. You gotta go listen to it. It's a very sweet story where she got to camp out and why she got to camp out there. But she's talking about her social media, and I've shared here on the show before. That is one of the things I love about her, that she just comes off so authentic. And you know, it's it's so interesting to me that celebrities used to be like these people, you know, unattainable. Right. And now they're like coming down to our level where they like have to be influenced. It's our level. Our level not quite this far down. The low men, the lowly men. They're starting to, you know, do things with social media and stuff that I'm like, huh, would have never thought. I can't remember who it is. They're pitching a product, and I'm like, wow, things must be getting rough.

Jay Franze:

Artists don't get paid these days. All right, darling. Let's move on to number one.

Tiffany Mason:

Number one is Chase Matthew with Darlin.

Jay Franze:

Nice. I like that one. Wait, wait, wait, do we have it? He gets a little bit of applause.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, the country charts usually get a full round of appeal.

Jay Franze:

You want all the applause? I mean, come on, how about a little bit of a narrow one?

Tiffany Mason:

I don't know why I think that's so funny when it's just a little bit.

Jay Franze:

He's had some applause in the past. Nobody wants to hear these cheesy sound effects. Let's move on.

Tiffany Mason:

I want to. Okay. Can we do it again?

Jay Franze:

Can we start at number 10?

Tiffany Mason:

Well, I think ten. I think ten is where you start. Okay. 10 smells like whiskey by Jesse G. Oh, I hope that stays. That's fun to say. Uh, number nine is Said No Redneck Ever by Aaron Goodwin.

Jay Franze:

Goodwin.

Tiffany Mason:

And that is from spot seven up to nine. Or I guess down to nine. Holding steady. Numero ocho. Single of the year by Maddie True.

Jay Franze:

True Blue Music. I tried. I was I wasn't gonna do it, but I just couldn't do it. I'm not gonna say Domash this time, though.

SPEAKER_06:

Yeah, you are.

Jay Franze:

I'm not. I'm I swear. No Domash for you.

Tiffany Mason:

Spot seven is Wish You Wouldn't Go by Ken Domash. Spot number six, moving up from spot number ten. Second hand smoke by Alex Miller. Five making leaps and bounds jumps is life's highway. Not life is a highway.

SPEAKER_06:

No.

Tiffany Mason:

But life's highway by Soul Circus Cowboys with Andy Griggs.

Jay Franze:

They're on Kismet. I just like saying Kismet, sorry. Don't mean to ruin your flow.

Tiffany Mason:

You always do. Okay. Spot four.

Jay Franze:

At least I always apologize for it. I didn't mean to interrupt you. Go ahead.

SPEAKER_04:

Well, you can't.

Jay Franze:

I'll try not to interrupt you again. Yeah, I think you're gonna see if I can stop myself.

Tiffany Mason:

Spot four, improving from spot five. Perfume on my jersey by Caleb Lathrap. That is a cute song. Holding steady at spot number three, red by Jet Jurgensmeyer. You look like you're holding your breath, Jay. You're turning bright red.

Jay Franze:

I'm very sad about number two. It was only one week.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, Sweetley Joe Jones has our spot number two with turquoise and silver. Spot one for a week, spot two for a week. That's good.

Jay Franze:

That's good. I just would have liked to have seen it last a little longer.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, you know, we talked about it. Things they are a change in Jay.

Jay Franze:

They are. I don't like the changes. More music, more problems.

Tiffany Mason:

No. All right. And spot number one, Hell That I Call Home by Porter Martin.

Jay Franze:

Good old Porter.

Tiffany Mason:

We barely even got the hands together on that clapping.

Jay Franze:

It's not the same as Russ.

Tiffany Mason:

It's not the same as Russ.

Jay Franze:

Oh, mercy. Shall we move on to the mailbag?

SPEAKER_06:

Wow.

Jay Franze:

I'm afraid to look at the mailbag. I don't know. I haven't even glanced at it this time around. I think people just want to mess with me.

SPEAKER_03:

I get it.

Jay Franze:

So it makes the fun to the show.

SPEAKER_03:

Heck yeah.

Jay Franze:

Oh, Midnight Molly. Didn't we have Midnight Molly before?

Tiffany Mason:

I don't remember. I feel like I would have remembered that name.

Jay Franze:

Okay, now you're just pissing me off. Someone's got their their handle is Tiff's Hype Squad. She doesn't like Tiff.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh my god.

Jay Franze:

I'm just reading the the titles, the names.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, I want to know what Tiff's Hype Squad had to say.

Jay Franze:

All right. I'll start from the bottom of the list then.

Tiffany Mason:

No, just start with Tiff's Hype Squad.

Jay Franze:

I'm going to lose my place. Tiffany, you don't just co-host, you referee.

Tiffany Mason:

Point in case. In the charts just now. I got my lasso out. I had to rein you in.

Jay Franze:

Well, it's funny you say that. Because I'm going to read the rest of it.

SPEAKER_02:

Okay.

Jay Franze:

Tiffany, you don't just co-host, you referee. You roast, you redirect, and you rescue the conversation every time Jay goes full professor mode.

SPEAKER_06:

Boop, boop, boop, boop.

Jay Franze:

I'll take it. I'm professor. She says, Professor Franzi. I'll take that. Jess says, I'm in the line at Starbucks, but I'm going to write this anyway.

SPEAKER_03:

Oh my God, I love that.

Jay Franze:

Jay, you've got the most dangerous combo. A calm voice and a sharp brain. Oh. Now, see, that I'm going to take. See? You can stay. Jess, I don't even care that you go to Starbucks. Just throwing that out there. Every good Bostonian knows Duncan is better. Alright. This person's handle says the intern that knows too much. Oh. I like it. I do too. Then it starts off and says, serious question. How many people in the industry are successful because of talent? And how many are successful because somebody else lost a bet asking for a friend?

Tiffany Mason:

I don't think you had that in your book, did you, Jay?

Jay Franze:

I don't know. Place a bet? It could be. It's in the bonus chapter. Um, that's a good question. This is in my opinion, and again, this is just my opinion. Sorry for if you don't like it. Haters are going to hate, hate, hate, hate, hate.

Tiffany Mason:

Just shake it off, Jay. Shake it off.

Jay Franze:

In my opinion, there's a lot of people who who make it to major label status that don't truly deserve to be major label status.

Tiffany Mason:

Yep.

Jay Franze:

Sorry.

Tiffany Mason:

But if you are one of those people and you have talent, but maybe not the most talent, you just get the book, Stand Out or Fade Out by Jay Francis. I mean, you had so many good things in there about how it's not all dependent on ability.

Jay Franze:

That's true. I'm not throwing any shade. If you get the record deal, you get the record deal for whatever the reason it is, you got it.

SPEAKER_02:

Yeah.

Jay Franze:

However, there are people out there with much more talent that don't get the record deal. It's unfortunate.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, I feel like some people have the total package, which is a little bit of all the package. Which is a little bit of all the things that make the it factor, right? And then maybe somebody has like this amazing voice, but they're not very charismatic, or they have an amazing voice, but they can't get their social media down. You know, like sometimes it's a it's a perfect storm of all the right ingredients that that person just has the it factor, and you know, they get the deal.

Jay Franze:

All right. I figured this one out on my own.

Tiffany Mason:

Wow.

Jay Franze:

All lowercase, one word, but it says southern lightning.

Tiffany Mason:

Southern Lightning. Lightning. Oh, cool.

Jay Franze:

It says, here's a question. I like this question because it's something that is amazingly true to me. I've seen it time and time again. It says, why do artists spend$5,000 on outfits but only want to spend$50 on studio sessions? Now, outfits, whatever they choose to spend their money on, that part doesn't matter. But they always spend their money everywhere else but in the studio. They always look for a deal or a discount or something in the studio. But, you know, I've seen them pay a graphic artist extreme amounts of money. My wife's a graphic artist. I've seen her, she doesn't discount her rates. I've seen her get paid amazingly well where I'm in the studio and they're trying to well, can't you do it for$25 an hour? No, no, I can't. My favorite line was Bob Bullock. When a major producer, one of the biggest in the world, asked Bob Bullock, Hey, is there any chance you can do this for$50 an hour? And he says, No. And he said, Well, do you know anybody that would? He goes, You could ask my assistant. I love that. That's my favorite. Midnight Molly. You two bring on guests I've never heard of, and somehow I end up becoming their biggest fan.

Tiffany Mason:

Me too.

Jay Franze:

Nice. I like that. We like to break new artists. Uh-huh. Like Miss Billy Joe Jones. I don't know if we specifically broke her.

Tiffany Mason:

We did.

Jay Franze:

I like to think we did.

Tiffany Mason:

We did. Hands down.

Jay Franze:

The crew didn't necessarily know who Billy Joe Jones was before we brought her on the show.

Tiffany Mason:

That's right.

Jay Franze:

Cowboy Dan.

Tiffany Mason:

Ooh, he's been here.

Jay Franze:

Cowboy Dan. He says if a song has more name drops than lyrics, it's not storytelling. Fair enough. Tony, no filter.

Tiffany Mason:

That's what I'm talking about. I'm going to change my handle. Tiffany No Filter.

Jay Franze:

That's all I'm going to say because this comment sucks. He says Tiffany's left needs its own merch line. I'd buy a t-shirt.

Tiffany Mason:

Should I have like a little audio button? You click it. Oh, like those kids that had the the squeaker shoes, you know, they walk and it squeaks each time. Have you seen those?

Jay Franze:

Yes, yes. Your mother says that's that's so funny.

Tiffany Mason:

It's hilarious. Oh, my mom thinks I'm funny.

Jay Franze:

And she also says my sound effects are fun. Thank you, Miss Kathy.

Tiffany Mason:

Especially when you chip them short.

Jay Franze:

Roxy. Oh, Roxy Rance. I wasn't gonna read the rest of it because I thought it was her last name, but Roxy Rance. You know why? Because she actually separated it and capitalized it.

SPEAKER_02:

She helped you out.

Jay Franze:

She's helping. I appreciate that. And if you're gonna start leaving comments, please make your name something that I could recognize. Oh, she says, Jay, I don't know how you stay so calm when guests go off. Oh, when guests go off on tangents. Well, you know why? Because I also edit the show and I can make sure those tangents don't end up in it. Erin says, hey crew. Hey crew? She's not tugging us. I've always wondered how much the producers really shape a record. A lot. A lot. Ooh. This is where I need a rant button. I can go off for a while on that one. You can get a really, really good producer, or you can get a really, really bad producer, and I'll tie the engineer in with that producer. Let's say either a duo or a package deal, maybe one does both, whatever it is. Think of those people as artists themselves. And as much as they say, I try not to put a signature sound on things, they do. They use the same equipment, they go for the same microphones, they do the same things over and over and over again because it works. When you're in the studio and you're spending somebody else's money, you go for the microphone that you know is going to work. You go for the preamp that you know is gonna work, you go through the same console, you record on the same platform, everything becomes routine for you. So you end up developing a sound, and then your talent level will determine how well you can produce the band. So if you've got a band that needs help in the studio, one that may not be the best songwriting band or one that may not be the best performing band, you have to be able to pick up that slack. And I don't think a lot of producers can actually do that. It takes an extremely musically talented producer like a Jim Cristaldi. Jim Cristaldi can do that, where I think Bob Bullock would admit that that's not his thing. He doesn't play all the instruments. He hires a team of people to go in the studio where Jim can go in and play all the instruments himself. So that alone can shape a record. So, yes, I think that a producer and engineer truly can shape a record for sure.

Tiffany Mason:

I remember from your book you saying that uh make sure you get a producer that will do the music justice, give it its full due, give it the time and attention it deserves.

Jay Franze:

Yes. Your mom says, You two are my favorite people on Wednesday nights. Miss Kathy. I want to be one of your favorite people every night. Oh gosh. Not just that way. Although that could work too. Didn't your mom just have a birthday? Happy birthday, Miss Kathy.

SPEAKER_03:

She did. She did. Happy, happy birthday. Yesterday. Yesterday.

Jay Franze:

Nice. Happy birthday, Miss Kathy. Joe. J-O, no E. Do you think Nashville is still the place for young artists? Yes. If you want to make it in country music for sure. That's where all the record labels are. Until they move, then that's where you gotta be. Those are the people you want to mingle with. Yep. Joe does go on to say, what about other cities like Austin or Tulsa? Yeah, I mean, those are great, but there's no record labels there. There might be a record label or two in Austin, probably not in Tulsa. But if you're looking to be a modern country artist, you want to be where the modern country artists in the community are, and that's in Nashville.

SPEAKER_03:

Yeah.

Jay Franze:

The live community might be in Austin, and you might have a decent live scene in Tulsa.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah.

Jay Franze:

But the true community is Nashville for sure. We see that over and over and over again. Even when I was teaching at the college, we get people who would come in from out of state to go to the college. And then they would always ask, Well, do you think I need to stay here? It's like, well, if you want to work in country music, you do.

SPEAKER_04:

Well, you know, yep.

Jay Franze:

If you want to work in maybe rock music, go to LA or New York, or you know, you want to work in rap or hip hop, go to Georgia, Atlanta. You know, pick your poison, go to that area. And I would take that a step further. We used to have engineers say all the time, Well, you know, I got an internship at the mastering studio. I'm like, but you want to be a mixed engineer? Yeah, but I get an internship at the mastering studio. Well, all that's gonna do is introduce you to mastering the mastering community. You're gonna be working in the studio, you're gonna be mastering projects, you're never gonna learn how to mix a record.

SPEAKER_02:

Right.

Jay Franze:

So think it through.

Tiffany Mason:

Yep. Even if you're taking the lowest level position in the place, like if you're the secretary at the at the radio station, or you're just the greeter at the door or whatever, take those spots. You know, you're rubbing elbows with The right people.

Jay Franze:

Absolutely. All right. Kevin says, Tiffany, I love it when you challenge ideas.

Tiffany Mason:

Jay does too.

Jay Franze:

Yeah, I do. Cody Country Purist. And I almost read the last name.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh, I'm so glad you had some self-restraint.

Jay Franze:

Oh, by the way, have I not told you yet?

Tiffany Mason:

Oh, I am number one?

Jay Franze:

Yes, you are. Me? Yes. Cody Country Purist. If your live show relies on backing tracks, you're not a musician. You're just doing karaoke.

SPEAKER_04:

That's right. That's fine.

Jay Franze:

That was a good one. Almost a good one to end on, but I think I want to do one more. Oh, here's one. Only because I haven't read the comment. I just like the name. Nate and the night shift crew.

SPEAKER_02:

Cool.

Jay Franze:

We listened to your show during our midnight rounds. It's become our unofficial Keep Us Awake soundtrack.

SPEAKER_04:

Oh, cool.

Jay Franze:

We even quote your jokes like they're inside references, only our team understands.

SPEAKER_04:

I love that.

Jay Franze:

There you go. That's so cool. We can end on that one.

SPEAKER_04:

That's cool.

Jay Franze:

What is going on?

SPEAKER_04:

What's going on?

Jay Franze:

Well, hell, there's a lot going on. Miss Tiffany.

Tiffany Mason:

Mr. J.

Jay Franze:

Will you find yourself in California this week?

Tiffany Mason:

Nope. No airline tickets booked. No.

Jay Franze:

All right. Well, let me tell you why I'm asking.

Tiffany Mason:

Okay.

Jay Franze:

American Mile. They are playing in California this week.

Tiffany Mason:

Nice.

Jay Franze:

Like doing a run through California. They are playing on the 11th, the 12th, the 13th, the 18th, the 19th, the 20th, and a second location on the 20th.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, cheapers, if you live in California, look them up, find out where they're going to be near you.

Jay Franze:

Yes. AmericanMileMusic.com. Now we talked about Miss Billy Joe Jones. Yes. One of our family favorites here on the show. She is also playing this week. Where? She is playing in Texas.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh, yeah, because she's from Texas, right?

Jay Franze:

She is from Texas.

Tiffany Mason:

I saw that sadly she got cut from the road. She did. But she's very sad.

Jay Franze:

She made the top five.

Tiffany Mason:

I was gonna say, like, 12 people started on there, which is quite the feat in and of itself. And then she just posted on Instagram when she got home, and it was cute to see her kid get so excited to see her come through the door.

Jay Franze:

I did see that and the little kid running across the kitchen.

Tiffany Mason:

Now, when you watch people on Instagram, are you nosy? Are you trying to pay attention to the background of everything?

Jay Franze:

You pause the video to look at everything in the background.

Tiffany Mason:

I don't pause it. Are you pausing it, Jay?

Jay Franze:

I don't look at it. It has to be something extremely interesting for me to watch the video, let alone to try to see what's in the background.

Tiffany Mason:

Because I always watch the video, but you know, it like plays itself automatically again. And I'm like, okay, now I'm gonna get nosy. Now I want to see like, do you have pictures up? Do you have artifacts out?

Jay Franze:

I have a hard time watching the video. Like I flip through. This is this is how I flip. I see an artist I like, double tap it real quick, flip, double tap the next one, flip. I don't even watch the whole video. It's gotta be really good for me to stop to watch the whole video.

Tiffany Mason:

Wow. Well, now I know I gotta make the first two seconds really good.

Jay Franze:

Yes, that's exactly right. All right, so Billy Joe Jones, she will be in Texas this week. However, she will be in your area in January.

Tiffany Mason:

Really?

Jay Franze:

In Florida, F L A.

Tiffany Mason:

Ooh. January.

Jay Franze:

January 14 and 15.

SPEAKER_06:

Ooh.

Jay Franze:

All right. We mentioned Billy Joe Jones. We're gonna go right into Trey Calloway.

SPEAKER_06:

Woo-hoo, woo woo!

Jay Franze:

Another family favorite here on the show. Trey Calloway is playing in Nashville. All over Nashville.

Tiffany Mason:

He seems like he keeps his schedule full.

Jay Franze:

It is full. He has one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight shows this upcoming week in Nashville.

Tiffany Mason:

Yep. He always seems to have a lot on his calendar. Always.

Jay Franze:

Five of the eight are listed saying live streamed.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh, cool.

Jay Franze:

So you can check that out.

Tiffany Mason:

Could you put information in the show notes?

Jay Franze:

I hate you.

Tiffany Mason:

I hate you.

Jay Franze:

Why would you give me work like that?

Tiffany Mason:

I always give you work. Jay, yeah, I know you have a lot of free time. I don't want you to spend a lot of time.

Jay Franze:

You and my wife, they're both the same.

Tiffany Mason:

You didn't know by getting a female co-host, you were telling he's welcome.

Jay Franze:

I'd take you off his hands on Monday. That man's having a blast right now. Or Wednesdays. What day is it? Monday and Wednesday weekend.

SPEAKER_04:

He's like, go tell Jay.

Jay Franze:

Yeah. Go talk to Jay. But yes, Trey Calloway playing all over Nashville, and he's playing downtown on Broadway as well. So those would be free shows, people. On Broadway. Check that out for sure.

Tiffany Mason:

He's got some great songs. You know, I don't know if you guys are like me, but I like to study up before I'm going to see somebody in person.

Jay Franze:

My daughter's been doing that lately.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh, I love that. Because I want to get there and I want to shout all the words at the person and like, you know, fist pumping or pointing at them as the words are coming out. Like, I want to be a part of it. So, you know, if you don't know the words, you can't you can't. So I would say go on, check out his music, and then when you get to the show, sing your little heart out. Or if you're gonna watch on streaming, make your own party.

Jay Franze:

Rock out in your living room.

Tiffany Mason:

You'll have a house party. You don't need nobody.

Jay Franze:

Next would be Connor Daly.

Tiffany Mason:

Ooh, where's Connor Daly gonna be?

Jay Franze:

Nashville.

Tiffany Mason:

Snap.

Jay Franze:

But he's only playing one day. It's December 12th, Friday. Oh, wow. It's in two days.

SPEAKER_06:

Yeah.

Jay Franze:

Check him out. Wanna spoon. I love that. Wanna spoon is where he's playing. I'm always open to spoon, but if you want a spoon, you have to be the big spoon because I like to be held.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh it's your softer side.

Jay Franze:

It's my softer side of Sears. All right, Mr. Rye Rivers is gonna be in your neck of the woods. He is gonna be in FLA this week. Uh-huh. And New Year's Eve as well.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh wow. We'll have to check that out.

Jay Franze:

Blake Tyler.

Tiffany Mason:

Okay.

Jay Franze:

He is playing at Laurie's Roadhouse.

Tiffany Mason:

Now.

Jay Franze:

And I will be there.

Tiffany Mason:

You always get to go to Laurie's.

Jay Franze:

Laurie's Roadhouse. I like Laurie's Roadhouse because they get great acts that come through town and it's I say local. It's local enough. It's not that far for me. It's like a 30-minute ride.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah, that's local.

Jay Franze:

It's local enough for me. I mean, it's in Ohio. I live in Kentucky, so it's not necessarily local, but 30-minute drive.

Tiffany Mason:

You could make it sound cool enough.

Jay Franze:

I drive to a whole nother state to see it.

Tiffany Mason:

Right, right.

Jay Franze:

But I'm looking at his website, and if you ever check out Blake Tylermusic.com, the hero image is a video. It's a video of him playing at Laurie's Roadhouse.

SPEAKER_02:

Oh, cool.

Jay Franze:

Josie Sal or Josie Sal, depending on how you would like to pronounce it.

SPEAKER_02:

Sal.

Jay Franze:

It's technically Sal because the name is longer than that, but her stage name is Sal S-A-L. Got it. Josie Sal or Salvetti.

SPEAKER_06:

Oh.

Jay Franze:

So got it. Anywho, she is playing in Nashville.

SPEAKER_06:

Oh.

Jay Franze:

Or Tennessee, because they're not all in Nashville, but they are in Tennessee.

Tiffany Mason:

Very cool.

Jay Franze:

She's playing a Christmas show as well.

Tiffany Mason:

Is she 13 now?

Jay Franze:

I think she just turned 14.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh wow. Okay.

Jay Franze:

I know that sounds ridiculous. But this girl looks and sounds like a grown-ass adult. She really does. She looks that way, she sounds that way, she performs that way. She's like a seasoned artist. It's amazing to me how good she actually is. I mean, she is absolutely amazing.

Tiffany Mason:

Yeah.

Jay Franze:

Anyway.

Tiffany Mason:

Expect great things.

Jay Franze:

Josie Sal, check her out. Will Wesley also playing this week, but he's playing all over the place. So he's playing in Louisiana. He's playing in Mississippi. But he's playing one, two, three, three spots in Louisiana and two spots in Mississippi, and then back to Louisiana and Mississippi again.

Tiffany Mason:

From my little documentary that I watched about Laney Wilson. She is from Louisiana. Nice.

Jay Franze:

That is cool.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, I have a friend. Every time Laney Wilson talks, I'm like, she reminds me of somebody. She reminds me of somebody, and she reminds me of my friend Tara. And then when I was watching the documentary, immediately I had a text and I was like, I knew it. Laney Wilson's from Louisiana. And my friend Tara is from Louisiana. So it made sense.

Jay Franze:

Chad Bushnell. You like Chad.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh yeah.

Jay Franze:

He's playing in Las Vegas.

Tiffany Mason:

The Whisky, a work.

Jay Franze:

Yeah, that's a great song.

Tiffany Mason:

It is.

Jay Franze:

He is playing in Las Vegas.

Tiffany Mason:

Wow.

Jay Franze:

Now he's also playing in Anderson, but it doesn't say what state. Oh, nope, nope. It's California. Anderson, California.

SPEAKER_03:

Well, there you go.

Jay Franze:

Here's a good one.

unknown:

Okay.

Jay Franze:

The Oak Ridge Boys.

SPEAKER_03:

Mmm.

Jay Franze:

The Mighty Oaks, as they're called.

Tiffany Mason:

Yes.

Jay Franze:

They will be in Wisconsin. They will be in Minnesota.

Tiffany Mason:

Mm-mm.

Jay Franze:

They will be in Indiana. Ding ding ding. They will be in Ohio, folks.

SPEAKER_02:

Canton?

Jay Franze:

Oh, I hate when you say that. Yes, it is Canton. And then they will be in Michigan. Wisconsin, Minnesota. Back to Wisconsin, Indiana, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan.

SPEAKER_02:

Bang.

Jay Franze:

That's all this week. For 80-year-old men, 82-year-old men or whatever they are.

SPEAKER_06:

That's a lot.

Jay Franze:

That is a lot of playing. And they haven't stopped. This has been their farewell tour. It was supposed to be for like three months. It's been over three years. I've gone every year. I've seen them over three times. It's amazing to me how much they keep playing. And they lost a member and they just added a new one.

Tiffany Mason:

Well, that's too bad.

Jay Franze:

Oh, what else we got? John McEwan. John McEwen's on the road, folks, playing in Tennessee as well. Tennessee's a hopping place if you want to see some music this week.

SPEAKER_03:

Well, we just said if you're trying to make the musical Tennessee.

Jay Franze:

Well, he's not trying to make it. He's in his 80s as well, and he was the lead singer and founder of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. But he is playing his 80th birthday celebration. And he will have special guests. And he's doing this in Madison, Tennessee on December 19th, my niece's birthday.

SPEAKER_06:

Wow.

Jay Franze:

Happy birthday, Nicole. Here's with a favorite of mine, Miss Chloe Steiler.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh.

Jay Franze:

She will be playing in Australia.

Tiffany Mason:

Oh. Donda, eh?

Jay Franze:

Yeah, she is.

Tiffany Mason:

In the bush. What?

Jay Franze:

Whoa. I trim. Mackenzie Phipps.

SPEAKER_06:

Oh.

Jay Franze:

She is also playing in Tennessee. Wow. She has four gigs in Nashville. And she's also playing on Broadway. She's playing at Margaritaville.

SPEAKER_04:

Ooh, fun.

Jay Franze:

So and she's also playing at All Red. That's um. What's her face? Blaze Shulton's bar. There you go. You want to see Mackenzie Phipps? Um, she was just on The Voice.

Tiffany Mason:

This is the Snoop's team.

Jay Franze:

Speaking of somebody who's been on The Voice, who else has been on The Voice? That's a show favorite, family favorite of ours.

Tiffany Mason:

Presley Tennant.

Jay Franze:

I mean, I was gonna say you could pick many of them. However, Presley Tennant is the one I was looking for, so ding ding ding. All right, enough of that. Presley Tennant. She will be playing in Nevada as well. Nevada. Oh wow. Nevada. She's playing in Las Vegas, let's say that. She will be playing at the Nowhere Lounge in Las Vegas. She will also be playing in Anaheim, California. And then back to Las Vegas. She will be playing at Stoney's Rockin Country. That's a big, big country venue. That's like a Lori's Roadhouse out in Vegas. That is right next to Keith, but Keith refuses to go there because he is not a fan of the country music. But I have one more to share with you.

Tiffany Mason:

Tell me one more, Jay.

Jay Franze:

Billy Yates.

Tiffany Mason:

Where's he gonna be?

Jay Franze:

He's gonna be in Branson, Missouri. Branson, Missouri is another place that has become like a show place for Nashville or country artists. It's a a big, big live venues there. But he is gonna be playing there, I believe, if I'm not mistaken. He lives in that area. Billy Yates, he's been on the show, you can go listen to his story, but he had a deal with Sony and he asked them to let him go so that he could do it on his own. He thought he would be more successful on his own. And he did. He got 13 number one hits, and he's also written songs for other major artists. He started as a songwriter, so I love that for him.

Tiffany Mason:

I told my husband before we moved from the Midwest I really wanted to go to Branson, Missouri, and we did not make it there.

Jay Franze:

Yeah. Well, get them together, come on up here, and the wife and I will meet you there or something.

Tiffany Mason:

Okay. Sounds like a plan.

Jay Franze:

Or head this way and we'll drive together. Whatever.

Tiffany Mason:

Road trip.

Jay Franze:

So I said I'm gonna go see Blake Tyler at Laurie's Roadhouse, and that's on Saturday. If anybody would like to get together, meet, hang out, buy me a drink. I'm up for it. It's fine. Head on over to Laurie's Roadhouse this Saturday night and I'll see you there. But Miss Tiffany, what do you got going on?

Tiffany Mason:

Well, I don't have anything too exciting, but you know, I'm always open to any invitations. So if any crew members know of somebody great in the Jacksonville area and they want to meet up, throw me an invitation. I'd love to meet you. I'd love to check out some new music. Otherwise, I have about five favorites that I really love in the Jacksonville, St. Augustine area. So catching them whenever they become available. So looks like Vegas Gray and Mandala will be out. And so maybe I'll hit one of those two up this weekend.

Jay Franze:

Nice. All right. Well, I guess it's that time. Shall we try to crash this thing or land this thing? Try to land it, but we always crash it.

Tiffany Mason:

It's always scary coming in for the landing chain.

Jay Franze:

It really is.

Tiffany Mason:

Ah, the left engine's on fire.

Jay Franze:

Poor bird. I don't know. All right, folks. Well, we have done it. We have reached the top of the hour. We have reached the top of hour number two, which does mean we have reached the end of the show. If you've enjoyed the show, please tell a friend and Miss Tiffany. If you have not, tell two. Tell two. You can reach out to both of us over at jfranzie.com. We truly mean it. Reach out to us, talk to us. We like the comments. We like reading them on the show, but we also just like talking to you on the website. It's fun. It's a good time. Reach out. We would love to talk to you. You can do all of this and our socials over at jfranzie.com. Miss Tiffany, my friend, it's that time. Do you have any final words for us?

Tiffany Mason:

That's it from us, crew members. We are so grateful that you choose to spend part of your week with us. Take good care of yourselves, and we will see you right back here next week. Same time.

Jay Franze:

I really thought you were going to end it after that first sentence. I was like, wow, that was inspiring. All right, folks. Have a good night. Thanks for listening to the Jay Franzi Show. Make sure you visit us at jfranzi.com. Follow, connect, and say hello.

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Jay Franze

Host
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Tiffany Mason

Co-host