New Faces High Note of Country Radio Seminar

3/11/2008 staff  

Luke Bryan performs at the New Faces show during Country Radio Seminar in Nashville on March 7, 2008. Photo Credit: Brian Tipton

The 39th annual Country Radio Seminar concluded last week with its popular New Faces Show, which this year was a stellar performance by some of country music's most talented artists.  Taylor Swift, Luke Bryan, Bucky Convington, Jason Michael Carroll, and Jake Owen spotlighted the CRS finale.  Funnyman Charlie Monk hosted the show, which was held at the Nashville Convention Center. Videos were still used to introduce the Nashville recording artists; however, the videos were more biographical than the humorous kind shown in years past.  The infamous "Class of '89" (known for producing hit acts Clint Black, Alan Jackson, Travis Tritt, Vince Gill, and Garth Brooks) was recognized in Taylor Swift's video.  The Bucky Convington video displayed his mainstream media appearances, while Luke Bryan's focused on his rural upbringing. The CRS crowd sang along gleefully to the live performance of "All My Friends Say" by Luke Bryan.  Bucky Covington, meanwhile, had them attentive to his emotional rendition of his uplifting ballad, "I'll Walk," which Convington delivered as he sat on the edge of the stage.  Jason Michael Carroll brought the audience to tears with his heartbreaking song, "Alyssa Lies".  But it was Jake Owen who presented the New Faces show attendees with the most drama, pacing the stage like an evangelist when he sang "Eight Second Ride" and "Something About A Woman". Taylor Swift was the evening's final entertainer, singing her first hit, "Tim McGraw," and then "Our Song," a No. 1 tune that she had written for a ninth-grade talent show.  Following her performance of "Teardrops on My Guitar," Swift told the on-lookers, "Please keep in mind that I try to be a nice person in general. But if you break my heart, or hurt my feelings or don't add my record or mess with my friends at country radio, I'm going to write a song about you."  Although its sincerity was questionable, the audience responded with a standing ovation to Taylor Swift's last song for the night, "Picture To Burn".  Typically considered jaded radio people, the responsive crowd seemed to enjoy Country Radio Seminar's 2008 New Faces Show.