Kip Moore On Dumbed-Down Radio Singles & Securing Loyal Fans
Kip Moore has never been someone you would probably characterize as a savior of country music. From starting his career off with the pretty terrible single “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck,” to finding a decidedly more rock sound with his recent records, he’s not on the radar of most of the shit kicking country fans out there. But he has done something pretty remarkable over the last several years as a major label artist, which is win creative control over his music, and find a pretty high level of success without having to sell out or rely on radio singles to earn his keep.
Recently Kip Moore chatted with Marty Smith on his ESPN podcast and laid out the real difference between what he does, and what many major label artists who never took the time to develop a strong grassroots following are forced to do, which is acquiesce to producers, labels, and radio trends to find attention and acceptance.
“They don’t have that control in the room, and don’t really know how to write to their audience,” Moore says about many of his fellow major label artists. “I’m not a pawn to some other writer in the room. [Country artists] are all shoved into this box, and when you do try to write something that’s crafty, and that’s too smart—I’ve been told that before of many songs—it goes over the head, and we’re told the only way to get stuff on the radio is it’s got to be kind of a little bit ‘Not think too much.’ People want to go home and turn their brains off. On their ride home from work they put on the radio and [don’t want to] have to think much. It has to cater to that. You get told those things, and it’s a lot of pressure.”
But like a lot of independent country artists or mainstream artists that don’t have to rely on radio, Kip Moore is given a lot more latitude due to the loyalty of his fan base.
“I told myself, I told my manager, I told my label years ago, I said the only way I’m going to be able to lay my head on my pillow at night is if I know I did my career following my heart. And what I mean by that is I can fail in that sense. I’ve had lots of failed singles. But at least I know I didn’t sell out, and I can live with that. There’s been a lot of songs that have been pitched to me, and they are hit records and I know it through and through. But I just can’t get up on that stage and sing that stuff. So I turn that down, which I know would be a big paycheck. I think it’s fleeting success if I did it. But if I fail that way, I can’t look at myself. And it’s paid dividends for me because we’ve developed such a tangible audience. I think that’s a key word, ‘tangible.’ There’s a big difference between hard tickets and soft tickets. And we’ve built a very tangible hard ticket base.”
Aside from his 2017 single “More Girls Like You,” Kip Moore’s most recent singles have all stalled well outside the Top 10 at country radio. But like Eric Church, Chris Stapleton, and others, radio performance doesn’t matter as much as it does for artists whose only option for personal promotion is radio. As long as fans continue to buy tickets and records are being sold, the label remains happy, and Kip can keep his career going. His fans will still be there because he’s built that trust in them, and put in that service time on the road.
“I have been super fortunate to have a label that really trusts me as a writer,” Moore says. “I produced this whole last record by myself, which is really rare for them to let you do. And I think they’ve been out on the road and seen what kind of incredible fan base we’ve got growing from the grassroots, and that helps them to trust what I’m gonna do.”
Whether you’re a mainstream or independent artist, the lesson from Kip Moore is to develop your own sound and stick to your guns, and build a grassroots fan base that will be loyal to you regardless of the whims of mainstream trends. That way even if radio abandons you, you’ll still have those hard ticket fans ready to support you on the road. Otherwise you could end up like The Band Perry, or other flash-in-the-pan performers, adrift with no compass to guide you home, and no tangible fans to fall back on.
Golddust
October 2, 2018 @ 9:04 am
“…when you do try to write something that’s crafty, and that’s too smart—I’ve been told that before of many songs—it goes over the head, and we’re told the only way to get stuff on the radio is it’s got to be kind of a little bit ‘Not think too much.’ People want to go home and turn their brains off. On their ride home from work they put on the radio and [don’t want to] have to think much.”
Ahhh, but the songs that I *do* have to think about, the songs that *do* tell a story, the songs that *mean* something are the ones I listen to over and over again. I have a feeling if “the powers that be” actually did a poll, they’d find that the majority of country music listeners *do* want to hear songs of substance.
I went and listened to a local band/friends play some traditional country music a couple nights ago. I could tell what quite a few of the songs were within the first couple bars. Sure can’t do that anymore. The uniqueness has totally disappeared.
Good for Kip for sticking to what’s in his soul. I do sometimes wonder how some of the artists who used to have such good songs feel when they get on stage night after night to sing the ones they put out just to make money. I’ll bet at least a few of them do it from rote, not from passion.
Chet
October 2, 2018 @ 9:37 am
“Ahhh, but the songs that I *do* have to think about, the songs that *do* tell a story, the songs that *mean* something are the ones I listen to over and over again.”
Yup.
JD.
October 3, 2018 @ 5:28 pm
If you like the story type country songs, you might like Pat Swenson. Check him out.
https://youtu.be/YRXLBkmLzZs
http://www.PatSwensonMusic.com
Pierre Brunelle
October 2, 2018 @ 9:48 am
This article clearly articulates the difference between Kip Moore and Jason Aldean et al.
Kudos to him for being a real artist (which means to stick to your own creativity). Most of them are opportunist and don’t care if the product is poor as long as it sells.
Stringbuzz
October 2, 2018 @ 10:00 am
Confirms what we all know..
TxMusic
October 2, 2018 @ 10:14 am
Radio is background noise for when you’re doing something else. Nobody sits down to listen to commercials and annoying DJs. That’s what streaming and your personal curated collection is for. I can’t fault people for wanting simple fun songs to sign along too as they’re driving or doing chores. There’s a place for everything.
MH
October 2, 2018 @ 10:50 am
“Radio is background noise for when you’re doing something else.”
It didn’t used to be that way though.
TxMusic
October 2, 2018 @ 11:08 am
We don’t live in the past anymore. Everything has evolved from how we listen to music, watch tv, movies. Having so many choices in how to consume entertainment is a great thing.
Golddust
October 2, 2018 @ 11:34 am
Good music is still good music. Crappy music is still … well, you get the picture. The way I pay attention to a song is still the same as it was years ago. Although, at concerts, people actually used to *listen* to the music. Now, more than not, people talk throughout, with no respect for those who *want* to listen and have paid just as much money for their tickets. Chicken or egg. Did people stop listening because the songs got stupider, or did the songs get stupider because people stopped listening?
TxMusic
October 2, 2018 @ 12:27 pm
So you’re going to stupid shows where stupid songs are played and people don’t want to listen? Maybe pick better artists to listen to.
Barstool Hero
October 2, 2018 @ 12:57 pm
TxMusic – Even at good shows, you have folks that can’t stay off their phones and keep their mouths closed. I saw 2 American Aquarium shows recently….great band doing amazing shows in small venues. At one show, some “bro” in a Miami Heat basketball jersey and his boys gravitated up front and made obnoxious bro sounds the whole show. In the other show, BJ Barham (singer/songwriter of AA) told several people in the crowd to shut the f*** up or leave. It’s not only at Kane Brown shows (just assuming) that folks are disrespectul.
TxMusic
October 2, 2018 @ 5:40 pm
It does happen everywhere but Golddust was trying to frame it like people don’t pay attention to the music because it’s dumbed down. I’ve paid over $200 for a ticket to have drunks around me cause issues. I think he was trying to tie it to radio and I stand by my original point with so many choices for how we listen to music having radio for fun sing along music isn’t the end of the world.
Golddust
October 2, 2018 @ 7:10 pm
I think Joe Diffie and Mark Chesnutt doing an acoustic show is far from a stupid show with stupid songs. But yet the people behind me were yaking the whole time.
My point is that if you have songs on the radio that are dumbed down, does it transfer into concerts where people don’t think listening to the songs is important. Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
Thanks, Barstool Hero!
Golddust
October 2, 2018 @ 7:15 pm
And I actually *do* want to have good music on the radio. If a song catches my attention due to substance, I will go home, find it online, listen to it several times, and then buy it, preferably in physical form, not a file . If I hear songs that mean nothing or are generic or are far from country, or certain DJs and/or commercials get to be too much, I turn off the radio and pay attention to my CDs (or talk radio). The songs I personally sing along to? The songs that have substance. The fun sing-along songs of yesterday are far from the generic mish-mosh that are shoved down our throats today.
TxMusic
October 3, 2018 @ 5:45 am
What you consider good isn’t what other people consider good. If we use your reasoning that dumb music attracts people who don’t care about the music to a Mark Chesnutt show, then it must be because that’s the audience Mark appeals to. And what radio channel is playing Joe Diffie and Mark Chestnutt anyways? The problem isn’t with radio, it’s how society has changed on a whole. People do it at concerts, movies, sporting events. It happens everywhere. As for the songs of yesteryear, your good old days are long gone but you can relive them in the privacy of your own home through your own physical copies or one of the many several streaming services. Choice is a good thing.
Golddust
October 3, 2018 @ 6:53 am
I have a feeling they happened to be at the casino, may have recognized the names Mark Chesnutt and Joe Diffie, and got last-minute tickets, probably without knowing a single one of their songs. Unfortunately, nowadays you don’t hear them on the radio, but that’s the fault of corporate radio that doesn’t allow “real” requests unless they’re already on the play list.
Yep, choice is a good thing, which is why I so seldom listen to corporate radio.– mostly bad music,syndicated DJs who I don’t care for, and 50% of an hour filled with commercials. Hope springs eternal, though, and I continue to try to give them a chance. But I always have a CD in my CD player, and most times I switch to that after 10 minutes or less.
scott
October 2, 2018 @ 10:16 am
Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck might be “awful”, but, you know what? Real instruments, no EDM bullshit. Dumb lyrics? You bet. I can live with that…
hoptowntiger94
October 2, 2018 @ 1:51 pm
That’s who sings that song? They play it on Red, White, and Booze and I’ve always meant to look at who is behind that atrocity. Every time it plays, I get “The Green Grass Grows All Around” stuck in my head for the rest of the day!
scott
October 2, 2018 @ 4:07 pm
Not familiar with that song.
hoptowntiger94
October 2, 2018 @ 4:14 pm
Yes you do…
https://youtu.be/BnVq2YRpbQc
scott
October 2, 2018 @ 4:25 pm
Sorry, hopt, new one on me. I’m old, and no kids to raise.
Joe
October 2, 2018 @ 7:23 pm
So you really mean the classic “When the Saints go Marching In”?
https://youtu.be/17nXsv7o64k?t=48s
Aggc
October 2, 2018 @ 10:30 am
I just wish his music was better.
Bill
October 2, 2018 @ 10:34 am
An acquired taste but have to admire him for being true to himself and his craft.
Kevin Ross
October 2, 2018 @ 10:47 am
I keep trying to love this guy. I don’t hate him by any means, but the music just doesn’t speak to me on a visceral level. I like Hey Pretty girl and his version of Come Back Kid. But even that is done better by the guy that actually wrote it.
Barstool Hero
October 2, 2018 @ 1:05 pm
I’m not a huge fan, but I do like a song called “Guitar Man” on his latest album.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25lKxO3GeQA
TerriF69
November 15, 2019 @ 3:23 pm
Apparently he moved to Hawaii to be a surf bum and used to manage an Abercrombie and Fitch, and then tried to have country music career…Not that he doesn’t have talent but aside from Growing up in the south he’s just a corporate country music stooge.
ScottG
October 2, 2018 @ 10:53 am
Being able to “put your head on your pillow” and “look at yourself in the mirror” are things that far too few people care about. Good for him.
OlaR
October 2, 2018 @ 11:47 am
Kip Moore…well…lol.
Nashville c-list artist & just another pop-rock singer with a record contract on a country label.
Sue
October 7, 2018 @ 12:38 pm
Are you always rude?
TerriF69
November 15, 2019 @ 3:24 pm
Yup. Guy used to manage an Abercrombie?? Like seriously you’re going to tell me about the country life?
albert
October 2, 2018 @ 12:38 pm
GATEKEEPERS …pros and cons
Sure ‘gatekeepers’ may have barred the doors to potentially good artists along the way . Sure , they may have overlooked some real good material . But for the most-part they SEEMED to know who to turn to for good material for their artists …they SEEMED to understand how to nurture and artist …how to find the RIGHT producer for them in order to best uncover and develop and sustain that artist’s potential most of the time.
But is seems that since everybody with a laptop and access to You Tube thinks she/he can write , record and upload their own stuff and ‘be a star ‘ WITHOUT the gatekeepers getting in the way. And I’d argue we have seen a general decline in quality on all fronts because of this ‘ anyone can play ‘ era . Yes , many of these folks hit the road , play shows ( or usually just ‘ sets ‘ ) at festivals etc….and many garner a following from those live shows . All good if you’re trying to make a living as a musician in these times . BUT how good has it been for COUNTRY music and songwriting ? There’s a glut of material out there , the mainstream radio stuff nose-dived in substance and became pop and a younger generation has no idea or cares , seemingly , what COUNTRY MUSIC even means . I’m not sure a Kip Moore is a country artist .
Maybe the ‘gatekeepers’ did have some redeeming qualities when we consider what opening those gates has allowed the genre to become . We seem so desperate to lap up anything with the most remote semblance of country-ness attached to it in these times. I know this is a very controversial issue ….but I’m not sure the Urbans, the Hunts, the Antebellums ,the Aldeans etc…would have seen this success in THIS genre and had such a huge impact on what’s been considered ” Country ” if stricter guidelines had been in place at the gates and technology hadn’t dictated ( watered down ) the state of the genre .
Kyle
October 3, 2018 @ 4:47 am
Gotta disagree with you there bud. This sounds like a “millennials ruined everything” type of post.
albert
October 3, 2018 @ 8:59 am
you’ve gotta concede , Kyle ….” country” music ON THE RADIO and award shows took a bad turn in terms of the genre’s traditions after the turn of the last century and has never rebounded . in fact the argument could be made that mainstream country has gotten progressively worse since that time . if you are a fan of where its gone , of course , this doesn’t matter so much . and yes I’m blaming the times we’re in , to some extent . i doubt that Loretta or Reba or AJ , Willie , George or Dolly and their respective producers are recording bed tracks at home on their Macs letting the software sounds and loops and triggers inform their writing or performances . They are not chasing a trend dictated to them by technology , radio and rap… They are letting a GREAT song lyric and melody speak to a listener ….not programmed handclaps , synthesized drums and Les Pauls on Eleven .
Lets not forget that a key part of the phrase ” Country Music ” is the word ” Music “.
Amber
October 2, 2018 @ 3:38 pm
Another case where 2M 14 yo girls like your video, but your song sucks.
albert
October 2, 2018 @ 5:42 pm
”Another case where 2M 14 yo girls like your video, but your song sucks.”
That in a nutshell seems to be the case , Amber . A hot young guy will ALWAYS sell to teenage girls no matter the genre , much less the quality of the song .
Brett
October 2, 2018 @ 4:10 pm
I gotta say i like this guy. Hes probably one of the better rockstars goin….which is very sad. Sure hes not country but i admire the guy for sticking with his guns, goes to show that will do more for an artist in the long run than any other support will. If anyone likes country with rock, southern or classic ala Eagles or even Mellencamp, at least check out his last record Slowheart. There is some good stuff on there and i thought was a very honest effort.
Jeff Tappan
October 3, 2018 @ 9:54 am
I’d like someone to explain to me how Mellencamp, and Bongiovi/Bon Jovi and the Eagles are country music acts. Wasn’t that way in the 60s. But then, the record companies weren’t as obviously money-hungry as they are now. And the music is sung by lawyers . . . anyone get that?
Sarah Ross
October 2, 2018 @ 5:19 pm
He is only one of a handful of actual country singers out there today. Most of the others look and sound alike and the songs sound the same. Like Eric Church, he stays true to his heart and his music.
North Woods Country
October 2, 2018 @ 5:23 pm
Great sentiment. It’s just too bad his music isn’t more consistent. It’s a shame “Mary Was the Marrying Kind” failed at radio because if it hadn’t, “Somethin’ Bout a Truck” probably never would have happened. I think my favorite single from him so far has been “I’m to Blame.” Everything else is not bad but not memorable, either. That being said, “Last Shot” is his best single in awhile. Or is it called “Shoot You Down”?
Zuma
October 2, 2018 @ 7:37 pm
I’m To Blame is a great one
GrantH
October 2, 2018 @ 5:39 pm
The origins of the Bro-Country movement can definitely be traced back to “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck,” among a few other songs.
Trigger
October 2, 2018 @ 6:50 pm
“Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck” was released 7 years ago now. I’m not going to apologize for the song, but at some point the statute of limitations runs out on a bad song. It’s like trying to discredit Jamey Johnson still for “Honky Tonk Badonka Donk.” There are very fair concerns one can take with Kip Moore’s music, the most obvious one being that he’s clearly a rock artist making his way in country, which can work to undermine the genre. But complaining about a 7-year-old song is just not relevant in this case. And besides, you can complain about the song or Kip’s music all you want. It doesn’t mean he’s not right here, and what he said wasn’t important, and helps expose to the public how the dumbing down of country happens.
GrantH
October 2, 2018 @ 6:58 pm
Uh…okay? Sorry to offend you, I guess, but you read wayyyy too deep into my comment. I wasn’t trying to make some, astute, deep point here, just a simple observation. Note how in my comment I didn’t even say anything about that song being “bad,” just that it can be tied back to the roots of the bro-country subgenre. That’s it.
Furthermore, a bad song is a bad song, regardless of how old or new it is. Even if I was here exclusively to complain about “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck,” which I’m not, I have the full right to do so as I please.
Trigger
October 2, 2018 @ 7:20 pm
Hey GrantH,
Sorry if it came across like I was jumping down your throat. Not my intention at all. Been seeing similar comments like this here and other places, and just wanted to add a bit of context to that song. I think it’s a bad song, and said so at the time. I thought it was one of the worst in 2011, which was a bad year all around in the mainstream. But I just don’t want folks to overlook the forest for the trees when it comes to what Kip said. Not saying you are, but some are for sure. My guess is if Kip could do it again, he probably wouldn’t cut a song like that. Then again, it gave him his first hit and helped establish his career, which led to the freedom he enjoys now.
Joe
October 2, 2018 @ 7:25 pm
I will complain all I want about “Body Like a Back Road” and “Meant to Be” 8 years from now, and I will still be right that there is NOTHING country about them. Time since release means nothing.
Trigger
October 2, 2018 @ 7:46 pm
I never said it did. I agree those songs will be terrible 8 years from now. All I’m saying is if you discount everything Jamey Johnson does because he co-wrote “Honky Tonk Badonka Donk,” or don’t see the value in what Kip Moore said and exposed in these quotes because of “Somethin’ ‘Bout A Truck,” you’re missing the bigger picture.
Charlie
October 4, 2018 @ 9:32 am
So a little thought experiment then. Let’s flash forward 7 years and substitute Sam Hunt for Kip Moore in this discussion . . .(do-do-do-do, do-do-do-do–(a la Wayne’s Word))
“Body Like a Back Road” was released 7 years ago now. I’m not going to apologize for the song, but at some point the statute of limitations runs out on a bad song. It’s like trying to discredit The Band Perry still for “Coordinates.” There are very fair concerns one can take with Sam Hunt’s music, the most obvious one being that he’s clearly a Pop artist making his way in country, which can work to undermine the genre. But complaining about a 7-year-old song is just not relevant in this case. And besides, you can complain about the song or Sam’s music all you want. It doesn’t mean he’s not right here, and what he said wasn’t important, and helps expose to the public how the dumbing down of country happens.’
‘I think it’s a bad song, and said so at the time. I thought it was one of the worst in 2018, which was a bad year all around in the mainstream. But I just don’t want folks to overlook the forest for the trees when it comes to what Sam said. Not saying you are, but some are for sure. My guess is if Sam could do it again, he probably wouldn’t cut a song like that. Then again, it gave him his first hit and helped establish his career, which led to the freedom he enjoys now.’
[End Flash Forward]
So to me I guess it depends on if the artist has made any amends in the intervening 7 years. (But I don’t see Sam Hunt pulling that off.)
Kenny Chesney will never make amends for the shit stain he’s been, in my book. And if somebody wants to hold Somethin’ Bout a Truck against Kip Moore, then fine. It’s still selling out, no matter whose pocket the money goes in, or when it goes in there.
Trigger
October 4, 2018 @ 12:58 pm
I can totally understand why some fans sour on certain artists due to a bad song and would never listen to them again with so many choices out there in the marketplace. But as a reviewer and commentator, I don’t have that luxury. I have to push the reset button each time a new song, album, or situation comes up, and give an objective opinion. It doesn’t mean I don’t have biases, because of course I do. But your job is to put those things behind you. You mention Kenny Chesney, and he’s a good example. I had never written a positive review for that guy in 10 years, but I thought his last record was pretty good, and had a couple of great songs.
We all makes mistakes. We all did stupid stuff when we were younger. The question is, do you learn, and grow, and get better? I think Kip Moore has. That still may not mean he’s great, but it doesn’t mean he’s better than what he was.
Aggie14
October 2, 2018 @ 8:06 pm
I can handle a bad song from an artist. It’s when that artist continues to put out trash that it becomes an issue. There is no way he would release that song today. He might have allowed the label too much say early on and learned his lesson quick.
Fuzzy TwoShirts
October 2, 2018 @ 5:43 pm
shouldn’t he have gone across the street for this interview?
Un-Cultured Swine
October 2, 2018 @ 8:15 pm
@Fuzzy, I’m posting the Dustin Lynch interview on my youtube channel. Fyi.
(Formerly Hey Arnold) – Telling you now, because I’m officially signing off as a daily commenter on this site as of today.
Mike Honcho
October 2, 2018 @ 7:09 pm
This guy always seems to me to be singing with a fake southern drawl.
Un-Cultured Swine
October 2, 2018 @ 8:11 pm
Thanks Trig for all your insight with this article and website. Long time viewer . I will still be checking in on this site and articles from time to time. However, I decided I don’t want to comment on here any longer (as Hey Arnold and now as UnCultured Swine)
Trig, can you please delete all my comments from all the articles.
God bless Country music and let us all try to preserve it in some way.
Working on my podcast. Exciting things ahead. Peace!!!
Trigger
October 3, 2018 @ 7:20 am
Unfortunately I can’t honor that request. Deleting your comments would also delete the comments of people who responded to you, and conversations under your comments that I see as valuable to the community, as I do your comments. I can delete one or two comments by request, but deleting a whole user’s comments would cause broken threads in numerous articles. If you want to discuss it further, feel free to send me a private email.
Chris
October 2, 2018 @ 8:34 pm
Kip on Eric Church:
“The artist community is kinda like housing communities to me,” says Kip Moore, another independent-minded artist who has toured with Church. “You got those cul-de-sac houses that all look the same and feel the same. They’re appealing to the regular masses. Then you got those little shell houses that get thrown up super fast. They’re the hot hip thing in an upcoming part of town, but usually have a shitty foundation and go out of style fast. Last you got that house separated from the others, out on a piece of land. It’s built the right way, outta love, passion, and detail. That house has a solid foundation and always holds its value. That’s his house.”
Merle Cash
October 2, 2018 @ 9:14 pm
Hi, I’m just here to say that I have no idea who this person is and that I like “true country” music and if you don’t agree with me then you’re obviously a terrible person. If you want to listen to true country music then you should listen to “underrated and up and coming artist x”. Country music now sucks and is nothing like it was (current year – 10 years). – love 50% of people who comment on this “blog”. Blogs are still a thing right?
Coty
October 3, 2018 @ 4:27 am
I really don’t want to hear the guy who is famous for “something bout a truck” preach about integrity.
Pierre Brunelle
October 3, 2018 @ 5:26 am
I disagree.
Dierks Bentley also releases some crappy singles but it doesn’t mean that all of his singles and his albums are crappy.
He certainly delivers great songs.
Coty
October 3, 2018 @ 5:46 am
I like Dierks and listen to him all the time. I don’t want to hear anything about integrity from him either though.
Jay F
October 3, 2018 @ 8:10 am
I’m hearing the new single more, and it is pretty solid.
Clyde
October 3, 2018 @ 12:07 pm
He’s never sold out, and his music is as bad as it is? Yikes!
Nadia Lockheart
October 3, 2018 @ 1:07 pm
He can’t help but be a bit hypocritical here: seeing that “More Girls Like You” most notably epitomizes the very thing he is calling out (and that was released last year).
I certainly agree with his message, and I also believe his albums are superior to the majority of his peers who are impacting the Top Thirty of the Country Airplay chart save Chris Stapleton, Eric Church and (depending on the album) Dierks Bentley. But the messenger, himself, has made some notable concessions.
A
October 3, 2018 @ 1:18 pm
Kip Moore has a fanbase?
jessie with the long hair
October 3, 2018 @ 8:14 pm
His music sucks. This is just a desperate artist talking shit after he’s realized it’s over.
Nan
October 4, 2018 @ 6:30 pm
I admit I’m not familiar with his music at all, I also admit his name got mixed up to me with a few others whose names even sound alike, and I didn’t take time to hear any of them. Thanks for this feature on Kip Moore. I really like what I read about him, what he is saying about making music, and his career. I definitely want to check out his music now. He gave a lot of info on the music business today, as a fan hard to hear—–“Not crafty or too smart”, “Not think too much”, “Turn their brains off” ………a.k.a. “Treat them like morons”……… I guess I never heard it said like this before, where it’s a stated fact, and someone was really telling him not to write other type songs. It makes me respect someone like him even more, who had the courage to go against that, and take a chance that paid off very well it sounds like. Good for him.