EPISODE 23: WRITING MUSIC THAT MATTERS, WORKING WITH YOUR SPOUSE, & STARTING A FAMILY BAND WITH BETH AND LUKE LAIRD
Live Date: Monday, September 7, 2020
Show Description: Heather is joined today by one of Nashville music industry’s dynamic duo, Beth and Luke Laird. Founders of music publishing company Creative Nation, Beth, and Luke work with songwriters and artists to develop their talents and help them achieve their goals. Luke is a successful songwriter in his own right, having written songs you know well, including 24 #1 singles. He’s won multiple Grammys and has been named Songwriter of the Year for both BMI and the Academy of Country Music. Beth has been named one of Billboard’s Country Power Players and one of the top women in Music City by Nashville Business Journal. Beth, Luke, and Heather discuss working with your spouse, finding and keeping joy at work, writing Matt Adams’ favorite, “Drink In My Hand,” with Eric Church, prioritizing yourself while owning a business and being a mom, the impact of therapy, starting a family band, road-trippin’ in an RV, and Luke’s debut album, Music Row, releasing on September 18.
Biggest Takeaways:
What can we learn from a couple who works together? Beth and Luke have some rules they live by to keep their marriage and business going strong.
Celebrate and rely on each other’s strengths. Not everyone is good at everything. Allow your spouse to do what they do best and the same for you.
Keep faith front and center. This keeps Beth and Luke grounded and working toward the same goals.
Communication is critical, particularly during stressful times. A conversation can change so much, so stay honest and open in communication.
Ignore advice that doesn’t feel right for you. Particularly when starting a business, people will want to share well-meaning advice. That doesn’t mean you have to listen.
As a business owner, wife, mother, friend, mentor (honestly, the list could go on and on), Beth has to be careful about her time and prioritizing herself every once in a while. A profound piece of advice came many years ago: “You can have it all across a lifetime, but you can’t have it all at once. If you do, you sacrifice yourself.”
Quotables:
“Yes, when we come home at night, we do talk about the music business, but it’s a joy for us too. We actually make each other better in that respect.” – Luke Laird 7:11
“We’re grounded in our faith in God, and if you take that seriously, it really helps keep things in perspective.” – Luke Laird 9:50
“We do such separate things. When we come home at night, I still say, ‘How was your day?’ I’m not working next to him all day, so I’m still wanting to know what did you do today, and I’m wanting to fill him in on what I did.” – Beth Laird 11:45
“It’s very surreal. You move to Nashville as a songwriter, with a dream that maybe one day, you’ll hear one of your songs on the radio. But you don’t know if it’s going to happen.” Luke Laird 23:12
“That gives me chills just thinking about you standing in a stadium with people all around you, singing words that you wrote.” – Heather Adams 24:44
“Unfortunately, I get off-balance really easily because I pour out for other people. I really, really, really love helping people fulfill their creative dreams, and loving on people, and lifting people up. And I would say that is my strength and my weakness because I’m learning now, boundaries and taking care of myself.” – Beth Laird 29:02
“Therapy is very, very helpful for me. I prioritize that time. It’s so nice to have a third-party person that I trust, who can really help me walk me through these things and give me balance and perspective on what I’m missing. That’s really been a game-changer for me.” – Beth Laird 31:08
“I didn’t want to just make an album to make an album and put some songs on there. But, I really wanted it to say something.” – Luke Laird 49:29
“I think it’s important to leave that legacy, too, for your boys and for people coming behind you. It’s almost like a photo album, but it’s you chronicling this particular time in your life, this particular season. It’s a real gift, I think, in particular to your boys.” – Heather Adams 50:00
Resources and Links from Show:
MUSIC ROW, releasing September 18
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