“We used our own money to cut the demo”
Big Machine Label Group’s Brett Young celebrated his third Number One at a party honoring him and co-writer Jesse Lee, Monday, February 12. “Like I Love You” is his third chart-topper and comes just over a year since the release of his debut self-titled album. The party was co-hosted by ASCAP and BMI.
Brett is one of only three acts in the Country music genre to achieve RIAA ‘Gold’ certification for an album released in 2017. His breakout single, “In Case You Didn’t Know,” has already reached 3X Platinum status, making him the only debut artist since 2014 to achieve that level. He is also the only new Country artist with a 2017 song to go multi-Platinum, too. All three Number Ones are from his debut album.
Second No. 1 for Jesse Lee
Co-writer Jesse Lee was celebrating her second No. 1 as writer, following 2016’s “Peter Pan,” a hit for Kelsea Ballerini.
“Like I Loved You” spent three weeks at Number One, but its release as a single was by no means a guarantee, following the success of Brett’s two previous hits.
“My first two singles were happy love songs,” said Brett at a pre-presentation media session. “Then Jesse and I wrote this one that is really different. My songs are like my babies. A part of me is attached to that song,” he noted. “I fought for getting this song on my record. We used our own money to cut the demo.”
Speaking about the writing session that resulted in “Like I Love You,” Brett said that this was a different kind of co-write, too. “We’d never met before. We went to lunch then came back and wrote it. That was in late 2014.”
The long road to Nashville
Both Brett Young and Jesse Lee might seem like newcomers, but as with most successful people, that isn’t really the case. At the media session, Brett noted that he’d been playing and performing for 14 years before moving to Nashville.
Jesse Lee is not new to the music business either. Signed to Atlantic Nashville in 2007, Jesse had some minor chart success as a recording artist, but then took a different path.
‘I reinvented myself and started to write’
Speaking of her early career as an artist, she said, “People didn’t want me one the radio! So I reinvented myself and started to write. Then I realized I was getting into publishing companies because of my writing not my artist talents.”
Reminded that Nashville is often referred to as a ‘ten-year town’ when it comes to developing a career in music, Jesse laughed and said, “it’s been more than a ten-year town for me. It’s been eleven!”
Speaking about the diversity of his musical styles and interests, Brett said, “I grew up with rhythm and blues and soul music, so You will hear the soul in my music.”
Brett is about to head out on Thomas Rhett’s ‘Life Changes Tour 2018’ this spring. Find tour updates at brettyoungmusic.com.
“it’s been more than a ten-year town for me. It’s been eleven!” Jesse Lee