Borchetta Gives Florida Georgia Line a Pass on “Dig A Little Deeper”
Oh the hilarity country music can sometimes be a party to.
Pop country super duo Florida Georgia Line is getting ready to release their second album Anything Goes next week through Country Music Antichrist Scott Borchetta’s Big Machine record label, and this occasion lands them on this week’s cover of Billboard Magazine. In the lengthy feature, Scott Borchetta makes an appearance, and does a pretty impressive open mouth/insert foot maneuver when talking about the duo in the context of the “Bro-Country” term.
Rob Tannenbaum of Billboard brings up a late 2013 story from NPR that quotes Scott Borchetta as saying, “Everybody in Nashville must be drinking 24-7. We’re a bunch of drunks down here. There’s too much, to be honest with you. We can’t keep talking about Fireball and Coors Light and having the tailgate down, etc. So we’ll task our writers and artists to dig a little deeper.”
The NPR story at the time sent murmurings throughout the country music world that we may be seeing a sea change in country since Scott Borchetta wields such a big stick in the industry. Saving Country Music even ran a follow up story in July about how Borchetta had been somewhat living up to that promise, citing evidence such as Maddie & Tae’s “Girl In A Country Song” and Florida Georgia Line’s “Dirt” as examples of a changing tide in country.
But in the new Billboard story, Borchetta lets Florida Georgia Line off the hook when it comes to digging a little deeper. “But Borchetta — who calls the band’s music “country/hip-hop” — says he was directing his comment at everyone EXCEPT Florida Georgia Line.”
Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on just a second.
The entire premise of the December 2013 NPR story where the original quote came from was about Florida Georgia Line, and specifically how their song “Cruise” had become the longest-running #1 song in country music history. The title of the NPR story was, How A Hip-Hop Remix Helped Make ‘Cruise’ The Year’s Biggest Country Hit. Now all of a sudden they weren’t meant to be a part of Scott Borchetta’s quote? In fairness, Borchetta did seem to be speaking about country in more general terms, but how fair is it to chide the entire industry for singing about “the tailgate down” and “Fireball,” but give what now is arguably his label’s biggest country band, and the biggest band perpetuating these types of songs, a pass?
Borchetta is quoted in the new Billboard story as saying Florida Georgia Line doesn’t have to comply with the mandate to “dig a little deeper” because, “Tyler and [Brian] own that. We don’t use the term ‘bro country,’ but they do it better than anyone.”
Ha! What logic. And once again we get the ostrich head in the sand answer about Bro-Country from an industry type who’s profiteered greatly off the trend. Because you know, if, and only if Scott Borchetta actually used that term, which he doesn’t, then Florida Georgia Line would be the kings of it, which somehow insulates them from any criticism about it.
A few other interesting nuggets from the Billboard story is that Nickelback (who share Florida Georgia Line’s producer) is portrayed as a “heavy metal” band. I’d love to hear what a throng of Exodus fans would have to say about that distinction. I have a feeling it would look something like THIS.
Billboard’s Rob Tannenbaum also points out that Florida Georgia Line now has no less than three songs that rhyme “party” with “Bacardi.”
And proving that marijuana = marketing in today’s mainstream country music world, the band admits that they smoke pot in the piece, as if this is relevant to anything, or somehow makes them more legit. “We’re professional partiers,” Tyler Hubbard says. Yes, and as we can all tell, the music is just an afterthought.
October 10, 2014 @ 12:25 pm
I think he’s just trying to get around saying that FL / GA Line can’t do anything but Bro Country. They probably tried to, but the formula works for them because the main guy can’t sing for shit and they might as well be doing “country/hip-hop”.
Also, metal fans are long over Nickelback being considered metal. At least I am. They were one of the first bands of their ilk to appear on Roadrunner Records, which before that was a huge metal label. People hated that move then, and by now it’s a tired joke that Nickelback is metal. Roadrunner ain’t what it used to be either and has gone from being one of the better metal labels to hosting Nickelback, Slipknot and others.
October 10, 2014 @ 12:52 pm
I don’t have an issue with calling Nickelback “metal” because that is probably not far off the fair distinction of their music. But “heavy metal” seems completely far fetched. Just an observation, but it was a laugh out loud moment for me.
October 10, 2014 @ 12:41 pm
I’m sure being a “professional partier” is exactly what Mama Hubbard had in mind for her son to grow up to be.
October 10, 2014 @ 12:54 pm
The Billboard feature is filled with stories of how they were both raised up in Christian homes and how that’s such a big influence. It just reinforces my opinion from high school that Christians have the best weed.
October 10, 2014 @ 8:39 pm
I’m not a prude by any means, but isn’t the weed comment a little harsh?
October 10, 2014 @ 10:52 pm
Harsh in what capacity? I hate when marijuana is clearly used for marketing purposes in music, and that was what was at play in this article. This was their big “we smoke pot” moment so 15-year-old stoners will all of a sudden listen to their music when before they thought they were lame. The whole thing is a ploy. They’re Christian pot smokers that like to party and support the troops and America and hate Cancer and love animals so go buy their music.
October 10, 2014 @ 11:02 pm
I meant harsh against Christians (those that are actually devoted to their faith, I mean). It’s sort of like you’re branding all Christians hypocrites because of a few. Eh, just rubbed me the wrong way. I was in no way defending these fools.
October 12, 2014 @ 9:09 pm
I’m pretty sure being a millionaire adored by millions is better than anything she could have hoped for her son to be.
Some people, man. Hate on the music and the message, but don’t be so delusional as to think these guys are somehow failing at life.
October 13, 2014 @ 7:18 am
Excellent point, Daw, but I might bring up that whereas the guys promote drinking, partying, and irresponsible behavior, Roy Rogers (shows how old I am haha) promoted good behavior, responsible attitudes, and always made points to younger fans that they should stay in school and such. These guys may not have failed at life, but they have failed at being role models.
October 10, 2014 @ 1:02 pm
Wow.
October 10, 2014 @ 1:03 pm
is it just me … but the first thing when I saw the picture on the article was … why are they being allowed to trash this beautiful place (Red Rock)!
October 10, 2014 @ 2:20 pm
Yeah, apparently Red Rocks will allow anyone play there now. It used to be this big distinction, but this is the same path we’ve seen with Austin City Limits and many other distinguished venues.
October 10, 2014 @ 1:25 pm
Well, sooner or later even Borchetta had to acknowledge the truth of FGL as “artists.” I mean, sure, there was “Dirt,” but then they went right back to the same trash they’ve been peddling.
October 10, 2014 @ 1:54 pm
As long as stupid people keep buying it, stupid people will keep making it. Carry on.
October 10, 2014 @ 5:21 pm
Totally appreciate this sentiment , Hank …harsh as it is .
I believe that the folks buying this kind of …music ? ( along with so much of what’s played on ‘country’ radio ) …are NOT country music fans at all and I’d go a step further in saying that the market for this kind of stuff is not even music fans so much as ‘trenders’. Its hip to like what everyone else SEEMS to like ….particularly if that’s all you are exposed to ( in the office , in the garage , in the coffee shop etc… ) . I am less and less surprised to learn that many folks in the clubs we work are not even aware of the ‘country music’ options available…much less the history past about 10 years .This new stuff is a format that has , obviously , found a separate market made up of pop and rap folk and masked itself with the ‘country’ image which today seems to include backward ball caps , chains , tattoos and whatever else the new ‘country’ star is modelling . Personally I could care less what folks like or don’t like musically …trendy or otherwise . I think what I ( and seemingly a lot of us here ) resent and find a bit baffling is when this stuff is referred to as “COUNTRY MUSIC ” . It is what it is and it will find undiscerning buyers , listeners and trenders who are unconcerned with its content ( or lack there-of ) its denigrating tendencies or connotations and its lack of REAL talent from writing to performance. It’s musical wallpaper . It’s just there and exposure to it is bound to garner some support . As I’ve stated here before …even the PET ROCK found huge sales back in the 70’s .
Hey …there is tons and tons of great music around ….this stuff is only one very very small offering in the big picture . Unfortunately yes ..it has become hugely popular . Popular doesn’t and never will mean “GOOD” …it means POPULAR …and that’s all ! REAL music lovers and country fans , in particular , know the difference .
October 10, 2014 @ 1:55 pm
He’s actually right. FGL is just one band, no matter how much they suck. All of the people mindlessly imitating their stupidity are the problem. If FGL retired today, the other fifty idiots would still carry on.
October 10, 2014 @ 2:27 pm
But I would make the case that Florida Georgia Line are imitators themselves. Brantley Gilbert was doing the Bro-Country thing while Florida Georgia Line was still in high school. “Dirt Road Anthem” was on an album Colt Ford cut in 2008. And Brantley Gilbert is on the same label as Florida Georgia Line. Does that mean he and Thomas Rhett can’t write and release tailgate songs anymore since Florida Georgia Line is the only band that can officially still do it with Scott Borchetta’s blessing? Brantley already released a slew of new Bro-Country songs on his latest album. Sure Florida Georgia Line has spawned a ton of imitators like Chase Rice (who co-wrote “Cruise”) and Cole Swindell. But it seems strange to say it’s cool fro them to do it, but everyone else has to “dig a little deeper.” Scott Borchetta just wants the big payday Florida Georgia Line’s new album is going to afford him.
October 10, 2014 @ 2:27 pm
I can’t wait for a revelatory follow-up article that explains why Republic Nashville elected to release “Dirt” as the lead single from their new album……….and yet the rest of the album apparently doesn’t reflect the lead single at all.
One working theory I have is that Florida Georgia Line DID in fact take the criticism personally, and felt it imperative they prove they can handle a more mature song competently by releasing it as the lead single and, perhaps, initially intended to record at least a couple other tracks that also reflected that response.
But, as you might recall, even while the duo expressed gratitude for the critical acclaim “Dirt” received………………”Dirt” also received a lot of comments expressing disappointment or worry that the duo was “growing up” and “getting all serious on us” on YouTube and social media. So, perhaps what happened, is that the duo bowed to the latter’s pressure, returned to the studio to record a few more songs, and essentially replaced what would have been a deeper foray into mature material with more songs in the vein of “Get Your Shine On” and “Round Here”.
It’s absolutely disappointing if confirmed, to say the least…………..but not the least surprising all the same! =/
October 10, 2014 @ 2:30 pm
In my opinion, Florida Georgia Line needed to record “Dirt” and I’m glad they did. But we’d be fools to think it was representative of this new album. However it could have been representative of “digging a little deeper,” meaning that even though it may be a majority of party songs, overall there was some more substance. I’m afraid now “Dirt” is where the depth on the new album begins and ends.
October 10, 2014 @ 11:34 pm
…..and then , of course, there is the probability that the Kruise Kids wouldn’t know a good song from crap and fluked it with ” Dirt ” when they were told to record it . The ‘artists’ are only a small part of the song selection process anymore. The labels and the producers are the bigger factors .
October 11, 2014 @ 2:12 am
“The ”˜artists”™ are only a small part of the song selection process anymore. The labels and the producers are the bigger factors .”
Country music artists today have far greater say over song selection than they did in the Nashville Sound era of the 60’s. Big Machine, in particular, is well-known for granting a high level of artistic freedom.
October 11, 2014 @ 6:17 pm
Certainly the ‘artists’ may , in fact , bring 30-40 songs or more to the producers/labels etc ( their own writes or otherwise )…but the label will have the final say on WHAT 12-15 they will release promote and it has always been thus no matter WHAT a label may tell us …unless you are U2 or Paul McCartney. Most songs that are written by newer artists are basically ‘sketches’ ( uncrafted versions ) of what the final song becomes once the pro co-writers get their hands on them and craft them into something radio-friendly . After the ‘artist’ has been through this process a time or two and have , hopefully , developed a grasp of what radio and their label consider a well-crafted song and they may have more input . Until that point ,there are LOTS of folks involved in the song selection process.
October 11, 2014 @ 10:53 pm
I understand that. I was just objecting to your use of the term “anymore”, since this is not a new phenomenon.
October 10, 2014 @ 6:35 pm
Given the choice between a label that grants maximal artistic freedom and one that restricts it to ensure “quality”, the former is always preferable, even if it results in bad music.
October 10, 2014 @ 6:56 pm
I think FGL and Borchetta are in a tough spot with their careers, in the sense that it’s really hard to turn their back on what made them so popular at this point. I hate their music, I truly do, but they are at a point with their popularity where they are “stuck” as artists. Nobody seriously buys them as being legitimately talented, deep thinking artists so while “Dirt” did well for them, I’m not sure that was every sustainable for them to keep on that road. This is where I think an artist like Jake Owen has more freedom, he can basically push pause on the party anthems to release his new, deeper song because he is not such a big star that it potentially hurts the bottom line of his label significantly.
Borechetta is a great business man, for as terrible as he has been for Country music I can fully admit that and my guess is at some point he looked at the two tools in FGL and decided “screw it” and will just ride them until their wave is done and then will move on to the next thing.
October 11, 2014 @ 8:42 am
I agree with you. Borchetta isn’t looking to make FGL a long running band. He’ll ride them as far as he can. If by some miracle and I don’t expect it, real country comes back Borchetta would dump FGL for a different group and then claim that he really liked country all along.
There are fewer and fewer artists around that will have 20-25 year or longer careers and that goes for all genres not just country. Where are today’s Neil Young’s and Bob Dylan’s in rock? They don’t exist.
Music today is all based around the new shiny object. Not the long developing career with twists and turns. Sad.
October 11, 2014 @ 8:53 am
I think there are a number of independent artists that have a realistic chance at a long running career, Jason Isbell and Sturgill Simpson jump to mind for me, but in terms of popular music I pretty much think you are dead on. The only artists I can think of that have a shot at a long running career are artists like Dierks Bentley and Kacey Musgraves, but even then I see them probably having to “retreat” to a smaller label and doing what Lee Ann Womack did with her last album and basically give up on Country radio and chasing hits. That is probably easier for Kacey to do since she has only had one and has cultivated a bit of an music row “outsider” image for herself, but Bentley still seems content to release a up tempo party song every 6 months or so to keep his name relevant on radio which has led to some embarrassing singles.
October 13, 2014 @ 9:58 pm
Beyoncé seems to be the one artist who has enjoyed mass popularity continuously for over a decade.
October 10, 2014 @ 7:02 pm
If the bro-country label had been the more accurate douche-country instead, this train might have derailed by now, but one person’s insult is another man’s compliment….and money-maker….
October 11, 2014 @ 8:59 am
I will say in defense of FGL (which I cannot believe I am doing), at least them doing “Bro-Country” seems somewhat natural to them. I’m not defending them in terms of artistic quality, no doubt they are terrible, but I can buy a couple of guys in their mid 20’s releasing Bro-Country songs a hell of a lot more than nearly 40 year old men like Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean. Obviously I wish they would search for some deeper material to record if Country Radio insists on them being major stars, but them releasing an album full of party songs seems a lot more realistic than record labels and artist managers propping up guys like Bryan and Aldean as “bad boys” and party animals at their age.
October 13, 2014 @ 3:40 pm
I enjoyed it when they were pimped again on Nashville a couple of weeks ago. (I forget his name and don’t care) That #2 guy that doesn’t contribute hardly anything in the way of vocals or guitar playing and looks like he should be selling insurance had the top half of his shirt unbuttoned. That guy really tries so hard to look ‘cool’ when he clearly isn’t. And, he always looks awkward. But, man, he really thinks his hot sh$t.
The sad part is (going back to Billy Rae Cyrus and before) I always look at these type of guys and can’t imagine how things could get any worse. 10 years from now could be really frightening. I’m trying to think of the name of that Luke Bryan clone that uses a cowboy hat as a toupee for his bald head but the name escapes me right now. I saw that guy and Jason Aldean standing close together once and I started praying for a really strong gust of wind. If you’re going to go bald be a man about it (like Bruce Willis or Dwight Yoakum who aren’t afraid to be seen without a hat on) instead of a coward afraid for anyone to see you without a hat on (like Jason Aldean or that new young guy that’s buddies with Luke “I’m looking in the mirror” Bryan). Garth Brooks isn’t ashamed to go hat-less either.
Now I can’t even remember what I’m talking about.
October 14, 2014 @ 12:29 pm
If Nickelback is Metal then it’s metal for complete p*ssies! What a joke! An old one but still a joke! By the way who are these ass clowns anyways? Never heard of them they look like they fall into the same category. Bleeaach!
October 14, 2014 @ 1:23 pm
Isn’t there any real country you could do stories on? The only time this bullshit “country” pop up on my feed is from you. The best way to “save” country music might be to ignore this type of shit. Just a thought
October 14, 2014 @ 2:34 pm
Bernie,
I appreciate your concern.
With all due respect, I’m not sure why this story would pop up in your “feed” four days after I posted it, and none of the stories on country that your clamoring for that I posted before and after it wouldn’t. No, ignoring bad music won’t save anything. Thinking that if we simply ignore a problem it will go away is vanity. I post a variety of stories and I try to do my best to highlight worthy music as much as possible. I do not control the algorithm of whichever “feed” you are using to navigate to the site, but I would encourage you to simply click “Home” on the site and you will find many stories on good country artists.
This was the story posted right before the Florida Georgia Line story:
https://savingcountrymusic.com/sons-of-bills-moody-love-and-logic
This was the story posted right after the Florida Georgia Line story:
https://savingcountrymusic.com/album-review-shakey-graves-and-the-war-came
Here are other stories you can see simply on the home page that help the cause of real country:
https://savingcountrymusic.com/the-secret-ingredient-to-make-outlaw-fest-shine
https://savingcountrymusic.com/waylons-buddy-holly-motorcycle-headed-to-buddy-holly-center-museum
https://savingcountrymusic.com/new-music-from-jamey-johnson-coming-soon
https://savingcountrymusic.com/hall-of-fame-announces-major-dylan-cash-the-nashville-cats-exhibit
https://savingcountrymusic.com/why-the-cmas-should-consider-adding-traditional-categories-to-its-awards
Unfortunately sometimes the news cycle pulls me off the priority of talking about music positively, but that is and always has been the primary focus of the site. At the same time, someone has to speak up about what is happening to country music at large if the fundamental problems plaguing country music are ever going to be solved.