Songwriters Go Head-to-Head at Songwriting Competition

By Jennifer Boyd

            MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Twelve Murfreesboro songwriters turned out to compete at Match Records’ songwriting competition on Nov. 13, all vying for a spot to perform at a Match Records showcase to be held in January.

            The competition was held in the Mass Communications building at Middle Tennessee State University and was hosted by the student-run record label Match Records. A total of 12 songwriters competed, and approximately 60 other songwriters and members of the public attended the event. Three MTSU faculty members from the Recording Industry Department judged the competition: Dr. Matthew O’Brien, Dr. Jim Piekarski and Rick Carnes.

            The songwriters each played one song and were judged on aspects ranging from songwriting to showmanship. A variety of genres were represented including country, Christian, and R&B. The songwriters who performed were Katy Bishop, Keturah Brown, Joshua Michael Craig, Ivan LaFever, Charlie Garcia, AJ Gruenewald, Mary Elizabeth Howell, Stuart Montez, Jack Pugh, Caleb Shiver, Laura Short, and Juan Zelaya.

At the end of the night, MTSU senior Ivan LaFever took home first place with his song “Not Gonna Come Home.” LaFever performed the song on acoustic guitar and

wrote the song earlier this year. As he says, “The song is about cheating women.”

            “I felt like it was a good opportunity to showcase one of my original songs and network with other songwriters,” said LaFever. “It was a humbling experience to play with so many other talented writers, and I was amazed that I won.”

            LaFever is majoring in Music Business at MTSU and plans to graduate in the spring of 2014. A native of Cookeville, Tenn., LaFever began playing music at age 5 and hopes to have a career as a professional musician.

            “Playing music for a living is not something that is for everyone.” said LaFever. “It’s one thing to enjoy and play music, and another to eat, sleep, and breathe music. It is a lot of sacrifices and a lot of hard work.”

            LaFever won the opportunity to play at a showcase hosted by Match Records in January. Match Records is a student-run record label at MTSU that gives Recording Industry students the opportunity to work with real artists in a classroom environment. The showcase will take place at Douglas Corner in Nashville and will feature Match Records artists Ryan Kenney and Luke Caccetta, as well as several prominent Nashville songwriters. The showcase will be free and open to the public. For more information, go to www.matchrecordsmusic.com.

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