Rumor: Big Machine to be bought out by Sony?

[judes]

Most of the "guff" that Carrie gets come from those who label her as an "outsider" by coming off of AI and not doing things the "inside Nashville way", weather it's going door to door or being on Nashville Star those people are going to be treated different.

Miranda always has and always will get a free pass for being on Nashville Star, even though there really isn't much of a difference between AI & Nashville Star, both of them are singing compeititions and shouldn't be treated different because of the music as for Taylor there are plenty of people who have or haven't made it by going door to door and that way of making it is what it is.

The whole thing just shows that the lovefest that country genre tries to play itself off as being is total BS and the way that they do things is in some cases worse than any other genre of music that there is.

Actually Carrie went to Nashville just like everyone else and sang and made a demo and got a deal with Capital but it fell through -what's the diff - Carrie doesn't talk about her early experiences, if she did they would all know about it. Carrie doesn't flaunt and I respect her for that, but I don't think it's why they treat her differently and I don't think they treat her as an outsider - I think they were jealous of her success - look at Craig Morgan mouthing off about her getting into the Opry before him - then she invites him to open for her on tour, I love that - Carrie had gigs all the time when she was a teenager and had her band - she didn't play in bars though - too young -

[JB172]

Actually Carrie went to Nashville just like everyone else and sang and made a demo and got a deal with Capital but it fell through -what's the diff - Carrie doesn't talk about her early experiences, if she did they would all know about it. Carrie doesn't flaunt and I respect her for that, but I don't think it's why they treat her differently and I don't think they treat her as an outsider - I think they were jealous of her success - look at Craig Morgan mouthing off about her getting into the Opry before him - then she invites him to open for her on tour, I love that - Carrie had gigs all the time when she was a teenager and had her band - she didn't play in bars though - too young -

She will still have people look at the Capital deal as not that big of a deal since it fell through and believe it or not there are people who will ALWAYS think that she didn't deserve to get to where she is because of AI and the dislike that people have for anyone who comes off the show no matter how good they are.

There are tons & tons of people who play in bands as a teenager who getting playing gigs, so that isn't going to get much attention from anyone as "paying your dues".

Bottom line is that by now there are people both good and bad who have their minds made up of what they think of Carrie and nothing she does will ever change that and there are a TON of other people in any form of the entertaiment industry who are in the same boat that they have people who just don't like them because of how they go to where they are.

[Gator]

Well then, it will be interesting to watch Scotty's career and his acceptability. Then again, he is a guy!

[twaintrain]

I don't understand why people keep labeling Carrie as an outsider. Maybe at the very beginning there was a little of that but it didn't seem like much. Her first single was the highest debuting single for a new artist in history. She won the CMA Female Vocalist of the Year the first time she was nominated and twice after. She has won every single award you can win country music. She has had #1 after #1. If she was making great music that wasn't getting heard or if she never won any industry awards I could understand, but that's not the case. You can't win every single award. The only real successful outsider I can think of is Shania Twain. The only CMA award she has ever won is Entertainer of the Year (and a special International Artist award). She has the biggest-selling album in country music history and it didn't win a CMA, ACM or even Grammy for Album of the Year. They used her to get people to watch the CMA awards then would not even give her any nominations, much less win an award. I would consider her an outsider way before Carrie.

Why does everyone think she's an outsider? Artists like Alan Jackson, Randy Travis, Vince Gill, Keith Urban, Brad Paisley, Reba McEntire, Loretta Lynn, Garth Brooks, Brooks & Dunn, Sugarland etc... sing her praises. She beat Taylor for an award and Taylor was smiling and singing along to "Last Name." It doesn't seem like there's that much drama. I know there have been a few remakes made about AI but that seems to be in the past. Most people are in agreement she's the best singer in country music.

[JB172]

Well then, it will be interesting to watch Scotty's career and his acceptability. Then again, he is a guy!

Oh the whole women vs. men when it comes to how they are treated within the industry is another story that should but will never get addressed.

[JB172]

I don't understand why people keep labeling Carrie as an outsider. Maybe at the very beginning there was a little of that but it didn't seem like much. Her first single was the highest debuting single for a new artist in history. She won the CMA Female Vocalist of the Year the first time she was nominated and twice after. She has won every single award you can win country music. She has had #1 after #1. If she was making great music that wasn't getting heard or if she never won any industry awards I could understand, but that's not the case. You can't win every single award. The only real successful outsider I can think of is Shania Twain. The only CMA award she has ever won is Entertainer of the Year (and a special International Artist award). She has the biggest-selling album in country music history and it didn't win a CMA, ACM or even Grammy for Album of the Year. They used her to get people to watch the CMA awards then would not even give her any nominations, much less win an award. I would consider her an outsider way before Carrie.

Why does everyone think she's an outsider? Artists like Alan Jackson, Randy Travis, Vince Gill, Keith Urban, Brad Paisley, Reba McEntire, Loretta Lynn, Garth Brooks, Brooks & Dunn, Sugarland etc... sing her praises. She beat Taylor for an award and Taylor was smiling and singing along to "Last Name." It doesn't seem like there's that much drama. I know there have been a few remakes made about AI but that seems to be in the past. Most people are in agreement she's the best singer in country music.

That is just how some people are and nothing will ever change how they look at her, it's not a lot of people but there are some who are will never take her seriously because she came off of AI and didn't "pay her dues" the way that old timers think that everyone should.

It's not fair but that is just how some people are and those people really don't need to be worried about anyway.

[Carrieflattsfan]

Why does the industry put up with SWSRN then? Talk about paying your dues.

I'm not sure what you're asking here. Awards aside, Carrie is obviously very loved and respected by the country music industry. Jennifer Nettles, Miranda Lambert, Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, Randy Travis, Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, and many others have been very supportive of Carrie, and they all seem to appreciate her talent. Miranda, Randy, Dolly, and Brad have all said Carrie is one of the best things to ever happen to country music.

She's a member of the Grand Ole Opry, and has sang with (and been complimented by), some of the greatest legends country music has ever had. Despite the fact she hasn't won an award in a few years, she was showered with female vocalist trophies, two ETOY nominations (and wins), single and song of the year awards, two album of the year awards, and many others. If she wasn't respected by the industry they never would've chosen to nominate her for these awards, let alone vote for her to win them.

I would say the industry had questions about her in the beginning; she had to earn the respect she got. Now that she has it, I don't think she can do anything to lose that trust. The industry obviously sees her as a great ambassador for country music, by the way she has been praised by her peers, and the type of reaction she gets from the industry, and she's also been asked to represent country music to the entire world by hosting the CMA Awards.

Taylor's situation is extremely different, in my opinion. Taylor was never on a reality show, so she never had the resistance Carrie did. Frankly, I think the country music industry is putting on somewhat of a front in terms of complimenting her, and voting her as the best of the COUNTRY music industry has to offer simply because she's young, and she makes them more money than most of her peers who only make a dent in the country market. Taylor has such an innocent "I'm so sweet" image, I think it's pretty obvious most of the industry keeps their mouth shut when it comes to actually criticizing her. Look at all the flack anyone gets for saying anything bad about her; the industry basically milked the Kanye incident to the point where they were almost saying "oh, poor Taylor, let us make it up to you." Yes, she was hurt, but if this situation had happened to anyone else the industry wouldn't made such a show of the whole thing.

Taylor may project a sweet image, but she can be very hurtful and immature when it comes to making her boyfriends the evil ones; no one ever questions the fact that she takes no responsibility for how she acts, in her songs or otherwise. If the industry is going to pretend to fall all over her and give her respect simply because she earns them money, they need to take a fair amount of responsibility for why very few people (outside of her fanbase) don't respect her, or take her seriously. Carrie has earned her respect, and it's because of her amazing talent; in my eyes, TS wouldn't have the respect she does (and nor would her weaknesses and immaturity as an artist and individual) be covered up the way they are.

Carrie has earned her respect; in my eyes, much of what Taylor has gotten via the industry is pretty fabricated. She makes them bucketloads of money, and lets face it, no one can say a bad thing about innocent Taylor without being raked over the coals. There's a huge difference between the kind of respect Carrie has earned, (through her talent), and the "respect" that is forced upon Taylor(because of her personality and the money she makes).

[robinannhunt]

I'm not sure what you're asking here. Awards aside, Carrie is obviously very loved and respected by the country music industry. Jennifer Nettles, Miranda Lambert, Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, Randy Travis, Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, and many others have been very supportive of Carrie, and they all seem to appreciate her talent. Miranda, Randy, Dolly, and Brad have all said Carrie is one of the best things to ever happen to country music.

She's a member of the Grand Ole Opry, and has sang with (and been complimented by), some of the greatest legends country music has ever had. Despite the fact she hasn't won an award in a few years, she was showered with female vocalist trophies, two ETOY nominations (and wins), single and song of the year awards, two album of the year awards, and many others. If she wasn't respected by the industry they never would've chosen to nominate her for these awards, let alone vote for her to win them.

I would say the industry had questions about her in the beginning; she had to earn the respect she got. Now that she has it, I don't think she can do anything to lose that trust. The industry obviously sees her as a great ambassador for country music, by the way she has been praised by her peers, and the type of reaction she gets from the industry, and she's also been asked to represent country music to the entire world by hosting the CMA Awards.

Taylor's situation is extremely different, in my opinion. Taylor was never on a reality show, so she never had the resistance Carrie did. Frankly, I think the country music industry is putting on somewhat of a front in terms of complimenting her, and voting her as the best of the COUNTRY music industry has to offer simply because she's young, and she makes them more money than most of her peers who only make a dent in the country market. Taylor has such an innocent "I'm so sweet" image, I think it's pretty obvious most of the industry keeps their mouth shut when it comes to actually criticizing her. Look at all the flack anyone gets for saying anything bad about her; the industry basically milked the Kanye incident to the point where they were almost saying "oh, poor Taylor, let us make it up to you." Yes, she was hurt, but if this situation had happened to anyone else the industry wouldn't made such a show of the whole thing.

Taylor may project a sweet image, but she can be very hurtful and immature when it comes to making her boyfriends the evil ones; no one ever questions the fact that she takes no responsibility for how she acts, in her songs or otherwise. If the industry is going to pretend to fall all over her and give her respect simply because she earns them money, they need to take a fair amount of responsibility for why very few people (outside of her fanbase) don't respect her, or take her seriously. Carrie has earned her respect, and it's because of her amazing talent; in my eyes, TS wouldn't have the respect she does (and nor would her weaknesses and immaturity as an artist and individual) be covered up the way they are.

Carrie has earned her respect; in my eyes, much of what Taylor has gotten via the industry is pretty fabricated. She makes them bucketloads of money, and lets face it, no one can say a bad thing about innocent Taylor without being raked over the coals. There's a huge difference between the kind of respect Carrie has earned, (through her talent), and the "respect" that is forced upon Taylor(because of her personality and the money she makes).

That is why the industry puts up with SWSRN. The industry made her and a lot of money on her and can not get off the band wagon now.

[judes]

I don't understand why people keep labeling Carrie as an outsider. Maybe at the very beginning there was a little of that but it didn't seem like much. Her first single was the highest debuting single for a new artist in history. She won the CMA Female Vocalist of the Year the first time she was nominated and twice after. She has won every single award you can win country music. She has had #1 after #1. If she was making great music that wasn't getting heard or if she never won any industry awards I could understand, but that's not the case. You can't win every single award. The only real successful outsider I can think of is Shania Twain. The only CMA award she has ever won is Entertainer of the Year (and a special International Artist award). She has the biggest-selling album in country music history and it didn't win a CMA, ACM or even Grammy for Album of the Year. They used her to get people to watch the CMA awards then would not even give her any nominations, much less win an award. I would consider her an outsider way before Carrie.

Why does everyone think she's an outsider? Artists like Alan Jackson, Randy Travis, Vince Gill, Keith Urban, Brad Paisley, Reba McEntire, Loretta Lynn, Garth Brooks, Brooks & Dunn, Sugarland etc... sing her praises. She beat Taylor for an award and Taylor was smiling and singing along to "Last Name." It doesn't seem like there's that much drama. I know there have been a few remakes made about AI but that seems to be in the past. Most people are in agreement she's the best singer in country music.

I agree with you here - Carrie is not an outsider, do people say that because she doesn't win awards? well, 95% of the great country singers don't get nominated or win awards and they aren't outsiders. She is respected as you say by legends in country and to say she is an outsider at this point is ridiculous. Taylor and Miranda have gotten to the award platform through label support and block voting - Carrie had it when Joe Galante was there and won awards. They all deserve awards to some degree but the winners are pushed by their labels, it was nice of Borchetta to let Jason Aldean win something for a change but he just couldn't let him get that entertainer prize which he so deserved. It was reserved for his 12 year old cash darling. I'm glad he pushed through the Band Perry to win their awards but poor Martina , he hasn't done anything for her and as he won't for any other woman on his label except Taylor so I hope Sony doesn't buy Big Machine and let Overton and Borchetta run it - if they do expect Taylor and Miranda to win for the next 10 years, no other females need apply

[pklongbeach]

I agree with and disagree with all that was said above. I think it is alittle of both.
I do think Carrie had an uphill climb in an industry that was not used to interlopers.
But I think her success and grace and style and her massive talent has really won over even the toughest critics. (and for future singing competitions winners, she has paved the way to success. they can all thank her for that).
Yes, critics are still hard on her. But that is mostly be cause she is considered by many to be the best voice in the industry. Therefore she is a taget and a bar for all others to meet. And when they do they get praised to the heavens. And if she herself does not live up to the hype she gets criticized. It's tough for her to win over everyone. She is standing perilusly on a rather high pedistol.
But she is absolutely firmly entrenched in the industries upper teir.
Her award winning is basically competing with itself. AS TS continues to grow they continue to award her. As Miranda continues to grow, they continue to award her. Carrie is at the top of her game. It is hard to see how she can improve. therefore it is hard for her to win awards year after year. I forget sometimes that she won FV 3 years in a row. Where do you go from there? She will win her 4th no doubt. But there are others that are growing right now and it makes sense that they are getting attention for it.
It means nothing to peoples perception of Carries abilities.
She has proven herself 100 times over. The only people left are critics whos jobs it is to scrutinize and nitpick.
But when you are an underdog like Miranda or Taylor it is easy to say nice things. But when you are taking the world by storm like Carrie or Shania, it hard to say anything nice about them. Cause they seem so blessed already.
(and yes, I called T an underdog cause that has been her personanna. It is going to get very tough to keep that personna up though. And I wonder what the critics will do then).

[nccountrygal]

Well I have to say if Sony buys Big Machine and Scott Borchetta is going to be head honcho over it all then I hope Carrie goes to another label after her currrent contract is up. I do not like Scott Borchetta and I know he is very good at what he does but I just don't think Carrie would get much support from him. Of course I don't know that would be the case but I just don't see him backing any other female other than Taylor. I really hope this does not happen but if it does I would rather Carrie go to either Capitol records (LA and Keith Urban's label) or an independent label.

[Ann055]

Well I have to say if Sony buys Big Machine and Scott Borchetta is going to be head honcho over it all then I hope Carrie goes to another label after her currrent contract is up. I do not like Scott Borchetta and I know he is very good at what he does but I just don't think Carrie would get much support from him. Of course I don't know that would be the case but I just don't see him backing any other female other than Taylor. I really hope this does not happen but if it does I would rather Carrie go to either Capitol records (LA and Keith Urban's label) or an independent label.

I agree!!

[12russ79]

well i have to say if sony buys big machine and scott borchetta is going to be head honcho over it all then i hope carrie goes to another label after her currrent contract is up. I do not like scott borchetta and i know he is very good at what he does but i just don't think carrie would get much support from him. Of course i don't know that would be the case but i just don't see him backing any other female other than taylor. I really hope this does not happen but if it does i would rather carrie go to either capitol records (la and keith urban's label) or an independent label.

carrie-okie records anyone?

[Ann055]

carrie-okie records anyone?

I'd like that for her!!!

[Carrie&Taylor]

Play On Records. Play On when your "losing the game"

[JB172]

carrie-okie records anyone?

If she did leave and that is a big IF because she could be very happy where she is, starting her label would the way to go because all the label politics happens at every label, sure if she went someplace else they would kiss ass for a few years but there is always going to be someone that every label is going to want to give a push to which is business and nothing more than that.

So Carrie - Okie Records would be the way to go IF she wants to get out of Sony.

[supercarriefan]

If Carrie starts her own label, it would lessen her award show impact because there would no longer be a major label backing her. She could sign a deal with a major label in conjunction with starting her own label, similar to what Alan Jackson did with Capitol's EMI division, yet that wouldn't guarantee her anything really.
Starting a label is a big deal, and some people here make it sound so simple. Carrie choosing to either leave her current label for another, or to start her own, is a big change.
As others have stated many times, Carrie is always going to have to share label resources with other artists. It's not a bad thing despite what some of you think. It's healthy. Carrie can't just switch labels every time she fails to win awards.
Carrie is in music to make great music that people connect with, not the awards. Some fans worry far more about the accolades than Carrie likely ever will.

[Ann055]

If Carrie starts her own label, it would lessen her award show impact because there would no longer be a major label backing her. She could sign a deal with a major label in conjunction with starting her own label, similar to what Alan Jackson did with Capitol's EMI division, yet that wouldn't guarantee her anything really.
Starting a label is a big deal, and some people here make it sound so simple. Carrie choosing to either leave her current label for another, or to start her own, is a big change.
As others have stated many times, Carrie is always going to have to share label resources with other artists. It's not a bad thing despite what some of you think. It's healthy. Carrie can't just switch labels every time she fails to win awards.
Carrie is in music to make great music that people connect with, not the awards. Some fans worry far more about the accolades than Carrie likely ever will.

I think some of us were just kidding. I really don't care if Carrie wins awards all the time...all I care about is that she is happy and continues to make music as long as she wants to. I will ALWAYS be a HUGE CARRIE FAN whether she ever wins another award or not.

[twaintrain]

I think the reason Carrie hasn't been winning as many awards lately is because she hasn't had any more "career" songs. I mean, when she first came out she had JTTW and BHC out of the gate. Two career-defining songs on her first record. She continues to have radio-friendly, good songs, but not awards bait like those two. Although it is impossible for her voice to get any better, she can improve material. I'm ready for her to have another monster, career-defining song, like JTTW and BHC. Don't get me wrong, I loved PLAY ON, but I think the main reason was because she sounded amazing vocally, not necessarily because of the material itself. I think if she had been the artist to record "The House That Built Me," she would've been the Female Vocalist of the Year.

[supercarriefan]

I think some of us were just kidding. I really don't care if Carrie wins awards all the time...all I care about is that she is happy and continues to make music as long as she wants to. I will ALWAYS be a HUGE CARRIE FAN whether she ever wins another award or not.

Sure, some people are kidding. Unfortunately, there are some people that aren't. Some people here have been saying Carrie should change labels for close to a year now. They don't seem to be kidding at all, and my post is directed at those individuals.
I'm glad that all you care about is Carrie's happiness. I'm the same way. It's sad that the accolades mean so much to some people here, though.