The Franklin Theatre Songwriters Series returns on November 21!
Erin Enderlin
Erin Enderlin is at the forefront of current artists rooted in country music's rich history. A frequent performer on the Grand Ole Opry, her acclaimed 2017 album Whiskeytown Crier cemented her as a literary songwriter and superb vocal stylist with a knack for sharply drawn, often sad, characters.
Her follow-up album Faulkner County made Rolling Stone magazine's top 20 Country/Americana Albums of the Year in 2019, and she was featured as a breakthrough artist in the 2020 American Currents exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. As writer of Alan Jackson's "Monday Morning Church," Lee Ann Womack's "Last Call," Luke Bryan's "You Don't Know Jack," and a host of other songs by Randy Travis, Reba McEntire, Terri Clark, Gene Watson and others, she's a go-to writer for stars looking for heavyweight country with classic panache.
This year, Enderlin continues to bring her artistry to audiences around the country, has new songs being released by Trisha Yearwood and Willie Nelson, is the focus of a documentary on a group of singer-songwriters from Nashville, and has written songs for multiple major tv and film projects due for release in 2025.
Denitia
The songs she sings give audiences an opportunity to see themselves in her and connect over shared experiences and emotions.
“We’re all people just trying to live our lives,” Denitia says, “and there’s so much of it that we have in common.
But Denitia also wants her music to give audiences an opportunity to connect with themselves. “If a song of mine helps someone reckon with their own emotional life or their own experiences, or it helps them experience empathy or open their mind or expand, that’s what I’m trying to do,” she adds.
“I’m trying to make music I love that moves people while just being myself.”
On her new album, Sunset Drive, Denitia shares her story of going after something new — a life back in Nashville, where she attended college, immersed in both the city’s roots music scene and the community of the artist collective Black Opry — while experiencing the menagerie of emotions that come with leaving behind what you knew and starting over.
Maia Sharp
Maia Sharp has had her songs recorded by Bonnie Raitt, The Chicks, Trisha Yearwood, Keb’ Mo’, Cher, Edwin McCain, David Wilcox, Art Garfunkel, Lizz Wright, Paul Carrack, Lisa Loeb, Terri Clark and many more. And through it all, Maia has continued to record her own albums including nine solo releases, one collaborative project with Art Garfunkel and Buddy Mondlock and her duo project, Roscoe & Etta (with writing/production partner Anna Schulze). Each release has been embraced by press and radio and has led to extensive touring and appearances on Mountain Stage, Acoustic Cafe, World Cafe, NPR's "All Things Considered," CBS Early Morning and the Today Show to name a few. Maia is also an adjunct professor at NYU and has been writing for Songwriting With: Soldiers for seven years. Her new album, Reckless Thoughts features the singles “Kind,” “Old Dreams” and “She’ll Let Herself Out.”
"Reckless Thoughts" is Maia Sharp's ninth solo album and just might be her finest to date. That's saying a lot, because she stands as one of the best singer-songwriters of our time?." – POP CULTURE CLASSICS
“Ultimately, Reckless Thoughts comes across as a calming, contemplative, and confessional set of songs that reaffirm the fact that Sharp is truly a treasure in terms of her ability to craft compelling songs that bear an affirmative attitude, one that takes stock in both kindness and compassion and uses them to the best advantage. In the end, that’s truly something to savor.” – AMERICAN SONGWRITER
“Backburner” is one clever lyric, but the beauty of the song is that it isn’t cloying or cutesy. The arrangement, which features Sharp’s guitars and synths along with other musicians, is steady and unswerving, like on the cruise-control mode in your car. From Sharp’s contemplative delivery to the tautness of the arrangement, “Backburner” conveys regret without ever sounding maudlin. To extend its metaphor, it stays on simmer and never overheats.” – ROLLING STONE
"Maia Sharp is one of America's great singer-songwriters. Her storytelling runs profound and deep while honoring a pop tradition that urges you to sing along and feel good. Maia sings with an angelic voice that's shrouded in stark realism and a healthy dose of cynicism.....it's an exotic cocktail!" – DON WAS