Luke Robert Laird (born May 4, 1978 in

Hartstown, Pennsylvania Hartstown is a census-designated place (CDP) in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 201 at the 2010 census, down from 246 in 2000. History The Dr. James White House was added to the National Register of Historic Pla ...

) is an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

and producer. He has written over 20 number one ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' singles, including

Carrie Underwood Carrie Marie Underwood (born March 10, 1983) is an American singer. She rose to prominence after winning the fourth season of ''American Idol'' in 2005. Her single " Inside Your Heaven" made her the only country artist to debut atop the ''Bil ...

's "

So Small "So Small" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Carrie Underwood. It was released in August 2007 as the first single from her 2007 album ''Carnival Ride''. Underwood co-wrote this song with Hillary Lindsey and Luke L ...

", "

Temporary Home "Temporary Home" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Carrie Underwood. It was released in December 2009 as the second official single from her third studio album, '' Play On''. Before being released as a single, the ...

", and " Undo It";

Blake Shelton Blake Tollison Shelton (born June 18, 1976) is an American country music singer and television personality. In 2001, he made his debut with the single "Austin". The lead-off single from his self-titled debut album, "Austin" spent five weeks at ...

's " Gonna";

Sara Evans Sara Lynn Evans (; born February 5, 1971) is an American country music singer and songwriter. She is also credited as a record producer, actress, and author. She had five songs reach the number one spot on the ''Billboard'' country songs cha ...

' " A Little Bit Stronger";

Rodney Atkins Rodney Allan Atkins (born March 28, 1969) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to Curb Records in 1996, he charted his first single on the ''Billboard'' country chart in 1997, but did not release an album until 2003's '' ...

's " Take a Back Road";

Eric Church Kenneth Eric Church (born May 3, 1977) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has released nine studio albums through Capitol Nashville since 2005. His debut album, 2006's '' Sinners Like Me'', produced three singles on the ''Billboar ...

's "

Drink in My Hand "Drink in My Hand" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Eric Church. It was released in August 2011 as the second single from his 2011 album '' Chief''. The song became Church's first number one hit on the US ''Billbo ...

", "

Give Me Back My Hometown "Give Me Back My Hometown" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music singer Eric Church. It was released in January 2014 as the second single from his 2014 album '' The Outsiders''. The song reached number one on the US ''Billboa ...

", and " Talladega";

Little Big Town Little Big Town is an American country music vocal group from Homewood, Alabama. Founded in 1998, the group has comprised the same four members since its founding: Karen Fairchild, Kimberly Schlapman (née Roads), Phillip Sweet, and Jimi Westbr ...

's " Pontoon";

Luke Bryan Thomas Luther "Luke" Bryan (born July 17, 1976) is an American country singer, songwriter, and television personality. He began his music career writing songs for Travis Tritt and Billy Currington before signing with Capitol Nashville in 2007. ...

's " I See You" and "

Fast Fast or FAST may refer to: * Fast (noun), high speed or velocity * Fast (noun, verb), to practice fasting, abstaining from food and/or water for a certain period of time Acronyms and coded Computing and software * ''Faceted Application of Subje ...

Thomas Rhett Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

's "

T-Shirt A T-shirt (also spelled tee shirt), or tee, is a style of fabric shirt named after the T shape of its body and sleeves. Traditionally, it has short sleeves and a round neckline, known as a '' crew neck'', which lacks a collar. T-shirts are genera ...

Kenny Chesney Kenneth Arnold Chesney (born March 26, 1968) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He has recorded more than 20 albums and has produced more than 40 Top 10 singles on the US ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs and Country ...

's "

American Kids "American Kids" is a song written by Rodney Clawson, Luke Laird, and Shane McAnally and recorded by American country music artist Kenny Chesney. It was released in June 2014 as the first single from Chesney's 2014 album '' The Big Revival''. After ...

Lady Antebellum Lady A (formerly known as Lady Antebellum) is an American country music group formed in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2006. The group is composed of Hillary Scott (lead and background vocals), Charles Kelley (lead and background vocals, guitar) ...

's "

Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ...

"; and Jon Pardi's " Head Over Boots." He has also written and produced songs for

Tim McGraw Samuel Timothy McGraw (born May 1, 1967) is an American country singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He has released 16 studio albums (11 for Curb Records, four for Big Machine Records and one for Arista Nashville). 10 of those alb ...

Rascal Flatts Rascal Flatts is an American country music band founded in 1999. The band members were Gary LeVox (lead vocals), Jay DeMarcus (bass guitar, background vocals), and Joe Don Rooney (lead guitar, background vocals). DeMarcus is LeVox's second cou ...

Kacey Musgraves Kacey Lee Musgraves (born August 21, 1988) is an American country singer. She has won six Grammy Awards, seven Country Music Association Awards, and three Academy of Country Music Awards. Musgraves self-released three solo albums and one as Texa ...

Toby Keith Toby Keith Covel (born July 8, 1961), known professionally as Toby Keith, is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and record producer. He released his first four studio albums—1993's '' Toby Keith'', 1994's ''Boomtown'', 19 ...

Ne-Yo Shaffer Chimere Smith (born October 18, 1979), known professionally as Ne-Yo, is an American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, and record producer. He gained fame for his songwriting abilities when he penned Mario's 2004 hit " Let Me Love You ...

John Legend John Roger Stephens (born December 28, 1978), known professionally as John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and record producer. He began his musical career by working behind the scenes, playing piano on Lauryn Hill's " Eve ...

Darius Rucker Darius Carlos Rucker (born May 13, 1966) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He first gained fame as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of rock band Hootie & the Blowfish, which he founded in 1986 at the University of South Ca ...

, and many others.

Early life

Laird was born in Hartstown, PA on May 4, 1978. He wrote songs and learned guitar in elementary school. After seeing a

Randy Travis Randy Bruce Traywick (born May 4, 1959), known professionally as Randy Travis, is an American country music and gospel music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. Active from 1978 until being incapacitated by a stroke in 2013, he has recor ...

concert in high school, Laird claims he became fascinated with songwriting and production. He taught himself basic elements of music theory by listening to the radio and dissecting songs. Laird's parents took him in high school to see

Middle Tennessee State University Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU or MT) is a public university in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Founded in 1911 as a normal school, the university consists of eight Undergraduate education, undergraduate colleges as well as a college of Postgr ...

and its recording program, and he enrolled there in 1997, graduating in 2001 with a degree in Recording Industry Management. After college Laird moved to Nashville. Laird's first job in the industry was assistant tour manager for

Brooks & Dunn Brooks & Dunn are an American country music duo consisting of Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn, both of whom are vocalists and songwriters. The duo was founded in 1990 through the suggestion of Tim DuBois. Before their formation, both members were so ...

, though he spent his weekends writing. He participated in songwriter nights in Nashville at venues such as

Bluebird Cafe The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the order of Passerines in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas. ...

. In 2002, Chris Oglesby, at

BMG Music Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) was a division of a German media company Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Sony Corporation of America on 1 October 2008. Although it was established in 1987, the music co ...

at the time, offered Laird a publishing deal. BMG was later bought by

Universal Music Publishing Group Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) is a North American music publishing company and is part of the Universal Music Group. It was formerly known as MCA Music Publishing until it merged with PolyGram. Universal Music Publishing is the worl ...

, which took over Laird's contract and made him a staff writer in 2008. While working at BMG he met a receptionist, Beth Mason. The two were married in 2010, and went on to co-found Creative Nation in 2011.

Music career

Early in his time at UMPG, Bill Luther took an interest in him and encouraged him as a writer. Luther brought Laird along with him to write a song with Hillary Lindsey. The three worked together and named a song around their rapport, called " Painless." The song went on to be Laird's first released song by Lee Ann Womack in 2005. Laird and Lindsey went on to work on a number of songs with

, including his first number one single "

" in 2007. The song held the number one spot on the Billboard Country charts for three weeks and went platinum. Since then Laird has co-written 23 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard Country charts. He is a proponent of the “New Country” style of country music, and has worked with pop artists such as

and

. He has written No. 1 hits with

, and

, among others, and has had hits with artists such as

Ingrid Michaelson Ingrid Ellen Michaelson (born December 8, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Her first album, ''Slow the Rain,'' was released in 2005, and she has since released eight more albums: '' Girls and Boys,'' '' Be OK'', '' Everybody'' ...

Jason Aldean Jason Aldean (born Jason Aldine Williams; February 28, 1977) is an American country music singer. Since 2005, he has been signed to Broken Bow Records, a record label for which he has released ten albums and 40 singles. His 2010 album, '' My Ki ...

, and

, among others. He was named BMI's Country Songwriter of the Year in 2012, and his song with

, " Take a Back Road" was named Song of the Year. He was named ACM's Songwriter of the Year in 2015. He has been nominated for three Grammys for Best Country Song: twice in 2015, for

's "

" and for

's "

", and again in 2016 for

's "Diamond Rings and Old Barstools." Although he is primarily interested in songwriting, Laird also produced two Grammy nominated albums by

, the 2014 ''

Same Trailer Different Park ''Same Trailer Different Park'' is the debut studio album by American country music artist Kacey Musgraves, released on March 19, 2013, through Mercury Nashville. Musgraves co-wrote all 12 tracks and co-produced the album with Luke Laird and Sh ...

''–which won–and the 2016 ''

Pageant Material ''Pageant Material'' is the second studio album by American country music artist Kacey Musgraves, released June 23, 2015, through Universal Music Group Nashville, Mercury Nashville. Musgraves co-wrote all 13 tracks and co-produced the album with L ...

.''

Creative Nation

In 2011, Laird and his wife Beth founded Creative Nation, a music publishing and management company for country music songwriters and producers. While Beth Laird handles logistics, Luke Laird focuses on songwriting. The company includes Kassi Ashton, Alec Bailey, Casey Brown, Barry Dean, Natalie Hemby, Lori McKenna,

Steve Moakler Steve Moakler is an American country musician and songwriter from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, now based in Nashville, Tennessee. He has released five studio albums and has written songs for Nashville recording artists including Dierks Bentley's ...

, and Tyler Johnson. The company has had a partnership with

and currently has partnerships with Sony ATV Music Publishing and Pulse Music Group.

Discography

Awards and nominations

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

*2019 Winner: Best Country Song (writer) - "Space Cowboy" by

*2016 Nominee: Best Country Song (writer) - "Diamond Rings and Old Barstools" by

*2016 Nominee: Best Country Album (co-producer) – ''

'' by

*2015 Nominee: Best Country Song (writer) - "

" by

*2015 Nominee: Best Country Song (writer) - "

" by

*2014 Winner: Best Country Album (producer) - "

" by

Country Music Association Awards The Country Music Association Awards, also known as the CMA Awards or CMAs, are presented to country music artists and broadcasters to recognize outstanding achievement in the country music industry. The televised annual presentation ceremony ...

*2017 Winner: Triple Play Award *2016 Winner: Triple Play Award *2015 Winner: Triple Play Award *2014 Winner: Triple Play Award *2013 Winner: Triple Play Award *2011 Winner: Triple Play Award *2015 Nominee: Song of the Year (writer) - “

” by

*2015 Nominee: Album of the Year (producer) – ''

'' by

*2014 Nominee: Song of the Year (writer) - "

" by

*2013 Nominee: Song of the Year (writer) - " Pontoon" by

*2013 Nominee: Album of the Year (producer) - ''

'' by

*2013 Nominee: Single of the Year (producer) - "

Merry Go 'Round "Merry Go 'Round" is the debut single by American country music artist Kacey Musgraves. It was released in September 2012 as the lead single from her debut album '' Same Trailer Different Park''. Musgraves co-wrote and co-produced the song with Sh ...

" by

Academy of Country Music Awards The Academy of Country Music Awards, also known as the ACM Awards, were first held in 1966, honoring the industry's accomplishments during the previous year. It was the first country music awards program held by a major organization. The academ ...

*2017 Nominee: Songwriter of the Year *2015 Nominee: Best Country Song (writer) - "

" by

*2015 Nominee: Best Country Song (writer) - "

" by

*2015 Winner: Songwriter of the Year *2014 Winner: Album of the Year (producer) - ''

'' by

*2014 Nominee: Songwriter of the Year *2013 Nominee: Songwriter of the Year *2012 Nominee: Songwriter of the Year American Country Awards *2013 Nominee: Song of the Year (writer) - "Pontoon" by

BMI Country Music Awards *2012 Winner: Songwriter of the Year *2012 Winner: Song of the Year (writer) - " Take a Back Road" by

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Laird, Luke 1978 births Living people People from Crawford County, Pennsylvania American country record producers American country songwriters American male songwriters Middle Tennessee State University alumni Songwriters from Pennsylvania Record producers from Pennsylvania Canadian Country Music Association Songwriter(s) of the Year winners