Show Dog Nashville is an American independent

record label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a Music publisher, ...

specializing in

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

artists. It was founded in 2005 by singer

Toby Keith Toby Keith Covel (July 8, 1961 – February 5, 2024) was an American country music singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, and businessman. Keith released his chart-topping debut single, "Should've Been a Cowboy", in 1993. During the 1990s ...

. It was later merged with Universal South Records into Show Dog-Universal Music in December 2009 until it was re-activated in late 2015. Currently, it is distributed by

Thirty Tigers Thirty Tigers is an American music marketing, distribution and management company for independent artists, based in Nashville. History The company was founded in 2002 by David Macias and Deb Markland and is distributed by The Orchard. In 20 ...

History

Universal South Records was started in 2001 under

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, ...

record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...

s Tony Brown and

Tim DuBois James Timothy DuBois (born May 4, 1948) is an American accountant, songwriter, and recording industry executive based in Nashville. He has headed both Arista Records and Universal South Records, and as a songwriter, he has written five No.1 co ...

. The label specialized in

artists, including

Joe Nichols Joseph Edward Nichols (born November 26, 1976) is an American country music artist. Between 1996 and 2001, he held recording contracts with the Intersound and Giant Records (Warner), Giant labels. In 2002, he signed with Universal South Records, ...

Randy Houser Shawn Randolph Houser (born December 18, 1975) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Houser has racked up over half a dozen hits and over 1 billion streams. His How Country Feels album topped the country radio charts with the title ...

Phil Vassar Phillip George Vassar Jr. (born May 28, 1962) is an American country music artist. Vassar made his debut on the country music scene in the late 1990s, co-writing singles for several country artists, including Tim McGraw (" For a Little While", ...

and

Marty Stuart John Marty Stuart (born September 30, 1958) is an American country music, country and bluegrass music singer, songwriter, and musician. Active since 1968, Stuart initially toured with Lester Flatt, and then in Johnny Cash's road band before be ...

, as well as

alternative country Alternative country (commonly abbreviated to alt-country; also known as alternative country rock, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative) is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that diffe ...

acts

Shooter Jennings Waylon Albright "Shooter" Jennings (born May 19, 1979) is an American musician and Grammy award winning record producer. He is the son of country singers Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter. In a career spanning three decades, Jennings has explore ...

and

Cross Canadian Ragweed Cross Canadian Ragweed is an American country and rock band formed in Yukon, Oklahoma in 1994. The original members of the band is how the name was formed. Cross- Grady Cross, Canadian- Cody Canada, Rag- Randy Ragsdale, Weed- Matt Wiedemann. The ...

. In 2005 it partnered with the talent show ''

Nashville Star ''Nashville Star'' is an American reality television singing competition program that aired for six seasons, from 2003 to 2008. Its first five seasons aired on USA Network, while the last season aired on NBC. Its five seasons on USA made it the l ...

'', offering a recording contract to Season 3 winner

Erika Jo Erika Jo Vastola (née Heriges, born November 2, 1986, in Angleton, Texas), known simply by the stage name Erika Jo, is an American country music recording artist who was declared winner of the 2005 season of the ''Nashville Star'' television pr ...

George Canyon George Canyon (born Frederick George Lays, August 22, 1970) is a Canadian country music singer. He was the runner up on the second season of ''Nashville Star'' in 2004. He grew up in Fox Brook, Pictou County, Nova Scotia before he moved west t ...

, another ''Nashville Star'' contestant, also recorded for the label. Brown and DuBois stepped down from Universal South in 2006, with Mark Wright, also a record producer, taking their place as label president. Show Dog Nashville was formed in 2005 by

shortly after the dissolution of

DreamWorks Records DreamWorks Records (often referred in copyright notices as SKG Music, LLC) was an American record label founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Mo Ostin, his son Michael Ostin and Lenny Waronker as a subsidiary of DreamWorks Pictures. The label opera ...

, the label to which he was signed at the time. DreamWorks executive

Scott Borchetta Scott Borchetta (born July 3, 1962) is an American record executive and founder of the Big Machine Records#Imprints, Big Machine Label Group. He started the label in 2005 with Taylor Swift as its first signed artist and 13 employees, he served ...

was its CEO, and his own

Big Machine Records Big Machine Records is an American record label, distributed by Universal Music Group. Big Machine is based on Music Row in Nashville, Tennessee. The label was founded in September 2005 by former DreamWorks Records executive Scott Borchetta and ...

label originally shared much of its staff. In March 2006, Show Dog and Big Machine split into separately staffed labels, although Keith retained his financial stake in Big Machine. Acts releasing works for Show Dog included

Carter's Chord Carter's Chord was an American country music group composed of sisters Becky Scott, Emily Fortney, and Joanna Ott, all of whom are singer-songwriters and vocalists. They are also the three daughters of Barny and Carter Roberston, both of whom pla ...

Trailer Choir Trailer Choir was an American country music group composed of vocalists Marc "Butter" Fortney, Crystal Hoyt, and Vincent "Big Vinny" Hickerson. The trio was signed to Show Dog Nashville, a label owned by Toby Keith, in 2007. After recording the ...

Mica Roberts Mica Roberts (born in Locust Grove, Oklahoma) is an American country music artist signed to Show Dog Nashville, a label owned by country singer Toby Keith. In 2008, she released her debut single, "Things a Mama Don't Know", a duet with Toby Kei ...

Lindsey Haun Lindsey Haun (born November 21, 1984) is an American actress, singer, and director. She is known for her role as Hadley on the HBO television series ''True Blood''. She was nominated for a Young Artist Award for her role in the 2000 Disney Chann ...

and Martin Johnson. In December 2009, Show Dog Records and Universal South merged to form Show Dog-Universal Music. One month later

Trace Adkins Tracy Darrell Adkins (born January 13, 1962) known professionally as Trace Adkins, is an American country music singer and actor. Adkins made his debut in 1996 with the album ''Dreamin' Out Loud'', released on Capitol Records Nashville. Since t ...

left

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

Nashville (which later became part of UMG's Nashville unit after UMG bought

EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...

in 2012) to become the first post-merger signee to the label, and the label's roster was announced. Singer-songwriter Josh Thompson, previously with

Sony Music Nashville Sony Music Nashville is the country music branch of the Sony Music, Sony Music Group. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, Sony Music Nashville includes its three country recording labels Arista Nashville, Columbia Records#Columbia Nashville, Colu ...

, joined the roster in September 2012. By the summer of 2015,

and his daughter

Krystal Keith Krystal Ladawn Covel Sandubrae (born September 30, 1985), known professionally as Krystal Keith, is an American country music singer. Early life Keith was born on September 30, 1985, to fellow country singer Toby Keith and Tricia Covel (née L ...

had become the only artists signed to the label, but more recently Clay Walker, Waterloo Revival, and Lance Carpenter joined the label.

Acts on Show Dog Nashville

* Kimberly Kelly *

Clay Walker Ernest Clayton Walker Jr. (born August 19, 1969) is an American country music artist. He made his debut in 1993 with the single " What's It to You", which reached Number One on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Son ...

Former artists

Joel Crouse Joel Thomas Crouse (born June 14, 1992) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He released his most recent EP, wasteLAnd on his label, Hum Records in August 2020. Early life Joel Crouse grew up in Holland, Massachusetts. He attend ...

Scotty Emerick Walter Scott Emerick (born July 11, 1973, in Hollywood, Florida) is an American country music artist, known primarily for his work with Toby Keith. In addition to penning several of Keith's singles, Emerick has also written for Sawyer Brown, Geo ...

Rose Falcon Rose Falcon (born May 2, 1984) is an American singer and songwriter. Falcon's songs have been recorded by Faith Hill, Lady A, Day of Fire, Eric Paslay, and Jessie James Decker. Falcon has also written and performed songs which are included in ...

Flynnville Train Flynnville Train is an American country rock band. Their self-titled debut album was released on September 11, 2007, and it produced two singles on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts. The band is composed of Brian Flynn (lead vocals) ...

JT Hodges Justin Taylor Hodges (born July 6, 1977) is an American country music singer and actor. In 2011, he signed to Show Dog-Universal Music and released one album, which has produced three charting singles on the Hot Country Songs chart. Early life ...

Rebecca Lynn Howard Rebecca Lynn Howard (born April 24, 1979) is an American country music artist. She has charted seven singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts, and has released three studio albums. Her highest-charting single, " Forgive", peaked at N ...

Jessie James Jessica Rose James Decker (born April 12, 1988) is an Italian-born American country pop singer. At age 15, after auditioning for and being rejected by most of the country labels in Nashville, Tennessee, Decker began working with Carla Wallace ...

* Sarah Johns *

* Rushlow Harris * Josh Thompson *

* Waterloo Revival

Acts formerly signed to Universal South

* Baylie Brown *

Bering Strait The Bering Strait ( , ; ) is a strait between the Pacific and Arctic oceans, separating the Chukchi Peninsula of the Russian Far East from the Seward Peninsula of Alaska. The present Russia–United States maritime boundary is at 168° 58' ...

Kevin Costner and Modern West Kevin Costner & Modern West is an American country rock band founded and fronted by actor Kevin Costner. He began a worldwide tour with the band in October 2007, which included shows in Istanbul and Rome. It also performed at NASCAR Sprint Cup S ...

John Mellencamp John J. Mellencamp (born October 7, 1951), previously known as Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for his brand of heartland rock, which emphasizes traditional instrumentation ...

Katrina Elam Katrina Ruth Elam (born December 12, 1983) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to Universal South Records in 2004, she released her self-titled debut album that year, charting in the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & T ...

Eli Young Band Eli Young Band is an American country music band from Denton, Texas. The band consists of Mike Eli (lead vocals, guitar), James Young (guitar), Jon Jones (bass guitar), and Chris Thompson (drums). They released their self-titled debut album in 2 ...

* The Elms *

Andy Gibson Albert "Andy" Gibson (November 6, 1913 – February 11, 1961) was an American jazz trumpeter, arranger, and composer. Career Gibson played violin early on before settling on trumpet. Although he played professionally in many orchestras, he did n ...

* The Lost Trailers *

Regie Hamm Regie Hamm (born May 1, 1967) is an American singer-songwriter. He has multiple credits as a songwriter, producer, musician (keys, drums, vocals), and artist. Early and personal life His father was a traveling Pentecostal minister. Regie pla ...

Jennifer Hanson Jennifer Kathleen Hanson (born August 10, 1973) is an American country music artist, songwriter and record producer. She made her artist debut in 2002 with the release of her single “ Beautiful Goodbye”. The song went on to become a top 20 h ...

Matt Jenkins Matt Jenkins (born in Fort Worth, Texas) is an American country music artist. Signed to Universal South Records in 2003, he released two singles in 2005, including "King of the Castle", which reached number 51 on the Hot Country Songs charts, but ...

Holly Lamar Mary "Holly" Holladay Lamar (born 1966 in Atlanta, Georgia) is an American country music singer-songwriter. Lamar co-wrote " Breathe", a number one country and adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popul ...

* Rockie Lynne *

Pat Green Patrick Craven Green (born April 5, 1972) is an American country artist. Active since 1995, he has recorded a total of seven studio albums, including three for Republic Records and two for BNA Records, BNA. Fifteen of his singles have charted on ...

McHayes McHayes was an American country music duo established in 2003 by Wade Hayes (guitar, vocals) and Mark McClurg (fiddle, vocals). Prior to the duo's foundation, Hayes was a solo artist, and McClurg was a member of Alan Jackson's road band, The Str ...

Dean Miller Roger Dean Miller Jr. (born October 15, 1965) is an American country singer, songwriter and music producer known professionally as Dean Miller. He is the son of Roger Miller, a country pop artist who had several hit singles from the 1960s thro ...

Allison Moorer Allison Moorer (born June 21, 1972) is an American Country music, country singer-songwriter. She signed with MCA Nashville in 1997 and made her debut on the U.S. Billboard Country Chart with the release of her debut single, "A Soft Place to F ...

The Notorious Cherry Bombs The Notorious Cherry Bombs, originally called The Cherry Bombs, was an American country music supergroup founded by singer-songwriter Rodney Crowell in 1980. A former member of Emmylou Harris's Hot Band, Crowell picked several former Hot Band mem ...

Lee Roy Parnell Lee Roy Parnell (born December 21, 1956) is an American country music, country and blues musician. Active since 1990, he has recorded eight studio albums, and has charted more than twenty singles on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Hot Cou ...

Jonathan Singleton Jonathan David Singleton is an American country music singer and songwriter who resides in Nashville, Tennessee. He has been nominated for 2 Grammy Awards, and has won the ACM Song of The Year Award in 2022 for “Things a Man Oughtta Know” by ...

Sons of Sylvia Sons of Sylvia, originally known as The Clark Brothers, was an American country pop trio composed of three brothers with the surname Clark: Adam (guitar, mandolin), Ashley (lead vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and Austin (background vocals, res ...

Judson Spence Judson Spence (born 29 April 1965, Pascagoula, Mississippi) is an American pop music singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist based in Nashville, Tennessee. He originally gained fame when he released his eponymously titled debut solo effort on A ...

Matthew West Matthew Joseph West (born April 25, 1977) is an American contemporary Christian musician and singer-songwriter. He has released five studio albums and is known for his songs "More (Matthew West song), More", "You Are Everything (Matthew West so ...

* Amanda Wilkinson * Holly Williams

Notes

{{Authority control Record labels based in Nashville, Tennessee American country music record labels Record labels established in 2009 American independent record labels