Old Dominion Frontman Matthew Ramsey Signs Global Publishing Deal with Warner/Chappell Music

ASCAP Artist-Songwriter of the Year and lead singer of the band Old Dominion, Matthew Ramsey, has signed a worldwide publishing agreement with Warner/Chappell Music, the music publishing arm of Warner Music Group. Ramsey has written nine No 1. hits for both Old Dominion and other artists, including Kenny Chesney (“Save It for a Rainy Day”), Sam Hunt (“Make You Miss Me”), Dierks Bentley (“Say You Do”), Luke Bryan (“Goodbye Girl”), and Tim McGraw (“Kiss A Girl”), among others.

“Some of the people at Warner/Chappell are among the very first people I met when I moved to Nashville,” said Ramsey. “We’ve sort of risen through the ranks together, but the opportunity to work directly with each other never quite lined up until now. I’m excited to work with a group of people that know how important songwriting is to me, and have cheered me on for over a decade.”

“We’re pumped to welcome Matt to the Warner/Chappell family,” said Ben Vaughn, President of Warner/Chappell Nashville. “Watching him grow in the community as a successful songwriter and now as a top artist has been incredible. He has the ability to make music that is uniquely identifiable, like the life observations in ‘No Such Thing as a Broken Heart’ or the commercial depth of ‘Written in the Sand.’”

Ramsey is currently on the road with Old Dominion for their Happy Endings World Tour. Happy Endings, the country band’s sophomore album, debuted at No.1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums Chart and No. 7 on the Top 20. The album produced three No. 1 singles co-written by Ramsey— “Written in the Sand,” “No Such Thing as a Broken Heart,” and “Hotel Key”— and the achievement marked the platinum-selling country quintet’s sixth No 1. The group have surpassed one billion on-demand streams, while every single released from Happy Endings has earned a platinum certification. 

The two-time CMA Triple Play Award winner was also named last year’s ASCAP Artist-Songwriter of the Year. In 2018, he won the Association of Independent Music Publishers Artists Writers of the Year award, which he previously won two years earlier. As a part of Old Dominion, he won the Academy of Country Music Award for New Vocal Duo or Group of the Year, American Country Countdown Award for Breakthrough Group/Duo of the Year and the 2018 ACM Award for Vocal Group of the Year. The band has also received nominations for CMT Awards, American Music Awards, Billboard Awards, and iHeart Radio Awards. 

Originally from Virginia, Ramsey moved to Nashville in 2002 to pursue his passion for songwriting and met future co-writer and bandmate Trevor Rosen. Old Dominion’s self-titled EP featured the band’s first hit song, “Break Up with Him,” which was co-written by Ramsey and is RIAA certified platinum.

Ramsey was represented by Morris Higham Management and Jess Rosen of Greenberg/Traurig in this deal.