"Prilosec" isn't a word you hear much in country music, but that heartburn med, along with Dr Pepper and French's Mustard, were among the products name-checked in a new song recorded by country star Jamie O'Neal at Ocean Way Studios on Wednesday.
The song, called "You've Got the Goods," won't be on her next album — or any CD, for that matter. It was recorded especially for the advertisers and media reps attending the third annual CMA Marketing Summit.
More than a dozen representatives from companies such as Google, Microsoft and Cotton Incorporated attended the two-day summit on Tuesday and Wednesday, visiting a museum and GAC Studios, attending panels and rubbing shoulders with some of country's biggest stars.
It's an experience CMA director of business development Paula Milton described as "Country Music 101." "We just want them to take a look at country music as a whole," she said, "and think about it for anything they're working on, whether it's a new product launch, or a new advertising campaign. Once they experience it and see everything live, it helps the wheels start turning."
Eye-opening experienceIt was an eye-opening experience for attendees like New Yorker Andrew Meyerson, Eastern ad director for People magazine.
"I was blown away," he said. "I'm a huge music fan, and grew up on classic rock, and this is so different from what I expected it to be. I've become a huge fan of country music now."
Chicago resident Josh Grau, who works in Google's Branded Entertainment Division, agreed. He was impressed by "the history of Nashville and its importance, not just on country music but music in general," in a relatively modest-sized burg, compared to the music industry's coastal hubs of New York and Los Angeles.
"Our driver gave us a tour of the studios and the individual offices for stars," he said. "The fact that it's so neighborly, and relatively low-key and accessible — that's representative of how all the artists have been with us, very friendly, non-pretentious and accessible, which is not usually the case in different genres."
O'Neal made fast friends with the attendees, coaxing the group into the live room to sing background vocals.
"You can lip-synch," she said jokingly. "A lot of people do that these days."
O'Neal and her band knocked out the bulk of the recording in under an hour, while summit-ers sat in the control room and learned about the "Nashville Number System" and the history of the studio. When they get home, they'll be able to download an MP3 copy of their Music Row debut. But the CMA hopes they'll go home with much more: a powerful impression and a valuable place for country music in their company's plans. "If we can even get them just to say, 'Let me think about country music,'" Milton said, "Even if it doesn't happen in a year but two years down the road, then we've done our job."
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