I am pro gay rights, gay marriage - the changes over the past decade are important and great to see.
I am pro songwriter - writing the songs is where it all starts in music, so if someone is behind the scenes as a songwriting engine, making the music go, I have a deep respect for them.
I am excited to hear that Nashville/Country music has open, well-known gay songwriters who are simply going about their business - part of the changes in the past decade I mention above. So great to see.
But…when the gay Nashville songwriter’s name is Shane McAnally, I can’t help but choke down a stifled giggle. “McAnally” - snort!
I feel like I am about 12 years old, and keep coming up with half-finished jokes about McDonalds updating their Value Menu…
I am a bad person. I suspect Shane goes about his business and this is a non-issue, but when his sexuality is the featured topic - see the article from Entertainment Weekly below - that last name kinda jumps out to me…
I’ve always tripped up over that name. For one thing, I’m never sure exactly how it should be pronounced, so I always stop and run over the options when I see it. My interior joke is that it’s the Scottish clan that invented suppositories.
Of course, McAnally’s gonna need pluggers! And I bet those pluggers need a wide base, so they don’t disappear…
…of course, by that I mean that they represent a specific demographic base, so they are identified as someone who can sell songs to specific groups and not get lost in the various radio formats, right?
