About Country Minute

Country Minute is James and Laura Shotwell.

We cover country music from the crowd. Not the press box, not a press release, not a rewrite of something a publicist sent out that morning. If we're telling you about a show, it's because we were standing in it. If we're talking about an album or song it's because we enjoy it. We are fans first, and we try to bring that same energy to everything we do because we love country music.

What started four years ago as a side project has become our full-time job. Since April of 2024, this has been how we support our family.

What we make. Artist stories, festival coverage, breaking country news, and the moments from shows that never make it into anyone's official recap. We post daily across all social platforms, reaching about thirteen million accounts a month across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Facebook.

Where we do it from. We're based in the midwest, not Nashville, and that is where we plan to stay, We're close enough to the industry to have the relationships and far enough away to still sound like fans, because we are. We've built our base in West Michigan, but you can us all over the country throughout the year, speaking with fans and artists wherever we find them.

Who we are. James spent twenty years in music marketing and tech while moonlighting as music blogger. His work has appeared in Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, Alternative Press, Substream Magazine, and more. Laura spent nearly two decades as a radio morning host, reaching #1 in multiple markets and gaining fans nationwide. We have a two year old named Justin, two cats, and a senior pitbull named Tulip, all of whom appear in our content from time to time.

Why the newsletter. Four years of this has lived entirely on platforms we don't own. One algorithm change and it's gone. This list is the only part that's actually ours, and it's where the closer version of Country Minute lives: The stories behind the coverage, the things we can't post publicly, and a place for the people who love this music a little too much.

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