MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Hall of Fame songwriter Kostas, whose catalog includes hits recorded by country stars like Dwight Yoakam, Patty Loveless, George Strait, The Mavericks and The Chicks, recently shared his musical journey, creative philosophy and industry experience with students in Middle Tennessee State University’s commercial songwriting program.

Invited by songwriter and professor Odie Blackmon to the Commercial Songwriting Center inside the Miller Education Center, Kostas Lazarides, known professionally as Kostas, encouraged students in two of Blackmon’s classes to embrace their individuality and enjoy the journey that comes with creating music.

Born in Greece, Kostas and his family immigrated to Montana in the 1950s, where he first heard country music at 9 while working as a shoe shiner.

“Odie is where he is because of one thing. His love of music, and you guys are in the same boat as him. You’re here because you love music, and I’m here because I love music. Music is beyond the spoken language,” he said. “Music is what brought us all here together. It’s in you and all of us here.” 

Kostas recalled playing the guitar as a young child and learning how to replicate what he had heard on the radio.

“I’ve learned what I’ve learned by being directed by my passions. My passion in life has always been music,” he said.

‘Living a songwriter’s life’

When describing Kostas, Blackmon said he considers the Hall of Famer a mentor and someone who truly lives a songwriter’s life.  

“Kostas is constantly writing things in his phone. You’ll see him making up little songs about everyday life that he’ll never use. He’s constantly immersing himself in music. It’s a way of life (for him),” Blackmon said.

Kostas said he enjoys speaking to students because he wants them to know they’re not alone.

“I want them to know the importance of who they are,” he said. “One way to touch them is to show them they have a gift and have the ability to pursue it. I can’t give them anything more than that. We’re all here and the music speaks through all of us. I want them to enjoy the journey, be confident and just be themselves. That’s all they can be.”

While Blackmon has a strict no-cell-phone policy in his classroom, he allowed students to pull out their phones for an assignment given by Kostas himself. They had 10 minutes to come up with additional lines to a melody and come back and perform them to the songwriter.

Blackmon also gave Kostas a pass when his cell phone rang during the discussion, playing a song he had written, “What a Crying Shame,” that was recorded by The Mavericks in 1994. Kostas said the ringtone was a tribute to Raul Malo, a founding member of the country group, who passed away last December.

Students sing Kostas, Blackmon’s praise

Students in Blackmon’s class know the class is going to challenge them in ways they’ve never been challenged before, but they also know they’re learning from a professional songwriter who will fill the semester with unique opportunities, guest speakers and more.

“It’s special when our professors show they care and bring in experienced people who tell us how they got there and what they did to get there,” said junior commercial songwriting student Emmi Connor.

Fellow junior commercial songwriting student Maddie Moroschak added, “I think it’s beautiful to have someone who has been in the industry so long to come in and talk to us, and now we get to take these things into the industry ourselves.” 

The chance to hear Kostas speak is one that sophomore student Corbin Taylor won’t be taking for granted.

“It’s special to have someone so successful take time out of their day and come talk with college students when they’re so busy. Kostas being willing to come talk to us was really special, and I’m grateful for the opportunity,” he said.

And while the class is fun, students said they are looking forward to things during the semester that may not be quite as fun.

“I’m going to appreciate Odie’s critiques and his constructive criticism because I want to know how I can apply that in the future. Yes, we’re doing it for a grade, but he’s also giving us so many learning experiences,” said sophomore commercial songwriting student Taylor Wallace.

“Odie is a great person to learn from,” added Taylor.

Opportunities give students confidence

Blackmon, who spearheaded the creation of the Commercial Songwriting Center, said it’s important to him to give his students experiences like meeting Kostas because that’s how he learned the business and the art of songwriting.

“I learned by sitting in a room with people I admired who could teach me,” he recalled. “It’s important for (students) to be part of it with someone who has done it, because that’s different than reading about it in a book.”

He continued, “To give them opportunities to connect with people who have done it gives them confidence and it shows them it can be done. It’s so important to connect students with real-world experiences and not just theory.”

Blackmon said he has learned plenty from Kostas and even uses some of the advice the songwriter gave him years ago with his students.

“He always shared with me how important it was to be who I was as a creator. He always shared with me to be comfortable in my own skin as a creator, and I try to do that with my students because they’re coming up in a world where everybody tells them ‘no,’ or ‘this isn’t something that can be done,’” he said. 

Blackmon brings students, alumni together

Ahead of Kostas’ visit to the songwriting center, Blackmon brought together some current students and alumni for a studio session with the legendary songwriter.

Recording arts and technologies student Viljar Roysi engineered, and commercial songwriting student Caroline Bowling and songwriting alum Mia Perrin sang background vocals for the session with Stevie Woodward, also a former songwriting student and lead singer of the ACM-nominated band Runaway June. Woodward is currently working on her first solo album for Quartz Hill Records.

MTSU’s commercial songwriting program is part of the Department of Recording Industry within the Scott Borchetta College of Media and Entertainment.

— DeAnn Hays ([email protected])