In the Round

"Nashville Hit Songwriters in the Round"

Don't miss this rare opportunity to get up close and personal with three of Nashville's top songwriters, playing their hits and "misses" while sharing the fun and often surprising stories behind them. 

This one hour show features three top songwriters from the past 20 years: Billy Yates  Karen Staley and Michael Peterson.

Michael Peterson burst onto the country music scene in 1997 with unforgettable songs like the iconic “Drink, Swear, Steal & Lie” and “From Here To Eternity” becoming Billboard magazine’s the top-selling new male artist and top new airplay artist two years in a row.

Michael’s songs have reached #1 fifteen times on music charts around the world. A CMA and Academy Of Country Music finalist for Best New Artist, Michael’s “Drink, Swear, Steal & Lie” was recently recognized as one of the top 100 Essential Hits of the 90’s while Michael’s timeless “From Here To Eternity” ranks as the fourth most popular country music wedding song of all time.

Michael is a proven hit songwriter with unique distinction of having his songs recorded by Hall of Famers and Grammy nominees in Country, Gospel, Pop, Rock, R&B, Latin and Vocal Jazz. Michael’s compositions have been brought to life by Grammy winning superstars like Travis Tritt, Timothy B Schmidt of the Eagles, The Michael Thompson Band, The Classic Imperials, Ty Herndon, John Berry, Deniece Williams and Bacilos.

With 24 studio and live albums to his credit and concert tours in 22 countries he shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Michael and his wife Army Women’s Hall Of Fame inductee COL Jill  W Chambers, U.S. Army (Retired) currently own a home in Las Vegas but they live all over the world. When they are not on tour in the Europe, Brazil or the U.S. they are spending time at the nearest beach or Las Vegas pool relaxing and preparing for the next adventure.

Karen Stayley songs have been played over 13 million times and have collectively sold more than 20 million albums singles and downloads. She's had number one hits by Faith Hill, Tracy Byrd, Trick Pony and Terry Clark as well as cuts by icons Reba, Dolly, George Jones, Tammy Wynette, Conway Twitty and Brenda Lee to name a few.

As a performer and artist Karen has had major label albums such as the critically acclaimed Wildest Dreams for MCA and Fearless for Warner Brothers as well as several indie albums both in country and gospel genres that can be found at yard sales across the globe.

She is a mainstay at the world-famous Bluebird Cafe popularized by the hit TV show Nashville and along with several peers was instrumental in creating the “In the Round” circle format.

As a guitarist and background singer Karen has toured with Faith Hill,  Reba,  Patty Loveless, Terri Clark and Russ Taft as well as doing studio work as a singer and indie producer.

Her songs have been nominated for Grammy, CMA, Dove and International Bluegrass Awards and Karen won the ACM Song of the Year with Tracy Byrd's now classic Keeper of the Stars which was also featured on CMT’s 100 greatest country love songs of all time TV special.

In 2021 Karen did a 38-state patriotic tour where she performed her songs Arise USA, Faith & Family & Freedom & God Save the Cowboy Everywhere nightly. Karen's newest accolade was having her solo written “love song to TN”, I'll leave my Heart in Tennessee unanimously voted by the Tennessee House and Senate as the newest official Tennessee State song in 2022.

Billy Yates is a Nashville based, Grammy-nominated, singer/songwriter whose songs have been recorded by artists such as George Strait, Kenny Chesney, Chris Young, Sara Evans, Gary Allan, Joe Nichols, John Michael Montgomery, Daryle Singletary, The Oak Ridge Boys, Mark Chesnutt, Gene Watson, Sammy Kershaw, Doug Stone, Rhonda Vincent, Willie Nelson, Leonard Cohen, and more. Yates also co-wrote the George Jones classics, “I Don’t Need Your Rockin’ Chair” and the Grammy-award winning, “Choices”.

A seasoned entertainer, Billy Yates also tours Europe extensively where he was recently named the European CMA Male Vocalist of the Year. With 13 number 1 singles on the European charts. Here at home, Yates has been featured on the world-famous Grand Ole Opry 50 times and has also appeared on TV shows such as Larry’s Country Diner and Country’s Family Reunion. In addition, Billy holds the distinct honor of being one of the first American artists to perform in China's former Capitol city, Xian. He is also the first American artist to be featured on the popular Irish TV documentary, Opry an luir and is the first American artist to record in the traditional Irish Gaelic language.

As a record producer, Yates has produced a number of major European and Australian artists, plus a few US artists including country music legend, Charley Pride's last record, "Music in My Heart".

Yates was recently honored by his home state of Missouri as they named a stretch of federal highway that runs through his hometown the "Billy Yates Highway".