Doug Johnson

Whether it’s behind the pen as the writer of record-breaking hits like the recent Billboard “Song of the Year,” “Love Like Crazy” (Lee Brice) or the CMA and ACM “Song of the Year,” Three Wooden Crosses, (Randy Travis), at the console as the producer of artists like Lee Brice, Hank Jr., Clay Walker and Michael Montgomery, or behind the desk helming an A&R department, Doug Johnson knows his way around a hit.

Throughout his 30-plus year career as a songwriter, Johnson has had over 100 cuts, including 7 Number One Hits and 10 Top 10’s by everyone from Bertie Higgins and Alicia Bridges to George Strait, Rascal Flatts, Trace Adkins, Wynonna and Kenny Rogers, among others. Johnson recently made history when he broke a country music record with new artist Lee Brice with the hit, Love Like Crazy, which spent an amazing 56 weeks on the charts.

His production credits are equally notable as well: as VP/A&R for Epic Records in the early 90’s, he oversaw the careers of Patty Loveless, Collin Raye, Doug Stone, Joe Diffie, Ty Herndon, the Sons of the Desert and many others. He later moved to Giant Records as President, where he guided the careers of Clay Walker, The Wilkinsons, Blake Shelton, Joe Nichols and Neal McCoy among others.

Following his time at Epic Records, Johnson lead the A&R department of Curb Records, whose roster included Tim McGraw, Leann Rimes, Wynonna, Rodney Atkins Lee Brice, Clay Walker and Heidi Newfield, among others.

In 2011, Doug Johnson joined the team at Black River Entertainment as the V.P. of A&R and is currently working on the upcoming albums of Craig Morgan, Glen Templeton, Due West and Sarah Darling.

Over the past three decades Johnson has carved out impressive niches in all aspects of the business as an engineer, mixer, musician, producer and top executive, but it’s his passion for creating a well-crafted song that continues to inspire and motivate him with an energy and enthusiasm that is unparalleled in this business. “By far my greatest love is the song. Everything else is an attempt to powerfully capture and express the song in its truest sense to get it to the listener. I’ve been fortunate to be involved in several different aspects of the music business but if I could only do one, it would definitely be songwriting,” says Johnson, “Every other job I’ve had means absolutely nothing without a great song.”