Tennessean writer Keith Sharon spent the better part of two years researching the 1989 murder of Nashvillian Kevin Hughes. Sharon's true crime story revisited the mysterious murder and subsequent layers surrounding Hughes' death.
The result was an The Tennessean's eight-part narrative and eight-part Murder on Music Row podcast.
Since the first episode was released on May 21, the podcast has been downloaded tens of thousands of times and was the recent topic of discussion on the popular "Crime Writers On..." podcast in which four true crime writers discuss podcasts with a crime-related storyline.
All four members of the CWO podcast — Rebecca Lavoie, Kevin Flynn, Toby Ball and Lara Bricker — gave Murder on Music Row thumbs-up ratings, citing Sharon's thorough research, well-written script and ability to weave the city of Nashville and the country music scene during the late 1980s into the story as a character.
Lavoie, co-author of five true crime books and director of on-demand audio at New Hampshire Public Radio, said Sharon's podcast has a fantastic sense of place and is incredibly detailed.
"I just really love the podcast. It's just lovely," Lavoie said. "And for a murder podcast, it's historic murder so it feels less in-your-face, bloody, present, and more of a historic story, more of a sweeping story. It's very good. Thumbs up from me for this podcast for sure."
Lavoie's one critique of Sharon's podcast was the sound quality. She suggested a higher quality microphone for Sharon, but otherwise praised his work.
Lavoie's husband, co-author and journalist Kevin Flynn, also gave Murder on Music Row an "enthusiastic thumbs-up," saying he knew five minutes in how strong it was.
"The writing was great," Flynn said on the podcast, which aired July 8. "I was thinking this little side trip into the song 'Murder on Music Row' that I was just going to groan and roll my eyes. That part was really super interesting. I think that's to the strength of Keith Sharon's ability to tell a story. The whole look at the underbelly of promotions in country music — that was very intriguing. You don't have to be a country music fan, but I found like when they dabbled in sort of the history of what was happening in Nashville, I was pulled in."
Sharon said he has been listening to "Crime Writers On..." for years and was honored the team dedicated an episode to "Murder on Music Row."
"In the world of true crime, for me, they set the agenda about what podcasts have to be listened to, and what podcasts to avoid," Sharon said. "They are smart, funny and informative. It was a thrill to hear their comments about 'Murder on Music Row'."
Ball added that The Tennessean's podcast has both humorous parts as well as some disturbing ones.
"What I think sets this apart from a lot of other good podcasts is the writing of the voice-over," Ball said. "The narration is just really, really strong. And the tone of it I think is just perfect for this story and I just loved every second of it. I'm sure it will be way up in my top 10 at the end of the year. So it's a huge thumbs up from me. I hope people will listen."
Gannett Vice President of Local News and Tennessean Executive Editor Michael Anastasi and Tennessean News Director Ben Goad were the executive producers on the Murder on Music Row podcast. Amanda Rossmann was the audio produce and the project editor Tennessean Politics and Investigations editor Duane W. Gang.
Melonee Hurt covers music and music business at The Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY NETWORK — Tennessee. Reach Melonee at mhurt@tennessean.com, on X @HurtMelonee or Instagram at @MelHurtWrites.
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