ASCAP and BMI threw separate parties Wednesday afternoon (May 9) to celebrate the chart success of "Wasted," the song recorded by Carrie Underwood and co-written by ASCAP's Hillary Lindsey and BMI's Troy Verges and Marv Green.

ASCAP and BMI are competing performance rights organizations that monitor, collect and distribute royalties to songwriters and music publishers for the public use of their songs.

Underwood took time from her recording sessions to attend both events. Her second album, as yet untitled, will be out this fall.

The festivities began with a buffet luncheon at ASCAP's Nashville offices. After guests feasted on fried chicken, green beans, mashed potatoes, sliced tomatoes and kindred spring fare, they trooped into the lobby to see Lindsey, Underwood and producer Mark Bright receive their awards. "Wasted" spent three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard charts.

"This is a very talented young lady," Underwood said of Lindsey. Then, in an apparent reference to her upcoming album, she added, "You'll be seeing a lot more from her -- from me."

Lindsey said even her dad had been caught up in the chart progress of the song. "He'd call me up every morning and say, 'Hey, what's up, No. 1?' [or] 'What's up No. 1-for-two-weeks, baby?"

Taking advantage of the perfect weather, BMI staged its celebration later in the afternoon on its majestic sixth-floor veranda overlooking downtown Nashville.

Jody Williams, BMI's vice president of writer-publisher relations, praised Verges and Green for their history of writing hits, noting that Verges had penned Jessica Andrew's "Who I Am" and Martina McBride's "Blessed" and that Green's composer credits included George Strait's "It Just Comes Natural."

Williams credited Underwood -- who has sold more than 5 million copies of her Some Hearts debut album -- with bringing new fans to country music. He said she was the first new country artist featured on MTV in the past five years.

In addition to awarding Underwood the traditional silver cup for recording a No. 1 song, Williams also presented her a fancy carrying case "with lots of bling" on it for her dog, Ace.

Verges' publisher, Pat Higdon, who heads Universal Music Publishing in Nashville, also had words of praise for Underwood. "I read in Billboard about falling [record] sales. But everything you do defies gravity."