Publishing
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As listeners continue to dissect Drake’s new album For All the Dogs, English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys are calling out the MC for interpolating their 1986 song “West End Girls” on “All the Parties” without proper credit or permission. The lyrics in question come when Drake sings, “And it’s 6, our town a dead end world/ […]
Anthem Entertainment, an independent music company, has announced major changes to its senior leadership in both the publishing and recorded music divisions of the company. Jason Klein and Sal Fazzari are now both permanently instated as the company’s CEO and CFO, respectively, after serving in those roles as interims since early 2023. Previous to becoming […]
On July 19, Songtrust sent an email — part update, part apology — to the 350,000 songwriters who use the publishing administration company to collect their songwriting royalties. Songtrust’s message pointed to friction in this process: “slower registration timelines” for songs, which in turn would slow the flow of income, plus a “slower response rate” for writers who believed they were missing money or had other questions.
The slow-down had a few causes, wrote Downtown Music Publishing president Emily Stephenson, including “new leadership,” a new “organizational structure,” and the implementation of Know Your Customer-style registration and payment processes to combat “increased fraud in the music industry.” (Downtown Music Holdings owns Songtrust.) “We recognize that these changes have caused frustration,” she added.
Four former Songtrust employees believe these delays have their roots in plans the company put into motion before this year. The ex-employees describe Songtrust as a “pioneering” organization that did something no company managed to do before: Offer professional-level publishing administration services to small, independent songwriters. “Before Songtrust,” Stephenson tells Billboard, “there was really no way for them to collect mechanical royalties.”
The global publishing system was developed over decades to serve the needs of several thousand writers, not several hundred thousand. “The problem with music publishing,” according to one former employee, “is that scaling is nearly impossible because it’s kind of like an archaic, dark art.”
So as music creation exploded and Songtrust was “trying to sign so many people” starting at the end of 2019 and into 2020, a second former employee explains, “the technology couldn’t keep up with the volume.”
At times, former employees say, that volume — of both new songwriters and new compositions — simply grew faster than the company could handle. (Songtrust is almost certainly not the only organization that has had trouble keeping up with the surge in music creation.) “Making the promise to help the little guys and then not following through on the best technology and best employees and resources — that’s where they f—ed up,” adds a third former employee. “That’s just not a feasible business model.” (Half a dozen former employees spoke in total, all on the condition of anonymity for fear of alienating former colleagues.)
Downtown Music executives disagree. “As the music industry grew, Songtrust grew, and we’re evolving to better serve independent songwriters,” Stephenson says. In a post-interview email, Songtrust executives added that despite “temporary delays in responding to writer inquiries,” the company “has continued to process and pay out royalties accurately and on time to all clients who have submitted accurate tax and payment information.” Multiple songwriters who spoke to Billboard about payment difficulties would take issue with that statement.
“All Songwriters Deserve Publishing Administration”
Traditional music publishing companies focus on just a slice of the world’s songwriters — the top earners. One publishing administration executive says it’s not even worth it for his organization to work with “the bottom 80%” of clients because the cost of doing so would exceed the revenue collected.
Songtrust launched in 2011 with the belief, as Stephenson puts it, “that all songwriters deserve a publishing administration solution.” The company has paid out more than $130 million in royalties so far, according to Downtown Music Holdings president Pieter van Rijn, and 2023 payouts are on pace for “another record year.”
To collect publishing royalties, most songwriters either sign with a publisher or a publishing administrator. Otherwise, it’s possible to register songs with both a performance rights organization (PRO) and a mechanical rights organization, but Songtrust facilitates what would otherwise be a complex, time-consuming process for a one-time fee of $100 per writer, plus 15% of the royalties it collects.
In many cases, that may not amount to much; although some independent songwriters earn enough publishing income to live on, many earn next to nothing. And while there may be less money in this part of the market, the administrative work can be just as complicated, if not moreso. “It is a laborious task to onboard and disseminate music publishing information, particularly with DIY artists who are disadvantaged because they don’t have the knowledge base to understand the questions you’re even asking,” says Jeff Price, founder of another publishing administration company, Word Collections.
So it’s not surprising that former Songtrust employees say writers often make mistakes when registering their songs — claiming 100% ownership of a co-write, for example. Also, since it was relatively easy to sign up for Songtrust’s services, “if someone wants to register fraudulent things, they have the tools,” explains one former employee.
Fraud is a concern across the publishing sector. “If you do not register your songs with a PRO, someone else will within a few months, almost guaranteed,” according to one label founder who also oversees a publishing operation for the acts he signs. “Artists don’t know what publishing is to begin with, and there’s a lot of confusion and disinformation, [creating] a perfect recipe for fraud. This problem is only getting worse, especially for international artists finding success for the first time in the global marketplace.”
In the case of Songtrust, a former employee says that fraud on the platform — such as users registering songs they didn’t write — “creates distrust” with some of the societies charged with collecting royalties around the world. “That was happening to a big extent,” the former employee continues.
There were also times, former Songtrusters say, that the societies simply didn’t have the technology to keep up with the number of songwriters it was representing — and that some of the societies focused their resources on the big writers and publishers who generate more revenue. “At scale, issues of bandwidth and efficiency are always a challenge when you have software-based rights administration,” a veteran rights administration executive says.
Songtrust is in “daily communication with our partners at the collecting societies,” Stephenson says. “We maintain a very positive relationship with them and we’re constantly looking with them to improve the way we can support songwriters.”
In a post-interview email, Songtrust executives added that “the fact that [publishing administration] is a complex business does not change our belief that it is a worthwhile, meaningful service” for the long tail of songwriters.
“There Are Always Issues”
At the end of 2019 and the start of 2020, former employees say Songtrust amped up its efforts to sign more songwriters, which taxed the company’s internal systems. (Around the same time, Downtown Music also went on a buying spree, acquiring the distributor CD Baby in March 2019 and the tech and services company Fuga in January 2020.)
One former employee says that the company “really put their money into marketing.” The mindset, according to this person, was “let’s make us as shiny and inviting as possible on the front end, but we’re not going to fix any of the backend technology.”
In another former employee’s view, Songtrust was “not prioritizing actually doing the job that we’re supposed to be doing” — registering and paying songwriters. A third former employee says simply, “if you invite too many people to your house, it’s gonna fall apart.”
Stephenson rejects the idea that the company was too focused on growth. Downtown Music executives also pushed back on former employees’ accounts of technical troubles. “Technology was not the issue” for Songtrust, van Rijn contends. “Based on the input of societies, we did improve our KYC [know your customer] and registration and data processes,” he notes. “Part of that is technical. Part of that is operations.” Van Rijn also points out that the $130 million Songtrust has paid out to date is money that “otherwise may not have found its way to the songwriter community.”
The fact that small, independent songwriters have the means to collect royalties is fairly new; the publishing business wasn’t built for a world in which anyone can write a song on an app, upload it right away, and immediately start earning money around the world. Some amount of friction is inevitable when so many songwriters need to be integrated into the intricate, infamously opaque global music publishing system.
“When you have outcomes that you don’t like as a customer, or even as a partner, it’s easy to talk about incompetence,” says the veteran rights administration executive. “The reality is that these are the outcomes based on the way rights administration happens in the world.”
Some of the challenges faced by Songtrust are “endemic” in publishing, says Price, the Word Collections founder. The administration executive agrees: “Whether you’re a big company or a small one, there are always issues. It’s just that you’re going to get way more issues the bigger you are.”
Warner Chappell Music recently wrapped a Las Vegas-based songwriting camp, featuring 300 songwriters, artists and producers from around the world. The annual event was held in partnership with YouTube Music, Warner Records, Atlantic Records, and RCA Records, along with other label sponsors and included artists like Chlöe, Bebe Rexha, Yng Lvcus, P2J, The Proof, Lydia Night, Murda Beatz, Tay Keith, Amy Allen, Ian Kirkpatrick, Nova Wav, Benson Boone, and Leigh-Anne Pinnock.
Primary Wave Music has acquired the publishing and writer’s share of P.F. Sloan‘s catalog, as well as the late-singer’s master royalty income. Sloan wrote, performed, and produced for artists across all genres of music — from Barry McGuire to Herman’s Hermits to the Mamas and the Papas. Hits like “Eve of Destruction,” “A Must To Avoid,” “Secret Agent Man,” and “You Baby” were included in the deal.
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Primary Wave Music has acquired a stake in the works of singer-songwriter Eddie Rabbitt. With a dozen #1 country hits, including “I Love A Rainy Night” and “Drivin’ My Life Away” Primary Wave’s vp of business & legal affairs, Lexi Todd, says the Grammy-nominated talent “left a lasting impression in the country music community and beyond.”
Multimedia Music has acquired STX‘s music library. Called Millennium Media, the collection includes titles like The Hitman’s Bodyguard,” “London Has Fallen,” “Angel Has Fallen,” “Hitman Wife’s Bodyguard,” “Hellboy,” “The Outpost,” “Mechanic: Resurrection,” “Rambo: Last Blood,” “Blackbird,” and “The Expendables 4,” and more.
Position Music has signed BRIT-nominated producer and songwriter Joe Kearns to a worldwide publishing deal. A consistent collaborator of Ellie Goulding and cuts with Lukas Graham, Henry Moodie, Zara Larsson, IVE, Seeb, and MONSTA X, Kearns says he’s “very excited to get to work and make lots of records” with Position.
MusicBird has acquired the catalog of Greek-Swedish songwriter and producer Alexander “Alex P” Papaconstantinou. Included in the deal are Alex’s writer and publisher’s share of songs like “I Like How It Feels” by Enrique Iglesias, “C’est La Vie” by Khaled, “Live It Up” by Jennifer Lopez, “Boys Will Be Boys” by Paulina Rubio, and “Whip It” by Nicki Minaj.
Joie Manda’s Platinum Grammy Publishing has forged a new partnership with Photo Finish Publishing. Though Photo Finish, which is best known as a record label, has had previous publishing ventures with Warner Chappell and UMPG that were coterminous with their respective label deals, Atlantic and UMG, together with Manda Photo Finish Publishing is launching anew. Under the deal, Photo Finish with sign songwriters and producers and are “thrilled to be working with artists, writers, producers from a different perspective, other than the label.”
Warner Chappell Music, The Core Entertainment and Bailey Zimmerman have signed Dipper to a global publishing deal. A rising country singer-songwriter, Zimmerman calls Dipper a “raw talent” that he is “psyched” to work with.
Concord Music Publishing has signed country artist Clayton Mullen to an exclusive worldwide publishing agreement, including his full catalog and future works.
In 1961, when career counselors arrived at 14-year-old Carole Broughton‘s U.K. school, she aspired to work in the fashion business. But the counselors dissuaded her from that path — and, after Broughton said her uncle worked in book publishing, steered her to song publishing instead. Afterward, her mother accompanied her to a job interview at Mills Music in London, which became her entry into a six-decade career in the music business, during which she worked with acts including ABBA, The Zombies, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Barry Manilow and British crooners Adam Faith and Anthony Newley.
“Growing up in the ’50s and ’60s, parents would [say to their daughters], ‘What do you want a career for? You’re only going to get married and have kids.’ You’d go on a short typing course and become a secretary,” Broughton says. “I just liked to get my teeth stuck into something and see it through.”
In her quiet, methodical way, Broughton was a pioneering female executive in the music business, solving technical problems like logging songwriting data into early computer systems. She started at a time when men ran just about everything, but over the years grew into a formidable executive. By the ’70s, she began to encounter more women at conferences like MIDEM in Cannes, France, but women who ran companies were rare. “I do remember one incident where somebody said they’d like to speak to a director of the company, and I said, ‘I am the director,’ and they said, ‘Well, I don’t like to speak to a female,’” she recalls. “That actually happened once!”
“Obviously, there were a few issues,” she adds.
Today, Broughton, 77, is MD of Bocu, a British independent label and publishing group that has had stakes in early Genesis masters and ABBA’s catalog, among many others. She recently sold The Zombies their master recording catalog, including classic hits such as “She’s Not There” and “Time of the Season,” after managing it for 59 years. “I wouldn’t say [the business] has changed for the better, but it’s obviously more lucrative,” she says.
Broughton was 15 when she began shopping sheet music for hits like Nat King Cole‘s “A Blossom Fell” to local bandleaders. At the time, she found herself at the center of Swinging London and the British Invasion. “Elton John was the tea boy,” Broughton says of her time on Denmark Street, the capital of Music Row, a pub-filled neighborhood where The Rolling Stones, The Kinks and Small Faces made early recordings. “David Bowie used to travel in on the same train. He’d have his ballet shoes in his bag.”
Broughton’s early days in the music business were “a magical time,” she says, when the denizens of Denmark Street piled into pubs and cafes and made lifelong contacts. Back then, she befriended Robert Wise, who printed her companies’ sheet music and in 2020 bought The Zombies’ publishing catalog from Broughton’s Marquis Enterprises.
“Just fun days, really,” Broughton recalls of ’60s London. “You’d have a meal out in the evening, and you’d get home, and my parents would have another meal sitting in the oven.”
In her spare time, Broughton, an Elvis Presley fan, traveled the United Kingdom with her then-husband, who served as bassist in a group called The Four that was opening for British rock star Billy Fury. (The Four supported The Rolling Stones, too, but Broughton and her husband didn’t interact with Mick and company.) “If you traveled in a van — say you had a husband or a boyfriend in a band — you always had to keep the curtain shut. They didn’t want the fans to know you had wives or girlfriends,” she recalls. “Billy Fury wanted to have screaming fans — we’d have to run up to the stage and try to grab hold of the artists. Then the bouncers would come and throw you off the stage. A lot of that was planned.”
At work, Broughton learned the nuances of copyright and realized “publishing had more longevity.” Contemporary hits might come and go, but memorable songs made money forever, covered by bandleaders, recorded by other artists, licensed to movies and TV shows and more. When she was 17, a friend at Essex Music, a publishing company down the street, called Broughton to say she was leaving to get married and recommended her for the job. Soon, another employee who worked for publisher Joe Roncoroni and producer Ken Jones left their company, Marquis Enterprises, which evolved from commercial jingles to production.
As the company’s signees, from The Zombies to Jonathan King — who had a hit with 1965’s “Everyone’s Gone to the Moon” — became successful, Marquis expanded, working with stars from Hedgehoppers Anonymous to Genesis. Broughton took on more responsibilities as the company grew into an umbrella organization encompassing as many as seven publishing and production entities — and when Roncoroni and Jones died, she took more control. “When Joe died, we bought the shares from various people — Joe’s widow, and the boys [The Zombies] were happy to sell their shares at the time. They probably were short a few bob.”
Banding with another veteran publisher, John Spalding, Broughton became co-director of the company, renamed Bocu Music. (Spalding had looked after the publishing for the Fantasy and Prestige labels for years, including the Creedence Clearwater Revival catalog as well as those of jazz giants such as Thelonious Monk and Miles Davis.) Bocu published the B-side of ABBA’s first single, 1974 Eurovision winner “Waterloo,” and, within a few years, Broughton and Spalding became the Swedish supergroup’s co-agent and sub-publisher, developing a close relationship with the band (until Universal Music Group took over the rights in 2016).
“It started getting really busy,” Broughton says.
Broughton toured with ABBA in 1977, “helping backstage with the ironing of the outfits,” she recalls. Over time, she used the contacts she made with ABBA to help her old friends from the ’60s, The Zombies. Soon, she was working in the early synch business, pitching songs to studios and advertisers by sending out tapes. The Zombies were often beneficiaries, landing “Time of the Season” in the 1990 film Awakenings and “She’s Not There” in a Chanel spot in 2015.
When Spalding died in 2011, Broughton took over Bocu. Now that The Zombies own their masters, she looks after 700 remaining copyrights, including Kid Creole and the Coconuts‘ “There But for the Grace of God Go I,” Johnny Logan’s 1980 Eurovision winner “What’s Another Year” and, as ever, King’s “Everyone’s Gone to the Moon.”
Broughton’s career-long focus on publishing, as opposed to working at record labels, served her well in the early 2000s when mp3s, Napster and online piracy threatened to destroy the album sales business. Licensing copyrights for films, TV shows and advertisements kept Bocu afloat. “We still had great copyrights and masters that were in demand,” she says. When YouTube and Spotify kicked in, she noticed that new fans were discovering her clients’ music — particularly The Zombies — more than they ever had.
There were issues with streaming licenses and how to pay artists and songwriters at first, but eventually performance rights organizations such as the United Kingdom’s PRS for Music sorted out the details. Although Broughton’s company has expanded beyond the music business in recent years — it owns a fish restaurant in Essex and a portfolio of rental properties run by her 33-year-old son — she remains active in Bocu. “I should probably have long since retired,” she says. “But this business gets in your blood, doesn’t it?”
The best advice I’ve received is… When I was first starting out, a secretary I took over from always used to say, “Listen and learn, even if it’s behind closed doors.” If your boss was in a meeting, always have an ear out, so you’d be one step ahead. If someone wanted a file on something, you were already there. She retired and I stepped in as secretary and I was still only about 17. I had staff under me. I just was always determined to make the best of a situation. I’d be there with the tea or the coffee, or the file.
My big break was… Just coming into this industry.
Something most people don’t understand is… The complexities of how copyright works. When you start explaining how money is collected, people outside the industry are always quite astounded by how complex it all can be.
Dealing with musicians is… My two main ones have been ABBA and The Zombies, and you couldn’t have worked with nicer people. I know there used to be a saying in the industry — “All artists are ‘dot-dot-dot,’” and not a very nice word — but I only had good experiences. You take them under your wing. I always called The Zombies “my boys.”
Steve Mac, Pablo Bowman Navarro and Aynzli Jones are the top winners at the ASCAP London Music Awards 2023, which shine a light on British songwriting and composing talent for their U.S. success. This year, the winners will be revealed on @ascap social media Tuesday (Sept. 26), starting at 10:30 a.m. ET.
Navarro takes home three awards including songwriter of the year and top Hot Dance/Electronic song. He shares the latter award with Sarah Baby Blanchard, Claudia Valentina and Lostboy for co-writing “The Motto” by Tiësto and Ava Max. The song reached No. 2 on Billboard’s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart.
Navarro also wins a Hot Dance/Electronic song award for “Numb” by Marshmello and Khalid, which reached No. 3 on the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart. Navarrro co-wrote the song with Richard Boardman, a fellow member of songwriting collective The Six. Navarro has gained a profile as a top hitmaker over the last few years with a catalogue that includes Anne-Marie and Marshmello’s global hit “Friends” as well as tracks for stars such as Bebe Rexha, Jonas Brothers and Alan Walker. His catalogue has accumulated 7 billion streams on Spotify.
Mac takes home both song of the year and top streaming song for Ed Sheeran’s smash, “Shivers.” The song reached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and remained on the chart for a full year. It also topped charts around the world, surpassing 1.35 billion streams on Spotify. Mac and Sheeran previously collaborated on 2017’s “Shape of You.” These two gongs represent Mac’s 19th and 20th ASCAP London Music Awards.
Jones wins his first ASCAP London Music Award with the Hot 100 song award for Doja Cat’s “Woman.” The song from Doja’s third studio album rose to No. 7 on the Hot 100 and, like “Shivers,” logged a full year on the chart. “Woman” also received a Grammy nod for record of the year, marking the third consecutive year Doja was nominated in that marquee category.
Top box office film of the year goes to Daniel Pemberton for his soundtrack for The Bad Guys. He also takes a top box office film award for his work on Amsterdam. Other top box office film awards go to John Lunn for Downton Abbey: A New Era, Dickon Hinchliffe for Father Stu, and Robin Carolan and Sebastian Gainsborough for The Northman. Joby Talbot wins for the second year in a row for Sing 2, Patrick Doyle wins for Death on the Nile and Jonny Greenwood wins for Licorice Pizza. The Radiohead multi-instrumentalist and composer was recognized in the same category last year for his soundtrack to Spencer.
In the world of film and TV streaming, Natalie Holt wins two awards — top streaming film for The Princess, and top streaming series for Obi-Wan Kenobi. Other top streaming series awards go to Scottish band Mogwai for the crime drama Black Bird and Anne Nikitin for The Dropout.
The trio of Barrie Cadogan, Virgil Howe and Lewis Wharton are awarded the top cable series award for the soundtrack to Better Call Saul, while Julian Gingell and Barry Stone win top network series again this year for their work on American Idol.
Atlanta-based hitmaker GENT! has signed a worldwide co-publishing deal with Brandon Silverstein Publishing and Avex USA, the companies jointly tell Billboard. “I’m grateful…and look forward to what we’re going to build together,” said GENT! in a statement about the signing. The in-demand producer is fresh off a major release, having co-produced two singles (“Agora Hills” […]
On Wednesday (Sept. 21), members of ASCAP turned out for the organization’s 12th annual We Write the Songs concert at the Coolidge Auditorium in Washington, D.C.As in previous years, the concert was held to celebrate gifts from The ASCAP Foundation to the Library of Congress “of the original manuscripts, lead sheets, lyrics sheets, photos and letters of some of America’s greatest creators of words and music,” according to a press release.
Co-hosted by The Library of Congress, Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden and The ASCAP Foundation president Paul Williams, the night featured performances by songwriters and producers performing songs they wrote or co-wrote. They included Jermaine Dupri, performing “Confessions/Confessions Part II” (Usher) and “We Belong Together” (Mariah Carey); Madison Love, performing “Kings & Queens” (Ava Max) and “Turbulence” (P!nk)”; Pasek & Paul, performing “Waving Through a Window” (from Dear Evan Hansen) and “This is Me” (The Greatest Showman); Matthew West, performing “My Jesus” (Anne Wilson) and “Truth Be Told”; and closing act Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, performing “Human” (The Human League) and “Miss You Much” (Janet Jackson).
The night’s performers were introduced by members of Congress from both sides of the aisle, including Rep. Mark Green (R-TN), who introduced West; Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA), who introduced Dupri; Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), who introduced Pasek & Paul; and Congressional Songwriters Caucus co-chairs Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA), who introduced Love, and Rep. Ben Cline (R-VA), who introduced Jam and Lewis.
“To us music creators, the Library is the Fort Knox of our copyrights — thank you for being our allies in protecting creators’ rights,” said Williams, also ASCAP’s president/chairman as well as a songwriter, at the event. “We have ASCAP members from all 50 states, in each and every district of our great nation. Some of our songwriters and composers may not be household names, but their songs are instantly recognizable and beloved by millions, all thanks to the hard work they put in behind the scenes to soundtrack our lives.”
The concert was held ahead of ASCAP’s annual Stand With Songwriters advocacy day in D.C. on Thursday, during which songwriters and composers were slated to meet with members of Congress. This year, a particular focus was on the growing influence of artificial intelligence (AI), with ASCAP members on hand to urge lawmakers to adhere to the six key principles for AI adopted by the ASCAP board of directors earlier this year.
In addition to songwriters and producers who performed at the We Write the Songs concert, those slated to participate in the advocacy day included songwriter-producer Cirkut along with ASCAP songwriter, composer and publisher board members Bob Bruderman, Desmond Child, Marti Cuevas, Sharon Farber, Dan Foliart, Ree Guyer, James M. Kendrick, Evan Lamberg, Michelle Lewis, Alex Shapiro, Jonathan Singer and Jimmy Webb.
ASCAP additionally invited its songwriter, composer and music publisher members from all 50 states to join in the lobbying effort via social media all week long.
Check out photos from the We Write the Songs event below.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Elizabeth Matthews, ASCAP CEO (center), with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis at ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Nicole George-Middleton, ASCAP SVP of Membership and Executive Director of The ASCAP Foundation (center); with Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul at ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Rep. Judy Chu, Jimmy Jam and Elizabeth Matthews, ASCAP CEO, attend ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Jimmy Jam, Sen. Bill Hagerty, Paul Williams, ASCAP President and Matthew West attend ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Paul Williams, ASCAP President and Chairman of the Board speaks at ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Benj Pasek and Justin Paul perform at ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Matthew West performs at ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Madison Love performs at ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Carla Hayden, 14th Librarian of Congress, speaks onstage at ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Rep. Hank Johnson speaks onstage at ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Jermaine Dupri performs at ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Image Credit: Mariah Miranda/ASCAP
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis perform at ASCAP Foundations “We Write the Songs” Event in Washington, D.C. on September 20, 2023.
Jack Harlow was named songwriter of the year at the 2023 SESAC Music Awards, which were held at the Highlight Room in Hollywood on Tuesday (Sept. 19). This is the third year in a row Harlow has taken that title. “First Class,” which was his first unaccompanied No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, took song of the year.
The event was attended by top executives, artists, songwriters and publishers including Bryan-Michael Cox, Dixson, Papiyerr, Dontae Winslow and Kenyon Dixon, among others.
Sony Music Publishing was named publisher of the year for the second year in a row, taking home a total of 12 awards for songs including “First Class,” “We Go Up” recorded by Nicki Minaj and Fivio Foreign, “Count Me Out” recorded by Kendrick Lamar and “Mercury” recorded by Steve Lacy.
Micah Otano won the SESAC Resurgence Award for “Lost,” which was recorded by Frank Ocean. The song was published by Music 4 Mataya and Tunes of Reach.
“We are honored to celebrate our songwriters and publishers across multiple genres,” Sam Kling, chief creative officer, SESAC Performing Rights, said in a statement. “SESAC is proud of its affiliates who continue to write chart-topping hits and we enjoy every opportunity we get to celebrate their achievements.”
Additional award-winning writers include Daniel Lopatin, who took home four awards for his work with The Weeknd; Dez Wright, for his work with Young Thug and Drake; and Jimmy Napes for songs he wrote with Sam Smith.
Artist and SESAC songwriter Tamara Jade, who appeared on Season 19 of NBC’s The Voice, served as the MC for the evening. This marked the second year the awards were held in Los Angeles.
For event highlights, visit @SESAC on Instagram. A full list of winners is available at www.sesac.com.
The significance of Washington washed over me as my flight dodged the historic monuments and we descended into DCA. An interesting metaphor for the opportunities and challenges of advocating for music creators’ rights in today’s lightning round race into the future.
I have visited many times over the years to fight for the rights of songwriters on Capitol Hill. This week, songwriter members of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) will once again be with me in Washington for “We Write the Songs,” a performance held at the Library of Congress and co-presented by The ASCAP Foundation. Hit songwriters will play for Members of Congress and others and share the stories behind their beloved songs. As songwriters, we are also here to affirm our rights as artificial intelligence (AI) and other technologies seek to use our creations.
ASCAP is a unique entity in the music world — we are the only performance-rights organization (PRO) founded and governed by democratically elected music creators and publishers. As a membership organization, we represent nearly a million songwriters, composers, lyricists and music publishers across every genre. We are also the only U.S. PRO that operates on a not-for-profit basis so, unlike others whose profits may go elsewhere to corporate dividends and private equity investors, we put creators first in everything we do.
As the chairman of ASCAP’s board, I have seen our industry go through immense changes. When music moved from records to tapes to CDs to pirated online listening, our members descended upon Washington to ensure the rights of songwriters were respected across new platforms and listening experiences.
Emerging technologies – whether it be streaming or AI – have always presented our industry both challenges and opportunities. But in every instance, we as songwriters are often the first to feel the effects when technology outpaces the law.
During Songwriter Advocacy Day, held the day after We Write the Songs, ASCAP members – the songwriters, composers and publishers that form the soundtrack to our lives – will meet with Members of Congress and urge them to protect creators in the age of AI.
At ASCAP, we have developed six guiding principles for AI and we need Congress to act to uphold them:
Human Creators First, prioritizing rights and compensation for human creativity
Transparency, in identifying AI vs. human-generated works and retaining metadata
Consent, protecting the right for creators to decide whether their work is included in an AI training license
Compensation, making sure creators are paid fairly when their work is used in ANY way by AI, which is best accomplished in a free market, NOT with government-mandated licensing that essentially eliminates consent
Credit, when creators’ works are used in new AI-generated music
Global Consistency, an even playing field that values intellectual property across the global music and data ecosystem
While most songwriters work behind the scenes, our work has enormous value to an industry that generates $170 billion a year for the U.S. economy. But we have long been over-regulated — we are some of the most heavily controlled small business owners in the country. Roughly three-quarters of the average American songwriter’s income is subject to federal government regulations. All the while, big media and tech companies are consistently looking for ways to pay songwriters less by regulating us even more.
ASCAP has embraced new and emerging advances in technology, and we have the capacity and infrastructure to manage it at scale. But it has remained painfully clear that any new technology needs to respect existing copyright law. Music creators are concerned about the threat to their livelihood and 8 out of 10 believe A.I. companies need better regulation. Our mission at ASCAP is to help music creators navigate the future while protecting their rights and livelihoods, and enabling the type of innovation that will move the entire music industry forward.
Just because AI requires a high volume of inputs, that does not mean it cannot be licensed or deserves an exception under the law. Just as we’ve approached the streaming market, we believe the opportunities presented by AI can be realized in the free market. To do so, we need lawmakers to stand with songwriters and not give big tech and AI companies a free ride with government-mandated licenses for AI.
AI is a new challenge, but we are well positioned to meet this challenge as we always have in the face of new technologies. We are ready to help chart the path, and we look forward to sharing those insights — and breaking it down on the dance floor — with the same lawmakers whose partnership and enthusiasm has helped us to fight for the rights of songwriters as new technologies emerge.
ASCAP president and chairman of the board Paul Williams is an Oscar-, Grammy- and Golden Globe-winning composer and lyricist who has written “The Rainbow Connection,” “We’ve Only Just Begun,” and many other hits.