Music Industry Moves: SZA and Babyface to Receive Big Honors at BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards; Sony M

 Posted on July 7, 2024  |  11 minutes  |  2150 words  |  Martina Birk

BMI announced today that two Grammy-winning R&B superstars, singer-songwriter SZA and legendary singer-songwriter-producer Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, will receive major honors at the performing rights organization’s R&B/Hip-Hop Awards on Sept. 5.

SZA will receive the BMI Champion Award “in honor of her dedication and efforts in fostering the next generation of music creators,” according to the announcement, and Babyface will be honored with the Icon Award.

“We’re excited to honor the legendary Babyface with the BMI Icon Award in celebration of his incredible talent and gift of prolific songwriting which has influenced decades of hits amongst all genres,” said BMI VP of creative, Atlanta, Catherine Brewton Brewton. “We’ll also recognize the exceptional industry-shifting career of SZA, who challenges conventions and has a unique vibe that continues to transform and inspire a new feel of R&B that we have grown to love. It will be a phenomenal night of music celebrating BMI’s award-winning songwriters, producers, and music publishers that we’re so fortunate to represent.”

Related Stories

Icons representing film, music, books and news being connected by AI nodes and lines VIP+

Generative AI & Licensing: A Special Report

Colin Farrell in "The Penguin"

Colin Farrell Wore a Penis Prosthetic for 'The Penguin' Premiere's Torture Scene: 'They Were Kind Enough to Make Oz Anatomically Correct'

The invite-only event will return to Los Angeles for the first time in nearly ten years to be held at Fairmont Century Plaza. BMI will also salute the songwriters, producers and music publishers of the past year’s 35 most-performed R&B/Hip-Hop songs from BMI’s repertoire of more than 22.4 million musical works.

Popular on Variety

+ Sony Music Group has announced the return of its “Your Voice, Your Power, Your Vote” campaign in the U.S. to help educate artists, songwriters, music industry professionals, and communities across America about voter registration and turnout before the 2024 election on November 5. Initially launched in 2020, the non-partisan voter campaign encouraged civic participation and engagement around the 2020 U.S. election.

In partnership with APIAVote, Black Futures Lab, National Black Justice Collective, Rock the Vote, Vote.Org, Voto Latino, and When We All Vote, the Your Voice, Your Power, Your Vote campaign aims to mobilize and inform communities around registration and the voting process and offer educational resources to ensure that voters are ready to participate in the 2024 elections.

“2024 is another important election year in the U.S., and we know that people can make their voices heard through voting,” said Towalame Austin, Executive Vice President for Global Philanthropy and Social Impact, Sony Music Group. “We helped bring more voters out to the polls in 2020 with our partner organizations and we’re hoping to contribute to an even higher turnout this year. SMG is proud to once again use our platform to support civic participation.”

+ Independent publishing company Prescription Songs has promoted Siara Behar and Eddie Fourcell each to VP of A&R . In their new elevated positions Behar and Fourcell will continue to oversee their rosters of chart-topping and award-winning artists, songwriters and producers, while discovering and developing new talents as well.

Prescription Songs founder Lukasz “Dr. Luke” Gottwald had this to share, “Siara and Eddie go above and beyond for our writers and creatives at Prescription Songs. We are so grateful and proud to announce their well-deserved promotions and continued leadership roles.”

In her seven years at Prescription, Behar has signed Grammy-winning producer-songwriters Play-N-Skillz as well as the artists Dalex and Gente De Zona. Fourcell joined the company in 2021 and his roster includes singer Fridayy, songwriter Lunchmoney Lewis, a co-writer on the Grammy-winning song “All My Life” by Lil Durk & J Cole, alongside fellow Prescription writers Dr. Luke, Ryan Ogren and Rocco Valdes; as well as B Ham (Nicki Minaj’s “Nicki Hendrix” feat. Future), Kaine (Latto’s “Put it On The Floor”), and others.

+ Sony Music Publishing UK has announced the promotion of Rob Stratton to Vice President, Visual + Media Rights. Since joining that department in 2019, Stratton has spearheaded key deals with Hasbro, Mattel, All3Media and more. Stratton first joined the company in 2014.

Co-Managing Director, Sony Music Publishing UK Tim Major said, “We have been really impressed with the way that Rob has taken to leading the Visual + Media Rights team in the UK and to collaborating with Cathy Merenda to deliver on the powerful global vision for Sony Music Publishing in this space. He’s a thoughtful and intelligent executive who is focused on delivering great service to our partners and who brings a calm and positive energy to our leadership team. We are delighted to see him growing within the company and he truly deserves this promotion.”

+ Concord Music Publishing has announced the signing of Grammy-nominated and Juno award-winning Afro-Cuban soul singer Daymé Arocena. The worldwide publishing deal, effective immediately, includes a selection of Arocena’s catalog and all future works. Arocena’s latest studio album, “Alkemi,” was recorded in Puerto Rico with producer Eduardo Cabra (Calle 13) and released in February. She released her debut album “Nueva Era” in 2015 and in 2017, became co-founder and band member of the Cuban-Canadian jazz collective Maqueque, with whom she a Grammy nomination for Best Latin Jazz Album in 2018.

Arocena said, “When I first walked into the Concord offices, I had to contain my excitement not to cry. The walls of that place were decorated with pictures from Billie Holiday to Celia Cruz. It was like the storybook of my life. I still find it hard to believe that I too am part of that imprint. I am very honored that a publishing house with such a musical legacy continues to support the diversity of voices in the industry, especially in Latin America. I believe it is a dream to be part of this family.”

Monday, July 29

Veteran rapper Big Sean — whose new album “Better Me Than You” is out next month — has signed with Brandon Silverstein’s S10 Entertainment, the company announced Monday. (The two, with Sean on the right, are pictured above.)

“Brandon shares the vision, understands where I’m headed, and I’m incredibly excited to work with him and the S10 team,” said the Grammy-nominated rapper, whose collaboration with Eminem, “Tobey,” at No. 24 on the Hot 100.

S10 also includes a publishing division, as well as film and investment. It has partnerships with Jay-Z, Max Matsuura, Ryan Tedder, Simon Fuller others. Silverstein also managed Brazilian superstar Anitta for several years before parting ways with her in June of last year and continues to manager Puerto Rican singer-rapper Myke Towers.

+ Music Votes, a coalition of music industry nonprofits in the voting and activism spaces, has announced its first wave of partners participating in its voting-improvement process (which includes registration, ensuring the correct voter I.D., and turning out). The partners are: Artist for Artist, Artist Rights Alliance, AEG Presents, ASM Global, Bandsintown, Downtown, Echoette: Sound + Vision, Fenway Recordings, High Road Touring, Music Business Association, Music Managers Forum-US, National Independent Talent Organization (NITO), Redeye, Songwriters of North America (SONA), Vector Management, and Wasserman Music. 

Music Votes has also added new members for the industry to get involved with civic engagement, music policy, Disability Culture, gun violence prevention, and gender equity while providing additional options to support social and racial justice.

“We are honored to have such amazing support, both from our coalition members, and our new partners,” says Eleanor Anderson, MSA Board Member. “It is important for the music industry to present a unified front, and the support we have from labels, promoters, venues and more shows that the music industry is ready to mobilize and encourage everyone to exercise their right to vote.”

Music Votes will also be hosting a webinar on Thursday August 1st at 2p ET, led by Bill Werde, director of Syracuse University’s Bandier Program. Head here for more information.

+ BBR Music Group/BMG Nashville has signed K. Michelle, marking the singer-songwriter’s full-fledged move into country — last year, she’d announced that her sixth album, “I’m the Problem,” was her final R&B outing.

“When we first met K. Michelle, she radiated her passion for country music. It’s the fabric of who she is because the lyrics represent truth. She’s built an incredible fanbase with her unique vocals anchored with storytelling at its heart and that is what transcends genres,” says Katie Kerkhover, VP, A&R at BMG.

“I have been ready. I am grateful for this moment,” shares K. Michelle. “Rebels and Real Outlawz, it’s time! I am excited and want to thank my BMG Team. I am happy to finally sing the music I grew up on. I am a country girl at heart and can’t wait to share my country music with you.”

+ Soundful has announced a “first-of-its-kind” AI music competition with Kaskade and SoundCloud. The competition offers aspiring artists an opportunity to showcase their songwriting talents, as well as win a chance to perform live alongside Kaskade, and release a track on his label, Arkade.

Participants are invited to create a track from Kaskade’s Collab style — Soundful Collabs capture artists’ core music musical aesthetic, or “Sonic DNA,” enabling users to create tracks that sound like their favorite artists. Participants are encouraged to modify the track to reflect their unique style.

The first-place winner will have their track completed and released by Kaskade as a featured artist, perform live with Kaskade at one of his upcoming shows, and receive a two-year Soundful Pro plan, one year of SoundCloud Next Pro, a $1,000 cash prize from Soundful, as well as up to $1,000 towards travel expenses for the meet and greet. Apply here by Aug. 12, 2024.

+ Alison Donald, Kobalt’s head of global creative, has announced she will be leaving the company at the end of the month to pursue other endeavors. During her seven-year tenure at the company, Donald has signed Sam Fender, Cigarettes After Sex, Koffee, Gabriels, Jungle, Khruangbin, Rage Against the Machine, The Last Dinner Party and Tom Odell.

“Alison’s fervor for creativity and music have always been felt throughout the entire organization, inspiring our teams every day,” said Kobalt President Jeannette Perez. “Her palpable energy and enthusiasm will be missed by everyone at Kobalt. We wish her all of the best as she embarks on her next journey.”

Donald joined Kobalt from Columbia Records UK, where she was co-president. Previously, she held senior posts at Chrysalis Music Publishing and Warner/Chappell Music, and earlier in her career was at Capitol/EMI Records and Arista Records. 

“Working with the team at Kobalt and all of the incredible artists and writers on the roster has been very rewarding, I am extremely proud of what we’ve all achieved,” said Donald. “I’m sad to be leaving both my friends at Kobalt and our wonderful roster but I am looking forward to the next chapter.”

Read More About:

Jump to Comments

More from Variety

Most Popular

Must Read

Sign Up for Variety Newsletters

By providing your information, you agree to our Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy.We use vendors that may also process your information to help provide our services. // This site is protected by reCAPTCHA Enterprise and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Variety Confidential

A Variety and iHeartRadio Podcast

ncG1vNJzZmiukae2psDYZ5qopV9nfXOAjqasrKGTZLumw9JomaKfXaiyorqMrKCgpqNixKrAx2aZq5membyvedKio6%2BdoqjBprXNZqpqaF2irq%2Btxp6knqakYn5zf5Vpb3JsYGZ8