BMI Celebrates Urban Music at 2002 Awards Ceremony
BMI saluted the top R&B, rap and hip-hop songwriters, producers and publishers at its 2002 Urban Awards, staged August 6 at Club Tropigala at the Fontainebleau Hilton Resorts & Towers in Miami. The black-tie ceremony, hosted by BMI President and CEO Frances W. Preston, with Senior Vice President Performing Rights-Writer/Publisher Relations Del Bryant and Assistant Vice President of Writer/Publisher Relations Catherine Brewton, saw a record six songwriters tie for the Songwriter of the Year trophy. Irv Gotti, Ja Rule, Jay-Z, R. Kelly, Pharrell Williams and Mario Winans each placed two songs on the most performed list to take home the coveted prize. Janet Jackson's hit, "All For You," was named Song of the Year and EMI Music Publishing earned its second consecutive Urban Publisher of the Year award.
Producer/songwriters Rodney Jerkins, Pharrell Williams, and Dallas Austin, who produced and performed the musical tribute to BMI ICON Award winner James Brown, Brown, BMI's Frances Preston and Catherine Brewton, and producer Chad Hugo
A special highlight of the gala evening featured the presentation of the BMI ICON Award to "The Godfather of Soul" James Brown in recognition of his contributions to music and the music business. He was honored during the dinner with an all-star musical tribute produced by Dallas Austin, Rodney Jerkins and Pharrell Williams that featured Angie Stone and Betty Wright, among others. With songs like "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag,"tI Got You (I Feel Good)" and "Please Please Please", Brown has more honors attached to his name than any other performer in music history. His BMI accolades include an impressive ten R&B Awards, six Pop Awards and three "Million-Air"awards, denoting one million or more performances.
BMI's Catherine Brewton, producers Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams of the Neptunes, and BMI's Frances Preston
The Songwriter of the Year trophy, shared this year by six, is given to the writer having the most songs on the BMI awards list for the evening. They are: Irv Gotti and Ja Rule for "I'm Real"(Jennifer Lopez featuring Ja Rule) and "Put It On Me"(Ja Rule featuring Lil' Mo and Vita), Jay-Z for his song "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)" and "Fiesta"(R. Kelly featuring Jay-Z), R. Kelly also for "Fiesta" and "Contagious" (Isley Brothers featuring Ronald Isley), Pharrell Williams for "Danger (Been So Long)"(Mystikal featuring Nivea) and "Southern Hospitality"(Ludacris) and Mario Winans for "Emotional" (Carl Thomas) and "Peaches & Cream"(112).
BMI Songwriters Tre'vant J. Hardson, Nastacia Cherise Kendall, and J-Sw!ft show off their medallions.
Famed Neptunes' producer Pharrell Williams, who took home his second Songwriter of the Year award, was also honored as Songwriter/Producer of the Year. Rapper N.O.R.E. performed in his honor. Other Top Producer awards went to fellow Songwriters of the Year Irv Gotti, R. Kelly and Mario Winans, as well as to Mike City, Steve Huff, Mannie Fresh, Organized Noize (Pat "Sleepy" Brown, Ray Murray and Rico Wade), Poke and Cory Rooney.
BMI ICON Award winner James Brown celebrating at the BMI Urban Awards
Song of the Year "All For You," written and performed by Janet Jackson and published by Black Ice Publishing, is from the pop diva's Grammy Award-winning album of the same name. Released in the spring of 2001, the title track went straight to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, bringing Jackson's total career #1 hits to ten.
BMI's Catherine Brewton, award-winning producer Rodney Jerkins, and BMI's Del Bryant
EMI Music Publishing, which had the highest percentage of ownership in award-winning songs, picked up its second consecutive Urban Publisher of the Year award. This is the twelfth top BMI Publisher honor awarded to EMI since 1989 in all genres of music. Other multiple award-winning publishers included Zomba Songs Inc. with three songs, and D J Irv Publishing, Ensign Music Corporation, Lil Lu Lu Publishing, R. Kelly Publishing, Inc., Slavery Music, Songs of Universal, Inc. and Waters of Nazareth Publishing with two songs each.
N.O.R.E. and BMI's Frances Preston
In addition to the song and publisher awards, music trade magazine Billboard announced the names of the BMI-affiliated writers who had #1 songs on the R&B/Hip-Hop and Rap charts during the past year. Rapper CAM'RON was among the double winners, as were two of the evening's top honorees, Irv Gotti and Pharrell Williams. The BMI Urban Awards were held to coincide with Billboard's R&B/Hip Hop Conference and Awards, also in Miami from August 7-9.
James Brown and Angie Stone, who performed "It's A Man's Man's Man's World" in his honor, share a laugh
BMI annually honors the songwriters and music publishers of the most performed songs on American radio in the urban, pop, country, Latin and Christian genres.
Below is the complete list of 2002 BMI Urban Awards winners:
ALL FOR YOU
Janet Jackson
Black Ice Publishing
Janet Jackson
Virgin Records
ANGEL
Ahmet Ertegun
Chip Taylor
EMI-Blackwood Music, Inc.
Shaggy featuring Rayvon
MCA Records
BOOTYLICIOUS
Stevie Nicks
Welsh Witch Music
Destiny's Child
Columbia Records
BOW WOW (THAT'S MY NAME)
George Clinton, Jr.
Garry Shider
Snoop Dogg
Bridgeport Music, Inc.
My Own Chit Publishing
Bow Wow featuring Snoop Dogg
So So Def
CONTAGIOUS
R. Kelly
R. Kelly Publishing, Inc.
Zomba Songs Inc.
Isley Brothers featuring Ronald Isley
DreamWorks Records
DANGER (BEEN SO LONG)
Pharrell Williams
EMI-Blackwood Music, Inc.
Waters Of Nazareth Publishing
Mystikal featuring Nivea
Jive Records
EMOTIONAL
Dominic Miller (PRS)
Sting (PRS)
Mario Winans
Butter Jinx Music, Inc.
EMI-Blackwood Music, Inc.
Yellow Man Music
Carl Thomas
Bad Boy
FAMILY AFFAIR
Camara Kambon
Asiah Lewis
Luchana Nicole Lodge
Asiahtown Ent.
Colorscapes Publishing
Luchi Publishing Co.
Mary J. Blige
MCA Records
FIESTA
Jay-Z
R. Kelly
EMI-Blackwood Music, Inc.
Lil Lu Lu Publishing
R. Kelly Publishing, Inc.
Zomba Songs Inc.
R. Kelly featuring Jay-Z
Jive Records
HEARD IT ALL BEFORE
Mike City
Mike City Music
Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp.
Sunshine Anderson
Soulife Records
HIT 'EM UP STYLE (OOPS!)
Dallas Austin
Cyptron Music
EMI-Blackwood Music, Inc.
Blu Cantrell
Arista Records
I'M REAL
Irv Gotti
Ja Rule
D J Irv Publishing
Ensign Music Corporation
Slavery Music
Songs of Universal, Inc.
Jennifer Lopez featuring Ja Rule
Epic Records
IZZO (H.O.V.A.)
Jay-Z
EMI-Blackwood Music, Inc.
Lil Lu Lu Publishing
Jay-Z
Roc-A-Fella Records
MISSING YOU
Tim Kelley
Bob Robinson
Songs of DreamWorks
Time For Flytes Music
Case
Def Soul
PEACHES & CREAM
Mario Winans
EMI-Blackwood Music, Inc.
Janice Combs Music
Marsky Music
112
Bad Boy
PROMISE
Gary Smith
Bert Young
B-Dert Music
Gizzo Music, Inc.
Jagged Edge
So So Def
PUT IT ON ME
Irv Gotti
Ja Rule
D J Irv Publishing
Ensign Music Corporation
Slavery Music
White Rhino Music, Inc.
Ja Rule featuring Lil'Mo and Vita
Murder Inc./Def Jam Records
SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY
Pharrell Williams
EMI-Blackwood Music, Inc.
Waters Of Nazareth Publishing
Ludacris
Disturbing Tha Peace
STUTTER
Steve Boone
Roy L. Hamilton III
Tre'Vant J. Hardson
J-Sw!ft
Romye Robinson
John Sebastian
Mark Sebastian
Derrick "Fatlip" Stewart
Emandu Imani Rashaan Wilcox
Alley Music Corp.
Beetjunkye Music
Crack Addict Music
EMI-Blackwood Music, Inc.
Mark Sebastian Music
Trio Music Co., Inc.
Zomba Songs Inc.
Joe featuring Mystikal
Jive Records
U REMIND ME
Edmund Eddie Hustle Clement
Anita Clement McCloud
Butterman Land Publishing
Elsie Louise Pitts Music
Smooth C Publishing
Songs of Universal, Inc.
Songs of Windswept Pacific
Usher
Arista Records
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