By Rob Patterson

From the dawning days of rhythm & blues through today's multifaceted urban music scene, BMI has been at the forefront of music from the African American tradition, styles and community. A continuity of teamwork between BMI and Black music-makers extends from Aretha Franklin to Janet Jackson, from Motown hitmakers Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier & Brian Holland to R. Kelly, and from Miles Davis to Terence Blanchard.

B.B. King

Busta Rhymes

Janet Jackson

Eminem

When r&b, in its formative years, was the province of budding independent labels, small publishers, and adventurous radio stations, BMI opened its ranks to the musical movement when the existing performing rights organization failed to recognize the legitimacy and potential brewing in Black American music. The considerable fact that 90 percent of the R&B Foundation's Pioneer Awards have been bestowed on BMI artists attests to BMI's historical commitment to Black music.

Eric Benet

Macy Gray

Mariah Carey

Michael Jackson

The BMI Black music rosters reads like a musical honor role: Jazz giants such as Billie Holiday, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Dinah Washington and John Coltrane; blues icons like Leadbelly, Muddy Waters, B.B. King and T-Bone Walker; r&b pacesetters such as Ray Charles, Fats Domino and James Brown; soul sisters Etta James, Irma Thomas and Diana Ross; rock pioneers like Chuck Berry and Little Richard.

Mya

R. Kelly

Snoop Dogg

Toni Braxton

The BMI bloodlines can be traced from then to now, from Carla Thomas to Donna Summer to Vanessa Williams, from Kenneth Gamble & Leon Huff to LA Reid and Babyface, from Otis Redding to Michael Jackson. And if you check this space 20 or 30 years from now, the odds say its likely that BMI's contemporary urban music artists will be just as legendary and influential as those BMI has represented throughout the history of Black popular music in America.

In a sense, the pages have already been written by today's BMI star talents. Mariah Carey has proven herself a formidable and enduring presence in popular music, while Macy Gray is arising to help bring soul back to its rightful place of presence in urban music. Kevin Eubanks delivers sublime new variations of the jazz guitar heritage to millions on The Tonight Show, and Joshua Redman redefines the notion of young jazz giant for a new millennium. Snoop Dogg, Eminem and Lil' Kim continue to push the hip-hop envelope, while Kirk Franklin and Winans Phase 2 keep the gospel spirit alive.

But it's not just the marquee names that make these exciting times for BMI's urban music roster. And even some of BMI's team whose work happens primarily behind the scenes are earning public note on the level of the artists they work with. Producer, songwriter, keyboardist and remixer Dallas Austin launched Monica and TLC, and counts Michael Jackson, Madonna, Boyz II Men and Aretha Franklin among his credits. Such musical versatility and vision continues with such recording and writing powerhouses as Jerry 'Wonder' Duplessis, Master P, Tim & Bob, SoulShock & Karlin, Jean Claude 'Poke' Olivier of The Track Masters, Organized Noise, Teddy Bishop and Cory Rooney - all drawing from a differing wealth of musical wells and creating new and innovative musical moments.

Hip-hop remains a powerfully progressive and sometimes provocative movement in modern popular music. Jay-Z, Busta Rhymes and Goodie Mob keep it real, and the beats and themes will surely remain hard in the hands of such acts as Lord Tariq & Peter Gunz, Ja Rule, Mos Def, Trick Daddy, Silkk the Shocker, JT Money, Kurupt and J-Shin. At the same time, acts like The Roots, Black Eyed Peas, Talib Kweli & Hi-Tek and Spooks infuse a rich mixture of styles into the hip-hop genre. Once the sound of the street, just as r&b had been, hip-hop is now an integral part of contemporary culture. And its Caribbean cousin dancehall is also claiming the attention of the public ear thanks to Buju Banton.

R&B has always boasted its powerful cadre of female singers. And just as Carla Thomas, Martha Reeves and Jodi Whatley established their voices as trademarks, so have the women like Brandy, Toni Braxton and Faith Evans. Rising to join them are such soul sisters as Angie Stone, Mya, Sunshine Anderson and Aaliyah, while R&B brothers such as Eric Benet and Pharrell Williams of The Neptunes stir up new soul traditions for today's urban music fans as Clyde McPhatter, Sam Moore and Aaron Neville have before them. The girl group traditions forged by The Shirelles and The Supremes find modern expression in the "new jill flava" of Total.

As the recent Ken Burns documentary demonstrated, jazz is one of the richest skeins in the American cultural tapestry. BMI has been a consistent presence in jazz, from Lionel Hampton to Coleman Hawkins to Herbie Hancock to Roy Hargrove. Today, Terence Blanchard, Christian McBride, Kevin Eubanks and Bilal maintain the instrumental and compositional greatness of jazz music for the genre's future.

Spirituals have always been an essential element in Black music and BMI's mission, thanks to everyone from James Ingram to The Fairfield Four. And perhaps nobody has had a more profound impact on contemporary music and the popularity of spiritual sounds than minister, songwriter, producer and visionary Kirk Franklin. In the past, one could make similar claims for The Winans, and the family tradition forged there is carried on by Winans Phase 2. The ears reached by these artists are now opening as well to such rising talents as Yolanda Adams and Trin-i-tee 5:7.

Such diversity, commercial impact, innovation and encouragement of burgeoning styles and new artists has been a hallmark of BMI's commitment to Black music from the time that "race music" became rhythm & blues, and on through soul, funk and disco right up to rap and new jack swing. As BMI salutes tradition through its longtime support of the R&B Foundation, it also helps create the future that is urban music in all its breadth and creativity. Because at BMI, Black Music Month is celebrated 12 months a year.

The intimate "That's Just My Way," the passionate "Why You Follow Me," the tender "Come As You Are," the vengeful "When You Think Of Me," along with "Loving Your Best Friend," contribute to the deeply textured emotional experience within A Day In the Life, his sophomore Warner. Bros. effort.

The main musical ingredient in A Day in the Life is classic R&B, with salsa, gospel, jazz and funk added to the mix. Eric co-wrote all 11 of the new tracks; the project's two covers are "Georgy Porgy," the Toto hit which now features guest vocals by Faith Evans, and the immortal '70s ballad "Dust In the Wind" from Kansas, now in a funkified interpretation. Eric co-produced and co-wrote the album with a dynamic group of collaborators, including Wyclef Jean, Ali Shaheed Muhammed (A Tribe Called Quest), Something For the People, Brian Morgan (SWV, Nicole), James Poyser & Vikter DuPlaix (Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill), Tamia, Me'Shell Ndegeocello, plus long-time partners Demonte Posey and cousin George Nash, Jr.

Nash and Eric's sister, Lisa, were members of his first band, Benet, in their hometown of Milwaukee. Their first album was released in 1992 and fared poorly in the commercial arena. The experience was a traumatic one for the young artist, and it made him "afraid to trust [his] heart' with the kind of music he wanted to create. But he conquered his fear and embarked down a solo path; his revealing 1996 debut album for Warner Bros. was titled True To Myself.

The critical accolades for True To Myself, along with the enthusiastic response from audiences throughout the United States, Europe and Japan, gave Eric the confidence to broaden the scope of his musical approaches within A Day in the Life.

by Bruce Britt

Though her career only spans a brief four years, Faith Evans' biography already reads like some urban Dickensian novel.

The 26 year-old singer was widowed in 1997 when her husband, rapper Biggie Smalls (aka The Notorious B.I.G.), was slain in a mysterious drive-by shooting. The tragedy left Evans to raise the couple's son while simultaneously tending to her own career and her husband's legacy. Judging from her incandescent new album Keep the Faith, Evans is determined to become the master of her own destiny. Towards that goal, the singer almost entirely co-wrote and co-produced her new album. Her collaborations with Babyface, Puff Daddy, David Foster and others have yielded a resilient, hopeful recording; an album Entertainment Weekly says "blends gospel's range with jazzy innovation."

"Musically I've matured so much on this album," Evans says. "I put all the experiences and emotional changes I went through from the time I completed the first album to the new album. The whole team worked endlessly to make sure that it was really tight, and it is tight."

Keep the Faith is just the latest entry on Evans' expanding resume. The singer has written or provided background vocals for a variety of r&b acts, including Mary J. Blige, Pebbles, Tevin Campbell and Christopher Williams. She has performed a duet with the legendary Ray Charles and has co-written and produced songs for L.S.G. and Aaron Hall. Most recently, she was featured on Whitney Houston's hit single, "Heartbreak Hotel," and Eric Benet's "Georgy Porgy."

Evans cultivated her righteous vocal style in the churches of her native Newark, New Jersey. A high school honor student, Evans won a full academic scholarship to Fordham University, but the singer surprised her family when she prematurely left college to pursue a music career. Evans's bold move paid off almost instantly. Not long after leaving Fordham, the singer found herself composing and performing with Al B. Sure!, Mary J. Blige and others.

The singer's career got a tremendous boost when hip-hop producer Puff Daddy signed Evans to his label, Bad Boy Records. Evans' self-titled 1995 debut album showcased her gospel roots and neo-funk attitude, and was later certified platinum. In the midst of the hoopla, the singer was introduced to rapper Biggie Smalls. They were wed just days after their fateful first encounter.

Unfortunately, the union would be short-lived. Evans' son was only three months old at the time of Smalls's death. Evans transformed her grief into a heartrending hit single, "I'll Be Missing You." Featuring a refrain from the Police's 1984 hit "Every Step You Take," Evans' poignant tribute to her late husband became a global anthem of bereavement.

Now, as the title of her new albums suggests, Evans is wagering that her faith will result in fascinating new opportunities. "Just like any other human being, I went through an extremely painful stage," the singer says. "But, thank God, I was able to free my self from all of the bad aspects and look at it as another life experience."