News Archive
BMI is thrilled to celebrate the best in songwriting at the 70TH Annual BMI Pop Awards. Legendary music creators Carole Bayer Sager and Mike Stoller will be honored as BMI Icons, celebrating their indelible and timeless contributions to the art of songwriting. BMI’s Pop Song of the Year, Songwriter of…
BMI Mourns the Loss of Hitmaking Songwriter/Producer Jim Steinman
BMI was very saddened to learn of the passing of legendary rock and pop hitmaker Jim Steinman, who died Monday at the age of 73. A versatile songwriter, lyricist, composer and producer with a flair for the dramatic, Steinman left his signature on albums that have sold over 190,000,000 copies…
Using Chords and Modulations as Musical Hooks in Your Songs
The chords we choose to accompany our melodies not only contribute to the flavor of our songs, they can provide some of those magical musical moments that make our songs hooky, exceptional, and unforgettable. To keep our listeners’ attention we need to include hooks, elements that are catchy and memorable,…
BMI’s Barbara Cane to be Honored with Lifetime Service Award from NMPA
BMI is very proud to congratulate its own VP of Worldwide Creative, Barbara Cane, on being recognized by the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) with the Lifetime Service Award, to be presented at the NMPA’s annual meeting next month at the Edison Ballroom in New York City. Cane joins an…
BMI Mourns the Loss of Hitmaker Scott English
BMI is saddened by the news of the passing of legendary producer and songwriter Scott English. English is responsible for penning BMI Icon Barry Manilow’s #1 hit “Mandy,” the infectious “Bend Me Shape Me” by The American Breed, as well as songs for Donny Osmond, Andy Williams, Johnny Mathis, Westlife,…
BMI Mourns the Loss of Celebrated BMI Composer Patrick Williams
BMI is saddened by the news that Emmy, GRAMMY and BMI Richard Kirk Award-winner Patrick Williams passed away yesterday at the age of 79. Among the legendary projects on Williams’ unsurpassed resume were scores for The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Bob Newhart Show, The Streets of San Francisco, Columbo,…
BMI to Honor Barry Manilow as BMI Icon at the 65th Annual BMI Pop Awards
BMI is pleased to announce that GRAMMY, Emmy and Tony Award-winning singer-songwriter, arranger, producer and musician, Barry Manilow, will be named the BMI Icon at the 65th annual BMI Pop Awards. Mr. Manilow, a pop music legend, will receive this honor in recognition of his prodigious musical legacy and an…
Writing and Placing Christmas and Holiday Songs
Imagine receiving airplay and earning income from a song year after year and having that same song be recorded by multiple artists over a span of decades. That is what can happen with a holiday-themed song. For many songwriters and music publishers, landing a holiday recording that becomes the next…
BMI Composer Charlie Fox Visits New York Office
Award-winning composer Charlie Fox wowed BMI’s New York team when he played an impromptu medley of songs from his renowned catalog including “I Got a Name,” “Killing Me Softly,” the theme from Happy Days and The Love Boat, as well as Barry Manilow’s mega hit “Ready to Take a Chance…
Take Your Songwriting to the Next Level by Adding a Twist
To grab our listeners’ attention we need to separate our songs from the competition, and one way to accomplish this is by including an unexpected twist—an element of surprise. This article examines various ways to incorporate twists into lyrics and melodies. Story Songs With Surprise Endings “Ol’ Red” (written by…
Barry Manilow: Barry Manilow’s Acceptance Speech from the 2017 BMI Pop Awards
Captured at 2017 BMI Pop Awards