NMPA Honors Billy Joel, Launches Foundation

 

Videos by American Songwriter

bj
Pictured from the left: NMPA President David Israelite, Billy Joel and Leann Rimes. Photo courtesy NMPA.

Yesterday in New York City, National Music Publishers’ AssociationĀ CEO David Israelite presented Billy Joel with the organization’s Songwriter Icon Award.

After receiving the award, Joel took to the podium and said, “songwriting really is the toughest part of the job.” LeAnn Rimes then performed renditions of his songsĀ “She’s Got a Way” andĀ “Lullabye (Goodnight My Angel).”

Former ASCAP CEO John LoFrumento received the NMPA Industry Legacy Award, and current NMPA vice president and CEO of peermusic Ralph Peer II was also honored with the NMPA Lifetime Service Award.Ā The NMPA announced the results of the board of directors elections; new members include Jody Klein, CEO of ABKCO Music & Records, Justin Kalifowitz, CEO of Downtown Music Publishing and Golnar Khosrowshahi, President of Resevoir Media Management.

National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu spoke on the societalĀ significance of music, saying ā€œevery aspect of our cultural ecosystem flows from the process of creativity and the expression of ideas.ā€

Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) Ā received the NMPA President’s Award for leadership on issues facing publishers and songwriters.Ā ā€œI travel the world,” Corker said, “and I cannot tell you how gratifying it is to often have people coming up to me, and thanking me and talking about the wonderful talent that we have in our state and all across the country. Thank you for what you do to ensure that people around the world are able to enjoy that. On our end, weā€™ll do what we can to make sure that theyā€™re paid appropriately.ā€

NMPA also announced the creation of its new nonprofit, the NMPA SONGS Foundation (Supporting Our Next Generation of Songwriters),Ā which aimsĀ to support aspiring creators with grants to continue their work and support music education. The foundationĀ will kick off events this fall with a fundraising golf tournament near Washington, D.C.

The NMPA launched its new website at www.nmpa.org. The site has association news, a blog by CEO David Israelite, information on NMPA’s policies and positions and much more.

 

One Comment

Leave a Reply

Leave a Reply

Wilco Releases Solid Sound Festival Documentary