The 70th annual BMI Pop Awards were held in Beverly Hills on Tuesday night (May 10). The event celebrated timeless contributions to publishing and the art of songwriting.
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Famed songwriters Carole Bayer Sager and Mike Stoller were honored as BMI Icons. Bayer Sager had a host of hits in the ’70s including Peter Allen’s “I’d Rather Leave While I’m In Love” and “Don’t Cry Out Loud,” Albert Hammond’s “When I need You” and Bruce Roberts’ “You’re the Only One.”
Stoller, along with his writing partner Jerry Leiber, wrote many of Elvis Presley’s top hits including “Jailhouse Rock,” “Loving You,” “Don’t” and “King Creole.”
“Songwriting has rewarded me throughout my entire life,” Sager said of the award. “Songwriting not only gave me my life but saved my life. The greatest gift of all is the realization that we are all connected, and it’s music that bridges people all over the world.”
In homage to Stoller, Americana artist Anderson East took the stage in a moving rendition of “Stand by Me,” co-written by Leiber and Stoller with Ben E. King in 1960.
“I’m just delighted, honored, and thrilled, and I only wish my late partner Jerry Leiber was here to accept such an award as well. He would have loved it,” Stoller said as he accepted the award.
Omer Fedi and Michael Pollack tied for Songwriter of the Year. Fedi co-wrote the 24kGoldn’s viral Tik Tok track, “Mood.” The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for eight weeks in 2020 and spent 35 weeks at the top of the Hot Rock & Alt chart. Fedi also contributed to Lil Nas X’s “Montero Call Me by Your Name” and Kid Laroi’s “Stay.”
Pollack was honored for co-writing “Anyone” (with Raul Cubina, Jordan K. Johnson, and Andrew Watt), “Daisies” (with Jordan K. Johnson), “Holy” (with Chance the Rapper, Anthony M.Jones and Jorgen Odegard), and “Nobody’s Love” (with Nija Charles, Brandon “B HAM” Hamlin, Jordan K. Johnson, and Ryan Ogren).
Sony Music Publishing and Universal Music Publishing Group shared the honor of Publisher of the Year. Both groups represented 28 of the most-performed songs of 2021. The awards were accepted by Jon Platt, chairman and CEO of Sony, and Jody Gerson, chairman and CEO of Universal.
BMI also celebrated the 50-most performed pop songs of 2021. There were 60 first-time Pop Award winners including D’Mile (“Leave the Door Open”), GIVĒON (“Peaches”), Megan Thee Stallion (“Beautiful Mistakes”), and Tia Tia (“My Head & My Heart”).
For a full list of honorees, visit BMI’s website, HERE.
Photo by Michael Kovak/Getty Images for BMI
