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New York, NY, May 31, 2005: The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) announced today that it will present its Rhythm & Soul Heritage Award to Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis during the
18th Annual ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Music Awards. The invitation-only awards dinner will take place on June 27, 2005 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles, CA.
Widely acknowledged as the most prolific hit makers in modern music history, Jam & Lewis will join an elite group of legendary artists who have received the coveted ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Heritage Award that includes
Peabo Bryson, Earth, Wind and Fire, Rick James, and Chaka Khan. Jam & Lewis are the first recipients of this award renowned primarily as songwriter/producers.
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis have been steering artists to unprecedented commercial success for over 20 years, and have written and/or produced over 100 albums and singles that have reached gold, platinum or multi-platinum sales, including 25 No. 1 R&B singles and 16 No. 1 pop hits. From pop, soul, dance and instrumental to rap, gospel, rock and reggae, their distinct sound has spanned limitlessly across all genres.
They have collaborated with such diverse and legendary artists as Boyz II Men, Sting, Mary J. Blige, Elton John, Usher, Shaggy, Yolanda Adams, Herb Alpert, Luther Vandross, Rod Stewart, New Edition, Human League,
Earth, Wind and Fire, Mariah Carey, Robert Palmer, Gwen Stefani, Kanye West, and Sounds of Blackness, and most notably have guided Janet Jackson to international superstardom with over 40 million records sold worldwide and over 20 gold and platinum singles.
"Since their first professional recording with THE TIME in 1981, Jam and Lewis have continued to expand the vocabulary of contemporary popular music," said ASCAP President and Chairman Marilyn Bergman. "From pop hits to gospel to film songs, through their commitment to artistic and personal integrity, the duo has firmly left their mark on today's music, and ASCAP is very proud to honor them."
As co-founders of Flyte Tyme Records, Jam & Lewis have enjoyed a joint venture/partnership with
Arista/BMG Records, which has lead to successful collaborations with Blu Cantrell and Heather Headley, as well as multi-platinum superstar Usher.
Jam & Lewis have been recognized with numerous industry awards including three Grammys, ten Grammy nominations, Oscar and Emmy nominations, a NAACP Image Award, an Essence Award for their outstanding achievements in the music industry, the ASCAP Golden Note Award and numerous Songwriter of the Year honors at ASCAP's Rhythm & Soul and Pop Music Awards, and they have been immortalized with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Jimmy Jam has served on ASCAP's Board of Directors since 1996.
The 18th Annual ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Music Awards will also include a special presentation to the ASCAP "Songwriter of the Year." Past recipients of this top honor include many of today's most celebrated talents such as
50 Cent, Kandi Burruss, Sean "P.Diddy" Combs, Dr. Dre, Jermaine Dupri, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, and Timbaland.
ASCAP will introduce two new awards to this year's ceremony: "Top Gospel Artist of the Year," and the Jamster sponsored "Top Ringtone Song of the Year." ASCAP was the first performing rights organization to begin licensing and distributing royalties to its songwriter members for ringtone performances. Awards will also be given to "Publisher of the Year," "Top Soundtrack Song of the Year," "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Song of the Year," "Top Rap Song of the Year," "Top Reggae Artist of the Year," as well as honoring the songwriters and publishers of the top ASCAP songs on the 2004 R&B, Hip-Hop and Rap charts. The evening will also feature performances by several award-winning songwriter/artists.
About ASCAP
Established in 1914, ASCAP is the first and leading Performing Rights Organization in the U.S., representing the world's largest repertory which totals over 8 million copyrighted musical works of every style and genre from more than 210,000 composer, lyricist and music publisher members. Additionally, ASCAP represents the works in the repertories of 70 affiliated foreign performing rights organizations created by many thousand affiliated international members. ASCAP is committed to protecting the rights of its members by licensing and collecting royalties for the public performance of their copyrighted works, and then distributing these fees to the Society's members based on performances. Unlike the other American Performing Rights Organizations, ASCAP's Board of Directors is made up solely of writers and publishers, elected by the membership every two years. www.ascap.com
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