New York – April 29, 2014 – Del R. Bryant, President of Broadcast Music, Inc® (BMI®), will be awarded with the Visionary Leadership Award at the 45th Annual Songwriters Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Dinner slated for Thursday, June 12th at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City.
The Visionary Leadership Award acknowledges a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame Board of Directors who has made a significant contribution in furthering the ongoing mission of the organization and in elevating the Songwriters Hall of Fame to a level of prominence and distinction. Chairman Emeritus Hal Davis was the inaugural, and to date, only recipient of the award.
“Born into songwriting royalty and a songwriter himself, Del has spent a lifetime championing songwriters,” said Linda Moran, President and CEO of the Songwriters Hall of Fame. “In the past decade, Del’s personal and professional contributions as a dedicated Senior Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Songwriters Hall of Fame have enabled us to achieve our early goals and to continue to expand the ongoing mission of the organization.”
In more than four decades he has become widely recognized and respected as one of the most influential leaders in the industry. In 2004, he became President and Chief Executive Officer of the American performing rights organization, responsible for driving the company into its position as the premier global rights management organization. He currently serves as President, leading the company in its commitment to serving the creative community and valuing music for the benefit of all songwriters, composers, publishers and licensees.
Under Bryant’s leadership, BMI represents more than 600,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers in all genres of music and more than 8.5 million musical works, and has distributed more than $814 million in royalties for its 2013 fiscal year. The BMI team continuously acquires the world’s top songwriter/artists such as Maroon 5, Taylor Swift, Pink, Lady Gaga, Casting Crowns, will.i.am, Adele, Rihanna, A$AP Rocky, the Black Keys, Jack White, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Pitbull, the Lumineers, Shakira, Don Omar, Florida Georgia Line, Fun., the Band Perry, Miranda Lambert and Jason Aldean.
Bryant’s comprehensive approach to building the BMI repertoire has included initiatives in every major genre of music. Under his direction, BMI’s Film and Television department in Los Angeles became vital, leading the company to a predominant position in the presentation of Hollywood’s leader composers. Bryant directed the establishment of a Latin music division, a first among American performing rights organizations. He also led the effort in establish an R&B/hip-hop music division, paving the way for a genre that has now become a powerhouse category in the BMI repertoire. Bryant played the leading role in re-engineering and modernizing BMI’s royalty distribution system, and directed the implementation of the structure introduced in 1987 as part of an aggressive writer acquisition campaign that included major components in marketing, advertising, industry media relations and events.
Bryant is the son of legendary songwriters and publishers Boudleaux and Felice Bryant, who were the first two professional songwriters in Nashville, penning such classics as “Bye Bye Love,” “Wake Up Little Susie,” “All I Have To Do Is Dream,” “Love Hurts,” and the Tennessee state song, “Rocky Top.” His rich musical heritage inspired his accomplishments and passion for the business, along with his incredible song sense, an intuitive understanding for the creative process of the songwriter and composer, and a deep understanding of how the writer fits into the creative matrix of the music business.
Bryant is a member of the Board of Directors of BMI, CISAC, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Broadcasters Foundation of America, The Blair School of Music, board member and former Chairman of FastTrack and a member of the Broadcast and Cable Hall of Fame.
Inductees at this year’s event include Ray Davies, Donovan, Graham Gouldman, Mark James and Jim Weatherly. The prestigious Johnny Mercer Award will be presented to Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, Doug Morris will be honored with the Hitmaker Award and Dan Reynolds (Imagine Dragons) will receive the Hal David Starlight Award.
