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Burna Boy

Burna Boy

Photo: Recording Academy

News
Burna Boy On 'African Giant,' "Different" & More burna-boy-talks-african-giant-damian-marley-angelique-kidjo-collab-responsibility

Burna Boy Talks 'African Giant,' Damian Marley & Angelique Kidjo Collab, Responsibility As A Global Artist

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The Recording Academy sat down with the Nigerian superstar Afro-fusion artist to learn more about his new album, his biggest goal as a global artist and more
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Aug 8, 2019 - 3:36 pm

Nigerian Afro-fusion singer/songwriter Burna Boy is steadily ascending as a globally-loved superstar, with his smooth, rich vocals and infectious beats that blend traditional Afrobeat (his grandfather was Fela Kuti's—the forefather of Afrobeat—first manager), dancehall, hip-hop, trap and more. He was among a handful of big-name international artists to play Coachella 2019, made his "Jimmy Kimmel Live" debut last month and, on July 25, released his highly anticipated album, African Giant.

Burna Boy On 'African Giant,' "Different" & More

Across its 19 tracks, African Giant brings plenty of powerful, positive vibes and some epic collabs, including U.K. R&B singer and 2019 Best New Artist Nominee Jorja Smith, GRAMMY-nominated R&B crooner Jeremih, Nigerian rapper Zlatan, Jamaican dancehall artist Serani, Ghanaian singer/songwriter/rapper M.anifest, GRAMMY-winning trap hero Future and West Coast rap champ YG. On "Different," Burna brings on Jamaican reggae legend Damian Marley and Beninese-American singer/songwriter AngĂ©lique Kidjo, both multi-GRAMMY winners, for a moving track he—and his fans—is understandably very proud of.

Burna recently stopped by the Recording Academy headquarters just before the album dropped for an in-depth conversation and our latest episode of Up Close & Personal, which you can watch above and check out on our YouTube page for a longer version of the video, as well as the other recent episodes. Read on to learn more about the masterpiece album, working with his hero Kidjo, his goal as global artist and more.

So your album, African Giant drops soon and a lot of people are excited about it. What are you most excited about for sharing the album?

I'm excited about a lot of things. I'm excited that it's finally coming out. I'm excited that it's turned out the way I wanted it to. I'm excited that the purpose of the album is already basically achieved before it drops, you know? So it's very exciting to me. And then obviously for my people as well, for everyone coming from where I'm coming from. It's a big motivation and a statement or whatever you want to call it. It's just, yeah, man. This is basically my way of showing you who I am and in the process helping you to listen and know who you are.

I like that. You worked with a bunch of amazing collaborators from around the globe on this project. How did you choose who to work with?

It just all basically happened very organically. I just knew the vision I had and you know? It just all fell into place.

Can you speak a little bit more to that vision and how it guided all the different elements of the album?

My vision is just to, I don't know how to explain this in a way that makes sense to you, but to shine a light on a place and on people and a situation and everything that there hasn't been a light on for a long time.

The most recent music video you released from one of the singles on the album is for "Anybody." It just feels really joyful and is such a beautiful video. Can you talk a little bit specifically about that video and track?

Video was shot by [Nigerian director] Clarence Peters. "Anybody" is almost wake up music, you know? That's really what it is.

When you shared the track list, everyone was already buzzing about "Different," featuring Damian Marley and Angélique Kidjo. Could you talk about that song and working with them?

That's a song that's very sentimental to me because Angélique Kidjo is someone that I've looked up to since forever. Now this is almost like a vision come true, a longtime vision. This is just one song that I really hold dear to my heart. And then there's Damian Marley who is, you know what? There's nothing that I need to say about that, that you don't already know. You know? That's a song that's very dear to me.

Who are your biggest musical influences? What did you grow up listening to and who kind of like stays in your heart as you make music now?

Man, everyone. Every African legend I was introduced to as a youngin and all the—just everything, my experiences, it's just a lot, [it] all kind of makes this.

Who would you say are like, maybe your top three favorite artists or heroes?

Fela [Kuti]. Obviously, Fela, Angélique Kidjo. I don't know, third one. There's a lot, man.

Earlier this year you performed at Coachella and now you'll be embarking on your headline tour soon. What is your favorite part about performing live and bringing your music to people in those spaces?

Well that's my playground. That's my happy place. That's basically the reason I do this. Because if it wasn't for that then it wouldn't be as interesting to me.

What does it mean to you to be part of the growing, global Afro-fusion sound?

I mean, it feels great. It's an honor. I know it's a responsibility. There's just some [music] that's going to be respected and has to be carried along, you know, forever if possible.



View this post on Instagram


Afronation Recap! @dbcaptures

A post shared by Burna Boy (@burnaboygram) on Aug 6, 2019 at 1:26am PDT

On a related note, what do you feel like is your biggest duty and goal now, as a global artist?

Now [the goal] is to keep on making music and making the fans happy, and everyone around me happy, until I leave the earth. And then hopefully when I leave, I leave such a great impact that something changes.

Up Close & Personal: Lizzo On The Essence Of 'Cuz I Love You,' Missy Elliott's Impact & More

GRAMMYs

Obi Asika & SMADE

Photo: Courtesy of Afro Nation

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Afro Nation Founders On Uniting African Diaspora afro-nation-co-founders-smade-obi-asika-talk-festival-origins-uniting-african-diaspora

Afro Nation Co-Founders Smade & Obi Asika Talk Festival Origins, Uniting The African Diaspora & Celebrating Diversity

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Afro Nation Puerto Rico, taking place March 18-21, is the first-ever American edition of the swiftly expanding event
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Mar 5, 2020 - 10:23 am

With Afro Nation Puerto Rico around the corner on March 18-21 (and a second Afro Nation Portugal in July), the fast-growing new music festival is bringing its vibrant energy to the U.S. for the first time. The first-ever American iteration of the fest—taking place beachside at San Juan's Balneario de Carolina—will be the third event in total since its launch last summer.

Nigerian superstar singers Burna Boy and WizKid, American rap kings Fabolous and Rick Ross, Jamaican reggae act Chronixx, Nigerian Afropop songstress Yemi Alade and Trinidadian soca hero Machel Montano are among the headliners for this month's event. Those are just a few of the names within the epic lineup, which has been rolled out in waves over the past four months.

Each Afro Nation fest highlights the biggest players—and up-and-comers—in Afro-fusion, reggae, dancehall, hip-hop, soca and other black-led musical movements. As cofounders SMADE and Obi Asika share, the idea for the event came from what they saw as a lack of representation in the event space for Afrobeats artists they worked with.

https://twitter.com/AfroNationPR/status/1234500294148608002

The diaspora united! 🌍 @ChronixxMusic performing in Kenya đŸ€© ⁣
⁣
See him live at #AfroNationPuertoRico đŸ‡”đŸ‡·đŸ‡”đŸ‡·đŸ‡”đŸ‡· ⁣ pic.twitter.com/k1vm7m3Hnw

— AfroNationPuertoRico (@AfroNationPR) March 2, 2020

We caught up with the two Nigerian-born, London-based music industry powerhouses over the phone recently to discuss their groundbreaking Afro Nation movement. Read on to learn about the story behind this successful partnership, how they're learning as they go, their hopes and vision for the future and more.

The next Afro Nation fest is coming up soon, the first-ever Puerto Rican event. What are you most looking forward to with this one?

SMADE: We're on our third edition now. The first one was in Portugal in August, and then we've just finished the second one in Ghana in December. We're moving on to Puerto Rico next month, which I'm excited about. I'm looking forward to enjoying the beautiful sandy beaches in San Juan and having fun, as we always do. I'm also looking forward to seeing people from different races and cultures coming together to celebrate African music and seeing the unity that Afro Nation brings to people.

Obi: SMADE and I are both Nigerian, so obviously we do these events to give a platform to artists from the African diaspora. We've done Portugal and it was a lot of the European diaspora. Then, we've done Ghana which is more like the brand coming home. But for me, I'm really looking forward to seeing America because we sold so many tickets to Americans interested in the brand, the music and culture, and the diaspora there.

Also, Puerto Rico is a really interesting place because it's America, but it's also the Caribbean. I can't wait to see how people are going to vibe there and what's going to happen. Every festival we've done so far in different places, they all have their own feel. I think that this is going to be a really interesting one. We've literally got people coming from every part of America. I think it's going to be super interesting and really cool.

Wave 1: Afro Nation Puerto Rico: Patrice Roberts, Beenie Man, 2Baba, Afro B & More

You've been announcing the Puerto Rico lineup in several waves, and it just keeps getting better! How did you choose who to work with?

Obi: When we kick off the lineup, SMADE and I always have a chat and go, "What do we think? Who do we think our crowd's going to be? What are they going to want to see and be interested in?" One of the reasons why we don't announce everything at the beginning is that we want to read the crowd. We read a lot of the messages, we get a lot of the DMs, have all our team telling us what they hear and we do adapt things on the fly. We say, "Okay, let's add that."

These events are something that haven't been done before. We have such a complex and layered culture in terms of from the east, to the south, to the west of Africa, and obviously all the diaspora as well. SMADE and I were saying, we need to go and do a trip to Angola and go and hang there, understand what's going on, so we can understand what the Portuguese side is at.

SMADE: Also, we research and see the best acts to be on the stage. The platform is a huge one. Our stage is one of the biggest stages in the world for the acts, to be honest. What we try to do is research, look out for people that deserve to be on that stage, both from Africa and the diaspora and everywhere really. There's so much talent.

Obi: It is a bit of a voyage of discovery for us. There's so much talent and we want to include everyone, and we want to include everyone for each destination, but it's a process even for us. We are constantly learning about new music and new artists. One thing that we're very fortunate in what we're doing right now is that there's just so much talent. It's a constantly evolving process.

Our crowd is very active on social media. You have some people like, "Why can't we have this person?" and it's always the same names. But we try and give other people opportunities. SMADE and I were laughing the other day because we can't wait to see a performance, I won't say who it is. We wanted to put these two acts together because when we know when they get on the stage, it's just going to be crazy and make new fans. They might be overlooked on social media, but we know that they will be one of the highlights. We try not to make it about booking the same people at every show. We really want to give a focus for everyone. Particularly in Puerto Rico, we are going to add some local acts but expect that year two, there'll be even more local acts.

It's funny, year one of Portugal, everyone was like, "All you guys are about is West Africa." We are West African, so we're understanding things as we go along. SMADE and I spent a lot of time in France this year, because a lot of French people are coming to our show and we didn't even push it for France that much. It was organic. Then we had a couple of shows in France. It was crazy. We realized the market is massive. So, we were like, "We've got to include more French acts next year."

Sometimes we need to push our customers to new things. You don't have to worry about maybe someone doesn't speak the language, because with music you can feel it. When people are on stage, even if they're singing in Spanish or Portuguese or French, we don't actually see an issue in mixing everything up. It can be quite powerful. It's not a worry for us if we think it breaks those barriers.

Watch: Burna Boy Talks 'African Giant,' Damian Marley & Angelique Kidjo Collab, Responsibility As A Global Artist

It sounds like it really keeps growing naturally as you meet more people and explore different scenes. Do you have any plans or ideas for future locations this year or next?

Obi: Yeah, it does. We've already confirmed another location for this year that will be announced in another month or so. We want to always let people focus on what's next. Right now it's Puerto Rico and Portugal, but yeah, we've got another really great location.

SMADE & Obi Asika at Afro Nation

SMADE & Obi onstage at Afro Nation | Photo Courtesy of Afro Nation

Looking back a bit, can you tell me a little more about what inspired you to start Afro Nation together?

SMADE: I think Obi and I, we noticed a lack of representation of our acts. We know how talented they are and how much work they put into their music, but we weren't seeing them on the big stages. So Obi and I came together and we were like, we're just going to do it ourselves. We didn't even think it was going to be this big.

Obi: It's exactly what SMADE said. I'm a talent agent and he is a promoter. One of the things you do as a talent agent is headline shows in order to get your artists on big stages at the festivals. We struck up a partnership quite quickly, because SMADE is incredible. He was selling tickets for Afrobeats where all the big promoters weren't able to do it. We both obviously had a passion for this music, this genre, the culture because of our background. We struck up a partnership and we started having real successes, selling big tickets in London.

It wasn't really translating to the major festivals booking the acts. They wouldn't give them what we perceived as the respect they deserved, and I know a lot of these guys, they're my friends. It was like, "Obi, man, we just got our heads around hip-hop a few years ago, and now you're telling us to put these Afrobeats acts and give them serious, high up billing? We started off as a rock festival." They were also like, all those Afrobeats fans, they won't come to the festivals. They don't buy tickets. Everyone said it's not possible and I was like, how can we be selling out the O2 Arena with WizKid or SMADE selling them out with Davido, and then you're telling me that they can't play this?

"At our events, all the fans are very passionate. It's more than just going to a festival. I feel like it's the pride in their heritage and their culture and in their identity." - Obi Asika

We were just like, "Look, we're just going to do ourselves." And when we did it, it just felt—we weren't expecting it. We just wanted to prove a point, and within 24 hours, all the tickets were gone. People decided to buy a flight, buy a hotel, buy the ticket and go to another country, all for their love of Afrobeats. That's not small, it's a real commitment. I think that's why at our events, all the fans are very passionate. It's more than just going to a festival. I feel like it's the pride in their heritage and their culture and in their identity. It's driven us to keep going. We're having so much fun with it.

It's a very unique situation. Our people are everywhere in every part of the globe and the fans are everywhere. The biggest thing is if you just went on the norms of our industry of music and you say, "Oh, this person isn't on the charts or that person isn't signed to that label," but Afrobeats doesn't actually move to that. One of the things, obviously the success of Wizkid, Burna Boy and Davido, all the younger guys coming through is now shining a light on that in the records world. In the live music world, I think Afro Nation has shocked a lot of people that this crowd will buy tickets in advance and [pauses] I don't know many festivals that most of the crowd are female. In Portugal, we had 85 percent female.

Afro Nation

The crowd at Afro Nation Portugal 2019 | Photo Courtesy of Afro Nation

That's so cool.

Obi: I tell you, they are really amazing. Watching, I felt, "This is girl power going on." It was crazy. We'd never seen anything like it. It's a very powerful statement. It was a very unique festival. [Afro Nation] is such a positive event and is very special to us. We're very proud of it.

When you think of Afro Nation, what song comes to mind?

SMADE: For me, it's Fela [Kuti], any sound that comes from the legend Fela. Because a lot of these new acts now and the ones that have done great, from Wizkid to Davido to Yemi Alade to Burna Boy, when you see them on stage, that right there, for me, is Fela. That reminds me of Afro Nation. It's not just in West Africa alone. If you look at the highlife artists or the dancehall artists in Ghana, Shatta Wale, Stonebwoy, the way they present their performances and all the stuff that they do on stage just reminds me of Fela.

https://twitter.com/afronation/status/1232726873614028800

🇬🇭 Afro Nation is all about celebrating & promoting our culture. Not only do we want to have fun, we also want to make sure that we do a little something extra for the beautiful countries who host us.

Thank you to everyone involved and thank you Ghana. đŸ™đŸŸ ⁣#TogetherWeMove 🌍 pic.twitter.com/JL5bxJfn47

— AfroNation (@afronation) February 26, 2020

From your perspective, what you think real diversity and inclusion looks like in the music event space?

SMADE: Honestly with this, it's hard to define because everyone's got a different perspective of what equality looks like. However, right now in the music industry, I think we are heading in the right direction although we still have a long way to go. There needs to be more recognition of all types of genres.

That's the beauty of Afro Nation. Even though the most [focus is on] Afrobeats and African music and the culture, we also infuse the Jamaican acts. Like in Portugal, we had Busy Signal, Buju Banton. And there's the different genres, there's your Afroswing, soca, bashment, reggae, and then Afrobeats. There's also hip-hop. We bring everybody together as one on our stages. We had acts from the U.S., the U.K. and then also from the Caribbean and Africa. Bringing them all together to celebrate the African culture and music in Portugal was a great experience and feeling. The way everybody just connected, I felt like it was part of it.

Obi: I really agree with what SMADE said. To be honest with you, as we said before, it's ever-evolving. As an event and as a brand, we are constantly learning about new genres and what different parts of the world are listening to. It's just about trying to push the envelope. There's a lot of people involved in Afro Nation, from all different parts of the world, putting the show together. We're a very diverse brand and company, but we're always trying to do more. We all have to strive to include everyone and just give everyone an opportunity to do their thing. I think we're a very diverse event. I don't think there's many events that have French, Portuguese, Spanish and English speaking artists.

At our first couple of events, we were very aware that we didn't have enough female acts. There's a lot more female acts for Puerto Rico, and that is something that we have to check ourselves on a little bit to make sure. You just can't be lazy with it. Sometimes, you have to just take your time and find new acts. Maybe if your first choice wasn't available, take a risk on a younger act or newer act. It's important.

Read: Beyonce Shares Epic Track List For 'The Lion King: The Gift:' JAY-Z, Kendrick Lamar, Mr. Eazi, Shatta Wale & Many More

What is your biggest hope, for the next five or so years, in connecting the African diaspora through music and entertainment?

SMADE: My biggest hope is to connect and to use this platform to unify not only the Africans in the diaspora but also for other races as well to also experience and know the African culture. I'll give you an example. We just finished Afro Nation Ghana, and we had people from different races and different culture come down to Ghana. We had [Jamaican act] Popcaan buy a house in Ghana, and shown interest in Africa. We have people that never ever thought they would be in Africa celebrating, leaving their homes, or coming with their families to celebrate in Africa during the festive period.

Obi: Yeah, you were right, SMADE. It was crazy, wasn't it? We'd see the tickets sales and be, "Russia?" Russia, Australia, Ukraine


SMADE: Right. It was amazing. This is what Afro Nation is doing. This can bring unity amongst everyone, every one of us. I hope the generation coming behind can also be inspired by the growth of the industry, and we can have many more superstar talent like Wizkid, Davido, Burna Boy, Tiwa Savage, Yemi Alade. And even the French-speaking and the Portuguese—there's Afro Portuguese now. From Afro Nation Portugal there are people trying to connect with the [Portuguese] culture, people going back home to check their DNA and all that stuff. This is what we're doing. This is what Afro Nation stands for, unifying.

Obi: I know for me, to be honest with you, I've got two real hopes. I want more, like SMADE's saying, of all these young artists coming through. I just want them to get through and become superstars, so we can have more headliners to keep pushing the industry forward. Now, in Europe anyway, every festival is booking Afrobeats, so half of our job's done. We want to see more commercial festivals booking Afrobeats. Those like Coachella, Reading and Leeds, Lollapalooza, we want to see them booking these acts. That helps the whole machine of it.

We got Ghana done and we're very proud of all we achieved because it's very difficult, as there's no infrastructure of the industry. Ghana is an amazing place. A lot of things work in Ghana like the roads, the airport. It's a safe place, it's super cool, but the entertainment industry, they've got lots of artists but there's no festival. You can't just call up someone and say, "Oh yeah, bring me this fence in and bring me this sound." It was really tough and we really put ourselves on the line because it's very expensive doing these events. But, we came through it, we produced something that we're proud of but we want to build it. We want to help keep building the African entertainment industry, because there's so much potential, there's so many acts.

Burna Boy Announces 2020 'Twice As Tall' World Tour

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Afro Nation

Afro Nation Portugal 2019

Photo: Andre Machado /Mai Magazine

News
Afro Nation PR: Patrice Roberts, Beenie Man, More afro-nation-puerto-rico-patrice-roberts-beenie-man-2baba-afro-b-more

Afro Nation Puerto Rico: Patrice Roberts, Beenie Man, 2Baba, Afro B & More

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The four-day music festival features global artists making waves, highlighting the biggest players in Afro-fusion, reggae, dancehall, soca and more
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Nov 5, 2019 - 1:54 pm

Today, Afro Nation Puerto Rico announced the first wave of its (stacked!) inaugural lineup, featuring Beenie Man, Burna Boy, Chronixx, Davido, 2Baba and Patoranking as headliners.

Following this summer's sold-out Afro Nation Portugal, the 2nd edition of the fest will make its North American debut beachside in San Juan, Puerto Rico, March 18–21, 2020.

The four-day music festival features artists from around the world making waves on a global scale, highlighting the biggest players in Afro-fusion, reggae, dancehall, hip-hop, soca and other black-led musical movements. As the press release states, the new event was "founded on good vibes and #BlackExcellence."

In addition to GRAMMY-winning King Of dancehall Beenie Man, other Jamaican acts on the first-round lineup include 27-year-old GRAMMY-nominated reggae prince Chronixx, reggae/dancehall singer Kranium and rising dancehall queen Shenseea.

Afro Nation

Afro Nation Portugal 2019 | Photo: Samuel Martins

Nigeria's rich, diverse Afro-fusion scene are headliners Burna Boy, 2Baba and Patoranking, as well as singers Rotimi and Teni. South-African poet and singer Busiswa, who is featured on Beyoncé's Lion King: The Gift album, will also bring heat to the fest.

One of Trinidad's First Ladies of Soca, Patrice Roberts, will also perform, as well as rapper Afro B, a leading force in U.K.'s rising Afrowave sound. Ghanaian dancehall artist Stonebwoy rounds out Afro Nation Puerto Rico's initial lineup, with "loads more [artists] TBA."

https://twitter.com/AfroNationPR/status/1191719325213831170

Wave 1 HAS OFFICIALLY BEEN ANNOUNCED! 🎉🎉@kingbeenieman, @burnaboy, @chronixxmusic & @iam_davido are headlining #AfroNationPuertoRico đŸ‡”đŸ‡·

🎟 Early Access tickets, Thursday 9am⁣⁣⁣ EST
🎟 General sale, Friday 9am⁣⁣⁣ EST pic.twitter.com/YSKjwVsDmH

— AfroNationPuertoRico (@AfroNationPR) November 5, 2019

The ticket pre-sale opens Thurs., Nov. 7 at 9 a.m. EST, with general sales opening up the following day. More info on the fest, as well as the email sign up for pre-sale tickets can be found on its website here.

Sudan Archives Talks Mystery, Representation & Embracing Duality On 'Athena'

Beyoncé

Beyoncé

Photo: Ian West/PA Images/Getty Images

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Beyonce's Lion King Album: JAY-Z, Mr. Eazi, More beyonce-shares-epic-track-list-lion-king-gift-jay-z-kendrick-lamar-mr-eazi-shatta-wale

Beyonce Shares Epic Track List For 'The Lion King: The Gift:' JAY-Z, Kendrick Lamar, Mr. Eazi, Shatta Wale & Many More

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The GRAMMY-winning star of the Disney remake will share more details about her curated album in an exclusive interview on ABC
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Jul 16, 2019 - 3:07 pm

Today, GRAMMY-winning multi-hyphenate Beyoncé offered the world yet another gift, the stacked track list of the forthcoming The Lion King-inspired album she executive produced. The 14-song LP features some of the hottest talent from the States and Africa, including her co-star Donald Glover aka Childish Gambino, her husband JAY-Z and past-collaborator Kendrick Lamar. Rising American artists Tierra Whack, 070 Shake and Jessie Reyez also contribute to tracks, as well as Nigerian powerhouses Mr Eazi, Burna Boy, WizKid, Tiwa Savage, Tekno and Yemi Alade, plus Ghanaian dancehall artist Shatta Wale, Cameroonian artist Salatiel and South Africa's Busiswa and Moonchild Sanelly.

Both the The Lion King: The Gift album and the new CGI-animated film will be released this Fri., July 19. The Lion King Soundtrack, along with Beyoncé's powerful new track "Spirit," which finds a home on both albums, was released digitally last week. The film's soundtrack and score were composed by GRAMMY-winner Hans Zimmer, with "Spirit" coming from Zimmer, Lebo M. and Beyoncé.

.@Beyonce on “Spirit”: “The soundtrack is a love letter to Africa
it becomes visual in your mind. It's a soundscape.”

See more TONIGHT on '#TheLionKing Can You Feel the Love Tonight? with @RobinRoberts' special at 8pmET on @ABCNetwork! https://t.co/mfhnDwDPg8 pic.twitter.com/mADrEkn1Gy

— Good Morning America (@GMA) July 16, 2019

Beyoncé offers vocals on 10 of the tracks on The Gift, including on "The Nile" with Lamar, "Mood 4 Eva" with JAY and Gambino and on "Brown Skin Girl" with her daughter Blue Ivy Carter, WizKid and St. Jhn.

"This soundtrack is a love letter to Africa and I wanted to make sure we found the best talent from Africa, and not just use some of the sounds and did my interpretation of it. I wanted it to be authentic to what is beautiful about the music in Africa," Beyoncé told ABC News in a segment aired on Good Morning America earlier today.

This clip is from her interview with GMA Anchor Robin Roberts; the full Q&A will air on ABC tonight, along with a premiere of the music video for "Spirit."

"We've kind of created our own genre and I feel like the soundtrack is the first soundtrack where it becomes visual in your in your mind. The soundscape is more than just the music because each song tells the story of the film," Queen Bey added.

More: Beyonce Gives A Moving Speech At The 2019 GLAAD Media Awards: "LGBTQI Rights Are Human Rights"

The original Lion King movie was released in 1994 and featured music written by Elton John and Tim Rice, including "Circle Of Life" and "Can You Feel The Love Tonight." Those now-classic songs earned the pair four nominations at the 37th GRAMMY Awards. John earned a fifth nod and a win; "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" earned him a GRAMMY for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. The dynamic duo also offered the creative genius to a majority of new soundtrack.

Today has been a big day for Beyoncé; her moving Homecoming documentary received six Emmy nominations. Along with the star-studded new album, you can finally watch the Beyoncé and Glover-starring film this Fri., July 19. If you can't wait, you can also tune into her interview with Robin Roberts airing tonight, July 16, at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

Carlos Santana On Woodstock & The Power Of Music: "These People Wanted The Same Things We Want Today"

Gelareh Rouzbehani

Gelareh Rouzbehani

Photo: Daniel Prakopcyk

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Why A&R Matters: 7 Women Share Their Experiences why-ar-matters-streaming-era-7-women-share-their-experiences

Why A&R Matters In The Streaming Era: 7 Women Share Their Experiences

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We spoke with women working in A&R-related roles across labels and other music organizations to learn about why, even with streaming dominating the industry, their jobs are more vital than ever
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
May 2, 2019 - 10:41 am

As we continue to celebrate 20-year anniversaries of great albums from 1999, one can't help but reflect how different the music industry is today.

For instance, instead of purchasing a physical copy of an album from your go-to music chain, nowadays audiences primarily consume music via streaming services like Spotify or Apple Music. And if they want to hear something new, they simply turn to computer-generated algorithms that can recommend what you might like based on what you've already listened to. Artists, meanwhile, can simply upload their music straight to streaming services, effectively cutting out industry gatekeepers and middlemen who once offered exclusive access to distribution.  

But just because it's easier to hear and share music with the world in 2019, that doesn't mean it's become simpler to write a great song or keep people's attention.

That's where A&R—which stands for "artists and repertoire"—is still highly relevant. An A&R team's goal is to not only bring in the talent to a label or publisher, but to also help the artist develop their sound, find new collaborators and make sure they have all the tools and support they need to continue to succeed.

We spoke with seven women working in A&R-related roles across labels and other music organizations to learn about what A&R looks like in 2019, creating safe, fairer spaces for women in the music industry, helping artists capture audiences' ever-waning attention, and why, even with streaming dominating the industry, their jobs are more important than ever.

Artists Matter, And A&R Does Too

One thing is clear: With an abundance of choice comes the danger of oversaturation. When A&R professionals step in, they help artists navigate details of the industry and make sure their voices cut through the noise.

As Latoya Lee, VP of Creative Services at Atlas Music Publishing (which has offices in the musical hotspots of New York, Los Angeles, Nashville and Atlanta) puts it: "More so than ever the market is very oversaturated, and I think we're in this space where everyone thinks they're well equipped for everyone's job and that's not the case
 most of the time it's the team behind that person that really helps you stand out."

Meanwhile, Taylor Lindsey, VP of A&R at Sony Music Nashville, explains how the shift in country music, where more now performers are also songwriters, has moved the focus of their work to encourage more creative collabs. "I think that where before A&R was really just about finding songs and giving them to artists now it's more of an opportunity for us to help go 'okay, here's a writer that you haven't thought to write with yet. We need to get you in a room with them,'" she said.

Stephanie Wright, who also works in country music as the VP of A&R at Universal Music Group Nashville, made the same point about the shifts in country. She added that A&R "is a different process for a new artist or one that is three or four albums in, then it's more about how they're staying relevant."

Gelareh Rouzbehani, CEO of Rouz Group, an A&R and artist management company she founded in Los Angeles after her time working on the label side, speaks to the vital role of A&R within the greater structure of a label. "I think A&R is the nucleus of the record label; without the right song, the right music, you don't really have a product to push, and other departments can't do their work. I think it always starts with the music... and then from there we build on."

Allison Jones, SVP of A&R at Big Machine Label Group, another major Nashville label, echoed this. "A&R is the funnel through which music gets sent whether it be to a record label or a publishing company or to an artist directly. The term artist and repertoire means the artist and the repertoire of songs that they sing. So as long as there's music there has to be someone that is going to make sure it gets funneled to the right place."

She continued, highlighting that even as the digital music era makes music discovery easier, it is still important to have an A&R team focused on finding the gold. "I think now more than ever it's really key to have that front line of A&R that's scouring all those [music and social media] platforms, in addition to the good old fashion meetings and the good old fashion going to shows and showcases," Jones added.

Data Helps, But It Can Only Reveal So Much

Speaking of the digital music age, sometimes when an artist's streaming accolades are shared, it can sound like someone reading random numbers off a spreadsheet. But with some context, streaming numbers and other data can show us a lot and help an artist and their team test out what resonates with listeners and what doesn't. As several women pointed out, streaming numbers come from real people listening to your music, which is, of course, important to pay attention to.

Everyone seems to agree that while looking at various data points available across streaming and social platforms can help an artist and their team make more informed decisions, it is important to take it with grain of salt and balance it with the irreplaceable gut instinct. Barbara Sealy, who is the Managing Partner at SB Music Management in Los Angeles, pointed to exactly that.

"Data is hugely helpful but it could also be a hindrance. Data can tell you what's popular now, but not necessarily tell you what's good and that's where you have to have go along on gut instincts. I have to really take that data and know how to break it down, but also know how to balance it," Sealy says.

She points to different ways you can look at data, like comparing streaming numbers for songs before and after an artist tours and to dig into website data to see where people are listening to their music, as they should be touring there.

Quality Always Matters

While the current musical landscape may make it easier for artists to share music and potentially snag a blip of listeners' attention with a viral moment, as Wright points to, they still need to be ready for this moment, and to have what it takes to keep their attention. "Attention comes quicker; streaming gets your music out and exposure can come fast, but they may not have been prepared for it."

She added that as someone working in A&R, "With the vast amount of music that is out there now, I think it's going to become important, as far as A&R goes, to really suss out what things are authentic and have that true artistry about them, that will have lasting power."

Wright continued, "You want to invest in the long haul
[to ask yourself] how do you get the consumer the authentic things that they're going to want to follow and to continue stay engaged with?"

Rouzbehani underscored the power of quality music. "I think music is cyclical, and it comes in waves. I'm a firm believer that great artists and quality products will always win in the end. I hope that we continue to work toward elevating those that are actually putting out amazing bodies of work," she said.

Sealy echoed this as she talked about the difficulty she has seen some of her artists face that don't fit neatly into genre boxes. Even though it may take time, she firmly believes that in the end, quality music will always see its time of day. "When good music comes out, everybody will absolutely support it. And we've seen that time and time again," she said.

A&R Is Still About Opening Doors...

Ashley Calhoun, VP of A&R at Pulse Media in Los Angeles, spoke to the importance of opening the door for others to help continue to create a more equal playing field across the music industry.

"I think everyone who's in a position and who has the ear to the executives and consultants that make those decisions should speak up. I think that's super important because if we don't say anything about it, nothing's going to change," Calhoun explained.

She continued, emphasizing the importance of practicing what you preach. "We just really have to have each other's backs because if we don't, we can't expect men or someone else to. Even though there's a lot of great men that really support this vision, we have to just be proactive."


To Keep Moving The Music Industry To Be More Inclusive & Fair

Lindsey said that while she is proud of the many female artists on Sony Nashville, she and her colleagues recognize that representation in country music is an issue. "It's definitely something that we're paying attention to and we are pushing harder and we are pushing back at because there are female artists in town that deserve to be here."

She added to this point; "I would really love to see more diversity especially in country music
There are so many great artists out there that really kind of don't necessarily fall into a genre. They have country sensibilities or they might have some pop melodies, or they have pop sensibilities and country lyrics
So because of those things I think that it would be really great just to see country open up a little bit more and have more diversification."

Lindsey also stressed the importance of the music industry as a whole coming to a decision as to "what the fair and just compensation needs to be for songwriters and artists across the board," an important point which came up in all of the conversations.

Lee shared her biggest hope for the industry is to see "more black women in positions to make decisions." She continued, underscoring what she sees as her role to help make this happen.

"And A&R more so than anything, because we have lots of women in marketing and lots of women in promotions and radio, and we have lot of women in publicity and those positions, but we don't have enough black women in A&R. That is very important to me, because that's going to be the defining moment in my career, being able to say that I molded the next generation of young women music executives, but also young black women executives."

Like Lee, each woman we spoke with clearly saw a key part of their role in A&R as not only opening doors for the artists they work with, but for other women looking to get their foot in the door on the other side of the music industry. They all spoke of who helped champion them to get their start in the industry, with several pointing out they didn't have female mentors to work with or look up to on their teams. This is why they see female to female mentorship as another important part of their career.

The Importance Of Female Mentorship

Sealy emphasized the importance of making the time for other women, even if it's just a few minutes to answer a few questions. "We all need to be talking to each other
And mentoring is really, really important
We really need, as women, to stop and make a little bit of time for that next girl coming up. Even if we've kind of got to the top of where we are, we need to ensure opportunities are there for others, and especially create an opportunity to be that woman mentor."

Each of the women echoed the importance of mentorship and dialogue in some way during our conversations. Rouzbehani eloquently summarized the importance of empowerment and encouragement.

"I think it's so powerful when women come together," she said. "We've seen it happen time and time again in history, and in the industry now we're seeing more of it, and it's really making an impact. Younger girls, whether they're on social media or they see if from afar, they're a part of this, I think are influenced and inspired by that."

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