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Erika Ender

Photo by Dimitry Loiseau ​

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Quarantine Diaries: "Despacito" Co-Writer Erika Ender Is Getting "Back To The Basics"

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As the coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic continues to rock the music industry, the Recording Academy reached out to a few musicians to see how they were spending their days indoors
GRAMMYs
Apr 15, 2020 - 10:56 am

As the coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic continues to rock the music industry, the Recording Academy reached out to a few musicians to see how they were spending their days indoors. Today, "Despacito" co-writer Erika Ender, who just released a Quarantine-themed single "Back To The Basics," shares her Quarantine Diary.

Sunday, April 12

[8 a.m.–10 a.m.] I usually wake up around 8:00 am, do a 30-minute meditation, if not in bed, out in the balcony to get a little of vitamin D. Then, do some training online, with my personal trainer, who's been creating ways of keeping me working out using water bottles and whatever we have handy. :-) 

[10 a.m.–12 p.m.] After taking a shower, I have a smoothie (I mix some fresh fruits like banana, strawberry, papaya or pineapple and, sometimes, add some chia seeds or kale). Then I usually have a conference call with my team, since we are all working remotely, from home. Depending on the day, I start either working on ongoing matters of Erika the singer, the songwriter, the philanthropist or the producer/entrepreneur. Sometimes it feels like I need as much arms as an octopus, but I enjoy so much, each facet, that I don´t see myself only working on one of them. So I need lots of organization to make sure each project has the right amount of time and attention to get the best result, and my team helps me to achieve that. Today will be promo day.

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[12 p.m.–6 p.m.] Since I just released my new single "Back To The Basics" ("Cosas Que Echo De Menos"), today we had some interviews online for different media platforms . I'm sharing the need of spreading a message of love and trying to use this song as a tool for us to reconnect with the essentials in life, in such a vulnerable moment. I think we all need to do so, and make things better inside and out, when this quarantine moment ends. Between 1:00 p.m. and 1:30 p.m., I stopped for lunch (today I had vegan chili beans) and went back  online for the next interview. 

[6 p.m.–8 p.m.] After finishing all interviews I stopped to have some dinner and then got prepared to go online  at 7:00 p.m. (ET) on my instalive #EriKonversa (EriKonverses), a space I created to connect with collegues of the music and entertainment world, where, three times a week, we share their inspirational journey with our followers, and all they´ve learned through their life path and career experiences. Today my special guest was the amazing songwriter Desmond Child.

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[8 p.m.–12 a.m.] After finishing EriKonversa, I get to check some e-mails, organize the next day, talk to my family and friends, before going to bed and, then, around 10:30 p.m, I take a shower and lay down to either watch an uplifting movie or an interesting documentary, or read something until I fall asleep around 12 a.m.

This is what's going on during these quarantine days… I'm by myself, so, trying to be as positive and productive as possible. I do miss traveling and being close to my loved ones, but I do understand this is something we need to do in order to take care of ourselves and the whole world. I hope this moment becomes a wonderful lesson and we all become better human beings after understanding that this is just one big home called planet earth and we have to be the best version of ourselves to get the best out of it and each one of its living beings. Stay safe people. This shall pass… Love and peace.

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If you wish to support our efforts to assist music professionals in need, learn more about the Recording Academy's and MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund.

If you are a member of the music industry in need of assistance, visit the MusiCares website. 

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Shirley Manson (L) and Richard James Burgess (R) speak at SXSW 2019

Shirley Manson (L) and Richard James Burgess (R) speak at SXSW 2019

 

Photo: Mike Jordan/Getty Images for SXSW

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Learning In Quarantine: 5 Virtual Music Industry Conferences To Enhance Your Career

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The Recording Academy has compiled some of the free and low-cost online music industry conferences worth attending to help elevate your career and craft in 2020
John Ochoa
GRAMMYs
May 24, 2020 - 2:19 pm

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to halt the global live music industry, the concert business and artist community have shifted toward a novel online business model via livestreaming and digital concerts. Music industry conferences, too, have had to rethink their approach in the era of quarantine and stay-at-home orders. 

Luckily for aspiring music industry heads and artists alike, many conferences are going fully digital this year. 

Below, we've compiled some of the free and low-cost virtual music industry conferences worth attending to enhance your career and craft in 2020.

ASCAP Experience: Home Edition

When: Beginning May 28, every Thursday from 3-6 p.m. EST through the end of July

Cost: Registration is free and open to the public

Where: ASCAP Experience: Home Edition website

ASCAP, one of the leading performance-rights organizations (PRO) in the U.S., this month launches ASCAP Experience: Home Edition, a virtual version of their premier music industry conference, ASCAP Experience. The newly announced long-term digital initiative brings the best of ASCAP Experience—industry insight and firsthand know-how from executives and thought-leaders across all sectors of the music biz—directly to your home. Each week, the digital conference will tackle real-time industry topics, including monetization, music publishing and mental and physical wellness, and will feature leading songwriters, producers, music publishers and members of the ASCAP team.

Read: Performing Rights Organizations ASCAP, BMI & SESAC Join In Support Of MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund

The inaugural ASCAP Experience: Home Edition kicks off next week (May 28) with a stacked guest lineup featuring: two-time GRAMMY winner Shaggy alongside his manager and Cherrytree Records founder Martin Kierszenbaum; songwriters Whitney Phillips and Gian Stone, who will discuss "Stuck With U," the chart-topping super-collaboration from Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber; hit songwriter Priscilla Renea; and others.

Most programming will be available on-demand after each session for those unavailable to attend the live webcast.

Success With Music Virtual Music Conference 

When: May 29-31

Cost: Free

Where: Modern Musician website

Presented by music industry resource website Modern Musician, this three-day online conference is inviting 15 experts who'll discuss a wide range of topics geared toward artists looking to attract and grow their fan base and make a sustainable living out of their art.

Billed as "the biggest online music conference in the world," the 2020 Success With Music Virtual Music Conference will feature Taylor Swift's former manager Rick Barker and Bandsintown CEO Fabrice Sergent, as well as multiplatinum songwriters, producers and more. 

Topics will include music licensing, content marketing, social media, email marketing, brand marketing and more. 

Virtual Music Conference

When: June 4

Cost: £20 per ticket (approximately $24)

Where: Virtual Music Conference website

Billed as the "world's first online dance music conference," the aptly titled Virtual Music Conference is a brand-new online event focusing on the issues and topics affecting the global electronic and dance music world. Geared toward music biz newcomers and those looking to advance their careers, the one-day interactive event will comprise live and archived keynote speeches, panels and discussions with some of the leading artists and industry figures within the genre. 

Topics at the inaugural Virtual Music Conference will include live touring, monetization, social media, music rights, promotion, record labels and more. Confirmed speakers and guests include artists like Louie Vega, Mark Knight, Sacha Robotti and Judge Jules, as well as representatives from labels and companies like SoundCloud, Mixcloud, Beatport, Toolroom, Anjunabeats, BBC Radio 1 and Defected, among many others. 

Read: How Will Coronavirus Shift Electronic Music? Maceo Plex, Paul Van Dyk, Luttrell, Mikey Lion & DJ Manager Max Leader Weigh In

Virtual Music Conference, presented by house and techno imprint Toolroom Records and digital label services company Label Worx, will donate all profits from ticket sales to charities supporting the music industry during the COVID-19 pandemic.

All sessions will be recorded and made available for online viewing for those unable to attend the live webcast. 

Latin Alternative Music Conference (LAMC)

When: June 9-13

Cost: Free

Where: LAMC website

As the leading music conference specializing in Latin music and culture, Latin Alternative Music Conference (LAMC) has helped elevate the genre from a once-alternative scene to a global mainstream movement. Originally scheduled for July, LAMC 2020, which marks the conference's 21st annual installment, is going fully digital next month due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

This year's panel discussions will explore a number of pressing topics impacting the Latin music industry and artist community, including mental health for artists and creators, playlisting, music publishing, finance for musicians and entertainment companies and more. LAMC 2020 will also feature a special conversation with and celebration of the women making a difference in the Latin music industry.

Read: WATCH LIST: Online Concerts From BTS To COASTCITY To Catch During Coronavirus Quarantine

In addition to the panels, LAMC 2020 will also feature workshops, showcases and networking opportunities. While no artists have been announced yet, past performers include Julieta Venegas, Natalia Lafourcade, Ana Tijoux, Mon Laferte and others. 

International Music Education Summit

When: June 11-13

Cost: $97

Where: International Music Education Summit website

This three-day online conference and clinic is geared toward practical learning and applicable professional development for music educators and K-12 teachers. International Music Education Summit (IMES) livestreams workshops, clinics, performances, presentations and product demonstrations from music education experts from around the world. 

Read: How The Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation Has Been Quietly Helping Schools By Donating Musical Instruments

Topics will include copyright, adaptive music instruction for learners with disabilities, educational and music technology, ensemble recording and much more. The conference will also include livestreamed performances, including student performances and student ensembles.

IMES offers on-demand viewing of all the 2020 sessions for at least one year after the event as well as networking opportunities with other attendees via a private Facebook group. All attendees will also receive a professional development completion certificate after finishing the conference. 

Making Music In Quarantine: The Best Online Tools To Learn & Develop Your Sonic Skills

Carlos Santana performs at the 2020 Pre-GRAMMY Gala and GRAMMY Salute to Industry Icons

Carlos Santana performs at the 2020 Pre-GRAMMY Gala and GRAMMY Salute to Industry Icons

Photo: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Recording Academy

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Carlos Santana, Jane Fonda, Herbie Hancock, Kali Uchis And More Confirmed For "Artists United For Amazonia" Livestream Benefit

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Taking place Thursday, May 28, the online event will benefit the Amazon Emergency Fund, which supports indigenous communities and organizations in the Amazon basin who are facing threats from the COVID-19 pandemic
John Ochoa
GRAMMYs
May 23, 2020 - 12:02 pm

The creative, entertainment and music worlds are banding together to raise donations for the Amazon Emergency Fund, which supports indigenous communities and organizations in the Amazon basin who are facing threats from the COVID-19 pandemic, via a star-studded global livestream event. 

Taking place Thursday, May 28, at 5 p.m. PST/8 p.m. EST, the online benefit, dubbed the Artists United For Amazonia: Protecting The Protectors, will feature celebrities, activists and scientists from across various industries, including Carlos Santana, Peter Gabriel, Jane Fonda, Morgan Freeman, famed primatologist and anthropologist Jane Goodall and Brazilian environmental and indigenous activist and politician Sônia Guajajara, among many others. 

Hosted by "Game Of Thrones" actress Oona Chaplin, the livestream benefit will also feature "living-room musical performances, interviews, and calls to action," with confirmed performers including Herbie Hancock, Rocky Dawuni, Butterscotch Clinton, Brazilian GRAMMY nominee Ivan Lins and Brazilian GRAMMY winner Luciana Souza, Deadline reports. Other guests and participants include Kali Uchis, Chloe Smith from Rising Appalachia, Wade Davis and many others.

The livestream will be available via the event's website and Facebook page.

Launched last month, according to Deadline, the Amazon Emergency Fund raises and channels "resources to indigenous communities and grassroots organizations who face the COVID-19 emergency in the entire Amazon basin," according to a press release.

The fund's website states that "100% of each donation will go directly to Indigenous and Forest Communities and Organizations facing COVID-19 in the Amazon Rainforest." The fund will support Rapid Response Grants to provide services including: urgent COVID-19 prevention and care, food and medical supplies, emergency communications and evacuation, and more. 

The Amazon Emergency Fund is accepting donations now.

Read: Recording Academy And MusiCares Establish COVID-19 Relief Fund

As the coronavirus pandemic spreads across the Amazon Basin, the virus has killed 25 indigenous people in the rainforest and surrounding remote villages and more than 100 people in urban areas, according to The New York Times.

"As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads across the Amazon Basin, it threatens the lives and the future of indigenous peoples and traditional forest communities, the Guardians of the Forest," the Amazon Emergency Fund website states. "These populations are disproportionately vulnerable to contracting the illness due to the persistent lack of access to equal and adequate public services, such as housing and health care, and the consequences of centuries of colonization and racism.

"For over 500 years, indigenous peoples of the Amazon and across the Americas have faced invasions and loss of their ancestral territories, ethnic and socioeconomic discrimination, and the constant threat of physical and cultural extermination resulting in displacement, disease, and genocide. Now, indigenous peoples – particularly the elders, wisdomkeepers and those living in voluntary isolation – are gravely at risk by the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. Traditional forest communities are similarly threatened, including  riverine, quilombola, rubber-tappers, and other extractive populations, who have been defending the forest with their lives."

Dave Matthews, The Avett Brothers, Brandi Carlile, The Lumineers And More Confirmed For Colorado Music Relief Fund Virtual Benefit Concert

ASCAP Experience: Home Edition logo

ASCAP Experience: Home Edition logo

Courtesy Photo: ASCAP

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ASCAP Announces ASCAP Experience: Home Edition Virtual Conference: Shaggy, Whitney Phillips, Gian Stone, Priscilla Renea And More Confirmed

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The free, weekly online series, which will take place every Thursday starting May 28 through the end of July, will focus on real-time music industry topics and will feature hit songwriters, producers and special guests
John Ochoa
GRAMMYs
May 22, 2020 - 12:03 pm

Performance-rights organization (PRO) ASCAP is taking the ASCAP Experience, its premier music industry conference, online this year. Rebranded as the ASCAP Experience: Home Edition, the annual conference will be reformatted as a free virtual event beginning May 28 and continuing weekly as a long-term initiative.

The online series, which will take place every Thursday from 3-6 p.m. EST through the end of July, launches next week with conversations and sessions featuring: two-time GRAMMY winner Shaggy alongside his manager and Cherrytree Records founder Martin Kierszenbaum; songwriters Whitney Phillips and Gian Stone, who will discuss "Stuck With U," the chart-topping super-collaboration from Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber; hit songwriter Priscilla Renea; and others. ASCAP Chairman and President Paul Williams will kick off the event with a special welcome message. 

Future programming—which will focus on real-time topics including monetization, music publishing and mental and physical wellness and will feature songwriters, producers, music publishers and members of the ASCAP team, among other issues and special guests—will be announced in the coming weeks. Most programming will be available on-demand after each session for those unavailable to attend the live webcast.

Read: WATCH LIST: Online Concerts From BTS To COASTCITY To Catch During Coronavirus Quarantine

ASCAP Experience 2020, which was to mark the event's 15th installment, was originally scheduled to take place last month (April 1-3) in Los Angeles. The event was canceled in March due to the spread of the coronavirus.

Previously known as the ASCAP "I Create Music" EXPO, the conference rebranded as ASCAP Experience last September; the 2020 installment was to be the first edition under the new ASCAP Experience banner.

Head to the ASCAP Experience: Home Edition website to view the full programming for each week and to register for the ongoing event. Registration is free and open to the public, "regardless of which performing rights organization they belong to," according to a press release announcing the event. 

Performing Rights Organizations ASCAP, BMI & SESAC Join In Support Of MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund 

GRAMMYs
News

OP-ED: How Music Can Help Lead Recovery

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Music—as an amenity and an economy—can play an active role in recovery, but to do so it requires a city being intentional with how it supports, governs and interacts with music
Shain Shapiro
GRAMMYs
May 14, 2020 - 8:54 am

The recorded music industry grew by 8.6% in 2019, according to the IFPI. Before the pandemic, global ticket sales for concerts amounted to $25bn, according to PwC. We enjoy a sector that has grown, pre COVID-19, at more than twice the rate of the rest of the economy. As the crisis has impacted the business, it has not hampered our access to, and use of, music. Its ubiquity is as prevalent as it has ever been. Global Citizen utilized musicians to raise $127m for the World Health Organization, many of them Recording Academy members. Music Instrument sales are surging. Even the World Economic Forum is singing music’s praises, declaring that Beethoven can help us combat social isolation.

But while we’re all listening to more music, or using it to connect with friends, how music functions in governance is in crisis. The sector is in significant decline. Over 1000 music venues in the U.S. are threatened with closure. 92% of U.K.’s independent music festivals are threatened. Many of these businesses and their staff do not qualify for assistance programs. This is because there is a disconnect between our usage of music—enjoying what is created—and creating systems to support, remunerate and regulate those responsible for it: the creators. If this crisis demonstrates the importance music has to all of us, then we must change how it is treated in governance. 

This happened nationally in the United States in regards to copyright, with the passage of the Music Modernization Act. Some music businesses are also benefiting from CARES. But at a local level, there’s next to no governance, policy or intentional strategies to support music making, music businesses and music ecosystems. This crisis gives us an opportunity to change that. 

That’s why I am launching #BetterMusicCities, a campaign to ensure that music—in all its forms and functions—is represented in civic decisions around recovery. Music—as an amenity and an economy—can play an active role in recovery, but to do so it requires a city being intentional with how it supports, governs and interacts with music. This is because music ecosystems are interlinked. A more robust music education system produces more songwriters; such demand increases the value and need for professional recording studios or music venues. More content increases the chances of some of it being commercially successful, which generates direct and indirect economic benefit and taxable receipts for the city, and so on. 

But we lack a blueprint. A handful of cities—Austin, Nashville, Seattle, New York, Chicago—have music officers, or public support structures to support musicians. The U.S. alone has 310 cities over 100,000 people and thousands more smaller than that. If music had a voice across a city, town or region’s economic development structure, a wider set of incentives, employment initiatives or training schemes could be created. If music was intentionally strategized in tourism, more artists would be included in campaigns and paid for it. If music was part of an inclusive growth, health and wellbeing framework, most after-school music programs would exist, more music would be included in care homes and more community festivals would emerge. All this requires a strategy regardless of size, location or social structure. This is why I have written a Music Cities Resilience Handbook.

The handbook outlines nine strategies all cities create a better music ecosystem as part of a recovery plan. They are:

  1. Put Artists To Work: Incentivise Creation From Crisis
  2. Convert Creativity Into Community Investment Vehicles
  3. Create a City Music Registry
  4. Start A Cultural Infrastructure Plan
  5. Create Emergency Preparedness Plans (Venue, Event, City-wide)
  6. Ensure Music, Arts and Culture Language Is Included In Policy Frameworks
  7. Commit to Genre Agnosticism
  8. Plan and Develop a Night Time Economy Policy
  9. Set-Up City-Wide Artist Compensation Policies, Music Liaison Services & Fair Play Schemes

The principles are simple. Ensure that artists—no matter the discipline—are paid fairly for their work. This can be done by working with PROs to create a local music registry, setting up a city-wide artist compensation policy, or committing to fair play and fair ticketing practices. It requires cities to democratize any support offered to the sector, so no genres are prioritized over others. It requires deliberate, specific and intentional policy to be written, voted on and enshrined in council ordinances, frameworks and resolutions, outlining what one’s music ecosystem is, how it is best supported and how to best manage it. It requires a city or place to map—and keep updated—its cultural infrastructure so residents and policymakers know what they have, where it is and how it fits together. 

This is an ambitious framework, but it is doable. It requires a change in mindset. We need to prioritise the external value of music, rather than focusing on its internal value. If we outline the value of music to society, to our health and wellbeing and to the economy as a whole, it’ll demonstrate a need to reform the relationship between music and cities—to create a new set of music cities who embrace music as a recovery tool.

Think about music like a public park. Parks are for everyone, but they require investment, maintenance and structure. Some parts can be closed off for private endeavours, while others satisfy certain sections of the population, such as playgrounds. But we all accept parks are part of life and that they need to be paid for. We all use parks, like we all listen to music. If we value music—across genre, discipline and sector—we should be treating it both as an amenity and an economy. This requires policy, process and structure.

The report is your guide. Join me to help build #BetterMusicCities.

How The Global Coronavirus Pandemic Is Directly Impacting Songwriters, Musicians And Artists

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