Words by Nick Slay
At the BMI, “How I Wrote That Song” panel, stars show they are truly fans of each other’s work.
As part of Grammy Weekend in NYC, BMI gathered some of the biggest names in music to talk about songwriting, the state of digital streaming, and the back stories behind some of your favorite songs. Held at the legendary Apollo Theatre in Harlem, BMI members, aspiring singer/songwriters, and industry personnel filled the historic theatre to listen to their peers discuss some of our favorite records. Multi-genre hit songwriter and musician Mark Batson even attributed some of his success to The Source’s publisher L. Londell McMillan who saved him from making a grave childhood mistake involving firearms while growing up in Brooklyn. The star studded affair was hosted by Catherine Brewton the Vice President of creative at Broadcast Music Inc.(BMI), which is a performing rights organization that helps collect royalties for artists and songwriters as well as support them in an ever changing music industry.
Catherine Brewton first introduced Faith Evans, as the “Princess of Hip Hop Soul,” whose legacy is cemented in the history of hip hop, not only for her iconic records as part of Bad Boy, but as the former wife of the late Notorious B.I.G. (arguably one of the greatest rappers of all time). Faith, who just released, “The King and I” in 2017, was very candid about her origins in the business. She spoke about never thinking about being an artist and being a church girl focused on songwriting. That all changed when the “Burnin’ Up” singer got her chance to sing a line for an early Usher album in the studio with Diddy. Evans discussed her ability to arrange harmonies, which so impressed the founder of a Bad Boy he offered her a deal on the spot. She also revealed her ability to read and write music, but in her own her own words, “could never sit still long enough” to learn to play. The singer also reminisced about the honor of working with the late great Whitney Houston on “Heartbreak Hotel.” Faith humorously told a behind the scenes story of how Houston to Faith to “Pick it up” while recording the vocals for the song (Faith remarking that she came up singing behind the beat). One of the highlights of the panel when multi-platinum producer Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins came on stage, and used the opportunity to put Faith on the spot about finally coming to work in the studio with him. A sentiment also echoed by fell hit-maker RedOne about having the chance to work with the singer/songwriter.
RedOne the producer who is not only responsible for a number of Lady Gaga’s chart topping hits, but for crafting her sound on the first album was also part of the panel. T
he “Bad Romance” producer spoke about being African and humble beginnings growing up in Morocco. He said that growing up in Morocco he had a chance to hear music from all over the world, yet the opportunity to be a star in America seemed like a dream(especially people from his hometown that never thought he would make it). That all changed when he (RedOne already established in Europe this point) met Gaga, who had just been dropped from a previous label, and the two vibed so well that they quickly got together in the studio and began working on what would be the massively successful debut album. RedOne considers himself to be a melody guy, and stressed the need for producers to also be musicians. Putting the crowd onto a funny secret, when a fan at the Apollo asked him about what equipment he uses, he made joke that he just used stock Logic sounds for the Gaga hits which eventually the production software would name after him. He also brought up how Brandy’s “Human” was originally written for Michael Jackson and about the wealth of work that he created with the deceased “Prince of Pop” that was never released. One of the most touching moments of the panel is when Jerkin’s was brought up on stage and RedOne ran up to hug the producer, expressing how much he looked up to the producer and was fan of his work.
