Tag Archives: Bill Withers

Blacc to Appear at This Year’s ASCAP “I Create Music” Expo

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Aloe Blacc is about to Expo himself…

The 38-year-old Panamanian American singer-songwriter is among the 17 hit songwriters and producers announced for the 12th annual ASCAP “I Create Music” Expo, which runs April 13-15 at the Loews Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles.

Aloe Blacc

Blacc joins a roster that includes Desmond Child, Ashley Gorley, Darrell Brown and ASCAP president Paul Williams.

The Expo will also feature sessions with a new generation of songwriters, including: Bibi Bourelly and Deputy who teamed up for Rihanna‘s “Bitch Better Have My Money” (Deputy was also a producer on J.Cole‘s 2016 4 Your Eyez Only); the production trio Captain Cuts, whose hits include a co-write on Walk The Moon‘s “Shut Up and Dance;” and country songwriter Matt Jenkins, whose wrote “Setting the World on Fire,” recorded by Kenny Chesney featuring P!nk.

“We are elated to have some of today’s top songwriters and producers joining us for this year’s ASCAP “I Create Music” EXPO,” said Williams in a statement. “Some have been creating music for a long time; others have just enjoyed the success of their first hit song. All will be excited and ready to share their personal experiences and hard-won knowledge with ASCAP EXPO attendees.” Williams, a multiple-Grammy and Oscar winning songwriter, will moderate EXPO’s annual legislative panel.

Other panelists include: London-based producer Harmony Samuels (Fifth Harmony, Ariana Grande, Chris Brown, Jennifer Lopez, Maroon 5); Ryan Leslie, a Grammy-nominated producer and musician who founded SuperPhone and has produced songs for Britney Spears, Beyonce and New Edition; Brett McLaughlin and Britten Newbill were co-writers on Daya’s 2015 single “Hide Away;” songwriter/producers Matt Rad and Steve James (“In the Name of Love,” Martin Garrix feat. Bebe Rexha); Big Taste (“Company,” Justin Bieber); and Rooty (“Too Little Too Late,”Jojo).

As for the veterans: Blacc attended his first Expo in 2010 and soon after worked with Avicii on their hit “Wake Me Up,” which sold over 11 million units worldwide.

At 2015’s Expo Blacc interviewed the legendary Bill Withers;

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) has some 600,000 members and represents more than 10 million copyrighted works. It is owned and governed by its writer and publisher members.

Rodriguez Lands Three Albums in the Top 30 on Australia’s ARIA Albums Chart

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They’re really searching for Sixto Rodriguez in the Land Down Under…

The 72-year-old Mexican American folk musician, who returned to the spotlight after being the subject of the Oscar-winning documentary Searching for Sugar Man, has landed three albums in the top 30 of this week’s Australian sales chart.

Sixto Rodriguez

Rodriguez’s chart surge has been fuelled by the announcement of his upcoming national tour and the recent free-to-air television broadcast of his award-winning documentary.

The first Rodriguez album Cold Fact (Inertia) from 1969 is currently at No. 11, outpacing its previous chart peak of No. 23. Also on this week’s ARIA Albums chart, the Searching for Sugar Man (Legacy/Sony) soundtrack is at No. 22 and his second and final studio set Coming From Reality from 1971 (Light in the Attic/Inertia) is at No. 25. The chart is led this week by Ariana Grande’s My Everything.

Searching For Sugar Man tells the story of how the protest singer from Detroit was all but forgotten in his homeland, but an unlikely legend in South Africa, where his political and personal themes resonated with the blossoming anti-apartheid movement (he cut two albums of soulful folk rock for Sussex, label home to Bill Withers). The film tracks the search for Rodriguez, a journey undertaken by a few fans and journalists in South Africa who cherished his music. It won the Oscar in 2013 for best documentary, and Rodriguez is now enjoying the international attention that eluded him in his prime.

The film aired August 24 on the SBS channel as a warm-up for Rodriguez’ Australian tour. He’ll visit Australia to play Brisbane (Convention Centre, Oct. 19), Sydney (Sydney Opera House, Oct. 21 and 23), Melbourne (Palais Theatre, Oct. 25 and 26), Adelaide (AEC Theatre, Oct. 29) and Perth (Kings Park & Botanic Garden, Nov. 7).

The singer-songwriter’s cult status has been assured in Australia since the mid-1970s, when his music gained airplay on Sydney AM radio station 2JJ (the precursor to Triple J) and he toured here finding limited success. He first performed Down Under in 1979, returning in 1981 when Midnight Oil joined him for some shows. He was last in Australia for 2013’s Bluesfest.