Germaine Franco is ready to inspire fellow worldly women…
The Latina award-winning film composer, who was the first woman to score a Disney animated feature film with Encanto, will be among the panelists for “Worldly Women in Music,” a special discussion on March 8 as ASCAP Experience kicks off its 2022 program.
Franco will be among three of the industry’s leading composers and songwriters, part of the PRO’s celebration of Women’s History Month.
She’ll appear alongside Cuban-born Pulitzer Prize winning composer Tania León; and 2016 ASCAP London Songwriter of the Year Amy Wadge.
The celebrated panelists will explore what it takes to make music that crosses borders and cultural boundaries, with Billboard Executive Editor, West Coast and Nashville, Melinda Newman serving as moderator.
The session coincides with International Women’s Day, and kicks of ASCAP’s monthly virtual sessions, which are created to “inspire, educate and connect aspiring songwriters and composers everywhere.”
“We are so excited to launch ASCAP Experience with three phenomenal composers as part of our ‘Women Create Music’ campaign,” comments ASCAP CEO Elizabeth Matthews. “We believe that celebrating the achievements of our members through our “Women Create Music” campaign can help create change and ultimately, more opportunity for women in the music industry.”
Details of more ASCAP Experience sessions will be announced shortly, including sessions covering NFTs, exclusive conversations with chart-topping music creators, and more.
Due to the health crisis, ASCAP’s flagship event flipped for the first time to a virtual event in 2020, and again in 2021. Last year, ASCAP Experience’s virtual panels reached over 41,000 views across real-time and on-demand streaming. Those figures equate to a 39% increase in attendance and 53% increase in RSVPs vs. the previous year, reps say.
Franco received a Golden Globes nomination for Best Original Score, an SCL Award nomination for Outstanding Original Score, an Annie Awards nomination for Best Music in a Feature, and an Oscar nomination for Best Original Score for her work on Encanto.
She is the first Latina to join the music branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and to receive an Oscar nomination for Best Original Score.
Leon is an acclaimed composer of both large scale and chamber works. She is also renowned as a conductor, educator, and advisor to arts organizations. She won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for Music for Stride.