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The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (commonly known as ASCAP) is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that protects its members' musical copyrights by monitoring public performances of their music, whether via a broadcast or live performance, and compensating them accordingly.

ASCAP collects licensing fees from users of music created by ASCAP members, then distributes them back to its members as royalties. In effect, the arrangement is the product of a compromise: when a song is played, the user does not have to pay the copyright holder directly, nor does the music creator have to bill a radio station for use of a song.

In 2008, ASCAP collected over US$933 million in licensing fees and distributed $817 million in royalties to its members, with an 11.3 percent operating expense ratio.^[1] In the United States, ASCAP competes with two other PROs — Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI) and the Society of European Stage Authors and Composers (SESAC).

Non-exclusive[link]

Unlike collecting societies outside of the United States, the ASCAP contract is non-exclusive,^[2] and although it's not so simple for a foreign person to join ASCAP, it is possible. ASCAP have an office ^[3] in the United Kingdom. As the artist agreement is non-exclusive you can license using a creative commons license. This also means that you can license your works for free with regard to your live performance where you choose, and also collect when appropriate. If you read the ASCAP bill of rights you will see that it states, "we have the right to choose when and where our creative works may be used for free". If you are going to use a creative commons license with your works, this is the only author's rights organisation that has a non-exclusive contract that a foreign person can join. If your using a creative commons license and your not a member of a rights organisation, and your works would generate royalties, these royalties are collected and given to publishers and artists that are members of these organisations.

History[link]

ASCAP was founded by composer Victor Herbert in New York City, on February 13, 1914, to protect the copyrighted musical compositions of its members, who were mostly writers and publishers associated with New York City's Tin Pan Alley. ASCAP's earliest members included the era's most active songwriters — Irving Berlin, Otto Harbach, James Weldon Johnson, Jerome Kern and John Philip Sousa. Subsequently, many other prominent songwriters became members. As of July 2009, ASCAP membership included over 360,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers.^[4]

In 1919, ASCAP and the Performing Rights Society of Great Britain (since 1997 known as PRS for Music), signed the first reciprocal agreement for the representation of each other's members' works in their respective territories. Today, ASCAP has global reciprocal agreements and licenses the U.S. performances of hundreds of thousands of international music creators.

ASCAP and Manhattan School of Music summer campers participate in daily symphonic band rehearsals. Since 1999, the two institutions have partnered with to offer a free music camp for students who attend New York City's public schools.

The advent of radio in the 1920s brought an important new source of income for ASCAP. Radio stations originally only broadcast performers live, the performers working for free. Later, performers wanted to be paid, and recorded performances became more prevalent. ASCAP started collecting license fees from the broadcasters. Between 1931 and 1939, ASCAP increased roayalty rates charged to broadcasters more than 400%^[5]

The jazz, blues, country, and swing music genres soundtracked the 1930s, and ASCAP members Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton, Fats Waller, Gene Autry and Jimmie Rodgers entertained the nation.^[6]

Antitrust lawsuits[link]

In the late 1930s, ASCAP's general control over most music and its membership requirements were considered to be in restraint of trade and illegal under the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. The Justice Department sued ASCAP in 1937 but abandoned the case. The Justice Department sued again in 1941, and the case was settled with a consent decree in which the most important points were that ASCAP must fairly set rates and not discriminate between customers who have basically the same requirements to license music, or "similar standing." Also, anyone who is dissatisfied with the terms they can negotiate with ASCAP or otherwise are unable to get a license, may go to the court overseeing the consent decree, and litigate over the terms they find objectionable, and the terms set by the court will be binding upon the licensee and ASCAP. BMI also signed a consent decree in 1941, although the terms were much more favorable to BMI than those applied to ASCAP.^[7]

ASCAP boycott[link]

In 1940, when ASCAP tried to double its license fees again, radio broadcasters formed a boycott of ASCAP and founded a competing royalty agency, Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI). During a ten-month period lasting from January 1 to October 29, 1941, no music licensed by ASCAP (1,250,000 songs) was broadcast on NBC and CBS radio stations. Instead, the stations played regional music and styles (like rhythm and blues or country) that had been traditionally neglected by ASCAP. Eventually, the differences between ASCAP and the broadcasters were settled, and ASCAP agreed to fees much lower than in preceding years.^{[citation needed]}

ASCAP's membership diversified further in the 1940s, bringing along jazz and swing greats including Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Benny Goodman and Fletcher Henderson. The movies also soared in popularity during the 1930s and 1940s, and with them came classic scores and songs by new ASCAP members like Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer, Cole Porter, Morton Gould and Jule Styne. Classical-music composers Aaron Copland, Igor Stravinsky and Leonard Bernstein brought their compositions into the ASCAP repertory in the 1940s.^[8]

In the 1950s and 1960s, television was introduced as a new revenue stream for ASCAP, one that maintains its importance today. With the birth of FM radio, new ASCAP members including John Denver, Jimi Hendrix, Quincy Jones, Janis Joplin and Carly Simon scored massive hits. Many Motown hits were written by ASCAP members Ashford & Simpson, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson and Stevie Wonder. Both The Beatles and The Rolling Stones licensed their works through ASCAP, and the very first country Grammy Award went to ASCAP writer Bobby Russell for "Little Green Apples".^[9] During this period, ASCAP also initiated a series of lawsuits to recover the position they lost during the boycott of 1941, without success.^[10]

During the last three decades of the 20th century, ASCAP's membership grew to reflect every new development in music, including the funk, punk rock, heavy metal, hip-hop, techno and grunge music genres. Creators ranging from Lauryn Hill and Dr. Dre to the Ramones, Slayer and John Zorn joined. ASCAP launched a Latin membership department to serve ASCAP Latin writers — Marc Anthony, Joan Sebastian and Olga Tañon among them – with the Spanish-speaking world as their audience. In 1981, ASCAP prevailed against CBS in an eleven-year-old court case challenging the ASCAP blanket license.^[11][12][13]

Today, ASCAP remains one of the world's most far-reaching PROs.^{[citation needed]} ASCAP licenses over 11,500 local commercial radio stations and 2000 non-commercial radio broadcasters,^[14] maintains reciprocal relationships with nearly 100 foreign PROs across six continents,^[15] and licenses billions of public performances worldwide each year.^[16] ASCAP was the first U.S. PRO to distribute royalties for performances on the Internet, and continues to pursue and secure licenses for websites, digital music providers and other new media.

Annual Awards[link]

ASCAP honors its top members in a series of annual awards shows in seven different music categories: pop, rhythm and soul, film and television, Latin, country, Christian and concert music. In addition, ASCAP inducts jazz greats to its Jazz Wall of Fame in an annual ceremony held at ASCAP's New York City offices, and honors PRS members that license their works through ASCAP at an annual awards gala in London, England.^[17]

Beginning in 1986, ASCAP created the Golden Soundtrack Award to honor composers for "outstanding achievements and contributions to the world of film and television music." In 1996, it was renamed the Henry Mancini Award to pay tribute to the late composer's history of achievements in the field.^[18]

Through its annual ASCAPlus Awards program, ASCAP compensates those writers whose works are substantially performed in venues and media outside of its surveys. An independent panel reviews the applications and makes cash awards to deserving members as well as writers whose works have a unique prestige value. Award amounts begin at $100. ASCAP is the only PRO with a cash awards program of this kind.^[19]

ASCAP "I Create Music" EXPO[link]

In April 2006, ASCAP inaugurated its annual ASCAP "I Create Music" EXPO, the first national conference fully dedicated to songwriting and composing. The first EXPO featured workshops, panels, mentor sessions and performances with notable figures from all music genres and sectors of the music industry. The most recent EXPO took place between April 19 and 21, 2012. Highlights included interviews, panels and performances with Peter Frampton, Carly Simon, The Smeezingtons, Dan Wilson, Mark Isham, Ryan Tedder, Stargate, Allen Shamblin and members of The Go-Go's among other notable music creators and industry insiders.^[20]

Member benefits[link]

ASCAP was the first American PRO to offer a package of exclusive benefits to its members. Currently^{[clarification needed]} these benefits include:^[21]

• Discount on membership to the Songwriters Hall of Fame
• Membership in the U.S. Alliance Federal Credit Union
• Discounts on health, dental, instrument and life insurance via its MusicPro program
• Discount on ASCAP Web Tools, a set of internet-based marketing and sales tools developed by Nimbit, Inc. for ASCAP members
• Discounts on music-related retail products and services
• Hotel and rental car discounts

[edit] Playback magazine

ASCAP distributes to its members Playback, a magazine highlighting the progress and career accomplishments of ASCAP's writer and publisher members. Playback content is also available to the general public on ASCAP's website.^[22]

Criticism[link]

ASCAP attracted media attention in 1996 when it threatened Girl Scouts of the USA and Boy Scouts of America camps that sang ASCAP's copyrighted works at camps with lawsuits for not paying licensing fees.^[23] These threats were later retracted,^[24] however they have drawn negative attention for cracking down on licensing fees on other occasions as well, such as when they demand that open mic events need to pay licensing (even if most or all of the songs are original).^[25]

ASCAP has also been criticized for its extremely non-transparent operations, including the refusal to release attendance records for board members, the notes from board meetings, and the reasoning behind their weighting formulas which determine how much money a song or composition earns for use on television or radio.^[26]

In 2009, an ASCAP rate court case regarding ringtones generated considerable public attention. Critics claimed that ASCAP may seek to hold consumers responsible for a ringtone public performance.^[27] In statements to the press, ASCAP noted the following:

• It is seeking to ensure that wireless carriers pay ASCAP members a share of the substantial revenue that mobile operators derive from content (like ringtones) that uses ASCAP members' music. This content includes the delivery of full track songs, music videos, television content, ringtones and ringback tones.
• It has been licensing wireless carriers and ringtone content providers since 2001, and that it is not in any way seeking to charge consumers.
• It is striving to license those that make a business of transmitting its members' music. This holds true for any medium where businesses have been built by using this music as content or a service – whether terrestrial broadcast, satellite, cable, Internet or wireless carriers providing audio and video content.^[28]

On October 14, 2009, a federal court ruled that "when a ringtone plays on a cellular telephone, even when that occurs in public, the user is exempt from copyright liability, and [the cellular carrier] is not liable either secondarily or directly." The ruling made clear that playing music in public, when done without any commercial purpose, does not infringe copyright. (US v. ASCAP, US District Court, Southern District of New York).^[29]

Further controversies arose involving ASCAP in 2009 and 2010. The organization requested that some websites pay licensing fees on embedded YouTube videos, even though YouTube already pays licensing fees,^[30] and demanded payment from Amazon.com and iTunes for 30-second streaming previews of music tracks,^[31] which traditionally does not require a license, being considered a promotional vehicle for song sales. It also sued a Manhattan bar over the unlicensed use of music, naming Bruce Springsteen as a plaintiff without Springsteen being informed or consenting.^[32]

In 2009, Mike Masnik, the founder and CEO of Floor64, accused ASCAP of keeping some royalties instead of passing them on to artists. He claimed ASCAP collects royalties from all sizes of live performance on behalf of all the artists it represents, but passes on the royalties only to artists whose music is represented in one of "the top 200 grossing US tours of the year."^[33]

In June 2010, ASCAP sent letters to its members soliciting donations to fight entities that support weaker copyright restrictions such as Public Knowledge, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Creative Commons,^[34][35] creating notable controversy as many^[36] argued that these licences are a form of copyright and offer the artist an extra choice. Lawrence Lessig, a co-founder of Creative Commons, responded stating that they are not aiming to undermine copyright, and invited ASCAP for a public debate.^[37] The offer was turned down by ASCAP's Paul Williams.^[38]

See also[link]

• BMI
• Copyright collective
• PRS for Music
• United States v. ASCAP

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Blume, Jason (2006). This Business of Songwriting. Billboard Books (New York City). ISBN 978-0-8230-7759-5.
• Choquette, Frederic, "The Returned Value of PROs", Music Business Journal, Berklee College of Music, May 2011
• Passman, Donald S. (2003). All You Need to Know about the Music Business. Free Press (New York City). ISBN 978-0-7432-4637-8.
• Shemel, Sidney; Krasilovsky, M. William (1990). This Business of Music. Billboard Books (New York City). ISBN 978-0-8230-7706-9.

External links[link]

• ascap.com, official website
• ascap.com/about/history, history module of ASCAP at its official website
• ascap.com/playback, Playback magazine module at ASCAP's official website
• American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers on Myspace

Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams performing with N.E.R.D in Pori Jazz 2010.
Background information
Also known as	Skateboard P, Pharrell, Sk8brd (mononym), Auto Goon
Born	(1973-04-05) April 5, 1973 (age 39)
Origin	Virginia Beach, Virginia, United States
Genres	Various
Occupations	Producer, musician, songwriter, singer, rapper, fashion designer
Instruments	Piano, keyboards, guitar, drums
Years active	1992–present
Labels	Star Trak, Interscope, i am Other
Associated acts	N.E.R.D, Chad Hugo, Clipse, Kelis, Snoop Dogg, Justin Timberlake, T.I, Lupe Fiasco, N.O.R.E., Child Rebel Soldier
Website	pharrellwilliams.com
Notable instruments
Piano, keyboards, drums

Pharrell Williams (born April 5, 1973), commonly known simply as Pharrell, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, composer, and fashion designer. Williams and Chad Hugo make up the record production duo The Neptunes, producing hip hop and R&B music. He is also the lead vocalist and drummer of hip-hop band N.E.R.D, which he formed with Hugo and childhood friend Shay Haley. He released his first single "Frontin'" in 2003 and followed up with his first album In My Mind in 2006.^[1]

As part of The Neptunes, Williams has produced numerous hit singles for various musicians.^[2] The two have earned three Grammy Awards amongst ten nominations. He is also the co-founder of the clothing brands Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream Clothing. He is a member of the supergroup V.A. Playaz with Fam-Lay, Clipse, Skillz, Missy Elliott, and Timbaland & Magoo.

Early life[link]

Pharrell Williams was born on April 5, 1973, in Virginia Beach, Virginia,^[3][4] the eldest of three sons of Carolyn, a teacher, and Pharaoh Williams, a handyman.^[5] He met Chad Hugo in a seventh-grade summer band camp where Williams played the keyboards and drums and Hugo played tenor saxophone. They were also both members of a marching band; Williams played the snare drum while Chad was student conductor.^[6][7] With Hugo, Williams attended Princess Anne High School where they played in the school band; there he got the name Skateboard P.^[8]

In the 1990s, Hugo and Williams formed a four-piece "R&B type" group, The Neptunes, with friends Shay Haley and Mike Etheridge. They later entered a high school talent show where they were discovered by Teddy Riley, whose studio was next to Princess Anne High School.^[9] After graduating from high school, the group signed with Riley.^[10]

Career[link]

1992–1997: Career beginnings[link]

Through working with Maddison Harper, Williams went on to write a verse for Wreckx-N-Effect's 1992 hit "Rump Shaker".^[11] That same year, he also performed a small rap solo on SWV's second hit, "Right Here (UK Remix)". In 1994, Hugo and Williams had established themselves as a production duo under their old name "The Neptunes", and produced "Tonight's The Night" from Blackstreet's self-titled album. Over the next three years they continued to produce occasionally. Some of the results had little resemblance to the Neptunes sound of today. However, some like Mase's 1997 song "Lookin' at Me" from his album Harlem World, and the most definite beginning of the distinctive "Neptunes sound", came with N.E.R.D's "Superthug" in 1998, reaching number 36 on the Billboard Hot 100, and gaining them widespread attention for the first time. In 1999, a friend introduced Pharrell to Kelis, they really vibed so the beginning result was producing her first album Kaleidoscope.

1998–2004: The Neptunes[link]

At this point The Neptunes were gaining a wide fanbase and audience. In 2001, The Neptunes produced Britney Spears' single, "I'm a Slave 4 U" gaining their first worldwide number one.^[12] The same year, N.E.R.D, consisting of Williams, Hugo and Haley, released their first album, In Search of..., in Europe, where the first Kelis album was better received. The album sounded very much like their previous production work; the group decided that they should make their work as N.E.R.D sound different, and re-recorded the album with the rock band Spymob. Williams and Hugo met rap duo Clipse in Virginia Beach in 1993, where they were signed to Arista Records through Williams' Star Trak Entertainment imprint.^[13][14]

Then in 2002 their re-produced album was released worldwide, and The Neptunes reached number one in the U.S. with Nelly's single, "Hot in Herre". In August of the same year, The Neptunes were named "Producers of the Year" at both The Source Awards and the Billboard Music Awards. Clipse released their commercial debut album Lord Willin' in August 2002. The album started at number one on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and number four on the Billboard 200, fueled by its first two singles, "Grindin'" and "When the Last Time", which peaked at number 34 and number 19 respectively on the Billboard Hot 100.

The Neptunes released a self-credited album called The Neptunes Present... Clones in 2003, with songs and remixes from various artists. This topped the U.S. Billboard 200 Albums Chart. The Neptunes and Williams specifically were also kept in public eye largely due to ties with Jay-Z, producing several hit singles for him and two tracks on his The Black Album. The track "Frontin'" was a big hit (the 34th biggest of 2003 according to Billboard). A survey in August 2003 found the Neptunes produced almost 20 percent of songs played on British radio at the time, a survey in the US had them at 43 percent.^[6] The same year, The Neptunes remixed the Daft Punk song Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger for the duo's poorly-received remix album Daft Club. The track also had a brief rap section performed by Williams.^[15]

N.E.R.D's second funk rock-oriented album, Fly or Die, released in March 2004. Williams' rock credentials were further bolstered by his appearance at the 2004 Grammy Awards, performing The Beatles' "I Saw Her Standing There" on drums with Sting, Dave Matthews, and Vince Gill. Williams received two Grammy Awards that night, one for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical, and another for Best Pop Vocal Album for his work on Justin Timberlake's hit album Justified. They also gained their first UK number one, again with Nelly, and Flap Your Wings.

2005–2009: First album and collaborations[link]

Williams and Astronaut Leland Melvin present a montage to Quincy Jones

On September 9, 2005, Williams performed the opening single from his first solo album In My Mind, "Can I Have It Like That", featuring Gwen Stefani. The single did poorly in the US, reaching only number 48. It fared better in the UK, reaching number three. Between then and the July 25, 2006 release of "In My Mind", he released "Angel" (in Europe only), and later "Number One" with Kanye West. Several songs leaked to the internet before the album release, most notably "Mamacita" featuring Daddy Yankee, which was subsequently cut from the final version. "That Girl" featuring Snoop Dogg was the final single.

In 2006, Williams, with Chad Hugo, produced Clipse's second album Hell Hath No Fury. Most critics labeled the album Williams's best production in years, and put the duo back in the charts.^[16] A year later, Williams collaborated with Madonna, on the song "Hey You", which was available for download on the MSN website. 25 cents for each of the first one million downloads was donated to the Alliance for Climate Protection, in support of Live Earth.^[17] Later that year, Williams performed songs at the Concert for Diana on July 1, 2007. Then, on July 7, 2007, he performed at the Brazilian leg of Live Earth in Rio de Janeiro.

A second album, titled Out of My Mind, was recorded with his newly formed band "The Yessirs" featuring Questlove of The Roots. However, Williams' record label did not think that a companion album to the first would sell well.^[18] He also produced Beyoncé's version of "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend". He then wrote and produced "Why Should I Be Sad" on Britney Spears' fifth studio album, Blackout. He also produced two songs from The Hives album, The Black and White Album, titled "Well All Right!" and "T.H.E.H.I.V.E.S.".

In April 2008, Madonna released her eleventh album, Hard Candy, which featured vocals from Williams and production from The Neptunes on several tracks. In June, an article in NME revealed that Williams was very interested in producing The Strokes' fourth album.^[19] Later that year, Williams worked on a remix album for Maroon 5's Call & Response.^[20]

Williams continued working with a variety of artists, including Shakira on the songs 'Did It Again', 'Why Wait', 'Good Stuff' and 'Long Time' for her sixth studio album, She Wolf. ^[21] In September 2009, Williams was credited as a co-writer and producer of the song "Fresh Out the Oven" for Jennifer Lopez.^[22] It was released as a buzz single from Lopez's seventh studio album Love? The following month, Williams made a guest appearance on French indie/electronic rapper Uffie's first album, which arrived in early 2010.^[23] In late 2009, Williams worked with the rapper Game on his fourth studio album, The R.E.D. Album.

2010–present[link]

In July 2010, Williams composed one of the soundtracks^{[dubious – discuss]} in the movie Despicable Me at the Hollywood Studio Symphony.^{[citation needed]} In October 2010, Williams and his group N.E.R.D supported Gorillaz on their Escape to Plastic Beach World Tour. On the tour, Damon Albarn recorded a song on his iPad with Williams but this was not featured on Gorillaz's album, The Fall, but it may appear on a future album.^[15] In late 2011, Williams worked on three tracks for Mike Posner's second album Sky High.^[24] In 2011, Williams collaborated with singer/composer Adam Lambert, co-writing two tracks for Lambert's album "Trespassing", which was released in May of 2012, including the title track and "Kickin' In".

In 2012, It was announced on Lupe Fiasco's website that he and Lupe will work on a collaborative album and work on Waka Flocka Flame's album Triple F Life: Friends, Fans and Family.^{[citation needed]}

Williams composed and produced the music for the 84th Academy Awards with composer Hans Zimmer.^[25]

2012: Pharrell is now collaborating with teen pop sensation, Miley Cyrus on her new album which is set for a release this year, with a single dropping this summer. Miley's new album has a slick genre of pop/hip-hop and R&B.

Musical style[link]

Pharrell did music for the Universal film Despicable Me. The film makers liked his genre of music for the movie. Williams has encompassed a broad range of genres, including hip hop, R&B, pop, rock, and funk.^[3][26] His lyrics often pertain to his childhood, family, religious faith and sexuality.^[27] In the review of Seeing Sounds by N.E.R.D, Christian Hoard of Rolling Stone said he learned nothing from his lyrics except that Williams was sexually aroused.^[28]

Williams has stated that he does not have any direct influences,^[29] but has expressed his admiration of several musicians, including Michael Jackson, J Dilla, Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway, Marvin Gaye, Rakim and Q-Tip.^[29][30] Williams explained that A Tribe Called Quest's 1990 album, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm, caused a "turning point" in his life, which "made me see that music was art".^[30] His style of production includes very unusual sounds, which give a feeling of being extra terrestrial. His beats have heavy percussions and synths.

Business ventures[link]

Williams met Nigo, a Japanese record producer and creator of the clothing line A Bathing Ape, in Japan and bonded^[vague] through similar interests, where they began working together on their fashion lines.^[4] Williams later co-founded the clothing brands Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream Footwear. He has a store in New York City. In 2008, he co-designed a series of jewelry ("Blason") and glasses for Louis Vuitton.^[31] He has also worked on furniture with Galerie Emmanuel Perrotin and a French manufacturer, Domeau & Pérès. One of his works, a molded plastic seat with human legs, was created because he "wanted to know what it was like to be in love." The chair depicts a sexual scene with a pair of female legs and male legs.^[32]

In 2009 Williams unveiled a collaborative sculpture with Takashi Murakami at Art Basel, which spoke to the metaphor of value.^[33]

In 2010 Williams founded Kidult, a news and entertainment website for teens. Inspired by his young fans, Williams believed they deserved a website that respected their intelligence and covered their diverse interests—from science to fashion.

In May 2011 it was announced that Williams would serve as Creative Director of Karmaloop TV alongside founder and CEO Greg Selkoe and former AMC (TV channel) president Katie McEnroe.^[34]

On August 1, 2011, Williams launched his new record label, i am Other.^[35]

Personal life[link]

In 2005 Williams was voted "Best Dressed Man in the World" by Esquire.^[36] He is a fan of the science fiction series Star Trek,^[37] as indicated by his consistent use of the Vulcan salute to signify his label name, Star Trak. He also enjoys the works of the late astronomer and science lecturer Carl Sagan, whom he calls "a genius".^[38] Williams is a skateboarder and has a half-pipe inside his home.^[39] In April 2009, Williams underwent a skin procedure for tattoo removal.^[40]

Discography[link]

Pharrell and Lupe Fiasco are currently working on a collaboration album set to be released sometime in 2012.^[41]

TBA (with Lupe Fiasco) (2012)

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Pharrell Williams

• Official website
• Pharrell Williams at the Internet Movie Database

Ingrid Michaelson
Ingrid Michaelson performing in Amsterdam, 2009
Background information
Birth name	Ingrid Ellen Egbert Michaelson
Born	(1979-12-08) December 8, 1979 (age 32)[1]
Origin	Staten Island, New York, U.S.
Genres	Indie pop, indie folk
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, musician
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, piano, ukulele
Years active	2002–present
Labels	Cabin 24 Records, Mom+Pop Records
Website	Official website Twitter YouTube

Ingrid Ellen Egbert Michaelson (born December 8, 1979) is a New York-based indie-pop singer-songwriter. Her music has been featured in episodes of several popular television shows, including Scrubs, Bones, Grey's Anatomy^[2] The Big C, In Plain Sight, and One Tree Hill,^[3] as well as in Old Navy's fall 2007 Fair Isle^[4] and Opel's/Vauxhall's Meriva 2010 advertising campaigns.^[5][6]

Biography[link]

Michaelson was born to artistic parents. Her father is a composer and her mother is a sculptor. Michaelson took up piano at age four, and trained until seven at Manhattan's Third Street Music School, continuing for many more years at the Jewish Community Center of Staten Island's Dorothy Delson Kuhn Music Institute. While there she met vocal coach Elizabeth McCullough, who worked with her through high school.^[7] She is a graduate of Staten Island Technical High School and Binghamton University, where she received a degree in theater.^[7] While at Binghamton University she was a member of the Binghamtonics, a co-ed a cappella group, as well as the Pappy Parker Players, an improv comedy group, and the theatre repertory company under Sue Peters. Her time at Binghamton is mentioned in the song "The Hat". She grew up doing a musical theater group called "Kids On Stage". Later in life, she became a director until she decided to pursue her career in music.

Toward the end of 2008, she opened for Jason Mraz on his European tour, touring in the UK, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany and France among others. In the second half of 2009, Ingrid began her "Everybody" tour of the United States and Europe which continued in 2010.

In 2010 Ingrid was engaged to fellow artist Greg Laswell.^[8] They are married, which the singer acknowledged on her Twitter on January 16, 2012.^{[citation needed]}

Appearances and performances[link]

Television and radio[link]

• The AT&T Blue Room
• The Ellen DeGeneres Show
• Good Morning America
• Last Call with Carson Daly (performance with Joshua Radin)
• Late Night with Conan O'Brien
• Live From The Artists Den
• Live with Regis and Kelly
• NPR's "Bryant Park Project"
• The Rachael Ray Show
• Shark Tank (performing "Be OK" and demonstrating the Miso-Media, an iPad application for learning how to play stringed instruments)
• The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
• VH1

Other appearances[link]

• Michaelson and Sara Bareilles performed "Winter Song" at the 2010 National Christmas Tree Lighting
• Michaelson performed "Blood Brothers" at the 85th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2011^[9]

Songs featured in television series[link]

[edit] Grey's Anatomy

• "Breakable"—"Staring at the Sun" (November 16, 2006)
• ”The Way I Am"--"Six Days (Part 2)" (January 11, 2007)
• "Corner of Your Heart"--"Testing 1-2-3" (13 September 2007)
• "Keep Breathing"--season 3 finale, "Didn't We Almost Have It All" (May 17, 2007)
• "Giving Up"-- season 4 finale, "Freedom" (May 22, 2008)
• "Turn to Stone" (a new B-side single from her upcoming album, Everybody)--season 5 episode, "What a Difference a Day Makes" (May 7, 2009)
• ”Winter Song”—season 5
• "All Love"--season 5 finale
• "The Chain"--season 6 episode "I Always Feel Like Somebody's Watchin' Me" (October 1, 2009)
• "Everybody"--season 6 (January 21, 2010)

[edit] One Tree Hill

• "Masochist"--season 4, episode 13, "Pictures of You"
• "Overboard"--season 4, episode 14, "Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers"
• "The Way I Am"--season 4, episode 19, "Ashes of Dreams You Let Die"
• "Can't Help Falling in Love"--season 6, episode 23, "Forever And Almost Always"

Other series[link]

• "Winter Song”--Army Wives, season 3, episode 5
• "The Way I Am", "Die Alone" and "Far Away (Untitled)" in The Bad Girls Club
• "Keep Breathing"--The Big C, season 1, episode 2
• "Maybe”--Body of Proof, season 1, episode 6, “Society Hill"
• ”Winter Song”--Brothers & Sisters, season 4, episode 8
• "Everybody"--Brothers & Sisters, season 4, episode 14
• "All Love"--HBO series Enlightened, episode 7
• "The Chain"--Hellcats, season 1, episode 12, "Papa, Oh Papa"
• "Soldier"--In Plain Sight, 2011 episode "Meet The Shannons"
• "Maybe”--In Plain Sight, season 4 episode, "I'm a Liver, Not a Fighter"
• "Breakable"--Kyle XY, season 2, episode 3, "The List is Life"
• "Are We There Yet"--Make It or Break It
• “Be OK”— Parenthood, season 2, episode 15
• "Starting Now"--Pretty Little Liars, season 1, episode 7, "The Homecoming Hangover"
• "The Way I Am" and "Breakable"--The Real World: Denver
• "Winter Song"--Scrubs, season 8, episode 17
• ”Turn to Stone”—So You Think You Can Dance, choreographed by Travis Wall, season 8, Top 20 episode on June 15, 2011, and season finale as a judges' pick
• "Be OK”—Ugly Betty, season 4
• "Turn to Stone"--The Vampire Diaries, season 2 finale, "As I Lay Dying"
• "Are We There Yet?" --The Vampire Diaries, season 3, episode 1, "The Birthday"

Songs featured in films[link]

• "Be OK"--The House Bunny (2008)
• "You and I"--My Girlfriend's Boyfriend (2010)
• "Everybody"--Ramona and Beezus (2010)
• "Can't Help Falling in Love"--trailer for Like Crazy (2011)
• "Everybody"—trailer for Disney's Lady and the Tramp, Diamond Edition (2011)
• ”Everybody”—Sneak Peek for Disney’s Diamond Edition of The Lion King Blu-ray (2011)

Songs featured in commercials[link]

• "Sort Of" (instrumental version)--Google Chrome
• ”Be OK”—Mott's Apple Juice commercial featuring actress Marcia Cross^[10]
• ”The Way I Am”--Old Navy commercial
• ”Be OK”--Ritz Crackers commercial
• ”Be OK”--Traveler's Insurance commercial

Collaborations[link]

In 2006, Ingrid teamed up with William Fitzsimmons on his album Goodnight, which was released that same year.

Ingrid and her friend Sara Bareilles co-wrote "Winter Song" which was featured on The Hotel Café Presents Winter Songs, a compilation of both original recordings as well as classic holiday tracks sung by a lineup of female singer-songwriters. Ingrid also worked with Bareilles, performing "Winter Song" for the President Obama and his family as well as many spectators at the National Christmas Tree Lighting in December 2010. In 2011, "Winter Song" reached number 2 on the Irish Singles Chart.^[11]

Ingrid provided back-up vocals on two songs from PlayRadioPlay!'s album Texas, including "I'm a Pirate, You're a Princess" and the title track, "Texas".

Ingrid provided back-up vocals on Greg Laswell's album, Take A Bow, which was released on May 4, 2010. Collaboration was done on the songs "Take Everything," "My Fight (For You)," and "Come Clean."^[12][13]

Ingrid's band includes Allie Moss and Bess Rogers on guitar, who are singer/songwriters in their own right. Allie Moss released a 2009 EP entitled Passerby. A single from the EP, "Corner", has been picked up by BT for their BT Infinity television commercials in the UK. Other band members include Chris Kuffner (Bass), husband of Bess Rogers(Guitar), Saul Simon-MacWilliams (keys) and Elliot Jacobson (drums).

In 2010, Ingrid co-wrote a song entitled "Parachute" with Marshall Altman which was covered by singer Cheryl Cole on her debut solo album 3 Words; it hit number 5 in the UK. Ingrid initially felt the track was "so poppy" that she could not release it herself. However, after the song was reworked by "Everybody" producer Dan Romer to make a more "interesting, funky production", Ingrid released the song as a personal single.^[14] To date, the song has received two separate music videos.

Of the release of "Parachute" and upcoming material, Ingrid explained in a 2010 interview with Billboard.com, "I just felt like I wanted to put something out. I'm not ready to put a full album out, so we thought we'd put this out and see how people take it or don't take it," saying that she expects to release her next album, "probably in the middle of next year."^[15]

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

Singles[link]

Other charted songs[link]

References[link]

This article uses bare URLs for citations. Please consider adding full citations so that the article remains verifiable. Several templates and the Reflinks tool are available to assist in formatting. (Reflinks documentation) (January 2012)

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ingrid Michaelson

• Official website

Thaddis "Kuk" Harrell is an American songwriter, vocal producer, arranger and engineer. He is managed by RedZone Entertainment, and is a member of a songwriting–production team composed of himself, Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and Terius "The Dream" Nash. In 2011, Kuk Harrell and partner Tricky Stewart joined the ranks of Fox's American Idol along with music mogul Jimmy Iovine, producing many of the songs performed on television by the contestants and released via iTunes. 2011 marked the highly-anticipated return of Jennifer Lopez and her album LOVE? in which Kuk served as Album Vocal Producer. Earning his fourth Grammy for the vocal production of Rihanna's #1 Billboard Single "Only Girl In The World", Harrell is also the vocal producer and co-writer of Rihanna's Grammy-winning single "Umbrella". A composer and engineer on Beyonce's chart topping "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" from the album I Am... Sasha Fierce, he is also vocal producer and engineer of the Diane Warren-penned "I Was Here" from Beyonce's 2011 album 4. He also produced the majority of the vocals on Mary J. Blige's Platinum album Growing Pains, which recently won a Grammy for "Best Contemporary R&B Album", 2008. The first single from Growing Pains, "Just Fine", earned a Grammy nomination for best R&B vocal performance in 2007.

Kuk Harrell is currently signed to a worldwide publishing deal with Sony/ATV U.K.,^[1] and is considered one of the most sought after vocal producers in the industry.^[2]

Early years[link]

Harrell's music career began in his native Chicago, where he performed as a drummer and a vocalist before becoming a session musician.^[3] He soon became a commercial writer and producer, working for Joy Art Music, contributing to major ad campaigns for McDonald's, Kraft, Coca-Cola and many others. After relocating to Los Angeles with his writing and production partner, Laney Stewart in 1992, Harrell then added worship leader to his repertoire, and became a touring vocalist and choir director for Promise Keepers as well. During this time, he sang on tracks written and produced by Diane Warren and David Foster.^[3]

2004–present[link]

RedZone Entertainment[link]

2004 brought Harrell to Atlanta, where he joined his cousins Tricky Stewart and Mark Stewart at RedZone Entertainment as a writer, producer, and engineer. RedZone Entertainment is an Atlanta-based, music-production entity, whose discography includes collaborations with many artists, producers, and composers of note, and is responsible for over 25 million records sold.^[4]

In a recent Billboard interview, Mark Stewart describes Kuk Harrell as "...the secret weapon."

2007 was a pivotal year for Harrell. Rihanna's "Good Girl Gone Bad" and Mary J. Blige's "Growing Pains" were released this year, both featuring his composition and vocal production skills. The single "Umbrella" off of "Good Girl Gone Bad" and "Just Fine" off of "Growing Pains" were both nominated for Grammys in 2007. This was also the year that Harrell established his own music production company, Suga Wuga Music.

[edit] Rihanna, Good Girl Gone Bad / "Umbrella"

Rihanna performing at Brisbane, 2008

On March 29, 2007, the first single from Rihanna's Good Girl Gone Bad, "Umbrella", was released. Harrell co-wrote and produced the vocals on the track, which subsequently had one of the highest digital debuts in the United States since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking downloads in 2003.^[6] The song, which featured an introductory rap verse from legendary rapper Jay-Z, won Harrell a Grammy for "Best Rap/Song Collaboration,^[7] a Grammy nomination for "Record of the Year",^[8] and a Grammy nomination for "Song of the Year."^[9]

The song won ASCAP’s “Pop Music Award” which honored “Umbrella” as one of the most performed pop songs of the year 2007, and was also nominated at the Teen Choice Awards for Choice Music: Single.^[10] Time magazine named "Umbrella" one of The 10 Best Songs of 2007, ranking it at #3.^[11] Writer for Time magazine, Josh Tyrandiel, cited Rihanna's vocal performance and special talent for vocal innuendo as the reason he declared it "The Sexiest Song of 2007."^[12] Umbrella was set at #2 at the Billboard Hot 100 year-end chart, behind Beyoncé's "Irreplaceable".^[13]

In the United Kingdom, "Umbrella" broke a record on the UK Singles Chart by debuting at number one on the chart based on digital sales alone,^[14] becoming Rihanna's first chart-topper in the country.^[15] During the single's fourth week on the chart, both the single and album topped the UK Singles Chart and UK Albums Chart.^[16] "Umbrella" eventually reached a total of ten weeks at number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the country's longest-running number-one single of the 21st century since 1994.^[17] Rihanna has become the seventh artist in the history of the UK Singles Chart to top the chart for ten straight weeks.^[18] By the end of 2007, "Umbrella" had sold 512,730 units, making it her biggest-selling single to date and the second biggest-selling single of 2007 in the United Kingdom.^[19] It has since been certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry on July 20, 2007.^[20]

"Umbrella" had a similar success throughout Europe, reaching number one in Ireland, Poland, Sweden, Belgium, Austria, Norway, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Germany and Spain.

The music video premiered on April 26, 2007 at Thisisrihanna.com, and was officially released on the iTunes Store on May 11, 2007, peaking at number one for a period eight weeks. On May 1, 2007, It received five nominations at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, including "Female Artist of the Year", "Video of the Year" and "Monster Single of the Year", going on to win the latter two.^[21]

Just recently, "Good Girl Gone Bad Live" was nominated for a 2008 Grammy for "Best Long Form Music Video"^[22]

[edit] Mary J. Blige, Growing Pains / "Just Fine"

Mary J. Blige

The single "Just Fine" off of Mary J. Blige's Growing Pains was released in the U.S. on October 19, 2007. Harrell produced Blige's vocals on the track, which earned him a Grammy nomination for "Best female R&B Vocal Performance".^[23] Harrell produced the majority of the vocals on the album, and co-wrote the song "Come To Me (Peace)".

Growing Pains has been certified 2x Platinum by RIAA and Gold by the BPI.

This single "Just Fine", was #41 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007.^[24] "Just Fine" received another Grammy nomination in 2008 for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical.

It was a successful chart single, peaking at #22 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and #13 on the UK Singles Chart, while also topping the American Hot Dance Club Play chart. This single sold over 500,000 in the United States alone and over 700,000 worldwide making it eligible for Gold in the United States.

Growing Pains won the Grammy on Feb 8, 2009 for "Best Contemporary R&B Album".^[23]

In a recent interview, Harrell described working with Blige thusly:

[edit] Chris Brown, Exclusive

Harrell produced Chris Brown's vocals and engineered on the song "You" from the 2007 release "Exclusive". The album was commercially successful, reaching number 4 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart on its debut. It sold 295,000 units within a week of release. The album yielded three Billboard Hot 100 top five singles, and was successful in music markets, entering the top twenty of many charts worldwide. The album has earned platinum certification in the United States from the Recording Industry Association of America and has sold more than three million copies worldwide.

This album was #34 on Rolling Stone's list of the Top 50 Albums of 2007.^[26]

[edit] Celine Dion, Taking Chances

Celine Dion

Harrell is also a vocal producer and engineer on Celine Dion's release of November 7, 2007, "Taking Chances", and co-wrote the ballad "Skies of LA". According to IFPI, the album had shipped 3.1 million copies by the end of 2007, becoming the 19th best selling album that year with a November release.^[27] To date, it has sold 3,500,000 copies worldwide. It is certified gold in many countries, and platinum or multi-platinum in many others. Particularly successful in Canada, it reached number 1 on the chart with the biggest first week sales of 2007 (79,354). It also became the best-selling album in Canada that year (340,000 copies sold) and to date, has shipped 400,000 copies and is certified 4x platinum.

Taking Chances reached top 10 in many countries and is performing relatively well on the charts. In the United Kingdom, it sold about 365,000 copies and is certified platinum. In Japan, the album became Dion's biggest success since A New Day Has Come with 125,000 copies sold. In the United States it debuted at number 3 with sales of 214,556 copies and has sold over 1,000,000 copies to date and has been certified platinum.

[edit] The Dream, Love Hate / "I Luv Your Girl"

Harrell lent his engineering expertise to his production and writing partner "The-Dream" on the single "I Luv Your Girl" in 2007. Love Hate was the premiere project of RedZone's newly formed label Radio Killa/RedZone. It was released through Island/Def Jam, and "I Luv Your Girl" was the third single released off of the album.

The single, released on September 23, 2008, peaked at number 20 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100,^[28] number 3, on U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs,^[29] number 40 on the U.S. Billboard Rhythmic Top 40, and number 58 on the U.S. Billboard Pop 100.^[30]

The album itself peaked on the U.S. Billboard 200 at number 30,^[31] and number 5 on the U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums.^[32]

[edit] Mariah Carey, E=MC2 / "Touch My Body"

Mariah Carey

Harrell was an engineer on the Mariah Carey single "Touch My Body", which was released on March 18, 2008 as the first single from Carey's eleventh studio album E=MC². The song is Carey's eighteenth number one single on the Billboard Hot 100.^[33] With this achievement, Carey surpassed Elvis Presley's record for number one singles. Thanks to "Touch My Body", Mariah Carey received a Honorary Achievement Award for her record-breaking accomplishments of 18 #1 singles and most weeks at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on the 2008 American Music Awards and she was also honoured with a Special Achievement Award for most # 1 singles (18) achieved by any female solo recording artist.^[34]

E=MC² debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with 463,000 copies sold, making it the biggest opening week sales of her career. In its second week, the album topped the chart again with 182,000 copies sold.^[35] E=MC² is Carey's first album to spend two straight weeks at #1 since 1995's Daydream.^[36] The album topped the Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Chart.^[37] The album sold 1.8 million copies in the U.S. and was certified Platinum by the RIAA on July 8, 2008.^[38][39]

[edit] Jesse McCartney, Departure / "Leavin'"

Harrell produced the vocals on Jesse McCartney's "Leavin'", which was released on March 10, 2008. The song debuted at #14 on the Billboard Hot 100 making it McCartney's highest debut on the chart ever. In its second week, it rose to #10 becoming McCartney's biggest chart hit in the United States to date.^[40] It stayed at #10 for 3 non-consecutive weeks. The single peaked #1 on Billboard's Mainstream Top 40 chart.^[41] and the Billboard Pop 100 Airplay. "Leavin'" stayed in the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 20 weeks. The single was certified Platinum in the U.S., and was the most successful single from the album and of McCartney's career.

[edit] Usher, Here I Stand

Usher

Harrell was heavily involved in Usher's 2008 release Here I Stand. He produced Usher's vocals on four of the tracks, and co-wrote "Moving Mountains". Here I Stand is Usher's fifth studio album, released on May 27, 2008 in the United States.^[42] Currently worldwide sales stand at almost 1.9 million copies.^[43]

According to building chart data, the album topped the Billboard 200, and achieved first week sales of 443,000. This made it the ninth largest album debut of the year 2008.^[44]

The second single from the album "Moving Mountains", was written and produced by Tricky Stewart, Kuk Harrell, and The-Dream. The song has since reached number 6 in New Zealand and the top 30 in Ireland, Sweden and on the UK Singles Chart. In the United States, "Moving Mountains" reached number 67 on the Billboard Hot 100.^[45]

The third single released on September 9, 2008, "Trading Places" has been even more successful on the U.S. Billboard charts than the previous single. It reached #5 on Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and #45 on the Billboard Hot 100. Kuk Harrell produced Usher's vocals.

[edit] Beyoncé, I am... Sasha Fierce / "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)"

I Am… Sasha Fierce is the third solo studio album by American R&B singer Beyoncé Knowles, released on November 18, 2008 in the United States.^[46][47]

The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, making it Knowles' third consecutive number-one album. I Am… Sasha Fierce is ranked number two on Entertainment Weekly magazine's list of the 10 Best Albums of 2008.^[48] It was also the tenth best-selling album in 2008 in the United States.^[49] The album was certified 2x Multi-Platinum by the RIAA after only being released in the U.S. for 10 weeks.

One of the first singles, "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" was written by Christopher Stewart, Terius Nash, Kuk Harrell and Knowles.

Alongside "If I Were a Boy", the song was released to U.S. radio stations on October 8, 2008. The single peaked at the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was ranked number one on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the Best 100 Singles of 2008,^[50] and is included in the top ten on lists produced by MTV and Time magazine. It has also been named Song of the Year by Fuse TV.^[51] "Single Ladies" is certified quadruple platinum.

[edit] Jamie Foxx, Intuition

The first single from Jamie Foxx's recent release Intuition, "Just Like Me", featuring the vocal production of Kuk Harrell, was released on November 11, 2008. It debuted at number 48 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and peaked at number 19.^[52] It also peaked at #49 on the Billboard 100.

Harrell produced the vocals on five of the album's tracks. The album itself was released on Dec 16, 2008, debuting at number three on the U.S. Billboard 200, and selling 265,000 copies in its first week.^[53] As of May 27, 2009, it was certified Platinum.

[edit] Alesha Dixon, The Alesha Show / "Let's Get Excited"

The Alesha Show is the second album from Alesha Dixon, ex-member of UK garage girl group, Mis-Teeq. The album was released on 24 November 2008 in the UK.^[54] The Alesha Show debuted on the UK Albums Chart at #26 and peaked at #11. Kuk Harrell produced, vocal produced, and co-wrote the third single "Let's Get Excited", which peaked at #13 in May 2009. Harrell is scheduled to produce with Dixon again for her forthcoming 2010 album.^[55]

[edit] Justin Bieber, My World 2.0

Bieber's My World 2.0 complete album is the result of Kuk Harrell's vocal production. Sales of My World 2.0 have topped the two million mark in the US ahead of the upcoming Justin Bieber tour. The album is the second part of Bieber's two-part debut record and was released in March this year. According to the latest figures from the Recording Industry Association of America, the album is the 16-year-old's first ever multi-platinum record having surpassed the two million milestone.

[edit] Avatar (Theme Song & Soundtrack), I See You

"I See You (Theme from Avatar)" is a pop ballad performed by British singer Leona Lewis. It was written and produced by composer James Horner, Simon Franglen and Kuk Harrell for the soundtrack album to the highest-grossing film of all time by James Cameron, Avatar. It was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Original Song at the 67th Golden Globe Awards in 2010, and Grammy Awards for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media at the 53rd Grammy Awards in 2011. It was also nominated for the 2011 Grammys.

[edit] Rihanna, Loud

Loud is the fifth studio album by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna, released November 12, 2010, on Def Jam Recordings. Harrell recorded the album partially during Rihanna's Last Girl on Earth Tour. The album debuted at number one on the Canadian and Swiss Albums Chart. Loud entered at number three on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 207,000 copies in its first week in the United States. It produced four singles, including the international hits "Only Girl (In the World)", "What's My Name?", and "S&M". It has also earned Harrell a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording for the lead single "Only Girl (In the World)".

[edit] Justin Bieber, Never Say Never

"Never Say Never" by recording artist Justin Bieber serves as the theme song for The Karate Kid (2010), and features rap interludes from the film's star, Jaden Smith. Kuk Harrell also served as Music Supervisor for Bieber's 3D concert film of the same name. Written by The Messengers, Rambert, Smith, Bieber, and Harrell, the song was released for digital download in the United States on June 8, 2010. The song was later included as a track on the remix album My Worlds Acoustic (2010). The song was released as the lead single from Bieber's second remix album, Never Say Never – The Remixes.

Harrell's vocal production philosophy[link]

Harrell is a rarity in that he is a vocal producer who engineers all his own sessions. He is quoted as saying "...I engineer all of my own stuff. I create the pace that the artist wants. To have someone in the middle – another engineer – would slow down my process."^[56]

Regarding vocal processors, Harrell says "it's the sound of today in pop music. But I use it as an enhancement and not to create the sound. My role is to capture the artist's personality. To trick them out with Auto-Tune would defeat that purpose, but consumers are used to hearing things pitch perfect so I use pitch correction to ensure that I have a flawless performance."^[56]

Kuk cites the three most important things he has learned in his career as
1. "Always be professional."
2. "Be patient at all times."
3. "It's not about you. A producer has the opportunity to put his image onto a project before getting the best sound from the artist. Remember that the artist is what it's all about."^[56]

Discography/Credits[link]