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Broadcast Music, Inc.

Type	Not-for-profit
Founded	1939
Key people	Del Bryant (President & CEO)
Area served	United States
Website	bmi.com

Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) is one of three United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP and SESAC. It collects license fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed. In 2009, BMI collected over $905 million in licensing fees and distributed $788 million in royalties.^[1]

BMI songwriters create all forms of music in all genres, from mainstream pop and country, to death metal. BMI represents artists such as Mariah Carey, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Eminem, Rihanna and Shakira; bands as diverse as Maroon 5, Evanescence, Nickelback, Linkin Park, Lady Antebellum and Death; legends such as Sam Cooke, Willie Nelson, Fats Domino and Dolly Parton; as well as composers such as Harry Gregson-Williams, John Williams and Danny Elfman and musical songwriters Richard & Robert Sherman.

History[link]

In the 1930s, radio was coming to prominence as a source of musical entertainment that threatened to weaken record sales and opportunities for "live" acts. The Great Depression was already draining artist revenues from recordings and live performances. ASCAP, the pre-eminent royalty/licensing agency for more than two decades, required radio stations to subscribe to "blanket" licenses granting ASCAP a fixed percentage of each station's revenue, regardless of how much music the station played from ASCAP's repertoire. In 1939, ASCAP announced a substantial increase in the revenue share licensees would be required to pay. BMI was founded by the National Association of Broadcasters to provide a lower-cost alternative to ASCAP.^[2] As such, BMI created competition in the field of performing rights, providing an alternative source of licensing for all music users.

The vast majority of U.S. radio stations and all three radio networks refused to renew their ASCAP licenses for 1941, choosing to forgo playing ASCAP music entirely and relying on the BMI repertoire. BMI and the Department of Justice entered into a consent decree in February, 1941, requiring certain changes to BMI's business model, including giving licensees the option of paying only for the music they actually use instead of buying a blanket license.^[3] The U.S. District Court in Milwaukee was chosen by the Justice Department to supervise the decree for both BMI and ASCAP.^[4]

Competing against the strongly established ASCAP, BMI sought out artists that ASCAP tended to overlook or ignore. BMI also purchased the rights to numerous catalogs held by independent publishers or whose ASCAP contracts were about to expire. To attract newer writers, BMI proposed to compensate songwriters and publishers on the basis of a fixed fee per performance, as opposed to ASCAP's two-tier system which discriminated against less-established songwriters. Thus, despite its original motivation regarding radio station royalties and its focus on radio station revenues vs artist revenues, BMI became the first performing rights organization in the United States to represent songwriters of blues, jazz, rhythm and blues, gospel (black genres, performers, and writers that ASCAP did not want to represent), country, folk, Latin, and—ultimately—rock and roll. During the 1940s and 1950s, BMI was the primary licensing organization for Country artists and R&B artists, while ASCAP centered on more established Pop artists. Also during this time, BMI expanded its repertoire of classical music, and now represents the majority of the members of the prestigious American Academy of Arts and Letters and the winners of 30 Pulitzer Prizes for Music.

Business[link]

A non-profit-making corporation, BMI issues licenses to users of music, including:

• Television and radio stations and networks
• New media, including the Internet and mobile technologies such as podcasts, ringtones, and ringbacks
• Satellite audio services, such as XM and Sirius
• Nightclubs, discos, hotels, bars, and restaurants
• Symphony orchestras, concert bands, and classical chamber music ensembles
• Digital jukeboxes
• Live concerts

BMI tracks public performances for 6.5 million works, and collects and distributes licensing revenues for those performances as royalties to over 400,000 songwriters, composers, and music publishers it represents, and thousands of creators around the world who have chosen BMI for representation in the U.S. BMI has offices in Atlanta, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, New York, and Puerto Rico.

BMI annually hosts award shows that honor the songwriters, composers and music publishers of the year's most-performed songs in the BMI catalogue. BMI Award shows include the BMI Latin Awards, BMI Pop Awards, BMI Film/TV Awards, BMI Urban Awards, BMI London Awards, BMI Country Awards, BMI Christian Awards, and the BMI Trailblazers of Gospel Music Luncheon.^[5]. BMI is also a supporter of the Stop Online Piracy Act bill.^[6]

See also[link]

• ASCAP
• BMI Foundation
• Copyright collective
• Recording Academy

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Choquette, Frederic, "The Returned Value of PROs", Music Business Journal, Berklee College of Music, May 2011

External links[link]

• Searchable repertoire of BMI licensed material
• BMI article @ answers.com, better history

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2010)

Shirley Ann Caesar (born October 13, 1938, Durham, North Carolina) is an American Gospel music singer, songwriter and recording artist whose career has spanned six decades. A multi-award winning artist, with eleven Grammy Awards and seven Dove Awards to her credit, she is known as "First Lady of gospel".

Beginning recording at the age of 13 in 1951,^[1] Shirley Caesar has released over forty albums, exploring her gift and spreading messages of faith. She has participated in over 16 compilations and three gospel musicals, Mama I Want to Sing, Sing: Mama 2 and Born to Sing: Mama 3.

Her credits also include a series of commercials for MCI Communications and several awards for her recordings. She has won or received 11 Grammy Awards, 13 Stellar Awards, 18 Doves, 1 RIAA gold certification, an Essence Award, McDonald's Golden Circle Lifetime Achievement Award, NAACP Achievement Award, SESAC Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as induction into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. According to Soundscan, she has sold 2.2 million albums since 1991.^[2] Pastor Shirley has made several notable appearances including the televised Live from Disney World Night of Joy, the Gospel According to VH1, a White House performance for George Bush, and a speech on the Evolution of Gospel Music to the US Treasury Department ^[3]

Musical career[link]

Early years[link]

Caesar first began singing and performing for family and friends. They loved her and knew she was going to be great. She first began recording in 1949, at age 11. Her professional adult 'career' began when she was 18, when she approached Albertina Walker about joining The Caravans, one of the most popular gospel groups at that time.

She sang with the legendary late Queen of Gospel Dr. Albertina Walker, Dorothy Norwood, Inez Andrews, Delores Washington and James Cleveland while in the Caravans. She recorded and performed with The Caravans from 1958 until 1966, then she began pursuing a solo career and making a name for herself in the gospel music circuit. Caesar credits Albertina Walker as her mentor and "Queen of Gospel Music". After singing with the Caravans, she started her solo career, making guest appearances on the Bobby Jones gospel show and other popular television shows.

Between 1981 and 1995, she received seven Dove Awards for Black Gospel Album of the Year for Live at the G.M.W.A., Celebration, Christmasing, Sailin‘, Live ... In Chicago, Go and Rejoice. She received two Black Gospel Song of the Year Awards for "He's Working It Out for You" and "Hold My Mule". She has performed with such performers as Patti LaBelle, Whitney Houston, Dorothy Norwood, Faith Evans, Dottie Peoples, Arnold Houston, Kim Burrell, John P. Kee, Kirk Franklin and Tonex, Tye Tribbett among others.

Education[link]

Caesar graduated from Shaw University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration in 1984. She also spent time studying at the Divinity School of Duke University and has received honorary doctorates from Shaw University and Southeastern University.

Personal life[link]

Caesar pastors Mount Calvary Holy Church Word of Faith Church in Raleigh, North Carolina, which seats 1,500. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority and has been married to her husband Bishop Harold Williams since 1983. "I never dreamed the Lord would bring my ministry to where it is, and I feel that I have not yet reached the zenith because we've got such wonderful things planned!" She cites her mother as a strong influence in her decision to give so selflessly of herself. The pastor has committed a sizeable portion of all concert sales to her Outreach Ministries. She continues to deliver weekly sermons and also leads an annual Outreach Ministries conference. She notes, "I cannot sweeten the Atlantic Ocean, but I can take a pitcher out of the ocean and sweeten that."^{[citation needed]}

Discography[link]

• Live in Chicago (1988)
• I Remember Mama (1992)
• He's Working It Out For You(1993)
• Stand Still (1994)
• Live...He Will Come(1995)
• Just A Word (1996)
• Miracle In Harlem (1997)
• Christmas with Shirley Caesar (1998)
• Hymns (2001)
• "You Can Make It (2001)"
• Greatest Gospel Hits
• Shirley Caesar & Friends(2003)
• The Gospel Legends(2005)
• I Know The Truth(2005)
• Still Sweeping Through The City After 40 Years (2009)
• A City Called Heaven (2009)

References[link]

Faith Evans
Evans performing in April 2005
Background information
Birth name	Faith Renee Evans
Born	(1973-06-10) June 10, 1973 (age 39) Lakeland, Florida
Origin	Newark, New Jersey, United States
Genres	R&B, soul, hip hop soul, hip hop
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, record producer, actress
Years active	1993–present
Labels	Bad Boy (1994–2004) Capitol (2004–2007) Prolific/E1 Music (2009–present)
Associated acts	Sean Combs, Keyshia Cole, Mary J. Blige, 112, Lil' Mo, The Notorious B.I.G.,
Website	FaithEvansOnline.com

Faith Renée Evans (born June 10, 1973) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Born in Florida and raised in New Jersey, Evans relocated to Los Angeles during 1993 for a career in the music business. After working as a backing vocalist for Al B. Sure and Christopher Williams, she became the first female artist to be contracted with Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs' Bad Boy Entertainment recording company during 1994, for which she released three platinum-certified studio albums between the years 1995 and 2001.^[1] During 2003, she ended her relationship with the company to contract with Capitol Records.^[2]

Other than her recording career, Evans is known as the widow of New York rapper Christopher "The Notorious B.I.G." Wallace, whom she married on August 4, 1994, a few weeks after meeting at a Bad Boy photoshoot.^[3] The turbulent marriage resulted in Evans' involvement in the East Coast-West Coast hip hop feud, dominating the rap music news at the time, and ended with Wallace's murder in a yet-unsolved drive-by shooting in Los Angeles on March 9, 1997.^[4] A 1997 tribute single featuring Puff Daddy and the band 112, named "I'll Be Missing You", became Evans' best-selling song to date and won her a Grammy Award during 1998.^[2]

Also an avocational actress and writer, Evans made her screen debut in the 2000 musical drama Turn It Up by Robert Adetuyi. Her autobiography Keep the Faith: A Memoir was released by Grand Central Publishing during 2008 and won a 2009 African American Literary Award for the Best Biography/Memoir category.

Biography[link]

Early life and career beginnings[link]

Lakeland, Florida where Evans was born.

Evans was born in Lakeland, Florida to an African-American mother, Helene Evans, a professional singer.^[2] Her father, Richard Swain, was a musician who left before Evans was born (Evans has said "I've heard people mumble something about him being Italian, but I don't know for sure").^[5] A half year later, 19-year-old Helene returned to Newark, New Jersey and left Faith with her cousin Johnnie Mae and husband Orvelt Kennedy, the foster parents of more than a hundred children they raised in the time that Faith lived with them.^[2][4] It was not until a couple of years later that Helene's career floundered and she tried to take Evans back home. Faith, however, was afraid to leave what she'd "been used to", and instead, Helene relocated next door.^[2]

Raised in a Christian home, Evans began singing at church at age two. At age four, she caught the attention of the congregation of the Emmanuel Baptist Church (in Newark) when she sang The 5th Dimension's song "Let the Sunshine In".^[6] While attending University High School in Newark, she sang with several jazz bands and, encouraged by Helene, entered outside pageants, festivals and contests, where her voice would be noticed and praised. After graduating from high school during 1991, Evans attended Fordham University in New York City to study marketing but left a year later to have daughter Chyna with music producer Kiyamma Griffin.^[1] A couple of months later^[when?], she relocated to Los Angeles, where she worked as a backup vocalist for singer Al B. Sure, when she was noticed by musician Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs. Impressed with her persona, Combs contracted her as the company's first female artist to his Bad Boy Entertainment during 1994.^[1]

[edit] 1994-01: Faith, Keep The Faith, Biggie, motherhood and marriage

Newly contracted to Bad Boy Records, Evans was consulted by executive producer Combs to contribute backing vocals and writing skills to Mary J. Blige's My Life (1994) and Usher's self-titled debut album (1994) prior to starting work on her debut record album Faith.^[7] Released on August 29, 1995 in North America, the album was a collaboration with Bad Boy's main producers "The Hitmen", including Chucky Thompson and Combs, but it resulted in recordings with Poke & Tone and Herb Middleton. Faith became a success based on the singles "You Used to Love Me" and "Soon as I Get Home". The album was certified Platinum with 1,500,000 copies sold, according to RIAA.^[8]

On August 4, 1994, Evans married rapper and label mate The Notorious B.I.G., after having met him at a Bad Boy photoshoot.^[3] The couple had one child together, Christopher Wallace, Jr. (born October 29, 1996), but the marriage was turbulent as Wallace reportedly had several affairs during their union, including relationships with fellow rappers Lil' Kim and Charli Baltimore.^[9] Additionally, it led to Evans' involvement in the East Coast-West Coast hip hop feud, dominating the rap music news at the time, which ended with Wallace's murder in a yet-to-be-solved drive-by shooting in Los Angeles, California in March 1997,^[4] and made Evans "Rap's most famous widow".^[3] During early 1997, after her separation from Wallace, but before his death, Evans was introduced to record company executive Todd Russaw. Faith began dating Russaw during her and Wallace's separation and eventually, after Wallace died, Evans became pregnant by Russaw. The couple had their first son Joshua on June 8, 1998.^[3] During the summer of 1998, Evans and Russaw were married, and on March 22, 2007, they had their second son Ryder Evan Russaw.^[3] After Biggie's murder during March 1997, Combs helped Evans produce her tribute song named "I'll Be Missing You", based on the melody of The Police's 1983 single "Every Breath You Take". The song, which featured Combs, Evans, and all-male group 112, became a worldwide number-one success and debuted at #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart during 1997, scoring that for eleven weeks. It eventually won Puffy and Evans the 1998 Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group.^[2] The next year, she received another two Grammy nominations for "Heartbreak Hotel", a collaboration with singers Whitney Houston and Kelly Price, that scored number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.^[10] Prior to Evans meeting and having a relationship with The Notorious B.I.G., she was involved in a relationship with Kiyamma Griffin. She and Griffin had a daughter named Chyna (born April 1, 1993).

Two years in the making, Evans' second solo effort, Keep the Faith, was released during October 1998. Almost entirely written and produced by her, Evans considered the album difficult to complete as she had initially felt discouraged about the progress at first.^[3] Upon its release, however, the album garnered generally positive reviews by music critics, with Allmusic noting it "without a doubt a highlight of 1990s soul-pop music".^[11] Also enjoying commercial success, it eventually went platinum and produced the top ten singles "Love Like This" and "All Night Long" (released March 30, 1999) prompting Evans to start an 18-city theater tour with Dru Hill and Total the following year.^[3]

[edit] 2001-07: Faithfully, legal issues, Capitol Records and The First Lady

Evans police mug shot

Evans' third album on the Bad Boy imprint, named Faithfully (2001), involved her working with a wider range of producers, including The Neptunes, Mario Winans, Buckwild, Vada Nobles, Cory Rooney, and others.^[12] Her first project with husband Todd Russaw as executive producer and creative partner, the album scored number 14 on the Billboard 200 album chart and number two on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, eventually being certified platinum, but yielded moderately successful singles, with the Jennifer Lopez-written "I Love You" becoming the only top twenty entry.^[13] Released amid Bad Boy Records' transition from distributor Arista Records to Universal, Evans felt Faithfully received minimum assistance by the company, and during 2004, she finally decided to end her business with Bad Boy as she was convinced Combs couldn't improve her career any more due to his other commitments.^[14] During January 2004, Evans and Russaw were arrested and charged with possession of marijuana and cocaine and an improper tag violation during a traffic stop in Hapeville, a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia.

After ending with Bad Boy Entertainment Evans contracted with Capitol Records company, becoming the first contemporary R&B artist to do so, and started work on her fourth studio album The First Lady, named after her nickname on her former label.^[14] As opposed to having an in-house team of producers who supplied most of the previous material, she and Russaw were able to gain more creative control of the album and consulted producers such as Bryan-Michael Cox, Jermaine Dupri, Mike Caren, Pharrell Williams, and Chucky Thompson to contribute to it.^[15] Upon its release in April 2005, The First Lady scored at number two on the Billboard 200 and #1 of the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, becoming Evans' best-charting album to date. It was eventually certified gold by the RIAA.^[16] At the end of the year, Evans released A Faithful Christmas, a holiday album of traditional Christmas songs and original tracks. The effort would become her last release on Capitol Records as the company was bought during 2007.^[17]

[edit] 2008-present: Hiatus, arrest, second child, divorce and Something About Faith

Following a longer hiatus, Evans signed a deal with E1 Entertainment - the largest independent record label in the United States - in 2010. Her sixth studio album Something About Faith was released on October 5, 2010 in the United States and December 6, 2010 in the UK.^[18] In the US, the album debuted and peaked at number fifteen on the Billboard 200, number four on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and number one on the Independent Albums chart, failing however to chart oustide the US - making it Evans' only album since her debut Faith to chart in the US only.^[19] Something About Faith has spawned the single and music video "Gone Already"; which spent over thirty-three weeks on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, where it peaked at number twenty-two.^[20] On February 14, 2011, a high definition music video for "Right Here" was released on Evans' official YouTube account, suggesting that it is the second single from the album, though this is yet to be confirmed.^[21]

In August 2010, she was arrested on suspicion of misdemeanor drunken driving, after being stopped at a checkpoint in Marina del Rey, California. In 2011, Evans filed for divorce against Russaw.^[22][23] The couple agreed to spend 13 weeks in a drug-treatment program in exchange for halting any further prosecution of their drug-possession case.^[24]

On March 22, 2007, they had their second son Ryder Evan Russaw.^[3] In May 2011, Evans and Russaw announced they were getting a divorce, and stated they would like to keep it quiet for the children's sakes.^[25]

Other ventures[link]

Acting[link]

Having previously appeared in stage plays as a teenager, Evans began acting with a supporting role in director Robert Adetuyi's 2000 music drama Turn It Up, featuring Pras Michel from the The Fugees, Jason Statham and Ja Rule. Released to generally negative reviews from critics,^[26] who noted it "patently absurd in both the details and larger aspects",^[27] the indie film had a short play and became a financial disappointment, gaining US$1.24 million during its U.S. run only.^[28]

During 2003, Evans acted in the MTV-produced romantic comedy The Fighting Temptations in which she appeared in a brief but major role portraying a single mother and night club singer.^[29] Filmed in Columbus, Georgia and headed by Cuba Gooding, Jr. (her character is his mother) and Beyoncé Knowles, the film garnered mixed reviews by critcs,^[30] but scored top three of the U.S. box office, resulting in a domestic gross of US$30.2 million.^[31] In addition, Evans recorded a contemporary cover version of Donna Summer's 1978 success "Heaven Knows" for the film which her characters performs during one of the first in sequence in the film. The accompanying soundtrack scored the top twenty of the U.S. Billboard 200.^[32]

During 2004, Evans earned a brief guest stint on the UPN situation comedy Half & Half.^[33] Evans announced that she had been working on a synopsis for her own situation comedy that would be based largely on her life but with a more comedic aspect. It is unknown whether she has officially pitched the sitcom to any television networks at this time^[when?].^[34]

Writing[link]

Evans released her autobiographic book called Keep the Faith: A Memoir on August 29, 2008. It detailed the singer's life, but also discussed Evans' controversial relationship with her late husband, the Notorious B.I.G.:

"I want people to understand that although he was a large part of my life, my story doesn't actually begin or end with Big's death. My journey has been complicated on many levels. And since I am always linked to Big, there are a lot of misconceptions about who I really am. It's not easy putting your life out there for the masses. But I've decided I'll tell my own story. For Big. For my children. And for myself."^[35]

In its initial release, "Keep the Faith: A Memoir" landed in the Top 20 on New York's Best Seller's List two consecutive weeks in a row. During 2009, the book received The 2009 African American Literary Award for Best Biography/Memoir.^[36]

Discography[link]

Studio albums

• 1995: Faith
• 1998: Keep the Faith
• 2001: Faithfully
• 2005: The First Lady
• 2010: Something About Faith

Other albums

• 2005: A Faithful Christmas

Tours[link]

• The First Lady Tour (2005)

Filmography[link]

• 2000: Turn It Up
• 2003: The Fighting Temptations
• 2009: Notorious

Awards and nominations[link]

• African American Literary Award
  • 2009: African American Literary Award: Keep the Faith (A Memoir) (won)
• BET Awards
  • 2002: Best Female R&B Artist (nominated)
• Grammy Awards
  • 2011: Best Female R&B Vocal Performance: "Gone Already" (nominated)
  • 2003: Best Contemporary R&B Album: Faithfully (nominated)
  • 2001: Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group: "Can't Believe" w/ Carl Thomas (nominated)
  • 2000: Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group: "Heartbreak Hotel" w/ Whitney Houston & Kelly Price (nominated)
  • 1999: Best Female R&B Vocal Performance: "Love Like This" (nominated)
  • 1998: Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group: "I'll Be Missing You" w/ Diddy (won)
• Lady of Soul Awards
  • 2000: Outstanding Music Video: "Love Is Blind" (by Eve ft. Faith Evans) (nominated)
  • 1996: Best Female R&B/Soul Album: Faith (won)
  • 1996: Best R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist: "You Used to Love Me" (nominated)
• MTV Video Music Awards
  • 2000: Best Rap Video: "Love Is Blind" (by Eve ft. Faith Evans) (nominated)
  • 1999: Best R&B Video: "Heartbreak Hotel" (nominated)
  • 1997: Best R&B Video: "I'll Be Missing You" (won)
  • 1997: Viewer's Choice: "I'll Be Missing You" (nominated)
• Soul Train Awards
  • 2006: Best Female R&B/Soul Album: The First Lady (nominated)
  • 1998: Outstanding Music Video: "I'll Be Missing You" (won)

References[link]

External links[link]

	Book: Faith Evans
Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print.

• Official site
• Faith Evans at the Internet Movie Database
• Faith Evans interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' November 2010
• The Observer interview, 2005
• Vibe interview, 2005

v t e Faith Evans Studio albums Faith (1995) Keep the Faith (1998) Faithfully (2001) The First Lady (2005) A Faithful Christmas (2005) Something About Faith (2010) Singles "You Used to Love Me" "Soon as I Get Home" "Ain't Nobody" "Kissing You" "Come Over" "Love Like This" "All Night Long" "Never Gonna Let You Go" "Lately I" "Can't Believe" "You Get's No Long" "I Love You" "Burnin' Up" "Alone In this World" "Again" "Mesmerized" "Tru Love "Gone Already" Tours The First Lady Tour (2005) Related topics Discography The Notorious B.I.G. Book:Faith Evans

David Foster
Foster speaking during a ceremony for Andrea Bocelli at the Hollywood Walk of Fame, in 2010.
Background information
Birth name	David Walter Foster
Born	(1949-11-01) November 1, 1949 (age 62) Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Genres	Pop, pop rock, Classical, Gospel, R&B
Occupations	Music executive, Record producer, musician, composer, songwriter, arranger
Instruments	Piano, keyboards, French horn, synthesizer
Years active	1971–present
Labels	Verve Records Reprise, 143, Atlantic
Associated acts	Skylark, Attitudes, Airplay, Ronnie Hawkins & The Hawks
Website	Official website

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (March 2012)

David Walter Foster, OC, OBC (born November 1, 1949), is a Canadian musician, record producer, composer, singer, songwriter, and arranger,^[1] noted for discovering singers such as Michael Bublé, Josh Groban, and Charice Pempengco; and for producing some of the most successful artists in the world, such as Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Céline Dion, Andrea Bocelli, Toni Braxton, Madonna, Air Supply and Michael Jackson. Foster has won 16 Grammy Awards from 47 nominations. David Foster is the current Chairman of Verve Music Group. ^[2]

Career[link]

Throughout his career, he has produced recordings for a wide range of musical artists, including Bryan Adams, Tamia, Christina Aguilera, The Bee Gees, Andrea Bocelli, Boz Scaggs, Mariah Carey, Toni Braxton, Chicago, Destiny's Child, Neil Diamond, Céline Dion, Earth Wind and Fire, Gloria Estefan, Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, Michael Jackson, Chaka Khan, Beyonce Knowles, Kenny Loggins, Madonna, Olivia Newton-John, Nsync, All-4-One, Plus One, Charice Pempengco, Prince, LeAnn Rimes, Kenny Rogers, Barbra Streisand, Donna Summer, Shania Twain, Hall & Oates, Tim Feehan, The Tubes, and Jackie Evancho.

Foster was a keyboardist for the pop group Skylark, discovered by Eirik Wangberg. The band's song, "Wildflower", was a top ten hit in 1973. Together with Jay Graydon he formed the band Airplay, whose album of the same name is often labeled the most important within the Westcoast AOR genre. He produced debut albums for The Corrs,^[3] Michael Bublé,^[4] Renee Olstead and Josh Groban, which were released under his own record label, 143 Records, and distributed through Warner Music.

In 1985, Rolling Stone magazine named Foster the "master of ... bombastic pop kitsch."^[5] That year, Foster composed the score for the film St. Elmo's Fire,^[6] including the instrumental "Love Theme from St. Elmo's Fire", which hit No. 15 on the US pop charts. Another song from the film, "St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion)", recorded by John Parr hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on September 7, 1985. The following years, Foster continued turning out occasional film scores, including the Michael J. Fox comedy The Secret of My Success and the Jodie Foster-Mark Harmon film Stealing Home, both of which spawned soundtrack albums with prominent Foster-penned contributions. He collaborated with then-wife Linda Thompson on the song "I Have Nothing", sung by Whitney Houston in the 1992 film The Bodyguard; the couple also appeared in the film's Oscars scene as the Oscar conductor and an Academy member. They were nominated for a Grammy Award and an Academy Award for Best Song for the song.^{[citation needed]}

In 1995 Foster signed a deal with Warner Brothers that enabled him to set up his own boutique label, 143 Records, as a joint venture with Warner.^[7] Foster gave the responsibility for running the label to then manager Brian Avnet.^[7] One of the label's first signing was a then-little known Irish folk-rock band, The Corrs, for whom he produced their debut album.^[7] By 1997, Foster had come to the realisation that, in the American market at least, "logo labels" like 143 were in a "bad spot" and as a result Foster sold the label back to Warner and became senior vice-president at the corporation.^[7]

Foster, along with Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, composed "The Power of the Dream" as the official song of the 1996 Summer Olympics, with then-wife Thompson providing the lyrics (sung by Céline Dion). He also composed "Winter Games", the theme song for 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Alberta. "Winter Games" is the soundtrack for a fountain show at the Bellagio resort in Las Vegas as well as a fountain show at Sea World Orlando and the awards ceremonies at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. Also in 2001, he collaborated with Lara Fabian and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra to record the Canadian national anthem, "O Canada", for an English language version, a French version, and a bilingual (French/English) version, for a promotion of the Canadian government. Foster, with his then-wife Thompson, composed "Light the Fire Within", which was sung by LeAnn Rimes for the 2002 Winter Olympics. In 2003, Foster won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Music and Lyrics for The Concert for World Children's Day. His song, "I Will Be There With You" (sung with Katharine McPhee), is being used by Japan Airlines to promote the introduction of new aircraft to its US flights.

The 2001 movie, The Score, starring Robert De Niro and Marlon Brando has a Diana Krall recording, "I'll Make It Up As I Go". This song accompanies the film's ending Credits (Chapter 12) and was composed by David Foster (together with his daughter Amy Foster-Gilles), and was used in the film courtesy of the Verve Music Group.^[8] In 2005, Foster, his daughter Amy Foster-Gillies, and Knowles wrote "Stand Up For Love" as the anthem to the World Children's Day, an annual worldwide event to raise awareness and funds for children causes. Over the past three years, more than $50 million has been raised to benefit Ronald McDonald House Charities and other children's organizations. Destiny's Child lent their voices and support as global ambassadors for the 2005 program.^{[citation needed]}

In 2009 it was revealed that Foster had worked with songwriter Diane Warren to produce records for Whitney Houston's upcoming album. It was then announced that her comeback single would be the Foster-produced "I Didn't Know My Own Strength".^[9]

On December 15, 2011 it was confirmed that Foster would become the Chairman of Verve Music Group.^{[citation needed]}

Television appearances[link]

In early 1992, the national television station RCTI, Foster came to Indonesia for the TV show David Foster's Twilight Orchestra. In early 2001, Foster was in Popstars, a reality series that aired on WB. The series aimed at coming up with the next girl group and eventually became Eden's Crush (featuring Nicole Scherzinger). Foster and Linda Thompson wrote and produced several songs on their album. His home life was featured in a Fox staged^[10] reality TV show, The Princes of Malibu, in which he attempted to force his spoiled stepsons, Brandon and Brody Jenner (the children of Thompson and Olympian Bruce Jenner), to straighten their lives up and earn their own way.^{[citation needed]}

In late April 2005, he appeared as a special guest on both American Idol (as a mentor) and Nashville Star (as a judge) two weeks apart. He was also a judge on Celebrity Duets, a FOX TV show, and appeared on Star Tomorrow, where auditions were held in Los Angeles and New York for undiscovered talent. It aired only one (July 31, 2006) episode on NBC.^{[citation needed]}

In July 2006, Foster made a brief appearance on The View as Star Jones's vocal coach. In August 2006, he was the musical director for JCPenney Jam's "The Concert For American Kids", which aired on CBS and was later released in CD/DVD format. In November 2007, Foster appeared in Oprah's annual "Favourite Things" episode, performing with Josh Groban. In September 2008, singer Charice joined Foster on The Oprah Winfrey Show with Celine Dion via satellite; and later on October 31, he and Andrea Bocelli appeared on Oprah again together, where he stated that Bocelli was his "favourite singer on the planet".^[11]

In December 2008, Foster was featured in a PBS special titled Hit Man: David Foster & Friends, a concert featuring live performances by Foster and numerous other performers.^[12] Foster was also featured in Under the Desert Sky in 2006, Vivere Live in Tuscany in 2007, the My Christmas Special, in 2009, and Live In Central Park, in 2011, Andrea Bocelli's four latest PBS Specials. Bocelli also performed during Foster's Hit Man special.

In late 2009, he also appeared on a number of TV shows to promote Bocelli's My Christmas album, which he produced, including The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Dr. Phil, The Early Show and Fox & Friends. He also made a number of appearances in 2010 with Filipino singer Charice, to promote her album.^{[citation needed]}

Foster also has appeared in Nederlandse Hollywood Vrouwen. (Season 1 & 2 (2011/2011)Aired by NET 5, Netherlands) The Dutch reality series follows his wife Yolanda and three other woman.^{[citation needed]}

In April 2012 rumors about his wife becoming a cast of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills appeared on E News. ^[13]

Personal life[link]

Foster has been married four times, has five biological daughters and six grandchildren. His first marriage was to singer/writer B.J. Cook, who already had a daughter, Tamre Winger, whom he raised. Cook and Foster had one daughter together, Amy Foster (b. July 29, 1973), a songwriter.

Foster's second wife was model Rebecca Dyer; they had three daughters: Sara Foster (b. August 24, 1981), Erin Foster (b. August 24, 1983), and Jordan Foster (b. September 1986).^[14]

He married his third wife, Linda Thompson, on June 27, 1991. The two became a songwriting team, collaborating on several songs including "I Have Nothing" performed by Whitney Houston in The Bodyguard, and "Grown-Up Christmas List". Thompson filed for divorce on July 11, 2005, the day after her short-lived reality series, The Princes of Malibu, premiered.^[14]

Foster married model Yolanda Hadid in Beverly Hills on November 11, 2011 in a star-studded 11/11/11-themed ceremony.^[15]

Foster's sister, producer Jaymes Foster, is the mother of Clay Aiken's son Parker Foster Aiken.^[16] A cousin, Billy Foster, died in a race car accident in 1967.

In 1992, Foster was driving on the Pacific Coast Highway when his car struck actor/dancer Ben Vereen, who had crashed his car and was in a daze. Despite being thrown 90 feet, Vereen survived. Vereen went on the record to state that it probably saved his life as he had had a serious drinking problem caused by the death of his daughter.^[17]

Discography[link]

In addition to the numerous albums he has produced, the following are Foster's own solo or band works:^{[citation needed]}

• 1972: Skylark (self-titled)
• 1974: 2 Skylark
• 1976: Attitudes (self-titled)
• 1977: Good News Attitudes
• 1980: Airplay (self-titled)
• 1983: The Best of Me
• 1986: David Foster (self-titled)
• 1988: The Symphony Sessions
• 1989: Time Passing
• 1990: River of Love
• 1991: Rechordings
• 1993: The Christmas Album
• 1994: Love Lights The World
• 2008: Hit Man: David Foster & Friends
• 2011: Hit Man Returns: David Foster & Friends

Singles[link]

• 1985: "Love Theme From St. Elmo's Fire (For Just a Moment)" (US #15)
• 1986: "The Best of Me" (Duet with Olivia Newton-John) (US #80)
• 1988: "Winter Games (Can't You Feel It)" - Official theme song for the Calgary 1988 Winter Olympics (US #85)
• 2001: O Canada (with Lara Fabian)
• 2003: Teko’s Theme - with Nita Whitaker

Compilations[link]

• 1992: A Touch Of David Foster
• 2000: The Best Of Me: A Collection of David Foster’s Greatest Works
• 2002: Love Stories
• 2010: The Magic of David Foster & Friends

Awards and Honours[link]

In 1995, Foster received the Order of British Columbia, the highest honour awarded in his native province of British Columbia. Foster became an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2006.^[18]

Foster has won 16 Grammy Awards, including three Producer of the Year award and has been nominated a total of 47 times.^[19]

He has been nominated three times for an Academy Award for Best Original Song and won the 1999 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song for the song "The Prayer" (sung by Andrea Bocelli and Celine Dion) from the film Quest for Camelot. He has been named BMI's "Songwriter of the Year".^[20]

In June 2010, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.^[21]

See also[link]

• List of songs by David Foster
• Music of Canada
• Canadian Music Hall of Fame
• List of Canadian composers

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• David Foster; Pablo F. Fenjves (6 October 2009). Hitman: Forty Years Making Music, Topping the Charts, and Winning Grammys. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4391-4950-8. http://books.google.com/books?id=6vJQwZCIVbkC&pg=PP1. 

External links[link]

• Official website
• David Foster at Yahoo! Movies
• David Foster on The Hour