Latest news with #IvorsAcademy
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
RAYE to Receive Ivors Academy Honour Following Songwriter Royalties Campaign
RAYE has carved out yet another milestone in her ascendant career by becoming a recipient of an Ivors Academy Honour. The Ivors Academy has announced that the multi BRIT award-winning musician will receive the accolade at the maiden Ivors Academy Honours event in London this fall (Oct. 2). The ceremony is set to celebrate the artists and industry figures driving positive change for songwriters and composers, and will take place at the InterContinental London Park Lane. More from Billboard Major Labels Back Sweeping U.K. Reforms on Artist Contracts and Per Diems: 'It's About Time' Sabrina Carpenter Reveals 'Man's Best Friend' Tracklist via Golden Retriever Timmy Trumpet Cancels European Shows Following Injury The news follows the announcement that the U.K. government has confirmed the introduction of a £75 per diem for songwriters and session musicians. The agreement has been backed by the U.K. arms of major labels Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group. At The Ivors in 2023, RAYE called on labels to allocate songwriters a share of master recording revenues. In her acceptance speech for the best contemporary song award – which she won for smash hit 'Escapism' – she highlighted the need for a greater level of respect to be shown towards 'voiceless beating heart of the industry, which is songwriters.' In a statement, Roberto Neri, chief executive of The Ivors Academy said, 'An incredible multi award-winning artist, RAYE is the one of the most gifted songwriters of her generation and always gives full respect and voice to fellow writers. She has consistently called for better pay and greater recognition for songwriters, championing structural change to protect the talent behind the music we love. We're proud to honour her with this well-deserved recognition.' Over the past few years, south Londoner RAYE (born Rachel Keen) has been at the forefront of this conversation, repeatedly pushing for a more inclusive and equitable music industry while also speaking out about the imbalance of power between artists and labels and the financial challenges faced by new artists. She split with her former label Polydor in July 2021, to which she signed in 2014, after taking to social media to explain that they would not let her release any new music unless her singles reached a certain level of commercial success. She has since worked as an independent act via distribution company Human Re Sources, a subsidiary of The Orchard. Her Mercury Prize-nominated debut LP My 21st Century Blues landed in February 2023, hitting No. 2 on the Official U.K. Albums Chart. The vocalist is currently gearing up for her biggest headline show to date at London's All Points East festival on Aug. 23. Support acts include Doechii, Cat Burns, and JADE, while Tyla is billed as a special guest. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart Solve the daily Crossword
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Scotsman
24-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
RAYE earns inaugural Ivors Academy Honour at this year's illustrious event
The singer is set to be awarded for her continual efforts addressing the inequity between musicians and labels Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... RAYE is set to receive the inaugural Ivors Academy Honour in October 2025. The award celebrated efforts musicians make to 'drive positive change' within the industry. It comes as the singer continues her campaign against the perceived 'power imbalance' between artists and labels and the financially challenges they face. The Ivors Academy has announced that the acclaimed songwriter, artist, and campaigner RAYE will be presented with the first ever Ivors Academy Honour - a prestigious recognition celebrating her tireless efforts and influential campaigning to drive positive change within the music industry for songwriters and composers. The singer has already amassed an impressive collection of accolades, including two Ivor Novello Awards, seven BRIT Awards, and four Global Awards. Beyond her artistic achievements, she has emerged as one of the most outspoken and impactful advocates for songwriters, leveraging her platform to inspire fellow musicians and spearhead meaningful change. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad RAYE is set to be awarded the inaugural Ivors Academy Award in October 2025 after her continued campaigning for equitable treatment between musicians and labels. | Jill Furmanovsky Undoubtedly one of the industry's most passionate voices, RAYE has consistently championed fairer treatment and greater recognition for the often-unsung heroes behind the music. She has bravely addressed the power imbalance between artists and labels and highlighted the significant financial challenges faced by creatives in the age of streaming, consistently demanding increased transparency and equitable pay. At The Ivors 2024, where she scooped the award for Best Contemporary Song, RAYE passionately called on the industry to properly value and reward the artists who create the music. She spoke out powerfully on stage for the "voiceless beating heart of the industry, which is songwriters." Today, she continues to lead the charge for a more equitable and respectful music industry for all. Roberto Neri, Chief Executive of The Ivors Academy, commented on the upcoming honour, stating, 'An incredible multi-award-winning artist, RAYE is one of the most gifted songwriters of her generation and always gives full respect and voice to fellow writers. She has consistently called for better pay and greater recognition for songwriters, championing structural change to protect the talent behind the music we love. We're proud to honour her with this well-deserved recognition." The Ivors Academy Honours build upon the rich legacy of the Gold Badge Awards, which were first established in 1974. Past recipients include a distinguished list of creators, campaigners, and industry figures such as songwriter and campaigner Carla Marie Williams MBE, politician Kevin Brennan, Glastonbury Festival founder Michael Eavis CBE, activist and singer-songwriter Bob Geldof, Elbow frontman Guy Garvey, and broadcasters Trevor Nelson MBE and and Jo Whiley. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The ceremony to honour RAYE with the award is set to take place on October 2 2025 at the InterContinental London. Are you happy to see RAYE earn an award for her efforts to ensure musicians get a fair deal and more accountability from labels? Let us know your thoughts by leaving a comment down below.
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Scotsman
24-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
RAYE earns inaugural Ivors Academy Honour at this year's illustrious event
The singer is set to be awarded for her continual efforts addressing the inequity between musicians and labels Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... RAYE is set to receive the inaugural Ivors Academy Honour in October 2025. The award celebrated efforts musicians make to 'drive positive change' within the industry. It comes as the singer continues her campaign against the perceived 'power imbalance' between artists and labels and the financially challenges they face. The Ivors Academy has announced that the acclaimed songwriter, artist, and campaigner RAYE will be presented with the first ever Ivors Academy Honour - a prestigious recognition celebrating her tireless efforts and influential campaigning to drive positive change within the music industry for songwriters and composers. The singer has already amassed an impressive collection of accolades, including two Ivor Novello Awards, seven BRIT Awards, and four Global Awards. Beyond her artistic achievements, she has emerged as one of the most outspoken and impactful advocates for songwriters, leveraging her platform to inspire fellow musicians and spearhead meaningful change. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad RAYE is set to be awarded the inaugural Ivors Academy Award in October 2025 after her continued campaigning for equitable treatment between musicians and labels. | Jill Furmanovsky Undoubtedly one of the industry's most passionate voices, RAYE has consistently championed fairer treatment and greater recognition for the often-unsung heroes behind the music. She has bravely addressed the power imbalance between artists and labels and highlighted the significant financial challenges faced by creatives in the age of streaming, consistently demanding increased transparency and equitable pay. At The Ivors 2024, where she scooped the award for Best Contemporary Song, RAYE passionately called on the industry to properly value and reward the artists who create the music. She spoke out powerfully on stage for the "voiceless beating heart of the industry, which is songwriters." Today, she continues to lead the charge for a more equitable and respectful music industry for all. Roberto Neri, Chief Executive of The Ivors Academy, commented on the upcoming honour, stating, 'An incredible multi-award-winning artist, RAYE is one of the most gifted songwriters of her generation and always gives full respect and voice to fellow writers. She has consistently called for better pay and greater recognition for songwriters, championing structural change to protect the talent behind the music we love. We're proud to honour her with this well-deserved recognition." The Ivors Academy Honours build upon the rich legacy of the Gold Badge Awards, which were first established in 1974. Past recipients include a distinguished list of creators, campaigners, and industry figures such as songwriter and campaigner Carla Marie Williams MBE, politician Kevin Brennan, Glastonbury Festival founder Michael Eavis CBE, activist and singer-songwriter Bob Geldof, Elbow frontman Guy Garvey, and broadcasters Trevor Nelson MBE and and Jo Whiley. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The ceremony to honour RAYE with the award is set to take place on October 2 2025 at the InterContinental London.
Irish Examiner
30-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Jennifer Horgan: Bono was right to criticise Hamas along with Israel - peacemakers are rarely popular
To think people used to see this absolute fraud as some sort of beacon of hope for humanity. Bono's not even the greatest front man in Dublin, never mind the history of the world... Bono is an opportunist who sold his soul long ago... Free Palestine! The criticism has been rolling in against Bono online, in response to his recent speech when receiving one of songwriting's highest honours – Fellowship of the Ivors Academy. Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton, and Larry Mullen Jr are the first-ever Irish songwriters that the academy has inducted into fellowship during its 81-year history. You'd think we'd be happy to celebrate with them, but this criticism of Bono's speech has overshadowed any possibility of national pride. It's nothing new given that plenty of Irish people find him irritating – superior or something…We've never been all that good at pinpointing our disdain. So, what was it that he said that was so wrong this time? Well, he began his speech by asking Hamas to release their hostages. "Hamas, release the hostages. Stop the war. Israel, be released from Benjamin Netanyahu and the far-right fundamentalists that twist your sacred text." The words after Hamas focus on criticism of Israel. No mind. None of that counts. He shouldn't have mentioned Hamas – so the criticism goes. These critics have a point, of course. The actions of Hamas now, if not in October 2023, shrink into insignificance when compared with the current actions of Israel. We all carry a deep pain, knowing there are thousands of innocent babies, children and adults starving to death in Gaza as we go about our daily lives. There are trucks stuffed with supplies that are not being let in to help these poor people. These are the darkest of days. We know it is happening and yet we can do so little. And so, people are understandably filled with rage that Bono mentioned Hamas, the word seeming to equalise both sides, as if both are similarly culpable, comparable in their cruelty. I understand the feeling. At a gut level, I agree with it. Bono's words felt wrong; they landed discordantly. But our outrage brings us no closer to peace. It helps nobody. If anything, it pushes peace further away. Trucks loaded with humanitarian aid for the Gaza Strip at the Kerem Shalom Crossing in southern Israel last are trucks stuffed with supplies that are not being let in to help the poor people in Gaza. File photo: AP/Maya Alleruzzo The Israeli state has lost all humanity. Their genocidal assault proves their inability to see Palestinian people as human beings. Israel has ignored Ireland's protests for months. It is continuing to ignore the wave of criticism rising against them now – from hitherto silent nations. Condemnation of Israel will always be heard as antisemitism by Netanyahu and his government. So, what is to be done? I would argue that as things stand, only consequences matter. Anything we can do to stop this genocide is worth trying. Bono's criticism of Netanyahu means more, carries more weight, following at least an acknowledgement of Hamas. He understands the Israeli mindset - that since October 7th – anything goes. If he were to have omitted the mention of Hamas, no Israeli or Israeli sympathiser would have listened to the rest of his speech. He understood fully what he was doing. He knew that the most committed campaigners for Palestine would hate him for it. He knew he would be attacked, ripped to shreds online, and yet he did it. He mentioned Hamas. He mentioned Hamas because his concern is primarily for the 'children in the rubble'. It is a truly rebellious act, as he put it, – calling for peace. Peace is rarely a popular word. To so many people it sounds like cowardice. We are natural side-takers. Our side-taking fuels our passion for support. It also increases the likelihood and longevity of war. Peacekeepers don't have the privilege of taking sides – even when the 'right' side is blatantly obvious. In his speech at the Ivors Academy Bono said: 'Hamas, release the hostages. Stop the war. Israel, be released from Benjamin Netanyahu and the far-right fundamentalists that twist your sacred text.' File photo A genuine call for peace must drain itself of all side-taking to have any real impact. Even when one side is clearly the victim and one side clearly the perpetrator. None of those matters, only peace does. I have no doubt where Bono's heart resides. He is fully horrified, as we all are, about what is happening to human beings in Gaza. Speaking to Brendan O'Connor last weekend he made it clear however, that he is not interested in "competitive empathy", something I have written about for this paper. How right he is. We have become obsessed by the "look" of our actions, regardless of their consequences. Bono is interested in consequences. During the RTÉ interview, he recalled being egged for standing beside a Republican president and being heavily criticised for accepting a medal of freedom from Joe Biden. He countered the criticism by reminding listeners that his work with Biden saved lives. It's quite the understatement. Through ONE, Bono has lobbied heads of state and legislatures worldwide, ensuring the implementation of global health and development programs, including the PEPFAR AIDS program, which has saved approximately 25 million lives. Commentators criticising Bono for mentioning Hamas need to remind themselves that typing something online in itself is not an act of heroism. Sometimes we need to quiet our own emotions, even our own just allegiances, no matter how powerful, to get the consequences we want. This is exactly what Bono is doing. Bono's criticism of Netanyahu means more, carries more weight, following at least an acknowledgement of Hamas. He understands the Israeli mindset - that since October 7th – anything goes. File photo: AP/Jens Kalaene/dpa Is the man perfect? No, I'm certain he is not. He's walking around like the rest of us – full of his own demons no doubt, on his own journey, failing and learning all the time. He has an awful lot of money, and he likes to keep it. But he is committed to peace. If Bono is out in the cold, Kneecap are warming themselves by the rosy fire of our adoration. The Irish people have fallen in love with their absolute devotion to Palestine. Like most people, I agree with their commitment to an absolutely devastated, ravaged people. But their rhetoric won't get us anywhere. It will simply make them increasingly popular. Yes, they are on the right side of history, but side-taking is antithetical to peace. I've been discussing the nature of peace in school this week. On Tuesday I found myself in a quiet classroom discussing Eavan Boland's Poem Child of our Time with a Leaving Cert student. Written in the 70s, it's one I've been reflecting on since. The poem was written in response to a photograph of a firefighter carrying the body of a dead child from the debris of the Dublin bombing in May 1974. It addresses the deceased, acknowledging that adults' 'idol talk' has cost him or her their life. 'Our times have robbed your cradle' she says to the imagined body. She prays that we, the adults, can find a 'new language' to prevent future deaths. We have not found that language. However morally right we are in condemning the Israeli state, our unwillingness to hear any mention of Hamas by Bono is ineffective. It forgets what we are trying to achieve – peace. An end to killing. Kneecap are doing the right thing but that is different from doing the most effective thing. We need people like Kneecap to speak out. But for effectiveness, we need Bono and all peacemakers like him. My hope is that Bono is in a room somewhere reminding himself of the criticism peacekeepers receive in their time. Certain unionists and nationalists despised Hume. I have no doubt that as someone who lived through the discrimination against Catholics in Northern Ireland, he found it harder to reach across one side of the divide than the other. But reach across he did – not because he thought both sides were necessarily equal but because he knew his opinion, and indeed right and wrong, no longer mattered. Any words that might stop Israel now are worth uttering. Alongside that one all-important one. Peace. Read More Tánaiste urges other countries to recognise Palestine as a state
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
U2's Bono speaks out against Hamas, Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli 'far-right fundamentalists'
U2's Bono has spoken out against Hamas, Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli 'far-right fundamentalists' at the 2025 Ivor Novello Awards last night. U2 became the first Irish act to receive the Fellowship of the Ivors Academy, the highest honour that the organisation bestows. The band took to the stage to accept the honour, with frontman Bono calling for peace in the Gaza-Israel conflict. 'I used to introduce this next song by saying it was not a rebel song. It was because believing in the possibilities of peace was then, and is now, a rebellious act; and some would say a ridiculous one,' said Bono – referring to the U2 song 'Sunday Bloody Sunday', their 1983 track about the 1972 massacre in which the British army shot at unarmed protestors during the Troubles in Northern Ireland, killing 14 people. 'To believe peace was attainable between your country and ours, between our country and itself was a ridiculous idea because peace creates possibilities in the most intractable situations and lord knows there's a few of them out there right now,' he added. He then said: 'Hamas, release the hostages, stop the war. Israel, be released from Benjamin Netanyahu and the far-right fundamentalists that twist your sacred texts,' before adding: 'All of you, protect our aid workers – they are the best of us." He concluded by saying: "God, you must be so tired of us, children of Abraham, in the rubble of our certainties. Children in the rubble of our revenge. God forgive us.' The comments mark the first time the human rights activist has spoken out in public against the Israeli prime minister since the war in Gaza broke out in October 2023. Bono's speech also comes at a time when Western leaders have been criticising Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli authorities over the renewed offensive in Gaza.
