BMI Urban Awards 2003 to Feature Performances by Bilal, Floetry, Anthony Hamilton to Honor Isaac Hayes as BMI Icon; R. Kelly, Irv Gotti, Ja Rule among Attendees

Business Wire, July 28, 2003

Entertainment Editors/Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 28, 2003

BMI, the performing rights organization, announced today the first confirmed attendees to its Urban Awards 2003, to be held Tuesday, August 5 at Club Tropigala at the Fountainebleau Hilton Resorts & Towers in Miami Beach. Scheduled to perform a salute to BMI ICON honoree Isaac Hayes are Anthony Hamilton (Arista Records), former backup singer for D'Angelo and one of Rolling Stone magazine's 10 Artists to Watch in 2003; soul singer and songwriter Bilal (Interscope); and Floetry (DreamWorks), the female singing duo who fuse poetry with jazz and soul music. Previous ICON honorees include Chuck Berry, James Brown, Bo Diddley, Little Richard, the legendary songwriting trio Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Edward Holland, and country star Bill Anderson.

Among other songwriters, producers and artists confirmed to attend are multiple-platinum recording artist R. Kelly, Ja Rule, Irv Gotti, Rodney Jerkins, Chad Hugo, Mario Winans, Big Tymers, Lil Wayne, Charli Baltimore, Nappy Roots, Angie Stone and Jazze Pha. Additional names will be released as they are confirmed.

The BMI Urban Awards will recognize the songwriters and publishers of the most-played urban songs on US radio and television. An Urban Song of the Year, Urban Songwriter of the Year and Urban Publisher of the Year will be announced that night. In addition to the song awards, BMI will also honor the Top Urban Producers of 2002-2003 and the BMI writers whose songs hit #1 on the Billboard R&B/Hip Hop and Rap charts.

BMI, founded in 1939, is an American performing rights organization that represents more than 300,000 songwriters, composers, and music publishers in all genres of music. Through its music performance and reciprocal agreements, it grants businesses and media access to its repertoire of approximately 4.5 million musical works from around the world.