UK songwriters body The Ivors Academy (the organisation formerly known as BASCA) has inked an interesting deal with Apple Music. Set for three years, the partnership will “bring wider exposure and development opportunities for our members” according to The Ivors Academy.
This is partly a sponsorship deal for the body’s annual Ivor Novello awards: Apple Music will be associated with a brand new ‘Rising Star’ award at the event from 2020, with plans to feature the awards and their winners on its streaming service. Apple Music will also be running workshops and events for songwriters who are members of The Ivors Academy.
“Apple Music have demonstrated their knowledge, resources and a commitment to paying music creators over many years, and are a fantastic addition to the support we can offer all songwriters and composers across every genre,” said chair Crispin Hunt. The ‘paying music creators’ part of that highlights another aspect of this partnership.
After a year in which rival Spotify (and to a lesser extent Google, Amazon and Pandora) has been heavily criticised by publishers for its appeal against new songwriter-royalty rates in the US, Apple – which made a point of promising not to appeal against those rates – continues to press home its reputational advantage with the songwriting community.
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