GRAHAM LYLE TO BE HONOURED AS A BMI ICON AT THE 2024 BMI LONDON AWARDS

(MENAFN- PR Newswire)

The Ceremony Also Celebrates the Top British and European Songwriters, Composers and music Publishers of the Previous Year

LONDON, Oct. 31, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --
BMI
today announced that
Graham Lyle
will be
presented with the
BMI Icon
Award
at the
2024 BMI London Awards
to be held
9 December
at
The Savoy .
The legendary songwriter, guitarist and producer
will be
honoured
in celebration of his
illustrious career
spanning over 50 years
and his enduring catalog of hit songs, which have left a lasting
impression
on
generations of music lovers worldwide.
The private event will be
hosted by
BMI President & CEO Mike O'Neill .

"We're
very
honoured
to
salute
the incomparable songwriter Graham Lyle with the BMI Icon Award in celebration of a lifetime of timeless hit songs that deeply resonate with global audiences," said
O'Neill. "We're also excited to pay tribute to all
our outstanding
2024 BMI London Award winners and recognise their incredible accomplishments. It's going to be a fantastic evening."

The ceremony also pays tribute to the British and European songwriters and publishers of the previous year's most-performed songs on US streaming, radio and television from BMI's repertoire of over 22.4 million musical works. The
BMI London Song of the Year , Million-Air Awards ,
and awards for
Pop, Film, Television
and
Cable Television Music
will also be presented throughout the evening.

As one of the most successful British songwriters of his generation, Lyle has written countless hit songs including Tina Turner's classic, "What's Love Got To Do With It" with Terry Britten.
The global smash reached No.1 in the US, Canada and Australia, won Song of the Year at the 1984 GRAMMY Awards and eventually became Turner's best-selling single. It also earned Lyle multiple BMI Million-Air Awards, ultimately reaching eight million broadcast performances on U.S. radio. As a testament to its enduring legacy, many artists have performed and covered the massive hit over the years, including Mickey Guyton at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction in 2021, rapper Warren G released a hip-hop version 1996 and Norwegian DJ/producer Kygo released a remix with Turner in 2020.

Over his prolific career, Lyle has received multiple BMI Awards, as well as BMI Million-Air Awards for many of his
other iconic
hits, including "What's Luv?" by Fat Joe ft. Ashanti, which sampled "What's Love Got To Do With It," "I Don't Wanna Lose You," "Jewel of the Nile," and "Typical Male,"
each
with two million performances. "We Don't Need Another Hero," also performed by Turner, "Joe Knows How to Live," "Stay Young," and "Women Like Men" have
accumulated
one million
performances.
He also received
an Ivor Novello
in 1986 and a
Tartan
Clef Award
for Lifetime Achievement in 2010, and in 2012, he co-wrote "One Woman: A Song for UN Women," released on International Women's Day, to support the empowerment and gender equality of women around the globe.

Lyle
began his professional journey as one of the first music creators to sign to the Beatles' Apple Company, alongside songwriter Benny Gallagher in the late 60s. The pair went on to
write for several Apple Company artists, notably "Sparrow" and "Fields of St. Etienne" for Mary Hopkin, which were both produced by Paul McCartney. Together the duo became founding members and main songwriters of hit British rock band McGuinness Flint, and
later joined forces
to form Gallagher and Lyle, where they released eight albums and produced British Top 10 hits like "I Wanna Stay
with
You" and "Heart on My Sleeve."

In 1981,
Lyle
formed
his own publishing company GOODSINGLE, LTD to write for other artists.
In addition to his longtime partnership with Tina Turner, Lyle has also penned countless hits such as
"Just Good Friends"
by
Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder, "Hold Me (Just a Little Longer Tonight)"
by
Etta James, "You're the Star" by Rod Stewart and "When You Love Somebody (I'm Saving My Love for You)"
by
Patti LaBelle, and has collaborated with
other high profile
artists
across
all
genres, including
Ray Charles,
Reba McEntire,
Kenny Rogers
and
Ringo Starr, to name a few.

As a
BMI Icon, he
joins an elite group of previous recipients
including
Sting, Gary Kemp, Graham Gouldman, Sir Tim Rice,
The Bee Gees, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Ray Davies, John Fogerty, David Foster, Peter Gabriel, the Jacksons, Carole King, Kris Kristofferson, Barry Manilow, Willie Nelson, Stevie Nicks, Dolly Parton, Queen, Nile Rodgers, Carlos Santana, Paul Simon, Van Morrison and Brian Wilson, among others.

Follow BMI on Facebook , IG and on X ,
and use #BMILondonAwards to join the conversation.

ABOUT BMI:

Celebrating over 80 years of service to songwriters, composers, music publishers and businesses, BMI® is a global leader in music rights management, serving as an advocate for the value of music. BMI represents the public performance rights in over 22.4 million musical works created and owned by more than 1.4 million songwriters, composers, and music publishers. The Company negotiates music license agreements and distributes the fees it generates as royalties to its affiliated writers and publishers when their songs are performed in public. In 1939, BMI created a groundbreaking open-door policy becoming the only performing rights organization to welcome and represent the creators of blues, jazz, country, and American roots music. Today, the musical compositions in BMI's repertoire, from chart toppers to perennial favorites, span all genres of music and are consistently among the most-performed hits of the year. For additional information and the latest BMI news, visit bmi , follow us on X and Instagram
@BMI or stay connected through BMI's Facebook page. Sign up for BMI's The Weekly TM and receive our e-newsletter every week to stay up to date on all things music

SOURCE Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI)

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