The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) announces the honorees for the 15th annual ASCAP Women Behind The Music event, slated for Thursday, November 16 in Atlanta. This year, ASCAP celebrates Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter Summer Walker, LVRN Executive Vice President and General Manager Amber Grimes and Atlantic Records Senior Director of A&R Sammye Scott.
Presented by the ASCAP Rhythm & Soul department, ASCAP Women Behind the Music recognizes inspiring women in the music community, honoring songwriters, artists and executives including managers, attorneys, label executives and music publishers.
“ASCAP Women Behind The Music is such a special event for us because we get to recognize incredibly talented women who have made an impact through their art, contributions and leadership while connecting in person with our community,” said Nicole George-Middleton, ASCAP Senior Vice President of Membership and ASCAP Foundation Executive Director. “We are proud that we can continue this effort to inspire women to pursue careers in music, whether they are creatives or executives.”
George-Middleton will be on hand to congratulate the 2023 honorees:
Summer Walker, Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter
Atlanta-based singer/songwriter Summer Walker’s breakout mixtape in 2018, titled Last Day of Summer, led the way for the R&B songstress to leave her mark in the game. Walker’s official debut album, Over It (LVRN/Interscope Records), which contains the multi-platinum singles “Come Thru” and “Playing Games,” introduced her as one of R&B’s biggest and brightest stars. She has amassed numerous accolades throughout her career, including trophies from the Soul Train Music Awards, iHeart Music Awards, Billboard Music Awards, and the ASCAP Awards. Walker’s dazzling sophomore album, Still Over It, gave the singer her first #1 album on the Billboard 200 and her incredible work ethic had her grace several magazine covers, including Rolling Stone, Billboard, Spin, and NME. Since then she has hit several festival stages (Strength of a Woman, Lovers and Friends, Something in the Water, and Dreamville), released two more EPs (CLEAR 2: SOFT LIFE and Girls Need Love (Girls Mix)), added more RIAA certifications, including six-times platinum for her breakout 2018 single, “Girls Need Love,” and earned her first-ever Grammy nomination.
Amber Grimes, Executive Vice President and General Manager, LVRN
AMBER GRIMES is a music industry powerhouse with success in management, marketing and creative strategy. As the EVP and General Manager of Love Renaissance (LVRN) Records and a partner in LVRN MGMT, Grimes is responsible for overseeing the daily operations of the company’s divisions and driving marketing strategies for their full roster of artists.
Previously, she served as Senior Vice President of Global Creative at Capitol Music Group, where she reconstructed their creative department and led their content strategy on a global scale. Before that, as Senior Manager of Artist & Label Marketing at Spotify, she developed and executed successful campaigns for various labels and artists such as Migos, Lil Baby and Paul McCartney. Grimes began her formidable career as an executive assistant to “Bu” Thiam, the former VP of Def Jam, before later becoming a trusted advisor to Nick Cannon, whom she co-starred with in Oxygen’s docu-series, Like a Boss. Grimes is also CEO of her own full-service marketing firm, The Cardi Brand Agency. In addition, Grimes is a powerful advocate for mental health, wellness and mentorship in the music industry.
Sammye-Ruth Scott, Senior Director of A&R, Atlantic Records
Sammye-Ruth Scott has been a trailblazer as a leading woman in the music industry. Her goal is to create lasting entertainment experiences in the ever-evolving hip-hop community. Prior to her role at Atlantic, she was President of A&R at BuVision. Her successes include signing rising star Kaliii, whose singles “Area Code” and “Mmm Mmm” were certified platinum and gold respectively; striking a deal with Kodak Black’s “Super Gremlins” producer ATL Jacob; and co-A&R on A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie’s double-platinum Hoodie SZN. Scott has been selected as a Woman of Empowerment by Lobos 1707; as one of Atlanta’s Top 20 Under 30 Millennials in 2017 and was a featured speaker at the A3C Festival & Conference, BAMS CONX in Boston, Spelman and Morehouse Colleges and more. She also devotes time to Meals on Wheels, Project Go Dark Internships, Reading with Rari and other charitable organizations.
DJ Tee Y will provide music at the November 16 event.
Previous Women Behind the Music honorees include Grammy-winning singer-songwriters Kandi Burruss and Kelly Rowland, Roc Nation Co-President Shari Bryant, Grammy-winning artist and songwriter Joelle James, Co-Head of A&R at Interscope Geffen Nicole Wyskoarko, hip-hop legends Salt-N-Pepa, Grammy-nominated singer-songwriters Jazmine Sullivan and Victoria Monét, legendary musician and singer Sheila E., Capitol Records Vice President of Artist Relations Brittney Davis, Grammy-winning production and songwriting duo Nova Wav, EVP and Head of Urban Music at Columbia Records Phylicia Fant and more.
