New Music Awards to Take Place in 2021

The Billboard Music Awards (also known as the BBMA’s) is an influential and well-respected award program that recognizes outstanding achievement in all areas of music. In partnership with the Recording Music Association of America (RMA), the BMI has been awarding the coveted Best Selling Artist (MTV Choice) and Top Independent Artist (Musical Artist of the Year) awards since 1987. No other independent or traditional music award show possesses the level of popularity or recognition that the BMI has earned through the years.

The Albums and CD’s chart are the only continuously-running music awards program, with the exception of the Songwriting categories. The Albums category is comprised of the following: Best Rock Album, Breakthrough Rap Album, Rap/Hits CD, R&B Album, Classic Rock Audio album, Music Video Album, and More. The Songwriting categories are: Best Instrumental/Vocal Album, Original Score (No Other Name), Written Album, and Audience Participation song. While the MTV Choice and R&B categories are chosen by audience votes, the Songwriting category is determined by a panel of music industry insiders, under the direction of the BMI. Participating artists must meet a set of standards set by the judging panel in order to qualify for the Best Selling Artist or Top Independent Artist spots on the BMI’s ballot.

While many traditional music awards ceremonies are dominated by the most popular categories, the BMI’s Music Awards has an interesting list of long-standing achievements. The most recent Winners of the BMI’s Music Awards have included: Taylor Swift, Usher, Elton John, David Archuleta, Rihanna, Dave Matthews Band, Snoop Dogg, Pearl Jam, and LCD Soundsystem. The Recording category has been more consistent in recent years with a number of new names entering the fray. Previously winners have included: Rihanna, Dave Matthews Band, Timbaland, Usher, and Quessewer radio show host Dean Martin. While this list covers the year’s biggest hits, it is interesting to note that many of the year’s top selling artists missed out.

Another interesting new honor that has been added by the BMI is the BMI Big Idea Awards. The Awards are broken down into four separate categories: Entrepreneurial, Technological, Service and Marketing. Winners will include business leaders who have an insight into technology, or those with service skills who can bring new ideas to market. This could be an amazing year for tech companies, as well as some upstart companies looking to bring services to market.

The award’s Hostess’ of the Year will be Cyndi Lauper. While not yet revealed, CYndi is expected to receive a golden statue for her contribution to the industry. Other presenters for the upcoming Awards will include: Chris Thile, Jimmy Gulzar, and Tiffany Hamilton. The full coverage of the 2021 BMI Gala will air on the Gala TV show on Tuesday, December 13th. Keep your fingers crossed that Beyonce will announce the awards early.

An interesting new honor that hasn’t been announced yet is the Recording Music Association of America’s New Artist of the Year. Nominated by the Recording Music Association of America’s member music artists and groups, the winners will receive a cash prize. A NAFSA press release indicates that this will likely be a non-points based award. A press release also indicates that the awards will take place in December of this year, in Los Angeles. So, if you have any strong contenders for this honor, get them in line now!