SESAC, the nation’s most progressive performing rights organization, hosted its 18th annual Pop Awards at The New York Public Library on Monday, May 5. Charli XCX captured top honors at the event, taking home both Songwriter of the Year and Song of the Year for the hit, “I Love It,” as recorded by Icona Pop feat. Charli XCX.
Charli XCX had an incredible year with the success of the single. Recorded by the Swedish synthpop duo and featuring Charli XCX, “I Love It” topped the charts and went on to sell over 2.6 million downloads, making it one of the biggest hits of 2013.
On the performances side, American Authors hyped the crowd with a rousing version of their pop smash, “Best Day Of My Life.” The group has seen unprecedented success with their breakout single and new album, Oh, What A Life. Rico Love, who won Songwriter of the Year for the past three years, performed at the awards for the first time with his song, “They Don’t Know,” from his newly released Discrete Luxury album, which showed him to be as gifted an artist as he is songwriter.
To top the night off, gospel crossover star Hezekiah Walker surprised the industry-packed gala with a stellar performance of his recent single, “Every Praise.” The track sat atop the No. 1 slot for 26 consecutive weeks on Billboard’s Gospel Airplay and hit the Top 25 on the Adult R&B charts.
One of the evening’s major highlights was the presentation of the Visionary Award to Richard Gottehrer of The Orchard. Gottehrer, who started his career some five decades ago, began as a Brill Building songwriter, penning such classics as “My Boyfriend’s Back” and “I Want Candy.” He went on to co-found Sire Records with Seymour Stein, and established himself as a revered producer for popular acts such as Blondie, the Go-Gos and Joan Armatrading. In 1997, Gottehrer partnered with Scott Cohen to create The Orchard, a major supplier of digital music. Cohen was in attendance to present the award to him.
