The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) recently kicked off its second annual Women Behind the Music event in Atlanta. Sponsored by Belvedere Pink Grapefruit, Essence.com, RocaWear, and MusiconlineAlive.com the event coincides with Breast Cancer Awareness Month and was created to recognize the considerable contributions made by women in the music industry.
“We picked the ‘Her Story’ theme to remind ourselves to look back at the journey that connects us all, which will hopefully, excite women on how far we’ve come and inspire them to create their own story,” said Nicole George of Ascap.
The honorees in Atlanta were the beautiful, talented, Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Kelly Rowland of Destiny’s Child; Hanna Kang, general manager of Grand Hustle Records; and Sandra Brown, entertainment attorney for AKON. The evening was moderated by co-host of the Ryan Cameron Show on Atlanta’s V-103 FM, Rashan Ali, with music by DJ Traci Steele.
Attendees were also treated to a special book signing by industry entertainment veteran and author, Shanti Das, whose book, The Hip Hop Professional: A Women’s Guide to Climbing The Ladder of Success in the Entertainment Business gives young women music industry tips.
Kelly Rowland arrived in a beautiful white Rolls Royce, dressed in a simple yet elegant short black dress. With her short, layered haircut and makeup done to perfection, Kelly was as accommodating to the media and sweet as she looked.
“Besides the music … my greatest accomplishment is my charity, I just want to continue to get knowledge and spread it to the many young women that may have questions about life, careers, and being a lady,” said Rowland when asked about her role behind the music.
All the honorees were given the opportunity to share their stories on how they rose to prominence in the entertainment industry. They offered their words of wisdom on the industry and life in general and were awarded special tokens to commemorate the evening. It was the first of a series of events, with subsequent ones honoring Melanie Fiona in New York and Shelia E. in Los Angeles. –christa e. jackson
