Benny Blanco

Benny Blanco
Benny Blanco in his studio, 2015
Background information
Birth name Benjamin Joseph Levin
Born (1988-03-08) March 8, 1988
Origin Reston, Virginia, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
Years active 2007–present
Labels
Associated acts

Benjamin Joseph Levin (born March 8, 1988), known professionally as Benny Blanco (stylised as benny blanco), is an American record producer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and recipient of the 2013 Hal David Starlight Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.[1] He is also a five-time BMI Songwriter of the Year award winner and 2017 iHeartRadio Producer of the Year award winner.

As a producer and songwriter, Blanco is responsible for more than 100 million album sales worldwide due to his work with artists including Ed Sheeran, Justin Bieber, Maroon 5, Rihanna, Katy Perry, Kesha, Sia, The Weeknd, Selena Gomez, Wiz Khalifa, and Kanye West. He is also the founder of two labels in collaboration with Interscope Records, Mad Love Records and Friends Keep Secrets.[2]

In July 2018, Blanco released the song "Eastside" under his own name, a collaboration with Halsey and Khalid.[3]

Life and career

Career beginnings

Blanco, a Jewish[4] native of Virginia,[5] began by producing hip-hop instrumentals in his bedroom and recording his own vocals on top of them. His first serious exposure to music came in 1994 when he was 5 years old with Nas' "The World Is Yours" and All-4-One's "I Swear" on cassette tapes, which heavily influenced his early productions.[6][7][8] After early experiments with beat making and recording himself on his boombox, Blanco's rapping earned the attention of The Source and executives at Columbia Records.

Blanco eventually secured an apprenticeship with producer Disco D after multiple trips to New York City from his home in Virginia to meet with labels and producers.[8]

2008–present

Blanco was mentored for several years by songwriter and producer Dr. Luke, who signed Blanco to his publishing company Prescription Songs.[9] While under Dr. Luke's tutelage, Blanco co-produced and co-wrote many songs, including hits such as Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream", Kesha's "TiK ToK", and Taio Cruz's "Dynamite".

In 2011 Blanco wrote and produced his first charting hits without Dr. Luke, among them Maroon 5's "Moves Like Jagger", Gym Class Heroes' "Stereo Hearts" and 3OH!3's "Don't Trust Me". The same year, Blanco went on to work on Maroon 5’s Platinum-selling album Overexposed and its lead single "Payphone" featuring Wiz Khalifa.[10]

On June 13, 2013, Blanco was presented with the Hal David Starlight Award at the 44th Annual Songwriters Hall of Fame ceremony, an honor awarded to young artists who have already made an impression on the music industry.[11] In his acceptance speech, he joked, "They picked the wrong person, I'm in a room with people I should probably be serving food to."[12]

In the years since, Blanco has amassed 26 total number-one songs and is recognized for his achievements with artists including Ed Sheeran, Justin Bieber, The Weeknd, Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande, Lana Del Rey, Miguel, Halsey, and Camila Cabello.

Blanco was named Producer of the Year at the 2017 iHeartRadio Music Awards.[13]

Record labels

In 2014, Blanco founded two imprint labels under Interscope Records, Mad Love Records and Friends Keep Secrets. Mad Love's releases to date include the following artists, with many of them having been initially signed to Blanco's development imprint Friends Keep Secrets[14][15]:

Artist projects

In 2007, Blanco teamed up with Baltimore rapper Spank Rock to release Spank Rock and Benny Blanco Are...Bangers & Cash, a collaborative EP for both artists based on 2 Live Crew samples that caught the attention of many in the industry and sparked connections to future collaborators Amanda Blank and Santigold. The EP received acclaim from the likes of Rolling Stone, Pitchfork and more.

In July 2018, Blanco released his debut song as a standalone solo artist, “Eastside” featuring Halsey and Khalid, on his own label Friends Keep Secrets in partnership with Interscope Records.[22] Further music from Blanco is slated for release in 2018.[23]

Discography

Singles

List of singles as lead artist, with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name
Title Year Peak chart positions Album
US
[24]		 AUS
[25]		 CAN
[26]		 IRE
[27]		 NL
[28]		 NZ
[29]		 SWE
[30]		 UK
[31]
"Eastside"[32]
(with Khalid and Halsey)		 2018 2728126171 Non-album single

Songwriting and production discography

Blanco has written and produced songs for artists including Ed Sheeran ("Don't" and "Castle on the Hill"), Justin Bieber ("Love Yourself"), Major Lazer ("Cold Water"), Maroon 5 ("Moves Like Jagger", "Don't Wanna Know", "Payphone", "Maps", "Animals"), Katy Perry ("Teenage Dream", "California Gurls"), Rihanna ("Diamonds"), Kesha ("TiK ToK"), Taio Cruz ("Dynamite"), Wiz Khalifa ("Work Hard, Play Hard"), Gym Class Heroes ("Stereo Hearts"), and Tory Lanez ("Luv").[33]

Awards and nominations

BMI Awards

Year Nominee/work Award Result
2011 Benny Blanco Songwriter of the Year Won
2012 Benny Blanco Songwriter of the Year Won
"Moves Like Jagger” (Maroon 5) Most Performed Pop Song Won
2013 Benny Blanco Urban Songwriter of the Year Won
2014 Benny Blanco Songwriter of the Year Won

Golden Globe Awards

Year Nominee/work Award Result
2016 "Faith" (Stevie Wonder ft. Ariana Grande) Best Original Song Nominated

Grammy Awards

Year Nominee/work Award Result Ref.
2011 Teenage Dream Album of the Year Nominated [34]
2013 "Heart Attack" Best R&B Song Nominated
2015 x Album of the Year Nominated
2017 Purpose Nominated
"Love Yourself" Song of the Year Nominated
"Luv" Best R&B Song Nominated
Self Producer of the Year, Non-Classical Nominated
2018 "Issues" Song of the Year Nominated

iHeartRadio Music Awards

Year Nominee/work Award Result
2017 "Love Yourself" (Justin Bieber) Best Lyrics Won
Benny Blanco Producer of the Year Won
2018 Benny Blanco Producer of the Year Nominated

Ivor Novello Awards

Year Nominee/work Award Result
2018 “Castle on the Hill” (Ed Sheeran) PRS for Most Performed Work[35] Nominated

Songwriters Hall of Fame

Year Nominee/work Award Result
2013 Benny Blanco Hal David Starlight Award Won

References

  1. ↑ "Hal David Starlight Award Winner: Benny Blanco". Songhall.org. Retrieved 8 July 2017.
  2. ↑ "Universal Music Group Artists, Distributed Labels Draw Numerous Grammy Nominations..." UniversalMusic.com. Retrieved 8 July 2017.
  3. ↑ "Producer Benny Blanco Teases New Track Featuring Halsey & Khalid". Billboard.com. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
  4. ↑ Insanul, Ahmed (Apr 8, 2011). "Interview: Benny Blanco On Producing Wiz Khalifa's "No Sleep"". Complex. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
  5. ↑ McVeigh, Alex (January 26, 2014). "Reston Native Benny Blanco Wins Grammy For Work on Rihanna Album". patch.com. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Benny Blanco Talks Being Inspired By Nas, Working With Wiz Khalifa and Advice to Producers". Vibe. 2012-07-23. Retrieved 2018-10-02.
  7. ↑ "Benny Blanco Talks Being Inspired By Nas, Working With Wiz Khalifa and Advice to Producers". Vibe. 2012-07-23. Retrieved 2018-10-02.
  8. 1 2 Lipschutz, Jason (May 10, 2010). "Virginia native becomes an in-demand producer at 22". Reuters.com. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  9. ↑ McKinley Jr., James (January 4, 2013). "Only 24, and at Home in the Top 10". New York Times. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  10. ↑ Barshad, Amos (October 12, 2011). "Benny Blanco's Six-Step Plan for Becoming Superproducer at 23". Grantland.com. Retrieved July 8, 2017.
  11. ↑ "Hal David Starlight Award". Songhall.org. Retrieved 8 July 2017.
  12. ↑ "Sting, Billy Joel, Smokey Robinson Perform As Legends Inducted Into Songwriters Hall of Fame". Billboard.com. Associated Press. June 14, 2013.
  13. ↑ Thorpe, Isha (March 5, 2017). "Here's The Complete List Of #iHeartAwards Winners". iHeartRadio.com. Retrieved March 6, 2017.
  14. ↑ School Boy/Giant Little Man/Mad Love/Interscope Records. "School Boy/Giant Little Man/Mad Love/Interscope Records Sign U.K. Newcomers Rixton". prnewswire.com. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  15. ↑ "Tory Lanez Premieres "Say It," Announces Deal With Benny Blanco". thefader.com. March 5, 2014. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  16. ↑ "Tory Lanez Premieres "Say It," Announces Deal With Benny Blanco". The FADER. Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  17. ↑ "Awkward romance: Cashmere Cat pulls back the curtain on working with LuckyMe and Ludacris - FACT Magazine: Music News, New Music". FACT Magazine: Music News, New Music. 2014-02-03. Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  18. ↑ "Benny Blanco Extends Deal With Interscope Geffen A&M". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  19. ↑ "6 dogs is the new hook god". The FADER. Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  20. ↑ "Ryn Weaver's 'The Fool' Is Deeply Personal Indie Pop". Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  21. ↑ "Jessie Ware and producer Benny Blanco discuss the making of her new album 'Tough Love' in new video (watch)". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved 2018-09-28.
  22. ↑ "Hear Benny Blanco, Halsey, Khalid Team for Bittersweet 'Eastside'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  23. ↑ "How Benny Blanco Became the Most Popular Oddball in Pop Music". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  24. ↑ "Benny Blanco – Chart History: Billboard Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  25. ↑ "Discography Benny Blanco". australian-charts.com. Retrieved August 25, 2018.
  26. ↑ "Benny Blanco – Chart History: Canadian Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  27. ↑ "Benny Blanco scores his first Irish Number 1 with Eastside: "That's insane!"". OfficialCharts.com. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
  28. ↑ "Benny Blanco – Chart History: Chart History". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
  29. ↑ "Benny Blanco – Chart History: New Zealand Chart History". Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  30. ↑ "Benny Blanco – Chart History: Sweden Chart History". Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  31. ↑ Peak chart positions in the UK:
    • "Eastside": "UK Chart History: Benny Blanco/Halsey/Khalid". monitorLATINO. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  32. ↑ "Eastside - Single by benny blanco, Halsey & Khalid on Apple Music". iTunes. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
  33. ↑ "Benny Blanco Credits". AllMusic.com. Retrieved 8 July 2017.
  34. ↑ "Benny Blanco | Artist". Grammy.com. Recording Academy. Retrieved July 14, 2018.
  35. ↑ "Ivor Novellos 2018: Ed Sheeran goes up against himself". BBC.com. Retrieved 24 April 2018.
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