Sony/ATV Music Publishing has been crowned Publisher of the Year for an unprecedented 15th consecutive time at the BMI Country Awards.

The historic win at the 64th annual event held Tuesday night (November 1st) in Nashville came during a memorable evening for the world’s leading music publisher with its songwriters also winning a clean sweep of the key awards of Songwriter of the Year, Song of the Year and the BMI President’s Award. 

• Ross Copperman was named Songwriter of the Year after co-writing six of BMI’s 50 most-performed country songs of the past year
• “Die A Happy Man”, co-written and performed by Sony/ATV songwriter Thomas Rhett, won Song of the Year
• Sony/ATV signed Kenny Chesney received the BMI President’s Award, presented to songwriters who have distinctly and profoundly influenced the entertainment industry

Twenty-two of Sony/ATV’s songs were additionally among the 50 songs that were individually honored at the ceremony held at BMI’s office in Music City as the performing rights organization’s most-performed country songs of the past year.

Sony/ATV Chairman and CEO Martin Bandier said: “When Sony/ATV Nashville a few years back won the ‘Triple Crown’ of ASCAP, BMI and SESAC Publisher of the Year in the same year I thought that was the pinnacle. However, what Troy and his team have now achieved with this unparalleled 15-year domination as BMI’s top publisher surpasses all that. This feat is a testament to our incredible staff in Nashville and all the talented songwriters we have signed to us. Here’s to the next 15 years!”

Sony/ATV President/CEO, Nashville Troy Tomlinson said: “To win BMI Publisher of the Year once is amazing, but to be able to string together a 15-year run is really beyond anything I could ever have imagined. We owe that first and foremost to our songwriters and our creative team, and additionally to all of the artists, producers, record labels and management teams who believed in our songs and made them hits.”

Sony/ATV’s uninterrupted run as Publisher of the Year dates back to 2002, the same year Tomlinson joined the company. He has been President/CEO of Sony/ATV Music Publishing Nashville since 2005, overseeing a roster that includes superstar songwriter/performers such as Taylor Swift, Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Brett Eldredge, Miranda Lambert, Cole Swindell and Blake Shelton as well as many of the most acclaimed and successful songwriters in contemporary country music. The company also houses an unrivalled catalog of classic country songs, including the celebrated Acuff-Rose and Tree catalogs.

Among the 22 Sony/ATV songs individually recognized this year by BMI, 15 of them reached No. 1 on either Billboard’s Hot Country Songs or Country Airplay chart and in some cases topped both charts. These include BMI’s Song of the Year “Die A Happy Man”, co-penned and performed by Thomas Rhett and which spent 17 weeks at No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart and six weeks on Country Airplay.

Six of Sony/ATV’s winning BMI songs were co-written by Ross Copperman, who was named Songwriter of the Year on the night. These comprise “Confession”, “Drunk On Your Love”, “John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16”, “Lose My Mind”, “Smoke” and “Strip It Down”.

“Wild Child”, which was co-written by Kenny Chesney and performed by him and Grace Potter, was also honored, capping a remarkable night for the country star who also received the BMI President’s Award. Previous recipients of the award include Pink, Willie Nelson, Brooks & Dunn, Pitbull, Adam Levine, Gloria & Emilio Estefan and Toni Braxton.

The full list of Sony/ATV winning songs with the company's BMI writers alongside are:

“Ain’t Worth The Whiskey” co-written by and recorded by Cole Swindell

“Burning House” co-written by Jeff Bhasker, recorded by Cam

“Confession” co-written by Ross Copperman, recorded by Florida Georgia Line

“Die A Happy Man” co-written and recorded by Thomas Rhett

“Don’t It” co-written by Ross Copperman, recorded by Billy Currington

“Drunk On Your Love” written by Brett Eldredge and Ross Copperman, recorded by Brett Eldredge

“Home Alone Tonight” co-written by Jody Stevens, recorded by Luke Bryan feat. Karen Fairchild

“I Love This Life” co-written by Chris Lucas and Preston Bust, recorded by LoCash

“I’m Comin’ Over” co-written and recorded by Chris Young

“John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16” co-written by Ross Copperman, recorded by Keith Urban

“Kick The Dust Up” co-written by Dallas Davidson, recorded by Luke Bryan

“Let Me See Ya Girl” co-written by Cole Swindell and Jody Stevens, recorded by Cole Swindell

“Like A Wrecking Ball” co-written by Casey Beathard and Eric Church, recorded by Eric Church

“Lose My Mind” co-written by Heather Morgan, Brett Eldredge and Ross Copperman, recorded by Brett Eldredge

“Love You Like That” co-written by Jim Beavers, recorded by Canaan Smith

“Raise ‘Em Up” co-written by Tom Douglas, recorded by Keith Urban feat. Eric Church

“Smoke” co-written by Ross Copperman, recorded by A Thousand Horses

“Strip It Down” co-written by Ross Copperman and Luke Bryan, recorded by Luke Bryan

“That Don’t Sound Like You” co-written by Rhett Akins, recorded by Lee Brice

“Tonight Looks Good On You” co-written by Rhett Akins and Dallas Davidson, recorded by Jason Aldean

“Wild Child” co-written by Kenny Chesney, recorded by Kenny Chesney feat. Grace Potter

“Young & Crazy” co-written by Rhett Akins, recorded by Frankie Ballard

ABOUT SONY/ATV MUSIC PUBLISHING:

Sony/ATV Music Publishing, established in 1995 as a joint venture between Sony and Michael Jackson, is the world’s leading music publisher. Together with EMI Music Publishing, Sony/ATV owns or administers around 3 million copyrights including those from such iconic music catalogs like Leiber & Stoller, Mijac Music, Motown and Famous Music. Sony/ATV also controls many of the best known songs ever written like “New York, New York”, “Hallelujah”, “All You Need Is Love”, “You’ve Got a Friend”, “Moon River”, “Jailhouse Rock”, “The Mission Impossible Theme”, “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”, “Over the Rainbow”, “Stand By Me”, “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” and “Singin’ in the Rain”. In addition, Sony/ATV represents the copyrights of such legendary artists as The Beatles, Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan, Marvin Gaye, Michael Jackson, Carole King, Kraftwerk, Joni Mitchell, Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison, Queen, The Rolling Stones, Richie Sambora, Sting, The Supremes, Wyclef Jean, Hank Williams and Stevie Wonder, among others.  Its ever-growing list of chart-topping artists, writers and producers includes Avicii, The Chainsmokers, Drake, Calvin Harris, Alicia Keys, Lady Gaga,  P!nk, Shakira, Ed Sheeran, Sia, Sam Smith, Stargate, Taylor Swift, Walk The Moon, Kanye West and Pharrell Williams.