Benny Blanco
| Benny Blanco | |
|---|---|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Benjamin Levin |
| Born | March 8, 1988 |
| Origin | Reston, Virginia, US |
| Genres | Pop, R&B, hip hop, pop rock, electronica, dance-pop, synthpop |
| Occupation(s) | Rapper, musician, songwriter, record producer, remixer |
Benjamin Levin (born March 8, 1988), professionally known as Benny Blanco, is an American rapper, musician, songwriter and record producer. He has written and produced songs for artists such as Katy Perry ("California Gurls", "Teenage Dream"), Ed Sheeran ("Don't"), Rihanna ("Diamonds"), Justin Bieber ("Love Yourself"), Selena Gomez ("Same Old Love"), Maroon 5 ("Moves like Jagger, "Payphone", "Maps", "Animals"), Britney Spears ("Circus"), Taio Cruz ("Dynamite"), Kesha ("Tik Tok", "Die Young"), Gym Class Heroes ("Stereo Hearts", "Ass Back Home"), Wiz Khalifa ("Work Hard, Play Hard", "No Sleep") and Trey Songz ("Heart Attack").
Early in his career, Blanco worked with Dr. Luke, and has also collaborated with Shellback, Ryan Tedder, Bruno Mars, Nicki Minaj, Dan Wilson, Mike Posner, Max Martin, Sean Paul and Paul Epworth.
Additionally, Blanco received the Songwriter of the Year Award at the BMI Pop Awards in early 2012. and has sold approximately 100 million albums worldwide.
Life and career
The Beginning & Disco D
Blanco, a Virginia native,[1] began by making beats in his bedroom and his first serious exposure to music came in 1994 with the cassette singles: Nas's "The World Is Yours" and "I Swear" by All-4-One. Blanco's rapping earned the attention of The Source and executives at Columbia Records. Levin eventually secured an apprenticeship with producer Disco D.[2]
In 2007 Blanco and Spank Rock collaborated on Bangers & Cash, a collaborative EP. Blanco went on to work with Amanda Blank and Santigold.
2008–present
Blanco was mentored by songwriter/producer Dr. Luke.
He worked on several tracks on Maroon 5's album Overexposed, including the lead single "Payphone" featuring Wiz Khalifa.
On June 13, 2013, Blanco was awarded with the Hal David Starlight Award at the 44th Annual Songwriters Hall of Fame ceremony, awarded to young artists who have already made an impression on the music industry. In his acceptance speech, he joked, saying, "They picked the wrong person, I'm in a room with people I should probably be serving food to."
Record Labels
In 2014, Blanco started two imprint labels under Interscope Records. He founded Mad Love Records, signing the band Rixton in conjunction with their manager Scooter Braun's School Boy Records,[3] as well as Ryn Weaver, and Tory Lanez.[4] His second label, Friends Keep Secrets, was started for Blanco to sign and develop passion project artists in an indie-spirited manner. FKS's current roster includes Cashmere Cat, BenZel (Blanco's own artist project with Two Inch Punch), and Jessie Ware.
Discography[5]
Single Peaks
The following singles peaked inside the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100, Hot 100 Airplay (Radio Songs) and/or the UK Singles Chart.
- 2008: "I Kissed a Girl" (Katy Perry) #1
- 2008: "Hot n Cold" (Katy Perry) #1
- 2008: "Circus" (Britney Spears)
- 2009: "Don't Trust Me" (3OH!3) #1
- 2009: "Tik Tok" (Ke$ha) #1
- 2010: "Eenie Meenie" (Sean Kingston & Justin Bieber)
- 2010: "Blah Blah Blah" (Ke$ha)
- 2010: "Your Love Is My Drug" (Ke$ha) #1
- 2010: "My First Kiss" (3OH!3 & Ke$ha)
- 2010: "California Gurls" (Katy Perry & Snoop Dogg) #1
- 2010: "Please Don't Go" (Mike Posner)
- 2010: "Dynamite" (Taio Cruz) #1
- 2010: "Teenage Dream" (Katy Perry) #1
- 2010: "We R Who We R" (Ke$ha) #1
- 2011: "Blow" (Ke$ha)
- 2011: "No Sleep" (Wiz Khalifa)
- 2011: "Stereo Hearts" (Gym Class Heroes & Adam Levine) #1
- 2011: "Ass Back Home" (Gym Class Heroes)
- 2011: "Moves Like Jagger" (Maroon 5 & Christina Aguilera) #1
- 2012: "Payphone" (Maroon 5 & Wiz Khalifa) #1
- 2012: "Work Hard, Play Hard" (Wiz Khalifa)
- 2012: "Heart Attack" (Trey Songz)
- 2012: "Die Young" (Ke$ha) #1
- 2012: "Diamonds" (Rihanna) #1
- 2013: "Cannonball" (Lea Michele)
- 2014: "Me and My Broken Heart" (Rixton) #1
- 2014: "Maps" (Maroon 5) #1
- 2014: "Animals" (Maroon 5) #1
- 2014: "Black Widow" (Iggy Azalea) #1
- 2014: "Don't" (Ed Sheeran) #1
- 2015: "Fire and the Flood" (Vance Joy) #1
- 2015: "Same Old Love" (Selena Gomez) #1
- 2015: "Love Yourself" (Justin Bieber) #1
Awards and nominations
- Grammy Awards
- 2014: Album of the Year - "X" - Ed Sheeran (Nominated)
- 2014: Best Pop Vocal Album - "X" - Ed Sheeran (Nominated)
- 2013: Best Urban Contemporary Album - "Unapologetic" - Rihanna (Won)
- 2013: Best Pop Vocal Album - "Unorthodox Jukebox" - Bruno Mars (Won)
- 2013: Best R&B Song of the Year – "Heart Attack" - Trey Songz (Nominated)
- 2013: Best Pop Duo/Group Performance – "Payphone" - Maroon 5 (Nominated)
- 2013: Best Pop Vocal Album – "Overexposed" - Maroon 5 (Nominated)
- 2012: Best Pop Duo/Group Performance – "Moves Like Jagger" - Maroon 5 (Nominated)
- 2011: Album of the Year – Teenage Dream – Katy Perry (Nominated)
- Songwriters Hall of Fame
- 2013: Hal David Starlight Award (Won)
- BMI Awards
- 2013: Urban Songwriter of the Year (Won)
- 2012: Most Performed Pop Song – Moves Like Jagger - Maroon 5 (Won)
- 2012: Songwriter of the Year (Won)
- 2011: Songwriter of the Year (Won)
References
- ↑ McVeigh, Alex (January 26, 2014). "Reston Native Benny Blanco Wins Grammy For Work on Rihanna Album". patch.com. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
- ↑ http://uk.reuters.com/article/2010/05/15/music-us-blanco-idUKTRE64E08D20100515
- ↑ http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/school-boygiant-little-manmad-loveinterscope-records-sign-uk-newcomers-rixton-248523691.html
- ↑ http://www.thefader.com/2015/07/31/tory-lanez-say-it-premiere
- ↑ http://www.artistdirect.com/artist/credits/benny-blanco/667531
- ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/the-juice/1566281/sean-paul-other-side-of-love-exclusive-song-premiere
- ↑ "Keith Urban Lights The 'Fuse' This Fall". Retrieved August 8, 2013.
External links
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