Ivors Academy CEO Roberto Neri has told Music Week "the government has been listening" in the ongoing battle to protect creators' rights.
Neri, who has just completed his first year in charge of the organisation, declared when he took on the role that it was a "pivotal moment" to ensure music creators’ interests were "protected, championed, valued and recognised".
Twelve months on, he suggested that although the situation was yet to improve, there was grounds for encouragement.
"It’s one of the reasons why we have been into the government as part of the creator remuneration [inquiry], asking for per diems – bare expenses to be paid for songwriters and composers for showing up to work. That’s all we’re asking for," said Neri. "The government has been listening and it’s now on the labels to deliver. These are songwriters who need the industry to help them, so they can help the industry."
Chappell Roan challenged the recording industry to provide creatives with a liveable wage and healthcare in her speech at the Grammys earlier this year. Raye made a similar plea at last year's Ivors, calling on labels to allocate songwriters a share of master recording revenues and a minimum daily allowance to cover travel and expenses when working with artists.
"You’ve heard the likes of Raye and Chappell Roan come out and talk about decency and just paying these bare expenses, and it’s something the industry needs to do,” said Neri.
Having points on the master side would be incredible and we’re still fighting for that
Roberto Neri
Speaking in the May edition of Music Week, Neri gave an update on the government’s Creator Remuneration Group, reporting that minister of state for media, tourism and creative industries Chris Bryant appeared to have taken the Academy's concerns on board.
"The per diem [ask] is the one that he’s really put the pressure onto the labels to deliver," he said. "There are other elements in there around the classical composers not being compensated properly in the streaming model – you can have four songs on a classical album compared to 16 on a rap album – and the duration of the compositions are just not being compensated appropriately in that kind of model.
"And then how the publishing share is not being negotiated for its true value, it’s always secondary to the master being licensed. Having points on the master side would be incredible and we’re still fighting for that. And that’s, again, a call from Raye. But the sustainability of the entire music business depends on the per diems.”
The Culture, Media and Sport Committee published the government’s response to MPs’ report on creator remuneration (which dates from the previous Parliament) last November.
Ahead of the Ivors 2025 ceremony with Amazon Music at Grosvenor House in London on May 22, Neri detailed the Academy's mission statement with regards to songwriters and composers.
“We stand for protecting, empowering and celebrating,” he explained. “The protecting side of our business is very obvious: that is where we advocate and lobby for the rights of songwriters and composers on things like AI, which has taken up a lot of bandwidth, to the Creator Remuneration Working Group.
"We’ve been working with the government on ensuring we can protect our songwriters and composers through the value they receive from streaming, for example. And then working in empowering, which is education and providing the tools that songwriters and composers need to navigate the craziness of the music industry."
I have heard so many incredible songs over the last 12 months – the missing bit sometimes is how they see the light of day and how platforms can deliver them to the right ears
Roberto Neri
He continued: “My predecessor, Graham [Davies], did a really good job of reinventing BASCA into the Ivors Academy and this infrastructure was incredible to inherit. By simply streamlining into those three functions [protect, empower, celebrate], it’s going to be more obvious what we stand for.
"If you ask people about the Ivors, they’re familiar with the awards, but they’re not as familiar with the work we’re doing, so that’s something that I feel very proud we have identified.”
Monitoring the songwriting scene over the past year, Neri said he had been impressed by the level of quality on display.
“Songwriters have continued to be songwriters and continue to go into sessions with the stress and anxiety they face," he said. "Again, I go back to the per diems being this fundamental thing that needs to be delivered. The talent’s still there – I have heard so many incredible songs over the last 12 months – the missing bit sometimes is how they see the light of day and how platforms can deliver them to the right ears."
The Ivors is also staging a new summit for songwriters and composers at BFI IMAX London on 20 May during Ivors Week. In closing, Neri said he had enjoyed his first year in the role and set out his aims for the future.
"It's been great," he said. "There’s a lot to do, but it’s been refreshing to take a step back, look at the organisation and see all the amazing things it does that are pretty unrecognised by the outside world. To see all of that first-hand has been refreshing and rewarding.
“I want per diems to have been agreed and approved [in the next year], and for our awards and summit to succeed. And, that we have a very happy, thriving community.”
The full interview with Neri can be read in the latest issue of Music Week – subscribers can read it here.
