Spotify has confirmed the next wave of ambassadors for its ongoing Secret Genius programme. The initiative was launched last year in a bid to shine a light on songwriters on the platform – it included special creator-led playlists, a Secret Genius podcast in which hitmakers told the stories behind their songs and a series of global songwriting camps.
This year’s international roster of Secret Genius ambassadors has been confirmed as follows:
Ali Tamposi (US): Songwriter for Camila Cabello, Selena Gomez, Liam Payne
Ben Billions (US): Songwriter for The Weeknd, Maroon 5, Beyoncé
Benny Blanco (US): Songwriter for Halsey, Ed Sheeran, Maroon 5
Frank Dukes (Canada): Songwriter for Cardi B, The Weeknd, Camila Cabello
Ina Wroldsen (Norway): Songwriter for Calvin Harris, Clean Bandit, Jess Glynne
Jamie Scott (UK): Songwriter for Rudimental, Niall Horan, Major Lazer
Murda Beatz (US): Songwriter for Drake, Migos, Travis Scott
Shane McAnally (US): Songwriter for Sam Hunt, Miranda Lambert, Thomas Rhett
Sky A. Ramirez (US): Songwriter for J Balvin, Juanes, Karol G
Tayla Parx (US): Songwriter for Janelle Monae, Demi Lovato, Julia Michaels
Spotify will feature these songwriters in the podcast and songshops, and honour them at the second annual Secret Genius Awards later in the year. To welcome the new class of Secret Genius Ambassadors, Spotify hosted a dinner at the home of Troy Carter (global head of creator services, Spotify).
Speaking about the programme, Tiffany Kumar, Spotify’s global head of songwriter relations said: “Last year our vision of creating a community of songwriters became a reality and we aim to inspire the next generation by announcing a new class of ambassadors as we continue our commitment to music creators. With Secret Genius, Spotify is able to reveal, celebrate and bring these talents together to foster more creativity.”
"I'm honoured to be one of the Spotify Secret Genius Ambassadors this year,” said songwriter Jamie Scott. “It's great to be part of a program designed to give songwriters and producers more recognition,” said Scott. “I'm looking forward to the year ahead and trying to help make a difference with the Secret Genius team, in what is an extremely exciting time in the music industry."
Recent Music Week On The Radar star Ina Wroldsen added: “I am incredibly excited and honoured to be a Secret Genius Ambassador and I am very much looking forward to working with Spotify.”
The inaugural class of inspirational Secret Genius ambassadors included some of today’s greatest hitmakers, including Boi-1da, Erika Ender, James Fauntleroy, Starrah and more. The first-ever Secret Genius Awards honored the creative forces behind the year’s biggest hits, including Rick Rubin, who was presented with the Legendary Genius Award.
Recent Secret Genius events have included several songwriting experiences, including a partnership with Keep Cool Records (RCA) that lead to the first ever artist-lead three day songshop. Motown and Secret Genius also hosted an intimate listening experience with Ne-Yo in which he played songs from his upcoming album Good Man. Following the success of Spotify’s first Secret Genius 360 Live event in London, Spotify expanded the event to Stockholm where attendees were able to play demos for feedback from local managers and publishers.
In February this year, Spotify also announced the launch of its new songwriter credits feature. Spotify users can now view songwriter and producer credits for tracks on the desktop platform by right-clicking on a track and selecting “Show Credits” from the menu of options.
You can read Music Week’s visit to the Secret Genius songwriting camp featuring Wayne Hector here.
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