TJ Martell Foundation 45th Annual New York Honors Gala Returns Next Month

The T.J. Martell Foundation, the music industry's leading foundation that provides funds for innovative cancer research, has announced the honorees for the 45th Annual New York Honors Gala, which will return to New York City for the first time since 2019 and be held at Cipriani 42nd Street on Tuesday June 13, 2023. Three esteemed music industry leaders will be honored this year: Warner Records Co-Chairman and COO Tom Corson will receive the Lifetime Music Industry Award, Chief Creative Officer and EVP at Def Jam Recordings Archie Davis will receive the Rising Music Superstar Award, and Grammy Award-winning and Tony-nominated songwriter/producer Shane McAnally will receive the Spirit of Music Award. The elegant evening is the Foundation's primary fundraiser of the year, supporting its mission of funding innovative medical research and treatments focused on finding a cure for cancer.

The gala will be hosted by Gala Co-Chairs and Board Chairman John Esposito, Tunji Balogun, Aaron Bay-Schuck, Robert Carlton, Steve Gawley, Laura Swanson and Julie Swidler, and will include guest presenters and special musical performances to celebrate the honorees, along with a fundraising auction. The evening's program will include Oscar and Golden Globe nominee and NAACP Image Award-winning filmmaker Ryan Coogler as featured presenter, and performances by breakout actress/singer-songwriter and R&B star Coco Jones, and acclaimed singer/songwriter and 11x Grammy nominee, Brandy Clark, who, together with longtime collaborator McAnally, just earned her first Tony nomination for her work on the hit Broadway musical, "Shucked."

"We are thrilled to be bringing the annual T.J. Martell Foundation New York Honors gala back to New York City for the first time since 2019, celebrating nearly 50 years of the music industry's dedicated support for breakthrough cancer research," said John Esposito, Board Chairman of the T.J. Martell Foundation. "Our music friends and supporters are excited that this iconic gala is returning, and we are so proud to be honoring three of the industry's dynamic leaders, Tom Corson, Archie Davis and Shane McAnally, and their outstanding contributions to the music world at what will be an unforgettable night!"

Honoree Tom Corson is the Co-Chairman and COO of Warner Records, overseeing all aspects of the record label's operations. He joined the company in January 2018 and throughout the year Warner Records achieved impressive chart success with many new and established artists, such as Bebe Rexha, Dua Lipa, Mac Miller, BlocboyJB & Drake's "Look Alive" on OVO Sound, Michael Bublé, Josh Groban, Cher, and many more. Capping off that first year were "Best New Artist" Grammy nominations for both Dua and Bebe, as well as a "Best Rap Album" nod for Mac Miller. Tom has since led the label to even greater prominence, scoring over 50 #1 singles, seven "Best New Artist" Grammy nominations, and chart-topping success with Dua Lipa, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Bebe Rexha, Michael Bublé, Andra Day, Chika, Tom Petty, Josh Groban, Rufus Du Sol, Gary Clark Jr., Green Day, Anitta, The Black Keys, Zach Bryan, Linkin Park, Saweetie, NLE Choppa, Omar Apollo and more.

Tom came to Warner Records from RCA Music Group, where he spent nearly 18 years of his career and most recently served as President & COO. Corson has appeared on the Billboard Power100 list the last 12 years, and he is a member of NARAS and the Music and Entertainment Industry Board for City of Hope. He also sits on the executive committee of the board of directors for the T.J Martell Foundation and is the Chairman of the UCLA School of Music Business, board of advisors.

Honoree Archie Davis is a veteran marketing executive widely known and respected for his connectivity to the creative community - he joined Def Jam Recordings in 2022 as EVP and Chief Creative Officer, adding to an already impressive portfolio including a principle role at Ryan Coogler's Proximity Media, where he oversees music. A result of their collaborative success on the original Black Panther soundtrack, Davis, Ludwig Goransson and Peter Nicks joined Proximity founders Coogler, Zinzi Coogler, and Sev Ohanian as co-founders to help build out the music, marketing and audio aspects of the company. Archie's accolades in the film space are well documented, among them his dual-role as executive music producer of the 'Judas and the Black Messiah' film and executive producer of 'Judas and the Black Messiah' The Inspired Album. In his role at Def Jam, Archie and his team oversee every aspect of Def Jam's creative marketing endeavors, extending to artist imaging campaigns, branding strategy and initiatives, and new projects in film, TV, podcasting and beyond. Archie was singularly instrumental in bringing the NAACP Image Award-nominated Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack to Def Jam, and for securing Rihanna's involvement in the Golden Globe and Oscar-nominated original song "Lift Me Up." In addition to his position at Def Jam, Archie is an award-winning entertainment executive who has created some of today's most celebrated campaigns for artists and brands, notably the Wendy's mixtape We Beefin' - for which he won several Cannes Lions and Clio Awards. Archie was has held senior executive positions at RCA Records and Interscope Records, where he oversaw campaigns for Kendrick Lamar, ScHoolboy Q, Rae Sremmurd, Mike Will Made-it, Rich The Kid and more. Archie also co-founded the OPM Company alongside Dom Kennedy and sits on the board of advisors for Dreamhaus, a Los Angeles-based non-profit organization dedicated to implementing the arts as both an educational tool and as a viable career path.

Honoree Shane McAnally is amongst the brightest talents in country music today, having written, and/or produced, over 50 number one songs, garnered three Grammy Awards, been nominated for more CMA Awards than any other songwriter in history, and been named ACM's Songwriter of the Year twice. He has written and produced songs for everyone from Sam Hunt to Kenny Chesney to Blake Shelton to Kacey Musgraves and has received Billboard's Trailblazer Award for his work both in country music and in championing voices in the LGBTQ community. In 2012 McAnally founded SMACKSongs, which includes publishing, digital and management branches, and whose writers are credited with nearly 70 number one songs, with 7 number ones in 2022 alone. SMACK also manages singer/songwriter Walker Hayes, who shot to superstardom with his smash hit "Fancy Like," produced by McAnally. In addition to SMACK, McAnally starred on NBC's hit television show Songland alongside Ryan Tedder and Ester Dean, and he is the co-president of record label Monument Records in partnership with Sony Music. McAnally is currently in New York City, bringing the musical Shucked to Broadway - a production he wrote the music and lyrics for with his collaborator Brandy Clark. Shucked has been nominated for 9 Tony Awards this season.

The 45th Annual New York Honors Gala dinner committee is comprised of music industry heavyweights including Michele Anthony, Brian Becker, Steve Blatter, Scott Borchetta, Charlie Brusco, Stephen Bryan, Barbara Cane, Derek Crownover, Paul Donahue, Bruce Eskowitz, Alison Finley, Daniel Glass, Steve Greenberg, Jeffrey Harleston, Michael Huppe, Rich Isaacson, Rick Krim, Michael Kushner, Jay Liepis, Rob Light, Monte Lipman, Avery Lipman, Carianne Marshall, Debbie Martell, Beth Matthews, Marissa Morris, Rick Mueller, Natalia Nastaskin, Jason Owen, Julian Petty, Marc Reiter, Andre Stapleton, Darren Stupak, Julie Talbott, Andy Tavel, Gabe Tesoriero, Greg Thompson, Marsha Vlasic, Russell Wallach, Ron Wilcox, Jeff Zuchowski.

For more information regarding purchasing tickets or tables for the gala please visit: http://tjmartell23nyhg.givesmart.com/

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