Sting to Become a Fellow of The Ivors Academy

Sting will become an Academy Fellow, the highest honor The Ivors Academy bestows, at the 2023 Ivors, which will be presented at Grosvenor House in London on May 18.

Sting is the 23rd Fellow that the Academy has inducted in its 79-year history. He follows such songwriting greats as Sir Paul McCartney, Kate Bush, Joan Armatrading and Peter Gabriel. The latter received the award last year.

“Of all the awards in the world of music, The Ivors are for me, the most prestigious,” Sting said in a statement. “Songwriting is a skilled craft and The Ivors Academy are its guild. So, I am delighted and honoured to be offered this Fellowship of the Academy, joining and acknowledging this extraordinary group of fellow songwriters, and all of those who went before us.”

Sting has won seven Ivor Novellos, including their Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002. He was inducted into the New York-based Songwriters Hall of Fame that same year.

Sting has won 17 Grammys, including two in songwriting categories – the 1983 award for song of the year for “Every Breath You Take” and the 1991 award for best rock song for “The Soul Cages.” He won a 2002 Primetime Emmy for outstanding individual performance in a variety or music program for A&E in Concert: Sting in Tuscany…All This Time. In addition, he has been nominated for the two other EGOT awards. He has amassed four Oscar nods for best original song and a 2015 Tony nod for original musical score for The Last Ship.

Speaking on behalf of The Ivors Academy, Armatrading, Sting’s labelmate at A&M Records from the late ’70s into the early ’90s, said: “Across all of Sting’s work as a solo artist and with the iconic band The Police, he is without doubt one of the UK’s foremost successful songwriters and performers and is certainly deserving of one of the most prestigious awards in the music business. My huge congratulations on being made a Fellow of The Ivors Academy, Sting.”

Sting is managed by Martin Kierszenbaum of Cherrytree Music Company.

The Ivor Novellos, which were first presented in 1956, are judged by songwriters and composers from The Ivors Academy, the U.K.’s professional association for songwriters and composers. Past winners include Adele, Stormzy, Little Simz, Cathy Dennis, Annie Lennox, Amy Winehouse, Dave and John Lennon.

This year’s nominations will be announced on Tuesday April 18. The winners will be revealed at The Ivors on Thursday May 18.

The Ivors Academy also announced that Amazon Music is the new title sponsor of The Ivors as part of a multi-year, global deal. Amazon Music will bring music creators to the forefront through exclusive content offerings, as well as live performances, an immersive red carpet and backstage interviews that will be livestreamed on the Amazon Music UK Twitch channel in 2023.

Tom Gray, chair of The Ivors Academy, said, “Globally, songwriters are justly demanding the recognition that they deserve. As we push back against the historic undervaluing of the song and songwriter, we are delighted to collaborate with Amazon Music to celebrate songwriters, explore their craft and firmly place their value and originality at the centre of music. Together, we will make sure that The Ivors is recognised around the world as the most important celebration of songwriting.”   

Amazon Music will integrate this year’s Rising Star nominees into their global developing artist program, Breakthrough, which provides long-term, customized global plans for emerging artists. This support includes video and audio content, global marketing, increased visibility across Amazon Music playlists and programming and high-profile Amazon Original tracks available only on Amazon Music.

Tom Winkler, head of songwriter, publisher and society relations for Amazon Music explains, “By globally amplifying the exceptional work of The Ivors Academy, Amazon Music will continue to celebrate songwriters and empower fans to discover the craft behind the music.”

To commemorate Sting’s honor, an unheard, Amazon Original demo of “If It’s Love,” taken from the musician’s most recent studio album, 2021’s The Bridge, is being released exclusively via Amazon Music. This is the seventh installment of the newly-launched demos program, which provides Amazon Music customers with the opportunity to hear demos of artists’ songs. Previous demo releases include songs by Walker Hayes and Maren Morris.