Music Maven

As the first African-American vice president and officer at music powerhouse BMI, Catherine Brewton has made her way to the top with a combination of smarts, great intuition and unflappable ethics.

by Blane Bachelor

October 1, 2005

A s the first African-American vice president and officer at music powerhouse BMI, Catherine Brewton has made her way to the top with a combination of smarts, great intuition and unflappable ethics.

Catherine Brewton, Broadcast Music, Inc.'s (BMI) vice president of writer and publisher relations, is trying to plan an upcoming music awards show. But her phone in the company's Buckhead offices just won't stop ringing.

This time, it's the assistant to a legendary gospel/R&B singer and songwriter. Brewton shifts easily from point to point, offering remedies for the low blood pressure the singer has been battling lately ("Tell her to get some flaxseed oil and salt into her diet."), discussing which post-award show parties she'll be attending ("We'll definitely be stopping by Missy [Elliott's]") and putting her foot down about finagling more invites to said party ("You know I can't ask for that many!").

The conversation lasts less than three minutes, but it essentially sums up Brewton's position at BMI, a performing rights organization that represents more than 300,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers in all genres of music. Although Brewton officially oversees writer and publisher relations and heads the company's urban music division, a wide range of roles falls under that umbrella: celebrity adviser, event planner, talent scout and, increasingly, stress-management expert.

From about 8 a.m. on, Brewton's calendar is packed with the behind-the-scene details of her high-profile job in the music industry, which is considered one of the most glamorous out there. Her daytime schedule brims with talent showcases, meetings and phone conversations with current and potential BMI affiliates. Many workdays stretch long into the evening, when Brewton shifts into the nocturnal networking mode so critical in the music industry: parties, dinners and concerts. When she can squeeze it in, she drops by the recording studios of high-profile artists like Gwen Stefani, who worked on her first solo record with BMI affiliate Dallas Austin, one of the most well-known songwriters in the industry.

"The other day my boss asked me, 'Are you getting some rest?' and I told him, 'How could I?'" Brewton says, laughing. "That won't happen until [six weeks from now]. But that's the course I've been on since I've been here.

"Indeed, Brewton hasn't slowed down much since she arrived at BMI in 1997. She was hired by president and CEO Del Bryant to establish the Atlanta office and tap into the growing urban music scene that was beginning to surge here in the mid-1990s. Brewton now oversees a staff of five in Atlanta, as well as the company's urban music department, which had been a fragmented group of individual reps prior to her arrival, and its executives across the country. This year, she was named as BMI's first African-American vice president and officer.

"I'm not one to make quick decisions on hires," says Bryant, who initially met Brewton over dinner with his wife in New York. "There are several people they're putting forth: the person they want you to see, the person you do see and the person they're worried about you seeing. I usually don't like the interview process, but I knew she was somebody I would take a shot with in a second.

"And I was so much more correct than I could have realized at the time."

Movin' On Up
Since joining BMI, Brewton has been instrumental in expanding the company's presence within the growing urban music market, which has increasingly crossed over into the pop genre. She's brought aboard hundreds of members, both undiscovered names and rising stars like Dallas Austin and Sean Garrett, who has written songs for Destiny's Child, Janet Jackson and Jennifer Lopez. In August, Brewton signed the newest American Idol standout, runner-up Bo Bice. She has also resurrected BMI's Urban Music Awards, now in its sixth year under her supervision, and made it into one of the hottest tickets on the music scene.

At the same time, as competition among the two other U.S. licensing partnership companies, ASCAP (the American Society for Authors, Composers and Publishers) and SESAC (the Society of European Songwriters and Composers) has stiffened, Brewton has played a critical role in solidifying BMI's relationships with longtime affiliate members like legendary singer and songwriter Natalie Cole.

"It was really nice to see the face of BMI changing," says Cole, who's "still hugging" Brewton after she put her in touch with Austin to collaborate on her new record, which will debut this month. "I've been with the company so long and for me, I thought it was a little on the fuddy-duddy side and not necessarily up to par with what's going on in the business these days. Catherine is so up on everything that's going on out there."

That kind of savvy has put Brewton on the fast track at BMI, whose president and CEO before Bryant was Frances Preston. Preston, who stepped down last year after more than 45 years with BMI, became one of the most powerful and influential women in the music industry, and Brewton appears to be making similar strides. After only two years at BMI as director of writer/publisher relations, she was promoted to senior director. She was named assistant vice president in 2002 before being promoted to vice president and officer in May 2005.

Brewton's impact has extended far beyond the ranks of BMI, says Austin, who switched from ASCAP to BMI when Brewton came aboard. "It's not her job to call Natalie Cole on the phone and to put us together, but she does it because she loves music so much. When does a writers association do that as a company?" he says. "They're usually thinking about radio stations playing your records and them collecting on it. She's caused other writers associations to step up their games, and say 'We'd better put that personal touch in here.' I think all the other companies are looking for the Catherine of their company."

Brewton says she's grateful for the freedom she's been given since joining the company.

"Del early on saw my passion for the music and the songwriters, and he allowed me to cultivate the things I knew would work here," she says. "And he trusted me to do the right thing as it pertained to the company. I love what he has allowed me to be in a system where sometimes women are given certain limitations and certain restraints, and I hate to say 'women versus men,' but sometimes there are different rules, certainly in the music business where it's such a male-dominated business."


Marching To Her Own Beat
While Brewton points to people around her as integral to her success, she also acknowledges that from the beginning she took a hard-line stance on maintaining utmost professionalism in her position. In an industry where women are often viewed as extraneous decoration - dancers in a music video, for example, or groupies at parties - Brewton has remained extremely careful not to put herself in a situation that would compromise her reputation as a respected executive.

"In most cases, there are women who are just part of the scene, whether at the studios or dinners," she says. "I was never that 'scene' girl. I always walk a fine line, like never being the last person stuck in a car with an artist on the way home. I always say, 'Drop me off beforehand.' I had to make sure there was never a situation where I was going to go back to somebody's hotel. There are just things you do not do to put yourself in a situation where you're vulnerable and something can be misconstrued. You have to be very strategic and very matter-of-fact in terms of what you say versus what your actions are. If I'm saying, 'I'm going,' I'm at the door with the door open. You have to be very resolved, and you can't toe the line.
 
"Not that people can't date and find the love of their life and marry and live happily ever after in this business," Brewton continues. "I just made a decision not to, and I think it's served me extremely well. Once you cross that line, how do you go back? How are you set apart when you've dated this guy and that guy? And not that that's a problem, but sometimes when you cross that line you're seen as part of the scene."

Brewton, who's "not [yet] 40," credits her mother, Barbara Brewton-Cameron, the oldest of eight siblings, for helping her develop such a strong mindset. "She was extremely instrumental in terms of how I operate," Brewton says. "She made it very clear to me: There are always cute girls, but the smart girls are the ones who last in life. That resonated with me when I was very young."


Facing The Music
Growing up, Brewton had an interest in music and performing - she sang with her church choir and was a cheerleader in school - but she never envisioned a career within either industry. Instead, she earned a spot in a management training program after graduating from Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C., with a degree in business administration and marketing. In her new position in Atlanta as a financial analyst for General Electric, Brewton, then 23, was supervising women nearly twice her age.

"They came in and said, 'You're kidding; this is who I'm working for?'" Brewton recalls with a laugh. "I broke the ice by getting on the phones and doing what they did and really putting myself in a place where they respected me for what I knew and not how old I was."

After that endeavor, Brewton and a partner started a small PR firm representing some of Atlanta's biggest names: boxer Evander Holyfield, former Braves pitcher Tom Glavine and former mayor Bill Campbell. She also met Joel Katz, a top entertainment attorney, who encouraged her to consider a career in music.

Katz, who Brewton refers to as an "absolute godsend mentor," put her in touch with some movers and shakers in the music industry. Before she knew it, she was hired by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (also known as NARAS or the Recording Academy), the organization behind the Grammy Awards, to set up an Atlanta office. It initially seemed like an overwhelming task in an industry in which Brewton had little prior experience, but she conquered it - and just three years later was craving new challenges.

She got them when Bryant hired her to open the Atlanta office for BMI, much the same way she'd done for NARAS. Only this time, Brewton found herself immersed in a quagmire of tricky issues: affiliates who'd not been paid for years, relationships put on the back burner and competitors who were taking advantage of Atlanta's booming urban music sector. At that time, BMI's closest office to the Atlanta market was Nashville, which stays continually busy with the country music scene.

"Del and Joel had the foresight to put somebody in here, and I don't think it was a moment too soon," Brewton says. "I think had we waited a year or two after I came on board, we could still be behind the gun a little bit here."
 
Starting again from scratch, Brewton quickly went to work setting up face-to-face meetings to mend dozens of wilting relationships. One in particular stands out in her mind: meeting with Teddy Bishop, an established songwriter who was considering not re-signing with BMI. She met with Bishop for high tea, and after a "somewhat awkward introduction," gave him an honest assessment of the situation and a personal assurance that she'd take care of things from that point on.
 
"I knew it was going to be a challenge because of the number of problems involved," Brewton recalls. "But they weren't insurmountable; they just needed some attention. I said, 'Teddy, I can't say I'm here to save the day. All I can tell you is, give me the opportunity to make it right.' He did, and he's still here."

Those who have worked with Brewton say it's that kind of genuine, one-on-one interaction and interest that makes her a rare individual in the music industry, which is notoriously rife with all sorts of entities vying for a piece of the proverbial pie.
 
"You have some people in positions like hers who could be trying to get kickbacks, trying to get things on the side, wearing five and six different hats," Sean Garrett says. "But she consistently works strongly in her position to keep her clients happy. She continuously calls and looks out for you and wants to make sure you're OK."

It's close to 7 p.m., and Brewton finally is getting ready to close up shop and meet some of her colleagues in town from New York for a gospel convention in Atlanta. Yet, the phone continues to ring.

Brewton's assistant left awhile ago, and there's no one else to handle the calls that continue to straggle in. So Brewton picks up, again. "No, we don't do any type of live children's performances," she says to the caller, a 14-year-old boy. But from Brewton's cheerful, friendly tone, he could have been any of the top names in the music industry.

"It never stops," she chuckles, as she grabs her sunglasses, a stylish pink pair, and clicks off the lights, CD player and TV, which plays a muted stream of nonstop music videos in her office, then bends down and swoops up her teacup terrier, Miles. "But I really feel at peace with it all. I feel I contribute with some small thing, whatever it might be, everyday. That I've had an impact on somebody's life and I've made a difference. The day I wake up and I'm dreading it, that's when I'll move to Miami and be a beach bum."

Brewton pauses, then her drive kicks back in ... "and sell lemonade."

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Still Ringing
Catherine Brewton may not have known she was headed for a career in the music industry from the beginning, but she's taken advantage of every opportunity to achieve the success she's earned today. Along the way, she also has learned a great deal about making it in a male-dominated field, managing others and making time for herself amidst an extremely hectic schedule. Here, she shares some tips.

Practice patience. As a child, Brewton remembers her mother always telling her to be more patient, but only as she's gotten older has she understood the wisdom behind those words.

Make the most out of your relationships. When an artist releases a new video, for example, she'll drop them a note and congratulate them. It's a genuine but creative way to keep herself - and BMI - on their mind when it comes to signing the deal. "It's a process of connecting, quite simply," she says.

Disconnect and decompress. Brewton may work an insane schedule, but she knows the importance of taking time off: Later this year, she has plans to vacation in Bora Bora and South Africa, places her mobile phone won't get reception.

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Women On The Rise At BMI
Founded in 1939, BMI is regarded as one of the most consistently powerful and progressive players in the music industry, with a repertoire of approximately 6.5 million musical works from 300,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers. That impressive reputation results largely from leadership from one of the industry's most powerful and progressive women: Frances Preston.

Last year, Preston announced she was stepping down from her position as president and CEO of BMI, after more than 45 years with the company. She left behind her an unparalleled legacy, both at BMI and within the industry as a whole. She joined BMI in the late 1950s, a time when roles for many women did not extend past the home, much less in a fast-paced field dominated by men.

Preston, described by Fortune magazine as "one of the true powerhouses of the pop music industry," was a driving force in putting BMI on the forefront of the music industry. Since being named president and CEO in 1986, she more than tripled BMI's revenues and increased the company's repertoire of songwriters, composers and music publishers from 84,000 to 300,000. Additionally, under Preston's leadership, BMI was the first music publisher to launch a website, make its entire catalog available online and enable publishers and writers to register new works directly via the Internet. For the fiscal year ending June 2004, BMI recorded revenues of nearly $673 million.

Catherine Brewton, the company's first African-American vice president of writer and publisher relations, says she cherished working with Preston for a year before she stepped down. "In a time when women were not necessarily seen as business people, she defined that for a woman," Brewton says. "She possessed class and elegance, and she was one of the most savvy executives that I've ever worked for."