(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) —
The Recording Academy has elected new national officers: music television producer Terry Lickona, chairman of the board of trustees; producer Jimmy Jam, vice chairman; and music publisher Richard Perna, secretary/treasurer. Previous Academy Chairman Daniel Carlin was elected chairman emeritus.
"Our spring Trustees meeting is a time when elected leaders from each of our 12 chapters, all music makers and experts in their own fields, come together to discuss the evolution of our Academy and the active role we must play as the voice of 17,000 music makers," said Neil Portnow, president, The Recording Academy. "Not only have we continued to evolve the Awards categories, but we were able to commit to enhancing the services we offer our members and broaden our outreach to consumers beyond the annual Grammy telecast. We also are thrilled with the diversity and the depth of music industry experience we were able to tap in electing our new slate of national officers. I look forward to working closely with this talented group of new officers and our national staff."
Lickona has been the producer of "Austin City Limits," the longest-running popular music series on American television today, for almost 30 years. A member of The academy since 1993, he served as president and was a founding governor of the Texas chapter. He is a longtime trustee, and is a co-chair of the television committee overseeing production of the annual Grammy Awards.
"I am looking forward to building a new partnership with our president, national staff, trustees, local chapters and 17,000 members," said Lickona. "This is the most exciting time in The Recording Academy's history, as we explore new opportunities for showcasing the Grammy brand and legacy via television, launch new initiatives to grow our membership and expand our educational, charitable and advocacy missions."
Jam is a three-time Grammy winner, Los Angeles chapter trustee and comprises half of one of the most successful writing/producing teams in modern music history. In the past 20 years, along with his partner Terry Lewis, Jimmy has written and/or produced more than 50 Billboard No. 1 songs on the pop, R&B and dance charts for diverse artists, including Mary J. Blige, Robert Palmer, Mariah Carey, Boyz II Men, Rod Stewart, Sting, Usher and Janet Jackson.
Perna is co-CEO of Evergreen Copyright Acquisitions and served as a trustee for the Texas chapter from 2000-2004. Perna, who has been a member of The Academy's Finance Committee, was president and chief operating officer of Hammerstein Music Group, Inc., a company that evolved into one of the most successful independent music publishing companies in North America. –Bob Grossweiner and Jane Cohen
