Dean Lewis becomes the second songwriter to join the 1,000,000,000 List, with his chart topping song ‘Be Alright’
The song is co-written with Jon Hume, and recently received an Outstanding International Achievement Award at the APRA Music Awards
Lewis has performed the song on The Ellen Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live and the US Today Show
Singer, songwriter and musician Dean Lewis was honoured on Tuesday by APRA AMCOS with a place on the organisation’s prestigious The 1,000,000,000 List, for his lyrically affecting, chart-topping hit ‘Be Alright.’
Presented by Chief Executive Dean Ormston, a position on The List is awarded to APRA AMCOS members who have achieved extraordinary success by accumulating over one billion streams globally for an original song.
Released in June 2018 in the lead up to his debut #1 ARIA Chart album A Place We Knew, ‘Be Alright’ spent five weeks in the top spot on the ARIA Singles chart and eight weeks as the most played song on Australian radio.
Prior to hitting the 1 billion streams industry benchmark, Lewis and co-writer Jon Hume were recognised at April’s APRA Music Awards for the song’s outstanding international achievements, which currently stand at multi-platinum status in eight countries (including 7x in Australia), silver in the UK, and platinum in the US. Lewis was also honoured as Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year at the Awards.
The 1,000,000,000 List takes into account streaming numbers from major services Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube, and is the first award of its kind to recognise a songwriter’s achievement.
In between playing to the biggest crowd of his career (so far) on Saturday at Splendour in the Grass and jetting back to North America for Lollapalooza and an extensive US tour, Lewis was presented with the honour in-person at the Sydney offices of APRA AMCOS.
Lewis said in his acceptance, "Thank you to APRA AMCOS and everyone who has been so supportive right from the start."
Becoming the second APRA AMCOS member to be named to The List, Lewis joins fellow international hitmaker Nat Dunn, who was recently acknowledged for co-writing the Marshmello hit ‘FRIENDS’.
In Ormston's presentation he said, "We work in a globally competitive world, and there’s nothing more exciting and nothing gives us more pride than shouting from the rooftops how successful our Aussie songwriters are – both locally and internationally. All of us at APRA AMCOS strive to make sure we are an integral part of the long and successful careers of our songwriter members. It doesn’t matter where your songs take you, anywhere in the world, we're here to work with you...we've got your back!"
“What Dean has achieved with 'Be Alright' is not just a global hit but a song that’s really profound and has impacted people."
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Lewis, a Sydney native who caught the attention of Specific Music’s Leonie Conley and Robert Conley after being handed a demo of his songs on a music industry boat cruise, struck international success in the last couple of years with songs that combine stories of heartbreak and growing up with a sense of immediacy and optimism.
Lewis made special mention of the Conleys in his speech, "They took a chance on me, and I was lucky with my career to fall into the right hands." Those key early supporters included Specific Music in partnership with Kobalt Music Publishing, and then a label home with Island Records Australia. International writing trips and syncs for breakthrough single 'Waves' – notably in Riverdale and Suits – were placed by Kobalt's global sync team and helped to introduce Lewis to music fans worldwide.
Kobalt Music Group APAC's Managing Director Simon Moor commended the songwriter, "Dean brings the talent, obviously, but he also brings the hard work, and I think there's something to be said for a lot of work that goes into something like this, and that it doesn't happen overnight."
He has performed ‘Be Alright’ to television audiences in the millions, with appearances on The Ellen Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live and the US Today Show. The song was at one point the most Shazamed in the US, and gave Lewis momentum to reach #1 on Billboard’s Emerging Artist Chart.
The list will not be exclusive to Lewis and Dunn for long, with other hit auteurs to be added by the organisation in the coming months.
Dean Lewis - Be Alright