ASCAP SXSW RECAP: T.I, KENDRICK, USHER, PHARRELL SURPRISE AUSTINAT ASCAP & BET NETWORKS MUSIC MATTERS SXSW SHOWCASE HOSTED BY YAHOO!

Jonathan Jones(ASCAP), Nicole George Middleton( VP of Membership Rhythm & Soul ASCAP), Pharrell Williams; T.I, Tameka "Tiny" Harris, Usher Raymond, Jennifer Drake(Director Membership / Rhythm & Soul ASCAP)

On Thursday, March 14^th at 8p.m./CST, BET &ASCAP presented “The BET Music Matters Showcase hosted by Yahoo!” and headlined by ASCAP’s own T.I.. Firmly established as the place to see the best urban indie artists, this year’s showcase ventures off into mainstream, with a performance from theTrouble Man himself – T.I..

“BET is dedicated to identifying outstanding artists early and supporting them in their rise. We’re thrilled to bring our classic Music Matters showcase to SXSW for the third year in a row featuring a vibrant collection of performers; some we’ve rocked with for a while, some relatively new, ALL with outsized talent. We’re also glad to get down with ASCAP and Yahoo! two entities that, like BET, prove their love and support for music every day,” said Stephen Hill, President of Music Programming and Specials, BET Networks

School Boy Q

This year’s showcase was a great night of music that ran the gamut from Top Dawg Entertainment’s SchoolBoy Q, to everybody’s favorite DJ Drama, Roc Nation’s R&B diva Bridget Kelly, the incomparable Chrisette Michele and a few new kids on the block already making a name for themselves - BJ The Chicago Kid, Joey Badass and Lecrae.

The BET Music Matters Showcase at last year’s SXSW was hosted by Timbaland and featured performances by Big Sean, Kendrick Lamar, Miguel, Marsha Ambrosius, MGK, Stalley, Big K.R.I.T, Stalley and more. 2013 marks BET Networks’ third year at SXSW and the BET Music Matters showcase just keeps getting bigger.Partnering this year with ASCAP – the worldwide leader in performance royalties, service and advocacy for songwriters, composers and music publishers – further proves BET’s commitment to supporting artists and songwriters, from big to small, throughout their entire career.