Reservoir has signed Ivor Novello and Grammy-nominated writer-producer Carla Marie Williams to a worldwide publishing deal.
The deal includes works from Williams’ catalog of hits, plus her debut all-female empowerment EP, All My Girls – a collection of tracks she wrote and co-produced that celebrate and showcase female talent.
Williams began her writing career at UK hit-factory Xenomania, where she wrote for artists by the likes of Girls Aloud, The Saturdays, and Alesha Dixon, racking up six UK Top 10 hits within two years.
Her work with Girls Aloud on the #1 UK single, “The Promise” earned her an Ivor Novello nomination for Most Performed Work, and the song was also crowned Best British Single at the BRIT Awards.
More recently, Williams co-wrote Naughty Boy’s Platinum-selling smash “Runnin’ (Lose It All)” featuring Beyoncé and Arrow Benjamin, Britney Spears’ “Private Show”, and Beyoncé’s “Freedom” featuring Kendrick Lamar, off her critically acclaimed concept album Lemonade.
“Freedom” was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Performance, while Lemonade took home the award for Best Urban Contemporary album.
“Carla is a major creative force in songwriting, a champion of new talent, and a huge supporter of women in music.”
Annette Barrett, Reservoir
In 2015, Williams started her own writing and production collective, NewCrowd, working globally over the last three years building a substantial catalog of records and collaborating with an extensive list of top talent including fellow Reservoir writer-producers Danja and Just Blaze, in addition to Jess Glynne, Sean Paul, Paloma Faith, Craig David, Becky G, Justine Skye, and Kylie Minogue, among others.
In 2016, Williams founded Girls I Rate, a female empowerment movement that champions women in the creative industries. Girls I Rate works to encourage equality, education, and collaboration between women, as well as hosts songwriting weekenders at their Arts Academy for new female creatives.
Earlier this month, Williams held her annual Girls I Rate gala, bringing together 100 women who are leaders and pioneers in the creative industries to raise money for the organization, and in addition, she hosted Spotify UK’s Women Make Music Panel, sharing her perspective as a female changemaker, while debuting her new EP.
“Carla is a major creative force in songwriting, a champion of new talent, and a huge supporter of women in music,” said Reservoir/Reverb Music Managing Director Annette Barrett. “We are delighted to welcome her to the Reservoir family.”
Added Williams, “I’m super excited to start my new journey with Reservoir: my plan is to travel the world this year, playing an active role in both writing and producing as much global music as possible, and it’s nice to finally have a team to support you in making your dreams come true!”Music Business Worldwide
