CNN: Freddy Wexler and Billy Joel on Joel’s stunning new music video

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BILLBOARD: Billy Joel’s Co-Writer Freddy Wexler on His First Words to the Legend and How They Created ‘Turn the Lights Back On’ Together

Freddy Wexler already had a good career going long before he co-wrote and produced “Turn the Lights Back On” with Billy Joel. Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, Post Malone, P!nk and Lil Wayne were among the artists who had recorded tunes by the Grammy-nominated songwriter. But writing with his musical hero, who had long ago stopped writing pop songs, fulfilled an unimaginable dream for Wexler and brought Joel back onto the Hot 100 this week for the first time in more than 25 years.

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NYT: Billy Joel Said He’d Retired From Pop. Here’s What Brought Him Back.

Billy Joel’s first new pop song in nearly two decades was sparked by someone miles from the record business: a Long Island doctor. Joel, 74, has long made it known that he isn’t interested in making more albums. He released 12 studio LPs between 1971 and 1993 — most platinum several times over — and retired from the format, though he never stopped tinkering with classical music, or playing live.

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NME: Laufey’s album ‘Bewitched’ breaks records and makes history

Laufey‘s new album ‘Bewitched’ (written in collaboration with Freddy Wexler) has broken numerous records since it was released in September. The album broke a record on Spotify, recording the biggest first day for a jazz album on the streamer in history. It also debuted at Number 23 on the all-genre Billboard 200, marking Laufey’s first appearance on the chart, and is still comfortably sitting in the top 100 almost a month on from release.

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Deadline: Blackpink Scores Historic Win With ‘Born Pink’ Album Release

Blackpink has made history following the launch of their second album Born Pink. The South Korean girl group made up of four members, Jisoo, Jennie, Rosé and Lisa, topped the album charts with their latest release. Born Pink made its debut at the top of the Billboard 200 Albums Chart with their sophomore album moving 102,000 units, according to Luminate via Billboard. The news is historic as Blackpink is the first all-female group to achieve this since Danity Kane’s No. 1 debut back in 2008 with their album titled Welcome to the Dollhouse.

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OutloudCulture: MTV Entertainment Studios And Netflix Tap Grammy Nominated Songwriter Freddy Wexler For ‘Emily In Paris’

MTV Entertainment Studios and Netflix announced the debut single “Mon Soleil” from the Darren Star created hit series Emily in Paris Season 2.  The only original song written for the series, “Mon Soleil” is performed by series star Ashley Park and written/produced by Freddy Wexler, who worked closely with Park and award-winning show creator Darren Star. “Mon Soleil” was co-produced by Parisi (Ed Sheeran) and recorded in Paris, London, and Los Angeles; it features local musicians and background vocals by guest star Kevin Dias, Wexler and Jordan Powers. The single release is tied to Season 2, which streams on Netflix.

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Songwriter universe recently interviewed the principal and CEO Of The Brain, Freddy Wexler, asking him about his recent song collaborations with Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, Halsey, and Marshmello. Dale Kawashima writes: “Freddy Wexler is a hit songwriter, artist, producer & music exec who’s been successful in the music business for over a decade. He’s co-written songs for wide range of popular artists, he’s released songs & videos using his artist name Jackson Penn, and he’s run a music publishing & entertainment company. Notwithstanding his success and credits prior to this year, Wexler’s career has reached a new level in 2020. He co-wrote the number one pop hit, “Stuck with U,” for Ariana Grande & Justin Bieber, and he co-wrote the Top 30 hit, “Be Kind,” for Marshmello & Halsey.

Check out Freddy’s Q and A with Songwriter Universe below.

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