Sony Music Group is embracing a singular, unifying theme for every heritage acknowledgement and celebration in 2024: Reimagining CommUNITY. Inspired by the art we create, music can help us strengthen our connections to the people and cultures around us, so everyone can belong and thrive.  

Throughout Pride Month, Sony Music Group proudly celebrated the indelible impact of LGBTQ+ identifying people, while also challenging ourselves to reimagine what it means to be allies to those part of this multifaceted and vibrant community.  

This month also marked the four-year anniversary of Sony’s Global Social Justice Fund, where we recognized the impact of our partnerships driving worldwide systemic change through our newly published Impact Report. Together, the two occasions reminded us of our commitment to create an environment—within and outside of our company—where every person can be authentic and live out loud. 

Below, discover four of our partner organizations that are providing support for the LGBTQ+ community: 

Gay and Lesbians Living in a Transgender Society Inc (GLITS) 

GLITS is a Black trans-led advocacy and direct services organization that is dedicated to fighting systemic discrimination against marginalized communities, in New York City and beyond.

Through our Global Social Justice Fund, we partner with GLITS to support their re-entry program, designed to provide participants with the resources and confidence to reintegrate into society post-incarceration. To assist those going through the re-entry process, the program includes various initiatives focused on education, arts and cultural services, including a job skills training program and a reintegration support network. With this program, participants have the opportunity to explore new life paths. 

Read more about their holistic work here. 

Saffron Records 

With many music tech spaces being male dominated, Saffron Records aims to create one that is safe, welcoming and inclusive of all identities. 

This UK-based non-profit organization focuses on empowering women, nonbinary and transgender people through courses and workshops in music production, mixing and engineering. Additionally, through strategic partnerships with music organizations, they can connect their emerging talent pipeline to meaningful careers within the industry. Their work in uplifting underrepresented communities helps make the music sector more equitable for all. 

Visit Saffron Records’s website to learn more about their work and how you can support their mission. 

GLAAD 

GLAAD is an advocacy organization that ensures fair, accurate and inclusive LGBTQ+ representation in media. 

Through our Global Social Justice Fund, we support the GLAAD Media Institute, a program that helps people to build different skills and techniques that lead to positive cultural change. This is achieved through media engagement training opportunities; consulting with organizations, corporations and industries to become active LGBTQ+ advocates; and conducting various forms of research such as fielding studies and evaluating data to bolster their mission and drive action. 

Learn more about how they advance acceptance for the community through media representation here. 

The Ally Coalition (TAC) 

With LGBTQ+ youth being more likely to become victims of violence and depression, The Ally Coalition (TAC)’s aims to improve their livelihood by raising awareness on the systemic issues they face. 

Through collaboration with high profile artists on tours, social media campaigns and strategic partnerships, TAC mobilizes music fans to join the fight for LGBTQ+ rights worldwide. TAC also produces an annual Talent Show in New York City, which features groundbreaking talent and benefits various LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations.  

Find out more about their efforts to serve LGBTQ+ youth here. 

While Pride Month has come to an end in the U.S., our Global Social Justice Fund partners make it possible for us to redefine connection and rediscover belonging all year round. We thank them for their continuous support in advocating for the rights and safety of the LGBTQ+ community. 

With responsibility for managing Sony Music UK’s overall wellbeing provision, Elton Jackson has been at the forefront of a shift in the company’s approach to caring for its artists and staff since he took on the newly created role of Director of Artist and Employee Wellbeing in 2021.

In a recent interview with Music Week, Elton – a trained psychodynamic psychotherapist and former Samaritan – explored the positive impact of both the culture and mental health initiatives implemented at Sony Music UK. In his role, he provides holistic and comprehensive in-house support for artists in all aspects of their career, and for employees who require additional assistance or access to further resources. “To the best of our knowledge, this is the first in-house role of its kind within the industry,” he said, adding: “We can have difficult conversations here, but I think we can have those conversations because we’ve got the culture that we’ve got.”

Read the full article on www.SonyMusic.co.uk.

For the first time, employees and interns across Sony Music Benelux participated in the 20KM of Brussels, one of the biggest yearly sporting events in the country. This year’s edition was the most successful in its 44-year history with more than 45,000 participants joining the race—21 of which were from the Sony Music team. Even Queen Mathilde of Belgium was seen running across the finish line. 

Team members came together with the purpose of helping UNICEF, a non-profit partner of Sony Music Benelux. UNICEF’s work in children’s rights advocation ties in with our philanthropic mission of supporting civic and community initiatives around the world. 

Christophe Cumps, Senior Project Manager MOV / MOCD at Sony Music Belgium, not only ran the distance but also coordinated Sony Music Benelux’s participation. He said:  

“I was delighted to see that so many colleagues of the Sony Music Benelux team took the time to participate in this year’s edition. Walking for four hours or running for two hours is no small feat and it took quite some training for many of us to finish the 20 kilometers. We all value UNICEF’s mission to protect children’s rights worldwide, so it feels absolutely right for all of us that Sony Music supports UNICEF on a local level. Counting down to next year’s edition!” 

A round of applause to all who participated in the race, and a huge thank you to Christophe for organizing the cause. 

This Summer, Sony Music Group (SMG) is welcoming the fourth cohort of the SMG Impact Fellows Program. In 2021, the program launched as a partnership with the 4A’s Multicultural Advertising Intern Program (MAIP); fellows from subsequent cohorts have also come to SMG from American Indigenous Business Leaders (AIBL), Lime Connect, Out for Undergrad (O4U), and Scholarships Plus. These partners allow us to bolster our efforts to recruit, develop, and retain diverse entry-level talent.   

This year’s cohort is comprised of five fellows working primarily at The Orchard on various teams such as Brand Marketing, Digital College Marketing, Marketing, Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, and Global Artist & Label Services.  

Welcome to the team, 2024 Impact Fellows: 

The Office of DE&I launched the Impact Fellows program to provide college students from underrepresented communities the unique opportunity to learn about and experience the music industry during a three-month summer fellowship, supplemented by professional development opportunities and programming from their host organizations.   

This year, Fellows are gleaning insights from their internship experiences in our Nashville and New York City Offices. Fellows also benefit from participating in internal DE&I discussions, meet & greets with senior leaders, participating in the intern showcase, and attending exclusive cohort-tailored programming. 

To learn more about what it’s like working at Sony Music, follow @lifeatsonymusic on YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. 

Sony Music Group is embracing a singular, unifying theme for every heritage acknowledgement and celebration in 2024: Reimagining CommUNITY. Inspired by the art we create, music can help us strengthen our connections to the people and cultures around us, so everyone can belong and thrive.  

During Asian, Pacific Islander, Desi, American (APIDA) Heritage Month, we fostered understanding and increased knowledge about the APIDA community and their ongoing impact on global culture, while also acknowledging the challenges they continue to face.  Through our Global Social Justice Fund, we are able to continue supporting and empowering the worldwide APIDA community beyond the month of May. 

Learn more about our partner organizations who passionately strive to uplift the global Asian diaspora: 

Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote  

Location: US 

Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote (APIA Vote) is an action-driven organization dedicated to engaging, educating, and empowering the APIDA community so their voices are represented and heard.  

Through our Global Social Justice Fund, we support the organization in their efforts to sustain and build a culture of civic participation. With the APIDA community often overlooked by political parties, the organization works to allocate resources towards targeted messages directed to this community and establish them as a key demographic for electoral victory. They also aim to combat anti-Asian rhetoric and the spread of disinformation on APIDA-language social platforms. 

Discover more about how they enact positive change nationwide here. 

ChildFund Korea  

Location: South Korea 

ChildFund Korea is a child welfare organization that strives to help children live happy lives through a range of programs including childcare support, crisis intervention, psychotherapy, rehabilitation, and more. 

We proudly support their efforts through the Education Support Project. By offering aid to children in various fields that match their abilities and aptitudes, these projects give them the opportunity to foster the knowledge and skills needed to develop their talents. With this project, children are granted the ability to dream freely while supporting their peers in achieving their dreams as well. 

Read more about how they craft an environment where children can grow happily here. 

Enabling Leadership Inc  

Location: Cambodia 

Enabling Leadership Inc’s mission is to help underprivileged children learn essential leadership and life skills through innovative and creative mediums such as music and soccer. 

We aid in this mission through our support of their Enabling Leadership Play Program, which utilizes soccer as a means of teaching self-confidence, communication, collaboration, and more. This program aims to reach and help children who attend underserved government schools located in the villages surrounding the town of Battambang. 

Find out more about how they inspire children to become leaders here. 

A special thank you to our Global Social Justice Fund partners for their ongoing help as we continue to redefine connection and rediscover belonging. With their continued partnership, we will continue to uplift the global Asian diaspora now and into the future. 

May marks Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM), an annual occasion that presents the opportunity for everyone to recognize and learn more about Jewish people’s contributions to the history and culture of the United States—and to celebrate a diverse community that embodies a wide range of traditions, practices, heritages, and identities. 

Sony Music Group proudly celebrated JAHM with internal programming that underscored the impact of Jewish artistry within our company and societal culture. Get a glimpse of our JAHM celebrations, below: 

Reflecting on Jewish History 

We kicked off the month with a very special history lesson with Tom Tierney, a Director of the Sony Music Archives, where he highlighted some of the great Jewish American artists, songwriters, composers and musicians who have contributed to music history. 

We learned fun facts like… 

1. The first-ever Jewish American solo artist of the Columbia Phonograph Company (now Columbia Records) was Jules Levy (1838-1903). He was regarded as “The World’s Greatest Cornetist.” 

2. Emile Berliner (1851-1929) was a German American inventor who invented the lateral-cut flat disc record, leading directly to the creation of the Victor Talking Machine Company in 1900, which later became the Sony Music label, RCA Records. 

3. Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, Columbia Records and RCA Victor (now RCA Records) had some of the biggest selling records with their Broadway cast albums, like Fiddler on the Roof, Oklahoma! and My Fair Lady. These recordings were driven by brilliant works created by many renowned Jewish composers, lyricists, book writers and performing artists.  

Yiddish Music and Its Influence on North American Culture 

Later in the month, we tuned in to a virtual discussion with Sebastian Schulman, Director of Special Projects and Partnerships at the Yiddish Book Center, where he educated us on the history of Yiddish music and its influence on North American culture. 

Schulman explained that Yiddish music evolved from its traditional form to more commercial or performative styles when it first came to North America. Today, while it can still be played traditionally, it can also incorporate elements of hip hop, heavy metal or other contemporary genres. Some songs have even been given mainstream recognition, like at the Grammy Awards and Juno Awards, respectively. 

A huge thank you to everyone who helped us recognize JAHM at Sony Music Group. Although the month has come to a close, we will continue to celebrate Jewish culture beyond the month of May, while also confronting and dismantling stereotypes the community faces. 

Sony Music UK’s Social Justice Fund won the Corporate Foundation prize at last night’s Third Sector Business Charity Awards, which celebrate the collaboration between outstanding corporate and not-for-profit organisations.

The Global Social Justice Fund (SJF) operates across different territories and divisions of Sony, with a common goal to address injustice and racism, while being responsive to local challenges. Since the fund was created in June 2020, the SJF team at Sony Music UK have concentrated on how to support anti-racist initiatives in Britain, addressing structural inequality for lasting change. To date, the UK SJF – with a focus on broadening access to music education and skills, backing criminal justice reform projects, and supporting grassroots communities – has awarded almost £2.2million in grants to 22 charity partners working across the country.

The judges praised the winners, saying: “Sony’s Social Justice Fund tackles critical issues that are impacting their target market, using their core strengths and assets in a holistic, highly engaging and creative way.”

With strong competition in the Corporate Foundation category, Charlotte Edgeworth, Sony Music UK’s Director of Diversity, Inclusion & Social Impact, was delighted to accept the award alongside colleagues and representatives from some SJF partners – Key4Life, Young Urban Arts Foundation, Small Green Shoots, and OnSide Youth Zones. Many congratulations to all those involved.

Every year, the third Thursday in May marks Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD), an opportunity for everyone to recognize and learn more about how digital tools, spaces, and content can be made more accessible and inclusive—specifically for the more than one billion people who have disabilities or impairments. Sony Music Group joins our global communities and disability rights advocates in continually working to build a more inclusive digital future. 

To celebrate GAAD this year, Sony Music Group’s Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion hosted a special event with The Orchard distributed artist Brittany Davis, an incredibly gifted multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer, and engineer from Seattle, WA.  Brittany is blind and describes herself as a vessel of sound and experiences music in spirit and colors.  Everything about Brittany represents music and everything is an instrument to her.  

Hosted on May 7^th at Sony Music Headquarters in NYC, Sony Music Group colleagues sat down for an immersive listening experience of Brittany’s new debut album, Image Issues. Attendees were invited to wear eye masks or close their eyes to experience the music the same way Brittany does. Attendees were able to focus on the lyrics and different instruments in each record.

“That was beautiful! And I love her honest, almost raw lyrics, her rich voice,” said Jan Mecham, Executive Assistant, Epic Records. “Closing my eyes made me focus on both the lyrics and the music, (and Brittany’s rich voice).”

After the immersive listening experience, Brittany performed “Lashes”, “So Fly”, “Through the Motion” and “Soft As the Sand” from her album, followed by an intimate Fireside Chat with Madilyne Nguyen-Acosta, Senior Specialist, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, where Brittany shared her experience as a disabled artist in the music industry and how Sony Music colleagues can support people with disabilities in all industries.

Image Issues is out now on Loosegroove Records, a Seattle-based label owned by Stone Gossard of Pearl Jam, distributed by The Orchard.  The album was produced and engineered by Davis and Josh Evans (Brandi Carlile, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam) and praised by media outlets such as NPR Tiny Desk, Seattle Times, and American Songwriter. For more info, visit her website at brittanydavismusic.net.  

Sony Music Group is committed to keeping up the momentum around digital accessibility—and raise awareness of how and why physical digital spaces ought to be more inclusive. Toward that end, SMG is proud to have worked with Davis Interpeting Co. LLC to bring live ASL interpretations to this event and proud to continue our partnership with Disability:IN, the leading nonprofit resource for global business disability inclusion.

Sony Music Group is embracing a singular, unifying theme for every heritage acknowledgement and celebration in 2024: Reimagining CommUNITY. Inspired by the art we create, music can help us strengthen our connections to the people and cultures around us, so everyone can belong and thrive. 

Throughout the month of April, Sony Music Group proudly celebrated National Arab American, Middle Eastern, and North African (MENA) Heritage Month. In efforts to continue Reimagining CommUNITY within and outside of our company, we dedicated this time to recognizing and celebrating the contributions, achievements, resilience and diversity of all people of Arab and MENA descent. 

Celebrating Culture Through Food 

The MENA region is comprised of over 20 countries, which have a rich tapestry of culinary history. Food, much like music, brings people together and is reflective of culture, heritage and historical happenings. That’s why the Office of DE&I hosted a celebratory breakfast at our New York City headquarters, catered by Edy’s Grocer, North Brooklyn’s first Lebanese Market and Deli. Edy’s mission is to make Middle Eastern ingredients more accessible and prevalent in people’s daily kitchens and pantries. 

The in-office breakfast included a wide variety of pastries for employees to taste, from spinach and cheese boreks to mini za’atar croissants, providing a unique experience of MENA culture. 

Highlighting the Work of the Sony Music Middle East Team 

Special shoutout to our Sony Music Middle East teammates, who will be producing this year’s Esports World Cup 2024 anthem which will take place this summer in Saudi Arabia. Sony Group Corporation recently announced a multi-year partnership with the Esports World Cup Foundation to collaborate on various initiatives ahead of this year’s events. Learn more about the partnership here. 

Supporting the Arab and MENA Community Beyond Sony Music Group 

Although National Arab American and MENA Heritage Month has come to an end, our support for the Arab and MENA community continues. Through our Global Social Justice Fund, we proudly support Canadian non-profit organization, Afghan Women’s Organization (AWO). 

Our Global Social Justice Fund allows us to support AWO’s Neighbourhoods for Newcomer seniors program, an initiative that allows seniors to be civically engaged in various activities within their cities, from voter education events to public engagement forms. These activities are designed to increase their sense of belonging and community involvement. 

Find out more about AWO’s work here. 

For the second year in a row, Sony Pictures, Sony Music and The Orchard collaborated on a special Earth Day happy hour for employees in the Culver City LA office. The event was attended by nearly 600 SMG & SPE employees, and included special performances by The Orchard distributed artists Brittany Davis, Chris LaRocca, and Love Moor, and interactive stations by several nonprofit partners.

While listening to the performances by The Orchard artists, attendees could wander between a variety of interactive booths and stations to learn more about long-term environmental sustainability programs.

These stations were designed to empower participants with knowledge and resources that foster autonomy, community engagement, action, and impactful change in the sustainability space. For example, gardening at home and planting flowers and food alike was a theme at both the ALMA Backyard Farms and Niles Foundation booths. ALMA Backyard Farms offered small bundles of fresh flowers and seed packets to attendees while providing insights into their urban agriculture initiatives, youth education programs, and farm stand social enterprise program, and The Niles Foundation gave out small strawberry plants.  

Big shoutout to all of our sustainability partners for making the event so fantastic: The Niles Foundation LA, ALMA Backyard Farms, Heal the Bay, FoodCycle LA, and Rock and Wrap It Up.

We’re committed to doing our part to make a positive impact on the environment. That’s why, in alignment with Sony Road to Zero, we’re taking steps to address the climate crisis and minimize our environmental footprint.

Check out more from the event, below: