16TH ANNUAL GUILD OF MUSIC SUPERVISORS AWARDS ANNOUNCES ICON HONOREE - RAPHAEL SAADIQ & LEGACY HONOREE - ROBIN KAYE

The Guild of Music Supervisors announced on February 6^th their 16^th Annual Icon

Award honoree – legendary singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer – Academy Award nominated, Raphael Saadiq.  The Icon Award was created to celebrate those who have made legendary contributions to the music and film industry. Previous recipients of the Icon Award include Quincy Jones, Burt Bacharach, Kenny Loggins, Marc Shaiman, and Stephen Schwartz.  

Raphael Saadiq is a Grammy®-winning singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer celebrated for shaping the sound of modern soul and R&B. A founding member of the iconic group Tony! Toni! Toné!, Saadiq went on to forge a trailblazing solo career with acclaimed albums including Instant Vintage, The Way I See It, Stone Rollin’, and Jimmy Lee. Renowned for his seamless blend of classic soul and contemporary rhythm, Saadiq has written and produced for D’Angelo, Solange, Beyoncé, Stevie Wonder, Mary J. Blige, and John Legend, among many others. 

In film and television, Saadiq has composed and produced music for Insecure and Lovecraft Country (HBO), Black Nativity (Fox Searchlight), and The United States vs. Billie Holiday (2021). Most recently, he co-wrote the original song “I Lied to You” (with Ludwig Göransson) for Ryan Coogler’s 2025 film Sinners, performed by breakout star Miles Caton. Saadiq received Golden Globe, Grammy, and Oscar nominations for “I Lied to You.” 

Raphael Saadiq comments:

“I am honored to be the recipient of this year’s Icon Award. Music plays such an important role in how stories are told on screen and I have always believed in the power of music to deepen emotion and connect people to the story. To be recognized by a community that celebrates the important relationship between music and cinematic story telling means a lot to me.” 

Lindsay Wolfington, President of the Guild of Music Supervisors about Raphael Saadiq:

“We are very excited to honor someone whose reach has touched so many parts of the music and media industries; Raphael Saadiq’s contributions as an artist, songwriter, producer and composer for visual media truly define what we celebrate with the GMS Icon Award." 

The recipient of this year’s Legacy Award is posthumously Robin Kaye, former Vice President of the Guild of Music Supervisors and a highly respected figure in the music supervision community. The Legacy Award is presented to a music supervisor who has made a lasting impact on the industry over the course of their career. Previous recipients of the award include Allan Mason, Bonnie Greenberg, Mitchell Leib, Pilar McCurry, Maureen Crowe, Bob Hunka, Joel Sill, Gary Lemel, and Chris Montan.  

Coming from the record company and artist management side of the music industry, Robin Kaye first worked for Waylon Jennings in Nashville, later joining MTM Records as VP of Artist Development and Broadcast Media. A few years later, she was recruited to Sound Management in Chicago as VP and artist manager until her final move to Los Angeles. Following a brief stint in music publishing, Robin joined the Film & TV Licensing department at MCA-Universal Records until PolyGram Records hired her to integrate and run the music licensing divisions for the largest group of labels at the time. In 2000 Robin started her company SyncroniCity, initially representing labels and artists such as Andrea Bocelli, Kenny Loggins, Lang Lang, Donnie Osmond and Steven Bishop. Later, SyncroniCity focused strictly on music supervision for music intensive shows such as American Idol, which Robin contributed to for the last sixteen years. Her other shows include Lip Sync Battle, Hollywood Game Night, NAACP Image Awards, The Singing Bee, Miss USA, Miss Universe, American Inventor, Q'Viva , The Dance Scene, Dance Your Ass Off, Your Chance To Dance, Adventures of Power and Crashed. Robin was a valued board member and former Vice President of the Guild of Music Supervisors. 

The Vice-President of the Guild of Music Supervisors, Heather Guibert, commented on Robin Kaye, stating,

“Robin was a valued board member and Vice President of the Guild of Music Supervisors, a respected pioneer of our music supervision and synch community, and a thoughtful friend and mentor to us all. Her passion for music and dedication to the craft will forever be remembered, and we look forward to honoring her with the Legacy Award.” 

The Show Will Take Place on February 28^th   

At The Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles  

Tickets now available   

For more information on the ceremony, please visit GMSAwards.com