WHO IS BENNY BLANCO?
Benny Blanco
Benny Blanco, also known as Benjamin Joseph Levin, is an accomplished American record producer and multi-instrumentalist. Hailing from Reston, Virginia, he has collaborated with numerous renowned artists over his extensive career in the music industry. In addition, Blanco is a very skilled songwriter who received the prestigious Hal David Star
light Award from “The Songwriters Hall of Fame” (SHOF) in 2013. Additionally, he has garnered five ‘BMI Songwriter of the Year’ accolades from 2011 to 2014, as well as two ‘iHeartRadio Music Awards’ in 2017.
Blanco has achieved the remarkable achievement of producing seven singles that have reached the number one position on Billboard’s prestigious charts. He has also had numerous additional singles that have achieved a place in the top 10. He has collaborated with renowned artists such as Kanye West, Rihanna, Katy Perry, Maroon 5, Ed Sheeran, Wiz Khalifa, Selena Gomez, and Justin Bieber.
He unveiled his inaugural album Friends Keep Secrets, which garnered recognition on the Billboard top 50 list and achieved chart success in Australia, Canada, Norway, and Ireland. The single also achieved top 10 rankings in several other countries, including the United States, Canada, Denmark, and Sweden.
Benny Blanco has received several prestigious honors, including the Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album for Taylor Swift’s 1989, the Billboard Music Award for Top Hot 100 Song for Love Yourself, and the iHeartRadio Music Award for Best Song from a Movie for Eastside. The song Eastside, featuring Halsey and Khalid, reached the number one position on the charts in Ireland, New Zealand, and the UK. In addition, he has received many Academy Award nominations for his contributions to films such as The Fault in Our Stars and Paper Towns.
Early Life of Benny Blanco
Birth and Childhood
Benny Blanco, also recognized as Benjamin Joseph Levin, was born on March 8, 1988, in Reston, Virginia. He hails from a Jewish family that has been unwaveringly supportive of his artistic endeavors since the outset. In his childhood, he would regularly engage in music practice inside the confines of his home. During his childhood, Benny Blanco would engage in playing various musical instruments inside the confines of his room. Subsequently, he commenced the practice of recording his own musical compositions.
The Professional Journey of Benny Blanco
Benny Blanco was greatly affected by the contemporary music of Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, also known as “Nas,” during the mid-1990s. At that time, he was a young child. As Blanco’s passion for music intensified, he proceeded to create additional musical compositions inside the confines of his residence and record them. Blanco’s remarkable music captivated the executives of Columbia Records. Subsequently, he had the opportunity to work under the tutelage of record producer David Aaron Shayman, more commonly recognized as Disco D.
Following his apprenticeship with Disco D, Blanco received guidance from Lukasz Sebastian Gottwald, a renowned producer and songwriter, commonly known as Dr. Luke. Throughout this period, Blanco adeptly composed and produced numerous well-received songs under his supervision. These encompass tracks such as Kesha’s inaugural release TiK ToK and Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream. Subsequently, Blanco independently released a number of well-received songs, with the most prominent among them being Moves Like Jagger by the musical group Maroon 5.
Following the triumph of their hit song Moves Like Jagger, Maroon 5 once again joined forces with Blanco to create their fourth studio album, Overexposed. The record ultimately became one of the band’s most triumphant endeavors to date. It attained the second rank on the Billboard 200 and achieved sales of more than 222,000 copies. He also produced the songs Stereo Hearts by Gym Class Heroes and Don’t Trust Me by the electronic music duo Sean Foreman and Nathaniel Motte.
He has subsequently released other singles that have reached the top position on the charts. Over the following years, he formed partnerships with renowned performers such as Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande, Lana Del Rey, Camila Cabello, Justin Bieber, and Ed Sheeran.
Accolades and Acknowledgements
Blanco was awarded the Hal David Starlight Award at the 44th Annual Songwriters Hall of Fame ceremony in 2013. In addition, he was the recipient of the Producer of the Year accolade at the iHeartRadio Music Awards in 2017. He has received a total of eight nominations at the Grammy Awards from 2011 to 2018, and one nomination at the Golden Globe Awards in 2016. In 2018, Benny Blanco unveiled his first-ever single Eastside, which successfully entered the top charts of Billboard and received platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Personal Aspect of Benny Blanco’s Life
A significant portion of his time is dedicated to working in the studio, where he engages in music production and songwriting for other artists. Additionally, he actively engages in philanthropic endeavors, providing support to charitable organizations such as the Boys and Girls Club of America.
Romantic Involvements
Benny Blanco had a romantic relationship with his then girlfriend Emma Lee Moss, with whom he resided in Los Angeles. Subsequently, Selena Gomez publicly disclosed her romantic involvement with record producer Benny Blanco on December 7, 2023, signifying their shift from being friends to being in a romantic relationship. Gomez made the revelation via PopFaction’s Instagram, a popular fan account.
In her post, Gomez acknowledged her status and later published an Instagram Story that included herself and Blanco. Gomez demonstrated her dedication to individuals in her inner circle as a means of defending her connection against detractors. Their history predates 2019, when Blanco, a close associate of Gomez’s former partner Justin Bieber, engaged in collaborations with other artists in Gomez’s social circle, including The Weeknd and Camila Cabello. Blanco has a working relationship with Gomez, where he has produced several of her songs such as Same Old Love, Kill ‘Em With Kindness, and the 2017 tune Trust Nobody with Cashmere Cat.
In March 2019, their cooperation reached its highest point with the release of I Can’t Get Enough, which included J Balvin and Tainy. Blanco made a notable appearance in a teddy bear costume, dancing beside Gomez. Speculation emerged in October 2020 when Blanco’s interview appeared to allude to Gomez, coinciding with the debut of her cosmetics brand, “Rare Beauty”.
In July 2023, an important occasion occurred when Blanco accompanied Gomez to her 31st birthday celebration, making a public appearance together. Their clandestine connection, which was acknowledged by Gomez on December 7, had been kept secret for six months until now. Blanco notably produced Gomez’s hit Single Soon, which was released in August 2023. During an interview, Gomez elucidated the words of her song, highlighting her criteria for a spouse, emphasizing the significance of compassion, humor, and familial reverence. Blanco attended “Rare Beauty’s Rare Impact Fund Benefit” in October 2023 to show support for Gomez.
The public recognition of their relationship signifies a notable achievement for Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco, underscoring their transition from a working collaboration to a romantic one.
Controversies
Amidst the purported conflict with Charlie Puth
Throughout the early months of 2022, Benny Blanco consistently criticized Charlie Puth on TikTok whenever he shared a behind-the-scenes film. He insulted him by referring to him as a contemptible person and ridiculed him for recording his musical creative process. In a video from November, Blanco stated that Puth spends his entire day in a room creating TikToks. Once, Puth shared a video where he was engaged in a phone conversation with an individual who was insisting that he make Light Switch, a song he had composed, available to the public.
Blanco responded to the video by stitching it, instructing Puth to remain silent, as he not only created the tune but likely did so two months prior, while also attempting to maximize promotional opportunities. Despite Blanco’s consistent videos, numerous fans had raised doubts over the authenticity of the conflict, speculating that it might be a deliberate promotional tactic, given the prior collaboration between the two artists.
Puth had not extensively acknowledged the hate until November when he posted a TikTok video. In the video, he expressed that he initially found the videos amusing and was unsure of the reasons behind Blanco’s unkind behavior towards him in recent months. However, he really felt hurt by it. Furthermore, he expressed his admiration for Blanco, making him perplexed about the origin of the offensive language. Blanco, for inexplicable reasons, harbored a strong aversion for Puth and devoted his account to engaging in trolling behavior towards him.