MBW’s Key Songs In The Life Of… is a series in which we ask influential music industry figures about the tracks that have — so far — defined their journey and their existence. Picking a musical path through her life so far this time is Sony Music Publishing‘s President, Head of US A&R, Katie Welle. The Key Songs… series is supported by Sony Music Publishing.

Katie Welle doesn’t pick six new tracks as her Key Songs. But she does pick tracks that were all new once.

OK, that’s obvious. But the point is (the point of Welle’s entire list and career to date, in fact) is that she’s gone with songs that she still remembers from the moment they were new to her, and, more specifically, still remind her of the rush and thrill of discovery.

It’s why she ends with a song and artist she wants you (and expects the world) to hear more of. It’s why, in one of her expositions, she talks of taking control of the aux cable. She doesn’t (necessarily) want to take over the party – she just knows, for your own damn good, that you have to hear this particular track right damn now.

More simply, it’s why she’s in the business.

Welle’s career began 20 years ago as an A&R Assistant at Epic. From there she joined Sony Music Publishing (then known as Sony/ATV) for the first time. She dipped back into label-land with a stint as Senior VP, A&R, at RCA before returning to SMP as Senior VP, Creative in 2020. Earlier this year she was promoted to President, Head of US A&R.

Reviewing the process of stitching all that together using sings as the thread, she says: “I took the route of just being deeply personal, going with songs that really changed the course of my career, and therefore life.

“And It’s funny because when I was talking about this to people who know me really well and know my musical taste, the one thing they all said was, ‘What about this? And why is this artist missing?

“So it was very hard, and even up until two minutes ago, I was like, ‘Yeah, what about that? And why is that artist missing?!’

“But, that being said, what’s interesting is that what I found when I put them all together, was that there is a theme, which is music discovery.

“And I think that’s so cool, because one of the most exciting thing about being a music fan is discovering new songs and new artists. So then to be in music business, and be lucky enough to have my job be literally all about music discovery; what an absolute treat.”

Welle’s journey of discoveries starts with a childhood in Indiana, learning every word (and dance move) to an En Vogue classic, before moving to LA and into A&R, where she would not just discover but work with a series of ground-breaking artists, writers and producers who helped shape not just her life and career but the modern musical landscape…

1) En Vogue, Give Him Something He Can Feel (1992)

This takes me back to when I was 10 years old. I just remember the video so distinctly, with them all wearing those elegant long gloves. I knew every ad lib and every moment of that song.

But the reason it’s a pivotal song as well as a great song is because somehow, around the same time, I also heard the Aretha Franklin version. So it suddenly clicked to me that this En Vogue song was a cover.

From there I learned that it was originally written by Curtis Mayfield… and it just sent me down a rabbit hole. I think a lot of the rest of my life has been a musical rabbit hole.

At 10 years old, of course, didn’t even know something called the music business existed. But for whatever reason, it was my obsession to understand how music was created and how it was all linked. I realized wanted to see the whole tapestry of music culture.

And this song stands out so much as a marker of that realization. I still listen to it and it still makes me feel the same way.

2) Amerie, 1 Thing (2005)

I grew up in Indiana, and like I said, when I was there, I did not know the music business existed. How I ended up in LA working for Sony Music is a whole other story. But by 2005, there I was.

I was an A&R assistant, and at that time it meant your day was spent burning CDs in these huge CD towers – 15 at a time. You’d have to line up the sticker just right in the printer to get the label’s logo centered in the right place. You’d be doing that all day.

Not long after I arrived, Sony was getting ready to release Amerie’s 1 Thing and I was just floored by it. I guess I must have snuck one of those discs I burned into my car, and I listened to that song for months, just blasting it. It was the best thing I’d ever heard.

Then, when it was released and became a huge record, getting that feeling and understanding what it’s like to hear something that you love, then the world hears it and also loves it – that’s a feeling I’ve been chasing ever since.

I love the perspective that Amerie is singing from. The hits of the brass are so hooky and bring you in, and the vocal… to this day, if I have the aux (which I love to have), this is always a go-to crowd pleaser.

This is also a song that sent me down another rabbit hole with Rich Harrison as a songwriter, because he made this record, and he also made Crazy In Love for Beyoncé and Get Right for JLo – also songs that are my absolute jams.  He’s a genius.

When I discovered the link in all those songs was Rich Harrison, I pretty much fell out of my chair.

3) Alicia Keys, Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart (2009)

Now I’m working at Sony Music Publishing – Sony/ATV at the time. I had seen this guy Jeff Bhasker on the [Kanye West] 808s & Heartbreak album, and so I went to try to track him down.

These were MySpace days, and in his top eight [friends] was Bruno Mars. I knew Bruno and Phil Lawrence [longtime Bruno Mars collaborator]. I used to go to all kinds of Bruno shows when he was just doing small gigs in Los Angeles.

So Phil got me connected to Jeff. He was really new to the music business, even though he had written a lot of that incredible album [808s & Heartbreak].

I met up with him, and he played me this song, amongst many others. He had this project called Billy Kraven – that’s his artist project, and that’s been his muse for writing some incredible songs, including Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart.

We started working together, with me as his publisher at Sony. He eventually worked with Alicia Keys, and she made this song her own; she made it into magic. They did such incredible work together.

This song changed my career, my life, because working with Jeff was a moment where people in the industry were calling me, as opposed to most often the other way around. It was a new level and a new path that led to so many other things. It was super-empowering.

4) Tyler, The Creator, Yonkers (2011)

A couple of years later, still at Sony/ATV Publishing, through more rabbit hole exploration and internet digging, just looking for new music, I discovered this video for the song Earl by Earl Sweatshirt, who was part of this group, Odd Future.

I was showing this video to just about everybody I knew. When you’re in the studio, you’re often sharing things, and I was literally showing this video like, ‘You got to see this, it’s amazing’. And then I realized I needed to find these people!

I had a prior relationship with [managers] the Clancys [Christian and Kelly] – brilliant, visionary managers. So, through them we connected very early in Odd Future’s career.

I brought them into Sony Publishing, and pretty quickly after that, they performed on Jimmy Fallon, and that set off this insane reaction. They were on the cover of Billboard for SXSW.

And then down at SXSW, Yonkers was blasting from every car window. I was at this Thrasher show where Odd Future performed, and there was a nine-foot fence that fans tore down to get in.

The whole Odd Future mindset was just so inspiring and energetic – it has been one of the most fun and inspiring parts of my career. They were 100% unabashedly following their own vision. And they were also incredibly supportive of one another.

Syd, for instance, was the engineer, mixer and producer for the group at the time, and she grew into being an amazing artist with her own band [The Internet].

As a collective, they embodied this fearlessness of just being unstoppable, and that has been so contagious for generations.

5

) Rihanna ft Mikky Ekko, Stay (2012)

Mikky’s manager, Mike Mayer, had reached out to me to connect him with a producer that I worked with, and his songs and vocal just stopped me in my tracks.

We pretty much immediately started working together, and we have had so many adventures ever since – Stay being one of them.

When I met Mikky, he hadn’t written this song yet. On a trip to the UK, our London office set up a session for him and Justin Parker, which is where they wrote Stay, which eventually became the version with Rihanna.

That was such an exciting time, things happened really fast – Mikky’s first TV performance ever was on the Grammys.

I introduced him to the community that I worked with – he worked with Clams Casino, he worked with Jeff Bhasker. It was amazing to watch these connections happen within the roster that I was fostering.

Fast forward to now and Mikky has one of the biggest songs of the year with Teddy Swims’ Lose Control, that he did with Julian Bunetta, another exceptional writer that I have the privilege of working with.

I’m just so grateful that our relationship has been so long-lasting, and I think it’s proof that great talent continues to find its way into the ears of the world.

6) Saya Gray, Lie Down (2025)

This was the hardest part, because it was really important to me – when I’m talking about the theme of music discovery – to bring us to today. Because what would this list be without me showing something that I’m listening to that maybe the world doesn’t know yet?

We recently signed this artist, Saya Gray, and her song, Lie Down, has been dominating my personal listening for 2025. She is going to be a pivotal talent for the music industry.

We started working with her this year, thanks to our team here in the US – Thomas Krottinger and Clark Adler – and throughout other territories. As a company, across the globe, we just fell in love with her songwriting.

This song, like much of her music, has such depth – it’s haunting, but also kind of effervescent and really hooky.

It’s telling a story that could be interpreted in different ways. I love the lyric, ‘I can turn your dust into sparkle’. And that’s how the song trails out with this sort of bubbly texture towards the end. You have to hear it to understand!

She marries really interesting production and tone choices with just incredible hooks. You’re definitely going to hear a lot more about her this year and beyond.

At Sony Music Publishing (SMP), we believe every voice matters. We are the #1 global music publisher, advancing the artistry of the world’s greatest songwriters and composers for over 25 years. We keep songwriters at the forefront of everything we do, and design our suite of services to amplify opportunities, build connections, and defend their rights. Our roster benefits from an international team committed to providing support at every career stage. From classic catalogues to contemporary hitmakers, history is always being written. We are a part of the Sony family of global companies. Learn more about SMP here.Music Business Worldwide