Benny Blanco is an American musician, songwriter, record producer and singer. He is the recipient of the 2013 Hal David Starlight Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He is also a five-time BMI Songwriter of the Year award winner and 2017 iHeartRadio Producer of the Year award winner. As a producer and songwriter, Blanco has contributed to the sale of over 100 million albums worldwide through his work with artists including Ed Sheeran, Justin Bieber, Halsey, Katy Perry, Maroon 5, Kesha, Rihanna, Sia, The Weeknd, Selena Gomez, Keith Urban, Tory Lanez, Wiz Khalifa, Kanye West, J Balvin and Juice Wrld. He is also the founder of two labels in collaboration with Interscope Records, Mad Love Records and Friends Keep Secrets. In July 2018, Blanco released the song "Eastside" under his own name, a collaboration with Halsey and Khalid. It peaked at number 9 on the Billboard Hot 100, marking Blanco's first top 10 credited as an artist and his 27th top 10 as a writer, a sum that includes seven number ones. "Eastside" was followed by "I Found You" with Calvin Harris, "Better to Lie" with Jesse and Swae Lee, "Roses" and "Graduation" with Juice Wrld and "Roses" with Brendon Urie, and he released his first album a little later in 2018.