Harvey Mason jr. Served as Executive Music Producer for “Bob Marley: One Love”: “It Was Something I Couldn't Pass Up”

Harvey Mason jr. he is having a very good month. On February 4, as CEO of the Recording Academy, Mason oversaw the 66th annual Grammy Awards, which received critical acclaim and a ratings boost.

Ten days later, wearing his other hat as a longtime music supervisor for film and television, Mason saw the release of the film Bob Marley: One Love, on which he is credited as executive music producer, and for which he recorded and mixed the songs. The film was No. 1 at the box office in its first two weeks and is already one of the top 10 musical biopics in history.

Bob Marley, who died in 1981, had long been one of Mason's favorites. “I grew up listening to his music,” says Mason. “When I was in college, it was probably one of my top five most played CDs. I loved his music, so the opportunity to work on this project, even though it was big, was something I talked about a lot, thought about a lot, and finally decided it was something I couldn't pass up.”

The film includes a generous amount of Marley music as well as other music of the period such as punk and disco (the Bee Gees' 'You Should Be Dancing'). “It was a fertile period in music, for sure,” says Mason. “The filmmakers [led by director Reinaldo Marcus Green] he did a great job of presenting everything that was going on around different genres and the music and the culture at the time.”

When Mason signed on as CEO of the Recording Academy, he insisted on being able to pursue his outside music projects on his own time. He believes it makes him a better CEO. “Being involved in music and having the opportunity to create and have that outlet is a huge value for me as an executive,” he says. “This is my life – making things and creating, collaborating.

“One feeds the other,” he continues. “I really think there's value in doing both.”

Mason, who became interim president and CEO on January 16, 2020 and assumed the role of permanent CEO on May 13, 2021, is a master of compartmentalization. “I do the Academy stuff 18 hours a day and then I get a meal and go back to the studio at night and create until I fall asleep. … I pay a lot of attention to the Academy, but luckily I'm able to stay creative. For me, that was really part of being able to do this role at the Academy – could I stay creative? Could I stay connected to music and collaborate with artists, songwriters and producers? I thought it was very important for me to continue to do that.”

Mason is quick to add, “It's also something that the search committee and the executive committee thought was good. It wasn't something I had to negotiate. They said, “We love that you're a creator. that you're doing this job and still making music. We've never had a CEO like that.”

Mason doesn't have to clear every outside music project with the trustees, but he stresses, “I think there's a mutual understanding that I wouldn't want to do anything that takes away from my work at the Academy. But also, the Academy understands the value of having a creator in that position. So there's not a formal process, but I'm very respectful of my role and the responsibilities I've taken on not only on the board but also in the music community.”

Before becoming CEO, Mason received five Grammy nominations – three of them for his work in film and television, on his soundtracks Dreamgirls, Pitch Perfect 2 and Jesus Christ Superstar live in concert.

But he's taken himself out of Grammy contention while he's CEO. “I'm committed not to put my name on the ballot because I wouldn't want my work at the Academy to influence how someone saw a play or voted for a play.”

But other people working on these projects can submit their own names. “I don't want to punish people who are doing great work. So others can submit, I won't submit and I won't be nominated or win while I'm in this role.”

Mason has a different take on the Recording Academy administrators competing for the Grammys. This year, three current managers won Grammys. Michael Romanowski won Best Immersive Audio album for a deluxe edition of Alicia Keys' 2004 album The Diary of Alicia Keys. J. Ivy won Best Spoken Word Poetry album The light within. PJ Morton won Best Traditional R&B Performance for “Good Morning” (featuring Susan Carol). All three had previously won in these categories. Some have questioned whether their high-profile involvement with the Academy gives them an unfair advantage in voting.

“I think as long as all the processes are sacred and pristine as they are, it's great to celebrate the musicians involved,” says Mason. “Having board members people at the top of their craft says a lot about who our board is.”

Asked if he can see sensitivity to current board members competing for the Grammys, he says: “I can understand people wanting to make sure it's fair, which I think it is. I don't think people vote for people just because they're on the board or because they're friends. Our voters are listening and going through the ballot and voting for people they think are doing a great job. Some of these people will be on our board. I would love to have as many people on our board as possible who are relevant and contemporary and doing work at the top of their game. I would hate to see us become an Academy where we didn't want on our board people who are prosperous and profitable and successful in the music industry.”

Mason's current, three-year contract with the Academy expires on July 31. Mason won't say what happens after that. “I don't think either side has yet made a commitment or made a firm decision about what's going to happen after July,” he says.

Jay-Z criticized the Academy's voting procedures for Black Music Collective's acceptance of the Global Impact Award at this year's telecast. Advertising signIts headline, typical of how the speech was characterized in the media, read: “Jay-Z Calls Out Grammys for Beyoncé's album of the Year Snub During Acceptance Speech.”

What did Mason think of the speech? “I'll just say that when someone we respect speaks, you will always listen,” he said. “Jay is one of the most prolific, talented and influential people in our industry. We respect his art and we respect his opinion… We listen and try to take it as constructive criticism and become better from it.”