Six-time Grammy Award winner Glen Ballard is one of popular music’s most accomplished producers and songwriters, whose records have sold more than one hundred and fifty million copies worldwide. In June 2023, Ballard was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
He began writing songs and performing in local bands in Natchez in his early years and studied literature at Ole Miss before coming to Hollywood. He worked for Elton John and later Quincy Jones in his first decade in Los Angeles, becoming a staff songwriter at Universal and later became one of music’s most sought-after producer/writers. Ballard is a recent recipient of a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Ballard co-wrote and arranged “Man in the Mirror” for Michael Jackson and co-wrote and produced the Grammy-winning and Oscar-nominated song “Believe” (Josh Groban) for the feature film The Polar Express. Ballard produced and co-wrote Alanis Morissette’s Jagged Little Pill (33 million worldwide, four Grammys, and named Best Album of the Decade by Billboard Magazine), Ballard has written and produced songs for Quincy Jones, Aretha Franklin, Barbra Streisand, Dave Matthews, Shakira, Katy Perry, Idina Menzel, George Benson, Ringo Starr, George Strait, Wilson Phillips, Van Halen, Chaka Khan, Patti Austin, Al Jarreau, Andrea Bocelli and many others. His production credits include producing and arranging records for Annie Lennox, No Doubt and P.O.D. In 2019 the musical Jagged Little Pill featuring all the songs from the album debuted on Broadway. Directed by Diane Paulus with a book by Diablo Cody, Jagged Little Pill the Musical was nominated for 15 Tony Awards in 2020. His work in film includes writing original songs for Charlotte’s Web, Beowulf, A Christmas Carol, The Croods, The Mummy’s Return, Valentine’s Day and Disney’s live-action retelling of Pinocchio which premiered on Disney+ on September 8, 2022.
Through his Los Angeles-based production company, Augury, Ballard is developing a diverse slate of projects in which music plays a central role.
His most recent television project is the Netflix Original series The Eddy: a music-driven multicultural drama about a jazz band trying to survive in chaotic modern-day Paris which debuted in May 2020. Ballard wrote and composed original songs and music for the limited series and served as an executive producer alongside Oscar-winning director Damien Chazelle, BAFTA and Tony award winning writer Jack Thorne, and Emmy winning producer/director Alan Poul.
Ballard wrote original lyrics and music for GHOST the Musical which debuted in 2011 and has since been touring worldwide.
Ballard’s international production company, Augury is a producer of the stage adaptation of 1985’s Back to the Future having worked on the project’s development for more than 14 years. In collaboration with Grammy Award winning and Oscar nominated film composer Alan Silvestri, Ballard created original music and lyrics for the production which includes 17 new original songs and is directed by John Rando. The show first opened in Manchester, UK at the Opera House in March 2020. Back to the Future: The Musical began its debut in London’s West End at the Adelphi Theatre with previews beginning on August 20, 2021 and opening on September 13, 2021. Back to the Future: The Musical was nominated for 7 Olivier Awards 2022 including Best Score and won for Best New Musical. It is the winner of 4 WhatsOnStage Awards 2022 including Best New Musical. The show opened on Broadway at the Winter Garden Theatre on August 3, 2023, and continues its run there, in the West End, and on a US tour.