Trending on Billboard Planning awards shows is no simple task, not least when you run the U.K.’s Ivor Novello Awards, which Robert Neri , the Ivors Academy CEO, posits is music’s “Oscar-equivalent” ceremony. When Billboard U.K. speaks with Neri a fortnight out from the big night (May 21), he’s in the process liaising with artists, attendees, and sponsors to ensure a smooth planning process and happy faces when the ceremony kicks off. “It feels like a wedding day,” he laughs. First held in 1956, the Ivor Novello Awards honor the art of songwriting and composers for both U.K. and international artists. The roll call for acts to have been honored is full of music’s elite ( The Beatles , Stevie Wonder , Brian Wilson , David Bowie , to name a few) and the intimate ceremony frequently brings together superstars to honor each other’s work. In 2024, Paul McCartney toasted the work of Bruce Springsteen when he was honored with an Academy Fellowship.…