He rose from a midlevel position at Columbia Records to become one of music’s most powerful executives, shepherding stars like Barry Manilow and Whitney Houston.
Clive Davis, the music executive who rose from a midlevel legal position at Columbia Records to become one of the industry’s most powerful and longest-reigning dons, guiding the careers of Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin, Barry Manilow and dozens of other stars, died on Monday at his home in Manhattan. He was 94.
His family confirmed the death. Mr. Davis had recently been hospitalized with respiratory problems.
One of the few nonperformers in music to become a household name, Mr. Davis maintained a visible role as a starmaker for half a century. In the late 1960s he propelled a reluctant Columbia headlong into the rock era with acts like Janis Joplin and Blood, Sweat & Tears. He also encouraged the jazz trumpeter Miles Davis to connect with the Woodstock generation.
Later, at the Arista and J labels, he championed R&B-leaning pop divas like Ms. Houston, Alicia Keys and Jennifer Hudson; seized on the commercial potential for hip-hop; and orchestrated major career revivals for Carlos Santana and Rod Stewart, with albums selling in the millions.
STORY CREDIT: New York Times