Clive Davis
Encyclopedia
Clive Davis is an American record producer
and music industry executive
. He has won five Grammy Awards and is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
as a non-performer. From 1967 to 1973 he was the President of Columbia Records
. He was the founder and president of Arista Records
from 1975 through 2000 until founding J Records
. From 2002 until April 2008, Davis was the Chairman and CEO of the RCA Music Group
(which included RCA Records
, J Records
and Arista Records
), Chairman and CEO of J Records, and Chairman and CEO of BMG
North America. Currently Davis is the Chief Creative Officer of Sony Music Entertainment
. He currently plays a part in the careers of Alicia Keys
, Rod Stewart
, Jennifer Hudson
, Carlos Santana
, Kelly Clarkson
, Harry Connick, Jr.
, Leona Lewis
, Barry Manilow
, Whitney Houston
and BC Jean
.
. He received a full scholarship to New York University College of Arts and Science
, where he graduated magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa in 1953. He then received a full scholarship to Harvard Law School
, where he was a member of the Board of Student Advisers and graduated in 1956.
two years later, where partner Ralph Colin had CBS
as a client. Hired by a former colleague at the firm, Harvey Schein, Davis became assistant counsel of CBS subsidiary Columbia Records
at the age of twenty-eight and general counsel the next year.
In a company reorganization of the operations of the Columbia Records Group, Goddard Lieberson
, the president of the Group, appointed Davis Vice President and General Manager in 1966. In 1967 he was appointed President and became interested in the newest generation of folk rock
and rock and roll
. One of his earliest pop signings was the British folk-rock musician Donovan
, who enjoyed a string of successful hit singles and albums released in the USA on the Epic label.
In June 1967, at the urging of his friend and business associate Lou Adler
, Davis attended the Monterey Pop Festival
. He immediately signed Janis Joplin
with Big Brother & the Holding Company, and Columbia went on to sign Laura Nyro
, Electric Flag
, Santana
, The Chambers Brothers
, Bruce Springsteen
, Chicago
, Billy Joel
, Blood, Sweat & Tears
, Loggins & Messina and Pink Floyd
. The company, which had previously avoided rock music (its few rock acts prior to the Davis presidency included The Byrds
, Simon & Garfunkel, and Paul Revere and the Raiders), doubled its market share in three years. One of the biggest recordings released during Davis' tenure at Columbia was Lynn Anderson
's "Rose Garden
", in late 1970. It was Davis who insisted "Rose Garden
" be the country singer's next single release. The song reached number one in 16 countries around the world and remained the biggest selling album by a female country artist between 1971 and 1997.
In 1972, Davis also signed Earth, Wind & Fire
to Columbia Records. One of his most recognized accomplishments was signing the Boston
group Aerosmith
to Columbia Records in the early 70s at New York City's Max's Kansas City
, which was mentioned in the 1979 Aerosmith song "No Surprise", where Steven Tyler
sings, "Old Clive Davis said he's surely gonna make you a star, just the way you are." Starting on December 30, 1978, Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead occasionally changed the lyrics of the Dead standard Jack Straw in concert from "we used to play for silver, now we play for life," to "we used to play for acid now we play for Clive."
for allegedly using company funds to bankroll his son's bar mitzvah, Columbia Pictures
(at the time unrelated to Columbia Records) hired him to be a consultant for the company's record and music operations. After taking time out to write his memoirs, he founded the company Arista Records (named after New York City's secondary school honor society of which he was a member). At Arista Davis signed Patti Smith, The Outlaws, in addition to Whitney Houston, Eric Carmen, Exposé, Ace of Base, Air Supply, Dionne Warwick, Ray Parker and Raydio, Aretha Franklin and Alicia Keys and brought to the label Carly Simon, The Grateful Dead, The Kinks and Lou Reed. He founded Arista Nashville which became the home to Alan Jackson, Brooks & Dunn, Pam Tillis and Brad Paisley. He founded LaFace Records with L.A. Reid and Babyface and it became the home of TLC, Usher, Outkast, P!nk and Toni Braxton. He founded Bad Boy Records with Sean "Puff" Combs and it became the home of the Notorious B.I.G., Puffy Combs, Mase, 112 and Faith Evans. Davis was made aware of a young unknown singer named Whitney Houston
at a New York City nightclub. Impressed with what he heard, Davis signed the singer to Arista Records. Houston would become one of the biggest selling artists in music history under the guidance of Davis at Arista Records. Davis left Arista in 2000 and started J Records, an independent label with financial backing from Arista parent Bertelsmann Music Group. BMG would buy a majority stake in J Records in 2002, and Davis would become president and CEO of the larger RCA Music Group
.
to form Sony BMG. With the assets of CBS Records now under Sony's ownership, the joint venture would mean a return of sorts for Davis to his former employer. Davis remained with RCA Label Group until 2008, when he was named chief creative officer for Sony BMG. Barry Weiss
, head of Sony's Zomba Group of Companies, replaced Davis as RCA Label Group's chairman. Sony BMG became Sony Music Entertainment in late 2008 when BMG sold its shares to Sony. Arista Records
and J Records
which were both founded by Davis were dissolved in October 2011 through the restructuring of RCA Records
. All artists under those labels have been moved to RCA Records.
Davis was also presented with the Recording Academy's Grammy Trustees Award in 2000 and the President's Merit Award in 2009.
Davis was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. The theater at the Grammy Museum was named the Clive Davis Theater in the year 2011.
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
and music industry executive
Music executive
A music executive or record executive is person within a record label who works in senior management, making executive decisions over the label's artists...
. He has won five Grammy Awards and is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
as a non-performer. From 1967 to 1973 he was the President of Columbia Records
CBS Records
CBS Records is a record label founded by CBS Corporation in 2006 to take advantage of music from its entertainment properties owned by CBS Television Studios. The initial label roster consisted of only three artists; rock band Señor Happy and singer/songwriters Will Dailey and P.J...
. He was the founder and president of Arista Records
Arista Records
Arista was an American record label. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operated under the RCA Music Group. The label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records...
from 1975 through 2000 until founding J Records
J Records
J Records was an American record label, owned and operated by Sony Music Entertainment, and was distributed through the RCA Music Group.-Company history:...
. From 2002 until April 2008, Davis was the Chairman and CEO of the RCA Music Group
RCA Music Group
RCA Music Group was an umbrella group of labels distributed by Sony Music Entertainment that existed between March 2004 and 2009 and for a short period of time between July 2011 and October 2011 until all RCA Music Group labels were merged with RCA Records....
(which included RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
, J Records
J Records
J Records was an American record label, owned and operated by Sony Music Entertainment, and was distributed through the RCA Music Group.-Company history:...
and Arista Records
Arista Records
Arista was an American record label. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operated under the RCA Music Group. The label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records...
), Chairman and CEO of J Records, and Chairman and CEO of BMG
BMG
Bertelsmann Music Group, , was a division of Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Japan's Sony Corporation of America on October 1, 2008. It was established in 1987 to combine the music label activities of Bertelsmann...
North America. Currently Davis is the Chief Creative Officer of Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....
. He currently plays a part in the careers of Alicia Keys
Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook , better known by her stage name Alicia Keys, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She was raised by a single mother in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began playing the piano...
, Rod Stewart
Rod Stewart
Roderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter and musician, born and raised in North London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English ancestry....
, Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Kate Hudson is an American recording artist, actress and spokesperson. She came to prominence in 2004 as one of the finalists on the third season of American Idol coming in seventh place...
, Carlos Santana
Carlos Santana
Carlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
, Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Clarkson
Kelly Brianne Clarkson is an American pop rock singer-songwriter and actress. Clarkson came into prominence after becoming the winner of the inaugural season of the television series American Idol in 2002 and would later become the runner-up in the television special World Idol in 2003.In 2003,...
, Harry Connick, Jr.
Harry Connick, Jr.
Joseph Harry Fowler Connick, Jr. is an American singer, big-band leader/conductor, pianist, actor, and composer. He has sold over 25 million albums worldwide. Connick is ranked among the top 60 best-selling male artists in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America, with...
, Leona Lewis
Leona Lewis
Leona Louise Lewis is a British singer and songwriter. Lewis first came to prominence in 2006 when she won the third series of the British television series The X Factor....
, Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow is an American singer-songwriter, musician, arranger, producer, conductor, and performer, best known for such recordings as "Could It Be Magic", "Mandy", "Can't Smile Without You", and "Copacabana ."...
, Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
and BC Jean
BC Jean
Britney Jean Carlson , known better by her stage name BC Jean, is an American singer-songwriter and actress, best known for writing the song "If I Were a Boy" for R&B singer Beyoncé, which premiered on music industry website "Crazed Hits" in May 2008, several months prior to Beyoncé getting a hold...
.
Early life and Education
Davis was born in Brooklyn, New York to a Jewish family, the son of Herman and Florence Davis. Davis was raised in the middle-class neighborhood of Crown Heights, BrooklynCrown Heights, Brooklyn
Crown Heights is a neighborhood in the central portion of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The main thoroughfare through this neighborhood is Eastern Parkway, a tree-lined boulevard designed by Frederick Law Olmsted extending two miles east-west.Originally, the area was known as Crow Hill....
. He received a full scholarship to New York University College of Arts and Science
New York University College of Arts and Science
The New York University College of Arts and Science is the oldest and largest academic unit of New York University, founded in 1832. This private liberal arts college is located at Washington Square in Manhattan and the administrative offices of the college are in the Silver Center for Arts &...
, where he graduated magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa in 1953. He then received a full scholarship to Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
, where he was a member of the Board of Student Advisers and graduated in 1956.
The CBS years
Davis practiced law in a small firm in New York, then moved on to the firm of Rosenman, Colin, Kaye, Petschek, and FreundRosenman & Colin
Rosenman & Colin LLP was a New York City-based law firm that practiced from 1912 to 2002, at which point the firm merged with Chicago-based Katten Muchin Zavis to form Katten Muchin Rosenman...
two years later, where partner Ralph Colin had CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
as a client. Hired by a former colleague at the firm, Harvey Schein, Davis became assistant counsel of CBS subsidiary Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
at the age of twenty-eight and general counsel the next year.
In a company reorganization of the operations of the Columbia Records Group, Goddard Lieberson
Goddard Lieberson
Goddard Lieberson was the president of Columbia Records from 1956 to 1971, and from 1973 to 1975. He was also a composer, and studied with George Frederick McKay, at the University of Washington, Seattle....
, the president of the Group, appointed Davis Vice President and General Manager in 1966. In 1967 he was appointed President and became interested in the newest generation of folk rock
Folk rock
Folk rock is a musical genre combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
and rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
. One of his earliest pop signings was the British folk-rock musician Donovan
Donovan
Donovan Donovan Donovan (born Donovan Philips Leitch (born 10 May 1946) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music...
, who enjoyed a string of successful hit singles and albums released in the USA on the Epic label.
In June 1967, at the urging of his friend and business associate Lou Adler
Lou Adler
Lou Adler is an American record producer, manager, and director.-Life and career:Adler was born in Chicago, Illinois in December 1933, and raised in East Los Angeles. In 1964, Adler founded and co-owned Dunhill Records. He was President of the label as well as the chief record producer from 1964...
, Davis attended the Monterey Pop Festival
Monterey Pop Festival
The Monterey International Pop Music Festival was a three-day concert event held June 16 to June 18, 1967 at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey, California...
. He immediately signed Janis Joplin
Janis Joplin
Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer, songwriter, painter, dancer and music arranger. She rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company and later as a solo artist with her backing groups, The Kozmic Blues Band and The Full Tilt Boogie Band...
with Big Brother & the Holding Company, and Columbia went on to sign Laura Nyro
Laura Nyro
Laura Nyro was an American songwriter, singer, and pianist. She achieved considerable critical acclaim with her own recordings, particularly the albums Eli and the Thirteenth Confession and New York Tendaberry, and had commercial success with artists such as Barbra Streisand and The 5th...
, Electric Flag
Electric Flag
The Electric Flag was a blues rock soul group, led by guitarist Mike Bloomfield, keyboardist Barry Goldberg and drummer Buddy Miles, and featuring other well-known musicians such as vocalist Nick Gravenites and bassist Harvey Brooks. Bloomfield formed the Electric Flag in 1967, following his stint...
, Santana
Carlos Santana
Carlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
, The Chambers Brothers
The Chambers Brothers
The Chambers Brothers is a soul-music group, best known for its 1968 hit record, the 11-minute long song "Time Has Come Today". The group was part of the wave of new music that integrated American blues and gospel traditions with modern psychedelic and rock elements, spawning a heady mix...
, Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
, Chicago
Chicago (band)
Chicago is an American rock band formed in 1967 in Chicago, Illinois. The self-described "rock and roll band with horns" began as a politically charged, sometimes experimental, rock band and later moved to a predominantly softer sound, becoming famous for producing a number of hit ballads. They had...
, Billy Joel
Billy Joel
William Martin "Billy" Joel is an American musician and pianist, singer-songwriter, and classical composer. Since releasing his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973, Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, according to...
, Blood, Sweat & Tears
Blood, Sweat & Tears
Blood, Sweat & Tears is an American music group, originally formed in 1967 in New York City. Since its beginnings in 1967, the band has gone through numerous iterations with varying personnel and has encompassed a multitude of musical styles...
, Loggins & Messina and Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
. The company, which had previously avoided rock music (its few rock acts prior to the Davis presidency included The Byrds
The Byrds
The Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973...
, Simon & Garfunkel, and Paul Revere and the Raiders), doubled its market share in three years. One of the biggest recordings released during Davis' tenure at Columbia was Lynn Anderson
Lynn Anderson
Lynn Rene Anderson is an American country music singer and equestrian known for a string of hits throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, most notably her Grammy Award-winning, worldwide mega-hit, " Rose Garden." Helped by her regular exposure on national television, Anderson was one of the most...
's "Rose Garden
Rose Garden (Lynn Anderson album)
Rose Garden was an album released in 1971 by country singer Lynn Anderson. The album was the same name as the single she released in late 1970. The song went on to top the country charts, where it stayed at the #1 position for five weeks, and reached #3 on the pop charts in 1971. Anderson received...
", in late 1970. It was Davis who insisted "Rose Garden
Rose Garden (Lynn Anderson album)
Rose Garden was an album released in 1971 by country singer Lynn Anderson. The album was the same name as the single she released in late 1970. The song went on to top the country charts, where it stayed at the #1 position for five weeks, and reached #3 on the pop charts in 1971. Anderson received...
" be the country singer's next single release. The song reached number one in 16 countries around the world and remained the biggest selling album by a female country artist between 1971 and 1997.
In 1972, Davis also signed Earth, Wind & Fire
Earth, Wind & Fire
Earth, Wind & Fire is an American soul and R&B band formed in Chicago, Illinois, in 1969 by Verdine and Maurice White. Also known as EWF, the band has won six Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards. They have been inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Vocal Group Hall of...
to Columbia Records. One of his most recognized accomplishments was signing the Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
group Aerosmith
Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
to Columbia Records in the early 70s at New York City's Max's Kansas City
Max's Kansas City
Max's Kansas City was a nightclub and restaurant at 213 Park Avenue South, in New York City, which was a gathering spot for musicians, poets, artists and politicians in the 1960s and 1970s.-Origin of name:...
, which was mentioned in the 1979 Aerosmith song "No Surprise", where Steven Tyler
Steven Tyler
Steven Tyler is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, best known as the frontman and lead singer of the Boston-based rock band Aerosmith, in which he also plays the harmonica, and occasional piano and percussion. He is known as the "Demon of Screamin'", due to his high screams...
sings, "Old Clive Davis said he's surely gonna make you a star, just the way you are." Starting on December 30, 1978, Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead occasionally changed the lyrics of the Dead standard Jack Straw in concert from "we used to play for silver, now we play for life," to "we used to play for acid now we play for Clive."
The Arista years
After Davis was fired from CBS RecordsCBS Records
CBS Records is a record label founded by CBS Corporation in 2006 to take advantage of music from its entertainment properties owned by CBS Television Studios. The initial label roster consisted of only three artists; rock band Señor Happy and singer/songwriters Will Dailey and P.J...
for allegedly using company funds to bankroll his son's bar mitzvah, Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
(at the time unrelated to Columbia Records) hired him to be a consultant for the company's record and music operations. After taking time out to write his memoirs, he founded the company Arista Records (named after New York City's secondary school honor society of which he was a member). At Arista Davis signed Patti Smith, The Outlaws, in addition to Whitney Houston, Eric Carmen, Exposé, Ace of Base, Air Supply, Dionne Warwick, Ray Parker and Raydio, Aretha Franklin and Alicia Keys and brought to the label Carly Simon, The Grateful Dead, The Kinks and Lou Reed. He founded Arista Nashville which became the home to Alan Jackson, Brooks & Dunn, Pam Tillis and Brad Paisley. He founded LaFace Records with L.A. Reid and Babyface and it became the home of TLC, Usher, Outkast, P!nk and Toni Braxton. He founded Bad Boy Records with Sean "Puff" Combs and it became the home of the Notorious B.I.G., Puffy Combs, Mase, 112 and Faith Evans. Davis was made aware of a young unknown singer named Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
at a New York City nightclub. Impressed with what he heard, Davis signed the singer to Arista Records. Houston would become one of the biggest selling artists in music history under the guidance of Davis at Arista Records. Davis left Arista in 2000 and started J Records, an independent label with financial backing from Arista parent Bertelsmann Music Group. BMG would buy a majority stake in J Records in 2002, and Davis would become president and CEO of the larger RCA Music Group
RCA Music Group
RCA Music Group was an umbrella group of labels distributed by Sony Music Entertainment that existed between March 2004 and 2009 and for a short period of time between July 2011 and October 2011 until all RCA Music Group labels were merged with RCA Records....
.
Sony Music Entertainment
In 2004, BMG merged with Sony Music EntertainmentSony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....
to form Sony BMG. With the assets of CBS Records now under Sony's ownership, the joint venture would mean a return of sorts for Davis to his former employer. Davis remained with RCA Label Group until 2008, when he was named chief creative officer for Sony BMG. Barry Weiss
Barry Weiss
Barry Weiss is an American music executive. He is the current Chairman & CEO of Island Def Jam Motown Music Group and Universal Republic. He served as chairman and CEO of RCA/Jive Label Group from 2008 to 2011 and was also the CEO of its constituent Jive Records from 1991 to 2011...
, head of Sony's Zomba Group of Companies, replaced Davis as RCA Label Group's chairman. Sony BMG became Sony Music Entertainment in late 2008 when BMG sold its shares to Sony. Arista Records
Arista Records
Arista was an American record label. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operated under the RCA Music Group. The label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records...
and J Records
J Records
J Records was an American record label, owned and operated by Sony Music Entertainment, and was distributed through the RCA Music Group.-Company history:...
which were both founded by Davis were dissolved in October 2011 through the restructuring of RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
. All artists under those labels have been moved to RCA Records.
Grammy Awards
Clive Davis has won four Grammy Awards as a Producer:- 2009: Best R&B AlbumGrammy Award for Best R&B AlbumThe Grammy Award for Best R&B Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works on albums in the R&B music genre...
– Jennifer HudsonJennifer Hudson (album)Upon its release, Jennifer Hudson received mixed reviews from music critics. Sarah Rodman of The Boston Globe said that, "Despite its flaws, Hudson's debut comes on much like her Dreamgirls character, with admirable self-assurance and real-girl sensuality." Chris Willman of Entertainment Weekly...
, Jennifer HudsonJennifer HudsonJennifer Kate Hudson is an American recording artist, actress and spokesperson. She came to prominence in 2004 as one of the finalists on the third season of American Idol coming in seventh place... - 2006Grammy Awards of 2006The 48th Annual Grammy Awards took place on February 8, 2006 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Irish rock band U2 were the big winners, winning five awards including Album of the Year. Mariah Carey, John Legend, and Kanye West each were nominated for eight awards and won three,...
: Best Pop Vocal AlbumGrammy Award for Best Pop Vocal AlbumThe Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality pop music albums...
– Breakaway, Kelly ClarksonKelly ClarksonKelly Brianne Clarkson is an American pop rock singer-songwriter and actress. Clarkson came into prominence after becoming the winner of the inaugural season of the television series American Idol in 2002 and would later become the runner-up in the television special World Idol in 2003.In 2003,... - 2000Grammy Awards of 2000The 42nd Grammy Awards were held on February 23, 2000. During the show, Santana won 8 Grammys, tying Michael Jackson's record for most awards won in a single night. Santana's album Supernatural was awarded a total of nine awards....
: Album of the YearGrammy Award for Album of the YearThe Grammy Award for Album of the Year is the most prestigious award category at the Grammys. It has been awarded since 1959 and though it was originally presented to the artist alone, the award is now presented to the artist, the producer, the engineer and/or mixer and the mastering engineer...
– Supernatural, SantanaSantana (band)Santana is a rock band based around guitarist Carlos Santana and founded in the late 1960s. It first came to public attention after their performing the song "Soul Sacrifice" at the Woodstock Festival in 1969, when their Latin rock provided a contrast to other acts on the bill... - 2000: Best Rock AlbumGrammy Award for Best Rock AlbumThe Grammy Award for Best Rock Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality albums in the rock music genre...
– Supernatural, Santana
Davis was also presented with the Recording Academy's Grammy Trustees Award in 2000 and the President's Merit Award in 2009.
Davis was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. The theater at the Grammy Museum was named the Clive Davis Theater in the year 2011.
Further reading
- Davis, Clive (1975). Clive: Inside the Record Business. William Morrow & Company, Inc.