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Mark Pitts is an American record executive and
talent manager A talent manager (also known as an artist manager, band manager, or music manager) is an individual who guides the professional career of Entertainer, artists within the entertainment industry. The responsibility of a talent manager is to ove ...
who has served as President of
RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic R ...
since 2021. He also co-founded the record label ByStorm Entertainment with Wayne Barrow in 1998, through which he has signed artists including J. Cole, Miguel, Ro James, Andrea Martin, B. Smyth, Mali Music and Luke Christopher, among others. He began his career as a staffer for
Puff Daddy Sean John Combs (born November 4, 1969), better known by his stage name Diddy, and formerly Puff Daddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, record producer, and record executive. Born in Harlem and raised in Mount Vernon, Combs worked as a ...
's
Bad Boy Records Bad Boy Entertainment, doing business as Bad Boy Records, is an American independent record label. The label was founded in 1993 by rapper and record producer Sean Combs. During the mid-1990s, the label signed hip-hop and contemporary R&B, R&B a ...
, where he co-managed the Notorious B.I.G and Faith Evans; he executive produced the former's first two albums: ''
Ready to Die ''Ready to Die'' is the debut studio album by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G., released on September 13, 1994, by Bad Boy Records and distributed by Arista Records. The album features productions by Bad Boy founder Sean Combs, Sean "Puffy ...
'' (1994) and '' Life After Death'' (1997) Pitts executive produced the
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
film, '' Biggie: I Got A Story To Tell'', co-produced '' Notorious'' (2009), and ''Blue'' (2009). Pitts has worked with artists who have amassed a total of 53 Grammy Awards nominations, and 10 wins.


Early life and career

Pitts was born in
Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
, on July 4, 1970. He was first introduced to music by his grandmother, a classically trained piano teacher who began giving Pitts lessons at the age of four. Pitts spent six years of his childhood at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, and later continued learning music at the High School of Music and Performing Arts, where he also studied art. His professional music career started in the early 1990s, prior to entering
Howard University Howard University is a private, historically black, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and accredited by the Mid ...
, when he formed a rap group called Three Left. He intended to pitch the rap group to his friend
Sean Combs Sean John Combs (born November 4, 1969), better known by his stage name Diddy, and formerly Puff Daddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, record producer, and record executive. Born in Harlem and raised in Mount Vernon, New York, Mount Ve ...
who was working at
Uptown Records Uptown Records is an American record label, based in New York City, founded in 1986 by old school rapper ‘Dr Jekyll’ - Andre Harrell. From the late 1980s into the early 1990s, it was a leader in R&B and hip-hop. Beginnings and success In ...
at the time. After a meeting with Combs, Pitts decided that he wanted to work behind the scenes. In 1993, he started working with Combs at his entertainment company Bad Boy Entertainment, where Pitts managed the Notorious B.I.G., Faith Evans, and Changing Faces. Pitts would also arrange for his cousin and business partner Wayne Barrow to meet with B.I.G. as well. Barrow would join Pitts in managing B.I.G. Pitts opened Mark Pitts Management (now ByStorm), took on additional artists such as
Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air (S ...
, and a few years later negotiated an end to the public feud between Nas and
Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...
. He told ''
Essence Essence () has various meanings and uses for different thinkers and in different contexts. It is used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property (philosophy), property or set of properties or attributes that make an entity the ...
'' magazine: "I have to say it’s one of my most proudest moments. It felt good and I always believe that having the two of them sit down and (reconcile) was something that BIG would have wanted me to do and in some way I felt like if BIG ever had the chance that’s what he would have done with Tupac. At the time, when me and Nas first started working together, I said, 'We have to do something different. You're supposed to be a movement, so you need to do a song with Jay and get past all the bulls—. So I had a conversation with Jay and he was open. I couldn’t believe it was going down, and because they both felt comfortable and know my energy, and when we all got together that day, I couldn’t believe it was happening and we sat down and worked things out like men. That was definitely BIG guiding me." In 1995, Pitts moved over to an executive position at
Universal Records Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, ...
(née Rising Tide) where he signed Philly-based rapper Tracey Lee, and five years later became Senior Vice President of A&R for
Arista Records Arista Records ( ) is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously a division of Bertelsmann Music G ...
, where he worked with Usher on several albums including his album '' Confessions'' that was certified diamond (for sales of 10 million), as well as TLC, Anthony Hamilton, and CeeLo Green. He signed
Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. A Pop music, pop and hip-hop-influenced contemporary R&B, R&B musician who works in a variety of genres, he has been called the "Honorific nic ...
and Miguel while at Jive Records. In 2006, Pitts was made a father for the second time, after the birth of his daughter, Jaden. In 2008, Pitts was diagnosed with
Bell's Palsy Bell's palsy is a type of facial paralysis that results in a temporary inability to control the facial muscles on the affected side of the face. In most cases, the weakness is temporary and significantly improves over weeks. Symptoms can vary f ...
, which paralyzed the left side of his face. Through therapy and an adapted physical health regime, he recovered his facial mobility and full health after six months.


2011 - 2019

In 2011, Pitts was named President of Urban Music at
RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic R ...
. In his joint venture between his ByStorm Entertainment and RCA, his roster includes
Kardinal Offishall Jason Drew Harrow (born May 11, 1976), better known by his stage name Kardinal Offishall ( ), is a Canadian rapper and record producer. Often credited as Canada's "hip-hop ambassador", he has been regarded as one of the country's most prominent ...
, J. Cole, Jawan Harris, Miguel, Ro James & Angel. Ro James' gold-certified single " Permission" was nominated for his first-ever Grammy Award in the "Best R&B Performance" category from his debut album ''Eldorado'', and the single held #1 spot on the Billboard Urban Adult Contemporary Songs chart for ten consecutive weeks. As president of Urban Music at
RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic R ...
, Pitts executive produced the first four of J.Cole's and all of Miguel's albums. In 2013, Pitts gained major success with Miguel’s Kaleidoscope Dream which grabbed five Grammy Award nominations. He had also shepherded Brown's ''
Fortune Fortune may refer to: General * Fortuna or Fortune, the Roman goddess of luck * Luck * Wealth * Fate * Fortune, a prediction made in fortune-telling * Fortune, in a fortune cookie Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Fortune'' (19 ...
'', which topped the charts that year. As president of RCA Records, Urban Music, Pitts continued to oversee everything on Chris Brown, who he originally signed at Jive Records and moved to the RCA roster with the Jive-RCA merger in 2011. Pitts was instrumental in the decision to release 45 songs on the artist’s last album, '' Heartbreak on a Full Moon'', which came out November 3, 2017. Pitts executive produced the second Miguel album, ''Kaleidoscope Dream,'' which featured the single, " Adorn." That track remained at No. 1 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs airplay chart for 23 weeks, making history and won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Song in 2013. Miguel's '' War & Leisure'' was called "the album of 2017," by ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
'' magazine. In the same article, the artist called Pitts his mentor. The ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'' Top 10 album features the platinum-selling single "Sky Walker"(featuring Travis Scott). Miguel collaborated on Kygo’s single "Remind Me to Forget" on the latter’s RCA album, ''Kids in Love''. and the track received over 200,000,000-plus
Spotify Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...
streams and was nominated for an iHeartRadio Music Award. Other achievements in Pitts’ urban division during the 2017-18 period include platinum-selling artists
SZA Solána Imani Rowe (born November 8, 1989), known professionally as SZA ( ), is an American singer-songwriter. Known for her diaristic lyrics and genre explorations, she has been credited as a prominent figure in influencing contemporary R& ...
and Khalid,
G-Eazy Gerald Earl Gillum (born May 24, 1989), better known by his stage name G-Eazy, is an American rapper. Based in Oakland, California, he began his career in 2006 and released two independent studio albums before signing with RCA Records to releas ...
, among many others, and marked the 20th anniversary of ByStorm Entertainment. The work of SZA, Khalid and
GoldLink D'Anthony William Carlos (born May 17, 1993), better known by his stage name GoldLink, is an American rapper and singer from Washington, D.C. He gained recognition following the release of his debut mixtape ''The God Complex'' (2014), which was ...
earned first-time Grammy nominations that year and SZA's '' Ctrl'' sold two million copies. Pitts continued to guide the career of Chris Brown, and was the A&R of the artist's 2019 single, "Go Crazy" with
Young Thug Jeffery Lamar Williams II (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper. Known for his eccentric vocal style and fashion, he is considered an influential figure in modern hip hop music, hip hop and trap music ...
, as well as Brown's million-selling hit with
Drake Drake may refer to: Animals and creatures * A male duck * Drake (mythology), a term related to and often synonymous with dragon People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family ...
, "No Guidance." That track was nominated for a Grammy, and was one of the biggest-selling songs of 2019, breaking the record for the longest No. 1 on ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
s R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart for 27 weeks, an accolade that bested Pitts’ and ByStorm's own artist Miguel and his song, "Adorn".


2020 - present

As the decade began, Pitts was instrumental in signing Atlanta rapper Young Nudy to RCA, as well as
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
drill A drill is a tool used for making round holes or driving fasteners. It is fitted with a drill bit for making holes, or a screwdriver bit for securing fasteners. Historically, they were powered by hand, and later mains power, but cordless b ...
founders Winner's Circle and Grammy-nominated Deante Hitchcock. In 2020, Usher made history with two No.1 singles on the ''Billboard''
Hot AC Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, ...
chart, " Bad Habits" in November preceded by " Don’t Waste My Time", featuring
Ella Mai Ella Mai Howell (born 3 November 1994) is an English R&B singer and songwriter. Her musical career began at London's British and Irish Modern Music Institute in 2014, during which time she auditioned as part of a trio on the 11th season of ...
the previous June. In January 2021, Pitts was named President of RCA Records. In March 2021, Chris Brown reached an historic milestone when his single, " Go Crazy" with Young Thug logged the 24th consecutive week at No. 1 on the R&B/Hip Hop Airplay chart. He now has had two songs with the most weeks at No. 1 in the chart’s 28-year history, with "Go Crazy" and "No Guidance".


Recognition and honors

Based on worldwide chart data in 2005, he was named "World's No.8 A&R of 2005" by the music industry A&R site
HitQuarters HitQuarters was an international music industry publication and contact database founded in 1999. It was noted for its in-depth interviews with industry figures, as well as its A&R and manager contact directory, free artist promo pages and song ...
for that year after success in breaking new artists
Ciara Ciara Princess Wilson ( ; Harris; born October 25, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and actress. She was discovered by record producer Jazze Pha in the early 2000s, and rose to prominence with her debut studio album, ''Goodies ...
and Chris Brown. Pitts was featured in '' Crain's'' magazine's "40 Under 40" in 2015. On June 11, 2018, Pitts received a proclamation as an
African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
power influencer from New York City Council’s Black, Latino and Asian Caucus (BLAC) overseen by the city’s mayor
Bill de Blasio Bill de Blasio (; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961; later Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm) is an American politician who was the List of mayors of New York City, 109th mayor of New York City, mayor of New York City from 2014 to 2021. A member of t ...
. '' Men’s Health'' magazine ran an editorial spread on Pitts in its January 2019 issue . "My diagnosis of Bell’s Palsy changed everything, and after, I began a training regime of five times a week. I’m very proud to be recognized by ''Men’s Health''. This achievement is greater than a Grammy Award because my health is more important. I’m blessed to feel good now," he said.


Selected discography


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pitts, Mark Living people Record producers from New York (state) Songwriters from New York (state) 1970 births American music industry executives A&R people