Jheryl Busby (May 5, 1949 – November 4, 2008) was an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, p ...
recording company executive who was the former President and Chief Executive Officer of
Motown Records
Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...
.
Biography
Busby grew up in
South Central Los Angeles
South Los Angeles, also known as South Central Los Angeles or simply South Central, is a region in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, lying mostly within the city limits of Los Angeles, south of Downtown Los Angeles, downtown.
It is de ...
, where he went to
John C. Fremont High School
John C. Fremont High School is a Title 1 co-educational public high school located in South Los Angeles, California, United States.
Fremont serves several Los Angeles neighborhoods and the unincorporated community of Florence-Graham; some sec ...
. He attended
Long Beach State College
California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...
,
dropping out
Dropping out refers to leaving high school, college, university or another group for practical reasons, necessities, inability, apathy, or disillusionment with the system from which the individual in question leaves.
Canada
In Canada, most in ...
after two years.
Busby began his business career at
Mattel Toys, starting as an inventory clerk and ultimately being promoted to new-toy coordinator.
["Record Exec Jheryl Busby Has Passed Away"]
, Urbannetwork.com, November 4, 2008. Accessed November 4, 2008.
His first exposure to the recording industry was at
Stax Records
Stax Records is an American record company, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the label changed its name to Stax Records in September 1961. It also shared its operations with sister label Volt Records.
...
, where he was named head of West Coast promotion and marketing, After leaving Stax, he did promotional work for
A&M Records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and functions as a branch of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the label initially operated independent ...
and
Casablanca Records
Casablanca Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Republic Records. Under its founder Neil Bogart, Casablanca was most successful during the disco era of the mid to late 1970s. The label focuses ...
.
[Mitchell, Gail]
"Former Motown president/CEO Jheryl Busby has died. The veteran label executive passed away today (Nov. 4). Details about the cause of his death are forthcoming. The Los Angeles native was 59 years old."
, ''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 ...
'', November 4, 2008. Accessed November 4, 2008.
At
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc. established in 1972, though MCA had released recordings under that name in the UK from the 1960s. The label achieved success in the 1970s through the 1980s, often by acquiring other ...
, where he was hired in 1984, Busby was vice-president of the black music division building the unit largely from scratch, promoting established acts such as
Patti LaBelle
Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American Rhythm and blues, R&B singer and actress. She has been referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godmother of Soul". LaBelle began ...
and helping to discover and market acts including family band
The Jets,
Jody Watley
Jody Vanessa Watley (born January 30, 1959) is an American singer, songwriter and producer whose music crosses genres including pop, R&B, jazz, dance and electronic soul.Paoletta, Michael (February 22, 2003) "Watley Relaxes In The Setting of The ...
,
Bobby Brown
Robert Barisford Brown Sr. (born February 5, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and dancer. Alongside frequent collaborator Teddy Riley, he is recognized as a pioneer of new jack swing: a fusion of hip-hop and Contemporary R&B, R ...
and
New Edition
New Edition is an American Contemporary R&B, R&B/Pop music, pop group from the Roxbury, Boston, Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1978 by singer/rapper Bobby Brown. Their name is taken to mean a new edition of the Jackson ...
. By the mid-'80s, the division's sales reached $50 million and was top-ranked for years in black album sales.
[ By 1988, Busby was president of the black music division at MCA, and his business unit led the industry in black album sales.][
When Boston Ventures and ]Music Corporation of America
Music Corporation of America, formerly known as Universal Music Group Nashville, is Universal Music Group's country music subsidiary. It was officially opened in 1945 as MCA Nashville and Mercury Nashville which opened on New Year's Day 1950 a ...
bought Motown Records
Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...
from Berry Gordy
Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), also known as Berry Gordy Jr., is an American retired record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record label and i ...
in June 1988 for $61 million, Gordy stipulated that 20% of the firm be retained by African-American investors; Busby purchased an unspecified stake in the firm. Busby moved to Motown Records in 1988 as the company's President & CEO in 1988. Annual sales for Motown had dropped to $20 million (from a peak of $100 million, at Motown's height), with 60–70% of sales coming from sales of its old hits. Busby fostered the growth of younger talent, including Another Bad Creation
Another Bad Creation (sometimes called ABC for short) allmusic ((( Another Bad Creation > Overview ))) Retrieved November 7, 2007. Demetrius "Red" (b. September 23, 1979) and Marliss "Mark" (b. April 15, 1982) Pugh, as well as Adrian "G.A." (Gen ...
, Boyz II Men
Boyz II Men ( ) is an American vocal harmony group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. Formed in 1985, they have been a trio composed of baritone Nathan Morris, tenor Wanya Morris, WanyĆ” Mo ...
, Johnny Gill
Johnny Gill Jr. (born May 22, 1966) is an American singer and songwriter. He is the sixth and final member of the R&B/ pop group New Edition and was also a member of the supergroup called LSG, with Gerald Levert and Keith Sweat. Gill has rel ...
and Queen Latifah
Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970), known professionally by her stage name Queen Latifah, is an American rapper, singer, and actress. She has received various accolades, including a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe ...
. In early 1989, he was able to sign Diana Ross
Diana Ross (born Diane Ernestine Earle Ross March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Known as the "Queen of Motown Records", she was the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown#Major divisions, Motown's most suc ...
back to Motown after she left for 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 1981. Busby retained artists such as Lionel Richie
Lionel Brockman Richie Jr. (born June 20, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and television personality. He rose to fame in the 1970s as a songwriter and the co-lead singer of the Motown group Commodores; writing and recor ...
, Smokey Robinson
William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. He was the founder and frontman of the pioneering Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he ...
and Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...
, and helped create hits from them and for Ross.[ When Polygram Records bought Motown for $301 million in 1993, Busby was retained as president. By 1990, the label had five songs reach number one on the R&B charts.][Hevesi, Dennis]
"Jheryl Busby, 59, Reviver of the Motown Label, Dies"
''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', November 7, 2008. Accessed November 8, 2008.
Busby was appointed head of the black music division at DreamWorks Records
DreamWorks Records (often referred in copyright notices as SKG Music, LLC) was an American record label founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Mo Ostin, his son Michael Ostin and Lenny Waronker as a subsidiary of DreamWorks Pictures. The label opera ...
in 1998. He left DreamWorks in 2001. He was named president of Def Soul Classics in 2004. Umbrella Recordings, which he created with producer Mike City
Michael Flowers, known professionally as Mike City (born December 2, 1970), is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for producing the singles " I Wish" for Carl Thomas, " Heard It All Before" for Sunshine Ande ...
, released the Carl Thomas album ''So Much Better'' in 2007 and Patti LaBelle
Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American Rhythm and blues, R&B singer and actress. She has been referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godmother of Soul". LaBelle began ...
's ''The Gospel According to Patti LaBelle
''The Gospel According to Patti LaBelle'' is the first gospel album by American singer Patti LaBelle. It was released on November 21, 2006 through music executive Jheryl Busby's indie label Umbrella Recordings and Bungalo Records.
Background
The ...
'', her first gospel album.[
Busby was a major shareholder along with ]Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...
and Magic Johnson
Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. Often regarded as the greatest point guard of all time, Johnson List of NBA players who have spent their entire career w ...
in the nation's first African-American-owned national bank, Founders National Bank, and served on the bank's board of directors.[Staff]
"Completion of Landmark Merger Creates America's First African-American-Owned National Bank"
''Business Wire
Business Wire is an American company that disseminates full-text press releases from thousands of companies and organizations worldwide to news media, financial markets, disclosure systems, investors, information web sites, databases, bloggers, ...
'', May 2, 2001. Accessed November 4, 2008.
Busby died at the age of 59 on November 4, 2008. He was found dead in the hot tub of his home in Malibu, the cause was later confirmed to be accidental drowning, it is believed preexisting medical conditions including "atheroscelerotic cardiovascular disease" and "diabetes mellitus may have contributed to the drowning.[Staff]
"Ex-Motown CEO Jheryl Busby dies at 59"
''Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City.
Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...
'', November 4, 2008. Accessed November 5, 2008.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Busby, Jheryl
1949 births
2008 deaths
California State University, Long Beach alumni
Businesspeople from Los Angeles
American music industry executives
Motown people
Burials at Inglewood Park Cemetery
Deaths by drowning in California
Accidental deaths in California
20th-century American businesspeople