Rick Rubin Under Fire
According to the New York Times: Less than two years after Sony Music Entertainment made a daring move by hiring the legendary music producer Rick Rubin to run its Columbia Records label, the company is learning a lesson from baseball: sometimes the best players don’t make the best managers.
Sony hired Mr. Rubin — a founder of Def Jam Records who has produced hits for Run-DMC, the Beastie Boys, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Johnny Cash — hoping the appointment would lead to a new business model for the struggling record business.
In recent weeks, as several executives at Columbia who were closely aligned with Mr. Rubin have left the label, questions have surfaced about Mr. Rubin’s continued executive role there, and about how much influence he has in the company’s business operations. Continue Reading
February 8th, 2009 at 2:29 am
rick rubin is nothing but legendary but dangermouse had the midas touch in 2008
February 8th, 2009 at 6:24 am
I still wonder why Columbia ever thought Rubin would actually do any work at this point in his career that did not involve a high profile, high paying artist and a mixing console. I could see him laughing that they actually still hired him. I wonder if it’s all an elaborate joke. One more push and the industry…
February 8th, 2009 at 1:21 pm
To use another baseball analogy, he was the power hitting free agency signing that had his best years behind him. Sure, he was legendary in the 80’s/early 90’s, but that was long ago. His influence and success these days is sparse. I wouldn’t count producing ‘Death Magnetic’ any great accomplishment, those records would have sold regardless of who was behind the controls.