Jody Gerson

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Jody Gerson
Born1961
Philadelphia
NationalityAmerican
EducationBachelor of Arts Northwestern University, The Baldwin School
Occupation(s)Chairman and Chief executive officer of Universal Music Publishing Group, American music executive
Children3

Jody Gerson (born 1961 in Philadelphia)[1] is the Chairman and CEO of Universal Music Publishing Group.[2] Upon assuming the role on January 1, 2015, Gerson became the first female CEO of a major music publisher[3] and first chairwoman of a global music company.[4] Gerson also serves on the Executive Management Board for Universal Music Group.[5]

Career[edit]

Gerson was raised in a Jewish family[6][7] in the Philadelphia area, where her father owned several nightclubs including the Latin Casino[8] whose performers included artists like Frank Sinatra and Diana Ross.[9] She began her career in music publishing at Chappell Music shortly after graduating from Northwestern University,[10] where she started out making tape copies.[9] After six years at Chappell, she moved to EMI Music Publishing to run the company's east coast office[2] before shifting to head up the company's west coast publishing division in 1991. In January 2008, Gerson left EMI to become US Co-President of Sony/ATV Music Publishing.[10]

In 2015, Gerson joined Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) as Chairman and CEO. Under her leadership,[11] UMPG's annual revenue has more than doubled into 1.8 billion dollars in business.[12]

Gerson has led the signings and extensions of artists and songwriters including the Bee Gees,[13][14] Elton John,[15][14] Carly Simon,[16] Bruce Springsteen,[17] Prince,[18] Taylor Swift,[19] Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Steve Lacy, Bad Bunny, The Weeknd,[12] Billie Eilish,[20] Rosalía,[21] Alicia Keys,[22] Coldplay,[14] Justin Bieber,[14] Jack White,[23] SZA,[14] Quavo,[8] Ariana Grande, H.E.R.,[14] Harry Styles, Jeff Bhasker, Maren Morris,[24] Tierra Whack,[8] Halsey, Demi Lovato, Shawn Mendes, Tobias Jesso Jr., Travis Scott, Joe Jonas, Nick Jonas, Maroon 5, R.E.M., Pearl Jam, Post Malone, and more.[9]

Gerson also led UMPG's acquisitions of the catalogs of Sting, Neil Diamond, Frank Zappa and others.[12] In 2016, she negotiated a deal for UMPG to be the exclusive worldwide publishing administrator for Prince's entire song catalog.[18]

In 2020, Gerson led UMPG's purchase of Bob Dylan's entire songwriting catalog, considered to be the biggest acquisition ever of a single act's publishing rights.[25]

Previous to UMPG,[26] Gerson has signed many successful songwriters throughout her career in music publishing, including Lady Gaga, Norah Jones, Odd Future, Jermaine Dupri, and a then 15-year-old Alicia Keys. Gerson has also played an instrumental role in the careers of Enrique Iglesias, Pharrell Williams, Mac Miller, Pitbull, RedOne, and Dallas Austin, among others.[2]

In addition to her work in music, Gerson produced the movies Drumline and ATL. Drumline is currently being adapted for Broadway. She is also executive producer of VH1's Drumline 2.[2] Gerson executive produced the Emmy-nominated documentary The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, as well as HBO's Music Box series. She is a board member of the National Music Publishers Association.[27]

Charitable work[edit]

Gerson co-founded the global nonprofit She Is The Music and serves on boards of directors of the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and The National Music Publishers' Association, among others.[12]

Recognition[edit]

On December 3, 2015, Gerson was named 'Executive of the Year' by Billboard Magazine in its Women in Music 2015 issue.[9] In 2016 she was named "Inspiring Woman of the Year" by the March of Dimes, and named to the Variety Power of Women L.A. list.[28][29] She has appeared on the Billboard Power 100 every year from 2016 to 2024.[30][31][32] [33] In 2020, Gerson was named by Billboard as "Executive of the Year", becoming the first music publisher and first woman to receive this honor.[34] Gerson received the Abe Olman Publisher Award at the 51st annual Songwriters Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Dinner.[35]

In May 2023, Gerson received the ICMP Ralph Peer II Award for Outstanding Contribution to Global Music Publishing.[36] Gerson has appeared on the Variety 500,[37] and Rolling Stone's Future 25.[38]

Personal life[edit]

Gerson is divorced from Seth Swirsky and has three children: Julian (1994), Luke (2002), and Daisy (2004).[9]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Laura M. Holson (January 27, 2002). "Bolstering a Career From the Beginning". The New York Times.
  2. ^ a b c d "Jody Gerson Named Head of Universal Music Publishing Group". Billboard. 2014-08-01. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
  3. ^ "Jody Gerson, the first woman to run a major music publishing company, is going into the Philadelphia Music Walk of Fame". Inquirer. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  4. ^ "UMPG's Jody Gerson to Receive Songwriters Hall of Fame Abe Olman Publisher Award". Billboard. 2020-03-11. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  5. ^ "Jody Gerson, Chairman and CEO, Universal Music Publishing". Universal Music. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  6. ^ Gensler, Andy and Halperin, Shirley "Houses of the Holy: Where the Music Biz Celebrates the Jewish High Holidays" Billboard Magazine. September 23, 2014
  7. ^ Hollywood Reporter: "Hollywood's Battles for the Best Bar Mitzvah: $5M Budgets, Justin Bieber and Camels" by Carson Griffith November 11, 2016 |
  8. ^ a b c Amorosi, A. D. (2019-10-23). "Universal Music Publishing Group's Jody Gerson Honored by Hometown of Philadelphia". Variety. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  9. ^ a b c d e Halperin, Shirley "Women in Music 2015: Jody Gerson Named Executive of the Year" Billboard Magazine. December 3, 2015
  10. ^ a b "NYU Gallatin > Events Calendar > Dean's Roundtable with Jody Gerson > Jody Gerson's Bio". Archived from the original on 2015-01-30. Retrieved 2015-01-30.
  11. ^ "Jody Gerson-led Universal Music Publishing Group is now officially a billion-dollar business". Music Business Worldwide. 2019-02-14. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  12. ^ a b c d "Jody Gerson to Receive 2023 Ralph Peer II Award From International Music Publishers". Billboard. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  13. ^ "Bee Gees musical on the way thanks to deal with Universal Music Group". Music Business Worldwide. 2017-11-08. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  14. ^ a b c d e f "Jody Gerson, Billboard's Power Executive of the Year". Billboard. 2020-01-23. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  15. ^ "Elton John signs with Universal 'for the rest of his career'". Reuters. 2018-09-21. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  16. ^ "Carly Simon Signs Global Administration Deal With Universal Music Publishing Group". Billboard. 2018-02-08. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  17. ^ Halperin, Shirley (2017-07-31). "Bruce Springsteen Signs With Universal Music Publishing". Variety. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  18. ^ a b "Prince's Estate Signs With Universal Music Publishing". Billboard. 2016-11-02. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  19. ^ "Taylor Swift Signs With UMPG". Billboard. 2020-02-06. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  20. ^ "Billie Eilish Lands Co-Publishing Deal With Universal Music Publishing Group". Billboard. 2018-11-09. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  21. ^ "The world's next pop superstar? Rosalía signs global deal with Universal Music Publishing Group". Music Business Worldwide. 2019-06-04. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  22. ^ "Alicia Keys Moves Catalog to Universal Music Publishing Group". Billboard. 2019-09-05. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  23. ^ Trakin, Roy (2017-04-27). "Jack White Signs Worldwide Agreement With Universal Music Publishing Group". Variety. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  24. ^ "Maren Morris Inks Worldwide Deal With Universal Music Publishing Group". Billboard. 2019-08-01. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  25. ^ "Bob Dylan Sells His Songwriting Catalog in Blockbuster Deal". The New York Times. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  26. ^ "Jody Gerson Jumps From Sony/ATV to Universal, Becomes Highest Ranking Woman in Publishing". The Hollywood Reporter. August 2014. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  27. ^ "NMPA". NMPA. 2014-05-13. Archived from the original on 2015-02-06. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
  28. ^ "Power of Women L.A. Impact Report". October 11, 2016.
  29. ^ "March of Dimes Raises $1.4 Million at 6th Annual Celebration of Babies®: A Hollywood Luncheon". www.marchofdimes.org.
  30. ^ DiGiacomo, Frank (2023-02-02). "Billboard's 2023 Power 100: Executives List Revealed". Billboard. Retrieved 2023-05-25.
  31. ^ Billboard Staff (2022-01-26). "The 2022 Billboard Power List Revealed". Billboard. Retrieved 2022-01-26.
  32. ^ "No. 8: Jody Gerson | Power 100". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  33. ^ Karp, Hannah (2024-01-31). "Billboard 2024 Power 100 List Revealed". Billboard. Retrieved 2024-02-01.
  34. ^ "Jody Gerson of Universal Music Publishing Group: Executive of the Year". Billboard. Retrieved 2020-02-05.
  35. ^ "UMPG's Jody Gerson to Receive Songwriters Hall of Fame Abe Olman Publisher Award". Billboard. 2020-03-11. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
  36. ^ "JODY GERSON TO RECEIVE ICMP RALPH PEER II AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION TO GLOBAL MUSIC PUBLISHING". Music Business Worldwide. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  37. ^ "Jody Gerson - Variety500". Variety. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  38. ^ "Future 25: Jody Gerson, CEO of Universal Music Publishing Group". Retrieved 2023-09-11.
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