Michelle Jubelirer
Michelle Jubelirer accepts the Executive of the Year award at Billboard Women In Music 2024. Michelle Jubelirer:I would have rethought my shoe choice had I known how tall Katy [Perry] was going to be tonight. Thank you, Katy. You exemplify what it means to be a strong woman in music, whether through your singular artistry […]
Katy Perry presents the Executive Of The Year to Michelle Jubelirer at Billboard’s Women In Music 2024. Katy Perry: Hi, guys! I walked slowly because I’m walking on stilts, you know, patriarchy. I am so grateful to be here today to celebrate my dear friend and iced latte hiking bud, Michelle Jubelirer. This is a […]
Capitol Music Group chair and CEO Michelle Jubelirer is exiting the company, she announced in a memo to staff this morning (Feb. 6) that was obtained by Billboard. The move comes less than a week after Universal Music Group chairman/CEO announced a restructure of the label groups at the company that would shift Capitol, among other labels, under the oversight of Interscope Geffen A&M chairman/CEO John Janick.
Jubelirer, who has held her current title since December 2021, will depart the label after today.
“I am deeply saddened that I will no longer be at the company we rebuilt and took to new heights over the past two years,” she writes. “As I’ve said before, I don’t think any label group has been able to turn things around as quickly as we have managed to, and I’m certain that we’ve set Capitol Music Group on course toward a great future.”
Jubelirer joined Capitol in early 2013 as executive vp under then-CMG CEO Steve Barnett, and quickly became his second in command at the music group, which also encompassed Motown, Blue Note, Astralwerks and, until recently, indie distributor Virgin Music. In 2015 she was promoted to COO, a role she held throughout Barnett’s reign atop the label, which ended at the end of 2020. She remained on as COO under Barnett’s successor, Jeff Vaughn, who spent a short time in the top role, before Jubelirer succeeded Vaughn at the end of 2021.
A longtime attorney who also spent time at Sony Music prior to joining Capitol, Jubelirer was part of the revitalization of the storied label following UMG’s acquisition of EMI in 2012, and has been a regular on Billboard’s Women in Music and Power 100 features in the years since. Upon her appointment in 2021 to the top job, Jubelirer became the first female executive to head Capitol in its 80-plus-year history.
In 2023, Capitol racked up a 6.66% market share in the U.S., including a 5.90% current market share — which measures releases from the past 18 months — which was fifth among all labels for the full year. Both numbers were up significantly over her first year at the helm in 2022, when Capitol’s overall market share stood at 6.40% and current market share was 4.97%.
Last week, Grainge announced a restructuring of UMG’s labels, returning the company to an operational structure more similar to the one that existed from 1999 through 2014, prior to the full integration of Capitol. Under this new configuration, which is loosely an East Coast-West Coast alignment, Janick is overseeing Interscope, Geffen, Capitol, Motown, Priority, Verve and Blue Note, while Republic Records CEO Monte Lipman will oversee Republic, Def Jam, Island and Mercury.
See her letter to staff below in full:
To my Capitol Music Group Team,
I wanted you to hear this news directly from me: I’ve made the extremely difficult decision to leave the company that has been my home for more than a decade, and so, today will be my last as Chair & CEO of Capitol Music Group.
I am deeply saddened that I will no longer be at the company we rebuilt and took to new heights over the past two years. As I’ve said before, I don’t think any label group has been able to turn things around as quickly as we have managed to, and I’m certain that we’ve set Capitol Music Group on course toward a great future.
Together, we became a real team; a diverse group of individuals bonded by our love of music and passion for artistry, and whose differences in backgrounds and cultural tastes made each of us stronger advocates and champions for our artists. In such a competitive and fast-paced world, we gave it our all—every minute of every day—so that our artists could seize the opportunity to realize their dreams and ultimately succeed.
I am so fortunate to work in a business that I love and be constantly surrounded by music and the talented people that create it. Every day, I renewed my promise to do my very best for our artists, and they have given me so much in return. No matter where I find myself in this business, I will always approach my relationships with artists as their advocate, their protector, and their fan.
I will let you know of my future plans as soon as I can.
In closing, let me simply say to each of you: Thank You. It has been my honor to be on this journey with you.
With love and appreciation,
Michelle
What a difference a year makes. Last year’s Entertainment Law Initiative (ELI) Grammy Week Event was held during a recording business boom when AI was still an issue on the horizon and TikTok seemed like a surefire way to break new artists. This year’s event, held Friday (Feb. 2), took place amid a boom shadowed by clouds of uncertainty, including a difficult environment for new artists, a restructuring of Universal Music Group’s labels and what looks like the start of a battle with TikTok.
The winner of this year’s ELI writing contest, law school student Olivia Fortunato, wrote about the idea of a federal post-mortem right of publicity — a subject that was barely on the radar of most lawyers a year ago. The keynote speaker, Capitol Music Group chair/CEO Michelle Jubelirer, seemed to hint that her time running the label might be nearing an end. And the Entertainment Law Initiative Service Award Honoree, Atlantic executive vp of business & legal affairs/general counsel Michael Kushner, mentioned how much the industry has changed since the CD era in a way that could be taken as a sign of more changes to come.
Jubelirer’s speech got a good deal of attention, coming as it did a day after Universal Music Group (UMG) announced a restructuring of its labels that would put Republic chairman/CEO Monte Lipman in charge of the company’s East Coast labels and Interscope chairman/CEO John Janick in charge of its West Coast ones. That raises some questions about the future of Capitol Music Group that Jubelirer’s speech didn’t answer, but she dropped a hint. (A PR representative for Capitol declined to comment.)
Jubelirer said that her mantra was a question: “Am I changing the record company more than it’s changing me?” Standing at the event, “I am engaged in that very evaluation,” she said. “Asking myself that very question. And, for the first time in a very long time, I’m not so sure of the answer.”
Most of her speech was more upbeat: She spoke of growing up in Altoona, Penn., as a fan of Guns N ‘ Roses; how she went from a job in mergers and acquisitions law to Sony to the music law firm now known as King, Holmes, Paterno & Soriano; and her time at Capitol Music Group, where she worked with Katy Perry, Paul McCartney and, most recently, Ice Spice. She also praised several mentors and friends, including Universal Music Publishing Group CEO Jody Gerson, and took a moment to point out her mom, “the silver vixen over there.”
Atlantic Music Group chairperson/CEO Julie Greenwald presented the ELI Service Award to Kushner, who has worked closely with her and Atlantic chairman/CEO Craig Kallman. Kushner came to Atlantic after stints at Universal, Sony and PolyGram, where he started around the same time as Sony Music Entertainment executive vp of business affairs/general counsel Julie Swidler. After Greenwald spoke, Kushner received the customary video tribute, filled with praise both serious and silly.
Kushner then spoke about the importance of mentorship and the changes he has seen in the music business, where the only constant seems to be change itself.
-
Pages