Clive Davis, the music industry titan behind the careers of artists like Whitney Houston, Bruce Springsteen, Aretha Franklin, Carlos Santana, Janis Joplin, Alicia Keys, and more, died on Monday at the age of 94. He had struggled with health issues in recent
years, having been hospitalized following an upper respiratory issue in May. According to a statement, he died “peacefully from age-related illness … surrounded by his family and loved ones.”
Davis, who was born in Brooklyn and raised in Crown Heights, got his start as a lawyer in the early 1960s. After serving as in-house counsel for Columbia Records, he eventually rose through the ranks at the label, becoming president in 1967. He later founded Arista Records and J Records, and helped launch LaFace Records with L.A. Reid and Babyface.
His legacy was finding talent, identifying massive hits, and helping several stars relaunch their careers to achieve new levels of stardom. Much of his career was defined by discovering Whitney Houston as a teenager, signing Janis Joplin after hearing her sing at the Monterey Pop Festival, and launching Patti Smith’s career after seeing her at CBGB. (“Clive really has a weakness for artists,” Smith said of Davis in the 2017 documentaryClive Davis: The Soundtrack of Our Lives. “It all stems from that authentic love of music.”)
He was also responsible for reviving the careers of massive names, helping Aretha Franklin, Lou Reed, Carlos Santana, the Kinks, Carly Simon, and many more achieve second acts and reach new commercial heights. He stayed active in the industry in his later years, nurturing talent and becoming a regular fixture at Grammy events.
“It’s hard to separate the life I’ve lived with my career, with contemporary music,” Davis told Rolling Stone in 2017. “I consider myself fortunate that over five decades, and in a very tough business environment, music has provided a lifetime of unexpected pleasure and gratification.”
Here’s a look at his life and legacy through pictures.
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