Media Decoder Blog: A Young Music Executive Takes Over at Motown

The fate of Motown, the storied record label now owned by the Universal Music Group, has been the subject of music-industry gossip since May, when news reports surfaced that Sylvia Rhone, its president and one of the most powerful women in the industry, was stepping down. One of the label's biggest stars, Erykah Badu, stirred further controversy when she wrote on Twitter that Motown had "folded."Motown has not folded, but it has <a href="http://www.afashionbuy.com/"><strong>Cheap Louis Vuitton Handbags</strong></a> a new boss and a new home within Universal. On Wednesday, the company announced that Ethiopia Habtemariam, an influential young executive at Universal's music publishing arm, is taking over as Motown's senior vice president. She will retain a role in the company’s publishing operations as the executive vice president and head of urban music of the Universal Music Publishing Group.The label was careful not to name Ms. Habtemariam as the new president of Motown, but she will have the top position at the label and will report directly to Barry Weiss, Universal's top executive in New York. It is expected that if she is successful in the new job, she will most likely be promoted. <a href="http://www.afashionbuy.com/Handbags-Juicy-Handbag-f2-39-c3-17.html"><strong>Cheap Juicy Couture Handbags</strong></a> Ms. Habtemariam, 31, has risen quickly at Universal's publishing division, where she has signed acts like Justin Bieber, Chris Brown and Ciara. But her Motown appointment instantly makes her one of the most prominent women in the industry, as well as one of the most prominent blacks. (Ms. Rhone was the first black woman to lead a major record company when she took over East West in 1990. Her current status at Universal is unclear, and she is said to be in talks with various other labels.)"Ethiopia represents the new breed of today's best creative music executives," Mr. Weiss said in a statement. "There is no one more relevant and credible in the creative community to help us build upon Motown's fantastic legacy and move the company into its next groundbreaking era."Motown's roster includes some of the label's historic names, like Stevie Wonder, as well as younger performers like Chrisette Michele. But because of a reorganization at Universal, Motown is losing some of its hottest acts.Under Ms. Rhone, the label was part of the Universal Republic umbrella, and its subsidiary labels Cash Money and SRC brought in top acts like Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj and Akon. Now Motown will be moving to Island Def Jam, one of Universal's other major divisions, but the Cash Money and SRC acts will remain on the Universal Republic side.In recent months, Universal has made a number of shifts at its top executive level. In March, Antonio Reid, the chairman of Island Def Jam, left to become a judge on "The <a href="http://photomax.fb5.ru/displayimage.php?pos=-20"><strong>paul smith women wallet-Saw this shop you will not go to stores ...</strong></a> X Factor"; he later joined Sony Music Entertainment. In April, Mr. Weiss left Sony for his new job at Universal, and David Renzer stepped down as the chairman of the Universal Music Publishing Group.