Music Schools at Major Universities from Across the United States Will Join This Once-in-a-Lifetime Discussion Chronicling the Career of the Music Industry’s Most Iconic Executive
The West Virginia University School of Music is proud to present a virtual fireside chat with music industry legend Clive Davis live on Zoom on Monday October 16 at 4:00pm. WVU alum and conductor of the American Pops Orchestra Luke Frazier and WVU Faculty member Travis Stimeling will serve as co-hosts for this event. This event, which is intended for students in the School of Music, will be open to the public and streamed to music schools at major universities across the United States. Mr. Davis – a five-time Grammy Award Winner and Inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame -- will share anecdotes, advice and insights from his illustrious five-decade career. He will also answer questions from students and faculty from the WVU School of Music.
Clive Davis is widely regarded as the record industry’s most innovative and influential executive and has had a profound effect on the history and direction of music in the 20th and 21st Centuries. From his beginning at Columbia Records in the mid-1960’s through his appointment as Chief Creative Officer for all of Sony Music Entertainment in 2008, Mr. Davis is responsible for discovering and guiding the careers of some of the most significant, successful and impactful artists in the history of contemporary music.
In his earlier career, Mr. Davis launched artists such as Blood, Sweat, and Tears, Chicago, Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, Aerosmith and Earth, Wind, and Fire. He was also influential in the careers of Simon & Garfunkel, Bob Dylan, Barbra Streisand, Sly & The Family Stone, Miles Davis, and Herbie Hancock. After founding Arista Records, he launched the careers of such notable performers as Whitney Houston, Barry Manilow, Patti Smith, Kenny G, and attracted such iconic artists as Aretha Franklin, The Grateful Dead, The Kinks, Lou Reed, Eurythmics, Dionne Warwick, Hall & Oates, and Carly Simon. During his time in Nashville in the 80’s, his label discovered country artists such as Alan Jackson, Brooks & Dunn and Brad Paisley. In the 90’s his name is associated with launching the careers on LaFace Records of Usher, Toni Braxton and P!nk, as well as Sean “Puffy’ Combs and his Bad Boy label.
In addition to Clive Davis’s legendary influence on all popular music genres, he is also celebrated for his many humanitarian accomplishments. He has been honored by such notable organizations as the NAACP, which presented him with its prestigious Image Award, T.J. Martell Foundation, the Anti-Defamation League, and the American Cancer Society. Due to his tireless efforts in the battle against AIDS, in in 1998, he was bestowed the Humanitarian Award from the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR).
If you are interested to learn more about Clive Davis and his incredible career, you may either read his best-selling autobiography: The Soundtrack of My Life, or view his award-winning documentary: Clive Davis: The Soundtrack of Our Lives on Netflix.
Join us on October 16, 2023, at 4:00: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxQim25JHPI