Lyor Cohen on YouTube Music's Future and the Music Industry's Past

This week, Ari is joined by Lyor Cohen, the Global Head of Music at YouTube. Earlier in his career, Lyor led Def Jam Recordings, where he worked with artists such as Jay-Z, Ja Rule, and Ludacris. He eventually sold Def Jam to Universal and helped create the Island Def Jam Music Group. After Def Jam, Lyor became Chairman and CEO of Recorded Music at Warner Music Group. He went on to co-found 300 Entertainment (repping artists like Fetty Wap and Young Thug) before landing at YouTube in 2016.

In this episode, Lyor and Ari discuss artist development, the state of the industry, and music’s digital revolution. Lyor shares what it was like to lead Warner Music at a time when both Spotify and YouTube launched. If you’re curious about the trajectory of tech in music, how generative AI can bring artists and fans together, or how you can use YouTube to build momentum in your career, this episode is for you.

Chapters

00:00 The Pursuit of Artist Success
05:23 Navigating the Music Industry Landscape
12:11 User-Centric Approach in Music
20:34 Building Artist Communities
27:14 The Evolution of Music Consumption
33:30 Embracing Generative AI in Music

Edited and mixed by Ari Davids
Music by Brassroots District
Produced by the team at Ari’s Take

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