Jeff Blue

Infobox musical artist

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Name = Jeff Blue
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Origin = Los Angeles
Occupation = Senior Vice president of Artists and Repertoire
Music producer
Song writer
Lawyer
Label = Zomba Music Publishing
Warner Bros. Records
Interscope Records
RCA/J Records
Virgin Records
Notable_instruments = drums
Piano

Jeff Blue is a music producer, A&R executive, songwriter, musician, and attorney who is currently Artists and Repertoire for Virgin Records. He has worked as Sr. VP A&R/Staff Producer for Warner California, Interscope Records, and RCA/J Records. He is responsible for recruiting new unsigned artists and is most notably known for "discovering" and signing Linkin Park, Macy Gray, and The Last Goodnight.

Biography

Blue graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He was a Communications Major focusing on Media Law and began a career acting in national television commercials as well playing drums in local bands. He attended Loyola Law School in Los Angeles law, but felt uncomfortable with the field after passing the Bar examination. He then pursued a career in journalism, and worked with media outlets such as Billboard and Entertainment Weekly, while he simultaneously managed, produced, and played drums in a bands such as Speaker and Atomic Boy. He eventually published his own magazine, Crossroads, which focused on talented unsigned music artists while he worked as an attorney for the law offices of Ross Schwartz.

Zomba Music Publishing was impressed by Blue’s versatility, and hired him. He cites that the combined experienced from his professions gave him the insights and talents he needed to succeed in the Artists and Repertoire division. During his career with Zomba, Blue taught "Songwriting" and "Artist Development in the Music Business" classes at UCLA and hired Brad Delson as his intern. Blue was currently developing and co-writing with an artist named Macy Gray. After recording Gray's demos, Blue landed a deal for the artist with Epic Records. During this time Blue also signed rock bands Korn and Limp Bizkit. Delson told Blue about a new band he was performing with, which was an earlier incarnation of Linkin Park. Blue signed Delson and his band mates to a publishing deal on the night of their first performance.

After developing Xero for two years, which changed it's name to Hybrid Theory, Blue met Chester Bennington, a singer from Arizona who had just left his band. Blue arranged Bennington an audition. Bennington eventually became a member of the band, which later changed its name to Linkin Park. With Blue shopping the band for three years, unable to get them a deal, Blue negotiated his employment contract with Warner Bros. Records to include the signing of Linkin Park. Months later, they released their debut album, "Hybrid Theory", which has since sold millions of records. Blue signed as a writer to Warner Chappell Music Publishing.

While at Warner Bros. Records, Blue executive produced Linkin Park, "Queen of the Damned" Soundtrack, "Beautiful Creatures", several compilations, and developed multi platinum artist Daniel Powter.

Blue produced multi platinum artists Better Than Ezra's album "Before the Robots" and Canadian rock band Social Code. Blue has worked as Sr. VP A&R/Staff Producer for Interscope Records' Jimmy Iovine and RCA/J Records for Clive Davis. After leaving J Records, Blue developed The Last Goodnight for two years, co-writing, playing drums and producing the album in his Hollywood Hills home. Working for Virgin Records he signed the Last Goodnight and serves as A&R for A Fine Frenzy. Blue then signed to Universal Music Publishing as a writer and has several platinum hits including "Pictures of You." In Summer of 2008, he co-wrote & produced Steadlür, a rock band he developed for three years, for Roadrunner Records. He has co-written the first single on the new Hoobastank album and is currently in Sydney Australia writing with Universal Australian artist Renee Cassar. He is also working on developing a new artist, Nathan Anderson, who he describes as a cross between John Melencamp and John Mayer.

DISCOGRAPHY

LINKIN PARK (Warner Bros.): Development/A&R/Publisher/Executive Producer• Hybrid Theory multi-platinum• Meteora multi-platinum• Reanimation multi-platinum

MACY GRAY (Epic): Development/Publisher/Writer• On How Life Is multi-platinum• The Id multi-platinum

LIMP BIZKIT (Interscope): Publisher• Three Dollar Bill multi-platinum• Significant Other multi-platinum• Chocolate Starfish multi-platinum

KORN (Epic): Publisher• Korn multi-platinum• Life is Peachy multi-platinum• Follow the Leader multi-platinum• Issues multi-platinum

DANIEL POWTER (Warner Bros.): Development• Daniel Powter multi-platinum

HOOBASTANK (Island Def Jam) Writer First single for Upcoming 2008 Release Platinum artists

QUEEN OF THE DAMNED SOUNDTRACK (Warner Bros.): Executive Producer• Queen of the Damned Soundtrack gold

A FINE FRENZY (Virgin): A&R• One Cell in the Sea Platinum single

THE LAST GOODNIGHT (Virgin): Development/Producer/Writer/A&R/Musician• Poison Kiss Multi-Platinum singles• NOW 26 platinum BETTER THAN EZRA (Artemis): Producer• Before the Robots Platinum artist

BEAUTIFUL CREATURES (Warner Bros.): Producer/Writer/A&R• Beautiful Creatures

SOCIAL CODE (Interscope): Development/Producer/Writer/A&R• Year at the Movies

NASCAR (Wind-Up): Producer• NASCAR Compilation

DRY CELL (Warner Bros.): Development/Producer/Writer/A&R• Dry Cell STEADLUR (Roadrunner/Warner Bros.): Development/Producer/Writer/Musician• 2009 Release

SPEAKER (A&M): Development/Writer/Producer/Publisher• Speaker

ROZ BELL (Universal Canada): Development/Producer/Writer/Musician• The First Sunbeams

References

* Mean, Jean-Francois. [http://www.aandronline.com/reading-room/jeff_blue.html Jeff Blue - A&R at Warner Bros, CA:] , "hitquarters.com". Retrieved on August 20, 2007.
* "Rolling Stone Magazine", [http://www.lptimes.com/bio/bio_band.html Linkin Park - Biography] (March 14, 2002), "The Linkin Park Times", Retrieved on June 24, 2007.

External links

* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2092638/ Jeff Blue @ IMDB.com]
* [http://music.msn.com/artist/?artist=16565421 Jeff Blue @ MSN Music]
* [http://www.artistdirect.com/nad/music/artist/card/0,,1735622,00.html Jeff Blue @ Artist Direct]