More articles by Gergely HamarClive Davis leaves, Barry Weiss steps inThe pioneering recording executive, Clive Davis, is out as chairman and CEO of the BMG label group and will move into the role of chief creative officer of Sony BMG Music Entertainment which includes RCA Records, Jive, LaFace and Arista, which Davis founded in 1974. Sony BMG announced Thursday that former Zomba Label Group head Barry Weiss will be the one stepping into Davis' venerable shoes. Davis, whose industry influence reaches back to the folk and jam bands of the 1970s all the way to today's pop culture, had left the company in 2000 to start R&B powerhouse J Records after a series of reported disagreements with Arista owner BMG, but was wooed back into the fold a few years later. 
The now 74-year-old visionary was named head of RCA records in 2003 and appointed chief executive of BMG North America the following year. Over the last 40 years he has had a hand in the creative grooming of musical luminaries like Janis Joplin, Santana, Bruce Springsteen, Whitney Houston, Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears. And for those younger generations out there, Davis has also had a hand in shaping the careers of the recent American Idol-made stars, including Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, and Chris Daughtry via BMG's genre-spanning collection of labels. Davis will continue to work with top artists in his new position, according to Sony BMG. Neither he nor Weiss have yet commented on the corporate shakeup, which comes just a day after Davis presided over yet another No. 1 debut. Sponsored by EnterTo.com the first REAL spam free email
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More articles by Gergely Hamar | 
