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Geffen Records to be ramped up again

By Chris Cooke | Published on Friday 24 March 2017

Universal Music in the US has had a good old rummage around its box of under-used label brands and has picked out Geffen Records for a full-on spit and polish. Neil Jacobson, a long-term exec with the mega-major, will be the chief spitter and polisher. By which we mean he has been appointed President of the resurrected label.

Founded by David Geffen in the 1980s, Geffen Records enjoyed considerable success in the subsequent two decades, first with pop, then with harder rock, and then with some key alternative rock acts. It allied with Universal in 1990, with Geffen himself remaining involved until 1995. At the end of the 1990s, Geffen Records was absorbed by the Interscope label, though at various points since then it has been pushed forward as a frontline label brand, albeit usually mainly managed by Interscope staff.

Jacobson will still report into Interscope chief John Janick in his new role, who said yesterday: “Geffen Records has always represented the true entrepreneurial spirit of the music business. Neil’s commitment to artistry, his drive, and his ability to see and create new opportunities for our business make him the perfect choice to take the helm at Geffen, a label that is such an important part of the collective legacy of our company”.

Name-checking both the label’s founder and some of its most famous signings back in the day, Jacobson told Billboard: “I’ve been telling people for fifteen years that one day I wanted to run Geffen. I always thought Geffen is a special label and David Geffen is a special person. And with Nirvana and Guns N Roses you’re talking about my favourite artists of all time”.