Eminem’s longtime manager Paul Rosenberg is taking a top executive position at Def Jam Records, Variety has confirmed.
A co-founder of Shady Records, which has released albums by such artists as 50 Cent, D12, and Obie Trice, and CEO of Goliath Artist Management (Eminem, Action Bronson, Danny Brown), the 46-year-old Detroit native and attorney has also been a recurring character on multiple Eminem tracks including one from 2002’s “The Eminem Show,” and served as executive producer of the 2002 Imagine/Universal film “8 Mile.”
Rosenberg will continue to manage Eminem and is expected to start as CEO of Def Jam in Jan. 2018. Hits previously reported his appointment.
Def Jam, an imprint of Universal Music Group, has been led by CEO Steve Bartels since 2013. The label has seen a string of hit songs in the last year, including No. 1s by Justin Bieber (“Sorry”) and Desiigner (“Panda”) as well as breakout successes from Alessia Cara (“Scars to Your Beautiful,” “Home”).
It is unclear yet what role, if any, Bartels will have, but he is expected to stay on until the end of the year. Prior to Bartels’ ascent to chief executive, Def Jam was part of a bigger label unit named Island Def Jam, which was run by Antonio “L.A.” Reid and, before that, Lyor Cohen.
Def Jam was founded in 1983 by Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons and was home to LL Cool J and Slayer in its early years. It would later sign Ludacris, Rihanna, and Kanye West, among many others.
Says a source of Rosenberg: “He’s super smart and will steer the company in the right direction.”
Variety has reached out to UMG for comment.
