Lyor Cohen Named YouTube’s Global Head of Music

Lyor Cohen has been named global head of music at YouTube, the company has announced.  Cohen is the founder and current CEO of 300, which has Fetty Wap, Young Thug and others signed to the label. He had previously headed up Warner Music Group as its chairman/CEO of recorded music until 2012; before that, he ran the consolidated Island Def Jam Music Group after Def Jam, of which he was president, was sold to Universal Music Group in 1998. He got his start as an artist manager at Russell Simmons’ Rush Artist Management in the 1980s, working with Run-DMC and the Beastie Boys, among others. According to a YouTube spokesperson, Cohen will continue as CEO of 300 until December 5 of this year, after which that company’s management “will transition Lyor’s day-to-day responsibilities to the leadership team within the company.” Read more: YouTube to Live-Stream 6th Annual Streamy Awards “Lyor is a lion of the music industry,” said