Jeff Rabhan | |
|---|---|
| Born | Jeffrey S. Rabhan Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
| Occupation | Artist manager, music executive, consultant, academic |
| Years active | 1992 – present |
Jeffrey S. Rabhan is an American entrepreneur. A 20-year veteran of the music industry, he was a journalist, label executive, and artist manager prior to founding Bored-of-Ed.com, an education company. Rabhan also served as chair of the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at New York University.
Rabhan was born in Savannah, Georgia and raised in Richmond, Virginia. He received a BA in journalism at New York University.
Following his graduation, Rabhan pursued music journalism serving in staff positions at both Rolling Stone and SPIN before being named to west coast positions as senior director of a&r at Atlantic Records, executive in charge of soundtracks at Elektra Records, and an independent music supervisor and a&r consultant, most notably bringing pop trio Hanson to Mercury Records in 1996. [1] [ citation needed ] Credited with discovering Michelle Branch, [2] he managed Branch, DMX, Lil Kim, and Kelly Clarkson while serving as a partner at The Firm, Inc. [3] [ citation needed ]
In 2006, he co-founded the management company Three Ring Project, which had publishing and label imprints through Universal Music Group. He managed artists including Elliott Yamin of American Idol, Kelly Rowland, Everlast, Kelis and Jermaine Dupri. [4]
In 2010, he was named chair of the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at Tisch School of the Arts. [5] In February 2013, his book Cool Jobs in the Music Business, which outlines career options in the music industry for high school and college students, was published by InTune. [6] Rabhan left NYU in 2021 to partner with songwriting/producer duo Stargate to launch the Los Angeles Academy of Artists and Music Production (LAAMP)where he served as Executive Director. At the end of the first year of the program, Rabhan returned to New York where he launched Bored-of-Ed.Com. [ citation needed ]
In 2025, following Chappell Roan's Grammy acceptance speech, he wrote an essay for The Hollywood Reporter criticizing Roan's remarks as naive and asserting that record labels are not responsible for artists beyond paying advances and royalties. [7] The piece went viral, prompting Roan to challenge Rabhan to match a $25,000 donation to artists experiencing financial difficulty. Rabhan dodged the challenge by claiming it was directed at other artists rather than himself and insisted that musicians should take personal responsibility for their careers instead of relying on systemic industry changes. [8] His response drew criticism, leading multiple artists, including Sabrina Carpenter, Charli XCX, Noah Kahan, and Lauv, to contribute $25,000 each to support struggling musicians. [9] In contrast, Ash Avildsen, founder of Sumerian Records, matched Roan’s donation and publicly criticized Rabhan’s perspective, advocating for greater industry reforms to support artists. [10]