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Rob Stone | |
|---|---|
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| Born | July 12, 1968 |
| Occupation(s) | Founder and Co-CEO of Cornerstone & The Fader |
Rob Stone (born July 12, 1968) is an American music, media and branding executive based in New York City. Stone is the founder of the full-service marketing agency Cornerstone, and co-founder of music and style publication The Fader . [1]
Stone attended the University at Albany in 1986 where he studied marketing and finance. [2] Upon graduation in 1990, Stone joined SBK Records and rose to director of promotion. [3] He also served as vice president of promotion at EMI Records. In The Big Payback: The History of the Business of Hip-Hop, author and hip hop journalist Dan Charnas notes Stone's rise through the ranks at EMI. When label heads Daniel Glass and Fred Davis initially discussed bringing Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs and his label, Bad Boy, to EMI, they brought in Stone—aged 25—due to his background and knowledge of hip hop. Stone became seen as the record business counterpart to innovative radio programmers such as Keith Naftaly and Hosh Gureli. [4]
In May 1994, Stone joined music executive Clive Davis at Arista Records. [5]
Stone worked with Notorious B.I.G., [6] Usher Raymond, and other artists, including Sean "Puffy" Combs, Outkast, and Faith Evans. [7]
Stone is a member of the board of directors for Sweetgreen, a farm-to-table salad chain, playing an integral role in the creation of the brand's popular Sweetlife Festival, an annual concert. [8]
He also sits on the board for the Children's Cancer Association's music medicine program, MyMusicRx, a digital playground that delivers music medicine to critically ill kids and teens in the United States and Canada. [9]
In June 1996, Stone founded Cornerstone, a Manhattan-based music promotion firm that worked primarily with record labels to promote their artists. [4] [10]
After being joined by business partner and co-CEO Jon Cohen in 1997, the firm began to grow into a full-service marketing and creative agency recognized for its integration of hip music names in corporate branding campaigns. [11] The agency's work with clients such as Converse, Microsoft, Nike, Mountain Dew and Diageo gave the agency a reputation as a pioneer in the movement of branding and music. [12] [13]
In 2009, Stone was featured on the cover of Billboard magazine's Music & Advertising issue with Cornerstone Co-Founder Jon Cohen and friend and marketing partner Pharrell Williams, where the agency was described as a pioneer in connecting musicians with brands. [12]
In 1999, Stone co-founded The Fader with Jon Cohen. The Fader is a magazine dubbed by The New York Times as the new music-and-fashion bible. [14] With its 39th issue, The Fader made publishing history was the first to offer a full issue's content available on iTunes. [15]
In his book, Charna's documents Stone's work on the original "Obey Your Thirst" Sprite campaign as Stone spearheaded Sprite's first DJ Summit, an event that brought together American radio jockeys and artists. In turn, this event eventually led to partnerships with hip hop acts such as at Fat Joe, Red Man, Missy Elliot, and Common, and the creation of the "Voltron" Sprite Hip Hop commercials. [16]
Additional campaigns under Stone's direction at Cornerstone include Nike's “Better Than I've Ever Been”. Commissioned by the sportswear company at the 25th anniversary of Air Force One shoes, Cornerstone executive produced the song, secured Kanye West, Nas, KRS-One and Rakim to collaborate, and oversaw production with Rick Rubin. The track was nominated for the Grammy Award for "Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group." My Drive Thru was a collaborative single by The Strokes lead vocalist Julian Casablancas, American singer-songwriter Santigold, and The Neptunes producer and N.E.R.D member Pharrell Williams. The song was created for Converse's centennial and was released in June 2008. [17] Among Cornerstone's music related initiatives are Green Label Sound by Mountain Dew [18] and Rubber Tracks, a recording studio managed by Converse in Brooklyn, NY. [19]
In late 2010, Pepsi's chief engagement officer hired Cornerstone to do the creative on the brand's campaign, Pepsi MAX NFL Audible. TV spots aired during January 2011 NFL playoff games and online, featuring rappers Big Boi, Lupe Fiasco, B.o.B and Talib Kweli. [20] In 2012, Pepsi also employed Cornerstone for the NFL Pepsi Anthems campaign featuring Kelly Clarkson, Travie McCoy, Wiz Khalifa and Kid Rock. [21]
Cornerstone began construction on Rubber Tracks, a free recording studio managed by Cornerstone and operated by Converse in Brooklyn, NY, in 2010. The 5,200-square-foot (480 m2) space is open for free use to artists in the area. [22]
Christopher George Latore Wallace, better known by his stage names The Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta rap, he is widely considered one of the greatest rappers of all time. Wallace became known for his distinctive laid-back lyrical delivery, offsetting the lyrics' often grim content.
The Black Album is the eighth studio album by American rapper Jay-Z. It was released on November 14, 2003, through Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. It was advertised as his final album before retiring, which is also a recurring theme throughout the songs, although Jay-Z resumed his recording career in 2005. For the album, Jay-Z wanted to enlist a different producer for each song, working with Just Blaze, Kanye West, the Neptunes, Eminem, DJ Quik, Timbaland, 9th Wonder and Rick Rubin, among others. The album also features a guest appearance by Pharrell Williams.
Hard Core is the debut studio album by American rapper Lil' Kim, released on November 12, 1996, by Undeas Recordings, Big Beat Records, and Atlantic Records. After achieving success with the hip hop group Junior M.A.F.I.A. and their album Conspiracy (1995), Kim began working on her solo album with the Notorious B.I.G. serving as the executive producer. She collaborated with a number of producers, such as Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs, Stevie J., David "Ski" Willis and Jermaine Dupri, among others. Other rappers, including Jay-Z, Lil' Cease and Puff Daddy were featured on the album.
Tommy Boy Records is an American independent record label and multimedia brand founded in 1981 by Tom Silverman. The label is credited with helping and launching the music careers of Queen Latifah, Amber, Afrika Bambaataa, Stetsasonic, Digital Underground, Coolio, De La Soul, House of Pain, Naughty By Nature, and Force MDs. Tommy Boy is also credited with introducing genres such as EDM, Latin freestyle, and Latin hip hop to mainstream audiences in America.
Lyor Cohen is an American music industry executive and entrepreneur. He has been actively involved in hip hop at various record labels for more than 30 years. He started by managing rappers for Rush Productions, then led Def Jam. After Def Jam, Cohen took on a leadership role at Warner Music Group. In September 2012, Cohen resigned from Warner and started his own independent label, 300 Entertainment. On September 28, 2016, Cohen was named YouTube's Global Head of Music.
The Fader is a magazine established in 1999 as an outlet for Cornerstone Agency, a marketing and public relations firm established by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture.
Richard "Younglord" Frierson is an American Grammy-nominated hip hop and R&B record producer. In 2014, Frierson founded The Truth Licensing, a major provider of music for Films, TV shows, and commercial ads.
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Cornerstone is a New York-based creative lifestyle marketing and public relations agency with offices in New York City, Los Angeles, and London. It is helmed by co-CEOs Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The company employs approximately 100 professionals worldwide, in addition to a network of field marketing representatives throughout the United States.
Drew "Dru Ha" Friedman is an American music and marketing executive based in New York City. Friedman is Co-Founder and CEO of Duck Down Music Inc., 3D Consulting & Distribution, General Manager for Cinematic Music Group, and former Director of Urban Music at Cornerstone Promotion. Born and raised in White Plains, New York, he is a graduate of Syracuse University's S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications where he studied advertising.
Keith Phillip Naftaly is an American music industry executive. He is the president of A&R at RCA Records. Naftaly previously held senior A&R positions at record companies including Arista, DreamWorks Records, and Sony Music. He has worked with artists including Pentatonix, Kesha, Whitney Houston, Kelly Clarkson, Luther Vandross, Sia and Christina Aguilera.
Vincent Jamal Staples is an American rapper and singer from Long Beach, California. Staples first became known for his association with California-based alternative hip hop collective Odd Future, namely Mike G and Earl Sweatshirt. He signed with Talib Kweli's Blacksmith Records prior to releasing his collaborative mixtape with Mac Miller, Stolen Youth (2013). The following year, he signed with No I.D.'s ARTium Recordings, an imprint of Def Jam Recordings to release his debut extended play, Hell Can Wait (2014)—which marked his first project to chart on the Billboard 200.
BobbyErvin, professionally known as Bobcat or DJ Bobcat, is an American Grammy Award winner and multi-platinum producer, songwriter, DJ, artist and music executive.
Jon Cohen is an American music and media executive in New York City.
Angelica Cob-Baehler was a Costa Rican American music industry executive and television producer. The head of music operations at The Firm, and the chief marketing officer for the basketball league Big 3, she previously held senior positions at Columbia Records, EMI and Epic.
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The Big Payback: The History of the Business of Hip-Hop is a book by Dan Charnas chronicling the business history of the hip hop industry.
Geoff Cottrill is an American marketer who currently serves as Chief Marketing Officer at Topgolf. He formerly held top positions at Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola, Starbucks, and Converse. He is the father of the musical artist Clairo.
For other people with the same name, see Paul Stewart (disambiguation)
PGLang is an American independent multidisciplinary creative communications company specializing in music and visual media production. It was founded by Kendrick Lamar and Dave Free in 2020, and is headquartered in Los Angeles. The company has won six Cannes Lions Awards, including the Special Award for Independent Agency of the Year – Craft in 2023.
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