06/23/2026
Clive Davis, Music Mogul With a Golden Ear for Talent, Dies at 94. He signed Janis Joplin to kickstart his career, made Bruce Springsteen and Whitney Houston household names and carried Carlos Santana and Aretha Franklin to newfound fame.
Clive Davis, the hands-on hitmaker with a “golden ear” who brought Janis Joplin, Whitney Houston and Bruce Springsteen to the world and revitalized the careers of Carlos Santana, Rod Stewart and Aretha Franklin, died Monday. He was 94.
Davis, most recently chief creative officer of Sony Music Entertainment, a former head of labels Columbia, Arista Records and J Records and a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, died at his home in Manhattan, a rep announced. He recently had been hospitalized with an upper respiratory infection.-the Hollywood reporter