(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — In a new business partnership, Interscope Records has formed a joint venture with Jordan Schur's Suretone Records, a new company founded by the music industry veteran.
In forming the new company, Schur leaves Geffen Records where he served as president for more than six years. Before that, Schur founded and managed Flip Records where he signed and released albums by Limp Bizkit and Staind, building a reputation as a music executive known for his wide-ranging entrepreneurial success and his ability to break new musical acts.
"Jordan has been part of our family for the last six years and has been responsible for extraordinary successes," said Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M Records. "I'm thrilled that he has decided to stay at Interscope to pursue his dreams."
As part of the deal, Schur will continue to oversee the recording careers of Weezer, The Cure, Rooney, New Found Glory and Angels and Airwaves, the new band put together by Tom DeLonge (blink-182) who will remain on Geffen and will carry the Suretone imprint. The Pink Spiders (which will be released through Geffen), Headway, Eastern Conference Champions and all newly signed acts will be on Suretone Records and released by Interscope.
"It's great to be back in the natural territory of ownership, and I'm grateful for it to be with my partners at Interscope/Geffen," said Schur. "It is my intention to make this new company stand for great artists and timeless music, and I've never felt stronger about the prospects for achieving that."
"Jordan Schur is the most dynamic, talented, and driven executive in the music business today," said Jeff Kwatinetz, CEO of The Firm, which represents several artists on the new label. "The fact that he is leaving the corporate culture and returning to being an owner whose destiny is directly tied to his artists is only good news for myself and my clients."
Schur became the head of Geffen Records in 1999 where he championed a new generation of bands with an unrelenting work ethic and a modern approach to marketing that included grassroots efforts and new media technology. In 2003, MCA Records was merged into Geffen Records where Schur oversaw the newly organized label. In 2004, when the recently acquired Dreamworks Records was folded into the new Geffen, Schur was joined by Polly Anthony. Among the artists Schur worked with during his years at Geffen are blink-182, Snoop Dogg, Ashlee Simpson, Mary J. Blige, Weezer, Papa Roach, Counting Crows, Common, the Cure, Rob Zombie, New Found Glory, Sigur Ros, Lifehouse, Puddle Of Mudd, Rooney and Bloodhound Gang.
In managing the original Flip Records, Schur was among the first to shun the traditional marketing tools of the record business. Instead he went directly to the youth of America with lifestyle marketing by young aggressive street teams, along with new media marketing over the Internet to support the constant touring of his artists. As a result, Schur's artists were discovered by record-buyers before they were exposed over radio or television, thus ensuring credibility and the opportunity for long careers.
Among other recent business activities, Schur created fashion house Michon Schur with his wife, designer Stephanie Schur, and invested in sportswear label Lotto North America where he became a partner and director. He also is a partner and officer in Jordan Realty, with extensive holdings in Manhattan, and in Cityside Archives, a New York City-based document retention company. — Jane Cohen and Bob Grossweiner
