{{short description|American record executive (born 1938)}} {{Promotional|date=August 2025}} {{Use American English|date=December 2020}} {{Use mdy dates|date=December 2020}} {{Infobox person <!-- For individuals; see Wikipedia:WikiProject_Musicians --> | name = Doug Morris | image = Busacca-DM.jpg | alt = | caption = Morris in January 2010 | image_size = | birth_name = | alias = | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1938|11|23}} | death_date = | education = Columbia University (BA) | occupation = Record executive | years_active = 1960s–present | signature = }}
'''Doug Morris''' (born November 23, 1938) is an American record executive. He was chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Universal Music Group from 1995 to 2011 and Sony Music Entertainment from 2011 to 2017. In 2018, he founded the record label 12Tone, which was acquired by Warner Records in 2021.
==Life and career== === Early life and career === Born to Jewish parents,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.innerviews.org/inner/tori2.html|title=Tori Amos - Inclusive variations|website=Innerviews.org|access-date=December 28, 2018}}</ref> Morris grew up in Woodmere, Long Island, in the state of New York.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=https://magazine.columbia.edu/article/doug-morris-greatest-hits|title=Doug Morris: The Greatest Hits|first=Paul|last=Hond|magazine=Columbia Magazine |accessdate=May 30, 2021}}</ref> His father, Walter Bernard Morris, was a lawyer, and his mother was a ballet instructor.<ref name=":0" /> He is a graduate of Columbia University.<ref name=":0" /> He began a career in the music industry as a songwriter for Robert Mellin, Inc., a music publisher. In 1965, Morris produced the self-titled debut album by the then-unknown garage band the Barbarians, which spawned two hit singles: "Are You a Boy or Are You a Girl" and "Moulty", the latter of which Morris co-wrote.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/victor-moulton-mn0001793486/biography|website=AllMusic|title=Victor Moulton|first=Joe|last=Viglione|accessdate=May 30, 2021}}</ref> Morris wrote "Sweet Talkin' Guy", a 1966 hit for The Chiffons, and produced the hit "Smokin' In the Boys Room" (1973) for Brownsville Station. After joining Laurie Records as a songwriter and producer in 1965, Morris eventually became vice-president and general manager of the record label. He later started his own label, Big Tree Records, which was acquired by Atlantic Records in 1974, which led to Morris becoming president of Atco Records and an association with Warner Music.{{CN|date=March 2024}}
Morris became president of Atlantic Records in 1980, and became co-chairman and co-CEO of the Atlantic Recording Group, alongside Ahmet Ertegun, in 1990. Morris played an integral role in making Atlantic the leading company in the Warner Music Group. In 1994, Morris shifted to the position of president and chief operating officer of Warner Music U.S., and was soon named chairman. Morris lost an executive battle at Warner leading to his departure from Warner Music in 1995.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.notablebiographies.com/newsmakers2/2005-La-Pr/Morris-Doug.html|title=Doug Morris Biography|website=Notablebiographies.com|access-date=December 28, 2018}}</ref>
===Career at Universal Music Group=== Morris began working with MCA Records in July 1995 by forming a joint venture record label, which became Universal Records when Morris was appointed chairman and CEO of MCA Music Entertainment Group in November 1995. The company was renamed Universal Music Group the following year. He was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame; his ceremony was held on January 26, 2010, at the corner of Hollywood and Vine.{{citation needed|date=March 2011}}
Morris was heavily criticized by music journalists for his approach to streaming services, especially the infamous PressPlay.<ref>{{cite web|title=How Record Labels Screwed Up The Music Industry, And How Spotify, Apple Saved Them|date=May 29, 2018|url=http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2018/05/how-labels-screwed-up-the-music-industry-and-how-the-tech-industry-saved-them.html}}</ref>
Lucian Grainge replaced Morris as CEO on January 1, 2011, and later replaced him as chairman on March 9, 2011.<ref>{{cite web|title=Vivendi Appoints Lucian Grainge Chairman & CEO of Universal Music Group|url=http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/1178922/vivendi-appoints-lucian-grainge-chairman-ceo-of-universal-music-group|publisher=Billboard|access-date=December 7, 2013}}</ref>
===Sony Music Entertainment chairman and CEO=== Morris became chairman and CEO of Sony Music Entertainment on July 1, 2011.<ref>{{cite news|title=Doug Morris Named CEO Of Sony Music Entertainment, Effective July 1|author=Doug Morris|access-date=March 6, 2011|newspaper=Billboard|url=http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/record-labels/doug-morris-named-ceo-of-sony-music-entertainment-1005056302.story|date=March 2, 2011|archive-date=March 5, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110305172602/http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/record-labels/doug-morris-named-ceo-of-sony-music-entertainment-1005056302.story|url-status=dead}}</ref> After Morris' arrival, Sony Music restructured two of its label groups. The RCA/Jive Label Group had been split in half, being separated from the Jive Label Group. Peter Edge was promoted to CEO of the RCA Music Group.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/record-labels/peter-edge-appointed-ceo-of-rca-music-group-1005307972.story |title=Peter Edge Appointed CEO of RCA Music Group |publisher=Billboard |date=August 8, 2011 |access-date=July 23, 2013 |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116121453/http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/record-labels/peter-edge-appointed-ceo-of-rca-music-group-1005307972.story |url-status=dead }}</ref> L.A. Reid became the chairman and CEO of Epic Records shortly after Morris' arrival. Some Jive artists have been moved to Epic while others have been moved to the RCA. In addition to splitting the RCA/Jive Label Group, the Columbia/Epic Label Group was also split.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=L.A. Reid to Run Restructured Epic Records|magazine=Billboard |url=http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/1177453/la-reid-to-run-restructured-epic-records|access-date=December 7, 2013}}</ref> In October 2011 Morris announced that Mel Lewinter had been appointed executive vice president of Label Strategy at Sony Music.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Mel Lewinter Named EVP of Label Strategy for Sony Music Entertainment|magazine=Billboard |url=http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/1163971/mel-lewinter-named-evp-of-label-strategy-for-sony-music-entertainment|access-date=December 7, 2013}}</ref> On April 1, 2017, he was replaced as CEO of Sony Music Entertainment by Rob Stringer, who was the CEO of Columbia Records.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/rob-stringer-promoted-to-chief-executive-officer-of-sony-music-entertainment-300346857.html|title=Rob Stringer Promoted to Chief Executive Officer of Sony Music Entertainment|date=October 18, 2016|website=Prnewswire.com|language=en|access-date=May 4, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/business/7736556/doug-morris-sony-music-chief-exec-farewell-messages|title=A Sendoff to Sony Music Chief Exec Doug Morris: 'Doug-isms' & Lessons Learned From Iovine, Lipman & Others|last=Christman|first=Ed|date=March 24, 2017|magazine=Billboard|access-date=May 4, 2017}}</ref>
===12Tone Music Group=== In 2018, Morris founded the label 12Tone Music Group.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Shrley Halperin |first1=Jen Aswad |title=Doug Morris' New Label to Be Based in New York Times Building (EXCLUSIVE) |url=https://variety.com/2018/biz/news/doug-morris-12-tone-office-new-york-times-building-1202738581/ |website=Variety.com |date=March 28, 2018 |publisher=Penske Business Media, LLC |access-date=November 4, 2018}}</ref> His first signing to the label was American rapper Anderson .Paak.<ref>{{cite web |title=Anderson.Paak Pacts With Doug Morris' New 12 Tone Label |url=https://variety.com/2018/music/news/anderson-paak-pacts-with-doug-morris-new-12-tone-label-1202737237/ |website=Variety.com |date=March 27, 2018 |publisher=Renske Business Media LLC |access-date=November 4, 2018}}</ref> The label's assets were acquired by Warner Music Group in 2021. <ref>{{Cite web |last=Aswad |first=Jem |date=2021-07-20 |title=Warner Music Group Acquires Doug Morris' 12Tone Label |url=https://variety.com/2021/music/news/warner-music-group-12tone-label-1235023582/ |access-date=2025-08-18 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref>
===Founder of VEVO=== Morris's progressive digital strategies led him to become the first media executive to monetize online music videos, essentially helping to create the music video-on-demand market online.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Edgecliffe-Johnson |first1=Andrew |last2=Gelles |first2=David |date=2011-12-21 |title=The man who made music videos pay |newspaper=Financial Times |url=https://www.ft.com/content/7a26870a-2bb5-11e1-98bc-00144feabdc0 |access-date=December 28, 2018}}</ref>
As the founder (and former chairman) of VEVO, Morris partnered with Google chairman Eric Schmidt to launch the new premium music video and entertainment service in late 2009. Within its first month of launch, VEVO amassed an unprecedented 35 million unique viewers in the U.S., instantly making it the #1 music entertainment destination on the Web, according to comScore.<ref>{{cite news|last=Leonard|first=Devin|title=Sony Music CEO Doug Morris Is Streaming Big|url=http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-02-07/sony-music-ceo-doug-morris-is-streaming-big#p1|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130209101548/http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-02-07/sony-music-ceo-doug-morris-is-streaming-big#p1|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 9, 2013|access-date=December 7, 2013|newspaper=Bloomberg Businessweek|date=February 7, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release|title=VEVO Was Most Trafficked U.S. Entertainment-Music Web Network in December 2009|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/vevo-was-most-trafficked-us-entertainment-music-web-network-in-december-2009-81347087.html|website=Prnewswire.com|access-date=December 7, 2013}}</ref>
===''Motown: The Musical''=== In 2013, Morris was co-producer and lead financier of the Broadway musical ''Motown: The Musical''. Based on the life story of Motown founder Berry Gordy, and featuring classic songs from the Motown catalog, ''Motown: The Musical'' was nominated for four Tony Awards<ref>{{cite web|title=Motown The Musical|url=http://www.tonyawards.com/en_US/news/press_releases/2013-04-30/201304301367348924211.html|website=Tony Awards|access-date=December 7, 2013}}</ref> and was the top-selling new musical of the 2012–13 season.<ref>{{cite web|author=Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson|title=Hitsville revisited - ''Motown: The Musical'' |url=http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/52c460cc-cea9-11e2-8e16-00144feab7de.html#slide0|website=Financial Times|access-date=December 7, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=''Motown'' Breaks Broadway Musical Preview Records|url=https://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2013/04/01/motown-breaks-broadway-musical-preview-records/|access-date=December 7, 2013|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|date=April 1, 2013}}</ref>
===Awards and leadership=== Morris is on the board of directors of CBS Corporation, The Robin Hood Foundation, The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and The Rock -N- Roll Hall of Fame Foundation. In 2003, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) awarded Morris with the President's Merit Award, honoring his consistent creative commitment to artistic and entrepreneurial excellence and longstanding support for the music and world communities. In 2008, Morris was honored with City of Hope's Spirit of Life award, and in 2009, he received the NARAS Icons award as well as a star on the world-famous Hollywood Walk of Fame.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sonymusic.com/posts/74-sony-names-doug-morris-new-head-of-sony-music-entertainment |title=Sony Names Doug Morris New Head of Sony Music Entertainment | Sony Music Entertainment |access-date=June 29, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110624060622/http://www.sonymusic.com/posts/74-sony-names-doug-morris-new-head-of-sony-music-entertainment |archive-date=June 24, 2011 }}</ref> In 2014, Morris was honored by the Songwriters Hall of Fame with the Howie Richmond Hitmaker Award in recognition of being a star maker in the music industry who has been responsible for a substantial number of hit songs.<ref>{{cite web|author=Songwriters Hall of Fame|title=Doug Morris To Receive Howie Richmond Hitmaker Award|url=http://www.songhall.org/news/entry/doug_morris_to_receive_howie_richmond_hitmaker_award|date=March 12, 2014|access-date=June 26, 2014}}</ref> In 2015, he received an honorary doctorate from the Berklee College of Music in recognition of his achievements and influence in music, and for his enduring contributions to American and international culture.<ref>{{cite web|author=Berklee College of Music|title=Julio Iglesias, Doug Morris, Harvey Mason, Dee Dee Bridgewater to Receive Honorary Degrees|url=http://www.berklee.edu/news/julio-iglesias-doug-morris-harvey-mason-dee-dee-bridgewater-receive-honorary-degrees|date=April 14, 2015|access-date=May 11, 2015}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20061116115143/http://www.pbs.org/wttw/ceoexchange/episodes/ceo_dmorris.html ''CEO Exchange biography''] on PBS *[http://www.vivendi.com/corp/en/governance/dir_morris.php Vivendi Management Board Bio] *[https://www.wired.com/entertainment/music/magazine/15-12/mf_morris?currentPage=all "Universal's CEO Once Called iPod Users Thieves. Now He's Giving Songs Away"], on ''Wired'' *[https://web.archive.org/web/20110624060622/http://www.sonymusic.com/posts/74-sony-names-doug-morris-new-head-of-sony-music-entertainment Doug Morris biography from Sony Music] *[http://findingaids.cjh.org/?pID=431051 Guide to the Douglas Morris Collection] *How Music Got Free
{{s-start}} {{succession box | before = Rolf Schmidt-Holtz | title = Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of Sony Music Entertainment | years = July 1, 2011-April 2017 | after = Rob Stringer }} {{s-end}}
{{s-start}} {{succession box | before = first | title = Chief Executive Officer of Universal Music Group | years = November 1995 to January 1, 2011 | after = Lucian Grainge }} {{s-end}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Douglas}} Category:Living people Category:1938 births Category:20th-century American Jews Category:American music industry executives Category:American record producers Category:Columbia College, Columbia University alumni Category:Sony Music Category:MCA Records Category:21st-century American Jews