Sylvia Rhone Steps Down as Chair/CEO of Epic Records

Rhone was the first Black woman to chair a major record label

Sylvia Rhone has announced she is exiting her position as Chair/CEO of Epic Records, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment. She has held the role since 2019, previously serving as President of Epic starting in 2014.

Rhone & Epic:

During Rhone’s time at the label, she worked with notable artists across a wide variety of genres, including Future, Travis Scott, 21 Savage, Tyla, Andre 3000, Camila Cabello, and Ozzy Osbourne.
At the year-end of 2024, Epic’s U.S. market share increased from 2.31% to 2.59%, landing eighth place.
Rhone earned numerous awards across her career, including City of Hope’s Spirit of Life Award, the Black Music Collective’s Recording Academy Global Impact Award, the Black Music Action Coalition’s BMAC Clarence Avant Trailblazer Award, and she was named Billboard’s Women in Music executive of the year in 2023.

Women in the C-suite:

Rhone is the latest woman to leave a C-suite role in the music industry.
Capitol Music Group’s Michelle Jubelirer, Atlantic Music Group’s Julie Greenwald, and UMG Nashville’s Cindy Mabe left CEO/chair roles in the last two years.

What they said:

Rhone stated in part: “This role at Epic represents the third time in my career that I’ve been the first woman and first Black person to serve as CEO of a major record label owned by a Fortune 500 company. And today, I am moving on from this historic role at Epic, and I’m very excited about the future. I’ve always been surrounded by excellent teams, but our current one at Epic is extraordinary.” Read her full statement here.
Rob Stringer, Sony Music Group Chairman: “[Rhone] has made history, including becoming the first woman to be named Chair of a major record company and guided some of the biggest artists in our business across every genre. Sylvia’s influence is rooted in an understanding of music’s power to connect with people.”

Rhone & Epic:

During Rhone’s time at the label, she worked with notable artists across a wide variety of genres, including Future, Travis Scott, 21 Savage, Tyla, Andre 3000, Camila Cabello, and Ozzy Osbourne.
At the year-end of 2024, Epic’s U.S. market share increased from 2.31% to 2.59%, landing eighth place.
Rhone earned numerous awards across her career, including City of Hope’s Spirit of Life Award, the Black Music Collective’s Recording Academy Global Impact Award, the Black Music Action Coalition’s BMAC Clarence Avant Trailblazer Award, and she was named Billboard’s Women in Music executive of the year in 2023.

Women in the C-suite:

Rhone is the latest woman to leave a C-suite role in the music industry.
Capitol Music Group’s Michelle Jubelirer, Atlantic Music Group’s Julie Greenwald, and UMG Nashville’s Cindy Mabe left CEO/chair roles in the last two years.

What they said:

Rhone stated in part: “This role at Epic represents the third time in my career that I’ve been the first woman and first Black person to serve as CEO of a major record label owned by a Fortune 500 company. And today, I am moving on from this historic role at Epic, and I’m very excited about the future. I’ve always been surrounded by excellent teams, but our current one at Epic is extraordinary.” Read her full statement here.
Rob Stringer, Sony Music Group Chairman: “[Rhone] has made history, including becoming the first woman to be named Chair of a major record company and guided some of the biggest artists in our business across every genre. Sylvia’s influence is rooted in an understanding of music’s power to connect with people.”

Rhone & Epic:

During Rhone’s time at the label, she worked with notable artists across a wide variety of genres, including Future, Travis Scott, 21 Savage, Tyla, Andre 3000, Camila Cabello, and Ozzy Osbourne.
At the year-end of 2024, Epic’s U.S. market share increased from 2.31% to 2.59%, landing eighth place.
Rhone earned numerous awards across her career, including City of Hope’s Spirit of Life Award, the Black Music Collective’s Recording Academy Global Impact Award, the Black Music Action Coalition’s BMAC Clarence Avant Trailblazer Award, and she was named Billboard’s Women in Music executive of the year in 2023.

Women in the C-suite:

Rhone is the latest woman to leave a C-suite role in the music industry.
Capitol Music Group’s Michelle Jubelirer, Atlantic Music Group’s Julie Greenwald, and UMG Nashville’s Cindy Mabe left CEO/chair roles in the last two years.

What they said:

Rhone stated in part: “This role at Epic represents the third time in my career that I’ve been the first woman and first Black person to serve as CEO of a major record label owned by a Fortune 500 company. And today, I am moving on from this historic role at Epic, and I’m very excited about the future. I’ve always been surrounded by excellent teams, but our current one at Epic is extraordinary.” Read her full statement here.
Rob Stringer, Sony Music Group Chairman: “[Rhone] has made history, including becoming the first woman to be named Chair of a major record company and guided some of the biggest artists in our business across every genre. Sylvia’s influence is rooted in an understanding of music’s power to connect with people.”

👋 Disclosures & Transparency Block

This article was written with information sourced from Billboard.
We covered it because Epic is a subsidiary of Sony, one of the three major record labels.