\n
Davis, who had become synonymous with the Grammy Awards was expected to to be honored there next year.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was really looking forward to that,\u201d Davis\u2019 friend, restaurateur Max Tucci \u2013who last spoke with him on June 8 \u2014 told us, I said, \u201c\u2018We have a lot of things to do,\u2019 and he said, \u2018We do. We do.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\nClive Davis passed away in his sleep with partner Greg Schriefer by his side. WireImage<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nDavis helped make Whitney Houston a global superstar. Lester Cohen<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nTwo weeks later, he passed away peacefully in his sleep.<\/p>\n\n<\/aside>\nNikki Haskell, Davis friend \u201csince the 70s,\u201d told us the one-time Columbia Records boss was getting ready to go to a concert when doctors \u201ctold him to go to a hospital instead,\u201d a few weeks ago. Still, she says, \u201cNobody [had] more life than he has\u2026 There\u2019s no one more fabulous than he is.\u201d<\/p>\n
And nothing epitomized fabulous, as Haskell put it, more than his annual pre-Grammy parties. It\u2019s been the main event \u2013 before the main event \u2013 since he launched the bash in 1975. In 2014, the Grammys labeled the event the second -most-coveted ticket in town. \u201cDavis is nothing short of a living legend in the music industry, and his parties have become legendary as the most star-studded and excitement-packed of VIP bashes,\u201d the academy said at the time.<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough the years, an array of A-lists talents have performed at these events, turning the celebrations into the ultimate, intimate, \u2018insider,\u2019 concerts,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n
Discovering artists such as Janis Joplin, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Whitney Houston, and Alicia Keys, among others, is how he helped create the soundtrack of generations \u2013 and how the music industry came to know him as \u201cthe man with the golden ears.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\nDavis longtime friend Nikki Haskell said there\u2019s no one more fabulous than Davis. Patrick McMullan via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nDavis signed Bruce Springsteen to Columbia Records when he was 22. Getty Images for 20th Century Studios<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nBut it was the great American songbook of the early 20th century that really inspired Davis\u2019 tastes, his friend of 15 years, former New York Post critic, Michael Riedel, told us.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe loved Vincent Youmans, George Gershwin and Cole Porter\u2026 His sensibility was, he knew music was changing. His mentor was Goddard Lieberson,\u201d Riedel said of the composer who ran Columbia Records from 1956 to 1976.<\/p>\nJohn Sykes, Davis, Billy Joel and John Mellencamp in 2008 at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction. WireImage<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nDavis\u2019 pre-Grammy party is the hottest ticket during music\u2019s biggest weekend. Kevin Mazur<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u201cAt 22 years old, he changed my life when he signed me to Columbia Records. He treated me with the same respect and kindness as a 22-year-old nobody as he did after all my success. A great man. All our prayers and love,\u201d Springsteen said after learning of Davis\u2019 death.<\/p>\n
Joel was another Columbia artist Davis put on.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe recognized the talent of great musicians and understood the power of contemporary music. I will always be grateful to Clive for his recognition of the critical importance of songwriting. He undoubtedly enhanced the stature of the music industry during his tenure as president of Columbia Records,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Davis founded Arista Records in 1974, where he made Houston a global pop star and revitalized Aretha Franklin\u2019s career in the 1980s. Houston tragically passed in 2012, the evening that she was expected to attend his pre-Grammy party. The party went on because, he told guests at the event, \u201cTo put it simply, Whitney would have wanted the music to go on and her family asked that we carry on.\u201d<\/p>\nDavis revived Aretha Franklin\u2019s career when he signed her to Arista in the 1980s. Penske Media via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nDionne Warwick referred to Davis as the brown shoe, white sock record executive. Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u201cClive was loyal to the end,\u201d Haskell, who was at that party with him, said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am truly going to miss him,\u201d she said.<\/p>\nDavis was hospitalized with a respiratory infection on May 29. GC Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nRepublic Records co-founders Monte and Avery Lipman got their start working for Davis. Getty Images for Bedford Playhouse<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nTucci told us Davis was expecting Warwick at his annual Memorial Day celebration at his Pound Ridge estate, but he made an announcement that \u201cshe called and sent her regrets, but she won an award and had to fly to Germany as she was on tour there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ironically, Warwick added in her statement, \u201cHe always wanted to know \u2018where\u2019s my Dionne.\u2019 I referred to him as the brown shoe, white sock record executive.\u00a0 I can think of no other record man that seemed to have that magical ability to know a hit when he heard a song.\u00a0 The entire music industry I\u2019m sure will mourn his passing.\u00a0 He was one of a kind.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\n
Davis was not only responsible for launching music stars. Republic Records co-founders Monte and Avery Lipman, the music industry brother duo behind stars like Taylor Swift, The Weeknd and Ariana Grande, owe their music industry takeover to Davis.<\/p>\nDavis was known as the man with the golden ears. believedpodcast\/Instagram<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u201cAvery and I got our start in the music business working for Clive at Arista Records in the late 1980s. By virtue of being in his orbit, we had a front-row seat to his extraordinary success as he discovered and championed legendary artists who\u2019ve gone on to make the world a better place,\u201d Monte told us.<\/p>\n
Avery\u2019s first job was as Davis\u2019 part-time secretary.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOn my very first day, I handed him a list of missed calls and mentioned that his son had called while he was in a meeting. Clive immediately told me, \u2018If any of my children call, you need to grab me,\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom that day forward, I interrupted meetings and calls whenever one of his children reached out and every single time, he stopped what he was doing and took the call\u2026 I\u2019ll always remember the example he set as a parent, mentor and leader,\u201d Avery said.<\/p>\nAvery Lipman said he\u2019ll always remember the example Davis set as a parent. WireImage for J Records<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nDavis honored the brothers at his last pre-Grammy bash in February. \u201cTo stand alongside him nearly after 40 years later was a deeply meaningful full moment that we will always cherish and hold dear in our hearts. We love you Clive,\u201d Monte said.<\/p>\n
Davis\u2019 final run as a label was at J Records, the label he founded in 2000 after Arista. The world was introduced to \u201cSongs in A Minor\u201d singer Alicia Keys and \u201cAmerican Idol\u201d winners, Fantasia, Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and Jennifer Hudson.<\/p>\n
Keys and Hudson posted tributes on Monday, with the latter explaining, \u201cI needed a moment\u2026This was a huge blow to wake up to. I know nobody lives forever, but Clive\u2019s impact and legacy will always live on\u2026 We will always celebrate your life and legacy,\u201d she wrote.<\/p>\n
Keys shared collage art of her and Davis designed by her graphic artist. \u201cTo Clive Davis, the visionary who transformed dreams into reality,\u201d it read.<\/p>\n
In 2022, Keys helped him ring in his 90th birthday at Casa Cipriani, where she gushed about her family\u2019s love and admiration for Davis. That same year, I was the only journalist to interview Davis at his Park Avenue apartment for \u201cExtra.\u201d There was no signs of slowing down as Davis told me, \u201cIt is my life. It\u2019s what I do, and as long as health permits I\u2019m doing what I like.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\n
Davis spent his final weeks doing what he loved, gallivanting around New York City, going to his favorite restaurants, attending, and hosting friends to watch the Knicks. On May 29, he was forced to slow down after being hospitalized with a respiratory infection. Reidel told us he was expected to escort him to a concert to see Air Supply, an Australian band he helped break through into America.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey had one song that had a lyric that only made sense in Australia. Clive changed one word and he was very proud of the fact that he got royalties,\u201d Riedel recalled.<\/p>\n
Davis took his final breath nearly one month later at 10:58 a.m. on June 22, with his longtime partner, Greg Schreifer by his side. \u201cI was holding his hand as he took his final breath, surrounded by family and dear friends who loved him deeply,\u201d Shriefer told us.<\/p>\n
Davis came out as bisexual in 2013, and wrote about Schriefer in his autobiography, \u201cThe Soundtrack of My Life.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Shriefer told us, \u00a0\u201cFor the past 21 years, Clive has been my partner, my greatest source of inspiration, my teacher, my confidant, and my best friend. Together we traveled the world, shared countless adventures, celebrated life\u2019s greatest joys, and faced life\u2019s challenges side by side. Every day with him was a gift\u2026 The world lost an icon today, but I lost the man I loved,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Davis is survived by Schriefer and his sons Fred, Doug and Mitchell, daughter Lauren, and his eight grandchildren Austin, Charlie, Matthew, Hayley, Harper, Sloane, Billie and Cody, two great grandchildren, and cousin Jo Schuman.<\/p>\nDavis was always on the go. GC Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u201cTo the world, our father was the iconic music legend whose vision, instincts, and relentless pursuit of excellence shaped the soundtrack of countless lives,\u201d said Schriefer, \u201cHe discovered, mentored, and championed the greatest artists in modern music history, leaving an indelible mark on culture that will endure for generations.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a statement, the Davis family said that \u201cthrough every chapter of his remarkable life, family remained Clive\u2019s greatest pride and deepest joy.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cToday, we celebrate not only a towering figure whose influence changed music forever, but the man who led our family with grace, generosity, and kindness,\u201d the said, \u201cWe will miss him greatly, cherish him always, and carry his love with us for the rest of our lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere will never be another like him. I will miss him beyond words, and I will carry his love, his wisdom, and the memories of our life together with me for the rest of my days. So long my babe,\u201d Schriefer concluded. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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