Over the course of the past year, the music industry has lost some of its brightest behind-the-scenes stars: corporate executives, songwriters, managers, producers, engineers, lawyers, promoters, inventors and more.
Between them, these individuals penned hit songs (“Crazy for You,” “Elvira,” “My Whole World Is Falling Down,” “The Way We Were”); helped launch important careers (Metallica, Prince, Little Richard); masterminded iconic cultural events (Woodstock); founded enduring labels (Stax, Impulse!); built empires (Clear Channel); created and/or produced iconic Broadway musicals (Hair, Dear Evan Hansen); helped popularize burgeoning musical genres (hip-hop, alternative rock); and even changed the way people listened to music.
While they may not have enjoyed the high profile or public adoration of their artist counterparts, these individuals played just as important a role in keeping the business humming – or at least dissecting it, in fire-breathing fashion. Some worked in the industry across decades and eras; others passed on far too soon, but left their mark nonetheless. Some created new and important spaces for underrepresented voices; others paved the way for those who came after them. They have been remembered as dreamers, visionaries and jokesters, and described as “magnetic,” “legendary” and possessing “a rock and roll heart” by those who knew and loved them.
To celebrate those who have passed on, Billboard is highlighting these often-unsung movers and shakers, all of whom made a difference in the music industry in ways both large and small, across every aspect of the business.
Here are the behind-the-scenes players we lost in 2022.
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Jon Lind, 73
Image Credit: Clay Williams Grammy-nominated songwriter for artists including Earth, Wind & Fire (“Boogie Wonderland”), Madonna (“Crazy for You”) and Vanessa Williams (“Save the Best for Last”)
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Jim Stewart, 92
Image Credit: Concord Stax API Carrier Collection Stax Records founder who launched the careers of Otis Redding, Carla Thomas, the Bar-Kays and more
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Terry Tolkin, 62
Image Credit: Courtesy of Warner Music Archives Former Elektra Records A&R executive who championed alt-rock artists including the Butthole Surfers, Stereolab and Luna
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Greg Epler, 64
Veteran music manager and booking agent who worked closely with Fuel, Lisa Simon and more
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Joel Morowitz, 55
Image Credit: Ray Ketchem Co-founder of 199s indie label spinART Records, which put out music by The Apples in Stereo, Velocity Girl, Clem Snide and more
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Marybeth Peters, 83
Image Credit: Chip Somodevilla/GI U.S. Register of Copyrights from 1994 to 2010 who played a major role in shaping important legislation for the Internet era
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Lowry Mays, 87
Image Credit: Ron Galella Collection/GI Founder of Clear Channel, which dominated the radio, concert and outdoor advertising businesses for decades
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Jerry Bentley, 79
Image Credit: Courtesy of Alabama Music Hall of Fame Former concert booker who managed Lee Greenwood for nearly 30 years
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Creed Taylor, 92
Image Credit: Jack Vartoogian/GI Record producer and label executive best known for founding jazz imprints Impulse! and CTI Records and introducing bossa nova to a mainstream audience in the U.S.
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Todd Brodginski, 53
Image Credit: Cheryl Marie Photography Founder of Reckoning Public Relations who managed Art Garfunkel beginning in 2016
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Peter Scaping, 76
Image Credit: BPI Former general manager of U.K. labels trade body BPI
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Joe Friedman, 76
Image Credit: Courtesy of Rachelle Friedman Co-founder of famed New York City retailer J&R Music World
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Frank Ursoleo, 65
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo Longtime BMG executive who founded Iconoclassic Records
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Bill Walker, 95
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo Producer and music arranger who worked as music director on The Johnny Cash Show from 1969 to 1971
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Steve Fickinger, 62
Image Credit: Vivien Killilea/GI for Rock of Ages Hollywood Tony-winning producer for Broadway musicals including Dear Evan Hansen, Newsies and The Lion King
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Steve Smith, 62
Image Credit: Chrissi Higham Radio programmer and consultant credited with launching the hip-hop format with New York’s Hot 97 in the mid-1990s
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Joel Whitburn, 82
Image Credit: Courtesy of Record Research Longtime music chart historian and author who founded the Record Research company in 1970
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Margo Knesz, 84
Image Credit: Courtesy Atlantic Records Pioneering female executive in the radio promotion business who served as general manager at Atlantic imprint Atco Records for most of the 1980s
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Nobuyuki Idei, 84
Image Credit: Koichi Kamoshida/GI CEO of Sony from 1998 through 2005 who played a key role in the company’s development of the compact disc
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Rick Turner, 78
Image Credit: Jamie Soja Pioneering concert sound mixer and guitar luthier who built instruments for the Grateful Dead, Led Zeppelin, The Who and more
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Fran La Maina, 82
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo Former president and COO of Dick Clark Productions who represented Clark for more than 25 years as his business adviser
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Eric Boehlert
Image Credit: Courtesy of the Boehlert family Music business investigative reporter and editor (Billboard, Rolling Stone) turned progressive media critic and pundit
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Justin Fontaine, 61
Image Credit: Courtesy of Kelly Edwards Fontaine Longtime music promotion executive who worked at Hollywood Records for 13 years
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Art Rupe, 104
Image Credit: Michael Ochs Archives/GI Founder of Specialty Records who helped launch the careers of artists including Little Richard and Sam Cooke
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Ben Farrell, 76
Image Credit: Autumn Farrell Nashville-based concert promoter who worked with artists including Elvis Presley, Elton John and Garth Brooks
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Don Graham, 87
Image Credit: Marsaili McGrath/GI Music promotion pioneer who worked at Warner Bros. Records, A&M Records and Blue Thumb Records with artists including Edd “Kookie” Byrnes and Connie Stevens, The Everly Brothers and Ike & Tina Turner
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Sandy Roberton, 80
Image Credit: Dinah Roberton Co-founder of Worlds End Producer Management who helped pioneer the management business around producers and engineers
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Mo Ostin, 95
Image Credit: Warner Records Archives Legendary label executive who led Warner Brothers Records through a storied time of both artistic and commercial success for more than 30 years
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Bert Fields, 93
Image Credit: Al Seib/Los Angeles Times via GI Entertainment litigator whose clients included The Beatles, David Geffen, Michael Jackson and Madonna
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Allison Canzanella, 32
Image Credit: Courtesy of the Canzanella family Tour marketing director who helped open the brand-new UBS Arena in Belmont Park, NY as vp of marketing
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Jamal Edwards, 31
Image Credit: Karwai Tang/WireImage Founder and CEO of hip-hop-leaning British youth media platform SBTV
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Morty Craft, 101
Image Credit: Courtesy of ABKCO Veteran label executive, songwriter and producer who worked with a young Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel, as well as Herbie Hancock, Bob Crewe, Connie Francis and Conway Twitty, among others
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Jon Zazula, 69
Image Credit: Courtesy of Zazula Family Co-founder of influential metal label Megaforce Records who released put out early records by bands including Anthrax, Testament, Overkill and Metallica
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Alan Warner, 78
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo Publishing executive and music historian who spent more than a decade at EMI Music Publishing as vp and senior vp of global catalog promotion
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Roy Rifkind, 94
Image Credit: Courtesy of Family Co-founder of Spring Records who signed artists including Millie Jackson and Joe Simon and charted one of the first-ever hip-hop hits, Fatback’s 1979 “King Tim III (Personality Jock)”
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Sidney Miller, 89
Image Credit: Alvin Jones, Alvin Jones Communications Group Founder and publisher of Black Radio Exclusive (BRE), one of the industry’s first Black music trade magazines
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Jerry Crutchfield, 87
Image Credit: Courtesy of Family Nashville songwriter, producer, publishing executive and music industry veteran who launched MCA Music Publishing’s Nashville office and served as its president for 25 years
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Ralph Emery, 88
Image Credit: Tom Burns/GI Longtime country music broadcaster and member of the Country Music Hall of Fame who hosted Nashville Network talk show Nashville Now from 1983 to 1993
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Lisa Roy
Image Credit: Corey Walthall/Clyne Media Inc Audio production and communications executive who co-founded Ground Control Studios and Rock & Roy Entertainment
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Gerard Drouot, 69
Image Credit: Rick Diamond/GI for The Agency Group Concert promoter who brought acts including Ray Charles, Elton John and The Rolling Stones to France
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Michael Lang, 77
Image Credit: Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/GI Co-creator of the Woodstock Music & Art Fair and co-founder of Sunshine Records, which signed Karen Dalton and Billy Joel
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Ken Williams, 83
Image Credit: Courtesy of the Williams Family Songwriter who wrote hundreds of songs for Peaches & Herb, Donny Hathaway, the Four Tops and The Main Ingredient (“Everybody Plays the Fool”)
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James Rado, 90
Image Credit: Eamonn M. McCormack/GI Co-creator of groundbreaking Broadway musical Hair
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Jimbeau Hinson, 70
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo Singer-songwriter who penned hits for The Oak Ridge Boys, David Lee Murphy, Kathy Mattea and more
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Dallas Frazier, 82
Image Credit: Courtesy of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum Songwriter who penned hits including The Oak Ridge Boys‘ “Elvira” and Gene Watson‘s “Fourteen Carat Mind”
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Marilyn Bergman, 93
Image Credit: Lawrence K. Ho/Los Angeles Times/GI Oscar-winning lyricist who teamed with husband Alan Bergman on songs including “The Windmills of Your Mind,” “Nice ’n’ Easy,” “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers” and “The Way We Were”
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Warren ‘Waz’ Costello, 64
Image Credit: Courtesy of Warren Costello family Longtime Mushroom Group executive who co-founded Liberation Records and the Bloodlines label
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Chris Lee, 76
Image Credit: Herb Forgie Longtime music industry receptionist who worked at Warner Music Canada’s Toronto headquarters from 1978 to 2007 and more recently at The Feldman Agency and Characters Talent Agency
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Dan Einstein
Image Credit: Ellen Einstein Longtime music industry executive who launched Red Pajamas Records and John Prine’s Oh Boy Records
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Jim Boyer
Image Credit: Marcia Brunning Music producer and mixer who worked with artists including Billy Joel, Rupert Holmes, Paul Simon and Barbra Streisand
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Bil VornDick, 72
Image Credit: Jerry Douglas Nashville producer/engineer who worked primarily with folk, bluegrass and Americana artists including Alison Krauss, Doc Watson and Charlie McCoy
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Ira Selsky
Image Credit: Douglas Stroock Longtime music industry lawyer and business affairs executive who worked at companies including United Artists Records, ABC/Dunhill, Warner Bros. Records and Rondor Music
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John Beug, 75
Image Credit: Saam Gabbay Longtime head of creative services at Warner Bros. Records and Grammy and Emmy Award-winning film and television producer who helped pioneer the music-video form
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Allen J. Becker, 90
Image Credit: Peter Kramer/GI Co-founder of PACE Concerts who dominated concert promotion in Texas and much of the South for more than 20 years
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Peter Cooper, 52
Image Credit: John Partipilo Grammy-nominated producer, Nashville journalist and Country Music Hall of Fame executive who released several albums as part of the duo Eric Brace & Peter Cooper
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Robert Gordy, 91
Image Credit: Leon Bennett/GI Longtime Motown executive and younger brother of Berry Gordy who served as chief executive of the company’s music publishing division for many years
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Christine Farnon, 97
Image Credit: William Eastabrook/NARAS Longtime Recording Academy executive who rose to become executive vp of the organization
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Burt Goldstein, 73
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo Music retail and distribution executive who founded the New York music chain Musical Maze before launching the distribution companies Impact and Big Daddy
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Lamont Dozier, 81
Image Credit: Bob Berg/GI Songwriter who partnered with Brian and Eddie Holland to write more than 25 top 10 Billboard Hot 100 songs for artists including The Supremes, The Four Tops and Marvin Gaye
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Suzy Frank, 78
Label executive, artist manager and co-owner of the legendary Los Angeles punk club/restaurant Hong Kong Café who helped shepherd the careers of artists including Donna Summer, The Village People, KISS, Billy Burnette, Autograph and Keely Smith
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Tom Harrison, 70
Image Credit: The Province Longtime Vancouver-based music critic and musician who wrote for The Province newspaper for 38 years
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Chris Ledesma, 64
Image Credit: Courtesy of Walt Disney Co. Longtime music editor of The Simpsons who worked on 734 episodes of the iconic animated series
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Walter Ulloa, 74
Image Credit: Chris Weeks/FilmMagic Co-founder, chairman and chief executive of Entravision Communications who oversaw a network of 47 radio stations and 55 TV stations, most of them Spanish-language
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Jim Long, 79
Longtime music industry entrepreneur and pioneer who founded numerous broadcast and entertainment companies, including TM FirstCom, CrucialMusic, Honest Entertainment Group, OneMusic, Long-Pride Broadcasting and Elias Music Library
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Brooks Arthur, 86
Grammy-winning producer and engineer who worked with Janis Ian, Neil Diamond, Van Morrison and girl groups including The Dixie Cups and The Shangri-Las
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Mike Pela, 72
Image Credit: Sade Adu Grammy-winning record producer and engineer who worked with artists including The Who, Maxwell and Boz Scaggs but was best known for his four-decade association with Sade