Aaron Bay-Schuck | |
|---|---|
 Bay-Schuck in 2018 | |
| Born | (1981-09-05)September 5, 1981 (age 43) Los Angeles,California, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Columbia University (BA) |
| Occupation(s) | Record executive, co-chairman and CEO ofWarner Records |
| Parents |
|
| Relatives | Leonard Nimoy (stepfather) Julie Nimoy (stepsister) Adam Nimoy (stepbrother) |
| Awards | Billboard Power 100 (2019-2025) Variety 500 (2019-2025) |
Aaron Bay-Schuck (born September 5, 1981) is an American music industry executive. The CEO and co-chairman ofWarner Records (formerly Warner Bros. Records), he was previously the president ofA&R atInterscope Geffen A&M and the senior vice president of A&R atAtlantic Records.[1][2]
Bay-Schuck was born in Los Angeles to actorsSusan Bay andJohn Schuck. His parents divorced when he was a child, and in 1989 his mother married actorLeonard Nimoy.[3] His mother is a cousin of film director and producerMichael Bay.[4]
Bay-Schuck attendedColumbia University, where he majored in political science. He planned to attend law school and pursue a career in entertainment law.[5] In his senior year, he met a video promotion executive fromCapitol Records and had a conversation with her about how record companies operate. The next day he applied for an internship atInterscope Records. He was hired, and although he interned in the video promotion department, he became interested inA&R.[6] He graduated from Columbia in 2003.[7]
Bay-Schuck returned to Los Angeles following his college graduation. Knowing that jobs at record companies had become scarce as the music industry constricted in the post-Napster era, he registered at an employment agency that placedtemps at labels. He was assigned a short-term job at Interscope, and was quickly hired as a full-time assistant toMartin Kierszenbaum, then the head of international marketing for the label. Determined to work in A&R, he left Interscope a year later to take a job as an A&R assistant at Atlantic. In 2006, he was promoted to a staff A&R position. His first hits in an A&R capacity were with the songs "Shawty" byPlies featuringT-Pain, and "Right Round" byFlo Rida featuringKesha. Bay-Schuck co-wrote "Right Round," which went five times platinum in the US and sold more than 10 million copies worldwide.[6]
Over the course of his ten years at Atlantic, Bay-Schuck worked withCee Lo Green,B.o.B.,T.I.,Trey Songz,Travie McCoy, andTrick Daddy, among others. Most notably, he discovered, signed and developedBruno Mars,[8] who has since sold more than 170 million singles and 26 million albums worldwide.[9] Following his success with Mars, Bay-Schuck, who had originally focused on rap and R&B, worked with artists of all genres.[10] He was appointed senior vice president of A&R for Atlantic in 2012.[11]
In 2014, Bay-Schuck was named president of A&R at Interscope Geffen A&M (IGA).[11] At IGA he worked with artists includingGwen Stefani,Imagine Dragons,Lady Gaga,Skylar Grey,Maroon 5,OneRepublic, andSelena Gomez.[12]
In October 2017, it was announced that Bay-Schuck had been appointed CEO and co-chairman of Warner Records.[1] He assumed the position in October 2018.[8][13] He said that increasing the focus on pop and hip hop artists were among his goals as Warner's CEO; since then, the label has had #1 hits withSaweetie featuringDoja Cat ("Best Friend"),Dua Lipa ("Levitating") andBebe Rexha ("Meant to Be"); and signed artists includingZach Bryan,Teddy Swims,NLE Choppa,Benson Boone,Veeze, andOmar Apollo.[14][15]
Bay-Schuck was an executive producer of the 2021 documentaryTom Petty, Somewhere You Feel Free: The Making of Wildflowers. The film won aProducers Guild Award in 2022.[16]
Bay-Schuck has appeared on theBillboard Power 100 every year from 2019-2025, theVariety 500 every year from 2019 through 2025,[17]and on theBillboard Country Power Players list in 2024.[18][19][20][21][22]Varietynamed Bay-Schuck and Corson executives of the year in 2024.