Def Jam Names LaTrice Burnette EVP

Def Jam Recordings has named experienced label veteran LaTrice Burnette as its new executive vp, the company announced today (Feb. 8). As part of her move, Burnette will also be bringing her label 4th & Broadway, which she relaunched as president in November 2020, under the Def Jam umbrella.

Burnette moves to Def Jam from Island, which she had joined in 2018 as executive vp/general manager. In 2020 she led the relaunch of 4th & Broadway — originally an Island imprint that had been founded in 1984 as a hip-hop and dance label, most notably home to recordings by Eric B. & Rakim — and has since signed artists including Young Devyn, Lil Migo, Pap Chanel, Chiiild and Kidd Kenn to the label. The artists, the label and the core staff of 4th & Broadway will follow Burnette to Def Jam, where she will report to new Def Jam chairman/CEO Tunji Balogun.

“LaTrice is a proven leader, a consummate professional and someone who’s work and reputation I’ve admired for a long time,” Balogun said in a statement. “Her laser-sharp focus and business acumen, her expertise in artist development and her experienced, holistic view of the both the marketplace and the industry make her a pivotal addition to the team we’re building here and the vision for where we’re headed.”

Burnette has a long track record of success as a marketing exec working in hip-hop and R&B, first at Roc-A-Fella Records at the turn of the century and then at Atlantic and Bad Boy. She spent eight years at Epic Records, rising to the position of senior vp marketing — and working on major campaigns for Future, Yo Gotti, Travis Scott, Bobby Shmurda and DJ Khaled, among others — before moving to UMG’s Island in 2018.

Over the last several years, Burnette has burnished her reputation working with the likes of Jessie Reyez, Skip Marley and Toni Braxton, among others, and was named to Billboard’s 40 Under 40, Women in Music, R&B/Hip-Hop Power Players and Change Agents lists, recognizing her work in recent years. She’s also taken on the role of chair of the programming and curation committee of Universal Music’s Task Force For Meaningful Change, within which she has promoted ideas and discussions around tolerance, equality and inclusion within the intersection of Black music and art, lifestyle, fashion, tech and creator communities.

“I am thrilled to join Def Jam, an iconic label and brand that’s been influential in music and culture for decades,” Burnette said in a statement. “I thank Tunji for his support and I am excited for the incredible opportunity to work alongside the executive team, staff and amazing artists. I look forward to developing and breaking the next generation of global superstars under Tunji’s leadership and musical vision.”

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