- published: 12 Apr 2016
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Jason Flom is an American music industry executive. He has served as the Chairman and CEO of music labels including Atlantic Records, Virgin Records, and the Capitol Music Group. In 1995, he founded Lava Records. He is also a philanthropist who has supported and championed various political and social causes.
A 2003 feature in The New Yorker called Flom "one of the most successful record men of the past 20 years," known for his "specialty [in] delivering 'monsters'."
Flom is the son of the late legendary corporate attorney Joseph Flom.
As a teenager, Flom played guitar in rock bands in New York. He began his career at Atlantic Records as a field merchandiser, and moved into the A&R department under Atlantic founder Ahmet Ertegun. After signing rock artists including Twisted Sister, Skid Row, White Lion, Stone Temple Pilots and Tori Amos, Flom soon became Atlantic's head of A&R, where he was mentored by Doug Morris.
Flom's leadership in A&R included breaking new artists such as Jewel, Hootie & the Blowfish and Collective Soul. In 1995 he founded his own label, Lava Records, in partnership with Atlantic Records.
Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Raised in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, Swift moved to Nashville, Tennessee at the age of fourteen to pursue a career in country music. She signed to the independent label Big Machine Records and became the youngest songwriter ever hired by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house. The release of Swift's self-titled debut album in 2006 established her as a country music star. "Our Song", her third single, made her the youngest sole writer and singer of a number one song on the country chart. She received a Best New Artist nomination at the 50th Grammy Awards.
Swift's second album, Fearless, was released in late 2008. Buoyed by the chart success of the singles "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me", Fearless attracted a crossover audience and became the top-selling album of 2009. The record won four Grammy Awards, with Swift becoming the youngest ever Album of the Year winner. Fearless also received Album of the Year plaudits at the American Music Awards, Academy of Country Music Awards and Country Music Association Awards, making it the most awarded album in country music history. In 2010, Swift released her third album, Speak Now, which sold over one million copies in its first week. She then embarked on the 111-date Speak Now World Tour, which was attended by over 1.6 million fans and has become one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time. The album's third single, "Mean", won two Grammy Awards for Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance. Swift is currently recording her fourth studio album, due for release in the fall of 2012.