Apple Music's Jimmy Iovine Transitioning Into 'Consulting Role' This August

Following rumors of his plans to leave Apple earlier this year, The Wall Street Journal today reported that Jimmy Iovine will transition into a "consulting role" with Apple Music this August. Iovine won't completely leave Apple and his involvement with Apple Music behind, but will step back from daily involvement, people familiar with his plans stated.

At the time of the original rumor, Iovine denied he would leave the company: "I am committed to doing whatever Eddy [Cue], Tim [Cook] and Apple need me to do, to help wherever and however I can, to take this all the way. I am in the band." As of now, it's unclear what exactly he will be doing in his consulting role with the streaming music service, but upon his transition he will no longer be the public face of Apple Music.

jimmyiovinegrammymuseumvariety
Iovine reportedly plans to spend more time with his family while at the same time supporting Apple Music and Apple senior vice president Eddy Cue "as needed." According to people close to Iovine, the transition from Beats' "edgy culture" to Apple's focus on "appealing to the masses" proved to be a challenge.

While Iovine was the public face of Apple Music and held meetings with employees and artists in Los Angeles, in recent years "most of Apple Music's operations" had been designated to Robert Kondrk and Jeff Robbin, overseeing business and engineering sides respectively. Cue is said to now be deciding on whether to continue divvying up responsibilities between Kondrk and Robbin, promoting one to a more public role, or hiring someone outside of Apple to become the new Iovine.

Iovine has been with the Apple Music team since 2014, when Apple acquired Beats Electronics and the Beats Music streaming service, both of which were co-founded by Iovine and Dr. Dre. Before that acquisition, Iovine has had a long history with Apple, first pitching a subscription music service to Steve Jobs in 2003.

Iovine's transitioning this August will be timed with the vesting of stock he acquired when first joining Apple. In January, he said that the bulk of his stock "vested a long time ago," and while a tiny portion remains unvested, it's "not what [he] thinks about." Still, the people familiar with his plans have now confirmed that the timing of his transition is in some part "linked" to the Apple shares he received in the Beats acquisition.

According to the WSJ, Iovine's stepping back from leadership makes him "one of the last" of the Beats team that Apple gained following the acquisition in 2014.

Mr. Iovine is one of the last of a team of prominent music executives Apple gained when it bought Beats Electronics LLC in 2014 for $3 billion. Former Chief Executive Ian Rogers, Beats co-founder Dr. Dre and Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor, another top Beats executive, have all left or distanced themselves from the company since the Apple deal, people familiar with the business said. Beats President Luke Wood, who oversees the headphone business, remains.

In his time at Apple, Iovine grew Apple Music to amass 36 million subscribers as of March 2018, while also pushing for the service to include more than just music and helping to launch shows like Carpool Karaoke. Before the launch of that show, as well as Planet of the Apps, Iovine said he hoped Apple Music would be "an entire pop cultural experience."

Popular Stories

AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Triad

Apple's 20th Anniversary iPhone May Finally Go All Screen

Tuesday April 15, 2025 6:31 am PDT by
Apple is preparing a "bold" new iPhone Pro model for the iPhone's 20th anniversary in 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. As part of what's being described as a "major shake-up," Apple is said to be developing a design that makes more extensive use of glass – and this could point directly to the display itself. Here's the case for Apple releasing a truly all-screen iPhone with no...
maxresdefault

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Sunday April 13, 2025 7:52 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and ...
CarPlay Hero

Apple Releases Wireless CarPlay Fix

Wednesday April 16, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
If you have been experiencing issues with wireless CarPlay in your vehicle lately, it was likely due to a software bug that has now been fixed. Apple released iOS 18.4.1 today, and the update's release notes say it "addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles." If wireless CarPlay was acting up for you, updating your iPhone to iOS 18.4.1 should...
top stories 2025 04 19

Top Stories: iPhone 17 Pro Rumors, CarPlay Bug Fix, and More

Saturday April 19, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
This week saw rumor updates on the iPhone 17 Pro and next-generation Vision Pro, while a minor iOS 18.4.1 update delivered not just security fixes but also a fix for some CarPlay issues. We also looked ahead at what else is in Apple's pipeline for the rest of 2025 and even the 20th-anniversary iPhone coming in 2027, so read on below for all the details on these stories and more! iPhone 17 ...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday April 15, 2025 7:37 am PDT by
The first iOS 19 beta is less than two months away, and there are already a handful of new features that are expected with the update. Apple should release the first iOS 19 beta to developers immediately following the WWDC 2025 keynote, which is scheduled for Monday, June 9. Following beta testing, the update should be released to the general public in September. Below, we recap the key...

Top Rated Comments

Nimrad Avatar
93 months ago
I bet nobody knows what he even does at Apple
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
YaBe Avatar
93 months ago
People keep bashing him, without even knowing what he does..... speaks volume of how good at judging some people are.

I do not know the guy, I can't speak eiothr pro or cons, but the fact that he is well respected at Apple (wich I think knows better than me what works for them) and that they still think he deserve to get that fat paycheck, means to me that he deserve his spot.

When the time comes that Apple think he is not working for them anymore, they will definetly find a way to get rid of him (no one is irrepleaceable) but to moan and judge when you are admitting you don't know what he does, well might not be so smart.

Probably just sticking around so he can collect one of the big fat apple paychecks, and not really doing much, but fraternizing with fellow employees. Seriously.... How much consulting does apple need for iTunes?!? You put music on it, people subscribe to listen.
Well seems you got all figured out, why don't you start your own Music service?

The rest is just design work done to the look and feel of the app. Really? What else is there?
Wow ...JUST design? What have you designed? (how ironic this comment about a company who sells....well "design")

“Most people make the mistake of thinking design is what it looks like. People think it’s this veneer – that the designers are handed this box and told, ‘Make it look good!’ That’s not what we think design is. It’s not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.” – Steve Jobs

Never liked him nayways. Good for Apple. His business decisions sounded dumb to me.
Yeah selling for billions to Apple sounds dumb to me too....not!
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
magbarn Avatar
93 months ago
A billion here and a billion there, pretty soon it becomes real money. When Apple can't spend a few million updating the iPad mini and the Mac Mini from using 4 year old CPU's....
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
wozmatic Avatar
93 months ago
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
magbarn Avatar
93 months ago
In January, he said that the bulk of his stock "vested a long time ago," and while a tiny portion remains unvested, it's "not what [he] thinks about."
Lol, I got a bridge to sell you.
Usually Apple does the milking, but this time they got "out-milked"
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BODYBUILDERPAUL Avatar
93 months ago
So much hate on this site! C'mon guys, if you can do a far better job, then go do it. But don't hate on a guy that you know nothing about. I've worked in this industry and radio, certainly it is full of fat cats with no interest in music but this guy, is one of the good guys. Respect him please. There's very, very, very few to almost zero good, passionate guys left in this industry!

My heart sank when I read 'the transition from Beats' "edgy culture" to Apple's focus on "appealing to the masses" proved to be a challenge'.

The DNA and soul of Apple was always having that 'edgy culture'. Or, at least it was. It was never about appealing to the masses - there's Windows and Android for that along with Spotify!
[doublepost=1521641995][/doublepost]
All of the music execs have left because they don't like working a 9-5. It's too much for them. They are rich. They don't like playing by the rules.
Why should anyone 'play by the rules?'.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)