Eric Nicks

Founder of Alpine Music Group and music industry veteran

Eric Nicks is the founder of Alpine Music Group,[1] home to R&B sensation Justine Skye.[2] Eric Nicks is a music industry veteran, having been named the Sr. VP of A&R at Universal Motown.[3][4] He also founded R&B Live NY, an industry showcase in New York City.[5] Nicks sits on the board of advisors for the Brooklyn Academy of Music. He is often a guest speaker at a variety of colleges, including NYU, Morehouse, and many others. On top of founding Alpine Music Group, Eric also created a bowling app called Side Action Bowling.

## Career

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Eric Nicks graduated from New York University and began co-managing the sister of his best friend, up and coming rapper, Foxy Brown. In ‘96 Nicks received a call from Lyor Cohen and Chris Lighty, offering him an A&R position at Violator (company) Records and Management where he would help shape the careers of LL Cool J, Busta Rhymes, and Noreaga among others. After spending 5 years at Violator, Lighty named him President of the records division until he stepped off to start a management company, EVision, with LL Cool J as one of his clients.[6]

He was involved in the platinum releases of Foxy Brown’s Ill NaNa, LL Cool J’s The DEFinition,[7] and Lyfe Jennings’ debut Lyfe 268-192.[8] Eric Nicks received a tap from Kevin Liles, former president of Def Jam, for a position as Vice President of A&R at Def Jam. Under Nicks’ tenure at Def Jam, LL dropped his 10th studio album titled "10" which included LL Cool J's 1st #1 single “Love You Better.” and 11th studio album "The Definition" which included LL's 2nd #1 single "Headsprung" and 3rd #1 single "All I Need" featuring Jennifer Lopez. In 2003, Nicks left Def Jam to become Sr. Vice President of A&R at Sony Records where he A&R'd Lyfe Jennings Platinum debut album "268-192". He went on to become Sr. VP of A&R at Universal Motown Records in 2006.

In 2007, Eric Nicks created R&B Live New York.[9] Since its inception, R&B Live has hosted artists such as Fantasia, Ne-Yo, Trey Songz, Brian McKnight and many more. The star-studded room has included Kevin Liles, Jay-Z, Denzel Washington, Terrence Howard and many other celebrities and industry executives.

2008 marked the conception of Brookland Entertainment,[10] Eric Nicks’ own record label company formed in conjunction with the Trackmasters. Brookland Entertainment was home to the hit single "Download" by Lil' Kim ft. T-Pain and Charlie Wilson and dancehall artist Beenie Man.

In 2010 Eric Nicks founded Alpine Music Group, which includes a self owned management company, a joint venture publishing company with Sony/ATV and a Record Label under Atlantic Records which houses upcoming sensation Justine Skye. In 2010 Eric also founded Alpine Music Publishing which houses records from Justine Bieber "U Smile", One Direction "Gotta Be you", Justine Skye "Collide" and many more.

## A&R Discography

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Artist | Album | Label | Year

|
|
|

Foxy Brown | Ill Nana | Violator/Def Jam | 1996
Foxy Brown | Chyna Doll | Violator/Def Jam | 1999
Various Artists | Violator Compilation | Violator/Def Jam | 1999
Various Artists | Violator Compilation V2.0 | Violator/Def Jam | 2001 [11]
LL Cool J | The DEFinition | Def Jam | 2004
Lyfe Jennings | Lyfe 268-192 | Sony | 2004

## References

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1. ^ "Interview - Eric Nicks". Maxfield Music. Retrieved 2019-11-19.
2. ^ "AlpineMusicGroup.com". www.alpinemusicgroup.com.
3. ^ https://www.variety.com/article/VR1117920521.html?categoryid=16&cs=1 [dead link]
4. ^ "Universal Music Group, the world's leading music company - Home Page". UMG.
5. ^ [1][dead link]
6. ^ Company, Johnson Publishing (1 January 2003). "Ebony". Johnson Publishing Company - via Google Books. `{{cite web}}`: `|last=` has generic name (help)
7. ^ "Eric Nicks". Discogs.
8. ^ "News, reviews, interviews and more for top artists and albums – MSN Music". music.msn.com. Archived from the original on 2012-09-19. Retrieved 2011-05-26.
9. ^ alex (21 April 2018). "Billboard biz". Billboard.
10. ^ "PMP Worldwide - the Future of Music Redefined". Archived from the original on 2011-08-24. Retrieved 2011-05-26.
11. ^ [2][dead link]