Motown Records Reintegrated Into Capitol
• Motown Records continues to undergo a corporate transformation — after two years as a stand-alone label under the command of Chair/CEO Ethiopia Habtemariam — who announced her impending departure last November — the label is being brought back under the Capitol Music Group (CMG) banner, and, in so doing, certain employee positions will overlap, leading to some layoffs.
A statement from Motown Records’ spokesperson reads, “As Motown returns to the Capitol family, certain positions that had been created when we became a stand-alone label have since become duplicative. These employees are leaving the company and our People, Inclusion and Culture department is helping them find new opportunities — either within or outside of UMG.”
Motown has been a member of CMG since 2014, when Sir Lucian Grainge appointed Habtemariam as President of Motown Records and EVP of Capitol Music Group as she oversaw the label’s relocation from New York to Los Angeles. Habtemariam was elevated into her current position in March 2021 and Motown became a stand-alone unit.
And there’s more — Motown’s eight-year partnership with Quality Control — home to Migos, Lil Baby, Lil Yachty and others — was recently dissolved when Quality Control was acquired by HYBE America in a deal worth a reported $300 million.
