NEW YORK, Aug. 8, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Universal Republic Records, a division of Universal Music Group, continues with the expansion of its creative investments this week by appointing prominent talent executive Rob Stevenson to the newly-created position of Executive Vice President, A&R. The announcement was made today by Monte Lipman, President & CEO of the company.

Based in New York and reporting to Monte and Avery Lipman (Co-President/COO), Mr. Stevenson will be responsible for expanding the label's A&R activities across a variety of genres, including Pop and Rock.

"Rob is a brilliant music executive with a strong track record of success," stated Mr. Lipman. "And we are fortunate to have someone of his stature joining Universal Republic as we continue to expand the services we offer our artists."

"We are beginning another exciting chapter in our history with Rob's appointment," added Avery Lipman. "The entire Universal Republic family joins us in welcoming him to the team."

"It's a great honor to be working at Universal Republic alongside Monte, Avery, and the entire staff," added Mr. Stevenson. "The label has a legacy of discovering and developing game-changing new artists, and I hope to continue that for a very long time."

Noted for his talent spotting prowess, Mr. Stevenson began his career in 1993 while working as an assistant account executive for Ogilvy and Mather. He later segued into the A&R department at Mercury Records, eventually becoming Vice President of A&R for Island Records in 2002, a post he held until 2006 when he rose to the rank of department director. While at Island, Mr. Stevenson was responsible for signing such multi-platinum selling, critically-acclaimed artists as The Killers, Fall Out Boy, The Bravery, Sum 41 and Thrice, among many others. Cumulatively, artists he signed have generated sales of over 26 million records worldwide. In 2008, he was named president of EMI's Virgin Records, US.

Mr. Stevenson has also earned numerous accolades for his work, with Entertainment Weekly dubbing him the "Must A&R Guy" on The Must List 2006, while New York Magazine bestowed "The Industry Award" upon Stevenson as part of their 2005 New York Magazine Pop Culture Awards.

SOURCE Universal Music Group

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