Lyor Cohen, Warner Music Group’s key creative guy, is noodling the idea of setting up his own artists’ management and branding firm, The Post has learned.
The 52-year-old head of WMG’s recorded-music division is exiting the company at the end of the week after a disagreement with management over strategy, sources said.
Cohen, who had been at WMG for eight years, had been in contract discussions with CEO Stephen Cooper.
“They weren’t seeing eye to eye on the strategy,” one source close to Cohen said. “It was better to part ways; he didn’t see himself having a role going forward.”
WMG, owned by Access Industries’ Len Blavatnik, is eyeing the EMI music assets that Universal Music is being forced to sell to gain European antitrust approval of the deal.
Cohen’s future may also involve tying in with a private-equity firm to make a play for some of the Universal assets.
Jay-Z, who worked with Cohen when the executive ran Def Jam, told The Post, “[Lyor] is a safe harbor for all artists. You look at his track record, and he can do anything. He could run a big major or start his own thing.”
Cohen could not be reached for comment.