User:Keith A Rose

Brian K. Jackson is an American music industry veteran. Known to his friends and colleagues as "B Jack", Jackson resides in Los Angeles where he is the Creator and Founder of Split Sheetz, LLC. Split Sheetz® is a Mobile app designed for songwriters to negotiate, document and verify song splits between collaborators.

Background

Early Years

Born and raised in Chesapeake, VA, Jackson discovered an affinity for music at an early age. As the son of educators (his father, a high school principal and his mother, an elementary teacher), and middle of three siblings, he garnered the love and support of his family which would later come to be his security blanket as he ventured into the mysterious and ominous world of the music industry. At the of 12, Jackson took piano lessons for a year but, due to his hectic year-round schedule consisting of school, football, baseball and basketball practice, he opted to drop the lessons and teach himself by listening and mimicking the popular music of that time. His passion for music grew and, by the age of 15, he began to write and produce music as a part time hobby. By his junior year in high school, Jackson joined forces with four of his classmates and formed his first band that went on to enter and win local talent shows in the Tidewater area. His hometown area would later produce music industry superstars Timbaland, Missy Elliott, and The Neptunes (Pharrell Willimas and Chad Hugo).

Education

In the fall of 1986, Jackson enrolled in the University of Virginia, where he continued his activities in music by forming yet another band with three of his fellow Wahoos. The band, again, performed in several talent shows and won most of them. But, the university life expanded his interests to other activities and talents.

In the spring of 1987, Jackson pledged and became a brother of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. This was a new experience for him socially, and theater became a new endeavor academically. At the end of his sophomore year, he discovered his ability for acting and declared Drama as his major. As a result, he walked the halls with fellow school mates Tina Fey and Sean Patrick Thomas. However, during the spring and fall breaks, he interned in the Epic Records' Publicity and Promotion departments for CBS Records (now Sony Music Entertainment) in "The Big Apple", New York City. In 1990, Jackson graduated with a B.A. in Drama from and moved to New York to pursue a career in the music business.

Early Career

Shortly after arriving in New York, Jackson landed a job as Marketing Coordinator for the Promotions and Marketing departments of Columbia Records. It was there that he gained experience and watched the introduction and making of a superstar, Mariah Carey. He also had an opportunity to be hands on experience with the promotion and marketing of C&C Music Factory, and Def Jam recording artists, L.L. Cool J and EPMD.

However, after a short stint at Columbia, Jackson landed a job in the Publicity department of Mercury Records. As an assistant, he took the initiative to create a publicity plan for one of Mercury's newest acts, Black Sheep. Much of that plan was later adopted by the department, and Black Sheep went on to have successful career, a hit single, and a Gold album. His drive and enthusiasm caught the eye of the label's President, Ed Eckstine. After being hired as A&R Assistant to the President and moving down the hall, Jackson quickly became an asset by scouring all music submitted to his boss and identifying the hits. Under the supervision and tutelage of Ed Eckstine, he indirectly gained the wisdom of Eckstine's father, Billy Eckstine, his mentor, Quincy Jones, and his former boss at Arista Records, Clive Davis. His instincts eventually guided him to identify the hit singles, "I'm In Love" (Joe), "I Just Had to Hear Your Voice" (Oleta Adams), and "There's No Living Without You" (Will Downing). As fortune has it, his ability to identify hit songs was recognized by EMI Music Publishing and in 1993 he was given the opportunity to spread his wings and fly.