- Born
- Birth nameJames Iovine
- Height5′ 5″ (1.65 m)
- Jimmy Iovine is a philanthropist and an acclaimed executive and music producer. He is the co-founder of the USC Jimmy Iovine and Andre Young Academy for Arts, Technology and the Business of Innovation and the Iovine and Young Center (IYC) with Andre Young (Dr. Dre). He is also the co-founder of Interscope Records (1990), Beats Electronics (2006), and Beats Music (2014).
Jimmy is the subject of the four-part docuseries "The Defiant Ones" (2017) alongside Dr. Dre. His music supervisor credits include "Sixteen Candles" (1984), "Scrooged" (1988), and "Road House" (1989). He worked as a music producer for Dan Hartman's "I Can Dream About You (Version 1)" (1984), Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' "Don't Come Around Here No More" (1985), and U2's "Rattle and Hum" (1988). Jimmy served as a producer for "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" (2005), starring 50 Cent, and "8 Mile" (2002), starring Eminem. He was an executive producer for the LeBron James documentary "More Than a Game" (2008) and "Horses: Patti Smith and Her Band" (2018). He also supported contestants as a mentor on American Idol from 2011 to 2013.
Jimmy is from Brooklyn, New York, and started his career as a recording engineer in his late teens. After a stint as a recording engineer at Record Plant in New York City, Jimmy moved on to become a music producer for industry greats, such as John Lennon, Patti Smith, Bruce Springsteen, The Pretenders, Dire Straits, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and Stevie Nicks. He would later go on to co-found Interscope Records.
Jimmy was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2022 for his achievements in the music industry. He was nominated for a Grammy Award under the Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package category for "Artists Inspired By Music: Interscope Reimagined." Additionally, he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy in 2011 as one of the executive producers of "Lady Gaga Presents: The Monster Ball Tour at Madison Square Garden."
Jimmy expanded his endeavors to include the USC Iovine and Young Academy, which he and Dr. Dre endowed with a $70 million donation. The USC Iovine and Young Academy fosters creativity, empowers students to connect with others through an integrated learning framework, and intersects design, technology, business, and communication into its curricula. Seeing the success of the Academy, he co-founded the IYC. The IYC focuses on fusing disciplines, such as technology, design, and entrepreneurship, in a cutting-edge, interdisciplinary curriculum. The IYC Integrated Design, Technology and Entrepreneurship Magnet opened in Los Angeles in 2022.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Michael Willard
- SpousesLiberty Ross(February 14, 2016 - present)Vicki Iovine(1985 - 2009) (divorced, 4 children)
- Was an engineer in the mid-1970s for John Lennon and Bruce Springsteen, and produced hit albums for U2, Dire Straits, the Eurythmics, Stevie Nicks, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Pretenders, Bob Seger and Patti Smith.
- Co-founded Interscope Records in 1990, introducing artists such as No Doubt, Dr. Dre, Nine Inch Nails, Eminem, Limp Bizkit, Enrique Iglesias, Mya, 2Pac, Smash Mouth and Eve.
- President of Interscope Records.
- Last name is pronounced "Eye-veen".
- Worked with John Lennon on his "Rock 'n' Roll" and "Walls and Bridges" albums, as an assistant engineer. Iovine accidentally stretched and ruined a master tape early on; rather than get angry, Lennon snapped a Polaroid photo of the embarrassed Iovine, showed it to main engineer Roy Cicala, then told Iovine "We're gonna save this picture, and show it to you someday when you're a great producer, you dumb f**k!".
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