 Irwin Z. Robinson is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Famous Music Publishing Companies, the worldwide music publishing division of Viacom’s Paramount Pictures. Headquartered in New York, Mr. Robinson joined Famous in April 1992 with a mandate to grow the company domestically and internationally. Within ten years, Famous—which now ranks in the industry’s Top 10—has moved solidly into the mainstream of contemporary music by streamlining and modernizing its operations, dramatically expanding its catalogue and activities and moving aggressively into the global arena.
Established in 1928 as the music publishing division of Paramount Pictures, Famous Music’s catalogue now contains well over 100,000 copyrights spanning over seven decades of popular, film and television music. Starting from such early hits as the 1929 Maurice Chevalier standard “Louise” to such recent mega hits as Eminem’s “Without Me” and multi-platinum album The Eminem Show, P.O.D’s “Alive,” Ashanti’s “Foolish,” “Ain’t It Funny” by Jennifer Lopez featuring Ja Rule, “Always On Time” by Ja Rule featuring Ashanti, Pink’s “Get The Party Started,” Christina Aguilera’s “Beautiful,” Dixie Chicks’ “Long Time Gone,” Martina McBride’s “Blessed,” and George Strait’s “Run,” the company has had success in all major music genres.
Mr. Robinson was admitted to the New York State Bar in 1962. In 1964, he joined Screen Gems-Columbia Music as House Counsel and subsequently became Vice President and General Manager. Mr. Robinson held that position following EMI’s purchase and consolidation of the company into Screen Gems-EMI Music, Inc.
Mr. Robinson came to Famous after heading two of the industry’s leading international music publishing companies - the Chappell/Intersong Music Group-USA and EMI Music Publishing Worldwide. He was appointed President of the legendary Chappell/Intersong in 1977, serving con-currently as Senior Vice President of parent company Chappell and Company, Inc., starting in 1985. After the merger of Chappell and Warner Bros. Music in 1987, he was asked to re-join EMI and was named President and Chief Executive of EMI Music Publishing Worldwide.
One of the music publishing industry’s most dynamic and innovative leaders, Mr. Robinson was honored with the prestigious Abe Olman Publisher Award for lifetime achievement in music publishing at the 29th Annual Songwriters’ Hall of Fame Awards Dinner and Induction Ceremony on June 10, 1998. He is presently Chairman of the Board of the National Music Publisher Association and the Harry Fox Agency. He is a member of the ASCAP Board of Directors and serves on the Executive Committee of both ASCAP and NMPA. Mr. Robinson is also on the Board of the Songwriters Hall of Fame and has served as a trustee of the U.S. Copyright Society. Famous Music is the worldwide music publishing division of Paramount Pictures, which is part of the entertainment operations of Viacom, Inc.
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