Oakland native & Def Jam Exec found dead

Via the Atlanta Journal Constitution

"One of the music executives who helped make Atlanta the Motown of the South died this weekend of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Cobb County police said. . . Stewart ran the day-to-day operations of Def Jam, the best-known hip-hop label in the country. He was named executive vice president about five months ago, succeeding rap superstar Jay-Z.

“Whatever happened over the past 24 hours is not a testament to who we all know,” Hicks said Sunday. “He was a one-of-a-kind individual. If you looked on his Blackberry [stamp] it said ‘One of one.’

“I mean, Shakir is the kind of guy who would get dressed up for a party none of us were invited to,” Hicks continued. “He had no doubt he was getting in. He was a ‘Where there’s a will, there’s a way’ kind of guy. Always.”

_____________

Shakir sounds like a mover and a shaker in the tradition of that Oaktown hustle. My regards go out to his family and friends for their tremendous loss. Stewart is known for signing pre-superstar Beyoncé, Ciara, Young Jeezy and Rick Ross. He also launched the careers of songwriters and producers Jazze Pha, and Grammy-winners Johnta Austin and Bryan-Michael Cox.