A look inside the label’s growing creative power shift
If you’ve been watching the major-label landscape, you’ve probably noticed Atlantic Music Group tightening its creative focus over the past year. The latest move adds another signal flare: Dave Rocco, who joined the company in 2024, has been promoted to Chief Creative Officer. It’s a new title, but not a surprising one if you’ve followed his trajectory across music, tech and advertising.
Let’s break down what this promotion actually means, why Rocco matters and how it fits into Atlantic’s broader reshuffling.
A Year That Reshaped Atlantic
Rocco arrived at Atlantic in 2024 as president of creative, and he’s been steering the label’s global creative direction ever since. His fingerprints are on campaigns for Cardi B, Bailey Zimmerman, Rosé, FKA twigs, Don Toliver and others.
Elliot Grainge, Atlantic Music Group’s chairman and CEO, didn’t hold back when explaining the decision.
Grainge said Rocco has been “crucial in reenergizing and reimagining Atlantic Music Group… His creative contributions to our organization and to our artists have been immeasurable.”
That’s strong praise, but insiders won’t find it surprising. Rocco has always positioned himself as the kind of executive who builds around artists rather than above them.
How Rocco Thinks About Creativity
What this phrase really means is that Rocco sees artists as the leaders of their own visual worlds. He laid it out plainly:
“Artists are their own creative directors and have unique and individual needs. Our job is to help them realize their vision and support them however we can.”
It’s a philosophy he’s carried through every part of his career, from radio to advertising to streaming.
In the new role, he’ll continue overseeing the teams responsible for video, artwork, advertising and broader creative strategy essentially every touchpoint that shapes how an artist looks and feels in the market.
A Career That Spans Radio, Advertising, Streaming and Records
Rocco’s CV reads like a map of the modern music economy.
Before Atlantic, he served as executive vice president of creative at Universal Music Group. At Spotify, he built Artist Marketing and eventually became global head of label and artist relations and marketing. He created initiatives like Fans First and the Best New Artist Party, which became core pieces of Spotify’s artist-facing ecosystem.
Go back even further and you’ll find him in advertising at Deutsch LA and BBDO, then even earlier as a teenager producing at Z100 and later scouting talent for Epic Records and Atlantic Records. Along the way, he picked up awards including Cannes Lions and Cleos and served on the board at GLAAD.
That mix of storytelling, tech fluency and artist relationships is exactly what major labels are competing for right now.
Atlantic’s Leadership Shuffle Isn’t Slowing Down
Rocco’s promotion isn’t happening in a vacuum. Atlantic Music Group has been restructuring since Grainge took over, and the company has been stacking leadership talent across its global divisions.
A few recent moves:
- Marsha St. Hubert became co-president of 10K Projects and EVP at Atlantic Music Group.
- Molly McLachlan was promoted to EVP at Atlantic Music Group.
- Jeremy Vuernick joined as EVP, reporting to Grainge and Atlantic UK co-presidents Ed Howard and Briony Turner.
- Rayna Bass and Selim Bouab, co-presidents of 300 Entertainment, expanded into joint co-presidents of Hip-Hop, R&B and Global Music at Atlantic Records.
- Lanre Gaba stepped into a new advisory role as EVP of artist strategy and development.
What this signals is a deliberate tightening of creative, A&R and global strategy essentially a blueprint for the next era of the label.
Why This Promotion Matters
Here’s the thing: major labels know that artist development now hinges on visual identity as much as it does on music. That’s where Rocco excels. His background is built for a world where an album cover, a TikTok clip and a tour documentary all need to speak the same language.
The Chief Creative Officer role puts him at the centre of that universe.
A Closing Thought
Atlantic has been recalibrating itself around a more unified creative vision. Rocco’s promotion is less a surprise and more a confirmation of the direction the company has been moving toward. As streaming, advertising and visual storytelling keep merging, having someone fluent in all three is no longer optional it’s strategic.
