Clive Calder
Clive Calder | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 13, 1946 Johannesburg, Transvaal, Union of South Africa |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, music industry executive |
| Known for | Co-founder of Zomba Group and Jive Records |
| Notable work | Zomba Group, Jive Records |
Clive Ian Calder (born 13 December 1946) is a South African-British billionaire entrepreneur and music industry executive, recognized primarily for co-founding the Zomba Group along with its subsidiary Jive Records. As of October 2021, his estimated net worth stood at approximately US$5.5 billion.
Early life
Calder was born and grew up in Johannesburg, located in the Transvaal region of the Union of South Africa.
Career
In 1971, Calder partnered with Ralph Simon to establish his initial record label in South Africa. By 1975, the duo had moved their operations to London, where they founded Zomba, initially focusing on artist and producer management. The company broadened its scope by 1978 to include music publishing and set up an office in New York City. In 1981, Calder and Simon launched Jive, which evolved into a significant force in hip hop and rap music, aided by executive Barry Weiss.
Following Jive’s rise, Calder introduced Silvertone Records in 1988 and expanded his portfolio with several additional labels throughout the 1990s. After a divergence in principles, Calder purchased Simon’s shares in Zomba in 1990, becoming the sole proprietor. During the late 1990s, Jive achieved substantial commercial success by promoting teen pop sensations such as the Backstreet Boys, *NSYNC, and Britney Spears, resulting in numerous chart-topping hits.
In 2002, Calder sold Zomba to the German media conglomerate Bertelsmann for US$2.74 billion. He declined a role within the reorganized RCA/Jive Label Group, briefly serving as an advisor before departing from the music business entirely in 2003. By 2007, the Zomba Label Group had been fully absorbed into BMG’s structure and later became part of Sony Music’s RCA/Jive Label Group. The Jive brand was ultimately retired in October 2011, with its leading artists transferred to RCA and Epic Records.
A May 2018 article from The Washington Post revealed Calder’s expressed remorse for not addressing allegations against artist R. Kelly more promptly during his time at Jive.
Also in 2018, Calder along with his son Keith invested $46 million to acquire a 10% ownership stake in Cloud Imperium Games, the developer behind the Star Citizen video game.
Personal life
Calder is married to Patricia Calder, and together they have two children. The family lives in the Cayman Islands.
In May 2020, the ELMA Group of Foundations, established by Calder to advance children's health and education worldwide, committed $107 million to fight COVID-19 across Africa. Of this amount, around $26 million was allocated specifically to South Africa, Calder's country of birth.