Entertainment industry legend Clarence Avant, a manager, producer and mentor who became known as the 'Black Godfather' in the worlds of music, politics, and sports, died Sunday at his Los Angeles home, his family says."It is with a heavy heart that the Avant/Sarandos family announce the passing of Clarence Alexander Avant," the family said in a statement issued by his children, Nicole and Alex, and son-in-law Ted Sarandos, Netflix co-CEO.
Born in North Carolina, Avant rose to prominence in the entertainment industry after starting out as a talent manager in the 1950s. His clients included singers Sarah Vaughan and Little Willie John and composer Lalo Schifrin, who wrote the theme to “Mission: Impossible.”Sign up for NBC Philadelphia newsletters.
He married wife Jacqueline in 1967 and moved to Los Angeles in the late 1960s, working at Venture Records in Southern California and founded L.A.-based Sussex Records and Avant Garde Broadcasting. He would go on to work with some of the biggest names in the world of music, providing management services, guidance and inspiration to the likes of Jay-Z, Diddy, L.A. Reid and Babyface. He founded two record labels, and helped guide the careers of Bill Withers, Sixto Rodriguez, and Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis.
Avant became the chairman of the board of Motown Records in the 1990s and was the first African-American board member of PolyGram. He launched the first fully Black-owned radio stations in Los Angeles and was a consultant to MGM and ABC in the 1970s.