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No. 59
Cortez Bryant & Gee Roberson

Co-CEOs
The Blueprint Group
Twitter: @CortezBryant
Young Moneymakers...

Four years ago, Cortez Bryant was best-known as Lil Wayne's DJ. Now Bryant (who made Billboard's 30 Under 30 list in 2009) is a high-profile power broker. Late last year, the New Orleans native completed the merger of his Bryant Management, which counted Wayne, Drake and Nicki Minaj among its clients, with Gee Roberson and Kyambo "Hip Hop" Joshua's long-standing management powerhouse Hip Hop Since 1978 (Kanye West). The resulting company, the Blueprint Group, boasts a stacked roster-in 2011, Wayne, Drake and Minaj were the Nos. 1-3 solo acts (respectively) with the most titles placed on the Billboard Hot 100. Blueprint's clients have registered cumulative sales at well beyond 25 million, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The management team also has a proven track record placing hip-hop's biggest stars in business with brands like Nike, Gatorade, EA Sports, BlackBerry, Coca-Cola and LVMH. Bryant and Roberson serve as the new company's co-CEOs. Joshua is head of artist development; HHS1978's longtime branding exec Al Branch will head up Blueprint's branding, marketing and promotions; and Shawn Gee, also of Sports Entertainment Financial Group, will handle Blueprint's live business. But Roberson's power isn't limited to Blueprint. Last summer, the former VP of A&R at Atlantic Records assumed the role of chairman at Universal Music Group's recently relaunched Geffen Records. At Geffen, Roberson reports to Interscope Geffen A&M chairman Jimmy Iovine (see No. 10), and though he was quiet in the fall, it's a safe bet that one of urban music's most respected record men (Roberson's executive producer credits include Wayne's Tha Carter III, T.I.'s Paper Trail and West's 808s & Heartbreak) plans to make some serious noise in the new role.

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