Dixie Chicks', Chili Peppers' Producer Partners with Columbia Records

Uber-producer Rick Rubin has made a venture with Columbia Records, the label announced Monday. Rubin, who grabbed five Grammy Awards this past February for his work with the Dixie Chicks and Red Hot Chili Peppers, will "form a dynamic and creative executive partnership" with Columbia chairman Steve Barnett, under a new model devised by Sony Music Label Group president Rob Stringer, the label’s statement read. Rubin’s own label, American Recordings will now be a subsidiary of Columbia. American Recordings artists include Slayer, System of a Down, The Vacation, The (International) Noise Conspiracy, Dan Wilson and Tom Petty, as well as rights to back catalogs for Johnny Cash, The Black Crowes, Danzig and The Jayhawks. The Columbia Records ends Rubin’s distribution deal with the Warner Brothers label, which joined Rubin with bands like Linkin Park and Metallica (who he is currently working on a new album with.) His deal with Columbia (part of Sony BMG) will not affect his future production efforts with his current Warner Brothers clientele. Source: Billboard.com