LOS ANGELES:

Variety

Rihanna

Rihanna is expected to join Sony/ATV Music Publishing, multiple sources tell Variety, a move that would reunite the singer with her longtime publisher, Jon Platt, who took the reins at the Sony Music company as chairman and CEO earlier this year.

The move comes as no surprise, as Rihanna, along with Jay-Z and Beyonce, have worked closely with Platt throughout much of their careers, but it is a bold one for the executive and a coup for the world’s largest music publisher. Sony/ATV is home to more than three million copyrights including hits by Frank Sinatra, the Beatles, Taylor Swift and Sia.

Rihanna joined Platt at Warner/Chappell – where he was CEO from 2015 until taking the Sony/ATV post – shortly before the 2016 release of “Anti”, her most recent album. Sources say she has been working on two albums for the past couple of years, one a pop/R&B outing and the other a dancehall release, that could drop at any time. This move to Sony/ATV, if accurate, could presage the release of one of those albums.

Platt received the Spirit of Life Award at the gala benefiting City of Hope charity in Los Angeles last fall – Beyonce performed during the ceremony and Jay-Z presented him with the award. “This man has worked his way up from a Denver DJ to be highest-ranking black executive,” Jay-Z said in his introductory speech. “He’s the Obama of the music industry behind some of the biggest hits in the world.” (RTRS)