Music: Complex Content Chief Jumps to Def Jam

As Complex chief creative officer Noah Callahan-Bever tells it, he first met Eminem manager and incoming Def Jam chairman/CEO Paul Rosenberg in 1998 at NYC record store Fat Beats, a year before Eminem would shake up the hip-hop game with his major-label debut album, The Slim Shady LP.

"Paul came by and was playing a CD that had 'My Name Is' and 'Guilty Conscience' on it -- Max Glazer was the DJ there -- and I was hanging out drinking coffee with my friend who worked the register on a Saturday afternoon," the veteran journalist remembers. "All of a sudden I heard 'My Name Is' and I ran over to the DJ booth and said, 'What's going on here?' [Paul and I] got to talking and I ended up flying out to Burbank and spending a week with Em while he mixed The Slim Shady LP. I've known Paul ever since."

Twenty years later, the two will officially be working together: today, Def Jam announced that Callahan-Bever has been named executive vp of brand strategy and content, working with the label's senior executive team and reporting directly to Rosenberg beginning at the top of 2018, when the latter executive takes over from outgoing CEO Steve Bartels.

"I’ve worked with Noah for nearly 20 years in his various capacities with different companies as writer, editor and CCO,” Rosenberg said in a statement provided to Billboard. "Throughout that time, Noah has demonstrated an incredible ability to create, innovate and connect with audiences. I’m especially excited to have Noah and his skill set become a part of the future of Def Jam as we begin to reimagine the label’s platform, further develop the brand and realize our plan to connect with fans in previously unimagined ways."

Callahan-Bever got his start in journalism two decades ago as a 17-year-old senior editorial assistant at ego trip magazine, and went on to contribute to publications like Vibe, Blaze, MTV News and XXL before being named Editor-In-Chief of Mass Appeal in 2002 and then senior editor at Vibe in 2003. Since 2005, Callahan-Bever has been a staple at Complex, starting out as deputy editor before rising to Editor-In-Chief the following year and then, later, his current role as chief content officer.

While at Complex, Callahan-Bever led the publication through a series of changes, expanding its reach as it morphed into the multi-site Complex Media; was acquired in a 50-50 joint venture deal by Hearst and Verizon last April; launched multi-day convention ComplexCon in mid-2016; and shuttered its print magazine early this year. Most recently, he shepherded the company through a pivot to video, which has produced popular web series like The Blueprint -- hosted by Callahan-Bever himself -- and Everyday Struggle, the latter of which is among the shows Complex is bringing to Fuse TV as part of a deal announced in August.