FEATURES
38
DABABY BOOM
How the Charlotte MC turned
an explosive personality and
marketing savvy into charts gold.
44
R&B/HIP-HOP POWER
PLAYERS 2019
Parkwood Entertainment’s
Steve Pamon and Beyoncé
Knowles-Carter lead Billboard’s
annual list of the genre’s most
influential executives and creatives.
Plus: Why the streaming era
demands new creativity from R&B
executives like H.E.R. manager Jeff
Robinson, how Sylvia Robinson
created the template for hip-hop’s
world domination and more.
ON THE COVER
DaBaby photographed by
Meredith Jenks on Sept.
at Drift Studio in New York.
Go behind the scenes of
DaBaby’s cover shoot at
billboard.com/videos.
TO OUR READERS
Billboard will publish its
next issue on Nov. 2. For
24/7 music coverage,
go to billboard.com.
OCT. 19, 2019 • VOLUME 131^ NO. 25
Contents
6 BILLBOARD • OCTOBER 19, 2019