His 'flywheel' powers nomination domination

Interscope CEO John Janick's strategy aims to support artists in achieving at higher creative levels — pushing some all the way to the Grammys

- MIKAEL WOOD

JOHN JANICK is CEO of Interscope Capitol, which has several artists including Katseye and Lady Gaga vying for Grammys.

As he mills around backstage at Inglewood’s YouTube Theater on a recent evening, John Janick could be just another of the countless dads who've brought their kids here to see the K-pop girl group Katseye.

Dressed in jeans and a rumpled T-shirt, the 47-year-old looks on as North West — rapper, influencer, middle-school-age daughter of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West — blows into the greenroom in a blur of sunglasses and blue hair and poses for a picture with the six bandmates after their show. It’s a valuable photo op for an act whose fans live on social media, and the young women of Katseye are clearly thrilled by West’s presence (at least until they all strike looks of studied nonchalance for the camera).

Yet when it’s Janick’s turn for an audience with the group, each member regards him no less attentively — which makes sense given that he's a big part of why they're here.

With his ball cap and untied sneakers, Janick is the chairman and chief executive of Interscope Capitol, the Santa Monica-based record company that houses a collection of labels including the storied pair in its name along with Geffen, Motown, Blue Note, Verve and a joint venture with the Korean behemoth Hybe. He and Hybe’s Bang Si-Hyuk put Katseye together, as chronicled in a slick 2024 Netflix docuseries, then shepherded the group to a string of hit singles with more than 2 billion Spotify streams between them.

This weekend, he'll watch as the sextet competes for the coveted best new artist prize at Sunday’s 68th Grammy Awards — quite a feat for an act from the type of reality-TV background the Recording Academy once looked down upon.