Susan Silver

Susan Silver
Born	Susan Jean Silver[1] (1958-07-17) July 17, 1958 (age 66)[1] Seattle, Washington, U.S.[1][2]
Education	University of Washington
Occupations	Music manager entrepreneur
Years active	1983–present
Spouse	Chris Cornell ​ ​ (m. 1990; div. 2004)​
Children	1

Susan Jean Silver (born July 17, 1958) is an American music manager and businesswoman, best known for managing Seattle rock bands such as Soundgarden, Alice in Chains and Screaming Trees.^[3][4] Silver also owns the company Susan Silver Management,^[5] and co-owns the club The Crocodile in Seattle.^[6] Silver was named "the most powerful figure in local rock management" by The Seattle Times in 1991.^[4]

Biography

Early life

Silver was born in Seattle, Washington, on July 17, 1958, to Samuel and Emmogene (Jean) Silver.^[2] She is the oldest of three children.^[1][2] Her father was Jewish and came from Russia.^[7]

Silver majored in Chinese at the University of Washington^[8] and had been to all the major concerts in Seattle since she was 15. She started by booking for the club The Metropolis and Sub Pop co-founder Jonathan Poneman's club parties.^[9]

Career

Silver started working as a music manager in 1983.^[3] Her first clients were the bands The U-Men and First Thought.^[3] In 1985, Silver met Soundgarden, whose lead vocalist was her then-boyfriend Chris Cornell, and in the following year she started managing the band.^[3] Back then, Silver was also managing Screaming Trees.^[3] Silver said she became a manager because she wanted to help musicians achieve their dreams.^[9]

At the same time that she was managing rock bands, Silver was also the manager of a John Fluevog shoe store in Seattle.^[10] The store would become famous years later for selling the Dr. Martens boots worn by several members of Grunge bands from Seattle.^[10] One of Silver's co-workers at the store at the time was Kevin Martin, lead vocalist of Candlebox.^[10]

In 1988, Silver met music manager Kelly Curtis.^[3] Curtis and his friend Ken Deans owned a company, and Deans was the manager of the band Alice in Chains.^[3] Deans gave Silver a cassette tape of Alice in Chains and she liked it.^[11] Silver then went to an Alice in Chains concert and thought they were fun and very energetic.^[11] When Curtis became interested in working with the band Mother Love Bone, Deans decided that he did not want to work with Alice in Chains anymore, so he offered the managing job to Silver and Curtis,^[11] who started co-managing the band.^[3][11] Curtis and Silver passed on the Alice in Chains demo tape The Treehouse Tapes to Columbia Records' A&R representative Nick Terzo, who set up an appointment with label president Don Ienner.^[12] Based on that demo, Terzo signed Alice in Chains to Columbia in 1989.^[12] Some time later, Curtis started managing the band Pearl Jam, and Silver became the sole manager of Alice in Chains.^[3]

In May 1990, record label Sub Pop sent Nirvana a new proposed contract, but vocalist Kurt Cobain was reluctant to sign it, complaining about the label's lack of promotion for their debut album, Bleach. Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic consulted Silver for advice, and she looked at the contract and told them they needed a lawyer. They met Silver in Los Angeles and she introduced them to agent Don Muller and music business attorney Alan Mintz, who specialized in finding deals for new bands. Mintz started sending out Nirvana's demo tape to major labels looking for deals. MCA Records expressed interest, but the band ended up choosing DGC (part of Geffen Records) following advice from Sonic Youth, and the label released their hit album Nevermind in 1991.^[13][14] Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic offered her the opportunity to manage them, but she refused because she was too busy with her bands.^[9] "There aren't many things I regret about my life, but of course not managing Nirvana was a mistake", Silver said in 2022.^[9] When Nirvana was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014, Novoselic thanked Silver during his speech for "introducing them to the music industry properly".^[15]

In 1995, Silver supported Krist Novoselic's political-action committee, Joint Artists and Music Promotions (JAMPAC), to defend the rights of artists and their fans.^[16]

In 1996, Silver was featured on the Doug Pray documentary Hype!, talking about the Seattle music scene.^[17]

Among Silver's clients in the 1990s were the bands Hater,^[18] Inflatable Soule,^[19] Crackerbox,^[20] Sweet Water,^[20] Sponge,^[20] singer Kristen Barry,^[4][21] and producer Terry Date.^[4]

In 1998, Silver retired from the music business to concentrate on her family.^[3] In 2005, Silver and Deborah Semer formed a new company in Seattle, Atmosphere Artist Management. Their first client was the music and dance group Children of the Revolution.^[22]

Alice in Chains was inactive from 1996 until 2005. After lead vocalist Layne Staley died of a drug overdose in 2002,^[23] the band only performed in public again in February 2005 for a benefit concert with guest vocalists in Seattle.^[24] After that experience, the band called Silver and said they wanted to tour as Alice in Chains again.^[25] The band released their first album with new vocalist William DuVall in September 2009, Black Gives Way to Blue.^[26] The album debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 chart, and was certified gold by the RIAA in 2010 for shipments in excess of 500,000 copies in the United States.^[27]

Since 2009, Silver co-manages Alice in Chains along with David Benveniste and his company Velvet Hammer Management.^[28]

Other ventures

Since 2009, Silver co-owns the club The Crocodile in Seattle along with Alice in Chains' drummer Sean Kinney,^[29][30] Capitol Hill Block Party co-founder Marcus Charles,^[6] Peggy Curtis,^[6] and Portugal. The Man guitarist Eric Howk.^[6]

In 2013, Rolling Stone named The Crocodile as one of the best clubs in America, ranked at No. 7.^[31] The Guardian included the club in its list of the "Top 10 live music venues in Seattle".^[32]

On November 21, 2019, Silver interviewed writer and political activist Gloria Steinem at the Paramount Theater in Seattle when Steinem was promoting her new book, The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off!.^[33]

Personal life

In 1985, Silver started dating Chris Cornell, the lead vocalist of Soundgarden, a band that Silver started managing a year later,^[8][34][3] and they got married in 1990.^[35] Cornell wrote the song "Moonchild" from his debut solo album Euphoria Morning for Silver.^[36] The couple's first and only child, a daughter named Lillian Jean, was born in June 2000.^[37] The couple divorced in 2004.^[38]

Silver says: "Movement and dance... for the last 25 years, helps me physically feel better but lifts me emotionally in a profound way. I got lucky enough to get introduced to TM (Transcendental Meditation) when I was in high school so that was really important... Therapy has been really valuable for me and getting out in nature... those are the pillars for me. Having a spiritual practice… really important for me. It has been for decades and decades."^[39]

When asked about his heroes during a press conference in 2002, Alice in Chains' vocalist and guitarist Jerry Cantrell named Silver as one of his heroes.^[40] Cantrell also thanked Silver for being one of the people who helped him get into rehab during his speech at the MusiCares MAP Fund Benefit on May 31, 2012, where he was awarded the Stevie Ray Vaughan Award.^[41]

Filmography

• 1996 : Hype!, documentary
• 2001 : VH1 News Special : Grunge, TV Movie documentary
• 2011 : Pearl Jam Twenty, documentary
• 2012 : Metal Evolution, TV Series documentary : Grunge
• 2021 : Loudwire: 30 Years of Grunge, TV Mini Series documentary : Who Invented Grunge?

References

1. David De Sola (August 4, 2015). Alice In Chains: The Untold Story. Thomas Dunne Books. p. 101. ISBN 9781250048073. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
2. "Emmogene Molly (Jean) Silver". Legacy.com. January 23, 2017. Archived from the original on December 22, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
3. "Susan Silver". Stargate. Archived from the original on June 2, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
4. "Faces To Watch In '91 -- A Look At Up-And-Comers Who Will Be Helping To Shape The Arts This Year". The Seattle Times. January 6, 1991. Archived from the original on June 3, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
5. "Recording Academy's Pacific Northwest Chapter Elects Leadership". Mix Online. August 25, 2003. Archived from the original on December 22, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
6. "The Return of The Crocodile". The Stranger. March 26, 2009. Archived from the original on March 29, 2009. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
7. "Jewish Telegraph - 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗹𝗹'𝘀 𝗱𝗮𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆'𝘀 𝗝𝗲𝘄𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲". Facebook. September 22, 2020. Retrieved June 12, 2023. The daughter of legendary rock singer Chris Cornell has clarified, for the first time, her family's Jewish lineage — and admitted she wanted to explore it more. Speaking to the Jewish Telegraph about her new Instagram interview series Mind Wide Open, Lily Cornell Silver, whose father was lead singer with rock bands Soundgarden and Audioslave before committing suicide in 2017, aged 52, explained: "My mom Susan's dad — his whole family is Jewish and from Russia. "They emigrated to Ellis Island in America from there. "There is Jewish heritage on my dad's side, as my grandma — his mum — does talk about it. "They were raised Irish Catholic, Chris's dad was Irish Catholic, but there is definitely some Jewish heritage there, but none of us really know for sure, and it's something I really do want to learn about."
8. Jae-Ha Kim (April 27, 1997). "Susan Silver steers careers toward rock stardom". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on November 25, 2004. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
9. Groß, Torsten (February 23, 2022). ""Godmother Of Grunge" Susan Silver im Interview: "Ich bin glücklich, ein Teil der Bewegung gewesen zu sein"" ["Godmother Of Grunge" Susan Silver Interviewed: "I'm Happy To Have Been A Part Of The Movement"]. musikexpress.de (in German). Archived from the original on February 24, 2022. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
10. Mark Yarm (September 6, 2011). Everybody Loves Our Town: An Oral History of Grunge. Three Rivers Press. pp. 355–356. ISBN 9780307464453. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
11. Mark Yarm (September 6, 2011). Everybody Loves Our Town: An Oral History of Grunge. Three Rivers Press. p. 177. ISBN 9780307464453. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
12. Music Bank (Media notes). Alice in Chains. Columbia Records. 1999. 69580.
13. Everett True (March 13, 2007). Nirvana: The Biography. Da Capo Press. pp. 191–192. ISBN 9780786733903. Archived from the original on November 12, 2020. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
14. Cross, Charles R. (August 15, 2001). Heavier Than Heaven. New York City: Hyperion Books. pp. 486–488. ISBN 0-7868-6505-9.
15. "Read Nirvana's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Acceptance Speech". Rolling Stone. April 11, 2014. Archived from the original on June 13, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
16. Russell, Deborah (February 18, 1995). "Nirvana Bassist Forms Artist, Fan Action League In Seattle". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 30, 2014. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
17. "Hype! Film". hypethemovie.com. Archived from the original on December 8, 2017. Retrieved December 30, 2018.
18. Nickson, Chris (September 15, 1995). Soundgarden: New Metal Crown. St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 9781429941013. Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
19. "Inflatable Soule Is Band That Is On Its Way Up". The Seattle Times. August 19, 1994. Archived from the original on August 28, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
20. "Chris Cornell, Searching for Solitude". Pitchfork. May 19, 2017. Archived from the original on December 22, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
21. "Kristen Barry". These Streets. 28 January 2013. Archived from the original on 22 December 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
22. "Susan Silver creates Atmosphere Artist Management". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. January 6, 2005. Archived from the original on December 22, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
23. "The Last Days of Layne Staley". Rolling Stone. June 1, 2002. Archived from the original on December 22, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
24. "Kinney drums up enthusiastic response for tsunami benefit". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. February 17, 2005. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
25. "Putting The Band Back Together". PollstarPro. February 17, 2010. Archived from the original on February 4, 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
26. Lipshutz, Jason (September 18, 2009). "Alice in Chains back in "Black" after 14 years". Reuters. Archived from the original on July 18, 2019. Retrieved July 18, 2019.
27. "ALICE IN CHAINS Strikes Gold With 'Black Gives Way To Blue'". Blabbermouth.net. May 25, 2010. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 18, 2019.
28. "Alice In Chains Signs With Virgin/EMI". Blabbermouth.net. April 25, 2009. Archived from the original on April 27, 2009. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
29. "Legendary Crocodile, the cradle of grunge, rocks into its next stage". The Seattle Times. March 21, 2009. Archived from the original on August 22, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
30. Gillian G. Gaar (February 2, 2010). "Alice in Chains' Homecoming". Seattle Weekly. Archived from the original on June 20, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
31. "The Best Clubs in America / 7. The Crocodile in Seattle". Rolling Stone. March 28, 2013. Archived from the original on April 3, 2013. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
32. Simmons, Abbey (May 25, 2013). "Top 10 live music venues in Seattle". The Guardian. Archived from the original on April 8, 2014. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
33. Harris, Sonya (November 29, 2019). "Gloria Steinem still has hope for the U.S." KUOW. Archived from the original on November 30, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
34. "Becoming Chris Cornell: Inside the Early Days of Soundgarden". Billboard. May 15, 2017. Archived from the original on May 29, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
35. "Chris Cornell: His Rise to the Top of the Seattle Scene". People. May 18, 2017. Archived from the original on May 22, 2017.
36. "Chris Cornell Talks 'Euphoria Morning' in 1999 SPIN Interview". SPIN Magazine. May 18, 2017. Archived from the original on May 21, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
37. "Chris Cornell Feels "Euphoria" With Newborn Daughter". MTV. July 6, 2000. Archived from the original on August 4, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
38. "Chris Cornell, Singer with Soundgarden and Audioslave, Dies at 52". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 18, 2017. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
39. "CHRIS CORNELL's Daughter and Ex-Wife Discuss Overcoming Loss and Grief on Final Episode of 'Mind Wide Open'". Blabbermouth.net. 20 July 2021. Archived from the original on 21 July 2021. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
40. "Alice in Chains' Jerry Cantrell: "Layne Staley, Sean Kinney and Susan Silver are my heroes"". YouTube. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
41. "Jerry Cantrell Thanks Alice in Chains' Manager Susan Silver in his Stevie Ray Vaughan Award Speech". YouTube. Archived from the original on April 29, 2021. Retrieved December 21, 2018.

Further reading

• Prato, Greg (2009). Grunge Is Dead: The Oral History of Seattle Rock Music. ECW Press. ISBN 9781554903474.
• Yarm, Mark (2011). Everybody Loves Our Town: An Oral History of Grunge. Three Rivers Press. ISBN 9780307464446.
• De Sola, David (2015). Alice In Chains: The Untold Story. Thomas Dunne Books. ISBN 9781250048073.

External links

• Susan Silver at IMDb
• Susan Silver on Discogs
• Susan Silver on AllMusic
• Susan Silver Management on Discogs