Lyor Cohen Opens Up About New Business Venture 300

Music aficionados knew something was up when it was announced that former Def Jam and Warner Music Group chief Lyor Cohen got Google's backing for a new music company. Billboard broke down more details about his new venture that he's founded with ex-Warner Bros. president Todd Moscowitz and former executive vice president Kevin Liles.

Just over a year after leaving the Warner Music Group, Cohen revealed his new content creation label called 300. Named after the 300 Spartans who fought against thousands of Persians in 480 BC (see: '300'), Cohen's new business is aiming for a more efficient, cost effective way to produce content.

Cohen hasn't exactly been relaxing during the last few months either. The ex-exec has been studying digital companies to find out what possibilities are in store if he started a label.

300 is currently a small-sized label, but it does have a lot of backing firepower behind it. Its 25-30 employees are a diverse bunch consisting of industry veterans and younger workers with extensive knowledge in data mining and data management. There's also about $5 million dollars of investment behind it from the likes of firm management company Columbus Nova, former Warner Music digital chief Alex Zubillaga and Andres Santo Domingo, who's the son of one of Columbia's richest families and co-founder of Brooklyn's Kimando Records.

But it's not just about the resources. 300 is already starting to make moves. “I’ve seen them out there again on the hunt for new artists," says Atlantic Records co-chair Craig Kallman. "I’m really confident in them knowing the A&R talent of the three of them.”