Martha Stewart penned a poignant tribute for her late friend and “mentor” Clive Davis following his death at age 94.
“My lovely friend, mentor and neighbor, the indominitable [SIC], indefatigable, amazing, talented, intuitive, Mister Clive Davis passed away today,” Stewart, 84, wrote via Instagram on Monday, June 22. “I’ll miss him so very, very much. Not only did he provide us with a few of the very best performers and their music for greater than half a century, he was the kindest, most thoughtful and caring human being.”
She went on, “Over time I attended a lot of his super duper Grammy parties, his birthday celebrations, his dinners honoring his artists and friends but I also got to honor him for the Martha Stewart Center for Living at Mount Sinai. We are going to miss you Clive!!!!!”
Stewart was one in all many to pay tribute to Davis following Monday’s announcement that he died at his home in Manhattan. His death got here several weeks after his spokesperson told TMZ in May that Davis had “an upper respiratory infection and out of an abundance of caution, he was admitted to the hospital.”
The music executive played a vital role in guiding the careers of legends reminiscent of Whitney Houston, Barry Manilow, Bruce Springsteen, Aerosmith and Aretha Franklin, amongst many others, throughout his 66-year music profession. Davis won five Grammys and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.
He’s survived by 4 adult children: he shared Fred Davis, 66, and Lauren Davis, 64, along with his first wife Helen Cohen, and welcomed Mitch Davis, 56, and Doug Davis, 52, with second wife Janet Adelberg.
“To his family, Clive was Dad and Granddaddy, the regular presence at the middle of our lives, the source of wisdom, strength, encouragement, and unconditional love,” the Davis family said in a joint statement on Monday. “Irrespective of how extraordinary his skilled accomplishments, he never overlooked what mattered most: the people he loved.”
Their statement concluded, “Through every chapter of his remarkable life, family remained Clive’s best pride and deepest joy. Today, we rejoice not only a towering figure whose influence modified music without end, however the man who led our family with grace, generosity, and kindness. We are going to miss him greatly, cherish him at all times, and carry his love with us for the remainder of our lives.”
Barry Manilow and Clive Davis in April 2022. Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images
Most of the artists who Davis mentored also shared memorial messages in his honor on Monday.
“Over here on E Street, we mourn the death of the good record man and shut friend Clive Davis,” Springsteen wrote via Instagram. “At 22 years old, he modified my life when he signed me to Columbia Records. He treated me with the identical respect and kindness as a 22-year-old no one as he did in spite of everything my success. An incredible man. All our prayers and love.”
Manilow, 83, added, “My heart is heavy with the lack of my friend Clive Davis. For 50 years, we worked together, created together, argued together and celebrated together. Yes, some would say it was business. But to Clive, it never was. It was family. And I used to be honored to be a part of his.”