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Introduction About Clarence Avant
Loved and respected by fans and many prominent personalities from all walks of life, Clarence Avant is one of the most prominent music executives in the music industry.
His humility, kindness, and visionary ideas have always set him apart from others and these virtues surely played a key role in his success.
No one could have transformed the music industry better than Clarence Avant. In the music industry he has been nicknamed the “godfather”, and ” the godfather of black music” and this nickname got modified into “The Black Godfather” for the documentary film, which is based on his life.
Throughout his career, he has always mentored, promoted, and nurtured new talents in the industry. His genuineness to guide and help others is one of the many reasons why people still look up to him.
Net Worth & Salary of Clarence Avant in 2022
Clarence Avant has been working in the music industry and entertainment industry for many years now. Therefore, it’s not difficult to anticipate that he has earned handsome amounts of wealth.
Clarence Avant’s net worth in 2022 is estimated to be a whopping 50 million dollars.
This astounding amount of wealth is the result of his consistent efforts through the years by being a music executive, entrepreneur, and film producer.
Age, Early Life & Biography of Clarence Avant
As of 2022, Clarence Avant is 91 years old and nine years away from his centenarian I.e. 100th birthday.
Clarence Avant was born in Climax, North Carolina on 25th February 1931 and was the oldest of his eight brothers and sisters. His education till the ninth grade was in a one-room school. During his freshman and second years, he went to Dudley High School in Greensboro.
During his teen years, he went to New Jersey. There he worked as a stock clerk and for a law directory.
| Name: | Clarence Avant (Clarence Alexander Avant) |
| Gender: | Male |
| Age: | 91 |
| Birth Date: | 25 February 1931 |
| Birth Place: | Climax, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Nationality: | American |
| Height: | 1.72 m |
| Sexual Orientation: | Straight |
| Marital Status: | Widower |
| Wife/Spouse (Name): | Jacqueline “Jackie” Alberta Gray (m. 1967-2021) |
| Children/Kids (Son and Daughter): | Nicole AvantAlexander Devore Avant |
| Dating/Girlfriend (Name): | NA |
| Profession: | Music executive, Entrepreneur, Film producer |
| Yearly Income: | NA |
| Net Worth in 2022 | $ 50 million |
| Content Last Updated: | August 2022 |
Personal Life of Clarence Avant
Clarence Avant married Jacqueline Alberta Gray in 1967. They had two children together. Nicole Avant is their first child who was born on March 6, 1968, and was a United States Ambassador to the Bahamas. AlexanderBoisbois Avant, their youngest ward, was born on August 3, 1971.
His wife was a philanthropist who devoted her life to serving humanity and helping poor people in places like the Neighbors of Watts. She was a board member of UCLA.
An unfortunate turn of events took place a few months back as Jacqueline got murdered by an invasion in the Avant house in December 2021.
As heartbreaking as this event sounds, it’s more heart-wrenching to know that Clarence tried to comfort her, after the gunshot, when she was fighting for her life.
The convict was recently sentenced to 190 years in prison.
Career of Clarence Avant
The multi-decade career of Clarence Avant in the music industry started back in the 1950s when he became the manager of Teddy P’s Lounge.
Avant was mentored by one of the best music managers of that era: Joseph G. “Joe” Glaser.
Avant has managed many versatile singers and musicians throughout his career like R&B singer Little Willie John, jazz singers Sarah Vaughan, Kim Weston, Luiz Bonfa, Wynton Kelly, Lalo Schifrin, etc.
In 1964 Avant opened a West Coast Office for the accommodation of motion picture soundtrack assignments. As the projects given to his clients were rising. He was a board member, advisor, and executive of NARA and also of NATRA when he lived in New York City. He also worked as a consultant to PlayTape which was marketed by MGM Records.
With four artists in the year 1966, he started his independent record production firm with the name Sussex Productions, Inc. in New York.
Venture Records Inc. was formed in 1967 in California and had the first known collaboration between an African American artist and a major record company. Record Producer Al Bell, with the help of Avant sold Stax Records to Gulf+Western in 1968 and Avant profited 10 percent from this deal.
Sussex Records founded by Avant fell short of business in 1975 and the IRS seized and auctioned its assets. The remaining assets were auctioned at Sussex offices.
Avant founded Avant Garde Broadcasting, Inc., in 1971 which was also historic as he brought the first African-American-owned FM radio station to LA in 1973.
Unfortunately, AVG was bankrupted because of some defaults and warrants. Avant lost a lot of capital in this event. Famous comedian Bill Cosby was an investor in this company.
Avant’s journey in production began when he became the executive producer of Save the Children which was released in September 1973. This movie showed the numerous adverse conditions under which the blacks, especially the children were subjected during wars.
The documentary film” The Black Godfather” based on the life story of Clarence Avant was released on Netflix on June 7, 2019. This documentary features many of his friends, family, and those who understood his impact on the industry. Many famous personalities like Barack Obama, Snoop Dogg, Jim Brown, Bill Clinton, Nicole Avant(his daughter), Kamala Harris, Ted Sarandos, Jesse Jackson, etc. were cast in this film. A must-watch for all those who want to know his life story and influence in the industry.
Awards & Achievements of Clarence Avant
Avant has been honored many times because of his contributions and work in the music industry.
In the year 2008, he was honored by the National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences with the Trustees Award.
In the year 2016, he got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is not that easy. Someone gets this fame only if he/she has done something notable in their industry. Clarence Avant has always been a significant personality in the music industry.
2018 was a very momentous year for him as he was applauded with the President’s Merit Award as a Grammy Icon.
Recently, Avant received the Ahmet Ertegun award.
Major Investments and Assets of Clarence Avant
Being an entrepreneur, music executive, and film producer Clarence Avant has surely invested in many projects.
He was the founder of Sussex Records Inc., Avant Garde Broadcasting, etc. Though these projects didn’t run in the long run, they are still remarkable investments of Clarence Avant.
Apart from these, he is also known to have some real estate properties.
The mansion in which he lives in Beverly hills is approximately $8 million.
Must Watch Latest Video and Trending Photographs of Clarence Avant
The link to the trailer of the documentary film “The Black Godfather” based on the life and career of Clarence Avant is:
Instagram Handle of Clarence Avant
Clarence Avant doesn’t have any official, verified Instagram account.
Twitter Handle of Clarence Avant
Clarence Avant doesn’t have any official Twitter account either.
