Following a protracted illness, Lewis Largent, a well-known figure in the music industry, passed away on February 20 at the age of 58.
As the host of MTV’s well-liked alternative music program 120 Minutes, a radio DJ for KROQ, and the Senior Vice President of A&R at Island Def Jam Records, Largent rose to prominence in the music industry.
Lewis Largent obituary
Largent, a Southern California native, began his career in music by serving as an intern at the famous KROQ alternative rock radio station in Los Angeles. In 1985, he started working there full-time, and in 1989, he was offered the chance to ascend to the position of music director.
During his early to mid-1990s tenure as Vice President of Music Programming at MTV, Largent rose to prominence as the face of 120 Minutes. The show gained notoriety as a must-see for fans of alternative music due to his in-depth interviews with well-known musicians like David Bowie, Trent Reznor, Radiohead, Björk, and Smashing Pumpkins.
Largent stopped hosting 120 Minutes in 1995, but he continued working as an MTV programmer until 1999. After that, he joined Island Def Jam Recordings, where, from 2002 to 2004, he oversaw the signing of a number of well-known alternative groups, including Andrew WK and Sum 41.
Largent’s surviving spouses are Julie Greenwald, the CEO and chairwoman of the Atlantic Music Group, and their two kids. Matt Pinfield, who will replace Largent as the host of 120 Minutes, paid tribute to him on Twitter after learning of his departure and expressed his profound sorrow at the loss.