Cortez Bryant is a businessman and one of the founders of The Blueprint Group, a music management company.
He is also the Chief Visionary Officer for the record label Young Money Entertainment and the former manager of several internationally famous artists, such as Lil’ Wayne.
He has a net worth of approximately $66 million.
| Name | Cortez Delondo Bryant (Cortez Bryant) |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth: | August 28th, 1979 (42 years old) |
| Place of Birth: | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Height: | 6 feet 0 inches (1.83 meters) |
| Profession: | Businessman, music manager |
| Marital Status: | Single |
| Children: | 0 |
| Parents: | Father and mother unknown |
| Net Worth Estimate: | $66 million |
Net Worth
It is unclear what Bryant’s exact net worth is. However, it is speculated to be approximately $66 million.
The majority of Bryant’s net worth comes from his work with Young Money Entertainment, one of the industry’s highest-earning record labels.
Bryant is also the CEO of his artist management company, The Blueprint Group. Under this company, Bryant manages several high-profile rappers, including Drake and Lil’ Wayne.
In 2009, Bryant was placed on probation after being arrested for driving while intoxicated. He also faced some other minor traffic crimes, although the details of this are unclear (1).
In 2011, Bryant was arrested in DeKalb County, Georgia, after violating the terms of his probation from his prior arrest. However, he was released two days later with no bail or financial loss (2).
Complex magazine also named Bryant as one of the “25 Most Powerful People in Rap,” indicating his high net worth (3).
Company
From 2007 to 2009, Bryant was the President of Young Money Entertainment (4). During this time, when Bryant was President, the label released one album and an EP.
The first of these was Tha Carter III by Lil’ Wayne, later certified as six times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America as it sold over 3 million copies in America alone (5).
Additionally, the British Phonographic Industry certified it as Gold for selling over 100,000 copies (6). In comparison, Music Canada certified the record twice as platinum for selling more than 160,000 copies (7).
The next release under Bryant was the So Far Gone EP by Drake. The Recording Industry Association of America certified this as Gold for selling 500,000 copies (8).
In 2013, Bryant formed the Blueprint Group, a music distribution and artist management label.
The company’s exact revenue is unknown. However, in 2021, it partnered with Tsū Inc and received company equity worth approximately $5 million (9). This was awarded as payment to particular artists and individuals creating popular content (10).
In 2014, Bryant became a partner of the music management company Maverick (11). The company has an estimated revenue of $12.9 million per year (12).
Bryant has also made two personal investments. The first of these was in 2012 for the company Tracks.by, although the exact amount Bryant invested is unknown. The company was merged the following year into Hipset. In 2021, Bryant invested a portion of a $7.7 million investment in Looped (13).
Additionally, Bryant formed the online learning system Assemble in 2021. Although the company has not yet begun selling products, it received approximately $2 million in funding from other sources (14).
Earnings
Before joining Young Money Entertainment, Bryant worked as rapper Lil’ Wayne’s manager. Bryant remained Wayne’s manager until 2019.
It is unknown exactly how much Bryant earned from this. However, during the time that Bryant was Wayne’s manager, the artists managed to win five Grammy Awards, along with three #1 albums (15).
Additionally, Wayne released 13 albums under Bryant’s management. 3 of these records were certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, and 5 were certified Platinum.
2 albums were certified twice platinum, one was certified five times platinum, and one was certified six times platinum.
As such, it is clear that Bryant’s earnings would have been substantial as Wayne’s manager, as a portion of the profit from these sales would be given to Bryant (16).
In 2020, Wayne’s former manager, Ron Sweeney, sued Wayne for $20 million for allegedly failing to compensate Sweeney for his services.
Although Wayne later won this lawsuit, the amount that Sweeney attempted to sue Wayne for suggests that Bryant may have been earning a similar salary (17).
Bryant was the President of Young Money Entertainment from 2007 to 2009. It is unclear how much he earned from this position.
After stepping down as President, Bryant continued to work for the label as the Chief Visionary Officer. It is unclear what his salary was in this position.
In 2011, Bryant co-founded the artist management group The Blueprint Group. However, Bryant’s exact earnings from this business venture are unknown, although as co-founder and CEO, it is likely to be high.
Additionally, the company developed a distribution label named Distro in 2021, suggesting that the company was doing relatively well (18).
Bryant is also currently a partner with the music management company Maverick. It is unknown how much he currently earns as a partner. However, the company has an estimated annual revenue of $12.9 million (19), so his earnings will be a portion of this.
Real Estate
It is unknown where Bryant currently lives or his real estate history.
Early Life
Bryant was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on August 28th, 1979. His parents’ names are unknown. However, Bryant had said that his mother was single and a teenager when she gave birth to him.
Bryant lived in Crescent City during his early life while his mother worked on a medical assistant degree. Eventually, she received this degree and quit her job as a hairdresser, moving to the East Side of New Orleans.
Bryant became a student at Eleanor McMain Secondary School when they moved here. This was a prestigious school, and it was here that Bryant met several individuals that would be important to his later success. Namely, Mack Maine, Lil’ Wayne, and Curren$y.
After graduating, Bryant applied to Southern University. However, his family could not afford an off-campus apartment, so he decided to go to Jackson State University.
He eventually graduated in 2004 with a degree in communications, although his exact grade is unknown. Later, Bryant became part of the alumni at the university and revisited the school on numerous occasions as a teacher.
It was at this time that Bryant’s friend, Lil’ Wayne, asked him to be his manager for the long term. Bryant accepted this position.
Career
Bryant worked as Lil Wayne’s manager until 2019. During this time, he oversaw the rapper’s rise to international fame. He helped him to win numerous Grammy Awards, as well as create multi-platinum records.
In 2005, Wayne formed the record label Young Money Entertainment and, two years later, asked Bryant to be the President. Bryant stayed in this position for two years and oversaw the management of numerous high-profile artists.
These included Lil Wayne, Drake, and Nicki Minaj. He negotiated several deals with companies like Samsung, Coca-Cola, and Beats by Dre for his artists. He also worked as a producer for some of his artists’ documentaries, such as Drake’s “Better than Good Enough” and Minaj’s “My Truth.”
Eventually, Bryant decided to step down as President of the label and focused solely on the management side, becoming Chief Visionary Officer.
During this time, Bryant formed the artist management company Blueprint Group. Under this group, Bryant also managed T.I. G-Eazy, Lil Nas X, and others.
Bryant also became a partner of the music management company, Maverick. Under this company, he became part of a team that managed worldwide celebrities such as Madonna, Miles Cyrus, and The Weeknd.
Career Highlights
- Became Lil Wayne’s manager
- In 2007, he became President of Young Money Entertainment
- In 2009, he stepped down to become Chief Visionary Officer
- In 2011, he formed the Blueprint Group
- Later, he became part of Maverick management company
Personal Life
Very little is known about Bryant’s personal life. He has not been married, nor does he have any children. He was previously linked to actress Paige Hurd, although there is no confirmation on whether they were together.
Interesting Facts
- Bryant is also known by the nickname “Tez”.
- Bryant has frequently worked to advance the lives of African-Americans individuals. His company, Blueprint Group, collaborated with Rockstar Culture Labs in 2022 to help create a space for Black artists in Atlanta. Additionally, Bryant created the Cortez Bryant Foundation in 2021 to support disadvantaged Black individuals in the same area. He also created Assemble, an online learning system aiming to give Black individuals assistance with following their dreams.
- Bryant stated that if he was not part of the music industry, he believes that he would be a history teacher. This is primarily because he enjoys teaching and the ability to help the next generation. CNN offered Bryant a job due to his camera skills, but he decided to focus solely on being Wayne’s manager.
- Billboard has listed Bryant 6 times on their “Top 100 Power List.”
Summary
Cortez Bryant is the former President of Young Money Entertainment and the co-founder of the Blueprint Group. He has managed several internationally-famous artists, such as Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj, and Drake.
He is also a partner of Maverick, a music management label. He has a net worth of approximately $66 million.