Private funeral service will be held for Def Jam executive

A private funeral service will be held for Atlanta music executive Shakir Stewart, who was found dead at his Marietta home Saturday of an apparent suicide.

Stewart, 34, was found in the bathroom of his home on Lindsey Drive off lower Roswell Road in east Cobb County. Police believe he shot himself with a handgun. They declined to release additional details Monday.

A man at Stewart’s home Monday said the family would not comment. Funeral arrangements are pending, said a spokesman at Murray Bros. Cascade Chapel in Atlanta.

Stewart ran the day-to-day operations of Def Jam Recordings, the best-known hip-hop label in the country. He was named executive vice president about five months ago, succeeding rap superstar Jay-Z.

“It is difficult to express or explain in words what led to the tragic occurrence on Saturday,” Stewart’s fiancee, Michelle Rivers, said in a statement released through Island Def Jam Music Group. “Over the past several weeks, Shakir’s behavior was inconsistent with the man we all know and love. As much as we all tried to help him, Shakir was in deep pain and largely suffering in silence.”

Stewart, a native of Oakland, Calif., came to Atlanta to attend Morehouse College. It was there that he and friends Christopher Hicks, Ryan Glover, Henry “Noonie” Lee and others started throwing parties and concerts across the city as Ivory Coast Entertainment.

Stewart, Hicks, Glover and others would go on to develop Atlanta-based Noontime —- a songwriting and production company that launched careers for its founders, as well as Jazze Pha, and Grammy-winners Johnta Austin and Bryan-Michael Cox.

The first significant solo success on Stewart’s resume, however, was signing Beyonce to Antonio “L.A.” Reid’s Atlanta-based publishing company, Hitco.

Stewart was also an artist development consultant and talent scout for Reid’s now-closed LaFace Records, and Arista Records, to which he signed local Grammy winner Ciara. Since 2004, Stewart had served as vice president and senior vice president of A&R for Def Jam. During that time, he signed Atlanta rapper Young Jeezy and Miami hip-hop star Rick Ross. Stewart split his time between Atlanta and New York.

“Shakir was an amazing man, in every sense of the word,” Island Def Jam Music Group said in a statement. “A truly incredible friend and father who was an inspiration to not only our artists and employees, but to his family and the many people who had the privilege of counting him as a friend. Our hearts and prayers go out to his family at this very difficult time.”

An autopsy report will take up to 12 weeks, according to the Cobb medical examiner’s office.