In leveling claims against Beats, Dr. Dre, Jimmy Iovine and others over royalties, contract issues and similar breaches, former hedge-fund manager and founder of Jibe Audio Steven Lamar reveals a number of ways in which Apple was involved in the beginnings of the headphone maker.
According to the complaint, as first reported by The Hollywood Reporter, Lamar hatched the idea to create a headphone brand backed up by technology and promoted by a prominent artist.
In 2006, when President of SLS International, Lamar spoke with music label Insterscope Geffen A&M Record's chairman Jimmy Iovine about the concept, who suggested the brand be endorsed by Dr. Dre. Lamar and his audio company Jibe then brought on design firm Pentagram to create the headphone's uniquely modern aesthetic.
Pentagram was where Lamar, and by proxy Beats, would have first contact with someone associated with Apple. The Beats account was handled by Pentagram partner and renowned designer Robert Brunner, who served as Apple's Director of Industrial Design from 1989 to 1997. Brunner is known not only for his work, but for hiring Apple's current design chief Jony Ive.