I had been running Virgin Records since I was a teenager. By 1992 the record company had just signed Janet Jackson and the Rolling Stones, which felt like an accomplishment. We had tremendous acts: Genesis, Peter Gabriel, the Culture Club, the Spice Girls, the Sex Pistols, and Lenny Kravitz.
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As it turns out, it was likely the best business decision of my life: We sold the company at the peak of the record business. But after telling the staff that we had sold, I set off running with tears streaming down my face. I passed an Evening Standard sign that said “Branson sells for 560 million pounds” and realized how bizarre it would look to people if they saw me sobbing my head off.
