Rob Stringer who is the younger brother of Sir Howard Stringer, the chief executive officer of Sony officially took the lead of the Sony U.S. label group - replacing Ienner, the longtime executive. Stringer, who had headed the company’s U.K. division, is said to be scrupulously going over the company’s personnel rolls looking for cuts.

Despite nearly 2,000 layoffs worldwide following the 2004 merger between Sony Music and Bertelsmann’s BMG, “The cost structure is still bloated,” said one source.

Another source said Stringer’s tinkering is about “undoing Don nie’s legacy and the structure he put in place.”

One area that is sure to be altered is Sony’s urban music division, which right now sits outside the division’s two main labels – Epic Records and Columbia Records – and has hit artists as Beyonce, Shakira, AC/DC and Jessica Simpson.Â