Jan 19, 2014

Entertainment Law Experts…

The following will try to shed some light on the topic of entertainment law as it relates to music.  A brief summary has been provided as well as links to the podcasts reviewed…ENJOY :)



Name of Podcast: The Music Law Podcast
Author: Mark Quail
URL’s of Podcast series:
Management Contracts, https://itun.es/i66X5xH - iTunes
Music Publishing part 1, https://itun.es/i66f6Lr - iTunes
Music Publishing part 2, https://itun.es/i66X6fR - iTunes
Duration: 53 minutes of a 3-podcast series covering contracts and music publishing law.

Summary of podcast series:
Management contracts discussed in the first part of the podcast include items related to the contract that an artist may have with a “personal manager”.  Exclusivity requires it from the artist to manager but not from the manager to the artist.  Term relates to the initial time and subsequent options that may follow.  Professional counsel is to be offered from manager to artist with certain inclusions and exclusions.  The commission to the manager is based on gross income.  However, money that may not be included in the gross income may be income that simply flows through and could be part of the production or tour support given by the record company to the artist.
Publishing law items discussed in the second part of the podcast series include law terms pertaining to the material to be exploited financially on behalf of the songwriter.  A bit of copyright law is explained along with the concept behind the rights that a songwriter has with his or her original material.  An overview of the difference between the recording and composition is given. 
More publishing law discussed in the third part of the podcast include the digital formats and distribution rights as opposed to the publishing rights traditionally issued to a songwriter.  In a digital age, a clear difference exists where an artist/songwriter may be able to keep more rights than before with a publishing deal.  With the services that the Internet and Digital age have brought, publishing law remains the same.  However, a shift in proportion of rights and therefore income exists.

Name of Podcast: Marketing Musician
Author: David Jackson
URL’s of Podcast series:
You Are Still Nothing Without a Record Deal, https//itun.es/i66f5bs #iTunes
Duration: 37 minutes of a podcast covering the legal pros and cons of a major record deal.

Summary of podcast series:

This podcast discussed the legal aspects that indebted a band into financial failure.  From the advances to the loss of privileges made the band interviewed start all over again.  Their struggles at an artistic level started all over again once they re-entered the game with the dreamt of record deal.  Some of the legal aspects were: not being able to play covers, not being able to control their own income from gigs, loss of financial revenue, etc.  In a nutshell, the expression “record deal” sounds great to a lot of bands, but all it really is, as the podcast explained, is a record contract.  Great and informative story full of legal implications that drove a band into failure.

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