In this solo presentation, the speaker advises musicians on how to select an entertainment attorney who specializes in music law. The core recommendation is to avoid non‑entertainment lawyers (corporate, criminal, real‑estate, litigator) and instead seek attorneys with direct experience relevant to the artist’s specific deal type—whether an indie label contract, major label deal, distribution agreement, publishing or administration arrangement. The speaker distinguishes two attorney archetypes: (1) high‑power “pit bull” lawyers who are well‑connected, command higher fees, and lend credibility with major labels, and (2) seasoned, more affordable attorneys who handle producer agreements and client contracts. Geographic hubs such as New York and Los Angeles host most top music lawyers, though competent attorneys exist in other music cities (Atlanta, Miami, Chicago, Houston). Fee structures are discussed, contrasting hourly rates with percentage‑based fees (5‑10% of deal value) and the potential conflict of interest inherent in the latter. The timing of hiring is recommended after securing a manager, allowing a single attorney to represent the whole team. The speaker outlines a thorough vetting process: free initial consultations, in‑person interviews (including travel to LA and NY), evaluating attorney’s artist‑centric attitude, and ensuring they are not merely side‑hustling lawyers. A resource list (rap‑resources.com) is provided for finding vetted entertainment attorneys. Throughout, the speaker emphasizes an artist‑first philosophy, insisting on retaining ownership, avoiding unfavorable publishing deals, and ensuring the attorney’s incentives align with the artist’s best interests.
Chapters
Hi guys, let's talk about finding a lawyer. Um, so when you choose an attorney in the music business, you absolutely want an entertainment attorney. So you don't want a corporate attorney, you don't want a criminal attorney, you don't want a real estate attorney, you don't want a litigator— hopefully you won't need a litigator— um, but you want an entertainment attorney, someone who specializes in entertainment law, especially music. I personally believe that you should have an attorney who has experience in whatever you need them to have experience in, in terms of what you're doing in music. And what I mean by that is if you're starting an independent label, you want an attorney that has experience in putting together contracts for an indie label. If you are negotiating a deal with a major label, you want an entertainment an attorney that has negotiated many, many, many deals in the music industry, and you want an attorney that has handled the type of deal. So if you're doing a distribution deal, you want somebody that's done a lot of distro deals. If you're doing a pub deal, you want an attorney who's done a lot of publishing deals. If you're signing to an independent record label, you want an attorney who's done a lot of deals with indie labels. If you're signing to Atlantic or Sony or Def Jam or a major label, you want an attorney with experience in doing deals with major labels. Um, for me, there's two different types of attorneys that I utilize. Um, I have a bunch of attorneys that I hire, but they, they kind of break down into two groups. Um, one are the super powerful pit bulls. These are the guys that I call on to do deals. Like, if I'm doing a deal with a, major label or, um, a placement with a film company, um, I use really well-connected, powerful attorneys. They're a little bit more expensive, but they're very well respected. They're well known. And amongst some of the more, um, powerful labels, like the bigger labels, it matters who's on your team. It matters who represents you. You're taken so much more seriously. When you are represented by an attorney that they respect, and there are not a lot of attorneys that they respect. It's sort of like, you know, an inner circle, the, the old boys club, and I don't necessarily like that, but it is the way the music business is, and I've learned to adapt to that. The second type of attorney that I utilize are the folks that aren't quite as powerful, but they've been doing this for a while. They're extremely good at what they do. They're a little less expensive, and these are the folks that I call on to do the producer agreements and the— like, to negotiate my contract with a client. They're the more, like I said, affordable attorneys. The bigger power brokers are usually based in New York and LA because that's where the bulk of the music industry is. The other attorneys can be anywhere in the country. Um, I still use guys in New York and LA because I want people that do this all day, every day for a living. I don't want to have an attorney where music is their side hustle, you know, they're doing real estate but they want to get into music. Like, that's— for me, that doesn't work. I'm not saying you shouldn't have an attorney based anywhere,— but for me, that's what I look for. There are also a lot of music attorneys based in Atlanta, Miami, Chicago, Houston— any place that there is sort of a music scene. Again, I use folks out of New York and LA, and I'm sorry if you're an attorney and that offends you, but I want to make sure that I'm working with the folks that are doing a lot of deals and a lot of contracts, and they know what is state of the art and they know what's fair and acceptable, I'm always going to ask for more than what I should, probably because that's just who I am when I negotiate. But I always have an attorney by my side, always, always, always. And I always make sure that I'm getting the best deal possible for my clients that I can get. I don't do what's best for me. I don't do what's best for the attorney. I don't do what's easiest. I do what's best for the artist because I'm very artist-centric and artist-focused. I'm an advocate in the music industry, so it's important to me that the artist retains their power and they get the best deal possible, especially when it comes to monetizing and making the lion's share of the money. Um, in the deals that I do, I make sure that the artists retain as much ownership as they can. I've never done a deal with a major label with without carving out the back catalog, without carving out the publishing. I've never done a publishing deal. I don't really like publishing deals. I like administration deals. And, um, there's a video that's going to discuss that so that you guys can, um, learn the difference between the two. In fact, I think I've already done it. But having said that, when you choose an attorney, either you choose one based on an hourly rate that you can stomach, or you choose one that's going to take a percentage of whatever deal that you're doing. And that percentage could be anywhere between like 5 and 10% of the value of the deal. The problem with paying somebody a percentage is that there is an incentive for them to get you into a deal that may not necessarily be in your best interest, in your best interest, in order for them to get paid. So you've got to really have a a trust built up between you and your attorney, and your attorney has to understand that a deal is going to be forthcoming for you at some point, even if this isn't the right one. So, um, choosing an entertainment attorney is a very key member of your team. You usually choose one after you've brought your manager on board. When you negotiate your deal with your manager, your contract with your manager, you each have your own attorney, But once you have that contract in place, then you can have one attorney who is the attorney for your team, and they can represent the team as a whole and you as an artist once that deal is already done, because they're gonna do what's in your best interest as the artist. You are the leader of this team. You are the brand, basically. So, um, I hope that was helpful. If you don't know who to call for entertainment law, there is a list at rap-resources.com. It's not free. I can't remember the price on the list, but it does list all of the entertainment attorneys. You can go in and reach out to attorneys. They should give you a consultation initially for free so that you can meet with them either by phone or in person and choose the one that you feel is best for you. If there's somebody charging for that initial consultation, cross them off the list. You do not want to pay somebody to have to decide whether or not you want to work with them. That doesn't mean they're going to negotiate something for you for free, but it does mean that they're going to take that initial meeting to see if you like them and if they like you, and if you feel that that's the person that can represent you best. For me, when I was choosing, um, my attorneys, I met with everybody in person. I flew to LA. I spent a couple days in LA. I met with a bunch of different attorneys, people that were referred to me by my friends, as well as people that I read articles about that I thought were kind of like-minded. I wanted, um, my attorneys to be artist-friendly since I'm artist-friendly. That was important to me. And I wanted them to be pit bulls. I, I want people that have more power than I have in the music industry. Um, I did the same thing in New York. I set up appointments for 2 days in a row. I flew to New York and I, um, I think I interviewed like 5 or 6 attorneys a day and I did it for 2 days straight. And then, um, I actually chose one of the attorneys that had been my attorney early on in my career. Um, he's one of my attorneys. And then another one of my attorneys was the guy who was head of legal at Universal when I did the Cash Money deal. So he was the attorney that I negotiated against. He sat across the table from me, and I just really liked who he was, and I liked how he, um, conducted himself during the cash money deal. So once he left Universal and went into private practice, um, he became one of my attorneys too. So, um, figure out who's going to be best for you and then hire them. You do this when you have something to negotiate. Don't just pick an attorney today so that if something comes up, you have somebody. They're going to be driven by the fact that they can make money. This is what they do for a living. So you're going to want to start interviewing them when you know you have a contract coming, or when you've just been given a contract so that you've got a reason to hire them. Okay guys, thanks for tuning in. 2020 vision. See you soon.
