Page 21 - 1318 HITS LAWYERS SECTION

career as a professional drummer. Not long after graduating, I came to the realization that while
I loved performing, I didn’t have the necessary goods to succeed as a professional and that I was much better suited to help and guide those who do have real talent. In retrospect, I should have considered my neighbors’ periodic calls to the police, complaining about the noise when I played the drums growing up, as an important sign.”
SUSAN HILDERLEY
ON HER ROLE AS A MUSIC LAWYER: “Lately, my practice involves a lot of helping clients sell their catalogs and then create new IP assets so that they can sell those in a few years. My role is equal parts strategic thinker, problem-solver, and unlicensed therapist.”
DOING RIGHT BY RONSTADT: “We represent- ed Linda Ronstadt in the sale of her recorded- music assets to Irving Azoff’s Iconic Artists Group. Linda is indeed an iconic artist, as well as a really special human being, and everyone on both sides of the transaction felt a responsi- bility to do right by her and her legacy.”
ON WHERE THE MUSIC BUSINESS STANDS IN 2021: “The industry, like so many others, was of course forced to change and adapt in this past year. But I think in a couple years we’ll be talk- ing about music festivals a lot more than NFTs.”
JACQUELINE SABEC
INTERESTING RECENT PROJECTS: Negotiated numerous deals for hit songwriter and producer Jason “Poo Bear” Boyd; handled NFT drops for NFT consulting client MTAPHR. Worked with B Real’s team on the expansion of his Dr. Greenthumb cannabis brand.
ON MUSIC INDUSTRY CHANGES OVER THE PAST YEAR: “The collapse of the live industry affected not only artists but also the first in and last out at venues: road crews, security guards, venue workers, sound engineers. We still need to collec- tively find ways to support these people who have given so much to our industry. We have also seen POC shatter glass ceilings in our industry, breaking through to ownership and senior executive posi- tions that were long overdue.”
ON MEETING THE LEGENDARY PETER PATERNO: “I met Peter at a dinner party at the Saddle Ranch restaurant on Sunset Blvd. I asked him if he was working on anything interesting. He said he was suing Napster. I gave him a high five. He offered me a job on the spot. Twenty- one years later, he’s still fiercely protecting art- ists, and I’ve never seen him miss a beat.” n
saying or because they couldn’t hear. Either way, I didn’t care. It was awesome.”
TOP 2020 PROJECTS: “I sold an interest in a successful apparel business to a major strategic partner and negotiated the writing, producing and music deals for RZA in connection with his Hulu series, Wu-Tang: An American Saga, along with his directing deal for Cut Throat City, which went on to become the #1 movie on Netflix. I also successfully negotiated the resolution of several major partnership disputes and a business reorganization.”
MICHAEL REXFORD
In February 2021, the firm added new partner Michael Rexford, originally a lawyer at UMPG and most recently a partner with Manatt Phelps & Phillips.
ON IMPORTANT CHANGES IN THE WORLD AND MUSIC INDUSTRY: “The combina-
tion of the pandemic and the profound social reckonings during the past year has created an ongoing uneasy tension in the music industry, as it has in the rest of society, that I’m con- vinced will ultimately result in important long- term personal and professional health and well- ness. While the pandemic has had a devastat- ing effect on the industry, the resulting creative efforts that many in the industry have taken to stay active, stay connected, generate income and develop new aspects of their careers, seem sure to transform the industry in ways that I expect will be revealed as the pandemic fades.”
ON ENTERING THE MUSIC BUSINESS: “I went to Berklee College of Music to pursue a
Left: Marjorie Garcia
Joe Carlone
Michael Rexford
Susan Hilderley
below: Jacqueline Sabec
HITS May 10, 2021