Primary Wave has partnered with Neil Sedaka to acquire a stake in the star’s master and publishing rights. Sedaka began his career in 1957 and went on to pen several hits such as “Love Will Keep Us Together,” “Breaking Up Is Hard to Do,” “Laughter in the Rain,” “Calendar Girl,” “Oh! Carol” and “Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen” and is regarded as one of the world’s first teen pop stars. He has earned his fair share of accolades over the years, including five Grammy nominations.
The firm is proud to announce that Lisa Alter and Katie Baron were named in Variety’s “Legal Impact Report” for 2024. Each year, this coveted list profiles Hollywood’s top entertainment dealmakers and litigators behind the industry’s most significant deals.
View the full list below.
Variety’s Legal Impact Report 2024: Meet Hollywood’s Top Entertainment Attorneys
AKB Founding Partner Lisa Alter has been selected as one of the top Media and Entertainment attorneys on the inaugural Forbes America’s Top 200 Lawyers list. From the Editor, “As some of the biggest names in the music business have sold their catalogs in recent years, Alter has served as legal advisor to investors, record labels and music publishers to help them profit from these deals. She has worked on acquisitions involving the catalogs of James Brown, Whitney Houston, Stevie Nicks and, most recently, Enrique Iglesias and Rod Stewart.”
Iconic has finalized a wide-ranging cross-media partnership with legendary artist Rod Stewart to “acquire, develop, and expand his six-decade musical legacy to new generations of fans.” A two-time inductee into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and one of music’s best-selling artists, Iconic says that the “landmark arrangement encompasses Stewart’s songs spanning his monumental solo career, as well as tenure in two iconic groups, the Faces and Jeff Beck Group.”
Lisa Alter has been named to the prestigious Billboard Power 100 List honoring “the most powerful people in the music business” for 2024. This is Lisa’s fourth consecutive year appearing on the Billboard Power 100 List.
Although women now outnumber men when it comes to law school enrollment, according to the latest data from the American Bar Association, the legal profession remains a male-dominated industry by a measure of 61.5% to 38.3%. Lisa Alter, founder of Alter, Kendrick & Baron, LLP, a top music and entertainment firm, has the scoop on how to succeed in a practice area that’s known for being a boys’ club.
ICM Crescendo Music Royalty Fund acquired writer, publishing, and producer royalty rights to a discography of hit songs from 3x Grammy-nominated, 4x Juno Award winner, multi platinum-selling producer and songwriter Kevin Churko. Churko is a Canadian record producer, sound engineer and musician best known for his works with several high-profile artists including Five Finger Death Punch, Disturbed, In This Moment, Skillet, Rob Zombie and Ozzy Osbourne.
The firm is proud to announce that Lisa Alter and Katie Baron were named in Variety’s “Dealmakers Impact Report” for 2023. Each year, this coveted list profiles the top legal practitioners powering the entertainment industry’s most significant deals.
Lisa Alter was recently featured in MarketWatch’s article “Why Brenda Lee may not see much money from her No. 1 hit ‘Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,’” which dives into the resurgence of the 78-year-old artist’s 1958 Christmas hit, currently ranked #1 on Billboard.
Despite the song’s high rank on streaming charts, the article notes that Lee will likely receive limited royalty payments. This is due to several factors, one being that “the big money” in royalties typically flows to songwriters. Lee sang and recorded the song as a teenager, but it was penned by the late Johnny Marks, who was also responsible for the Christmas hits “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” “A Holly Jolly Christmas.”
Another reason Lee may not realize significant financial gains after topping the charts is that her artist contract, forged at least 65 years ago, could not have accounted for today’s listening experience, and the rise of streaming platforms. Royalties on Spotify and other platforms are typically low, generating fractions of a cent, which is then further split between artists and their labels. As Lisa emphasizes, “It takes a lot of streams to make money.”