Introduce yourself to the PMP 
Hello my name is Bernie Lawrence-Watkins. The name of my firm is B Lawrence Watkins & Associates P.C. and I'm an entertainment attorney practicing in the state of Georgia.
What are the different type of clients do you have?
Most of my clients are producers and composers. Some of them include DJ Dana (Gorilla Zoe/Yung Joc Boyz N Da Hood), Shondrae "Mr Bangladesh" Crawford (Ludacris/Missy Elliot/Ciara/Lil Scrappy/112), Brandon "Dirty Bird" Parrott (50 Cent/Alpha Mega), Dwain "Kochease" Warren (Yung Joc), Ron "Amen Ra" Lawrence (Aretha Franklin, Luther Vandross, Beyonce, Notorious B.I.G, Jay-Z), Jared Gosselin and Philip White (Macy Grey, India Arie, Floetry, Nicole Schrezinger, Chingy), Marquinarius "Sanchez" Holmes (T.I./Young Jeezy/Trick Daddy/Paul Wall) and John "Jon Jon" Webb (Beyonce/ Bobby Valentino/Tamia). I also have several new up and coming producers that are in the process of working on some great project placements as well.
How would you describe the services you provide for your clients?
My company is a boutique law firm that specializes in music law and basically we try to educate our clients and assist them with the maintenance of their corporations. We help them with any negotiations they may have on the table. If they want a contract drafted to sign an artist we handle that as well. If they need to protect their copyright interest as well as establishing trademarks we help them with that.
We don't put ourselves out there as a litigation firm but we may handle one or two cases a year. We also focus on assisting our clients with placements of their musical works, putting producers together with songwriters or setting them up with artists so they can record.
How did you get into the position your in to have the level of success in the game your now enjoying?
Music has always been a passion of mine. I love music and I love working with people that are involved in making music, people that are creative and want to pursue music as a career. When I was young I knew I was going to be involved in music. As I got older I made the decision to go to law school because I wanted to help people and be of assistance to those that love music but didn't understand the rights that were involved. So I took it upon myself to learn everything I possibly could about music from how you protect a work to at what moment do you decide something is considered a creative work; if someone takes your music how do you get it back?; and how do you make money off of your music? I wanted to understand all of those aspects so I could help people out.
I attended High School of Music and the Performance Arts in New York and I was surrounded by talented people so my experience at that school pushed me to go further and pursue a career in law. When I got into law school I setup a mentor relationship between the lawyers in the community and the law students that were interested in entertainment law. I invited guest speakers to talk at the school to educate the students about entertainment law because we didn't have entertainment law classes at our school.
I also attended a lot of conferences so I can learn more on the industry side and meet people in the business. I found a lot of satisfaction in educating myself and I knew at that point that's what I wanted to do.
Immediately after graduating from law school I would help people for free because I didn't want to see people that chose music as their career get burned. If it took my free assistance then that's what it took. Of course it helped me as well because it gave me an opportunity and it made me happy making them happy. I always tell people if you find something you can do for free then that's the job for you.
Talk about some of the challenges your company faces in regards to dealing with producers and songwriters as clients
What I often find is producers will give their music out to artists to record or they may let them listen to a track and the next thing you know they're listening to the same track on the radio without their permission. Once that song gets notoriety as far as national air play then it's a matter of chasing down the particular label, sending out cease-n-desist letters and putting a halt on it. The problem is you may be able to work out a deal with that particular artist or label that put out the record but if you wanted that record for another big name artist you may have lost the opportunity. So I tell my producers to be careful as far as who they're providing their material to and don't let it out unless you know that particular artist is going to record it and make sure you copyright your work prior to submitting it to people. That way if you need to file a claim in federal court you can get everything that's afforded to you in terms of statutory fees and things of that nature.
Do you bill per hour or take a percentage?
It's really a case by case situation because the needs of the clients vary so it depends on what the client wants me to do at that particular time. For example some clients want you to handle all of their affairs from reviewing royalty statements to handling the administration of their music works and everything in between. In that case the arrangement would most likely be on a percentage basis.
If a client just wants us to draft a document or help negotiate a deal then an hourly fee may be established. However, a percentage is most likely in publishing deals and recording deals.
The music business is currently going through a transformation, how has that affected your business?
The deals today are much smaller than let's say five years ago. It's interesting because you still have people that are living in the past talking about they want a deal for a million dollars or $750,000. It's like ok your throwing all these numbers out there but times have changed so you can't make those types of demands anymore. Also the labels want more than they once did in the past. They want the ancillary rights now so for example if a book is written about you they want to participate in that income as well. If you're in a movie or you go on tour they want some of that money also. So the question becomes how does the artist eat? Let's say in the past if an artist's record wasn't selling many records they could still go on the road and make a lot of money by touring. Now the label is going into that pie and there is question on whether it's fair or not. And its not just some labels, it's all the labels which make things difficult for the artist because their leveraging power has lessened. Now they have to ask whether they should go with a major or with an independent. If they go the independent route how much money will they receive to promote and market their material? So these are some of the factors facing the artist when they're making the decision on what type of deal they should go after. As far as being their attorneys it's our responsibility to assistant them and guide them in terms of what best will suit their needs for what they have to offer at that moment.
Is it difficult for you to keep up the changes as far as how a producer gets paid due to emerging technology?
We have to keep educating ourselves because every day is a learning opportunity. We as lawyers have to continuously read to keep on top of what's going on in our industry. If you want to be the best in what you do you have to be on top of the changes. Is it a lot? Yes, but that's what I need to do in order to stay competitive. Clients are looking for attorneys that are knowledgeable about the business and it defeats the purpose of hiring someone that can't negotiate a deal regarding the terms current in the industry. Of course I can't look to the client for advice because they're paying me to advise them so I have to make sure I'm aware of what's going on.
As a lawyer when does the meter start ticking?
I will speak in general terms because it all depends on who you speaking to. With the large law firms from the minute you pick up that phone to say hello the clock is ticking. With the smaller firms most of them don't work like that. Let's say for example you call me and you're asking me to analyze a contract you're at that point asking for my legal advice so of course I'm going to want to be compensated for that. If however it's just some general questions that's something different but I'm not going to spend a lengthy time with you on the phone. Most likely I would setup an appointment with you so we could talk more on what services you need from me.
We all know the music industry is filled with a lot of ego driven personas. How do you keep things professional?
I think it's all about knowing your client and understanding their needs. It's about communicating to them in a way that makes both parties comfortable. If I'm talking to someone that has an ego I may say things in a way that satisfy that person ego as far as not stepping on their toes but at that same time I can't compromise my integrity. If it's someone I felt I couldn't deal with then I wouldn't do it just for the money because it's not worth it to me. At the end of the day I have a business to run and I have more than one client to represent and I don't want any of them to feel that I'm putting more time and effort into any one person more than the other.
What do you look for when you're deciding on whether or not to take on someone as a client?
Understanding the needs of the client at that particular moment. What does the client have going on, what exactly would they want us to do for them and does it fit what our company can provide. Whether I understand and appreciate the music they create.
Right now in 2008 where is the money at for producers?
It's all about owning your music because as long as you own it there are so many ways to make money off of it. You have mechanical income which comes from the licensing of the music which is where the money is made. When you song is being played during movies whether it's the opening song or the ending those fees can be huge! You can also include TV shows and commercials as well as video games. If a song is being licensed for a television show you're going to make sure to do a separate DVD deal because the money is going to be different. It's about understanding the different avenues that are available and monetizing it by licensing it over and over. The same thing goes with ringtones because you can license the same material to whoever wants to make it available to the public.
With saying that do you find people are too often to give up their rights in exchange for up front money?
Definitely because they don't understand the value of their music or intellectual property so they're selling out too quick. When you get a publishing deal you get an advance, maybe $100,000 up front prior to the record being commercially available. Once that music is commercially released you have commitments you have to complete before you get a second advance but if you held out a little longer and the record sold a lot of units you could have capitalized on all the income that would be coming 9 months after the record was released. It's about understanding your position, the product that you're offering to the public and how you see yourself fitting in. There may be cases where you do need the money and you want to get that publishing deal but make sure you understand why you're getting a publishing deal in the first place. Are you getting it just for the money or do you expect this publisher to be setting you up with writers so that you can create more value for yourself and get more deals and more placements...what are your needs? Some producers complain that once they sign with the publisher and they get that advance that's it, they're stuck.
Do you feel some of that comes from people being caught up in the perception of success in the music business?
I think the problem comes down to a lack of knowledge and understanding about the game. They hear the terms being thrown around but they really don't understand what it means. They're too busy listening to what people are saying instead of trying to understand what is being said and end up becoming pawns in the business.
Do you recommend to your clients not to sample if possible or do you tend to stay clear from the creative aspect?
I think some of them don't understand when they're actually sampling. They think just because they played something over that they don't need to get permission but that's incorrect. It's a possibility that the owner of that copyright will agree to take less publishing but it's really a matter of negotiation. If you can avoid sampling it's a good thing because you now own 100% of that work you've created. If you sample that's somebody else work so if they want to claim all of it they can depending on what part you sample and how much of their song encompasses your new song.
Often a producer may not clear a sample until they sell it...
Yea this problem has always existed with producers saying why should I clear something that I don't know is going to be a success but if you clear it up front you have a better chance of getting hit with a lesser fee than waiting until the record blows up and being subjected to the copyright owner taking all the publishing and a huge fee to clear the record. In that case the record label is going to come back to you and take it from your share.
Is the law firm looking to expand your services to address the new needs being created due to the emerging technology?
There are constantly new products being invented that involve music so the technology is definitely making a difference in our approach so we're definitely looking to get more involved in those areas. As those areas grow legal problems come with it and lawyers are needed to mend whatever issues may occur.
Working in this industry can be very rewarding and at the same time wear one down. How do you deal with the roller coaster effect the game can have on people?
I have a strong faith in God and I'm very optimistic about life. I believe everything in life happens for a reason so I tend not question what happen. If an obstacle is placed in front of me I focus on how to get around it to get to the next level instead of contemplating on why the obstacle was placed there. Its all about keeping myself motivated to be the best I can be at all time and my faith in God helps me be the person I am today. As long as I don't lose site of that I can continue to move on and move up.
Before we go what advice would you leave with the readers?
Always believe in your work and don't let anybody tell you that you're not good enough and make sure your taking the necessary steps to protect what you value the most which is your creative work.
