Music

Subscribe to Music via RSS

If you happen to be in Miami or think it's worth it to fly there next week, this is for you. I'll be moderating the panel on regulatory considerations for promoters and influencers and we have student teams competing from all over the country. 

February 29 – March 1
University of Miami

Content is king. We live in the golden age where content creators, artists, and influencers wield power and can shift culture. Brands want to collaborate. Creators need to be sophisticated, understand deal points and protect their brand and intellectual property. Miami Law will be the first law school in the country to pull together law students with leading lawyers, influencers, artists, creatives and trendsetters for a negotiation competition and conference.  

Negotiation Competition – Thursday, February 29 

Where

Shalala Student Center, 1330 Miller Drive, Coral Gables, FL 33146

Who Should Participate

This competition is ideal for law and business students. THE. TEAMS ARE FINALIZED ALREADY.

What to Expect

Participants will have the chance to represent influencers, brands, artists, fashion companies and other creators in the first ever Counseling Creators: Influencers, Artists and Trendsetters Negotiation Competition

  • Register a team of law students (can include business school students)
    1. Team of

…

Posting something light tonight . . . .

I have found myself fascinated listening to Jax's recent hit "Victoria's Secret," a clever pop ballad about female body image concerns and intimates retailer Victoria's Secret.  The refrain is catchy and, itself, tells a story–a business story.

I know Victoria's secret
And, girl, you wouldn't believe
She's an old man who lives in Ohio
Making money off of girls like me"
Cashin' in on body issues
Sellin' skin and bones with big boobs
I know Victoria's secret
She was made up by a dude (dude)
Victoria was made up by a dude (dude)
Victoria was made up by a dude

Because I knew some of the history of the Victoria's Secret business, I understood that the allusion to the "old man who lives in Ohio"–the "dude"–is a reference to Leslie Wexner, the founder of L Brands (earlier famous for owning major brands like The Limited, Express, and Abercrombie & Fitch, as well as Victoria's Secret).  Victoria's Secret became an independent publicly traded firm, Victoria's Secret & Co., last year through a tax-free spin-off from L Brands (now known as Bath & Body Works, Inc.).  From the Victoria's Secret & Co.

Like so many law schools, we're navigating our way to online and other remote teaching and learning in a rapid and unexpected way.  We started classes yesterday, and it's gone fairly well.  Our faculty has worked hard, and our students have been incredibly resilient in the face this adversity we all, unfortunately, share. It does, though, impact people in many different ways.  

Some people face additional health risks, financial challenges, childcare problems, technology limitations, learning disabilities, and more, and I have been so impressed with the strength and composure I have seen in our community. I suspect it's that way a lot of places, and I hope so, but it has been remarkable to see.  

The Harvard Business Review posted a piece yesterday that framed this whole COVID-19 experience in a way I had not considered. The piece is titled, That Discomfort You’re Feeling Is Grief. I would not have framed it the way, but I think it's an important perspective.  The whole piece is worth a read, but here are some important points worth considering: 

Anticipatory grief is the mind going to the future and imagining the worst. To calm yourself, you want to come into…

While I was in France last week touring and attending an academic conference, a French music legend died and was mourned.  Johnny Hallyday, the King of French rock 'n' roll (known widely as the "French Elvis"), died earlier this month at the age of 74 after a battle with lung cancer.  I learned of this in a circuitous way–because one of his songs, Quelque Choses de Tennessee (Something of Tennessee), was playing on the radio in a hotel shuttle van and caught my attention (for obvious reasons, although the song refers to Tennessee Williams, not the state, as it turns out).  Also, I happened to be in Paris the day of his funeral, when many roads (including the Avenue des Champs-Élysées) were blocked off for the related activities.

Curiosity about the song and the singer led me to the Internet.  My Internet searching revealed Hallyday as the singer and described an interesting life.  This guy loved the United States–not only adopting rock 'n' roll, but also writing lyrics about this country based on his U.S. travels.  Perhaps most famous is Mon Amérique à Moi (My America and Me), which includes the following lyrics near and dear…

With a Fourth of July post, I was inclined to write something patriotic and connected with our great nation and to law schools generally. As an unabashed and unapologetic fan of the Hamilton: An American Musical, a couple of analogies from this brilliant production seemed appropriate to convey my thoughts on law school and leaving a legacy.  

First, I think most of us who are fortunate enough to serve as law professors recognize the great gift we have to pursue our passion and to be part of educating the next generation of people who understand the rule of law and have the skills to protect the rights of individuals and groups. This is especially needed for those who are marginalized or under represented and thus less likely to be able to enforce their rights without the help of our legal system.  This is an incredible legacy in America, set in motion by some our nation's founders.  

Like John Adams defending British soldiers and Alexander Hamilton defending Loyalists after the war, lawyers (and law professors) do not need to compromise their own views to embrace the ideals they seek to uphold. We can vigorously maintain our personal views…

It has been a crazy busy couple of weeks, and one thing I rely on the keep sane (or sane-ish) is music. This morning I was listening to the most recent Public Enemy album, Man Plans God Laughs, which includes a song called "Corplantationopoly."  (The album is solid, and while it will never top Nation of Millions or Fear of a Black Planet, Chuck D is still powerful to hear.)  This got me to thinking about songs that reference business as part of their lyrics and/or theme.

With the availability of the internet, of course several such lists have already been compiled. Here is a sampling:

  1. 30 Best Songs About Business and Money
  2. Songs About Money, Business, Finance and Economics
  3. Top 10 Business Songs of All Time | Veritas Prep
  4. The Top 25 Entrepreneur Theme Songs | Addicted 2 Success
  5. 10 Famous Rap Songs About Money
I didn't go to those, though.  Following is my quick list of my five best business songs.  "Best" in this context is the songs that came to mind that talked about business or money.  No voting. No quality assurance.  Pure memory and impulse.  So here you go, my five "best."  I welcome thoughts and other suggestions

…

On Sunday, the world lost a musical giant in David Bowie, who died of cancer at 69.  He was the first artist who that made me a true music fan. Like buy all the records, read the biographies, hang-posters-on-the-wall type fan.  I grew up with a love for Motown music, especially Smokey Robinson, the Supremes, and the Four Tops, that I still have, but my appreciation for that music came from listening to my parent's records.

When it came time to choose my own artists, other kids were into Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, but Bowie emerged as my guy.  He was later followed by bands like R.E.M., the English Beat, and The Cure, among others, as I moved into more of the college radio scene, and I really liked Joan Jett, but Bowie was always The Guy.  My fandom started with an album I poached from my aunt, Heroes.  I also got ahold of David Live (1974), and then worked my way back before going forward.  The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, Space Oddity, The Man Who Sold the World, Aladdin Sane, Diamond Dogs, and…

The Turtles continue to have salience in the music world.  Now, they also are a "happening thing" in legal circles.  Two recently published law review articles take on an interesting issue in copyright law relating to pre-1972 sound recordings that has been the subject of legal actions brought by members of The Turtles.  The articles (both of which use the song Happy Together, a Turtles favorite, in their titles) are authored by my University of Tennessee College of Law colleague, Gary Pulsinelli, and Georgetown University Law Center Professor Julie L. Ross.  

In his abstract, Gary summarizes the problem as follows:

Federal copyright law provides a digital performance right that allows owners of sound recordings to receive royalties when their works are transmitted over the Internet or via satellite radio. However, this federal protection does not extend to pre-1972 sound recordings, which are excluded from the federal copyright system and instead left to the protections of state law. No state law explicitly provides protection for any type of transmission, a situation the owners of pre-1972 sound recordings find lamentable. These owners are therefore attempting to achieve such protection by various means. . . . 

He concludes:

[S]tate…