Event Review: NARIP Presentation - Publishing Hit Songs

"So then I said, 'Are you guys deaf? That's a hit record!' And they agreed to listen to it again."

Those twenty words reveal a lot about Alan Melina, from his stature in the business (he pitches songs directly to Clive Davis and others at the top), to his track record (he has signed writers and artists who have sold half-a-billion recordings), to his faith in the quality of the work he represents (often displaying an eye-opening level of self-confidence).

So when Melina speaks about the innermost details of the world of publishing, listen closely

and take lots of notes.

Two Professions in One Person

Melina is Managing Partner in the personal artist management firm New Heights Entertainment and President/Managing Partner of the independent music publishing group Sunset Boulevard Entertainment. In this dual capacity, he brought an even greater degree of knowledge to the presentation by the National Association of Record Industry Professionals (NARIP).

"I live in a world where art meets commerce," Melina stated. And he was eager to help each attendee more readily integrate his art with the commercial aspects of the industry. In order to present data that would be most relevant to everyone, he asked each of us for a brief introduction, then often related portions of the 4-hour seminar directly to individuals in the auditorium. A nice touch.

Attendees included industry insiders such as Marvin Etzioni, an original member of acclaimed Los Angeles band Lone Justice and now a producer represented by Studio Expresso; Tyree Knox of WEA; and Sherry Perkov, Executive Music Supervisor for The Roddenberry Estate.

Secrets & Facts

On several occasions, Melina asked me not to print something he was about to say, so all I can reveal are the facts of his presentation, not some of his wonderfully entertaining opinions and irreverent anecdotes. But the list of facts was impressive and useful, including:

* The bundle of rights in a song
* Categorization of music publishing revenues
* Determination of mechanical royalties by country
* Definition of co-pub (co-publishing deal)
* How the "free goods" record company provision can hurt your income
* The truth behind the "securitization" deals such as the Bowie bonds
* How to determine the worth of a song catalog
* Basic math used regularly in the publishing business
* Ways a publisher exploits the copyrights he acquires

Melina is in love with this subject matter, and he makes it come alive as he speaks. He is also a bit of a raconteur, often garnering laughter from his keen observations about some of the more peculiar aspects of the worlds of publishing and management. Some highlights of his presentation:

* "Information, information, information. Music publishing is all about information."

* "You need to know to change langua