February News

• View Webcasts of Panels – One of the many benefits of membership is our archive of past panels. If you missed the LA January presentation by David Israelite of the NMPA, Members can view the video, as well as all archives, here. All are welcome to view a sampling of video clips here.  And always be sure to check for new non-AIMP event discounts in your Member's Area!
• The AIMP Global Music Publishing Summit will take place over three days - June 8-10 - at the 3 West Club in New York City. Andrea Martin, the new Chief Executive of PRS for Music, is confirmed to keynote – more great speakers to come! In the meantime, don't forget to get your Early Bird ticket before March 1st on Eventbrite. 
• Meet Los Angeels chapter featured member Mary Jo Mennella/Music Asset Management.  Mary Jo is one of our former LA Chapter presidents, and has also had a successful career as both a passionate entrepreneur, as well as a seasoned corporate executive.  She has always been committed to being of service to songwriters by providing the best-in-class rights management of catalogs that maximize value and income. 
• The ASCAP family took home trophies in 36 categories at the 62nd annual Grammys, held last month in LA.  ASCAP Vanguard Award winner Billie Eilish and her collaborator/brother FINNEAS each won five Grammy trophies. Billie made Grammys history as the first woman - and youngest artist ever - to win all four "general field" categories: Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Album of the Year and Best New Artist. FINNEAS also became the youngest ever producer to be named Producer of the Year.  Read more here.  
• BMI Congratulates its 2020 GRAMMY Winners - Many BMI affiliates were singled out for their achievements at the Recording Academy’s 62nd GRAMMY Awards, held last month in LA. Among the multiple-award winners came Lizzo, who ended up taking home three GRAMMYs.  Gary Clark, Jr. was also a three-time winner as was record producer/mixer engineer Robert Kinelski, for his work on one of the most recognized albums of the year, Billy Eilish’s debut LP, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?  Read more here.  
• SESAC - Last month  SESAC Chairman and CEO John Josephson hosted a GRAMMY Toast, honoring its songwriters and artists who contributed to the year’s most-celebrated musical works. The intimate gathering, held at the Four Seasons Hotel Beverly Hills, kicked off the week of festivities with good cheer and conversation.  
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Mary Jo Mennella / Music Asset Management

As one of the most well-known and respected rights administration and licensing experts in the industry, Mary Jo Mennella is the owner and CEO of Music Asset Management, Inc. (MAM), a leading independent music publishing and consulting company she founded fourteen years ago.  Throughout her successful career as both a passionate entrepreneur, as well as a seasoned corporate executive, Mennella has always been committed to being of service to songwriters by providing the best-in-class rights management of catalogs that maximize value and income. With extensive worldwide relationships and broad experience, her company manages publishing catalogs for a multitude of rights owners and creators, including world-renowned songwriters and composers, independent music publishers, film and TV studios, and other media companies. During this transformational period of copyright reform requiring complex licensing solutions, music creators and talent representatives seek Mennella and her team’s expertise to successfully build and manage their catalogs while being instrumental in their growth and success.  

MAM’s recent signings include award-winning composer Mark Isham, two-time Emmy nominee Miriam Cutler, Nashville-based companies Purplebeat Music and MV2 Music, along with cutting edge indie publishing company, Arketek Music.  The company also represents the estate of Bobby Troup (“Route 66”), Evolution Music Partners and OSI Music, among many others.  In 2014 MAM entered into a partnership with leading LA independent Pulse Music Group as their exclusive publishing administrator which recently entered into a J-V with Concord Music.  

Prior to launching Music Asset Management, Mennella was Senior Vice President and General Manager of Music Publishing at Fox Filmed Entertainment as the executive in charge of the publishing and master recording catalogs of 20th Century Fox, Fox Broadcasting, and their affiliated production units. Mennella worked on many of the studio’s most successful soundtrack releases including TITANIC, THE SIMPSONS, HOME ALONE and X FILES.  Before Fox, Mennella held key senior executive roles at Saban Entertainment and at ASCAP, where she began her career in the entertainment business working in the Membership Department. At ASCAP she signed and nurtured many popular and legendary songwriters such as the GoGos, Dan Hartman, and George Michael Green.   

As an advocate for creators’ rights, a champion of songwriters, and as a musician herself, Mennella has served on the Board of Directors of the Songwriters Hall of Fame as West Coast Chair since 2010 and was elected Board Secretary in 2018.  Mennella is on the board of IMPEL, the independent music publishing collective for digital rights licensing, and she is Past President of the Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP).  Among her many philanthropic efforts and industry affiliations, Mennella is a Past Chairman of the Music & Entertainment Industry Group for City of Hope, a Lifetime Member of the Recording Academy, and an active supporter of MusiCares.