Entertainment Attorney Alex Mueller shares her insights regarding Bob Dylan’s recent sale of much of his music catalog and what this means for the future of music on the WCCO Radio show Steel Talkin’ with Jearlyn Steele. She also discusses copyrights, the Music Modernization Act and other legal issues facing the music industry.
When asked Dylan’s possible motives for selling, Mueller explains, “One of the reasons I think legacy artists are examining this is because everyone knows what happened with Prince’s estate… it is a lot of work and a lot to leave to your heirs, and if you don’t have systems in place as a succession plan there are missed opportunities.”
When asked is she was surprised by Dylan’s sale of his music catalog, Mueller responded, “We have been seeing this sort of thing coming… What’s interesting about Bob Dylan’s career is that he had maintained ownership of his publishing rights, which is rather unusual for artists- especially given the time period when he started.”