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This essay is based on a conversation with Lylett Pizarro, founder and co-managing partner Influence media partnersa New York-based music and entertainment company whose mission is to partner with artists, songwriters, and creative executives to transform the music space, steward legacy works, and build future brand value. ” In 2022, Pizarro will $750 million fund backed by BlackRock Inc. and Warner Music Group Invest in music IP from artists with global reach. Pizarro has forged deep partnerships with artists and songwriters throughout his career, working with the likes of Bruno Mars, Future and Blake Shelton. Last December, Influence announced: Major partnership agreement with Enrique Iglesias This includes establishing name, image and likeness (“NIL”) opportunities for the artist and enriching his extensive music catalog.
Image credit: Courtesy of Influence Media Partners. Lilette Pissarro.
Before founding Influence Media Partners, I spent much of my time at a marketing agency forming partnerships with top artists, record labels, music companies, and brands. I love this job and finding the right partners, whether it’s Apple, PepsiCo, or LVMH. As I was working on it, I noticed a blank space. The music copyright market started to change and everyone approached this from an economic or publishing perspective, but I had a different perspective. Can we partner with top artists, songwriters, and entrepreneurs? Can we help them continue to ignite today’s culture and ensure their legacy continues into the future?
We wanted to partner with artists who are still in the field making music, touring, and interacting with fans. We thought that if we could partner with them to protect their legacy, intellectual property and catalogue, we could find new ways to inspire our fans through our partnerships, including advertising, film and television. There are also other ways to capture and advance new opportunities. for them. Of course, when it comes to successfully navigating these major deals, developing a strategy is one thing, but executing the strategy is another.
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That was a pretty big ambition. Can we find a partner who believes in us and helps us obtain these rights and partnerships with these artists? Will they allow me to be part of their bench? Enrique Iglesias is obviously a very great Latin icon and has allowed us to work with him and his team on his image and likeness rights. Looking back, we’ve signed five Image and Likeness contracts and are starting to build opportunities, but it’s really important and exciting to see this come to fruition. It is a privilege and an honor to work with artists. Of course, you have to provide value to both artists and investors.
When we approach these deals and partnerships, we make sure that the artists and songwriters truly understand our value proposition and how we want to work with them – that we value the partnership. It is very important to do so. This is critical as this market continues to grow. And become more competitive. It’s about leading with trust and having a shared understanding of what’s important. A common challenge in the music business is problem solving under pressure.
You have to be able to do that, but think about how it compares to sports and other performances. For example, if a player on a team is injured during the season, the game will continue. If the star of a Broadway show falls ill, an understudy takes his place and the show continues. With music, it’s a little different. There may not always be equivalent substitutes. Tours and releases change, and accommodating both sides of a partnership within these dynamics is not always easy. Things don’t always go to plan.
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There is one transaction that still remains close to my heart. My client at the time was a consumer products company. The CEO of this company (he is one of the world’s leading CEOs) has a very close relationship with a non-profit organization and needed to provide some entertainment assets for the summer. But the challenge was, they didn’t have a budget at the time, and even though we had some media assets, we had to find a way to provide them to this nonprofit without a budget.
RPM’s internal team at the time was like, “There’s no way we can do that. There’s just no way.” And I always stuck to this belief, If there is a will, there is a way. This is a great non-profit organization.There are these media assets and perhaps there are others [valuable] what we can offer. So I ended up going to the market and asking movie studios and record labels if I could find a way to partner with them. In the end, I came across something I had never imagined, but I was still willing and open to take a look. So I ended up partnering with one of the greatest pop artists of the time, who made a film that was important to that movie studio and them. And we put on a great show for thousands of people for this nonprofit organization. We were able to solve the problem because we all worked together.
Looking at such challenges, I cannot stress enough how important it is to be willing to face situations that may seem very difficult.Please take some time and think carefully. — Is there another way I can solve this? Although it may seem impossible, Is there anything else you can offer?
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Starting and raising money for a business in the dynamic music industry can be very difficult, so finding ways to relax and prioritize your health is extremely important. My family is the center of my world. My daughter is an avid dancer and performer and her son is into basketball. So as a volunteer mom, I love being involved with both teams and supporting both organizations, whether it’s the dance troupe or the basketball team. I am “Mr. Rylett” to my children. I also enjoy yoga and working with an executive coach and therapist is extremely valuable.
For entrepreneurs looking to make their mark in the music industry, I always say it’s very important to know what your superpower is. If you’re a good writer, truly understand your audience, or have a keen sense of creativity, know your superpower and lean in to do work that adds value . This is a transformative and growing business, and if you are involved in the arts in any way, we are honored to support them. However, if you can combine your superpowers and add value, you have a winning proposition. There is no shortage of need to strengthen your business and make it better. Therefore, we recommend doing so whenever possible.