2011 - 2012 National Board Election: Nominees (by office, in alphabetical order)
Officers (*indicates incumbent):
PRESIDENT
David Hirshland, Executive Vice President, Client Services, BMG Chrysalis *
David Hirshland is currently the Executive Vice President, Client Services for BMG Chrysalis. Prior to holding this
position he was President of Bug Music, until recently the largest independent publishing administration company,
which in October 2011 merged with BMG Rights Management. David was previously employed at the law firm of
Rosenfeld, Meyer and Susman where he represented both talent and institutional clients in the film and music
industries. Prior to his legal career, David was an agent at the Rosebud Agency and later formed his own
management company. Having been at Bug for 17 years, David started as V.P. of Business & Legal Affairs, then
Executive V.P. before being named President in 2006. In addition to his management of the roster of writer and
publisher clients he also functions in an A&R capacity, allowing the company to increase the size of its ever
expanding roster of writers and catalogs. Among them are the estates of Johnny Cash, Willie Dixon, Muddy
Waters, Woody Guthrie and Stevie Ray Vaughan, legendary artists such as Iggy Pop, the Guess Who and Los
Lobos and contemporary alt rock stars such as Ryan Adams, Kings of Leon and Wilco. David received a B.A. in
English Literature from Brown University and a J.D. from UCLA.
VICE PRESIDENT
Michael Eames, President, PEN Music Group, Inc. *
Michael Eames is a trained composer, songwriter and pianist with experience in film scoring who studied at
Cornell University and UCLA Extension; Michael also held a minor in Business Management from Cornell. As
President of PEN, Michael oversees all aspects of the operation as well as focuses on pitching the catalogue to
all media and business development. Prior to starting PEN, Michael oversaw the international activities and film &
television department of Don Williams Music Group where he was responsible for song catalogues such as Jimi
Hendrix, Chicago and Roy Orbison among numerous others. He has also worked with the catalogue of Brian
Wilson of The Beach Boys and the management and music supervision firm The Derek Power Co. Michael was
recently re-elected to the National Board Of Directors of the Association Of Independent Publishers (AIMP) and is
also a member of the California Copyright Conference (CCC) and the National Academy of Recording Arts and
Sciences (NARAS).
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Teri Nelson Carpenter, President & CEO, Reel Muzik Werks, LLC *
Teri is president and CEO of Reel Muzik Werks, a full service music publishing company providing global writer
and publisher administration, licensing and clearance and music supervision for all media. Reel Muzik Werks
specializes in the international market with an emphasis on royalty collection and recovery for the Film/TV
industry. Prior to Reel Muzik Werks, Teri served as Sr. Vice President, Saban Music Group. Previously, she was
Sr. Vice President, Music Administration for Fox Family Worldwide. Before joining Saban/Fox, Teri served as a
Music Administration & Production Executive at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Prior to that, she was the Director of
Music at Academy Award Winning indie company, Hemdale Film Corporation. Teri began her career at
Broadcast Music, Inc. in Film/TV relations. Ms. Carpenter is a member of the Board of Directors for the Copyright
Alliance in Washington, DC, the Association of Independent Music Publishers and recently served as a two-term
President of the California Copyright Conference. Ms. Carpenter is a guest lecturer at UCLA on international
music business. She holds a Bachelor of Music Degree from Cal State Long Beach, graduating with honors.
TREASURER
Cedar Boschan, Partner, Hurewitz, Boschan & Co. LLP
Cedar Boschan’s respected royalty audits have helped clients - including music publishers - recover tens of
millions in unpaid royalties. Her firm Hurewitz Boschan & Co. is well known in the music industry for its royalty
accounting services. Prior to her career as a royalty auditor, Cedar earned a B.S. in Music Industry from the
University of Southern California (USC) and she worked in new media, A&R, and business affairs at record labels.
Cedar serves on the Board of Directors of the California Copyright Conference and has spoken at the Game
Developers’ Conference, The Beverly Hills Bar Association and USC.
SECRETARY
Michael Crepezzi, Executive Director, Performing Rights, BMI *
Oversees the procurement and compliance of BMI’s Music Use Reporting regarding all television activities.
Manage over 40 cable sources, as well as network television contacts to educate and cultivate relationships.
Develops and maintains relationships with cable and TV composers to maintain and enhance market share.
Works closely with all BMI departments to ensure royalties are properly distributed. Daily interaction with various
outside contacts to communicate BMI’s policies and liaison for questions. Works with BMI’s Operation and
Technology departments to implement applications. Coordinates demonstrations and access to BMI’s various
tools for the community. Handles questions from production companies, publishers and composers as main BMI
contact. Manage the workload and oversight of two employees and set goals to enhance productivity. Implement
policies and establish goals by working with various internal task forces and committees.
Board of Directors (select seven)
Michelle Belcher, Owner/Music Supervisor, Ready Room Music *
With over 20 years in the music for film & TV business Michelle Belcher recently started her own independent
music supervision/clearance company called Ready Room Music. Previously she was the head of the Film & TV
department for Primary Wave Music for 4 years where she also facilitated new business development and
marketing strategies as GM for the company's west coast operations. She started her career in soundtrack
production with Morgan Creek Records, moving on to Columbia Records, Arista Records and BMG Music
Publishing. She also music supervised the hit film District 9 (produced by Peter Jackson) and the Hammer film
“The Resident” (starring Hilary Swank).
Todd Brabec, Esq., Musicandmoney.com *
Todd Brabec, Esq., is the co-author of “Music, Money and Success: the Insider’s Guide to Making Money in the
Music Business”, an Adjunct Associate Professor at USC where he teaches the course on Music Licensing,
Publishing and Film, Television and Video Game Scoring and Song Contracts and a Governing Committee
member of the American Bar Association Forum on the Entertainment and Sports Industries. As Executive Vice
President of ASCAP over a 37 year career, he was responsible for signing most of ASCAP’s successful
songwriters and film and television composers, for significantly changing ASCAP’s distribution, payment and
survey systems and for eliminating most policies and provisions that were not in the best interests of songwriters
and composers thereby enabling ASCAP to survive and succeed in a competitive world and increase its annual
revenue from 60 million dollars to 995 million dollars.
Nathalie Du Bois, Head of North America, Conexion Entertainment Group
Nathalie Du Bois is Head of North America on behalf of Conexion Media Group plc, a global media operation. A
20-year industry veteran, she built up one of the most successful boutique music companies. Ms Du Bois
maintains longstanding preferred vendor relationships with all the major film and television studios and negotiated
the first one stop pre-negotiated contracts for licensing of commercial music. Her relationships resulted in the
placement of music on almost every network show on television. Ms. Du Bois’ approach resulted in the catalogue
organically growing from 3,500 – 100,000 songs that comprises the current copyrights of the CEG catalogue.
Linda Gallico, Vice President Music Administration, Realsongs/Diane Warren Music Publishing *
As Vice President of Music Administration, she is responsible for all of the day-to-day music publishing processes
including; copyright registration, ASCAP registrations, desktop audits, mechanical licensing, synch negotiations
and licensing for television, motion pictures, advertising, as well as the licensing of all new media and overseeing
the duties of Realsongs’ foreign sub-publisher. Linda’s 36 years of experience in the music publishing business
has included working for Al Gallico Music Publishing (a large catalog of pop and country music, currently owned
by EMI Music), BMI Performing Rights Society, and MizMo Enterprises (a music publishing administration
company).
Bill Hochberg, President, High Mountain Law
Bill Hochberg is a music attorney with over 20 years of transactional and litigation experience. Music publishing
clients include multiple BMI songwriter of the year Jeffrey Steele, Grammy award winning composer Lalo Schifrin,
members of Guns N’ Roses and Brazilian publisher Fermata do Brasil. He is co-owner of Chill N’ Hustle, a top
Nashville-based production and publishing company. He has funded innovative music therapy projects pioneered
by Berklee College of Music and Harvard Medical School. A member of NARAS and LARAS, Bill plays guitar in
the Big Band of Barristers, a 17-piece jazz big band comprised of lawyers and judges.
Jeff Jernigan, Associate Director/Film & Television Music, ASCAP *
Jeff Jernigan is an essential part of ASCAP’s Film & Television department, representing composers and
songwriters in the industry and providing them with career development services and support. During his time at
ASCAP, Jeff has worked hard on cultivating personal relationships and works hard to help composer and
songwriters get recognized. His knowledge and genuine passion for the industry is what makes him a true
advocate for music creators. In addition, he also co-produces ASCAP’s Annual Film & TV Music Awards show
and is a member of the World Soundtrack Academy. Prior to his position at ASCAP, Jeff worked at BMG Music
Publishing. Jeff was elected to the board of the AIMP in 2011 and planned and moderated the “Brave New
World: Reinventing the Art of Song Plugging” panel in June, 2012.
Sam Kling, Vice President A&R and Synchronization, peermusic
Sam joined peermusic in 2007 as VP of A&R bringing with him a 15-year history of an entrepreneurial approach
to the music industry. He was promoted to VP of A&R and Film & Television in 2008. He is now responsible for
overseeing all synchronization licensing activities as well as the discovering and developing of new talent for
peermusic. The five years since coming to peer were very special as he had the good fortune to work with
wonderful songwriters including Ester Dean, Dan James, Traci Hale, Richard Harris, Tricky Stewart, Laney
Stewart, David Foster and many others. Their songs have been recorded by some of the biggest artists around
and sold millions of singles and albums. They've been nominated for and won Grammies, PRO awards, and have
been featured in some of the most important films, TV shows and advertisements on the planet. Prior to peer, he
was at BMG Music Publishing, FirstCom Music and before that, his own management and production company,
Madgroove. He holds an MBA from UCLA Anderson and completed his undergraduate work at The American
University and The New School for Social Research.
James Leach, Vice President, Writer/Publisher Relations/West Coast Operations, SESAC *
James began his music career as an intern at Famous Music Publishing before transitioning to ATV Music Group
as an intern and where he eventually became Director of Creative Affairs, having the opportunity to work with
artists such as Brownstone, and SWV among many others. Upon leaving ATV, James formed Leach
Entertainment Enterprises where he consulted for several indie labels, music publishers and placed music in
various film/television projects. Later rejoining Famous Music Publishing as Creative Director, James was
responsible for signing current million-selling artist/producer AKON. Upon leaving Famous Music, served as
Music Consultant and Music Coordinator for the groundbreaking TV show, “New York Undercover” as well as
working for Fox Television as a Music Supervisor before joining SESAC in 2001. Since joining SESAC, James
has had the fortune of signing and working with many talented Songwriters/Producers and Music Publishers. As
Vice President of Writer/Publisher Relation/West Coast Operations, James is charged with leading the company’s
exploration and development of business strategies for the Digital Music/Media Convergence.
Cassie Lord, Vice President & Executive Producer, 5 Alarm Music
5 Alarm Music encompasses every aspect of music publishing. Cassie produces 5 Alarm Music and represents
over 65 music libraries from all over the world, including hundreds of independent artists. Recent feature film
placements include “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo”, “The Help”, “There Will Be Blood”, and TV shows such as
“True Blood”, “Mad Men”, and “The Office.” Cassie’s 25-year background includes BMI, the show “Star Search”,
building EMI/BMG’s APM from its inception and establishing the Film & Television Division for Zomba’s music
library. During the Internet boom, she consulted to Thomas Dolby’s company, Beatnik. As the founder of 5
Alarm, Cassie facilitated the acquisition of 5 Alarm by Imagem Music Group, the #1 Independent Music Publisher
in the world. Cassie currently is a board member of the PMA.
Linda A. Newmark, Executive VP/Head of Acquisitions & Strategic Projects, Universal Music Publishing
Group *
Linda A. Newmark is Executive Vice President – Head of Acquisitions and Strategic Projects for Universal Music
Publishing Group (UMPG), where she obtains opportunities for UMPG to acquire rights to musical compositions
through acquisition, co-publishing, administration and subpublishing agreements.
Linda is a member of the Board of Managers of Associated Production Music LLC (APM), the Board of Managers
of The Leonard Bernstein Music Publishing Company, LLC and the Board of Directors of the AIMP. She has
been recognized in Billboard’s Women in Music features as one of the top 20 female executives in the music
industry in 2009, 2010 and 2011.
Donna Ross-Jones, Founder & President, Transition Music Group
Donna leverages 25 years of expertise in music publishing and IP management to deliver exclusive music
solutions for 24 TV series and 7 channels. She's contributed to the success of superstars, including: Eddie
Murphy, Heart, Irene Cara, Rick James and Anita Baker. Donna's been recognized by the Hollywood Reporter,
Black Enterprise, Cambridge's Who's Who, and the City of Los Angeles. After her son was diagnosed with
Autism in 2008, Donna began helping others. She received Congressional Recognition for her work, including cofounding Special Needs Network and publishing the blog Autism Day-By-Day, where she impacts public policy
and helps families through education and advocacy.
Susan Slamer, VP Music/Clearance & Licensing, Sony Pictures
I am currently the head of the licensing department for Sony Pictures Television, where my department is
responsible for the clearing and licensing of all Sony Pictures Television projects domestically. I also advise both
our international and digital departments on clearance issues. I have been with Sony Pictures for 7 1/2 years.
Music Supervisor – American Idol – Seasons 1 – 4. Responsible for overseeing all of the music needs for
production, as well as working w/Coca Cola, Ford and Herbal Essence on all promotional needs. Past positions
have been in management working with such artists as Earth Wind & Fire, The Beach Boys, The Moody Blues
and Warrant, Composers Agent working with Patrick Doyle, John DuPris, Stanley Clarke, Tom Scott and Sir
George Martin, among others.
Adam Taylor, President, APM Music
For over two decades, Adam Taylor has been helping intellectual property companies manage and extract value
from their copyrights, trademarks and patents. Adam has been the president of APM Music for the past 12 years
and has led it into being the leading production music company in the United Stated, known for its innovation,
creativity and top quality customer service. Adam is also the Vice-Chairman of the Production Music Association
and is on the Board of Santa Monica College’s Academy of Entertainment and Television. He has two teenage
boys and lives in Culver City.
David Weitzman, Sr. Director Business Development & LA Operations, ole
David Weitzman has worked with ole for over 3 years. He runs the LA operation for ole as Senior Director,
Business Development and LA Operations. David brings to ole over 18 years of experience in the music
business ranging from A&R and radio promotion for several record labels to digital music development and
distribution for Emusic to music supervision for several networks including such music driven shows as Jackass,
Wildboyz, Rob & Big and Run’s House for MTV. At ole, David has signed a multitude of publishing deals,
including artist writers, Timbaland, Ziggy Marley, Haley Reinhart and many audio visual deals including DHX
Media, Discovery Communications and Litton Entertainment, helping to grow ole.
Helen Yu, CEO, Yu Leseberg, PLC
Entertainment lawyer Helen Yu is first and foremost an advocate of artists, songwriters, producers, and other
creatives in the entertainment industry. She’s consciously chosen to counsel her clients on ways of protecting
their interests in the merger of “art” & “commerce” - otherwise known as the entertainment business. Helen is
acknowledged by her clients and peers as an authority on entertainment business strategies with the instinctual
ability of navigating the intricacies of artistic careers in the rapidly changing landscape of the 21 st century. Helen’s
comprehensive and diverse clients include some of today’s most successful songwriters, musicians, and
producers with platinum albums and Billboard #1’s among their credits.