John Branca

  John Branca, Attorney When Michael Jackson bought ATV Music — home to the Beatles catalog — in 1985 and partnered with Sony Music Publishing to establish Sony/ATV in 1995, those strategic moves were stepping stones toward fulfilling Jackson’s long-held dream. “Michael’s dream was to create the biggest publisher in the wor l d,” says entertainment attorney John Branca. He negotiated the aforementioned deals and other publishing acquisitions on behalf of his client before Jackson’s untimely death in 2009. In addition to serving as co-executor of the Michael Jackson Estate with John McClain, Branca is partner and head of the music division at entertainment law firm Ziffren Brittenham LLP. Speaking to  Billboard  on the occasion of Sony/ATV’s rebranding as Sony Music Publishing in tandem with the company’s silver anniversary celebration, Branca says, “Michael is the person who was single-handedly most responsible for the growth of Sony/ATV. That’s not to take anything away ...

  John Branca Attorney  to the Super Stars John Branca got his first taste of the entertainment business as a teenager when he joined a relatively unknown band in Los Angeles. Ultimately, that same young man became one of the entertainment’s biggest names. But not as a performer. Instead, John Branca became one of the most successful and accomplished attorneys in the entertainment industry. In his career, he has either represented or negotiated with the most famous artists and bands in history. Michael Jackson called him “the greatest lawyer of our time,” and client Carlos Santana simply called him “the Shaman.” As a pa r tner at the entertainment firm of Ziffren Brittenham LLP,  John Branca  ‘s impressive list of clients includes more than 30 members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Since 2009, he’s served as custodian of the Michael Jackson Estate. Among his favorite deals: the $2.2 billion acquisition by Sony of EMI Music Publishing, a deal that created the bigg...

  Attorney John Branca Published on  March 15th, 2021 | by  Jameelah “Just Jay” Wilkerson Name a major rock star over the past 40 years and, more often than not, you’ll find the name of  Attorney John Branca  associated with it. Branca is the legendary music industry lawyer whose list of cli e nts reads like a who’s who of the entertainment business. More than 30 of his clients are members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, including Michael Jackson, the Beach Boys, Bob Dylan, Aerosmith, Elton John, Nirvana, Fleetwood Mac, and more. Other clients include the estates of Otis Redding and Elvis Presley and worldwide celebrities like boxer Mike Tyson and comedian/actor Eddie Murphy. Currently, along with his other clients and responsibilities, Branca is co-manager of the Michael Jackson Estate and brand. How does one become a  John Branca ? What advice would he give aspiring attorneys who are drawn to the glamor of the entertainment business? We sat down with J...

  John Branca discusses the different way Leaving Neverland was treated by HBO, as opposed to the way any other “documentary" would need to be.   John Branca : I'm thinking obviously of Leaving Neverland where the point of view is presented as fact, but there's no other side to it. In fact, the director of that documentary said, “I had no interest in talking to anybody else.” So, I would challenge you to name one media outlet where if you went to your boss and said, “I don't feel like talking to anybody who has any fact or opinion that might shoot down my theory,” that film that article never get written, never get made.   So, I found it interesting that HBO, they didn't have journalists come to the screening, they had movie reviewers. And if this had been presented as a movie and an opinion, fine. If they had presented both sides like you would require in a courtroom, the courtroom requires both sides. So, something like Leaving Neverland is the one side, ...

John Branca discusses some of the price Michael had to pay for his success. John Branca: Starting in the 80s, James Baldwin had the famous quote that "Michael Jackson would forever pay the price for being as successful as he was and buying the Beatles catalog”. The press started on Michael in the mid-80s, and it hasn't stopped. And you asked the question, why not do a counter documentary? It's impossible to prove a negative. And quite frankly, there are large segments of the press that doesn't care because it's not controversial.

  Jackie Robinson Stadium, home of UCLA Baseball UCLA Athletics today announced its plan to make improvements to the Gifford Sports Complex at Jackie Robinson Stadium, including the construction of a state-of-the-art baseball practice infield, to be known as Branca Family Field. The practice infield and improvements are designed both to serve as developmental tools for UCLA’s nationally-renowned baseball program and to provide recreational space and opportunities for Veterans and their families on the Veterans Affairs West Los Angeles campus. The practice infield  i s to be named after legendary Brooklyn Dodger pitcher and three-time All-Star Ralph Branca, who had a successful 12-year major league career and was famously the first to embrace and welcome Jackie Robinson to Major League Baseball. Robinson, a standout UCLA student-athlete in four sports, U.S. Army Veteran and namesake for the Jackie Robinson Athletics and Recreation Complex at UCLA — whose number 42 is retired ac...