John Branca discussing his personal brand and the importance it has played in his career

 

John Branca discussing his personal brand and the importance it has played in his career.

John Branca: I’m a big believer in branding, no matter what you do as an attorney or otherwise. So over the years, I tried to cultivate a certain brand or image. So that before an artist might come in the room to interview me, they already thought they knew what I was about or certainly what I stood for.

And part of my brand, I have sort of two main competitors one in Atlanta and one in New York. Who, my friend in New York, always felt if I represent the record company, I’m going to get the artist. I was the opposite. Like growing up in the 60s, getting kicked out of school. I always had a chip on my shoulder when it came to big organizations, and the government and I view the record company in that light.

So my whole thing is I’m going to represent the artists, never going to represent the record company. Never going to have to wake up in the morning and decide whose side am I on today, I got one side, I’m here to take care of the artists. And so over the years, we did some things that other people might not have done. Tony Braxton were trying to renegotiate her contract, we put her in bankruptcy, terminated her contract.

Carlos Santana after the supernatural album sold 25 million albums, and they sold the company. Clive Davis left, a new guy comes in. We took the legal position that was documented by a real lawyer, who I want to introduce soon, that there was an implied in fact key man clause that without Clive Davis at the company the contract was no longer enforceable. Now if you tried to make that argument in a corporate setting, when you’re dealing with a mega company. They would laugh you out of the place, they would put one of their Wall Street firms on to crush you. But that kind of thing actually works in the music business, because they know the artists. If they don’t make a record, the company doesn’t make any money. So we use that basis to renegotiate Carlos’s contract. So I tried to cultivate an image that I was an artist attorney, I could never be controlled. I was always going to try to do the right thing for the artists. And that having built up a large practice of superstars, people felt I always knew what the best deals were, so nobody could fool me in that. So that was part one, branding.

So if an artist came in to see me, and my friend Mike Rosenfeld who I mentioned, there was always this feeling that you had to create this aura that you had some magical power. That you could do something that nobody else could do, so the artist would believe in you, so you would go into a negotiation and they would think he’s going to get me everything he can. So that’s part of the brand.
But then part two is sometimes you get an artist that gets so big, and so internationally known that they don’t really like to hear the word no. In fact, some people get fired for saying the word no. And as I sort of started with Michael when Michael Jackson was 29, and he was 21 and the thriller came out, sold 100 million albums. And we bought the Beatles catalog, and did the bad tour, the biggest tour in the world at that time.

And kings and queens wanted to know Michael, and Marlon Brandon, I mean everybody wanted to get to Michael. So with Michael, it was tricky. I loved Mike, he was like a brother to me. But sometimes, you had to figure out ways to present something to him that he didn’t want to hear.
So one of the things I would use would be the third party. Like okay mike, some people are saying that this or that or the other, now I don’t believe it necessarily, but some people say that. And it was a way to introduce a concept that you didn’t have to take ownership of and get fired with over.

John Branca: American lawyer (1950-) | Biography, Facts, Career, Wiki, Life (peoplepill.com)

№57: John Branca | Power 100 | Billboard

John Branca — Home | Facebook  

John Branca (@_JohnBranca_) / Twitter

John Branca — Crunchbase Person Profile

Location: Cambridge, MA, USA

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