By On behalf of ChaseLawyers

For 17 years ChaseLawyers has served South Florida’s creative community, helping artists, entertainers, and athletes protect their intellectual property and maximize their business potential. In addition to providing legal services, ChaseLawyers remains committed to giving back to the community. Our attorneys constantly participate in various forms of outreach. Whether it’s speaking at educational institutions, supporting industry functions, working on pro-bono cases (for which ChaseLawyers has been honored on numerous occasions), or contributing financially to local organizations, ChaseLawyers strives to enhance South Florida’s social and artistic fabric.

Before the holiday, we attended a screening of “Demos” (www.demosdocumentary.com), a new documentary by Kareem Fort and Kevin Nottingham. The film interviews iconic Hip Hop emcees and noteworthy newcomers, to create a “how-to” on breaking into the music industry. Surveying the experiences of artist’s nationwide, one theme prevails: well-organized indie talent can thrive now more than ever. In our Digital Age of Access, however, opportunity comes at a cost. As the film accurately points out, the journey only begins with social media. Today’s indie artists must be more educated and business-savvy than ever in order to monetize their web-based “golden ticket.” Creating a seamless transition, ChaseLawyers joined the Director’s Q&A panel to compare “Demos” to ChaseLawyers’ own “Do It Yourself” (DIY) method for success.

The ChaseLawyers DIY method presents a “three-legged stool” of artist-driven entrepreneurship, fusing (1) live performance, (2) online sales, and (3) radio/marketing elements. We also emphasize the importance of addressing important legal matters from the onset: Has the artist set up a business entity to insulate personal assets from professional liability? Has the artist trademarked his/her performer name and logo? Has all content been copyrighted? The DIY approach is a route to creative empowerment through addressing concerns identified in the “Demos” documentary. Today, artists must be aware; but they must also be proactive. We recommend “Demos” to any artist looking to begin his/her musical journey. We’d then encourage that same artist to take steps towards protecting his/her intellectual property. Make your start a good one.

For more information, please contact us at our Miami office: (305) 373-7665, or in New York at (212) 601-2762. We are happy to assist on any entertainment-related matter, and we look forward to hearing from you.

Source: http://www.entertainmentlawyermiami.com/blog/2013/07/demos-and-diy.shtml