SESAC STRUTS TO THE TUNES

PRO chief exec is bullish on the future

As performance-rights organizations go, Sesac is a nonprofit royalty collector, banking a strong position for chairman and CEO John Josephson, who joined in 2014 after a successful career in investment banking, a unique position as a champion of songwriters. He knows the terrain intimately, having led a buyout of Sesac in 1994 while employed by Allen & Co. Today, the 88-year-old org administers more than 400,000 copyrights including songs by Adele, Bob Dylan and 2018 Songwriters Hall of Fame Johnny Mercer Award honoree Neil Diamond.

How has Sesac adapted to the competitive new landscape? Sesac is more than just a PRO at this point. We are active in mechanical as well as performing rights, and we are building a global licensing platform through our Mint Digital Licensing joint venture. We’ve substantially broadened and expanded our business model with the addition of the CCLI [Christian Copyright Licensing Intl. in 2016] and the acquisitions of HFA [the Harry Fox Agency, in 2015]. We view ourselves as a music-rights organization, or MRO, rather than a PRO.

What does Sesac’s purchase by Blackstone for a reported $1 billion say about the value of music?

It’s confirmation of the investment thesis that, following a number of challenging years, the music industry had reached a stable plateau from which it could grow on a sustainable basis. That has proved to be the case, [not just with] Blackstone’s investment in Sesac, but the successful Spotify IPO and the sale of Mubadala’s interest in EMI to SONY/ATV.