Seeker Music, the new music rights and publishing company led by the hit songwriter Evan Bogarthired Jennifer Blakeman as director of rights and royalties.
At Seeker, she will lead and oversee the expansion of their rights management, administration and royalty platforms.
According to Seeker, Blakeman’s career began in the ’80s “as a college student aiming for a career as a session keyboardist.” After coming to the attention of Eddie Van Halen who hired her to “create a signature keyboard sound” for him, she spent several years working with him on several projects.
Following her recording career (which also included time on the road with artists like Billy Idol), she served as an executive at companies such as Atlantic Records And Universal music Publishing, where she was responsible for publishing artists such as Justin Timberlake, T-Pain and Linkin Park.
She joins Seeker after serving as President and CCO of boutique music publisher one77 Music.
Blakeman is also currently an Adjunct Professor of Music Publishing at NYU and a member of the Recording Academy Board of Trustees, alongside Seeker Music CEO and chart-topping songwriter Evan Bogart.
Alongside Bogart, Blakeman joins a leadership team comprised of Seeker CFO Jennifer Scher, COO Rob Guthrie, Head of Creative Steven Melrose and Chairman of the Board John Smith (representing major M&G investors).
His appointment comes two weeks after Seeker acquired the complete catalog of masters and publishing by Grammy-winning American singer-songwriter Christopher Cross.
In January, Seeker Music acquired catalogs of pop songwriters John Ryan and Jon Bellion.
“As a musician and songwriter myself, I’ve always been an advocate for creators within the industry. It was this feeling that ‘songwriters come first’ that drew me to Seeker. »
Jennifer Blakeman
Blakeman said, “As a musician and songwriter myself, I’ve always been an advocate for creators within the industry.
“This sense that ‘songwriters come first’ is what drew me to Seeker, and I’m excited to continue to advocate and ensure songwriters get their fair share in this new role. “
“Jennifer is a rockstar in the music publishing world.”
Evan Bogart
Bogart added: “Jennifer is a rockstar in the world of music publishing. She really cares about and champions songwriters, artists and their music in a way that I think you can only truly understand if you have been a songwriter or artist yourself His extensive experience working on both the creative and administrative side of the business aligns with the creator-focused, creator-led vision on which we have built Seeker since day 1. I’ve wanted to work with her for a long time, so I’m glad this time has come.
