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Speaker 1: heart or text I Heeart to five hundred, five hundred.

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Speaker 1: My guess is on the line. Been waiting on this

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Speaker 1: young man entertainment attorney. Yes, he's been instrumental in the

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Speaker 1: music business. Uh, let me just straighten this out. He

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Speaker 1: has been, my next guest, has been instrumental in the

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Speaker 1: music business, negotiating artist ownership and label deals, including Little

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Speaker 1: Wayne and Young Money Entertainment, Easy Bad Boar Records. Boris

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Speaker 1: two men. This guy. Uh, you may have recently heard

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Speaker 1: about him and the news about the low rain obtaining

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Speaker 1: those rights. He's he's starting doing new companies and we're

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Speaker 1: gonna talk about that on the phone. We'll bring right up.

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Speaker 1: Please work entertained extraordinaire. I wanna say extraordinary because I've

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Speaker 1: got another friend named Ricky Anderson, who I call extraordinaire too.

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Speaker 1: Please Welcome to show Money Making Conversation, Ron Sweeney, Good morning.

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Speaker 1: How are you sir? Run? Run? Uh? You know, have

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Speaker 1: we met Run? We've never met you. I think we have.

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Speaker 1: I think we have. But you know, I've been around

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Speaker 1: a long time because I started, I think I'm started

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Speaker 1: going through the resume, and you know, because I was

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Speaker 1: managing Steve was doing all kind of radio in l

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Speaker 1: A and then also New York was up there for

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Speaker 1: two years. I can't believe we're not messing. I think

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Speaker 1: I think maybe uh Afric Lincolns may have introduced us

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Speaker 1: together or something like that. But welcome to Money Making Conversation,

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Speaker 1: young man. How's life treating you? Well? Life's not bad, man.

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Speaker 1: I woke up this morning. I can't complain. Well, that's

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Speaker 1: that's how it all starts. I tell people all the

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Speaker 1: time that it's kind of interested. Run. Like my alarm

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Speaker 1: clock goes off at four or fifty every morning. I

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Speaker 1: wake up in four my alarm clock, and I'm happy

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Speaker 1: because that means that God won't be up, and I'm

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Speaker 1: a happy man. I wake up at four thirty in

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Speaker 1: the morning also, and I sit and watched the sun

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Speaker 1: rise over the water and it just fills me with

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Speaker 1: so much joy. Now, let's talk about your career, because illustrous,

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Speaker 1: I have to say illustrous. So how did you How

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Speaker 1: did you get started in the business, because you know,

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Speaker 1: a lot of a lot of times you know you're

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Speaker 1: getting this business and this is not what you choose

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Speaker 1: to do? Is what direction? That? You're a smart businessman.

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Speaker 1: You know you go where your where an opportunity allows

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Speaker 1: you to grow your brand and generate the most revenue.

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Speaker 1: How did that happen for you? That's an entrepreneur? Well, well,

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Speaker 1: I UM originally wanted to be in an I'm sorry

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Speaker 1: UH drummer. I played drums and drums in high school

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Speaker 1: and UH I ended up. One day my mother came

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Speaker 1: into my room and told me I had three choices.

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Speaker 1: Get a job, go to school, and get out. So

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Speaker 1: my fingers did walking on the yellow pages and cal

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Speaker 1: State Northridge was still accepting UH applications, and my mother

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Speaker 1: used to always be on me about keeping my grades up.

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Speaker 1: So I did do that. So I was able to

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Speaker 1: get into college. And then I ended up the drum

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Speaker 1: Machine came out, and then I realized that, you know,

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Speaker 1: there wasn't a lot of opportunity as a drummer. So

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Speaker 1: I decided to go to law school. I got into

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Speaker 1: law school. I went to USC Law School, got into

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Speaker 1: law school, and actually my third year of law school,

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Speaker 1: I was very depressed because I had been working at

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Speaker 1: a litigation firm and I just it wasn't me. And

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Speaker 1: I didn't like the idea of having to act like

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Speaker 1: somebody that wasn't me. I wanted to be myself and

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Speaker 1: and and it just so happened my last year, last

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Speaker 1: semester of law school, um um, Peter Frampton's manager, gave

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Speaker 1: a seminar on entertainment law, and I'm like, wow, this

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Speaker 1: would be great. So I called Joe Supporter, who was

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Speaker 1: like the guy back in the seventies, a brother in

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Speaker 1: the entertainment business, a kaffit brother of mine, and I

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Speaker 1: called him. Conversation with all that capitalk, but you know,

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Speaker 1: you know, you know, it's it's all about what we

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Speaker 1: were all taught. Am I right? No, No, a mega man,

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Speaker 1: you talked to Mega Man. Don't don't don't ruin your

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Speaker 1: interview with the capitalk that's all I'm saying. Don't do

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Speaker 1: that to you. Keep talking about keep talking about, Well,

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Speaker 1: I won't do that. I won't do that. I love you.

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Speaker 1: Keep I was just joking. You keep talking. But you know, so,

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Speaker 1: so I ended up going to work. I told him

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Speaker 1: I could go, he could get get free services and

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Speaker 1: I would get credits. And so one thing led to another.

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Speaker 1: And because I had been a musician in l A,

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Speaker 1: I knew different people, and so my practice started to

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Speaker 1: grow and then eventually left Joe supporter and I ended

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Speaker 1: up starting my own practice. And Fred Wesley came to

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Speaker 1: me the very next week, who, by the way, I

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Speaker 1: had um years ago met because I the tax auditor,

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Speaker 1: uh with the internal revenue while I while I was

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Speaker 1: you know and uh at u c l A undergrad.

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Speaker 1: So anyway, one thing led to another, and uh my

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Speaker 1: practice was born. And you know, they were good times,

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Speaker 1: bad times, but I kept going and uh eventually I

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Speaker 1: built up a clientele that UH could support myself, my

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Speaker 1: wife and my kids. So I love your rest bio

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Speaker 1: because it spends a time of of you know, bad

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Speaker 1: bar records, boys demand and I see Drake Nicki Minaj.

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Speaker 1: So it's it's it's really interesting that a little Wayane

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Speaker 1: can't forget that name. So that means that there's longevity

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Speaker 1: and the great easy. So who's your first big client? Um,

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Speaker 1: you know, I'd like to say Clarence Avon. Clarence avan

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Speaker 1: is the godfather in the music business. I'll tell you

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Speaker 1: the story how we met. And I was at the

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Speaker 1: at the office and uh, this guy called up and

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Speaker 1: he was piste off at the lawyer that I worked for,

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Speaker 1: and he started, uh, person at me and so I'm

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Speaker 1: from South central l A. So I mean, I would

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Speaker 1: never let anybody talk to me like that. So I

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Speaker 1: went off on it, and the next he said, man,

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Speaker 1: I gotta meet you. So he came over to my office.

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Speaker 1: Over to the office, we sat and talked four or

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Speaker 1: five hours, um, just about everything. And then you know,

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Speaker 1: when I left left that office. About six months later,

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Speaker 1: he came to me for representation and uh, you know

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Speaker 1: we had a great run. We we Uh he owned

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Speaker 1: Taboo Records. Um, you know I did the s OS Fan,

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Speaker 1: the the deal for the s OS Fan Alexandra O'Neil sharrell,

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Speaker 1: but I also picked up Jimmy jam and Terry Lewis.

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Speaker 1: Terry decided that he wanted to hire a lawyer on

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Speaker 1: the other side because I was so tough. So I

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Speaker 1: ended up. I had a great run with them. We

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Speaker 1: did seven Janet Jackson records together in addition, you know,

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Speaker 1: the rest of their career, and then I also managed Climax.

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Speaker 1: All girl band was very, very very blunted during that

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Speaker 1: period of time because you know, the music business is

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Speaker 1: really fertile, and it was probably one of the most

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Speaker 1: creative times in in in the history of the business. Well,

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Speaker 1: the interesting thing about is that what I what I

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Speaker 1: noticed in your career. First of all, everybody Clarence is

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Speaker 1: often called the gardfather Black music. Just let everybody know

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Speaker 1: the play the role he played and uh and it's

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Speaker 1: playing in history because his music is still being played

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Speaker 1: that he impacted over the years. And so hearing that

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Speaker 1: relationship and realizing how you came about what I'm hearing

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Speaker 1: about your your career is that you see an opportunity.

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Speaker 1: There was no fear and a lot of people when

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Speaker 1: and you're really when you're willing to change, and a

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Speaker 1: lot of people fear change. But that's not in your DNA,

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Speaker 1: correct correct? I mean you know there is your worst

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Speaker 1: enemy and it's created by you. You know, It's it's

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Speaker 1: like a mind things. It's like one you know, people

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Speaker 1: when they realize that they actually their mind is should

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Speaker 1: be their surfing, not control them, you know what I mean.

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Speaker 1: So it's like it's like from from from my standpoint,

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Speaker 1: I look at something and say, why not? How come

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Speaker 1: I can't do it? You know? And I go about

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Speaker 1: doing it because I put it in my mind that hey,

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Speaker 1: this is what I want to do, so let's do it.

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Speaker 1: And that's how I operate. Now you're operating. Really, you're

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Speaker 1: about to open two more businesses. Okay, from why? Why

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Speaker 1: why are you expanding? Now? Well? What what? What motivation

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Speaker 1: is leading you to open up these two and eighteen,

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Speaker 1: these two different entrepreneurial opportunities. You know, I gotta tell you,

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Speaker 1: I made myself a promise that when I turned sixty five,

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Speaker 1: I was gonna now do what I wanted to do

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Speaker 1: as opposed to what I had to do. You know,

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Speaker 1: I paid for a lot of college education, taking care

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Speaker 1: of a lot of family members, you know, our first

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Speaker 1: generation money. We have to reach back and make sure

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Speaker 1: the rest of our family is fine. So my fine,

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Speaker 1: My family is fine. So I'm now gonna go do

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Speaker 1: what I wanted to do. And I've always wanted to

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Speaker 1: buy and sell companies and will and deal because literally

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Speaker 1: that's what I really do anyway, uh, for my for

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Speaker 1: my clients. I'm just now going to do it for

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Speaker 1: myself and have some fun. One of the companies called

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Speaker 1: broad Beach Capital h which was which is uh, it's

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Speaker 1: a venture capital company which is really specializes in invested

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Speaker 1: in tech startup which is pretty pretty heavy and entertainment

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Speaker 1: entities tell us about that. Well, you know, uh, the

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Speaker 1: real money you know, we we we are we as

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Speaker 1: black folks are told you know, the work hard, get education,

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Speaker 1: to keep the nose to the grind and and and

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Speaker 1: make it happen. You know that that's that's true, but

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Speaker 1: it's not true. The real money is made from doing

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Speaker 1: deals and investing. Uh. And that's something that's very difficult

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Speaker 1: for folks to do without money. But that should be

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Speaker 1: everybody's goal because that's how you you need money working

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Speaker 1: for you versus working for money and for us. For me,

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Speaker 1: you know, broad Beach Capital was special to me. I'm

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Speaker 1: I'm sitting here with you, I'm staring at the beach.

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Speaker 1: I'm staring at the water because I live in Broadbeach,

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Speaker 1: and it's it's I live around billionaires. I'm the only

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Speaker 1: one thinking until I make it out here to stop.

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Speaker 1: You might not be a billionaire, but you are a

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Speaker 1: strong millionaire. Okay, Mr Sweeney, Mr Sween, I gotta tell you,

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Speaker 1: I gotta stop. You beg in there. You know what,

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Speaker 1: I'm a No, let me. Let me say I'm a

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Speaker 1: billionaire because I have things that money can't buy. Okay,

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Speaker 1: think about it. I have a loving wife, loving kids.

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Speaker 1: I have things that money can't buy. So I am

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Speaker 1: a billionaire. I'm just working towards the other side of it,

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Speaker 1: the financial, the liquid side, the asset side of it. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: the liquid side. Let's put it like that. I love

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Speaker 1: this guy. When we come back, we're gonna we're gonna

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Speaker 1: really diving deep into these your your career some moore

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Speaker 1: because I don't want to, because you're know you don't

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Speaker 1: give out many interviews, and I feel fortunate to have

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Speaker 1: you on my show to discuss the amazing career and

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Speaker 1: the impact you've affected, uh tax order to a lawyer,

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Speaker 1: to a manager, to running record labels, this only startup.

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Speaker 1: Now he's gonna be a capital investador. We were right

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Speaker 1: right back with more Ron Sweeney on money making Conversations.

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Speaker 1: I'm back with Sean McDonald, my next guest, who's on

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Speaker 1: the line as a widely respected entertainment attorney who has

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Speaker 1: been instrumental in the music business for negotiating owner artists,

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Speaker 1: ownership and label deals, including Little Wayne and Young Money

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Speaker 1: Entertainment Now Young Money and artists include Drake who Don't Know,

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Speaker 1: Drake who don't know, Nicki Minaj who don't Know, Tiger,

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Speaker 1: Little Twists, and others. His history in the music and

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Speaker 1: business includes Easy bad Boy Records, Boards, Too Men, and

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Speaker 1: many more. As an entertainment attorney, he negotiated for Little

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Speaker 1: Wayne to own his rights in a settlement with Cash

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Speaker 1: Money owning his assets, his music, and himself. He's also

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Speaker 1: launching two companies in twin andeen. It's It's a consultancy

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Speaker 1: Ron Sweeney and Company and a venture capital company, broad

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Speaker 1: Beach Capital. And he's looking out at the water right

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Speaker 1: now because you know he lives on Broadbeach. Please work

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Speaker 1: with the money making conversation again, Attorney entertainment attorney Roun Tweeney,

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Speaker 1: Because are you entertainment attorney? You just run Sweeney? Now,

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Speaker 1: what are you now? Run, you know, because they just

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Speaker 1: they just told me just an entertainment attorney. I'm I'm

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Speaker 1: an entertainment lawyer. Attorney that that you know, an entertainment

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Speaker 1: attorney does a lot of things that people don't understand.

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Speaker 1: You know. It's not just negotiating a contract. I mean

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Speaker 1: you literally become like the CEOO of a client's all

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Speaker 1: of the client's companies because you're pretty much running their companies,

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Speaker 1: and so that involves a great deal when your companies

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Speaker 1: are extremely successful, like you know, like a young money

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Speaker 1: you know, um, I have dealt with a variety of

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Speaker 1: issues over the last thirteen years, sir. Now, let me

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Speaker 1: ask you this about that. When you're dealing with money

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Speaker 1: and there's fear because nobody wants to lose their deal,

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Speaker 1: especially when it may be the biggest deal and in

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Speaker 1: their life, you know, because we're talking about entertainments, really

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Speaker 1: interesting because money comes in lump form sometimes you know,

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Speaker 1: you you know, you can you can get a big

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Speaker 1: lump and then it just disappears for a while. When

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Speaker 1: you're when you're dealing with money and talking to people

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Speaker 1: about opportunities, what is the number one issue that pops

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Speaker 1: up is the faith that you might cost them to

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Speaker 1: deal or not seeing a big picture. I think the

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Speaker 1: biggest issue for especially young black black folks now they

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Speaker 1: don't they don't have a sense of what the big

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Speaker 1: picture is because what they've seen is very limited. You know,

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Speaker 1: what they know is the hood. And you know this

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Speaker 1: in the beginning, it's like their opportunity out of the hood.

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Speaker 1: So they're willing to sign just about anything. What I tried,

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Speaker 1: do you want? You know what I do? I measure

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Speaker 1: this the power of the artists. Our artists going into

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Speaker 1: a deal and never sold any records, you have no power.

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Speaker 1: You know, you just you negotiate the best you can.

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Speaker 1: But an artist such a little way. You know, um,

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Speaker 1: after selling a bunch of records, you know you pretty

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Speaker 1: much can can dictate the terms. You just have to

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Speaker 1: understand the power that you have. And you know, most

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Speaker 1: people don't understand that. Some most people are just happy

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Speaker 1: to be in the rule. You know, when I'm in

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Speaker 1: the room, I'm in the room to get what's best

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Speaker 1: for my client. Whether the company likes me or not,

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Speaker 1: it doesn't matter. And that's just very true because in

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Speaker 1: this business, it's not really about being liked, it's about

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Speaker 1: being respected. I just took me a minute. I understand that.

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Speaker 1: And when you look at that, so now the consultancy

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Speaker 1: firm that you have, the Ron Sweeney and Company, what

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Speaker 1: exactly is that that's just taken all these years of

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Speaker 1: knowledge that you gain, you know, from USC, from us

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Speaker 1: L A. Tach says, management and running labels, and and

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Speaker 1: and and and and legal lego legal. What I wasn't that?

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Speaker 1: You know, with experience you see a lot of things

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Speaker 1: that when you live long enough, you see you see

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Speaker 1: you see cycles. You know what what has happened, what

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Speaker 1: has happened in the in the music, in the entertainment

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Speaker 1: business in general. The digital resolution revolution is truly a

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Speaker 1: revolution when you stop and think about it. Back in

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Speaker 1: seventy the only place if you wanted to release your record,

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Speaker 1: you had to go through the record company and you

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Speaker 1: had to accept their times. Fast forward to two thousand

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Speaker 1: and eighteen, you have the ability to set up your

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Speaker 1: own company, put out your own company, create your own brand.

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Speaker 1: You have the ability to do so much more. And

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Speaker 1: what it means is instead of giving all the rights

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Speaker 1: to the company and they control your money, you can

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Speaker 1: do it yourself. And you can have all of these

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Speaker 1: baskets of the income coming in because you're a brand.

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Speaker 1: That's what has transpired. That's what the business has become

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Speaker 1: or what I call smart money. So you know what's

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Speaker 1: happening now is it's not about being a personal manager

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Speaker 1: to somebody, because a personal manager essensely want you're trying

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Speaker 1: to keep your client happy and you're trying to manage

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Speaker 1: their affairs. But then the faires have become so much

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Speaker 1: more sophisticated. You know, folks need somebody that's sophisticated enough

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Speaker 1: that knows all of these areas and know how to

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Speaker 1: know all the moving parts, so to speak. And that's

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Speaker 1: and that's what my company is about. It's about a

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Speaker 1: company that knows how all the moving parts work and

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Speaker 1: how they're in a relay. I mean, it's like instead

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Speaker 1: of going into a deal saying, Wow, I'm gonna get

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Speaker 1: five I'm gonna get this at five dollar advance, how

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Speaker 1: about going into a deal thinking about the middle of

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Speaker 1: the beginning, in the middle and the end. You know

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Speaker 1: what I mean. Artists have all artists, you know, I

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Speaker 1: say that they have a moment in time, you know,

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Speaker 1: and it's a question of what do they do with

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Speaker 1: that moment in time? If all they're interested and is

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Speaker 1: flying on the jet and and getting advanced. I guarantee

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Speaker 1: you they're gonna end up, bro, and they're not gonna

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Speaker 1: own anything if they think the right way and think

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Speaker 1: long term and start thinking about rights. You know, the

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Speaker 1: entertainment business is about intellectual property, and the question is

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Speaker 1: who's gonna own that intellectual property. And at the very beginning,

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Speaker 1: the record companies, the entertainment companies they're running there is

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Speaker 1: trying to snatch up all those rights. And the the

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Speaker 1: artists don't realize they're giving those rights up in perpetuities.

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Speaker 1: So I can't begin to tell you the number of

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Speaker 1: artists and listen to that music on the radio and

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Speaker 1: they ain't getting paid. It's really it's very sad because

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Speaker 1: they gave up those rights. So Mike, continue, you just

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Speaker 1: and you're preaching, my friend, keep talking, my My My

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Speaker 1: company is about teaching folks how to be real businesses,

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Speaker 1: because that's what they are. This was an article that

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Speaker 1: just came out in Billboard talking about how much money

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Speaker 1: black music generates. Now, Um, you know, if you go

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Speaker 1: to look and see who owns it, no, the archstone

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Speaker 1: on it, the record companies over and they've gotten to

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Speaker 1: the point where they give out these contracts. Now, man,

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Speaker 1: they're worse. These contracts are worse now than they were

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Speaker 1: before when I first got started, because everybody snatching up

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Speaker 1: all the rights. My thing with my clients is we

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Speaker 1: went on you know, it's like you know, your little

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Speaker 1: way and on striking. Nikki's as long as he's alive

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Speaker 1: until he decides to sell, sell, sell those masters. He's

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Speaker 1: gonna get money every month, every days. Been a different

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Speaker 1: kind of lawyer. Huh. I always say that's that's making

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Speaker 1: money while you sleep, Money in the mail, checks in

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Speaker 1: the mailbox. That's a goal. Not not going on stage, performing,

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Speaker 1: not getting on the plane because you have to do

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Speaker 1: a set. The goal is to be landing, beid. Go

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Speaker 1: to your mailbox or just open up your app, your

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Speaker 1: app on your bank account, go thank you. This plan

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Speaker 1: is working. I call it city. I call it sitting

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Speaker 1: on your deck and and reviewing your your your your

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Speaker 1: investments at your leisure. So so would you you like

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Speaker 1: with these two firms you started? How does one reach

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Speaker 1: out to you all that that has to be recommended?

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Speaker 1: How does one become a client as or as a

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Speaker 1: part of your consultancy? Firm one run Sweeney and Company

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Speaker 1: or broad Beach where you're where you're looking for tech

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Speaker 1: startups and it's a capital investment. How does that work?

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Speaker 1: What's the next step? If somebody was interested? You know,

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Speaker 1: folks have ideas, um, and they had good ideas. I

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Speaker 1: want to hear about it. You know, no no ideas

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Speaker 1: do you know? Uh? No ideas? Too small? Too small? Um?

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Speaker 1: You know. For me, I spare the time meeting with

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Speaker 1: folks about about their companies. There's loads of startup companies

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Speaker 1: all over the country, and it's like sifting through and

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Speaker 1: a it's like being an n R person. You're an

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Speaker 1: R and the the the tech companies to see which

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Speaker 1: one you think will really happen, you know, And part

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Speaker 1: of that requires meeting with the folks and understanding and

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Speaker 1: just checking out their temperature to see if I think

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Speaker 1: they can go to distance. You know. It's not always

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Speaker 1: just about your ideas about your management. It's it's about

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Speaker 1: how you operate. It's about how how discipline you are.

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Speaker 1: You know. Um, when I deal with an artist, you know,

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Speaker 1: I looked and say asked myself, can I add value?

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Speaker 1: If I can't add value, I won't get involved. I

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Speaker 1: need to be able to understand what that artist is about.

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Speaker 1: And I want to understand their work ethics. I want

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Speaker 1: to know if they're all they're talking about is money,

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Speaker 1: or they all they're talking about wanting to practice in

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Speaker 1: practice and develop their craft. Because the guy that's focused

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Speaker 1: on money ain't going nowhere. Guy that doesn't care nothing

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Speaker 1: about money except his career, that's the star because he's

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Speaker 1: got that attitude, that thing that's amazing. Ron. I want

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Speaker 1: to thank you for calling my show. Um, it's an

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Speaker 1: amazing journey that you have at sixty five. Like you said,

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Speaker 1: you're doing your thing now. You know at sixty that's

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Speaker 1: what I'm doing for myself now, Money Making Conversation Rushan

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Speaker 1: McDonald dot com, Baker Spotlight. I think and everybody in

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Speaker 1: life need to hear that at some point in your life,

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Speaker 1: you have to make a decision, to make a decision

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Speaker 1: about you. And it's and some people might call it selfish,

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Speaker 1: I call it hey making a decision about you When

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Speaker 1: you wake up one day, it has to be about

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Speaker 1: you because all your life you've given so much to others.

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Speaker 1: I want to I want to congratulate you for realizing

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Speaker 1: that wrong. Thank you. I want to congratulate you also, man,

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Speaker 1: you have shown you You've been a life for a

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Speaker 1: lot of people. I appreciate that. I appreciate you. And

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Speaker 1: you know I'm gonna come to you about that tech

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Speaker 1: start off. I got an idea now I know I

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Speaker 1: can come to you. I'm gonna bring it to you first. Okay,

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Speaker 1: take care. I appreciate and keep looking at their water.

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Speaker 1: Keep looking at their water. Okay, Mr Bion, Mr billyon there.

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Speaker 1: I love it, rod Sweet. Listening makes us smarter, more

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Speaker 1: connected people. It makes us better partners, parents, and leaders.

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Speaker 1: And there's no better place to start listening than Audible.

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00:23:24,560 --> 00:23:27,920
Speaker 1: Audible is where so many inspiring voices and compelling stories

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00:23:28,040 --> 00:23:30,800
Speaker 1: open listeners up to new experiences in ways of thinking.

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00:23:30,880 --> 00:23:34,040
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