James E.McMillan
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James E. McMillan, Esq. is an American entertainment attorney and recording executive. His clients have included such musical artists as Colson Baker, professionally known as Machine Gun Kelly (“MGK”), Justine Skye, New Edition, Cool & Dre, Kent Jones, A Boogie wit da Hoodie, 8Ball & MJG and Slim Thug. He has also worked on behalf of several major and independent record labels such as Universal Music Group, Atlantic Records and Rap-a-Lot Records[1].
Early Life and Education[edit]
McMillan's interest in music began early on when he would watch his maternal grandparents, Blanche and Sim London (known as “Mr. and Mrs. 88 Keys”) tour the Cleveland area with “four hands” on the piano, playing rock and roll alongside such legends as Nat King Cole.[2][3]
An initial stab at law school and attempted forays into the music world were not successful.[4] In 1993, McMillan set forth for New York determined to establish a recording company.[4] That company, Vandoola Records also proved challenging.[2][4] McMillan decided to take a second shot at law school and in 1997, earned his J.D. degree from The Texas Southern University Thurgood Marshall School of Law[5]. In 2012, he earned an LLM degree in Trial Advocacy from Temple University School of Law.[6]
Legal Practice & Significant Transactions[edit]
McMillan began his legal career at Osse & Woods[7], a New York based, law firm where he learned the nuances of entertainment law. In 2000, he established the law firm, James E. McMillan, P.C.[8]
In 2002, McMillan represented rap duo 8 Ball & MJG[7][9] in a series of entangled suits and countersuits involving two different record labels. The two artists emerged with royalty payments on 2 million records and full ownership of their recordings. McMillan subsequently signed his clients to a multimillion dollar deal with Sean “Diddy” Combs' Bad Boy record label and Interscope Records.[9][4][10] Later, McMillan would leverage 8 Ball & MJG’s success to form a brand partnership with Sidney Frank Importing and its new liquor brand, Grey Goose vodka[11]. This partnership ultimately produced the first “Grey Goose Hip Hop Tour.”[11]
In 2010, McMillan discovered musician and actor Colson Baker, professionally known as Machine Gun Kelly (“MGK”).[3] He served as Executive Producer on MGK's first album "Lace UP" (2012) as well as on “General Admission” (2015)[12] which debuted as #1 on the Billboard Hip Hop/R&B charts.[13] McMillan was also the Executive producer for "Bloom" (2017)[14], which, according to the Recording Industry Association of America, went "Certified Gold" on November 16, 2017.[15][16][17]
In 2015, McMillan negotiated the agreement between Justine Skye and Roc-A-Fella Records.[3]
More recently, McMillan negotiated the deal that made MGK the face of John Varvatos' fall/winter clothing line.[18]
Clients[edit]
Among the many artists and athletes whom McMillan has represented are Justine Skye[3], New Edition[3], Cool & Dre[7], Kent Jones[3], Kodak Black[3], 8 Ball & MJG[3], Slim Thug[3], Nellie[7], A-Boogie wit da Hoodie[3] and Bibi Bourelly[3].
Board Memberships and Awards[edit]
McMillan sits on the boards of Kicked It in Heels[19] (committed to ending health care disparities for minority and young breast cancer survivors), ShortsHD[3] (short movies archive) and The Baller Alert Foundation[20].
In 2018, McMillan served as a panelist at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation's annual legislative conference.[21]
References[edit]
- ↑ "James E McMillan ESQ Entertainment Attorney". Retrieved 2018-10-27.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Taking on Music Industry Rascals, New York Law Journal, July 5, 2002 p.16
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 Aiwuyor, Jessica Ann Mitchell (2017-02-14). "How One Black Lawyer Is Changing The Music Industry By Fighting For Artists' Rights". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2018-10-27.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 James McMillan Shakerheights, YRB Magazine, Issue No. 84
- ↑ "Thurgood Today" (PDF).
- ↑ McMillan, James (June 2017). "https://www.law.temple.edu/site/wp-content/uploads/Temple-Law-Temple-ESQ-June-2017.pdf" (PDF). Temple University Beasley School of Law. External link in
|title=(help) - ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 "Ten to Watch: New Firms Gunning For the Big Time". Jungle Law. Volume 4 #1: Page 39. September 2003.
- ↑ "James E McMillan ESQ Entertainment Attorney". Retrieved 2018-10-27.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Attorney James McMillan Instrumental in 8Ball & MJK Signing to Bad Boy, BRE, May 24, 2002
- ↑ Words & Deeds, Billboard Magazine, May 18, 2002
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Rappers Flock to Grey Goose Tour, Billboard Magazine, August 16, 2002
- ↑ http://hiphopdx.com, HipHopDX -. "Machine Gun Kelly "General Admission" Release Date, Cover Art, Tracklist & Album Stream". HipHopDX. Retrieved 2018-10-27.
- ↑ Machine Gun Kelly Shoots, Scores at No. 1 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, Billboard, October 29, 2015
- ↑ "Bloom - Machine Gun Kelly | Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 2018-10-27.
- ↑ Machine Gun Kelly × Bloom
- ↑ Niesel, Jeff. "Machine Gun Kelly Releases Retooled Version of 'bloom'". Cleveland Scene. Retrieved 2018-10-27.
- ↑ "Gold & Platinum - RIAA". RIAA. Retrieved 2018-10-27.
- ↑ Palmieri, Jean E. (2017-08-03). "Machine Gun Kelly to Appear in John Varvatos' Fall Ads". WWD. Retrieved 2018-10-27.
- ↑ "Our Team – kickeditinheels". www.kickeditinheels.com. Retrieved 2018-10-27.
- ↑ "About Us Style 1". Baller Alert Foundation. 2016-09-09. Retrieved 2018-10-27.
- ↑ "James E. McMillan, Esq". YouTube. Retrieved 2018-10-27.
External links[edit]
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