Legal Counsel, SoundCloud
Music
$100-140k
+ Employee Equity Plan
More information about location
Next-generation music entertainment ecosystem
Job no longer available
Next-generation music entertainment ecosystem
501-1000 employees
Job no longer available
$100-140k
+ Employee Equity Plan
More information about location
501-1000 employees
Company mission
To empower artists and fans to connect and share through music.
Role
Who you are
- SoundCloud is looking for a commercially minded music lawyer with a strong aptitude for technology and deeply plugged into what’s happening across digital music licensing and the creator economy
- Qualified lawyer with 3+ years’ post-qualification experience in music and intellectual property licensing, gained at a prominent record label, law firm, or in-house legal department within the music industry
- Juris Doctor (JD) or equivalent law degree from an accredited institution and maintains an active, in good standing bar license in the U.S. or an equivalent foreign jurisdiction
- Good understanding of the global digital music rights landscape and substantial experience in negotiating international digital license agreements for or with digital services providers and/ or UGC platforms, with a primary focus on Europe
- Expertise in music industry transactions (record, distribution, producer, synchronization, and publishing agreements), artificial intelligence, and Web 3.0 technologies affecting music rights
- Proven ability to negotiate domestic and international commercial contracts, with working knowledge of the Music Modernization Act and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act
- Experience working closely with music, operations, marketing, creative, licensing, and finance, with the ability to communicate complex matters and legal language simply and effectively to non-legal stakeholders
- Good relationships within the music, media, and/or consumer tech industry
- Strategic, commercially focused problem solver with a high tolerance for ambiguity and change
- Experience working in a dynamic, fast-paced environment
- Pragmatic, risk-conscious, and values-driven, with resilience and self-awareness
- Excellent drafting, communication and negotiation skills
- Fluent in English, and ideally one or more other European languages
What the job involves
- You’ll play a key role in supporting global content licensing and commercial partnerships, working at the intersection of music, technology, and culture
- Based in New York, this role is part of the Music & Commercial Legal team within Business & Legal Affairs
- You’ll support the VP, Music & Commercial, in negotiating licenses with record labels, publishers, collecting societies, and performing rights organizations (PROs) worldwide
- You’ll also work closely with teams across Content Licensing, Music, Business Development, Product, Finance, and others to shape licensing strategies, evaluate deal structures, and help bring partnerships to life
- You’re a seasoned music industry dealmaker who’s comfortable leading complex negotiations and finding practical solutions in fast-moving, sometimes ambiguous environments
- As a trusted subject matter expert, you’ll provide clear, commercially grounded guidance on music rights, while sharing knowledge and perspective across the legal team and the wider organization
- We’re looking for someone who’s excited by new challenges, collaborative by nature, and motivated by the opportunity to help shape how music and audio are created, discovered, and shared by creators and fans around the world!
- Support SoundCloud’s overall business by structuring and negotiating digital licensing agreements with record labels, publishers, collecting societies and PROs
- Negotiate and draft marketing, partnership and joint venture agreements with commercial partners and music industry stakeholders
- Advise the Music, Marketing, Creator services, Royalty Operations, Finance teams, and other stakeholders regarding contractual obligations and restrictions
- Provide legal consultancy on music law questions and track of legal developments in the licensing area in the music industry
- Advise on intellectual property rights issues, including copyright and trademark
- Identify and analyze potential risks related to SoundCloud’s distribution of content on and off its platform, reputational risks in connection with working with certain artists or partners, and various contractual risks
- Lead pre-litigation efforts in investigating, analyzing, and responding to a variety of claims, including copyright, audit, breach of contract, publicity, and trademark claims
- Regularly direct and supervise the work of outside counsel
- Coordinate with product and engineering teams in connection with product development related to music distribution and royalty operations
- Collaborate with other members of the Business & Legal Affairs team to ensure business needs are met
Our take
Founded in 2007, SoundCloud recognised the need for an artist-first platform. The company set out with a clear mission: to empower independent artists by providing the tools and resources they need to grow and build their careers.
Today, SoundCloud boasts over 40M artists on its platform, far outpacing Spotify, which has 11M. As a result, SoundCloud is the largest audio discovery platform in a rapidly growing market. According to MIDiA Research, the independent artist market is poised for continued revenue growth in the coming years, further solidifying SoundCloud's place in the industry.
The company plans to scale its audience and expand its services through new offerings, such as the SoundCloud "roster". This tier system is designed to provide artists with significant creative and financial resources, along with market support, rivalling major record labels. While artists retain ownership of their copyrights, they will be represented by SoundCloud, further enhancing the platform's appeal to independent creators.
Kirsty
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
3% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 7 rounds)
Feb 2020
$75m
SERIES G
Aug 2017
$170m
SERIES F
Total funding: $468.5m
Company HQ
Mitte, Berlin, BE
Leadership
Eliah Seton
(CEO)Previously President at SoundCloud. Before joining the company, he worked as President of Independent Music and Creator Services at Warner Music Group and was the President of the Alternative Distribution Alliance.
Salary benchmarks
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