*As we celebrate the 45th anniversary of Black Music Month, founded by Kenny Gamble, and co-founded by Dyana Williams and Ed Wright, I am honored to pay tribute to one of the most important figures in Black Music, Kendall A. Minter, Esq., who passed away on December 6, 2023.
I met Kendall when I was a 19-year-old college student at New York University majoring in the music business and interning at CBS Records (now Sony Music Entertainment). I was invited to a music industry panel discussion at Restoration Plaza in Brooklyn, New York. The panelists included Kendall, CBS executive Scott Folks, and music producer Van Gibbs. Riding over to Brooklyn with three influential Black men in the music business from the famous CBS Black Rock building in Manhattan, I was so impressed with their knowledge and charisma. Kendall and I stayed in touch throughout my college and law school career. After spending three years on Wall Street working for Reginald F. Lewis, a Wall Street titan who built a billion-dollar business empire, Kendall convinced me to make the leap into entertainment. He graciously agreed to train me in the specialized practice of entertainment law.
Kendall was an excellent entertainment attorney. He was not only a rainmaker, but a skilled practitioner. Kendall’s practice included a who’s who in Black entertainment. He had a hand in the careers of many stars in the industry, both creative and executive talent. He led and maintained his 43-year law practice, where he represented clients including internationally renowned recording artists and entertainers, celebrities, actors, producers and songwriters, politicians, religious leaders, churches, entertainment executives, authors, and sports figures. Some of his clients past and present were Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Bishop Eddie Long and New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, Pastor E. Dewey Smith, Victory World Church, Lena Horne, Miriam Makeba, Huge Masekela, Peter Tosh, Roy Ayers, Third World, Bunny Wailer, Shabba Ranks, Musiq Soulchild, Najee, The Backstreet Boys, Cassandra Wilson, Freddie Jackson, Montell Jordan, Ashanti, MC Lyte, Heavy D & The Boyz, Jagged Edge, Goodie Mob, and the Ying Yang Twins, Kirk Franklin, Fred Hammond, Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Mtume, Teddy Riley, Jermaine Dupri, Bryan Michael Cox, D’Mile, Arrow Records (Dr. Creflo Dollar), Frankie Crocker, Evander Holyfield and Ray Mercer, the Government of Jamaica, and The Central Park Five (now known as The Exonerated Five).
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Sean Muhammad of Medinah Entertainment says “Brother Kendall Minter (and mentor) was the consummate professional. A great servant to the business of entertainment and a true brother. A “Mentor” in the true essence of the word. I must thank Nat Robinson for introducing the perfect person to be not only our attorney but ultimately our friend. Words truly are inadequate to fully express his importance.”
Colin Punch, Esq. of Medinah Entertainment adds, “‘The Holy Quran’ states, ‘And if all the trees in the earth were pens, and the sea with seven more seas added to it (were ink), the words of Allah would not be exhausted.’ Well, that’s how I feel about Kendall. I could talk about him all day and not be exhausted. Such a beautiful brother. A mentor, a teacher, a brother, a husband, a father, but most importantly, a friend. Such a gentle soul. God blessed me by putting that brother in my life. His impact on me as an attorney was only surpassed by his impact on me as a person. He is surely missed but will never be forgotten.”
It is worth noting that Kendall represented a lot of people who became very successful in the business at a time when they were just starting out. It is easy to represent a superstar. It is not so easy to help build a superstar from scratch. Kendall did that, and he did that a lot! Bruce Jackson, Esq., Associate General Counsel, Microsoft summarizes Kendall’s impact in the entertainment business, “The significance of Kendall Minter as a Black entertainment attorney cannot be overstated. With his exceptional legal expertise and unwavering dedication, Kendall has not only shattered barriers but also paved the way for aspiring Black professionals in the entertainment industry. His tenacity and ability to navigate complex legal landscapes have been instrumental in protecting the rights and interests of Black artists, musicians, actors, and creators. Kendall’s invaluable contributions have not only ensured fair representation but have also played a vital role in promoting diversity, inclusion, and equal opportunities within the entertainment world. He is an inspiration and a true trailblazer, using his platform to advocate for justice and equity in an industry that desperately needs it. Kendall Minter’s impact as a Black entertainment attorney will continue to reverberate for generations to come.”
Everyone knew Kendall and he was liked and well-respected in the entertainment industry. Joseph Serling, Esq., senior partner of entertainment law firm Serling, Rooks, Hunter, McKoy, Worob & Averil says, “Kendall was one of the most thoughtful and knowledgeable entertainment lawyers I have ever dealt with. He had the unique ability to analyze situations and come up with practical solutions to difficult problems. His organizational skills with his co-founding of BESLA [Black Entertainment and Sports Lawyers Association] and numerous other organizations were unparalleled. I miss him and think about him often.”
When I hear people speak about Kendall, one of the most common statements is that Kendall worked hard, and he played hard. People also commented on his kindness. He treated everyone the same whether you were one of his superstar clients or someone just starting out who couldn’t afford to pay his hourly rate for a consultation. He was generous with his time and his knowledge. For me personally, there was never a time that I needed Kendall, and he did not show up in many different ways. He took the time that he could have spent doing many other things to turn me into an entertainment lawyer. One of the most important qualities that Kendall possessed was that he was a teacher. Everybody cannot teach! Whenever I asked Kendall a question, I knew that his answers were always accurate and that I could always rely on the information that he gave me. What Kendall did for me, he did for so many Black entertainment lawyers, earning the moniker “The Godfather of Black Entertainment Attorneys.”
His commitment to the Black entertainment legal community was evidenced by the formation of BESLA in 1980, co-founded by Kendall and renowned entertainment attorney, Louise West, Kendall’s mentor. Louise says, “I first met Kendall when he was a third-year law student at Cornell. We stayed in touch and eventually, he launched his law practice in my office. Kendall was the “Barack Obama” of his era: smart as a whip, cool, calm, and charming. We worked together tirelessly to establish BESLA. His spirit lives on in all of us who knew him.”
Ron Sweeney, Esq. of Ron Sweeney & Company, LLC, a charter member of BESLA, says, “One of my fondest memories of Kendall was introducing him to my son, who was only two months old at the time, to my wife, and to my mother on the first day of the very first BESLA conference in the Bahamas. It was my mother’s first trip out of the country and mine as a father for the very first time. We were young music lawyers who, along with a handful of others, founded BESLA to foster friendship, educate, share ideas, and support each other in an otherwise unfriendly business environment. He, along with Louise West, who introduced me to Kendall, and myself cemented our friendship on that trip. They embraced my family and made my mother feel very special. That trip bonded us as “Friends for life.” It didn’t matter how long it was in between seeing or talking to each other. It was always like we had just spoken to each other the day before. In fact, Kendall and I were working on a project together shortly before he passed. We both marveled at the fact we were now both grandfathers and loving every minute of it.”
In 1988, he served as a board member and later became Chairman of the Rhythm & Blues Foundation. In 2008, he was named the Chairman Emeritus and served on its advisory board. He also served as a board member for Sound Exchange, Georgia Music Partners, and the DeKalb Entertainment Commission.
The author of Understanding and Negotiating 3600 Ancillary Rights Deals: An Artist’s Guide to Negotiating 3600 Record Deals, Kendall was an adjunct professor at Georgia State University in the School of Music and the College of Law, where he taught Copyright and Music Publishing. Before his tenure at Georgia State University, he was an adjunct professor at Benjamin Cardoza School of Law. He was a contributor and columnist for several music trade and consumer publications on music and entertainment law and practices.
Kendall was an officer, board member and General Counsel of the Living Legends Foundation. Minter helped lead the organization to its successful 33-year history. “Kendall and I have been friends and colleagues for more than 30 years,” says Living Legends Chairman David C. Linton, who in 2015, presented him with the organization’s Chairman’s Award. “Kendall is one of the reasons why the Living Legends Foundation has maintained and survived as one of the leading and one of the few Black Music organizations. We are still standing because of his guidance. He helped us to sustain the organization through some turbulent times, especially during the transition from the old model of the recording industry to today’s model. He provided us with steady and sound legal counsel through the years. We are forever grateful for his service and leadership, not only to the Living Legends Foundation, but the other Black organizations that he helped build during the past forty years, as well as his commitment to a long list of Black music and entertainment executives that he mentored and counseled.”
On a personal note, Kendall was my mentor. Kendall exposed me to so many areas of the business from MIDEM conferences in the South of France to Reggae Sunsplash festivals in Montego Bay, Jamaica. I will be forever grateful to Kendall for incubating my practice. It was Kendall who convinced me to go out on my own. He invested in me by giving me a free office and ten of his clients. Who does that? Kendall did. And it paid off. Whenever I would try to give Kendall credit for my success he would always say, “Don’t blame that on me!” He not only trained me as a lawyer but taught me a lot about life. I was so fortunate to have a bird’s-eye view into how Kendall navigated his business and his life, and I believe that I am a better person for it. One of the ways that I have been processing his transition is to think of situations involving Kendall that make me laugh. Not a chuckle, but a belly laugh, a laugh that would bring tears to my eyes. Some of the stories I will never repeat but I will think of them whenever I feel sad. If you knew Kendall, you know that he was cool as a cucumber. In all my years of knowing Kendall there was only one occasion I heard Kendall raise his voice.
One of the highlights of my career was being inducted into the BESLA Hall of Fame. Kendall inducted me. I was so touched by his words because he was the one that took a chance on me. I remember our last conversation vividly. We did not talk about business. We talked about our biggest accomplishments, our children. He adored his daughters, Namik, Kamali and Amani. I remember watching them in elementary school at the United Nations School. He was so proud of them and the women they have now become. We talked about our grandchildren and how we relished spending time with them. At the end of our call, we signed off as usual with me thanking him for everything he had done for me and him refusing to take any credit. He always addressed me using my initials. That day the sign-off was, “I love you Kendall, and he said I love you DJB!” Rest in Peace, Kendall. You will be missed. Job well done!
Dr. Denise J. Brown is a board member and the general counsel of the Living Legends Foundation. She received her law degree from Brooklyn Law School. Through the years as a leading entertainment attorney, Brown is widely known for her keen negotiation skills, and she gained a solid reputation as a dealmaker. Brown worked in numerous roles at New York’s top law firms including Lewis & Clarkson; TLC Group, an LBO company; Minter Gay & Brown; Levine, Thall & Plotkin; Mayer, Katz, Baker, Leibowitz & Roberts, P.C.; and she started her practice and has worked with cross-genre artists, producers, songwriters, and other creative talent. She currently teaches at the Clive Davis Institute at Tisch School of the Arts.
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