Mary Jo Mennella and Jennifer Mitchell.
The independent music publishing sector is built on relationships. For Jennifer Mitchell, founder of Red Brick Songs, and Mary Jo Mennella, CEO of Music Asset Management (MAM), that principle is perhaps more central than most. This year marks a dual milestone for the two highly respected executives: the 25th anniversary of Red Brick Songs (formed through an amalgamation with Casablanca Media Publishing which Mitchell co-founded in 2001) and the 20th anniversary of MAM, the independent music publishing consulting firm Mennella launched in 2006 following an illustrious 15-year tenure heading music publishing at 20th Century Fox.
2026 also marks 25 years of their professional collaboration. The two first crossed paths during the MIDEM days and, in 2001, Mitchell successfully pitched Casablanca to Mennella to handle Canadian sub-publishing for Fox’s massive film and TV catalogue. That initial deal forged a bond of trust that has endured for decades. In 2023, their parallel journeys formally intersected when Red Brick acquired the administration portion of MAM’s catalogue, with Mennella stepping into an advisory role for Red Brick while continuing to run MAM’s consulting business.
As they celebrate a quarter-century of collaboration, we sat down with Mitchell and Mennella to discuss their shared history, the evolution of the independent publishing landscape, and why trust remains the most valuable asset in the business…
Could you talk about your entry into the music industry and how the relationship between the two of you first started?
Jennifer Mitchell: I started as an entertainment and corporate lawyer. I ultimately decided to leave and start a media company with the senior lawyer at my firm. That’s really the beginning point for me, and also the beginning of my relationship with Mary Jo. We had a couple of clients we provided services for at the law firm, and we ended up doing a deal to administer their publishing in Canada. That transition into providing publishing administration services – becoming a sub-publisher – led to starting Casablanca Media Publishing in 2001 with my late business partner, Edmund Glinert.
Around that time, we had discussions with 20th Century Fox, where Mary Jo was running the publishing division. She became one of our very early clients. We had to prove to a lot of different publishers at the time that you couldn’t just manage Canada as a territory from the US. Canada is complicated. At that time, there was CMRRA providing mechanicals, SODRAC providing mechanicals in the French market, and SOCAN handling performance royalties, plus any direct licensing and sync. It’s not quite the same as the US. There are different rights you can collect, and a bit of reciprocal complexity. You really have to understand the Canadian players to maximise royalties. You also needed somebody pitching sync correctly across both English and French repertoire. I think we’ve proven to all our clients over the years that they make more money when they work with us.
"The global independent music publisher community has always had collaborative business relationships amongst its members, and I think that only increased after the formation of IMPF."
Mary Jo, how do you remember the landscape back then, and what made you choose to partner with Casablanca?
Mary Jo Mennella: Most North American administration was handled directly by US operations at the time, but due to our massive volume at Fox for film & TV, there was a great need for local support. The soundtrack business was roaring; we were releasing at least 30 movies a year across four different film divisions. News Corp had also built out sports and news channels that crossed over into Canada. The volume of cue sheets alone made it essential to have a partner on the ground to manage SOCAN, broadcast mechanicals and related music rights.
Going back to 2001, how different was the music publishing landscape compared to today?
JM: It obviously wasn’t as consolidated. It’s always been a mix of major and indie publishers. The global independent music publisher community has always had collaborative business relationships amongst its members, and I think that only increased after the formation of IMPF. In Canada, we have been fortunate to have a big tent approach with majors and indies working together to ensure a competitive market with competitive rates.
Mary Jo, you eventually left Fox to start Music Asset Management (MAM) in 2005. What drove that transition?
MJM: I left the studio with the intent to build a music company. I purposely called it Music Asset Management to emphasise our dedication to the proper collection, administration, and representation of writers, publishers and media companies. We designed it in response to an evolving market, which was probably at one of its lowest depths at the time – monetisation of streaming was just starting to be figured out, and the largest digital business at the time was ringtones. We started consulting for writers, management companies, and music supervisors, providing back-office services so they could stay highly creative.
Did the nature of your relationship change at all after that transition?
JM: They were obviously very different entities but Mary Jo has always been a professional so whether we were dealing with 20th Century Fox or dealing with Music Asset Management, we were dealing with Mary Jo, which I always appreciated. The reason we’ve been in business together so long is because we’ve always understood each other. We speak the same language, we get a long. All of those things are important in a sub-publishing relationship.
MJ: I think in both the Casablanca and Red Brick era, Jennifer was building a team over there and so was I at Music Asset Management. I was grateful for all the independent partners I had around the world. It’s a tight knit community of publishers that support each other regardless of the type of catalogue or writers that you have – we obviously had a different volume and clientele list compared to 20th Century Fox. The relationships I built at Fox transitioned over to Music Asset Management. Over years in the business, you build relationships and whether you’re representing one songwriter or thousands, it’s about the reputation that you bring. That’s the same for Jennifer who’s respected in her region and has branched out and maintained strong ties as part of the independent community
"It comes down to trust. When you manage and care for songwriters and their catalogues, you want to make sure that upon handoff, they will continue getting great service and global representation."
Jennifer, talk to us about the transition from Casablanca to Red Brick Songs..
JM: When we started Casablanca we offered various services, we owned several record labels and we did some TV production. Over the years, we felt we wanted to focus our resources on music publishing.
With Casablanca, the majority of our business was initially focused on being a Canadian sub-publisher for massive US catalogs.
In 2011, when Ed passed away suddenly, I continued to not only run Casablanca but I also started Red Brick Songs. I then ultimately formed one integrated company under the RBS name, growing our worldwide roster, signing songwriters, acquiring catalogue, and doing joint ventures.
Red Brick acquired the administration portion of Music Asset Management in 2023. Mary Jo, why was Red Brick the right home for your catalogue?
MJM: It comes down to trust. When you manage and care for songwriters and their catalogues, you want to make sure that upon handoff, they will continue getting great service and global representation. Because we had such interchangeable sub-publishers and existing relationships, I didn’t go far shopping for a buyer. It was a natural fit for the catalogue that I had. It’s also a good fit in terms of my role as a consultant for the company because I had 25 years of corporate experience, at ASCAP and then Fox, before going solely independent. I have an array of contacts across soundtracks, TV, pop and film [as well as across various music genres] that I could bring to Jennifer. We do have a regular exchange. It’s a really good place to be.
Jennifer, what did this acquisition mean for Red Brick?
JM: Beyond acquiring a roster of great catalogues, interesting songs, and songwriters, Mary Jo is a fabulous mentor with a wealth of information and a long history of contacts. I highly value her opinion, consultancy, and expertise. She brings a lot to the table. It’s been a valuable deal for us.
What are your ambitions for the next five to ten years?
JM: We’re still on a growth trajectory and are continually acquiring catalogs – we just acquired the catalogue of Christoffer Semelius, who is very active in the J-pop and K-pop space. We also did an interesting joint venture with Justin Raisen in the US for a couple of songwriters. We’re signing songwriters at all different stages, including developing writers.
MJM: I’m a music junkie and a great fan of songwriters, so I don’t see myself retiring anytime soon. Leaving the day-to-day operational tasks to Jennifer’s team for catalogues that we’ve brought them or when people need those services, has given me the luxury of being able to say “no” as much as I say “yes”. But when the phone rings with an interesting opportunity, why not say yes. I’m busier than I thought I would be at this stage. There’s no one size fits all with what I do now. I have the skill set to help writers evaluate when they might want to sell; or people might ask me to help with society information and performance rights because of my experience with ASCAP… So I’m not playing golf as much as I’d planned, but I’m loving it.
It sounds like a full-circle moment, especially with some major anniversaries aligning this year.
Mary Jo: Exactly. This is Music Asset Management’s 20th anniversary, and Red Brick’s 25th. Our relationship really underscores the value of the independent community, the IMPF and the tight-knit network we’ve forged over the years.
Jennifer: The story really is about relationships and collaboration. The publishing world is a small business in many ways, driven by long-term connections. This milestone speaks to the power of publishers collaborating and what that can ultimately achieve.
