Advocatespedia:Today's featured article/May 30, 2024

I am Faisal Lateef, and I am an entertainment lawyer currently serving as General Counsel at Avant Gardner (@avantgardnerbk). Raised by Indian immigrants, entertainment and music was quite a nontraditional career path for me to take. I gravitated to music early and when I was 17 I started producing music for local artists in Florida, eventually starting my own management agency, Nu South Music (@nusouth). We developed a talented roster of artists for whom we were able to secure record deals and collaborations with major acts. As much as I loved producing music, my ultimate goal was always law school. I attend Cardozo Law School in NYC, pursuing a concentration in Intellectual Property and Entertainment Law. I also began managing an EDM vocalist, which served as my entry into the dance scene. I had the opportunity to work on records for Afrojack, The Chainsmokers, Mixmash Records and Armada Records. I loved the creative freedom and inclusiveness of dance music and this ultimately laid the foundation for me to join Avant Gardner. Avant Gardner is the largest standing room entertainment complex in North America and one of the largest dance music venues in the world — housing the renowned Brooklyn Mirage. In the last few years I’ve helped the company grow through strategic acquisitions and I’ve negotiated deals to secure performances from artists like Tiesto, Martin Garrix, David Guetta, Deadmau5, Black Coffee, and others. It is important to me as a South Asian in this space to contribute to the advancement of underrepresented groups in the dance space and build inclusivity. In 2022 I facilitated a partnership with Indo Warehouse, a platform fusing South Asian sounds with house music. I am truly grateful for the skill sets the practice of law has given me to be able to empower artists and help forge pathways for inclusiveness and cultural representation.

Faisal Lateef, Esq.