Supporting creators and rights holders is our mission

Supporting creators and rights holders is our mission

Whether you’re a singer-songwriter, composer or publisher, when working with SESAC Performing Rights you benefit from the deepest expertise in the collection and distribution of performance royalties and a team that always puts creators first.

You can bank on it.

SESAC currently licenses the public performance of more than 1.5 million songs on behalf of its 15,000+ affiliated songwriters, composers, and music publishers, which include such familiar names as Bob Dylan, Neil Diamond, RUSH, Adele, Jack Harlow, Ariana Grande, Disclosure, Zac Brown, Rosanne Cash, Hillary Scott of Lady A, Lee Brice, Margo Price, Nicky Jam, Blanco Brown, and many more.

SESAC has long represented the music on some of TV’s biggest shows including Grey’s Anatomy, How I Met Your Mother, A Million Little Things, Dateline NBC, Dr. Phil, Seinfeld, and Modern Family, and is the PRO of choice among many of Hollywood’s most sought-after film and television composers including Christophe Beck, Danny Lux, The Newton Brothers, John Ehrlich, Dennis C. Brown, Emile Mosseri, and many more.

Music Rights Done Right. Join Our Team.

Careers

Music Rights Done Right. Join Our Team.

For over 90 years, SESAC has been a leader in performance rights led by a top-tier team of music industry professionals who are passionate about work that supports the best songwriters and composers in the world.

Our History

In February 1931 Paul Heinecke founded The Society of European Stage Authors and Composers, or SESAC, on the principle that “Music is the common denominator…a communications instrument that knows no language barrier.” At the time, it was America’s second performing rights organization with a repertory consisting primarily of works published by European firms.

In the 1950s, SESAC established its electrical transcription service. Some of the earliest transcribed artists were jazz and country performers, including Duke Ellington, Chet Atkins, and Hank Garland.

With the advent of broadcasting as both an art form and a commercial enterprise, it brought about a new era for music and for SESAC. With the growth in media and musical usage, SESAC expanded its repertoire to include hundreds of American publisher’s catalogs across every musical genre, as well as for film and television composers.

In 1992 Stephen Swid, Allen & Co, Freddie Gershon, and Ira Smith acquired SESAC and marked the beginning of a new era for the company. In September 2015, SESAC acquired The Harry Fox Agency (HFA), the leading U.S. mechanical rights organization and positioned SESAC as the only music rights organization in the United States, with the ability to offer singular licenses for the works of its affiliated writers and publishers that aggregate both performance and mechanical rights. In February 2017, SESAC was acquired by Blackstone.

Today SESAC represents 15,000+ publishers and affiliates as well as the best film and television composers and hosts over 1.5 million songs in its repertoire. SESAC Music Group is a leader and innovator in global music licensing that administers public performance, mechanical, and other rights through its data, technology and services portfolio. SESAC Performing Rights, The Harry Fox Agency, Rumblefish, Audiam, and Mint Digital Services drive efficiency in licensing for music users and enhance value for writers, publishers, and composers by providing timely and efficient copyright administration, royalty collection and distribution. SESAC has offices in New York, Nashville, Los Angeles, London and Munich.

  • Sesac - 1930s
    1930s

    The Society of European Stage Authors and Composers was founded by Paul Heinecke, a German immigrant of New York.

  • Sesac - 1940s
    1940s

    SESAC evolves beyond gospel recordings and European composers.

  • Sesac - 1950s
    1950s

    SESAC established its electrical transcription service.

  • 1960s

    SESAC expanded from jazz, gospel and country into other upcoming musical genres and opened an office in Nashville.

  • Sesac - 1970s
    1970s

    SESAC signs it’s first songwriter, Glenn Ray.

  • 1980s

    SESAC headquarters moved from New York to Nashville.

  • 1990s

    New ownership shifts the SESAC’s focus toward more mainstream music and later television.

  • 2010s

    SESAC acquired the mechanical rights clearinghouse Harry Fox Agency.

  • 2020s

    SESAC currently licenses the public performances of more than 1.5 million songs on behalf of its 15,000+ affiliated songwriters, composers, and music publishers.

SESAC Office Locations

  • NYC
    250 West 57th Street
    Suite 2400
    New York, NY 10107
    212-586-3450
  • NASH
    35 Music Square East
    Nashville, TN 37203
    615-320-0055
  • LA
    2150 Colorado Avenue
    Suite 150
    Santa Monica, CA 90404
    424-291-4750
  • NYC
    40 Wall Street
    6th Floor
    New York, NY 10005
  • LDN
    1 Primose Street
    London EC2A 2EX
    England
    +44 (0)20 7616 9284
  • MUN
    Hohenstaufenstr. 1
    80801 Munich
    Germany

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