TEAM

Ramon Villa

Chief Operating Officer

Ramon Villa wears many hats in managing the financial and operational functions for Primary Wave. His 20 years of experience within entertainment, including the first half of his career working closely with Island records founder, Chris Blackwell, has immersed him across many platforms including records, publishing, video, film, distribution, talent management, branding and marketing. He has been involved since the early days of Primary Wave building the publishing catalog and the various marketing and management arms surrounding it. As COO and “chief aesthetic officer” he sees that the ops, numbers and the vibe all stay in check.

 

Jane Reisman

Chief Financial Officer

Jane Reisman comes to Primary Wave with 25 years of finance & accounting leadership, most recently as founder and CEO of JPR Consulting, an outsourced CFO firm providing services to small and medium-sized businesses in media & entertainment, tech and wellness.  As CFO of Primary Wave, Jane will oversee all financial functions including business planning, accounting, royalty processing, fund administration, reporting, audit & tax.  She lends strategic fiscal leadership focused on improving transparency and enhancing efficiencies to support growth.

Jane has always had a passion for the music business since her early years when she earned her CPA license with Ernst & Young, working with clients in all facets of the music business, including publishing, concert promotion and music labels.  Later she spent 12 years with Sony Music, ultimately rising to Head of Finance for Epic Records, where she worked with artists including Shakira, Jennifer Lopez, Pearl Jam, The Fray and Sara Bareilles.  She has been CFO for organizations and startups involved in music technology (Dubset Media, Pulselocker, IODA), documentary film production (The Representation Project), nonprofits (Fundly, SFAI) and tech and wellness (Carrot Fertility, AngelList).  Ms. Reisman earned a BS in Economics from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.

 

Amy Ortner

General Counsel

Amy Ortner is General Counsel and a member of Primary Wave’s Senior Executive Team.  She joins Primary Wave after 22 years in private law practice, including a 20-year tenure in Loeb & Loeb LLP’s music and entertainment group.  Throughout her career, she has represented a broad array of domestic and international entertainment clients, including major and independent music publishers and recorded music companies, entrepreneurs, private equity funds, and closely held family businesses, often in connection with the sale or acquisition of significant music enterprises and assets (among them, Warner Music Group, The Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization, BMG Music Publishing, Arc Music Corp., PULSE, Criterion Music Corporation, the music publishing catalogs of Sony Pictures Entertainment, Lionsgate, and Saban Capital Group, various songwriter catalogs, and music booking and personal management firms).  She also served as music industry counsel with respect to investments, financings, and securities offerings.  Additional areas of focus included ventures with talent (including high-profile branded entertainment transactions), personal management agreements, and content licensing.  Prior to becoming a lawyer, Amy worked in business affairs at BMG Entertainment.  Amy received her A.B. from Washington University in St. Louis, and her J.D. from Fordham University School of Law.  She is admitted to the New York and California bars and is based in Los Angeles.

 

Matt Jones

Partner and VP, Copyrights & Royalties

Matt Jones is responsible for all copyright and royalty functions for Primary Wave.  Most recently he worked at Palm Entertainment Properties as Royalties Manager, where he oversaw the implementation of rights management and royalty systems for both its music and film divisions.  He has extensive knowledge in copyright matters, including mechanical and synchronization licensing, catalog valuations and copyright terminations.  Mr. Jones previously worked as Finance Director of Ultra Records, the country’s leading independent electronic music label.

 

Samantha Rhulen

VP, Business Development & Legal Affairs

Sam joins Primary Wave with a mission to utilize her many contacts from the past 15 years working as an attorney in the music industry to create business opportunities for the company.  Sam also provides legal support to the executive team for acquisitions and other high level matters.

Prior to joining Primary Wave, Sam was Senior Counsel at Ritholz Levy LLP where her clients were primarily musicians, songwriters, producers, independent record labels and start-up businesses. She is experienced in structuring, negotiating and drafting a wide variety of agreements, including recording, publishing, management, branding, appearance and live performance. She was previously a Director of Business & Legal Affairs for Atlantic Records and was also a Staff Attorney at the Legal Aid Society where she represented low-income tenants in housing matters in Harlem. Educated at Fordham University School of Law, J.D. Notes Editor, Urban Law Journal. Bucknell University, B.A., cum laude.

 

John Luneau

Senior Counsel

John P. Luneau was Primary Wave’s General Counsel from November 2017 through April 2021 and its Head of Business Affairs from April 2011 through April 2021, before semi-retiring to his current role as part-time Senior Counsel in May 2021. In his prior role as General Counsel & Head of Business Affairs, John was principally engaged in structuring, negotiating and drafting agreements for the company’s acquisition of iconic music catalogs and name and likeness rights, including its high-profile acquisitions of the Smokey Robinson, Bob Marley, Burt Bacharach, Paul Anka, Four Seasons, Ray Charles, Whitney Houston, Count Basie, War, Boyz II Men, Steve Cropper, Justin Hayward (Moody Blues) and classical pianist Glenn Gould catalogs. He also directly handled many of the contract negotiations and other legal matters for Primary Wave Music Publishing and its artist management, film & TV, marketing and branding divisions, and trained and oversaw the work of recently admitted lawyers and legal interns. In his new role as Senior Counsel, John will principally continue to structure, negotiate and draft agreements for the company’s catalog acquisitions.

Before joining Primary Wave in 2011, John had over 25 years of significant, diverse experience in entertainment and copyright law and general law practice. He was Vice President, Business & Legal Affairs at Razor & Tie from 2005 through 2010; Head of Business Affairs/Music at Chris Blackwell’s Palm Entertainment from 2001 through 2004; Director of Business Affairs at Palm and Rykodisc from 1995 through 2001; General Counsel of the Pennsylvania Ballet from 1992 through 1995; proprietor of his own small entertainment law firm since 1992; and an intellectual property and litigation associate at a major international law firm from 1984 through 1992.

During the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, John was a frequent speaker on entertainment and copyright law panels, during which time he was also an officer and Trustee of the Copyright Society of the U.S.A., Chairman of the Copyright Society’s New York and Philadelphia Chapters, and Vice President / Special Events of Philadelphia Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts. John received his A.B. cum laude from Harvard College, where he was an editor of the Harvard Lampoon, and J.D. cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center. In a prior life (during the early 1980s), John was the lead singer/songwriter/guitarist of an all-original new wave band called the Ducky Boys.

 

Alexandria (Lexi) Todd

Director of Business & Legal Affairs

Alexandria (Lexi) Todd is an in-house attorney that handles contract drafting and negotiation and other legal matters for Primary Wave’s music publishing, artist management, film & TV, and marketing and branding divisions. Lexi’s purview includes drafting and negotiating administration, co-publishing, artist management, music licensing, and non-disclosure agreements, as well as letters of intent for major music acquisitions. Lexi also assists in various intellectual property, corporate, and administrative matters, and works closely with the copyright & royalty, finance, and executive team. Lexi graduated from Brooklyn Law School in May 2016, cum laude, and was admitted to the New York State Bar in 2017. Prior to law school, she earned her B.A. degree in political science from Monmouth University, magna cum laude.

 

Brenda M. Ramirez

Controller

Brenda Ramirez is responsible for all areas related to accounting, financial operations, planning, and reporting for Primary Wave’s marketing, management and film/tv development businesses, with a focus on scaling our finance function to support Primary Wave’s current and future growth. She brings experience in successfully transforming and scaling start-ups to drive performance and rapid growth while promoting effective organizational culture. Her experience includes vast knowledge in the private aviation, marketing implementation, post-production and enterprise asset management industries, with an emphasis on high-growth technology-enabled companies.  Prior to joining Primary Wave, Brenda held various financial and corporate accounting roles at Wheels Up Partners LLC and Hogarth Worldwide Inc., a WPP company, where she supported and established effective processes and controls, Sarbanes- Oxley compliance, client finance management, financial, CRM and propriety system implementations and integrations, as well as developing and leading productive cross-functional teams.  Brenda holds a BS in Public Accounting and International Finance from ICESI University.

 

Peter Phung

VP, Investments

 

Ken Gu

Accounting Manager

 

David Levy

Royalties & Data Manager

David has previously worked in the royalties department at Entertainment One where he was responsible for mechanical royalties for all of eOne’s in-house and acquired labels. In that time, he worked with clients such as Dr. Dre, The Game, Wu-Tang Clan, and DJ Khaled. He has been able to take his passion for music and data analysis, and turn it into a career in the industry that he has always been passionate about. David graduated from Five Towns College cum laude with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management with a concentration in Music Business. During college, David also spent time at Primary Wave as a publishing intern.

 

Alexandra Tarantelli

Fund Manager

Alexandra Tarantelli is responsible for all areas related to accounting, finance, reporting and compliance for Primary Wave’s private equity funds.  Prior to joining Primary Wave, Alex worked at a private equity fund administrator where she was exposed to a range of funds specializing in industries including software, real estate, and most prominently – music royalties. She feels she has found her niche at Primary Wave, a place where she can work in an environment that combines her accounting knowledge and skillset with her creativity and love of music. Alex has a Bachelor’s degree in Musical Theatre and a Certificate in Accounting from Baruch College.

 

Tom Strutt

Royalties Manager

Tom joins Primary Wave having previously managed the royalty department at Entertainment One where he oversaw labels eOne Canada, eOne UK, Last Gang, and Death Row records. Tom was lucky enough to work with a diverse roster that included artists Tupac, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, The Arkells, and Mother Mother. Toms purview at Primary Wave includes royalty reporting, system implementation & optimization, audits, and other revenue generation claims. Tom graduated from The Institute of Contemporary Performance in London with a Bachelor’s degree and is currently studying a Degree in Data Science with the Open University. Tom is passionate about the music industry and brings his analytical mind-set with a pragmatic approach to problem-solving.

 

Kim Cozzens

Copyright and Contract Administrator

Kim implements rights management and contract administration at Primary Wave.  She also plays a pivotal role in royalty statement production, audits, and copyright database & asset management.  Most recently Kim was the Director of Mechanical Licensing for publishing and recorded music clients at BMG.  She began her dream career in music first at Arista Records working in royalties, and held licensing and copyright positions at both EMI and Sony/RCA.  Kim studied journalism at The Ohio State University.

 

Seth D. Mills

Funds Systems Coordinator

An avid drummer, Seth graduated from Berklee College of Music with a bachelor’s degree in Music Business & Management. Prior to joining Primary Wave, he participated in several industry mentorship programs and most recently was a research consultant to The Mechanical Licensing Collective.

 

Nicholas Bellitti

Royalties & Data Analyst

Nick has previously worked at Downtown Music Publishing for 3 years as a Senior Royalty Coordinator where he was responsible for handling royalties for songwriters such as John Lennon, Miles Davis, Wu-Tang Clan, and John Prine. Nick has a very curious mind, he is extremely passionate about music and data analysis, and has turned it into a dream career. Nick graduated from Syracuse University with a bachelor’s degree in Television, Radio, and Film.