J. JOEL BALOYI

Entertainment Law Specialist
Life Coach

Kitchener Avenue 50, Cnr Emerald Street
2094 Johannesburg
SOUTH AFRICA
phone: +27 739 177 564
website: www.branded.me/joelbaloyi
e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Dear Mr. Baloyi, you are specialized in entertainment law and have an excellent reputation in this fiel. What in particular is your field of activity in this context?

First of all, I do not operate as a law firm. I currently work as an academic teaching Intellectual Property Law and Commercial Law. But I have over the years, acquired immense experience in the area of entertainment law. In this regard I have been privileged to have involvement in almost all areas of entertainment law. My first experience was in the area of music law. Although this remains a large part of my involvement, I have had the opportunity to consult in other areas such as film production, television, new media, book publishing and theatre.

What are the main challenges for an entertainmant law in South Africa?

Entertainment law remains a specialised, niche area in South Africa with very few practitioners who can claim expertise in this area. This is largely because though it is growing, the South African entertainment market is still small and has largely been concentrated in Johannesburg. The client base is thus still to a large extent, small. I was privileged to have worked for a national music industry organisaton, which gave me great exposure to the broader industry.

What motivated you to get involved in entertainment law?

I am myself a musician and I guess this, coupled with the awareness of lack of understanding among musicians and other artists about the legal and business aspects of the industry, motivated me to seek to understand this area of law in order to be of service in this regard.

What do you think is your greatest accomplishment in your career so far?

I have been engaged by the top organisations in the entertainment industry in South Africa, including an international music television company. I have received several awards as an "Entertainment Law Expert" in South Africa, and have contributed chapters in two international texts on Music Law and Collective Management of Copyright, as well as co-authoring two texts on Collective Management for the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). I was also a member of the CISAC Legal Committee for several years.

What are your plans for the future?

A lot still needs to be done in South Africa in the area of bridging the knowledge gap that exists in relation to Entertainment Law. There is, to this stage, very little written on this area of law and virtually no university program offering training in this regard. My greatest desire - and what I would consider to be my legacy - is to mix my academic expertise with my vast experience in the entertainment industry to produce texts that shall become an authoritative source of the law relating to the entertainment industries. This would be my greatest contribution to the industry, as I will then be sure that many can access this body of knowledge which remains to a large extent esoteric to many, including lawyers and judges