Legal Executive
Technology, Media, & Entertainment
Brandon Tatum, Esq.
is a multi-hyphenate lawyer, business strategist, and public speaker with extensive international experience in the entertainment and technology industries. He currently serves as General Counsel of SM & Kakao Entertainment America, the fully integrated U.S. subsidiary of SM Entertainment (the pioneer of modern K-Pop music and one of the largest South Korean entertainment conglomerates) and Kakao Entertainment (the entertainment subsidiary of Kakao Corporation, one of the largest South Korean technology conglomerates). He previously acted as General Counsel and VP/Global Head of Music for Gala Games (a leading Web3 entertainment company), Director of Business & Legal Affairs for both SM Entertainment and SoundCloud.
He has been recognized by Billboard as a Top Music Lawyer in 2023 for his innovative work in the Web3 music industry and his integral support in expanding the K-Pop music industry into the Western Hemisphere.
Additionally, Brandon spent 5 years living in Tokyo, Japan between 2013 and 2019 during which time he completed his M.B.A. at GLOBIS University (Japan’s largest graduate business school), worked heavily in the J-Pop and K-Pop music industries, and served as a foreign lawyer at “Big 4” Japanese law firm Anderson Mori & Tomotsune handling international commercial and technology transactions.
He has led deals with some of the biggest names in the entertainment and technology space, such as Universal Music Group, Capital Music Group, Warner Records, Virgin Music Label and Artist Services, BBC, ITV Studios, Google, CAA, Marvel, Intel, MAC Cosmetics, Roblox, Microsoft, Amazon, LEGO, Ubisoft, Take Two Interactive, and more.
Brandon is a California-qualified attorney who holds a Juris Doctorate from the University of Southern California Law School and an LL.M. in International Intellectual Property Law from the London School of Economics & Political Science. He is currently awaiting results of U.K. Solicitors Qualification Exam (March 2025).
15+
YEARS AS A
PRACTICING
LAWYER
20+
YEARS IN THE
GLOBAL MUSIC
INDUSTRY
8+
YEARS IN TECHNOLOGY TRANSACTIONS
Legal Expertise
ENTERTAINMENT
Transactions
TECHNOLOGY
TransactionS
COMMERCIAL
CONTRACTS
data
privacY
PRODUCT
COUNSEL
STRATEGIC
PARTNERSHIPS
AI and
COPYRIGHT
web3
COMPLIANCE
INTELLECTUAL
property
CROSS BORDER
transactions
Education & Credentials
-
Master of Business Administration - International Business Management
AUGUST 2014
GLOBIS UNIVERSITY
TOKYO, JAPAN -
Attorney and Counselor at Law - California Qualified
JUNE 2008
STATE BAR OF CALIFORNIA
LOS ANGELES, CA -
Juris Doctorate
DECEMBER 2007
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
LOS ANGELES, CA -
Master of Laws - Intellectual Property Law
JUNE 2007
LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS AND POLITICAL SCIENCE
LONDON, UK -
Bachelor of Arts - Sociology
MAY 2004
EMORY UNIVERSITY
ATLANTA, GA USA
Speaking Engagements
Media