On October 23, 2025, AIMP LA president, Frank Handy, along with Janishia Jones shared their knowledge of the music business with a focus on rights and royalties as part of Tom Truitt’s “The Smartest People in the Room” series.

The term “music business” may strike some as an oxymoron. For many on the creative side (think songwriters) the business side of the equation can be quite intimidating. Similarly, for many on the business side, the creative side is a foreign language. This episode explores this dichotomy and should help each side gain more comfort and understanding of the other.

Frank Handy is VP of Catalog Royalty Administration at peermusic. In short, he makes sure that peer music and its affiliates are accurately compensated for the use of its music globally. Catalogue administration is one of the most complex aspects of the entire business, and Frank has spent the past 20+ years of his career chasing that money. He is also President of the LA Chapter and National Board Chair of the Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP).

Janishia Jones is founder and CEO of ENCORE, a modular, tech-driven rights management suite built to give creators, publishers, and music companies full control over their catalogs. She is also an accomplished author and podcaster. Her book, Getting The Bag: Rights & Royalties Management in Today’s Modern Music Economy, was an Amazon bestseller. She also hosts the Pub Royalty Queen Podcast, and produced the groundbreaking research study A Seat at the Table: A Perspective on Women of Color in the Music Business.

Watch the whole conversation below or here.