Helen Yu Leseberg
- Additional Crew
Helen Yu of the Los Angeles entertainment law firm, Yu Leseberg, is a seasoned and experienced entertainment lawyer serving clients in fields of copyright, intellectual property, music, television and film industry since the mid-1990s.
As a formidable advocate for creative professionals in every corner of the entertainment business, Helen Yu's clients include performers, artists, songwriters, producers, and on-screen talent. An expert and authority on entertainment business strategy and copyright law, she counsels talent, producers, directors, writers and production companies on intellectual property protection and distribution strategies. Her track record speaks for itself: in 2014, she negotiated more Billboard Hot 100 and Hot R & B 100 charting singles than any other entertainment law firm. In 2018, Yu Leseberg negotiated and handled agreements for songs contained on a third of the Billboard Top 10 most streamed albums of the year as noted by The New York Times; Drake - Scorpion, Post Malone - Beerbongs & Bentleys and Migos - Culture II
In 2000, Ms. Yu founded North Hudson Music, LLC, a music publishing administration company whose catalog includes album and soundtrack works written and performed by some of the biggest musical names of the past two decades: Mary J. Blige, Justin Timberlake, The Black Eyed Peas, Britney Spears, Janet Jackson, Busta Rhymes, P. Diddy, The Pussycat Dolls, Robin Thicke, Tupac, and a host of others.
Before founding Yu Leseberg, Helen worked as an in-house lawyer for two of the then giants in the entertainment industry: Virgin Records America and Sony Pictures Entertainment Group. At Sony Pictures, she handled transactions assisting to expand the company's extensive library of intellectual property.
Ms. Yu's work in private practice and stint at Sony Pictures Entertainment prepared her for work as production counsel for a number of films in the early 2000s, including Longshot (2001), Shottas (2002), and Last Goodbye (2004) among others. Her duties as production counsel included securing intellectual property during development, handling union issues with SAG-AFTRA, drafting talent agreements, production services agreements, and addressing legal issues that arose during production.
After founding Yu Leseberg in 2000, Helen represented clients in several high-profile matters. In the early 2010s, she represented members of the Black Eyed Peas (including its songwriters and producers) in uncovering financial misdeeds, which eventually led to the group's lawsuit against Sean Larkin, its former business manager, who was accused of failure to file income tax returns that properly accounted for the group's income for years. Mr. Larkin's counter-suit was dismissed before he filed for bankruptcy in early 2012, and the matter was resolved favorably for the Black Eyed Peas.
Helen Yu began her career in the music industry early. As a student in high school, she interned at the legendary Enigma Records, an influential indie and alternative rock label that surfaced the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Sonic Youth, and other groundbreaking alternative acts. Her work at Enigma indirectly touched the movie industry, as well; Enigma produced blockbuster soundtracks for (Night of the Living Dead Soundtrack 1982) and (The Terminator (1984) and other top films.
While attending college, Helen worked as live show promoter for California State University - Northridge working in conjunction with KCSN, the university's flagship radio station. Later, at Whittier College where she attended law school, she interned with KCET Public Television and Motown Records, learning the ropes of music and entertainment law. She earned a bachelor's degree in speech communication and graduated with honors from Whittier College.
As a formidable advocate for creative professionals in every corner of the entertainment business, Helen Yu's clients include performers, artists, songwriters, producers, and on-screen talent. An expert and authority on entertainment business strategy and copyright law, she counsels talent, producers, directors, writers and production companies on intellectual property protection and distribution strategies. Her track record speaks for itself: in 2014, she negotiated more Billboard Hot 100 and Hot R & B 100 charting singles than any other entertainment law firm. In 2018, Yu Leseberg negotiated and handled agreements for songs contained on a third of the Billboard Top 10 most streamed albums of the year as noted by The New York Times; Drake - Scorpion, Post Malone - Beerbongs & Bentleys and Migos - Culture II
In 2000, Ms. Yu founded North Hudson Music, LLC, a music publishing administration company whose catalog includes album and soundtrack works written and performed by some of the biggest musical names of the past two decades: Mary J. Blige, Justin Timberlake, The Black Eyed Peas, Britney Spears, Janet Jackson, Busta Rhymes, P. Diddy, The Pussycat Dolls, Robin Thicke, Tupac, and a host of others.
Before founding Yu Leseberg, Helen worked as an in-house lawyer for two of the then giants in the entertainment industry: Virgin Records America and Sony Pictures Entertainment Group. At Sony Pictures, she handled transactions assisting to expand the company's extensive library of intellectual property.
Ms. Yu's work in private practice and stint at Sony Pictures Entertainment prepared her for work as production counsel for a number of films in the early 2000s, including Longshot (2001), Shottas (2002), and Last Goodbye (2004) among others. Her duties as production counsel included securing intellectual property during development, handling union issues with SAG-AFTRA, drafting talent agreements, production services agreements, and addressing legal issues that arose during production.
After founding Yu Leseberg in 2000, Helen represented clients in several high-profile matters. In the early 2010s, she represented members of the Black Eyed Peas (including its songwriters and producers) in uncovering financial misdeeds, which eventually led to the group's lawsuit against Sean Larkin, its former business manager, who was accused of failure to file income tax returns that properly accounted for the group's income for years. Mr. Larkin's counter-suit was dismissed before he filed for bankruptcy in early 2012, and the matter was resolved favorably for the Black Eyed Peas.
Helen Yu began her career in the music industry early. As a student in high school, she interned at the legendary Enigma Records, an influential indie and alternative rock label that surfaced the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Sonic Youth, and other groundbreaking alternative acts. Her work at Enigma indirectly touched the movie industry, as well; Enigma produced blockbuster soundtracks for (Night of the Living Dead Soundtrack 1982) and (The Terminator (1984) and other top films.
While attending college, Helen worked as live show promoter for California State University - Northridge working in conjunction with KCSN, the university's flagship radio station. Later, at Whittier College where she attended law school, she interned with KCET Public Television and Motown Records, learning the ropes of music and entertainment law. She earned a bachelor's degree in speech communication and graduated with honors from Whittier College.
