Billboard Names Matt Finkelstein a Top Music Lawyer For Fifth Year

Matt leads ArentFox Schiff’s Music practice and is well-regarded throughout the music industry, known for his practical and client-focused approach. The marquee music practice represents a diverse spectrum of clients, including recording artists, songwriters, copyright owners, music licensees and purchasers and sellers of music rights and royalty income. 

Matt led the multidisciplinary team advising Bertelsmann and BMG on the transaction that will see the businesses of BMG and Concord enter into a multi-billion-dollar combination to create the leading independent music company in the world. The new company will operate under the BMG name and will be a fully integrated global music company spanning music publishing, recorded music, theatrical rights, and digital distribution. 

Matt also counseled BMG in the Berlin-headquartered global music company’s single largest catalog acquisition in the company’s history. The acquired music collection comprises recorded catalogs and publishing rights from a cross-section of 23 artists and songwriters spanning more than 1,000 songs across a variety of genres and includes the recorded music catalog of Country music superstar Jason Aldean. The deal spans Aldean’s nine studio albums from 2005 through 2019 and brings his entire music career under BMG.

In addition to the Billboard accolade, Matt is recognized as a leader in his field by both Chambers USA and The Legal 500. 

Billboard’s Top Music Lawyers for 2026 listings are based on firm and peer nominations. Matt was chosen by the publication’s editors and is considered an essential resource for the industry.