Nashville, Tennessee
- Dallas (Principal Office)
- (214) 780-1400
Christian Barker
Christian Barker
Partner
-
1 Music Circle South
Suite 300
Nashville, Tennessee 37203 -
615-329-4440
Extension - 4001
- Tennessee (2012)
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee (2016)
- U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee (2016)
University of Oxford, Saïd School of Business
Graduate Certificate, Blockchain Strategy Programme (2022)
Stetson University College of Law
Juris Doctor, William F. Blews Pro Bono Service Award (2012)
University of New Hampshire School of Law
Intellectual Property Exchange (2011)
Vermont Law School
Master of Environmental Law and Policy, Cum Laude (2011)
Stetson University
Master of Business Administration, Gordon and Jean Wells Scholar (2009)
The University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee
Bachelor of Arts in English Literature, University Trustees Scholar (2005)
- Billboard “Top Music Attorneys” List (2022)
- Super Lawyers – Mid-South Rising Stars – Entertainment & Sports (2018, 2019, 2020, 2021)
- Super Lawyers – Mid-South Rising Stars – Intellectual Property (2014, 2015, 2017)
- President, Tennessee Bar Association Young Lawyers Division (2018-2019)
- Nashville Lifestyles Magazine – Entertainment Attorney “On The Rise” (Spring 2018)
- Nashville Lifestyles Magazine – Intellectual Property Attorney “On The Rise” (Fall 2017)
- New Leaders Council – Nashville Fellow (Spring 2017)
- Member, Country Music Association
- Member, Tennessee Bar Association
- Member, Nashville Bar Association
Publications
- CNBC [feature] – “Prince didn’t like streaming, but it could be a big boost to his estate anyway”
- The Nashville Ledger [feature] – “Modern divorce” Re: Intellectual Property in Divorce
- TortSource (an ABA publication) [author] – “Direct and Indirect Impacts of Artificial Intelligence”
Speeches
- Association of Independent Music Publishers Podcast – “Structure of a Publishing Deal”
- Belmont University College of Law – “Copyright Mythbusters” & “The Value of Bar Membership” Nashville Arts & Business Council – “Copyright Mythbusters”
- Nashville School of Law – “The Life of an Entertainment Attorney” & “Mastering the Networking Game” Entrepreneurs Center of Nashville – “Copyright & Trademark Law for Fine Artists”
- Tennessee Department of Education – “Personal Branding and Networking for Student Leaders” Workationing Podcast – “Legal for Creatives”
- Georgia Bar Association Young Lawyers Division – “The Life of an Entertainment Attorney”
- Tennessee Bar Association Sports & Entertainment Law Forum – “Ethics & Alternative Fee Arrangements” Equal Justice University – “Servant Leadership in the Practice of Law”
- Career & Technical Student Organization – “Personal Branding and Networking for Students”
- Tennessee Bar Association Young Lawyers Division – “The Importance of Service”
- Tennessee Young Lawyers Conference – “Intellectual Property in Divorce”
- LawPracticeCLE – “Creativity in Conflict”
- Nashville Bar Association – “A Larger Piece of the Pie: The Legal Landscape Surrounding the Growth of
- Independent Record Labels and Music Publishers”
Christian Barker
Named as one of Billboard’s “Top Music Attorneys,” Christian Barker, Equity Partner, joined the Nashville office of Shackelford, Bowen, McKinley & Norton, LLP in August 2020 after nearly eight years as a solo practice entertainment attorney and most recently Special Counsel and leader of the Lewis, Thomason, King, Krieg & Waldrop, PLC Entertainment Law Practice Group. Primarily music industry-focused, Christian provides transactional representation for artists, songwriters, producers, independent record labels, independent music publishing companies, and artist management companies nationwide.
In just a few years’ time, Christian has signed his songwriter and producer clients to nearly every publishing company in Nashville and beyond with his crop of rising artist talent gaining momentum in all genres. Brokering deals for his clients totaling 8-figures+ this past year, Christian attributes his success to thinking outside of the box and putting his own creative spin on the practice of law. A former artist manager, Christian has become noteworthy for the creative value-adds he brings to the table for his clients, like pitching songs (e.g. landing the David Guetta x Bebe Rexha cut “Family” for rising country artists Track45) and putting together white papers on TikTok best strategy (for his clients’ eyes only). He even signed one rising TikTok artist to the largest record deal in the history of country music for a new artist (if you know, you know). Because of his success, some of the industry’s longtime iconic, award-winning producers and songwriters have gravitated into his orbit, requesting his procurement skills in shopping their catalogs (songs and master royalties) to buyers internationally. Conversely, major buyers frequently use Christian as well, to assist in the location and acquisition of noteworthy music IP rights as they grow their portfolios.
In addition, Christian represents clients in the TV/film, fine arts, and PR/digital media realms. He also advises on Web3/blockchain/NFT strategy and manages intellectual property portfolios for numerous businesses—both in and outside of the entertainment space. Outside of his practice, he remains active in the creative space as a consultant providing talent scouting, song-plugging, and career advising services to numerous songwriters, artists, labels, and publishers via his company FVLLGLΛSS, along with brand partnership and investment/business development activities.
