Meet Ade Adetunji
As the music industry becomes increasingly digital, the ability to understand, protect and manage creative rights has never been more important.
From artificial intelligence and data privacy to digital platforms and rights management, creators and music businesses are navigating an increasingly complex landscape. To help unpack these issues, Downtown Music Publishing Africa is proud to introduce Adeyemi Adetunji (“Ade”) as the first speaker in our upcoming Creative Legal Web-Series.
Ade is a lawyer, business adviser and entertainment-industry consultant whose work sits at the intersection of music, technology, data privacy and artificial intelligence.
He advises artists, startups, platforms, labels and rights holders on commercial strategy, rights management, data protection and the legal considerations that come with building and operating digital and AI-enabled products.
As the Principal of Ademeje Solicitors, Ade leads a practice focused on entertainment, technology, data protection and emerging technologies. His work covers a wide range of matters, including artist and talent agreements, recording and distribution arrangements, publishing and administration deals, licensing, intellectual-property protection, brand partnerships, privacy compliance and commercial negotiations.
But what makes Ade’s perspective particularly valuable is his understanding of both the law and the business of music.
Bringing Legal Expertise and Music Industry Experience Together
Ade’s experience extends across multiple sides of the African music ecosystem.
As a founding member of 506 Music & 506 Media, he gained hands-on experience working with artists and creative talent, including Wizkid, Simi and Falz. He has also worked across relationships involving record labels, publishers, distributors, producers and other rights holders.
This experience has given him a practical understanding of the issues that sit behind the music we hear every day — from recording and publishing rights to catalogue exploitation, distribution strategies and commercial partnerships.
Ade previously served as Head of Operations and Commercial Partnerships at Audiomack, where he played a key role in supporting the platform’s growth in Africa and its position as a global destination for Afrobeats discovery.
His time in the streaming ecosystem strengthened his understanding of digital distribution, platform strategy, licensing and audience development, while allowing him to build relationships across the music value chain.
Today, that experience informs his work advising creative businesses on how to protect, manage and commercially exploit music rights in a rapidly changing digital environment.
Where Music, Data and AI Meet
The music industry is now entering another significant period of transformation.
Artificial intelligence is changing how music and other creative content are created, distributed, discovered and monetised. At the same time, digital platforms rely on vast amounts of data to power recommendation systems, audience insights and new creative technologies.
These developments bring opportunities — but they also raise important questions:
- Who owns the data being used?
- How is creative content being used to train AI systems?
- What happens to an artist’s rights when their work enters a digital ecosystem?
- How can creative businesses innovate while protecting users and rights holders?
- What does responsible data governance look like in practice?
Ade’s technology and privacy practice addresses many of these emerging questions. He advises on areas including AI training data, content moderation, recommendation systems, digital assets, privacy-by-design and responsible product deployment.
His approach is particularly relevant to today’s creative economy: innovation should create opportunities, but it must also be underpinned by transparency, accountability and respect for rights.
Introducing the Creative Legal Web-Series
At Downtown Music Publishing Africa, we believe that understanding the business and legal side of music is an essential part of building sustainable creative careers.
Our Creative Legal Web-Series is designed to bring practical insights to artists, songwriters, producers, music professionals and creative businesses navigating the increasingly complex music industry.
We are kicking off the series with:
Trust, Safety & Data Integrity
Speaker: Adeyemi Adetunji
Date: 2 September 2026
Platform: Zoom
The session will explore the technical and legal considerations around proof of intellectual property, data integrity and maintaining control in an increasingly digital and AI-driven creative environment.
With Ade’s combination of legal expertise, technology experience and hands-on knowledge of the African music industry, the conversation will bring practical context to some of the questions facing today’s music professionals.
Part of DMPA’s September Webinar Series
Trust, Safety & Data Integrity opens Downtown Music Publishing Africa’s three-part September Webinar Series, created to help music creators and industry professionals better understand some of the rights, business and legal issues shaping today’s music industry.
Explore the full September Webinar Series and upcoming sessions.
Don’t Miss the Conversation
The future of music will not only be shaped by creativity. It will also be shaped by how effectively creators and businesses protect their rights, manage their data and understand the technologies transforming the industry.
Whether you’re an artist protecting your catalogue, a songwriter managing your intellectual property, a music business working with digital platforms, or a creative entrepreneur exploring AI, this conversation is for you.
Register now and join us on 2 September for a conversation about trust, safety and data integrity in the creative industry.
Stay informed. Protect your rights. Understand the future of music.
