ASCAP Announces Three Major Promotions

ASCAP Executive Vice President of Membership, John Titta has announced three promotions within ASCAP’s Membership Department: DeDe Burns to Vice President of Membership and Strategic Services, Alex Grout to Senior Director of Business & Membership Affairs and Eric Lense to Director of Business & Membership Affairs. All three will report directly to Titta.In her new role, Burns will continue to lead the ASCAP Member Services teams in Los Angeles, Nashville and New York, and will oversee day-to-day operations at the Los Angeles office. Grout and Lense will work closely with ASCAP’s Membership and Legal departments to maintain ASCAP’s strong market share.Commenting on the three promotions, Titta said: “DeDe, Alex and Eric are essential to what we do at ASCAP. The strategic thinking they bring to the table has already made ASCAP a stronger, more helpful organization. I have no doubt that all three of them will help us become even more indispensable to our members.”During her 10 years at ASCAP, DeDe Burns has played a key role in increasing ASCAP’s value to its members. In her position as Senior Director of Strategic Services, Burns helped modernize ASCAP’s distribution system by aligning royalty payments with the licensing value of each performance. As Manager of Media Analytics, Burns conducted research essential to ASCAP’s market share growth. She is a Board member of the California Copyright Conference and a member of the Association of Independent Music Publishers and Songwriters Hall of Fame.Alex Grout oversees many of the complex legal issues related to ASCAP members and their music, and manages a team that handles special royalty transactions. Grout studied Music Industry at SUNY Oneonta and attended William and Mary Law School. He is currently on the Planning Committee for the New York Chapter of the Copyright Society.Eric Lense assists with ASCAP’s efforts in acquiring and retaining key members in all genres of music, and helps resolve complex financial matters for all ASCAP members. Lense started in ASCAP’s Repertory Department in 2007 before moving to the Legal Department in 2009. He spent two years working in Warner Music Group’s Legal Department before returning to ASCAP as Manager of Business and Membership Affairs. Lense studied Music Business at SUNY Oneonta.