Manager, Music Rights & Clearances

NPR•Washington, DC

2d•$101,000 - $115,000•Hybrid

About The Position

As the Music Rights & Clearances Manager, you will serve as the essential bridge between NPR Music’s creative programming and the complex landscape of intellectual property rights in an evolving media environment. You will lead the end-to-end clearance process for flagship productions—including the globally recognized Tiny Desk series—acting as a critical partner between production units, legal counsel, and external music industry rights holders. This is a high-impact operational role for a detail-oriented licensing professional ready to modernize rights-tracking infrastructure, execute publishing and master agreements, and protect the artistic integrity and legal compliance of one of the most influential entities in music and public media.

Requirements

5+ years of professional experience in music licensing, clearances, or copyright administration within a media company, record label, music publisher, streaming service, or entertainment law environment.
Deep operational mastery of music licensing processes, including synchronization rights, master recording rights, publishing agreements, public performance rights (ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, GMR), and mechanical licensing frameworks.
Proven experience clearing rights and managing copyright claims across third-party digital and social media video platforms (e.g., YouTube Content ID, TikTok, Meta).
Demonstrated track record interpreting, administering, and managing inbound and outbound appearance releases and licensing agreements.
Proven experience designing, documenting, and implementing operational workflows or clearance tracking systems that improve turnaround times and team adoption across creative and administrative units.
Proven ability to build consensus and collaborate effectively across creative production teams, legal counsel, and external artist representatives under strict production deadlines.
Analytical Legal Acumen: Ability to analyze contract language meticulously, identify intellectual property liabilities, and propose practical, risk-mitigating solutions.
Diplomatic Negotiation: Exceptional interpersonal and negotiation skills to advocate for NPR's creative interests while cultivating positive, long-term relationships with artists, managers, and labels.
High-Urgency Prioritization: Strong organizational ability to manage high-volume clearance pipelines and adapt swiftly to changing production schedules without sacrificing accuracy.
Structured Cross-Functional Communication: Clear, professional written and verbal communication skills to present legal requirements and licensing status updates to non-legal production staff.
Mission-Driven Artistic Advocacy: Passion for supporting independent and diverse musical artistry, public service media, and accessible cultural storytelling.

Nice To Haves

Hands-on proficiency utilizing enterprise database and workflow management systems (such as Airtable, Salesforce, Asana, or dedicated rights-tracking software).
Prior experience in requesting, negotiating, and securing gratis licenses, promotional waivers, or favorable rate structures from music publishers and record labels for cultural, editorial, or non-profit productions.

Responsibilities

Clear Publishing & Composition Rights: Manage the research, negotiation, and clearance of musical compositions and publishing rights for NPR’s Tiny Desk concerts, special music events, and other programming.
Secure Master & Synchronization Licenses: Lead the acquisition of master recording, sync, performance rights, and other clearances for music-focused podcasts, documentary video series, and digital editorial packages.
Administer Releases & Performance Documentation: Maintain robust systems to verify that all featured artists, touring musicians, and record labels have signed required appearance releases, liability agreements, and rights documentation prior to broadcast or publication.
Oversee Multi-Platform Digital Rights: Collaborate with Permissions Department and external distribution partners to monitor, claim, and clear music rights across third-party digital platforms (e.g., YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and streaming channels).
Coordinate Royalties & Distribution Accounting: Partner with internal finance teams, accounting colleagues, and external rights holders to support payment schedules and reconcile royalty obligations related to content distribution models.
Manage Inbound & Outbound Rights Agreements: Review, execute, and archive inbound licenses and outbound syndication agreements, maintaining compliance across all content-sharing partnerships.
Design & Implement Clearance Workflows: Design, document, and operationalize repeatable cross-functional clearance workflows and intake protocols that eliminate bottlenecks between production teams, legal counsel, and external partners.
Partner with Office of General Counsel: Collaborate closely with NPR’s legal team to interpret contractual provisions, assess intellectual property risk, and enforce organizational compliance standards across all active agreements.