Court Approves Middle School Metal Band’s Deal with Sony
Metal is alive and well with the youth, as Unlocking The Truth – a Brooklyn-based metal band comprised of soon-to-be eighth graders 
Malcolm Brickhouse (13), Alec Atkins (13), and Jarad Dawkins (12) – has been given the go ahead by a Manhattan judge to sign a record contract with Sony.
Since the principles of the contract offered are minors, court approval was needed. The New York Daily News reports that the parents were quizzed on whether or not they understood the terms of the contract, and if trust accounts for the band members had been created. Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Carol Edmead liked what she heard, and signed off on the deal, but cautioned the band to be wise with its earnings: “No Porsches!”
The deal with Sony could net the youngsters as much as $1.8 million, if all goes very, very well. But, since this is the music business, there are few guarantees. Stereogum reports that Unlocking The Truth will receive an advance of $60,000, but will not earn any royalties unless their debut album sells 250,000 copies – yikes.
Furthermore, while this is technically a six album deal, Sony is only completely committed to the band for its first two albums, with options being in place for the final four.
To date, Unlocking The Truth have opened for Queens of the Stone Age, Guns N’ Roses, and appeared at Coachella. The band’s next slated performance is August 9 at Heavy MTL, a metal and punk festival being headlined by Metallica and Slayer. After that, they hit the road for some dates with Living Colour.
Let’s support these kids, shall we?
-Adam Grant
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