BOLTON HILL, Md. — For nearly four decades, Maryland's creative community has had support in the form of free legal help. Maryland Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts has been protecting artists, entrepreneurs and creative organizations since 1985.
Marquis Gasque, known as "DJ Mighty Mark," was once a client of MdVLA. He says they helped his career face some of its biggest hurdles when he was working on an album and putting it out through a label without the resources for a lawyer.
"I was working on an album putting it out through a label and I didn't really have the resources for a lawyer, and I found out about this organization and all the work that they do to help artist afford legal services," Gasque said.
Maryland arts lawyers celebrate 40 years of free legal help for creatives
The music producer, who now serves as vice president of MdVLA, says understanding legal terminology was initially challenging.
"We didn't really understand the terminology. It really was like a foreign language," Gasque said.
"And the MdVLA really worked as my translator to understand that and be in my corner during the negotiation process," he said.
Having a lawyer who understands what you need as a creator makes a huge difference on how you're able to mold your career, according to Gasque.
"So sometimes the MdVLA can be the difference between making $1,000 making $5,000 or making enough money to survive for the rest of their life off of one piece of work," Gasque said.
Christia Ravenell, an attorney with MdVLA for two years, says all creators no matter the industry should take advantage of their services.
"It's really exciting to see the ways in which people light up when they start to understand what they're saying on a day-to-day basis that might've been confusing before," Ravenell said.
The organization doesn't just provide legal services - it educates artists on how to protect and profit from their creative work.
"We are available throughout Maryland we want folks to know that it's not just Baltimore city we work with artists across the state," Ravenell said.
Thursday, Maryland Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts is celebrating its 40th anniversary with a Birthday Party for the Arts.
"It's really gonna be just a great celebration for folks to get together and commemorate the 40 years," Ravenell said.
At the birthday party, organizers are also releasing a commemorative book highlighting four decades of the organization's impact on Maryland's creative community.
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