CHARLES DRIEBE

Charles Driebe received his B.A. from Tulane University and his J.D. from the University of Georgia School of Law. He practiced entertainment law in Atlanta for a number of years thereafter and began managing artists in 1996. He is the founder and CEO of Blind Ambition Management, Ltd.

Blind Ambition manages multiple artists. The company’s most long-standing client (since 2000) is the legendary Blind Boys of Alabama gospel group who, during Charles’ tenure, have won five Grammy Awards and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, appeared on the Grammy Awards television show, performed at the White House twice, toured internationally with Peter Gabriel, collaborated on CD with Ben Harper and many others, and appeared on numerous national TV shows including the Tonight Show with Jay Leno (5 times), The Late Show with David Letterman (3 times), Late Night with Conan O’Brien (twice), and The Colbert Report (twice). Blind Ambition also manages Grammy-nominated blues/soul/folk singer Ruthie Foster, Grammy-winning original Stax Records soul man William Bell, Mississippi raconteur Paul Thorn, Midwest indie-folk icons Over The Rhine, Grammy-nominated New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian funk band Cha Wa and Providence RI indie band The Low Anthem. Charles was named the Blues Foundation Manager of the Year in 2007.

Charles’ legal clients have included producer Shane Theriot (also the bandleader for Hall & Oates), Chris Thomas King (who appeared in the movies ‘O Brother Where Art Thou?’ and ‘Ray’), the Subdudes, Randall Bramblett, and the Georgia Music and Sports Halls of Fame.

Charles has also served as a board member of the Georgia Lawyers of the Arts, and is the former Chairman of the Board of its predecessor, The Southern Entertainment & Art Law Center, both nonprofit corporations dedicated to educating artists and art organizations about legal and business issues. He is a past President of the Clayton County Bar Association, and a former member of both the Board of Governors of the State Bar of Georgia and the Executive Board of the Entertainment and Sports Law Section of the Bar. Charles formerly taught a course on Art and Law at the Atlanta College of Art and he has spoken at numerous seminars and conferences, including SXSW, the Americana Music Association Conference and Womex, and has been featured on radio (NPR’s Morning Edition, etc) and television (60 Minutes, etc) speaking about the company’s clients as well as entertainment law and management in general.