Joe Dera, a prolific entertainment publicist who represented such high-profile clients as Paul McCartney, David Bowie, Elton John, Paul Newman and many more, has died at the age of 74. Dera’s longtime business partner Chris Roslan confirmed that Dera died Friday in Bentonia, Mississippi.
Dera worked in the industry for more than half a century, representing clients like McCartney for more than 20 years. After working at the label Track Records for a few years in the early 1970s, Dera took his newfound knowledge of music promotion onto the firm Levinson and Associates before eventually joining Rogers & Cowan in 1976. At the time, Rogers & Cowan was the world’s largest entertainment PR firm, representing such clients as Tony Bennett, Paul Newman, Sparks and more. In 1983, he oversaw David Bowie’s Serious Moonlight Tour for the legendary musician.
It was during this period that Dera represented Live Aid, the massive, global charity concert, in 1985. Other events represented by Dera include Amnesty International, Woodstock ’99, and the Rainforest Alliance Concert.
In 1989, Dera formed his own company — Dera & Associates — which represented both McCartney and Ringo Starr. In addition to his decades representing McCartney (from 1975 to 1999), Dera eventually took on Paul’s wife, Linda McCartney, as well. Other Dera & Associates clients included Elton John, Billy Joel, Queen, ZZ Top, Duran Duran, Pink Floyd, Brian Wilson, The Scorpions and many more.
The publicist would turn Dera & Associates into Dera, Roslan & Campion Inc. in 2008 as he promoted longtime employees Eileen Campion and Chris Roslan to partners of the firm he created. Dera retired with his wife, Suzanne Case, to Mississippi in 2016, continuing to provide pro bono counsel to local businesses. During his career, Dera counseled Nordoff Robbins Foundation and its Center for Music Therapy at NYU pro bono for more than 15 years.
Dera is survived by his wife, Suzanne Case; his son, Samuel Mulford Dera; his sister, Yvonne Dera Edwards; and his former wife, Jay Mulford.
