Performing, recording and releasing.
WHAT REVENUE SOURCES EXIST
Live performance
Recorded music: streaming, downloads and physical sales
Licensing to film, advertising and media Performance royalties from public use Publishing Session and production work Teaching Merchandise
WHY LIVE PERFORMANCE DOMINATES FOR MOST
Recorded revenue is very low per unit for all but the largest artists.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH ABOUT RIGHTS IN MUSIC
That the composition and the recording are separate rights.
WHY IT MATTERS
Writers and performers are paid differently, and both must be documented.
WHAT TO DOCUMENT AT CREATION
Who wrote what, and in what shares.
WHY AT CREATION
Disputes about writing shares are common and they are bitter.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH BEFORE RELEASING ANYTHING
That every contributor's position is agreed in writing.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH ABOUT SAMPLES AND INTERPOLATIONS
That they are cleared.
WHY
Uncleared use prevents release and it produces claims.
WHAT PUBLISHING ADMINISTRATION PROVIDES
Collection of royalties from uses you cannot track yourself.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
Registration with the relevant collecting bodies.
WHY
Royalties are not paid to unregistered works.
WHAT TO BE CAUTIOUS OF IN RECORDING AGREEMENTS
Assignment of masters in perpetuity Cross-collateralisation of advances Long option periods Broad rights over unrelated income
WHY ADVANCES DESERVE UNDERSTANDING
They are recoupable, which means they are loans against future earnings, not payments.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
What must be recouped before you receive anything.
WHAT TO HAVE REVIEWED
Any recording, publishing or management agreement, by a solicitor with sector experience.
WHY
They are long, they are one-sided by default, and they are difficult to undo.
