Upload Ep to Bmi or as Singles
The consummate checklist for releasing your own music
Today information technology's extremely easy to release a song and get it distributed worldwide. With the click of a mouse, you can upload your latest rails and sell it on iTunes or stream it on Spotify and Apple Music. Within a few hours, the music can be in the ears of fans around the globe.
So, distribution is no longer a mystery, but musicians still ofttimes make the fault of skipping the essential steps that music labels know they must havebeforethey distribute music into the world, to protect artists' rights and prepare to earn royalty income. There are seven simple registrations y'all demand to accept care of if y'all're non working with a label.
But beginning, let'south review a basic understanding of copyright, also as the steps to prepare your music business and so y'all're gear up to register songs when you lot release them and can collect royalties starting on 24-hour interval one.
Copyrights
All 7 registrations flow from the two copyrights you receive once you create a new original song. These copyrights requite you ownership of the work. Some musicians make the mistake of only registering i of the two, simply once you understand the ii copyrights at stake—and the royalties you tin make from them—you won't miss the necessary registrations.
The first copyright is for the composition: the song itself. This is nigh the underlying work yous created that can exist recorded, performed, or covered by other bands. No matter how many different versions, arrangements, or recordings of the song are made, y'all only need to annals the song once using the Performing Arts (PA) form. This is unremarkably registered past the songwriter(s) of the vocal.
The 2nd copyright is for the sound recording, sometimes called the master recording. Each sound recording you brand of a vocal creates a split copyright; for case, a alive recording, a studio recording, and an alternate acoustic version are three different sound recordings and therefore three different registrations. To register each of these, you'd need to use the Audio Recording (SR) form.
Labels usually own the SR copyright and the songwriters commonly own the PA copyright. But if yous're an independent artist and composer, yous're both the characterization and the songwriter, and yous own both.
Registration with the U.S. Copyright Office is non required because copyright lawautomaticallygives you a copyright in an original song every bit presently equally you capture it in a fixed format (digital recording, sheet music, etc.). About labels register the copyright, however, because information technology grants additional rights, including the ability to sue for damages and attorney'south fees. (And if y'all don't annals within three months of release, you lot lose some of those benefits, although y'all still own the song and can all the same annals it in order to sue someone for infringement.)
Royalties
SoundExchange collects audio recording royalties, while SESAC (along with ASCAP and BMI) collects composition royalties.
The composition copyright tin generate money for you lot each time the vocal is performed live, played on the radio, or performed as a cover by another artist. Royalties are set by statute: 9.1 cents per copy/play. Composition performance royalty organizations (PROs) collect coin from radio stations, TV stations, restaurants, live music venues, and websites, and they distribute royalties to copyright owners. These royalties are based on surveys and other data, and each PRO does its research differently.
What some musicians miss is that the royalty system splits royalties betwixt two roles: the songwriter and the publisher. If you're independent and you haven't contracted out your publishing rights, you must annalstwice—equally a songwriter and publisher—to receive all the coin the vocal generates.
The sound recording copyright generates royalties administered past the sound recording PRO, SoundExchange (soundexchange.com (opens in new tab)). SoundExchange collects coin from streaming services such equally Live365, Pandora, and Radionomy. The royalties are based on reports created past the streaming services (required by law), assisted past a digital fingerprint called an ISRC lawmaking, which the sound recording possessor needs to generate and annals. Similar to the composition PROs, royalties are divide between multiple roles: the sound recording owner, and the featured performers and producer. Unless others own the recording or were featured performers, y'all are entitled to all the royalties that SoundExchange collects for these roles. Once again, similar to the composition PROs, you need to annals yourself equally both the audio recording owner and the performer so you can go all the money you're owed.
Grooming steps
Peradventure i of the biggest barriers to musicians successfully securing all 7 registrations is the preparation steps that need to be done ahead of fourth dimension. If you haven't joined a PRO, it can take a few hours to use to become a fellow member, plus around two weeks to procedure your awarding and accept y'all as a member. Considering of this, we advise you set aside an evening or ii to perform the steps beneath as soon equally yous can. These are acquirement-generating activities, and then although they practise have you away from creating the music, they're worth spending a night or two doing, then you can enjoy a lifetime of royalty checks.
ane. Create an account at eCO—the Electronic Copyright Office
Registering at the U.S. Copyright Office's eCO system (eco.copyright.gov) is complimentary and but requires your electronic mail address and some bones information, such as name, address, and phone number. Information technology takes just a few minutes.
two. Choose a limerick PRO
Yous'll desire to evaluate which PRO to bring together based on your needs. The main ones in the U.Southward. include ASCAP (ascap.com (opens in new tab)), BMI (bmi.com (opens in new tab)), and SESAC (sesac.com (opens in new tab)). (Although to become a fellow member of SESAC, you must exist invited by a electric current fellow member to bring together.) Each PRO has dissimilar methods for surveying music and for determining royalties for radio or Television receiver play. Some accept alive setlists so yous tin can become paid when you perform your own music.
Perhaps the well-nigh important cistron in determining which PRO to choose is that each vocal tin can only exist registered with a unmarried PRO, and that means all of the songwriters on a vocal must belong to the aforementioned PRO to get royalties. And if you work with other songwriters who belong to different PROs, you lot can join their PRO, only but if you create a legal entity such as an LLC or corporation to register with them. Notation that the single-vocal-per-PRO limitation still exists, and so you'll need to carefully runway the registrations.
3. Register equally a publisher with the composition PRO
A music publisher's job is to create licensing opportunities for your music—getting it placed in Tv set, film, or advertising. Publishers get a cut of licensing fees and the publisher royalty generated by the limerick PROs. If yous're not working with a publisher, you lot demand to make full this office yourself. You'll have to generate the opportunities but will collect all the licensing fees and the publisher's royalty share—but merely if yous register equally a publisher with the PRO.
Don't go out this coin on the table; follow the PRO's steps to register as a publisher. This process usually requires a contract with the PRO and may take a few weeks to process. That'south why you lot should practise this alee of time—weeks before you release any music into the earth. In one case you finish, however, you'll have a publisher's business relationship that you can use to annals each song you release. You lot also have the option of acting as a publisher for other songwriters under this account.
four. Register as a songwriter with the composition PRO
Songwriters get the other half of the composition functioning royalty. You'll need to register with the aforementioned PRO as you did in step 3 above. Like to setting up the publisher account, this requires a contract and may accept a few weeks to process. One time this is completed, yous'll be able to annals each song under your proper noun.
v. Register as a "both" account with the sound recording PRO (SoundExchange)
SoundExchange will allow you lot to register an business relationship equally a performer, sound recording owner, or both. As an independent musician, you'll desire to cull the "both" option so you lot tin annals your recordings under both roles and collect both sets of royalties that your recordings will generate.
vi. Cull a method to create ISRC codes
ISRC codes are digital fingerprints that allow SoundExchange to track your sound recording when it's streamed. You'll need to cull a method to generate them for each audio recording you have. If you lot make a lot of mixes and sound recordings, it may make sense for you to pay the fee to annals your own ISRC codes by going to US ISRC (usisrc.org) and creating an account. Yous can also pay organizations like mastering houses or CD-duplication services to create these for you at a modest cost per song or album.
7. Set up up a tracking system for your music
If yous release a lot of music, you'll desire to create a spreadsheet or tracking system to make sure y'all're performing all seven registrations on all your music. This becomes peculiarly of import if y'all use multiple PROs to ensure the same song isn't registered at more than ane.
Performing the seven registrations
One time the preparation steps are completed, you're ready to perform the seven registrations for all the music you release. This should accept less than an hour per album of music.
one. Register each song at copyright.gov using the PA grade.
Registering the limerick copyright requires you use the PA grade. Before starting this process, make sure that you know the names and contact details for all the songwriters of each song. Note that it may be possible to bundle the audio recording (footstep ii below) nether the aforementioned registration if theexactsame people are both songwriter and owner of the sound recording. If so, choose Audio Recording equally the registration type and choose the "register both" option and then you salvage coin. Otherwise, register using the PA form. To get total statutory do good, register the song before information technology's released to the public—and yes, making it available to people via SoundCloud or other cyberspace sites does count equally a publication under the law.
2. Register each sound recording at copyright.gov using the SR form.
Each sound recording you make, including all alternate mixes, is a separate sound recording. All can be registered using the SR form. Similar to the above, make certain that you know the names and contact details for all the sound recording owners of each song. Simply similar with the PA form, in social club to become total statutory benefit, you demand to register the sound recording before it's released to the public. Note that even demos tin can result in YouTube hits and might end up generating royalties, so they are worth registering in your collection also.
iii. Register the song as a publisher at the composition PRO.
Log in to your publisher account at your limerick PRO and register your song(s). Doing this will generate the other half of functioning royalties generated by the composition. You can register a song that'south already been released, only information technology will but generate royalties going forward.
4. Annals the song as a songwriter at the composition PRO.
Log in to your songwriter account at your limerick PRO and register your song(due south). Doing this will generate half of the performance royalties generated by the song. Similar to the in a higher place, you tin register a song that's already been released, just it will only generate royalties going forward.
v. Annals the sound recording every bit a sound recording possessor at SoundExchange.
To collect half of the royalties the sound recording produces, log in to your SoundExchange account and register your audio recording(s). Notation that you can register audio recordings even after they've been released. Simply search SoundExchange'southward database to observe out if they've already been collecting royalties for your sound recording.
6. Register the audio recording as a performer at SoundExchange.
To collect the other half of the royalties that the sound recording produces, you need to make sure you lot're listed as the performer under each recording. Merely as with the audio recording owner royalties, you lot tin register this even afterwards it's been released by searching SoundExchange's database, where you'll exist able to see if they've already been collecting royalties.
7. Generate an ISRC code and register it.
Generate an ISRC for each sound recording and annals it according to the ISRC instructions. This will increase the likelihood that the recording gets tracked by Audio- Exchange and generates streaming royalties.
In one case y'all've completed the vii registrations, log everything into in your spreadsheet and relieve all documentation that the services generated for you (for example, the registration data from the Copyright Office and PROs).
Optional registrations
In improver to the vii essential registrations described higher up, there are a scattering of optional registrations you may want to consider.
1. Annals the copyright for the encompass art.
The cover art for your anthology or song can be used to make trade or might be useful for Television receiver and video purposes. Information technology's not necessary to register the art, but if you sell a lot of merchandise and are concerned about infringement, it may be worth the basic fee to protect it.
2. Register the copyright for the lyrics.
If you've ever wondered why lyrics are rarely printed for cover songs in liner notes, it'south because the lyrics are copyrighted too, and the artist covering a vocal usually needs to pay for the rights to print lyrics. You can register the lyrics the same way you'd register poesy or a literary work and so they have the same statutory protections as your music.
3. Register the release at AllMusic.com (opens in new tab) .
AllMusic collects all the credits of music releases in its database, which is used by the Grammy Association and other external agencies to track the musicians, engineers, producers, and others who worked on the anthology. All- Music'southward database can sometimes be used to testify that a person is entitled to royalties. Fans also use AllMusic to find out more virtually their favorite music, so it's worth the time to register.
Conclusion
In one case you've registered your music, the next step is to promote it. After all, only music that's performed will generate royalties. Talk to music supervisors to get your songs used on Tv or moving-picture show, or act as a publisher past running a radio, podcast, or streaming entrada. Then, track key performances of each song. For example, if you lot know that your song was played on TV, get the cue sheets; if you play your music live, submit your set lists to the PRO. Some PROs have programs like ASCAP Plus that may however pay you some royalties even if the music didn't generate any survey-tracked plays inside their database.
Merely, these programs volition only be successful for you if yous submit back up documentation that proves your music was played. Stay on superlative of when and where your music is performed, and all your hard work can protect your music while helping you lot generate income from it.
Source: https://www.musicradar.com/how-to/the-complete-checklist-for-releasing-your-own-music
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