A newbie question

Aug 02, 2010, 08:40 PM

I’m new to this website (sorta, I’ve never really used my membership until now), and I want to get into the biz side of things.

I recently wrote a song for a folk-pop duo. I think they are going to want to record it. What should be my next plan on action?
My situation – I’m a singer/songwriter that has been focusing more on the writing aspect lately, offering my services to other artists, etc. I’m not looking to really charge them for anything upfront. They have a sizable fanbase, and I would like them to record the song, promote me as the writer of it to not only their fans, but to any other industry insiders they know. If they were to get signed to a recording contract, then I would want to talk compensation.

My questions – is this logical/feasible/smart? If not, I am open to other plans of action. Should I find someone to represent me (lawyer, agent, manger)? Any advice if I decide go this route?

Thanks!

Aug 02, 2010, 09:20 PM

If they can get your work into the marketplace, getting airplay, the song can potentially earn royalties.

The ‘fame’ of this song for the duo can become a credential for you as a songwriter, as a performer if you also play.

So your thinking seems sound. If they succeed, you succeed.

If they intend to manufacture a quantity of CD’s you could demand that they pay a Mechanical License fee.

But that may not be in their budget and asking for it might stop them from wanting to do the song. Your instincts seem right.

One way to go is to let them use it, with a formal contract specifying that you are forgoing a Mechanical License fee for now but reserve the right to ask for one if CD production goes beyond 1,000 copies.

That means that, if they are successful with a run of 1,000 and want to make another 1,000, you’ll ask them to pay you about 9 cents per unit.

Do the math, and you see it’s not much if they’re selling CD’s at $10 per unit. That means they could earn back the Mech. License fee on their first 10 sales, and sales of the other 990 CD’s would be theirs. But $90 dollars up front may not be in their budget if they’re just getting started.

The important thing is that they DO play your song, telling audiences who wrote it, and do record it and sell CD’s and Downloads.

Their recording becomes a demonstration recording for other artists to consider covering the song. Those other artists would be ‘compelled’ to pay a Mech. Lic. fee. More importantly though, other artists’ covers of the song may get you more airplay and earn you more royalties.

If you have not joined a Performance Rights Organization (PRO) it’s time to consider it. They are the entities that collect your Publishing Royalties and your Songwriting Royalties. Harry Fox Agency ( http://www.harryfoxagency.com ) is one of the Mech. Licensing entities. There are others.

If you’re not familiar with these things it’s time you studied up on them. Welcome to the campus of Songwriter101. All the links at the top of the page are worth exploring. http://www.johnbraheny.com has some education you can use. The PRO’s’ websites have information too. Click on BMI at the bottom of this page and you can see theirs.

I hope the duo does well with your song and it’s the beginning of greater things.

Aug 05, 2010, 10:22 AM

This is the way the entire music industry works. Either you write something or are the artist, the song hopefully gets out there,by hook or crook gets radio airplay, You Tube,Facebook, My Space. If they do well, you do well. And through them,perhaps others will hear about you and they tell two friends, they tell two friends, and so forth and so on.That is how a career is built.

Most cuts, particularly in this day and age of FREE music, don’t really make much money. So you have to go more for respect of your peers, overall advancement of catalogue and the hopes that it puts you in proximaty of higher and higher level cuts in the future. Most writers have dozens if not hundreds of these small independent cuts out there. A major artist might hear this song through this group, the group might come to you for more material. It is all a never ending process.

So get whatever contracts or legalese you are all happy with, help them promote your combined product, take your victory of getting others interested in your material, and GO WRITE MORE SONGS! That is the real deal.

MAB

Aug 05, 2010, 03:36 PM

The easiest - and fair - way:
- make them credit you for what you’ve contributed, i.e. as composer and/or lyricist;
- become member of a PRO and
let them collect the royalties for you (the artists themselves normally do not pay royalties, the producers and organizers of concerts do that)

- for an US citizen it might also make sense to copyright your stuff with the LOC.

That’s it. Don’t ask money from the artists if you want them to remain your friends.

Cheers,
Bernd - German, so for me only the first two steps were required ;-)