A good license agreement for your music

Many amateur songwriters fall victim to a poorly drafted license agreement that completely tramples their right to their royalties and potential million-dollar career. This scenario not only affects singer-songwriters but also music composers for film and television. They write songs and produce music. The record company or film and television company simply buys the composer’s rights to the song or music and has the latter sign a copyright waiver.

Struggling young music artists, for example, are often forced to sign record deals that are not conducive to their future careers. It is understandable that they feel obligated to sign such contracts. Their careers at that early stage are in their infancy. The problem only arises if and when they meet with some success. Such early-stage contracts often claim future, post-hit, and celebrity records. Musicians often do not understand or simply ignore these provisions. The consequence, however, can result in millionaire losses for the artists years after the signing of these contracts.

Therefore, it is important for amateur singer-songwriters and songwriters to draw up a licensing agreement to protect their future million-dollar career. For the agreement to be valid and good, the following stipulations must be inserted:

1. There must be copyright protection on derivative works.

Some music, film, and television companies give royalties to the owner of the music, but they are limited to particular projects only. For example, if it is a music album, the composer will only receive royalties from him based on the sale of the music album. However, music, film, and television companies have the right to sell the music for other derivative works, for example, using the song as a musical score.

If the composer has no rights to the use derived from their creation, the music or film company can make millions even when music album sales have already declined. Take for example the song “Feels like home” or “Somewhere over the rainbow”, it has been used in countless movies and soap operas all over the world. Every time these songs are used, the production company pays royalties to the record company. Therefore, if the composer has rights to the use derived from his creation, he will have additional potential profit. Likewise, the composer or singer-songwriter will be protected from abusive record companies.

2. There must be protection against unauthorized use.

Many songwriters lose out on a lot of potential revenue to music piracy and unauthorized music download internet sites because most royalties are based on album sales. Thus, for composers, they must include in their contract stipulations that protect them from unauthorized use of their music. The stipulation should require the licensee or record company to compensate you an additional amount for failing to protect your creation from unauthorized use.