Going into 2025, it’s important to start thinking about the proactive steps you can take to protect your work. Here are 3 contracts that can help you lay the foundation for a productive, successful year:
Disclaimer: for general educational purposes only. Not legal advice. Consult with a lawyer if you need personalized advice. All information below is based on US law.
Producer agreements. When you work with a producer and/or mix engineer, the scope of their work and each party’s ownership rights in the work must be clearly delineated in a producer agreement to avoid confusion and disputes in the future. If the producer’s contributions are intended to be work-for-hire (meaning the artist, not the producer, owns the rights to the song in question), that must be clearly stated in the producer agreement. Work-for-hire arrangements are not valid under the 1976 Copyright Act unless they are made in writing and signed by the parties to be bound. Because of this, your producer could be considered a co-author (meaning they are entitled to joint copyright ownership) if the producer agreement does not clearly state that the producer’s contributions are considered work-for-hire.
Additionally, a well-written producer agreement states each party’s master and composition royalty splits and the manner in which those royalties are paid. Master royalties are generated by the use of the sound recording embodied in the song. Composition royalties are generated by the use of the melodies, lyrics, chord progressions, scales, and other compositional elements embodied in the song. These royalties can be paid to the producer as a percentage of net profits, or as points. When a producer is paid royalties as a percentage of net profits, the producer earns royalties after all recording, marketing, and distribution costs are recouped. When a producer is paid royalties in “points”, the producer receives a percentage of the total revenue generated by the song (this is more common in producer agreements with major label artists). Your producer agreement must clearly state whether the producer receives royalties as a percentage of net profits or as points.
Collaboration agreements. Collaboration agreements are similar to producer agreements, but they are nearly always joint authorship agreements instead of work-for-hire agreements. Collaborators who contribute significantly to the creative direction of a project are generally considered joint authors under the 1976 Copyright Act and current case law, but it is always best to state in writing that a collaborator is a joint author to avoid confusion or disputes surrounding a collaborator’s contributions. Joint authors share all of the same rights under the 1976 Copyright Act (the rights to reproduce, distribute, make derivative works of, and publicly perform a song), but have a duty to account for their co-authors’ royalties and ensure that each co-author receives the royalties to which they are entitled.
For this reason, collaboration agreements must include detailed split-sheets. These split-sheets may be included in the form of charts that lay out each co-author’s percentage of master royalties, composition royalties, and publisher information. To ensure that each collaborator receives their share of royalties, these charts should also include each collaborator’s IPI number, given to them by their performing rights organization (PRO). This may be ASCAP, BMI, or any PRO in the collaborator’s home country. If you or your collaborators are not already members of a PRO, encourage them to register with one so that they can receive their composition and publishing royalties through their PRO.
Band agreements. If you care about the longevity of your band, you will want a thoroughly-drafted band agreement that covers the contingencies and issues that your band is most likely to encounter. Many bands make verbal agreements as to how decisions will be made, how ownership of songs will be allocated, and who owns the band name, but verbal agreements may be misremembered, misrepresented, and difficult to enforce. Band agreements provide a helpful and legally-enforceable reference point for important aspects of running a band as a business. When you and your band members know with certainty how and when they will be paid, how major decisions will be made, what events will cause the band to break up, what happens when a band member leaves, and how to deal with other procedures that will affect your professional and personal relationships, your band can focus on developing a thriving music career instead of trying to remember how you agreed to address these issues.
Want to get these agreements drafted by an experienced music lawyer? Email us at randy@randyojedalaw.com and let’s get started.