<p>This is not a college related question, but thought I would post for the experts here since I don't have a clue where else to seek information. Son #1 has written a couple of pieces that were independently recorded by a metal group at Eastman. (This is a group of students a year behind him who got together to play metal. Son wrote some pieces that they have performed and recorded.) The original deal that they worked out on their own, on a strictly trust basis is that once the group cleared all the expenses of making their recording they would pay him a set amount for each CD they sold over the internet. Son was fine with this arrangement and figured he would eventually make a few hundred dollars. (He doesn't perform with the group, only composes for them.)</p>
<p>The group was recently contacted by a big agency who wants to promote them and sign them to a 3 year contract. They are in the discussion stage at this point and nothing is for sure yet. The group has said that the promoters state they need to get the rights to son's music and so they have offered to buy the rights to the 2 1/2 songs that they play (one song was co-written with the group's founder) for a flat fee of $1000. Son, of course, is very excited about the idea of getting $1000 for something he essentially did for fun and for the exposure it will give him. He also wants to write more for the group and not alienate them.</p>
<p>Hubby and I both think that selling the rights away to his music is not a good idea. Son doesn't have funds to hire an attorney although we might do it for him depending on the cost. However, we don't know where to look for such a person, what kind of questions we should be asking, if we are out of line asking these questions, etc. </p>
<p>I feel like we did when we first started looking at conservatories. I feel like I am finding my way in the dark and don't have clue as to what I am doing. Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>First of all, he should join a group like ASCAP (american society of composers, authors and publishers) or BMI. I'm personally a member of ASCAP. They are free to join and its pretty essential for songwriters/compsoers to be part of one of these groups. </p>
<p>The flat fee of $1000 is not bad; another option is to not take the fee and ask for royalties. Which means, if the song sells, any money made is for the lifetime. On the otherhand, the songs might not sell at all and then the $1000 fee might be a good idea. </p>
<p>With that said, please do contact one of the two groups above and get membership. They are there to protect the rights of composers and songwriters. They will be able to provide more information to you.</p>
<p>Shennie - I encourage you to do what WCU has suggested, since none of us are experts. I am a freelance writer -- I agree that the money up front sounds enticing, and isn't bad for a novice. I don't know that it's a bad idea -- but it could bite back eventually, and may even mark your son as an amatuer. One thing that a writer (of words) can do is sell "one time" rights -- which would translate in this case to selling the rights to make this one recording. Your son would not benefit from blockbuster sales of this one CD, but the rights would not cover airplay, sheet music, "best of .." CDs or other future recordings, live performances, and so on. You need to find out if something like this exists for composers. Your son, then, does not lose artistic rights, or the right to sell it to another band, and so on.</p>
<p>The agent of the band is SUPPOSED to work things in favor of the band, not your son. He is definitely disadvantaged by not having someone in his corner.</p>
<p>Thank you both for your advice. I will definitely pass it along to son. The works have already been recorded once independently so we really are looking at future recording and performing rights. I think the agents want him to sell the rights to everything to the group. They say he would maintain the publishing rights but I don't know what that would mean if a group down the road wants to perform the piece. So he needs to find all this stuff out. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction.</p>
<p>The rights of a composer are very different before the initial commercial recording than they are afterward. Before that first recording, nobody can record the piece without specific permission from the composer. At this point, the composer is free to cut whatever deal he or she can with an artist or record company. Once that initial recording has been made, anyone else who wants to record a cover of the song must be granted permission to do so in the form of a "mechanical license" at the statutory rate (currently 9.1 cents per copy of each song up to 5 minutes long, or 1.75 cents per copy per minute or fraction thereof over 5 minutes.) The composer cannot refuse to grant the license if the statutory rate is paid. The composer can choose to license the use of the material at a lower rate, but cannot force anyone to pay more than the statutory rate after the initial recording is made. </p>
<p>Therefore, your son should make all interested parties aware that the material has already been recorded with his permission. The record company may have assumed that they are negotiating for the initial rights and their offer may well be different if they realize that mechanical license at the statutory rate is available. At $400 per song and assuming that the songs are less than 5 minutes, the statutory rate would be equivalent to 4445 CD's containing all three songs. While that is a lot of copies to sell for an unknown group, it is not out of the question over a few years, particularly if they tour and sell CD's from the stage and through one or more web sites. On the other hand, if your son takes the $1000, then it will be the recording company who collects the royalty checks in the future. They may have been factoring that into their offer as well.</p>
<p>The Harry Fox Agency (<a href="http://www.harryfox.com%5B/url%5D">www.harryfox.com</a>) is used by most people in the industry as a clearinghouse for the mechanical licensing process. I very highly recommend that your son check out their website before coming to any decisions.</p>
<p>Publishing rights are entirely different from mechanical rights and have to do with publication of the musical notation and lyrics of the song, rather than future audio recordings.</p>
<p>Publishing rights have a great deal to do with recordings, because all performing royalties (radio airplay, television, etc.) are divided equally between the composer and the publisher. Performing royalties paid by radio stations, etc. are just as important to a songwriter as mechanical royalties collected by an agency such as Harry Fox. Also, be aware that the publisher controlls all licensing of the songs (but not the actual recording), not the author. For example, if a televsion show wanted to use the recording of a song by a certain group, the show would need not only a mechanical license from the record company for the actual recording but also a performing license from the publisher for the right to use the song. Let's say the TV show wants to use the song but will record it themselves, then they only need to get a license from the publisher. In neither case would they need to negotate anything with the songwriter. Of course, the songwriter has the right to choose who to give the publshing to in the first place. If a songwriter has given a company the publishing rights to a song prior to any recording, then the publishing company can control who makes the first recording. Check out the websites for ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC for more info.</p>