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10
Things to Do Before
You
Release Your Album
Copyright March
2007 by Jeremy Rwakaara, Sanctuary Lane Sound Studios.
All rights
reserved.
Back to The
Academy
Following are, in no particular order, 10 important things you should do before
you release your album:
1. If you are hiring musicians (background singers, instrumentalists,
etc.) to play on your album, you will need to make sure they fill out a musicians release agreement or talent release form. This
agreement is not necessary for musicians that own their own record label, are
performing on their own albums, and will pay for and release the albums
themselves. It is used more for the “hired guns” than group members.
2.
All writers and publishers involved should fill out a songwriter publisher share letter of agreement that spells out
their writer and publisher shares. This agreement is a document that all writers
and publishers should sign and keep for their records. Any money made from the
songs (except for money paid to the writers and publishers by their respective
Performing Rights Organizations) should be split up according to what is spelled
out in this agreement.
3. All involved songwriters should fill out a form PA and register their work (the songs) with the U.S. Copyright Office .
4. The artists / performers or
the record producer (or both), unless Musician Release Agreements have been
signed, should fill out a form SR and register the
album (sound recording) with the U.S. Copyright Office. If you are the writer
and performer / producer on the album, you can fill out just one Form SR instead
of both forms.
5. Register for an Internatinal Standard
Recording Code (ISRC) for your songs. If you are not based in the United
States, visit here to find the ISRC Agency in your territory. The ISRC is a
unique international identifier for the songs (tracks) on your album and
functions as a digital “fingerprint” for each track. Unlike a Universal Product
Code (UPC), the ISRC is tied to the track and not the carrier of the track (CD,
cassette, etc). The ISRC is usually inserted onto the CD master during the CD
mastering session.
6. If you include songs on your album that you have
not written yourself (i.e. covers), you will need to obtain a Mechanical License
from the Harry Fox Agency (via Songfile )
that will allow you to manufacture and distribute up to 2,500 copies to the
public. If you happen to know the songwriter(s) yourself, you can negotiate a
fee directly with them or just write up a Notice of Intention to
Obtain a Compulsory License and issue it to them.
7. If you wish to
have your own UPC Bar Code, you can get one from GS1 US
. Several companies, for example CD manufacturers, will offer you a UPC Bar Code
free with their services. Keep in mind that in these cases the UPC Bar Code will
belong to the CD manufacturer. If you produce another album, it will not have a
UPC Bar Code unless you get another one from them or someone else. Having your
own Uniform Code Council account will allow you to assign all your music-related
products a unique UPC Bar Code in your company’s name.
8. As a songwriter
and/or publisher, in order to get paid for the performances of your songs on
radio, TV, in nightclubs, airlines, elevators, jukeboxes, etc., you should join
a Performing Rights Organization (PRO). In the United States, you can join ASCAP or BMI . Another U.S. PRO is SESAC , but
affiliation with SESAC is by invitation only (subject to review by their writer
/ publisher relations staff).
9. As a Sound Recording Copyright Owner
(SRCO – e.g. artist, producer, record label), in order to get paid for
non-interactive digital transmissions on cable, satellite and web cast services,
you should join SoundExchange .
10. Add your songs to the Gracenote Media Database . When correctly added, song titles
and artist names will be displayed on media players (e.g. home stereos, computer
media players, satellite and terrestrial radio, mp3 players, cell phones and
other wireless devices, etc.) that take advantage of the Gracenote Media
Database data. Alternatively, you can use a freedb-aware
program to upload your songs into the database.
PLEASE NOTE: The contracts above are for educational purposes only. As
with all contractual situations, you should have your contracts drafted and/or
negotiated by an experienced music business attorney who is well-versed in
drafting and negotiating these types of contracts. If you need help finding an
attorney, you can start by going here . |
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