Music Business/Law Tips - "BMI/ASCAP $$$"

According to Billboard Magazine, the Top 5 "performance" revenue sources for songwriters collected by BMI and ASCAP are: 1. Cable 2. Radio 3. TV 4. Bars/Clubs/Stores 5. Digital Since 2 out of the Top 3 are essentially music being played in shows, films and ads that appear on TV and Cable programs, it only makes sense for a songwriter to pitch his/her music for these types of opportunities. Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tips - "Synch" License Request

If an artist gets a request to use their music as part of a film (or TV) show, it will commonly be a license for use in a "trailer" only (not the film itself) in any and all media (i.e., TV and Internet). Normally the film company will offer an "all in" fee for both the "master + synch", which means that they want to get a license for both copyrights from the artist and only have to pay one up-front fee. The master use is for the master recording copyright, and the synch license is for the song that is contained on the master (i.e., the publishing copyright). A lot of these companies refer to the license as a "synch" but that really means that both copyrights are being licensed. For this arrangement to work, the artist must own and/or control both copyrights for the master/song to be able to grant the license (i.e., a 1 stop shop). If the artist does not, then he/she cannot agree to the all-in license for both master and publishing and the film company would have to get a license for the copyright side the artist does not control from a third party. For instance, if the artist only owns the master then he/she can only license the master. Of course, if the artist controls the publishing side as well he/she will also get back-end "performance" income from BMI or ASCAP once the trailer plays on TV. Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tips - Mechanical License/Video

Securing a license to record a cover song from the original song copyright owner (i.e., a “mechanical license”) does not automatically give you the right to make and distribute a music video of your cover. In general, a mechanical license only gives you the right to make, reproduce, and distribute a certain amount of mechanical reproductions of music (i.e., digital, CD, vinyl, etc. – whatever is specified in the license). Period. A mechanical license does not also grant you rights to make a music video of your cover using that song. The right to do so is an entirely separate license called a “synchronization license” which you would also need to obtain from the copyright owner. Hence, if you want to record and distribute a cover song with a related music video, you'll need a mechanical license and a synchronization license as well (or include the synch language in the mechanical license). Ben McLane Esq Benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tip - "Video As Promo"

It used to be MTV was the only outlet for a video, and if an artist was not signed to a major label forget about it. When MTV became less of an outlet for music, the importance of videos faded away for awhile. Not anymore. These days the Internet is the medium for music videos, and legions of music fans surfing the Net determine if a video becomes popular: YouTube, not MTV, is the new platform/marketing tool to break an artist – signed or unsigned. A video that becomes popular on YouTube often persuades radio to add/play a song, which in turn spurs sales of albums and singles. Moreover, several indie artists have been signed to record deals on the strength of a low-budget video the artist shot themselves and uploaded to YouTube. A few examples of recent artists that used YouTube to get mass media to pay attention are Macklemore & Ryan Lewis with “Thrift Shop” and Robin Thicke with “Blurred Lines”. However, the key is to make a great, compelling video, so it has a chance to set itself apart from all of the bad amateur footage that is out there and go viral. Ben McLane Esq Benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tips - "Social Media Success Indicators"

For an artist to really know if his/her social media activies (i.e., YouTube, Facebook, Twitter) are generating any kind of success, there has to be some active engagement from the public. The 3 main factors to look for to see if the marketing plan is working and fans are properly responding are: (1) buying product (i.e, downloads or merchandise), (2) repeat purchases, and (3) recommendation of the artist/product to the fan's friends. The key is to sell product or what is the point?; and; in order to sell things, the artist has to first build an audience to sell to via both online - and offline (i.e., performing) - activities. Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tips - "Manager Beware - Talent Agency Act"

Managers often have no choice but to seek employment (i.e., gigs) for their new clients who are unable to attract a licensed booking agent to handle that aspect of the artist's career. However, in California there is law known as the California Talent Agencies Act [CA Labor Code 1700, et al] whereby only a licensed talent agent is legally allowed to "solicit" and/or "procure" employment for an artist. Of course, most managers are not licensed booking agents. The penalty is severe as a management agreement can be made void and all past manager commissions required to be paid back to the artist. Artist's often use this law to try to get out of a management deal and it can work even if the manager only booked 1 gig. The only safe way for a manager to get around the law is to work in conjunction with a licensed talent agency to help negotiate the deal, but let the agent make the initial call and finalize the deal. Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tips - "Artist Endorsement Deal"

If an Artist is going to endorse a product or piece of gear, there are several different ways for the artist to benefit. Benefits can include some or all of the below list: (a) An up front monetary payment to the Artist. (b) Promotional posters with Artist image/logo along with the brand. (c) Promotional clothing with Artist image/logo along with the brand. (d) Promotional stage banner. (e) Reciprocal website links on the brand website and Facebook page. (g) Free product/gear. Ben McLane Esq. benmclane.com