SONGWRITING -101 : COPYRIGHT RULES FOR UNPUBLISHED WORKS
Copyright Rules for Unpublished Works
Hello I am Warren Pittman, aka the Funk Gypsy. as the owner and creator of Funk Gypsy Music I wear many hats and perform many functions. I Have been involved in the creation of music for as long as I can remember aquiring my first song contract in 1979, a tune entitled "Wanna Be Real" and received a hand cut single sided 45 rpm vinyl record for my effort and a 1.00 advance but thats, a story for another day. I copyrighted this song and and another song entitled "Finders Keepers - You don't have to Weep Girl" in 1980. Since that Time I have copyrighted dozens of songs, often on scraps of handwritten sheet music, cassette tapes and poems and other writings.
In 1995 The Funk Gypsy's was founded and Warrens Music Company was founded in 2017, along with Warwren Records in 2018 about the same time my debut cd entitled "Warren Pittman- After The Dreams begin to Fade" was recorded and released. This song was originally composed and copyrighted in 1987 and for many years was only in my mind and on a yellowing scrap of sheet music written by myself and some unknown artist from a song poem company many so many years ago. In this it is important to know that there are different types of copyrights for published and unpublished works.
Once a work is submitted to an online streaming distributor it is considered as a Published work. It is important to know that streaming music distributors such as Distrokid, CDbaby, and Tune core do not copyright your Music, and neither do they promote your Music. These company and their practices will be covered in another blog. I will leave a link here for my Youtube Channel so that you can see that since those early days I have been very busy. Warren Music Company Like everything songwriting has a learning curve. We must learn quickly to seperate the love of the artform from the business aspects of songwriting if we want to do more than write for the love of it and only for our own self gratification and freinds and family.
Distributing music even in streaming platform is a business and must be accepted as such or you will be given the business. So it is important that you understand why you are writing music for and take it seriously and to learn as much about the industry as possible. I may personally be a slow learner yet by being delayed by many projects myself personally has avoided many of the industry pitfalls that we see afflicting artist past and present online or from documentaries on televison and movies. With the Advent of technology the internet I was able to turn the corner.
My personal journey in music is a long story but I have no musical education or training cannot read nor write music, nor play an instrument proficently. 2017 was my turning point with a single production music CD with 6 songs recorded featuring six male vocalist, and 2 female vocalist and dozens of talented multi-instrumentalist. I didn't sing one note but I do much of my own vocals now as Anglebent Humpinstein said, "Its my song and I'll Sing if I want to." GET THE FUNK ON.
The primary purpose of this blog is to assist you the songwriter in understanding the basis of copyright protection for your work while you growing in your chosen endeavor whether it be for self gratification or in the effort to be heard by others for whatever reason. it is very important to know that In the U.S., a work is automatically protected by federal copyright law from the moment it is fixed in a tangible form (e.g., written down, recorded, or saved as a digital file). Formal registration is not required for copyright protection to exist; an author has common law rights to prevent unauthorized use of their unpublished work. There maybe questions as to whether the tie goes to the runner in Baseball but in copyright issues who offically files first is sure to be the winner. The poor man copyright is not a good idea especially in this digital era when most paper but the very important ends up in the trash. For a certainty everyone that uses social media or the internet in general have a digital footprint and songs and music posted may still be out there somewhere.
If your work is stolen and has never been released and made public and a duplicitous friend or companion stole your song and copyrighted it first and it goes viral and make them rich you will be hard pressed to prove your authorship. You may be able to challenge it with images on your phone emails, and other documentation if you still have it but they are rich and have the copyright certificate in their hand. If you are serious about your music as I was when i was a kid working a part time job at $2.00 an hour maybe a couple of bucks more you will spend the money and copyright your music offically as soon as you possible after its creation. This is especially true with everything being online and on our phones these days.
Copyright in an unpublished work generally lasts for the life of the author plus 70 years. If the work is by a group of authors (joint authors) or created anonymously/pseudonymously, the term is 120 years from the date of creation. While not mandatory, registering a copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office is highly recommended because it: Creates a public record of your ownership. Copyright is required before you can file a copyright infringement lawsuit in U.S. courts. It allows you to potentially claim statutory damages and attorney's fees in a successful infringement suit.
so for all musicians and artists, and content creators copyright automatically protects original works once they are "fixed" in a tangible form, like a written song or a digital recording. This grants exclusive rights to make copies, distribute, publicly perform, and create derivative works. While copyright is automatic, it is highly recommended to officially register your work with the U.S. Copyright Office for stronger legal protection and the ability to sue for infringement. Registering also allows for recovering attorney's fees and statutory damages if someone infringes on your copyright.
A single song has two separate copyrights the Musical Work: which is The underlying composition and lyrics. Then there is the Sound Recording: The specific performance captured in an audio file or recording. Note that once a sound recording Is released both lyrics, 2d artwork and melody are protected at the same time. if the rights owner is creator of words and music and the sound recording. As a copyright owner, you have the exclusive right to make and sell copies of your work. Distribute copies to the public and Create new works based on the original (e.g., a remix or a new arrangement) and and to Publicly perform or display the work.
If their are multiple contributors and rights owner things become a little more complicated thus the importance of learning as much about the business of music as possible. Register your copyrights: File the appropriate forms with the U.S. Copyright Office for both the musical work (composition and lyrics) and the sound recording. There are different forms for published and unpublished works online is the recommended way to file though filing on paper applications are still possible for some items. this is where you will start the process of registering your works. You can register them one at a time or up to 10 songs using the form for groups as long as they are owned by one owner. COPYRIGHT REGISTRATION.
You can also document and register your sheet music and lyrics, as well as artwork also using the "Work of the Performing Arts" application in the eCO registration system. You can upload a non-audio digital file, such as a PDF of the sheet music and lyrics, as your deposit copy. If registering on paper, use Form PA (Performing Arts). Online registration is faster and cheaper. Use the "Visual Arts Works" application in the eCO registration system for registering your album cover art seperately. Upload a digital copy (e.g., JPEG, PDF) of the artwork.
There is also the copyright form SR for sound recordings that have been published as an album whether CD or Vinyl. This copyright only cover this individual version of the music. the Master is traditionally owned by the person who paid for the recording the publisher and record label. The Songwriter typically owns and retain the rights to the underlying compositon the lyrics and the melody. But the master belong to the publisher or label. Ownership and rights assignment are typically by contracts negotiations which require independent legal counsel on behalf of both part preferably a qualified music or entertainment lawyer. be certain to read the disclaimer at the end of this blog.
If registering on paper, use Form VA (Visual Arts). The U.S. Copyright Office generally requires separate applications for musical works and visual art, even if published on the same album If you have multiple unpublished songs, you might be able to register up to ten of them together using the "Group Registration for Unpublished Works (GRUW)" option, which has its own specific application process within eCO.
Each application requires a separate filing fee. which is a primary reason people put off registering their works with the copyright. These forms are not only proof of ownership but gives you more legitimacy as you continue to pursue your future in music and let people know that you are not a neophyte that can easily be taken advantage of. When dealing with publishers, record labels and even digital distribution they all have their publishing packages that determine who get what rights and royalties.
These things are between the Songwriter/artist and publishers and labels whom they are in discussions with. We have been taught to sign and go in this modern internet age because no one will read all of the legal mumble jumbo with understanding in the endless EULA end user liscense agreements and Terms of Service - TOS that we are constantly presented by any and anyone whom we want something from especially those like in the music distribution companies like CDbaby and distrokid and Tunecore. These things are convoluted and subject to change without notice as many will tell you. Streaming music stores like APPLE music and SPOTIFY, AND TIDAL, all have terms of services artist and users must agree too. All Companies uses this Even and Bandcamp Music Discovery where exclusive Funk Gypsy music can be found for streaming, download and Sharing with all of your friends and family.
Common sense and reality say big decisions like purchasing a house or car must be taken with care and thought. We should never rush to sign anything without reading it or good advice from someone who have our better interest in mind. Copyright your works first and solidify your ownership and Next register as an artist with a Performance Rights Organization such as ASCAP. There are many other performance rights organization their primary responsibility is to help songwriters to register their music in order to collect royalties due for the use of their music. Songwriters can also signup as publishers well if they are willing and capable of doing the business end of Music publishing and maintaining their catalog. Many artist sign with BMI another perfomance rights organization that does the same thing as ASCAP my association of Choice. It works well when publisher and songwriters are part of the same association. I strongly suggest that before you put your music out on streaming services that you look into them carefully and document your music, copyright your music and Join a music Association such as ASCAP - BMI and SESAC as a songwriter publisher or both if you desire. note you can be publisher with multiple associations but a songwriter with only one organization or the other. ASCAP Registration -- BMI registration. You do the research to see which would benefit the most since they both offer the same services. Ascap publisher currently cost 50.00 to join and 175.00 one time fee for BMI. Both will renew until canceled in writing subject to their rules. I beleive both are free to join for songwriter account currently at the time of this writing also. Note that registering as your own publisher require that you operate as a business using your Social security number if you are registering as a Sole Propietorshhip, and you must have an EIN if operating as a LLC. You must also have a US bank account or select to receive your royalty payment in cash. Neither accept Paypal nor Cash APP. To prepare unpublished WAV files for the U.S. Copyright Office, musicians must use the online registration system, upload each song as a separate WAV file (under 500 MB each), and ensure all application details are accurate.
Prepping Your Music For Copyright Submission
You will have to setup an account first with the Copyright office. Save your Log in and account information so you can check the status of your application and make corrections and edit until it is completed correctly.
The U.S. Copyright Office strongly encourages online submission of digital files for unpublished works. Register on the official U.S. Copyright Office website. Choose the Right Application- For unpublished works, you can register up to 10 unpublished sound recordings and the musical compositions they embody on a single application if the authors and claimants for both are the same. If you own both the sound recording and the underlying musical work, select Sound Recording as the "Type of Work". This covers both copyrights with one application and fee.
If you only wrote the song (composition) and someone else will record it, select Work of the Performing Arts. Fill out the Application: Provide details for each work, including titles, authors' full names, and dates of creation. The online application system has specific screens for entering each title. Upload Your Files: Follow the instructions within the online system to upload your prepped WAV files one by one. The system will guide you through selecting and uploading files for each corresponding title entered in the application. Pay the Fee: Pay the nonrefundable filing fee online. Make sure all of your files are in same format for a better experience. By following these guidelines, you can be certain that your submission is in the proper format for a smooth copyright registration process. This is the end of this blog
Disclaimer: Nothing in this blog is to be considered Legal Advice - The information provided on this blog is for general informational and educational purposes only. All opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not reflect the opinions of any organizations the author may be affiliated with.The content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional legal counsel on any subject matter. We are not a law firm, and the publication of this information does not create an attorney-client relationship between you and the author or the blog owner.Readers should seek appropriate legal or other professional advice from a qualified attorney licensed in their jurisdiction before acting on any information from this blog. Discussions on this blog about music contracts, assignments of rights, royalty payments, and music ownership are for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal, financial, or business advice.Always consult a qualified music lawyer for advice on contracts, assignments of rights, royalty payments, and music ownership.
Let me know what you think about the accuracy of the information in this blog or any questions unanswered about the copywrite process.
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