Royalties

[Ray]

I am wanting to put together a music group to perform as a business. But how do I get the performance rights to use another artist's songs? I am not sure where to look.

Also, are there other legal issues just for performing music?

Any help would be appreciated.

[typo]

contact the copyright owner/administrator and ask for permission. usually that is the publisher. venues have to pay money for performance to performance rights societies who then distribute money to members. are you planning on recording these songs or just performing them?

[roxhythe]

I believe the rule is that if you're performing "covers," it's the *venue*'s responsibility to pay the fees to the Performing Rights Organization (PRO) which distributes copyright royalties. It's not your responsibility. I believe the venues pay a "blanket" fee to the PRO which gives them the right to cover (or for you, as "their" band, to cover) anything in the PRO's catalog.

I think only one of the PROs--ASCAP, which is a membership organization--worries about live performances. (The other, BMI, was founded by a bunch of radio stations, and may still be concerned only with radio airplay.) A surprising number of venues refuse to pay the PRO fee, claiming the couple hundred bucks a year is the difference between solvency and bankruptcy; as a writer, I don't have a lot of patience with those folks. Even the caller for our square dance club pays an ASCAP fee.

Recording is different. If you record someone else's song, you have to pay copyright fees (the amount is determined by Federal law) for every copy of the song you *manufacture* (not sell). There's an outfit called the Harry Fox Agency that most people use to collect and distribute those fees. It is possible (but not likely) that the author's publishing company is not registered with the Harry Fox Agency, in which case you'd be contacting the publisher directly. But an awful lot of people use Harry Fox.

And you do not have to ask anyone's permission (those are called "compulsory rights" for a reason). The author has the right to be paid the copyright fee--by you, if you're recording it, by the venue (to the PRO) if you're performing it. You only have to ask permission if you're going to do a parody of the song (and that can get touchy--but that's a different subject).

Oh, and I should mention, since so many of y'all are British, that the above information is *American*. In Britain, Canada, &c., you may be dealing with a different PRO, but the rules should be pretty much the same. I believe the U.S. subscribed to international copyright law (finally) in 1976. Prior to that, the U.S. had different rules.

This help?

Joe

[peterlawton]

If a song has been previously released you do not have to get rights. Just fill in PRS forms if asked.

pl

I am wanting to put together a music group to perform as a business. But how do I get the performance rights to use another artist's songs? I am not sure where to look.

Also, are there other legal issues just for performing music?

Any help would be appreciated.