Answers/Problems & answers/Splits and ownership

When Should You Do a Split Sheet — and What Goes On It?

What has to be on a split sheet?

Song title, date written, studio or session location, and for every contributor their legal name, contact details, role, PRO affiliation, IPI/CAE number, publisher entity, percentage of the writing share, and a dated signature. Master ownership should be recorded as a separate line rather than mixed into the same percentages.

Do the percentages have to add to 100?

Yes. The composition splits must total exactly 100%. If they do not, your registrations at ASCAP or BMI and at The MLC will not reconcile, and mechanical royalties sit unmatched until the conflict is resolved.

Does a split sheet need to be notarised?

No. A dated document signed by every contributor is the working standard across the US independent scene. What matters is that it exists, that it is specific, and that everyone named on it signed it.

Is a split sheet legally binding?

A signed split sheet is written evidence of an agreement between the parties and is treated as such. It is not a substitute for a full producer agreement or a co-publishing deal, but it is far stronger than a verbal understanding and it is what your PRO and The MLC will effectively be enforcing through your registrations.

Is a split sheet the same as registering the song?

No, and this is the most common misunderstanding. A split sheet is a private document between collaborators. Registration is a separate step at ASCAP or BMI for performance royalties and at The MLC for mechanical royalties, and the split sheet is what you copy the numbers from.

What is an IPI or CAE number and where do I find mine?

An IPI number, historically called a CAE number, is the unique identifier assigned to each songwriter and each publisher, used by ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and The MLC to tell people apart. You find yours in your PRO account profile after your membership is processed, and it belongs on the split sheet so nobody has to chase it later.

What if someone only added a small part?

Agree a percentage that reflects it and write it down. A 5% contributor who signed a split sheet is settled forever. A 5% contributor with a verbal understanding is a future dispute wearing a small number.

Is a text message agreement good enough?

It is better than nothing and much worse than a signed sheet, because it almost never contains PRO details, IPI numbers, publisher entities or an explicit statement that the percentages refer to the composition rather than the master. Take the ten minutes.

Do I need a split sheet if I wrote the song completely alone?

You do not need one for a dispute, but filling one in is still useful because it forces you to assemble the exact fields you will need for the ASCAP, BMI and MLC registrations. Treat it as your registration worksheet.

What do I do about old songs where we never did a split sheet?

Do them now, while everyone is still on good terms and the songs are not earning enough to fight about. Backdating is not the point - the point is getting a signed, current document that says what everyone already believes.

Full explanation: When Should You Do a Split Sheet — and What Goes On It?

What Percentage Does a Producer Get on a Song?

Is there a standard producer split?

No standard is set by law, by ASCAP or BMI, or by any other authority. Ranges exist as convention and they vary widely by genre, by how much of the finished song originated in the beat, and by the relative leverage of the people in the room.

What is the difference between a producer fee and a producer split?

A producer fee is a one-time payment for doing the work. A split is an ongoing ownership share that earns royalties for as long as the song earns anything. They are separate levers and a producer may have one, the other, or both.

If I give a producer 50% of the publishing, what have I given away?

In normal usage that phrase means 50% of the composition, not 50% of the publisher's share. A producer with 50% of the composition collects 25% of the writer pool and 25% of the publisher pool from ASCAP or BMI, plus 50% of the mechanical royalties The MLC pays on the work.

What is a producer point?

A point is 1% of net recording revenue, so three points is 3% of the master income. Points sit on the recording side and are conventionally carved out of the artist's own royalty, which makes them completely separate from any composition percentage.

Does buying a beat lease give the producer a split?

It depends entirely on the terms of the lease. Some beat agreements transfer usage rights while the producer retains a composition share, some are structured as an outright transfer, and exclusive deals differ again. Read the licence file that came with the beat.

Who owns the master if the producer made the beat?

Whatever the agreement says. Master ownership is a separate negotiation from composition splits and needs its own line on the split sheet, because a producer can hold composition points and no master interest at all.

What if we never agreed a split and the song is already released?

Have the conversation now, before it earns more, and paper it. Conflicting registrations at The MLC cause the disputed share to be held rather than paid, and the longer that runs the more adversarial and expensive it gets to unwind.

Does the producer get paid before or after the artist?

A producer fee is usually paid at or near the session. Composition royalties reach the producer directly from ASCAP or BMI and The MLC based on registered shares, with no involvement from the artist. Producer points on the master are usually paid by whoever owns the recording and are often subject to recoupment first.

Do I owe the producer anything if the song makes no money?

A percentage of nothing is nothing, so a pure points deal costs you nothing on a song that does not earn. An agreed fee is owed regardless of performance, which is exactly why fees and points are negotiated as separate items.

Can a producer take a split if they only added drums to a finished demo?

They can if you agree to it, but the share should reflect the contribution. Adding production to a finished song is a different contribution from supplying the instrumental the whole song was written over, and the percentage is the place to say so.

Full explanation: What Percentage Does a Producer Get on a Song?

What Is the Difference Between Master Rights and Publishing?

Can I own the master but not the publishing?

Yes, and it happens constantly. If you recorded a song someone else wrote, you can own the sound recording outright while the writers own the musical work. The reverse also happens - a songwriter can own the composition of a song they never recorded.

Which side earns more, masters or publishing?

It depends entirely on how the song gets used. On-demand streaming on Spotify and Apple Music weights heavily toward the recording side. Sync placements, cover versions, radio and public performance make the composition side more valuable. On a streaming-led catalog the master usually dominates in year one and publishing compounds later.

If I self-release, do I own both?

If you wrote the song, recorded it and paid for the session yourself, you own both copyrights outright with no label and no publisher taking a share. Owning them is separate from collecting on them - you still have to register the recording with SoundExchange and the composition with ASCAP or BMI and The MLC.

Does DistroKid or TuneCore collect my publishing?

Base distribution from DistroKid, TuneCore or CD Baby collects sound recording royalties only. DistroKid Publishing is a separate paid add-on that collects composition royalties, and DistroKid states it collects only the publisher share for writers who are not PRO-affiliated.

Who collects the publishing side if I do not want to do it myself?

A publishing administrator — a company such as Songtrust, or a distributor's publishing add-on like DistroKid Publishing, which registers your compositions worldwide and collects composition-side royalties for a percentage. It touches only the publishing column: signing one changes nothing about who owns or collects your masters. It is useful if you will genuinely never do the paperwork, and expensive relative to registering yourself once with ASCAP or BMI and The MLC.

Where does a producer sit in this?

Potentially in both columns, potentially in one. A producer may hold a composition share, a master share, producer points, a flat fee, or some combination. Nothing about making the beat automatically assigns either copyright - it depends entirely on the agreement.

Is SoundExchange money master money or publishing money?

Master money. SoundExchange collects on the sound recording side for non-interactive digital radio such as SiriusXM and internet radio and pays featured artists directly, which puts it in the master column beside your distributor. ASCAP, BMI and SESAC sit in the publishing column, collecting on the composition side for public performance. They cover different copyrights and you need both.

What is the difference between a mechanical royalty and a performance royalty?

Both are composition-side. A mechanical royalty is generated by the reproduction of the song - a stream, a download, a physical copy - and is collected in the US by The MLC. A performance royalty is generated by the song being publicly performed - streamed, broadcast, played in a venue - and is collected by ASCAP, BMI or SESAC.

Do I need to register the same song twice at the Copyright Office?

If you own both copyrights you can register both, and the Copyright Office treats them as separate claims - Form PA for the musical work and Form SR for the sound recording. Per the current fee schedule a Standard Application is $65 and Group Registration of Works on an Album of Music is $65 for a whole album.

What does owning your masters actually mean?

It means you own the sound recording copyright in the specific recordings - so you control licensing them for sync, you receive the distributor income, and you are the sound recording owner SoundExchange pays. It says nothing about who owns the songs, which is a separate copyright with separate collectors.

Full explanation: What Is the Difference Between Master Rights and Publishing?

Do You Need to Register Copyright on a Song You Already Own?

Do I own my song if I never register anything?

Yes. Copyright attaches automatically the moment the work is fixed in a tangible medium — the moment you record it or write it down. Registration with the US Copyright Office is about evidence and enforcement, not about ownership coming into existence. Nobody can take your song from you because you did not file a form.

Then why register with the Copyright Office at all?

Because registration is what makes copyright enforceable in practice. For a United States work, you generally cannot file an infringement lawsuit until the work has been registered or registration has been refused. Registration also creates a public record of your claim and, if timed correctly, unlocks statutory damages and attorney's fees rather than leaving you to prove actual losses.

Is Copyright Office registration the same as registering with my PRO?

No, and this is the most common confusion in the whole subject. US Copyright Office registration is about legal ownership evidence. Registration with ASCAP, BMI, The MLC and SoundExchange is about getting paid. They are unrelated systems on separate databases, and doing one does nothing whatsoever for the other.

Which should I do first if I only do one?

Your PRO, The MLC and SoundExchange, without question. Those three determine whether you collect money your song is generating right now, and two of the three are free. US Copyright Office registration matters only if a dispute arises, which for most independent artists it never does.

Is registering copyright worth the money for a song that is not earning anything?

Usually not on its own, and this is the one place where the honest answer is to wait. Copyright itself costs nothing and happens automatically. Registration with the US Copyright Office costs $45 under the Single Application, $65 under the Standard Application, $65 for an entire album under Group Registration of Works on an Album of Music, and $85 under Group Registration of Unpublished Works, per the fee schedule retrieved on 31 August 2026.

Can I register a whole album at once instead of song by song?

Yes, and you should. Group Registration of Works on an Album of Music covers an album in one $65 filing. Registering twelve tracks individually under the Single Application costs $45 each, or $540. Same protection, $475 difference, decided entirely by which form you file.

Do I have to register the song and the recording separately?

Not necessarily. The composition and the sound recording are two different copyrights, but where the same claimant owns both — the normal case for a self-releasing artist — the Copyright Office allows one application to cover both. That route requires the $65 Standard Application; the $45 Single Application covers one work by one author only.

Does the poor man's copyright of mailing yourself a copy work?

No. Mailing yourself a sealed copy is not a substitute for registration, carries little practical weight, and does none of the things registration does — it does not let you file suit and it does not unlock statutory damages. If you want the protection registration provides, register properly.

How long do I have to register after releasing a song?

You can register at any time, but timing changes what registration is worth. Statutory damages and attorney's fees are available only if the work was registered before the infringement began, or within three months of first publication. Registering years later still lets you sue; it can leave you proving actual damages rather than claiming statutory ones.

Should I register every song I make?

No. Registering every demo is a poor use of money. Register the songs that matter — the ones central to your catalog, the ones you are shopping for sync, the ones already earning — and use Group Registration of Works on an Album of Music to sweep up a release cheaply rather than filing one at a time.

Full explanation: Do You Need to Register Copyright on a Song You Already Own?

Can You Copyright a Beat?

Can I copyright a beat I made with Splice loops?

Yes, you own the copyright in your original arrangement and the recording of it. Splice explicitly permits copyright registration of works you create with its sounds. What you do not own is the underlying sample itself, which Splice licences to every subscriber non-exclusively.

If another producer uses the same Splice loop, are they infringing my beat?

No. The Splice licence is non-exclusive, so two producers can legitimately download and use the identical loop. Neither infringes the other over that shared element. What you can protect is the original material around it — your arrangement, your added parts, your specific recording.

Do I have to register a beat with the Copyright Office to own it?

No. US copyright arises automatically when the beat is fixed in a file. Registration is what you need in order to file an infringement suit over a US work and to become eligible for statutory damages and attorney's fees, which is a different and very practical question from ownership.

can you copyright a drum pattern

A short, common rhythmic pattern on its own is generally too minimal and too commonplace to protect, and basic chord progressions and scales are not protectable either. The protected thing is your original expression — the specific combination, arrangement and recording — not the individual building blocks.

What happens to my copyright when I sell an exclusive beat?

Only what the contract says happens. Many exclusive beat sales are exclusive licences rather than outright transfers, meaning the producer still owns the composition and simply stops selling that beat to anyone else. A genuine transfer of copyright ownership must be in writing and signed by the owner.

Does a beat lease give the buyer any ownership?

No. A non-exclusive lease is permission to use the beat under stated conditions, usually with limits on streams, distribution or commercial use, while the producer keeps both copyrights and continues licensing the same beat to other buyers. Ownership never moves in a lease.

How do the splits work when a rapper writes over my beat?

The finished song is one composition containing both contributions, and the writers divide it by agreement — commonly a range between a fifth and a half to the producer, depending on how much of the song came from the beat. Nothing about that split is automatic, and it only pays if it is registered identically at ASCAP or BMI and at The MLC.

Is the beat a separate copyright from the finished song?

The beat exists as its own musical work before any vocal is added, and the finished song is normally treated as a single joint work containing it rather than two stacked works. This is why the composition split conversation happens over the whole song, and why the producer needs to be listed as a writer on it.

How do I copyright a whole beat tape cheaply?

The group registration options exist for exactly this. Group Registration of Unpublished Works costs $85 for multiple unpublished works in one filing, and Group Registration of Works on an Album of Music costs $65 for the tracks on one album — far cheaper than $45 per beat under the Single Application.

Does putting my beat on YouTube or BeatStars register the copyright?

No. Uploading creates evidence of a date and creates a distribution record, and it can enable Content ID matching, but neither is a copyright registration. Only a filing with the US Copyright Office produces a registration.

Full explanation: Can You Copyright a Beat?

Who Owns the Song When You Buy a Beat?

if i buy an exclusive beat do i own the song

You own your lyrics and your vocal performance, and usually the recording, but the composition is normally still shared with the producer unless the agreement assigns it. Exclusive most often means the producer stopped selling that beat, not that ownership moved. Read the clause about writing share.

Does buying a beat mean the producer gets nothing later?

Only if the contract says so in writing. In most beat-store exclusive deals the producer keeps a percentage of the composition and continues collecting performance royalties from ASCAP or BMI and mechanical royalties from The MLC for as long as the song earns.

What is the difference between a lease and an exclusive?

A lease is non-exclusive permission with limits, and the same beat keeps selling to other artists. An exclusive removes the beat from sale and grants broader rights to one buyer. Neither one automatically transfers copyright ownership of the composition.

What is work for hire on a beat?

Work made for hire is a specific arrangement in which the commissioning party is treated as the author from the outset, so the producer holds nothing afterwards. It has statutory requirements including a signed written agreement, and it is far rarer in independent beat sales than buyers assume.

Can I register a song at The MLC if I bought the beat?

You can register the shares you actually hold. Registering 100% of a composition when the producer retains a writing share creates a conflicting claim, and The MLC holds the overlapping portion rather than paying either party until it is resolved.

Do I need the producer's name on my ASCAP or BMI registration?

If the producer holds a writing share, yes — the registration should list every writer with matching percentages, along with their affiliation and IPI number. A registration that omits a co-writer will conflict with the one that co-writer files.

The producer disappeared and I already released the song. What now?

Register only your own share honestly and keep the beat licence, the receipt and any messages showing what was agreed. An unclaimed portion sitting at The MLC is a far better position than a fraudulent 100% claim, which turns a paperwork problem into a dispute you will lose.

Does the beat licence file count as a contract?

Yes, the PDF licence that downloads with the WAV and the stems is the agreement, and it usually states exactly what you bought. Most people never open it, which is why most people cannot answer this question about their own release.

Who owns the master if I recorded my vocals over a leased beat?

The recording of your song is a new sound recording and is normally yours, but the underlying instrumental inside it is still licensed rather than owned, so your rights in that master are limited by the licence terms. Exceeding the licence caps can put the whole release out of licence.

How much should a producer keep on an exclusive?

There is no set figure. Conventionally a producer who supplied the instrumental the whole song was written over lands somewhere between a fifth and a half of the composition, and a higher purchase price often buys a smaller ongoing share. The negotiable part is the percentage, so negotiate the percentage.

Full explanation: Who Owns the Song When You Buy a Beat?

Do You Need a Music Publisher, or Just a Publisher Account?

do i need a publisher to release music

No. You need a publisher account at ASCAP or BMI so the publisher half of your performance royalties has a registered claimant, and you need registrations at The MLC. Neither of those is a publishing company that signs you, and neither takes a percentage of your income.

What is the difference between a publisher account and a publishing company?

A publisher account at ASCAP or BMI is a registration inside a performing rights organization that lets you claim the publisher share of your own songs. A publishing company that signs artists is a business that administers, pitches and collects on your catalog in exchange for a commission and sometimes a share of copyright. Only the first is required to get paid.

Does creating a publishing company increase my royalties?

No. BMI states directly that creating a publishing company will not mean you receive more royalties. What increases what you collect is having a registered claimant for the publisher share, which a self-published writer achieves with a publisher affiliation, not with a business entity.

How much does a publisher account cost?

ASCAP charges a $50 one-time processing fee for the publisher membership, identical to its writer membership. BMI charges $175 for an individual publisher, $250 for a corporation or LLC, and $500 for a partnership, all one-time and non-refundable. Neither charges annual dues.

Do I need an LLC to have a publishing company at BMI?

No, and forming one first makes it more expensive. BMI affiliates an individual publisher for $175 and a corporation or LLC for $250, so the entity route costs $75 more for the same royalty outcome.

What does a publishing administrator actually do for the cut?

An administrator registers your works globally, collects from foreign societies you are not a member of, chases unmatched and unclaimed royalties, and handles the paperwork. Songtrust and DistroKid Publishing are the two most commonly used by independent artists. What they do not usually do is pitch your songs the way a traditional publisher does.

Should I use Songtrust or DistroKid Publishing or do it myself?

Doing it yourself is cheapest and works well if your income is domestic and your catalog is small. An administrator earns its commission mainly on foreign collections and on catalogs too large to register by hand. Compare their current published terms directly, because commission structures change.

Can I have both my own publisher entity and a publishing administrator?

Not on the same works. Overlapping claims on one composition create conflicts at ASCAP, BMI and The MLC, and disputed shares are held rather than paid. Choose one route per work and register consistently.

Do I still need The MLC if I have a publisher account at BMI?

Yes. ASCAP and BMI collect performance royalties. The MLC collects US mechanical royalties on streams and downloads, which is a separate pot from a separate licence. Registration at The MLC is free and it pays US members at a $5 ACH minimum roughly 75 days after each monthly usage period ends.

Do I need a publisher to get sync placements?

No, though a publisher or a sync agency has relationships you do not. Independent artists place music directly with libraries, supervisors and licensing platforms all the time. The prerequisite for any sync deal is clean, undisputed ownership documentation, which is a paperwork problem rather than a publisher problem.

Full explanation: Do You Need a Music Publisher, or Just a Publisher Account?

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