📑 Sections (7)

4. Royalties: how you get paid

A song generates two types of rights: the recording's and the work's. Who collects each, how it travels and what to expect.

Every song is two different things under the law: the composition and the recording. Each generates its own income, by different paths. Most independent musicians collect only one, because they don’t know the other exists.

The two sides

The work (composition and lyrics)

The song itself: the melody, harmony and lyrics. It belongs to those who wrote it, and it would still be the same if another band recorded it.

Generates: public performance rights and mechanical rights. Collected by: your country’s authors’ society or a publisher.

The recording (phonogram or master)

This specific recording of the song. It belongs to whoever produced and paid for it. If you recorded it all yourself, you’re the producer.

Generates: what platforms pay for playing the recording, and neighboring rights for public broadcast. Collected by: your distributor and the performers’ and producers’ societies.

Who collects what

  • Distributor: what platforms pay for the recording. It’s the first thing you’ll see.
  • Authors’ society: what’s paid for the work, including a share of streaming and what plays on radio, TV and public venues.
  • Mechanical rights: for the reproduction of the work. Depending on the country, the authors’ society or another entity manages them.
  • Neighboring rights: when the recording plays on radio, TV or in venues, performers and producers are owed a payment. Your distributor doesn’t usually collect them.

How much it really is

It pays to have realistic expectations.

  • Spotify doesn’t pay a fixed amount per stream: it shares out a percentage of its revenue according to each song’s share. So it depends on the country and the account type.
  • A common estimate is between USD 0.003 and 0.005 per stream, before sharing with the distributor. It’s only a guide.
  • Minimum: on Spotify, a song needs 1,000 streams in 12 months to generate recording royalties.

With those figures, 100,000 streams come to a few hundred dollars. Publishing will bring you little at first. The value of being registered shows up over time and if the song circulates.

If there are other people

Who gets paid is decided before publishing, in writing, even if it’s a clear message everyone accepted.

  • Work: how much goes to each author of the music and lyrics.
  • Recording: who paid for it and who played.
  • Samples and collaborations: any third-party material needs authorization.
🔴 Set this NOW· in distribution

With a band, agreeing on splits is easy before there's money or a fight. Afterward it's very hard, and without that agreement registration and payment can stall.

Claims and samples

If you use a sample or a purchased track, read the license: many don’t allow exclusive release or use with Content ID. Covers of other people’s songs also need a license for the work, and some distributors handle it.

Common mistakes

What NOT to chase yet

Quick path: royalties

Quick path

  1. Identify who composed and who recorded.
  2. Agree on the splits in writing.
  3. Collect the recording through your distributor.
  4. Register as an author to collect the work.
  5. Register the phonogram for neighboring rights.
  6. Check the licenses of any third-party material.

Expected result

Expected result

You know what rights your song generates and who collects each, with the splits agreed and realistic expectations. To collect the rest, you have to do the paperwork: registration.