There are few things in the music business that are more important yet, at the same time, less understood than the role of music publishing. Professional music creators have numerous revenue streams at their disposal, but publishing methods and rules can be daunting to grasp. In the fourth and final session of the San Francisco Chapter’s Music Business Night School, Jennifer Blakeman and Kristen Bushnell of Atlas Music Publishing, later joined by famed San Francisco hip-hop producer and artist Dan the Automator, presented a clear, concise, and entertaining explanation of it all. No matter what the audience members already knew about the often confounding subject, they left with a greater understanding of the role of music publishing in getting their music heard, and getting paid for it.
Movers, Shakers And Mentors
One cannot imagine two people having broader or richer experience in the business than Jennifer Blakeman and Kristen Bushnell. Blakeman is the chief creative officer of Atlas Music Publishing, an independent music publisher. Her background is as interesting as it comes, having toured playing keyboards with Billy Idol, Savage Garden and Brian Wilson, and held executive positions in A&R/creative with Universal Music Publishing and Zomba Music Publishing. Over her 30-year career, Blakeman has worked with such diverse artists as Justin Timberlake, Ne-Yo and Linkin Park. She is also an ASCAP writer and publisher and a trustee of The Recording Academy. “I never knew that I could love something as much as the job that I have; in the morning you can work with Barbara Streisand, in the evening you can work with Metallica,” said Blakeman, smiling ear-to-ear.
Kristen Bushnell is Atlas Music Publishing’s senior manager of synchronization. She presents music from their client roster to film, television, video game, and advertising decision-makers. Before coming aboard with Atlas, she spent several years with SONGS Music Publishing, where she worked with Conor Oberst, Lorde and other mega-successful artists. Her experiences have also made her an in-demand speaker; she has appeared at the Billboard Film/TV Music Conference, ASCAP Expo and SyncSummit.
The Role Of Music Publishers
Diving right into the subject matter at hand, Blakeman explained that the term “copyright” literally means the “right to copy.” You as the creator of an artistic work have the right to say what happens to your song; you can say when it is recorded, or assign ownership or partial ownership to someone else. “You control that baby,” said Blakeman. “We as music publishers acquire songs, manage songs and market songs. A deal with a music publisher enables them to do what you as the copyright owner could do with it.”
The presenters went on to explain that a publishing deal can involve as little as one song, or an entire catalog. Music publishers also sign deals to have exclusive publishing rights with songwriters. Both presenters were proud of their recent successes in signing Eddie and Alex Van Halen for the Van Halen catalog, and signing a deal to represent the catalog of the night’s special guest, Dan The Automator.
Another function performed by the music publisher is forging creative partnerships, such as putting someone who is a great lyricist together with a great singer. “We can help create new copyrights by putting you together with the right collaborators,” said Blakeman
Synchronization is “when you marry music with a moving picture,” as in TV, film, video games and advertising. Any time you hear music in this context, there is a synchronization license involved. One of the most interesting points during the evening was the big demand in synch for covers of well-known songs, often by unknown artists. Atlas finds these covers by browsing YouTube for unique performances of songs that the publisher already controls, and contacting those artists to negotiate potential deals on versions that may have licensing value. These versions are often well-performed but home-recorded.
Blakeman explained that publishers also find “different homes” for songs written by songwriters who don’t want to release the songs themselves, by pitching those songs to different artists. Among the examples she shared was the Beyoncé hit “Irreplaceable”: Writer Ne-Yo didn’t feel it was right for his own project, and Blakeman was able to successfully place the song with Beyoncé.
“What we also do is manage songs,” said Blakeman. This includes managing a song’s copyright protection and registering works with performance rights organizations such as ASCAP, SESAC, or BMI, who collect the performance royalties for their members. Publishers license the usage of works, take care of the paperwork and negotiate synch licenses, and collect the various types of royalties for their artists. They are able to navigate the often complex task of collecting royalties governed by laws in different nations. Blakeman described an overview of their work as “The four Ps: paperwork, payment, progress and proactivity.”
Protected Versus Copyrighted Versus Published
Using a detailed slide presentation, the presenters outlined the main tenets of copyright law. Blakeman demonstrated that legal protection begins when a work is fixed in a manner that enables it to be copied, such as being recorded or produced as sheet music. A work becomes “copyrighted” when it is properly registered with the Library of Congress. A fixed work becomes “published” when it is made available to the public in a manner in which it can be copied, such as in the form of a CD, sheet music or digital file. She explained that information on the laws and aspects of registration is available online, and that a number of countries have adapted the basics of U.S. laws, but the law can vary greatly between different countries. In these cases, when an artist generates royalties in another country, a deal may be made between a U.S. music publisher and a music publisher in another country.
Creating And Protecting Income For Creators
There are different types of publishing deals and income splits from an artist’s work. The split varies, depending on whether the deal is a full publishing, a co-publishing, or an administration deal. Another type of deal is work for hire: A songwriter is commissioned to produce works for a client such as a movie studio or advertising agency for a negotiated price. The buyer of the work for hire may allow the artist to use that song in other contexts; this is an important matter to keep in mind as the music publisher negotiates.
In many cases, multiple parties have an interest in one particular song. Complicated splits can occur in instances where there are cowriters, where producers have partial ownership through negotiations with the artist, and when songs have changed ownership through inheritance. Music publishers handle the complex song administration and distribution of royalties.
Both Bushnell and Blakeman explained that because they are partners with their clients, they help them avoid undervaluing a song, in part by evaluating all of the possibilities for future usage. In one example, they shared the story of an unknown songwriter who had allowed a song’s lyrics to be published in a magazine advertisement, without clearly reserving the rights for future use otherwise. This mistake cost that artist more than $100,000 in revenue. This is an example of a situation where a music publisher could have helped earlier in the life of a song; it is in the publisher’s best interest to look out for the future monetary potential of a song.
As a songwriter, there are five main categories of royalty income:
- Mechanical (physical CD sales or music downloads)
- Performance (fleeting uses such as songs performed at a concert, songs streamed online)
- Synchronization (songs placed in television shows, movies, video games, advertisements)
- Print (sheet music, greeting cards or t-shirts with printed lyrics)
- New media (products that don’t fit in the other categories; ex. singing toys)
A publisher is charged with finding opportunities for their songwriters to earn money, developing these income streams for their songwriters, and accounting for the royalties the creator is owed.
Dan The Automator
At the end of the presentation famed Bay Area hip hop producer, Dan Nakamura, better known as Dan the Automator, was brought onstage to a great round of applause. He recently signed his catalog of songs over to Atlas and discussed his history in the business, advising the audience that “ultimately your heart has to be in the music to make it all work.”
Taking Care Of Business
Music creators hold many things in high regard: purchasing the right instrument, perfecting recording methods, selecting the right studio, working with the right collaborators, and writing (and re-writing) lyrics. Once the music is produced, it is just as important to protect those creations. Just as you shouldn’t get involved in a complicated legal matter without an attorney, having a music publisher to represent your songs is extremely important. With all of the effort that goes into creating a song, you owe it to yourself to have an experienced music publisher on your side.
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