https://wearethemusicmakers.co/latest Music tech and AI in music: the news that matters, what we think about it, and a directory of the tools. en-us Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:30:00 GMT https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-a-mechanical-royalty https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-a-mechanical-royalty A mechanical royalty is the money owed to songwriters and publishers when their song, the composition rather than the recording, is copied and distributed, whether on CD, vinyl, download or stream. In the US, streaming mechanicals run through The MLC. Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:30:00 GMT We are the music makers format-referenceroyaltiespublishingmlccopyright https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-a-pro-performing-rights-organisation https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-a-pro-performing-rights-organisation A PRO licenses the public performance of songs to radio, TV, venues and streaming services, collects the fees and pays them to songwriters and publishers. Here is what that means, with IPRS, ASCAP, BMI and CISAC as the reference points. Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:30:00 GMT We are the music makers format-referenceroyaltiesproiprspublishing https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-a-split-sheet https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-a-split-sheet A split sheet is a short written agreement that records who wrote a song and what percentage of it each writer owns. Here is what goes on one, when to sign it, and why missing or conflicting splits hold up royalties. Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:30:00 GMT We are the music makers format-referencesongwritingpublishingroyaltiessplits https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-an-iswc https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/what-is-an-iswc An ISWC (International Standard Musical Work Code) is the permanent ID number for a song as a composition, not a recording. Here is what it looks like, who issues it and what it does not tell you. Mon, 26 Oct 2026 12:30:00 GMT We are the music makers format-referencemetadatapublishingroyalties https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/collecting-royalty-splits https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/collecting-royalty-splits A split sheet says who owns what. It pays nobody. Money only reaches each collaborator when every royalty stream, master and song, has its own split set up at the place that actually pays it. Here is how to map the streams, where each split gets entered, and how to catch the gaps before they eat a year of royalties. Sun, 25 Oct 2026 03:30:00 GMT We are the music makers royaltiespublishingsplitsworkflows https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/publishing-admin-vs-publishing-deal https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/publishing-admin-vs-publishing-deal An admin deal charges a percentage and leaves your copyright with you. A co-pub or full publishing deal can pay an advance, but you give up part of the copyright, often for years after the contract ends. Here is how to compare the two on cost, control and time. Sun, 25 Oct 2026 03:30:00 GMT We are the music makers publishingroyaltiessongwriterscopyright https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/performing-rights-organisations-explained https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/performing-rights-organisations-explained A performing rights organisation (PRO) licenses the public performance of songs and pays the writers and publishers. Here is what that covers, how joining works at the big societies in the US, UK, Germany and India, and the income streams a PRO will never collect for you. Sat, 24 Oct 2026 06:30:00 GMT We are the music makers royaltiespublishingcopyrightindia https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/two-copyrights-in-every-song https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/two-copyrights-in-every-song Every recorded song carries two copyrights: one in the composition (music and lyrics) and one in the sound recording (the master). Here is who owns each by default under US law, how work-made-for-hire and transfers change that, and the registration basics that decide what you can do if someone copies you. Sat, 24 Oct 2026 06:30:00 GMT We are the music makers copyrightpublishingroyaltiesworkflows https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/mechanical-royalties-and-the-mlc https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/mechanical-royalties-and-the-mlc Every stream of your song in the US earns a mechanical royalty, and your distributor and your PRO do not collect it. Here is what a mechanical is, how a self-administered writer joins the MLC and registers or claims works in its portal, what MCPS and CMRRA do outside the US, and the order we would do it in. Sat, 24 Oct 2026 03:30:00 GMT We are the music makers royaltiespublishingmlcworkflows https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/metadata-isrc-iswc-split-sheets https://wearethemusicmakers.co/learn/metadata-isrc-iswc-split-sheets Two codes and one document hold your royalties together. An ISRC names the recording and comes from the recording owner, a national agency or a manager such as your distributor. An ISWC names the song and only a registration agency, usually your collecting society, can assign it. A split sheet has no issuer at all: you and your co-writers make it. Here is who issues what, what it costs where we could check, and why the split sheet has to come first. Sat, 24 Oct 2026 03:30:00 GMT We are the music makers royaltiesmetadatapublishingdistributionworkflows https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/10/sia-sells-half-catalogue-pophouse-180m https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/10/sia-sells-half-catalogue-pophouse-180m Pophouse, the ABBA-linked investment firm, has bought 50% of Sia's publishing and master rights. TMZ first reported a $180 million price from divorce documents and Rolling Stone says it confirmed the figure, but neither party has disclosed it. A half sale keeps Sia in the room, and we think that is the real product Pophouse is buying. Sun, 18 Oct 2026 04:30:00 GMT We are the music makers industrycatalogue-salespublishingmasterspophousesia https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/10/vetter-resnik-worldwide-termination-supreme-court-quorum https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/10/vetter-resnik-worldwide-termination-supreme-court-quorum With four justices sitting out, the Supreme Court had no quorum and automatically affirmed the Fifth Circuit's ruling that a US copyright termination recaptures a songwriter's worldwide rights. It is a real win for writers in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi, but it sets no national precedent and foreign courts still apply their own law. Sat, 17 Oct 2026 16:30:00 GMT We are the music makers artist-rightscopyrighttermination-rightssongwriterspublishing https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/09/music-modernization-act-explained-what-it-fixed-and-left-broken https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/09/music-modernization-act-explained-what-it-fixed-and-left-broken The 2018 Music Modernization Act rebuilt US streaming mechanicals, brought pre-1972 recordings into federal law and wrote producer royalties into the statute. It left AM/FM radio untouched, and unclaimed song money still goes out by market share. Here is what each part does for you, with worked examples and a checklist. Wed, 30 Sep 2026 04:30:00 GMT We are the music makers artist-rightsmusic-modernization-actroyaltiespublishingexplainer https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/09/publishing-deals-admin-co-pub-full-publishing https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/09/publishing-deals-admin-co-pub-full-publishing A publishing deal decides who owns part of your song, who registers it, and for how long. Admin deals leave ownership with you for a fee. Co-pub and full publishing deals trade a share of the copyright for an advance and a team. Here is how the money splits, how long the rights stay away, and why the catalogue sales of 2026 make ownership the part to guard. Fri, 25 Sep 2026 04:30:00 GMT We are the music makers industrypublishingsongwritersroyaltiesexplainer https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/09/isrc-iswc-ipi-upc-metadata-explained https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/09/isrc-iswc-ipi-upc-metadata-explained Four codes identify your recording, your song, you as a writer and your release. Royalties go missing when they don't line up with each other, usually because the splits disagree or nobody linked the recording to the song. Here is what each code does, who issues it, and a release-day checklist. Thu, 17 Sep 2026 04:30:00 GMT We are the music makers workflowsmetadataroyaltiespublishingexplainer https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/09/bmg-concord-combination-independent-heavyweight https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/09/bmg-concord-combination-independent-heavyweight BMG and Concord completed their combination on 1 Sep 2026, creating a company with more than four million works, $2.2 billion in pro forma revenue and a target to grow profit far faster than sales. For artists and songwriters, scale may bring investment, but it also removes one of the few large buyers that wasn't a major. Tue, 01 Sep 2026 04:30:00 GMT We are the music makers industrypublishingcataloguesconsolidationbmgconcord https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/08/reading-royalty-statement-line-by-line https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/08/reading-royalty-statement-line-by-line One stream can show up on three statements, from your distributor, your PRO and the MLC, because it earns money for the recording and twice over for the song. Here is how to read each statement line by line, using a clearly labelled mock statement, and how to spot the errors that cost independent artists money. Mon, 24 Aug 2026 04:30:00 GMT We are the music makers workflowsroyaltiesdistributionpublishingmlcartist-rights https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/07/sony-buys-hipgnosis-recognition-catalogue-songwriters https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/07/sony-buys-hipgnosis-recognition-catalogue-songwriters Sony Music Publishing has closed its purchase of Recognition Music Group's 45,000-song catalogue, the former Hipgnosis portfolio, at a price reported at $3.5 billion to $4 billion. For the writers whose shares are inside it, the songs are now with their third owner, and each sale has taken them further from the people who wrote them. Wed, 15 Jul 2026 04:30:00 GMT We are the music makers industrypublishingcataloguessongwriterssony https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/07/primary-wave-closes-kobalt-deal-what-clients-should-check https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/07/primary-wave-closes-kobalt-deal-what-clients-should-check Primary Wave has completed its purchase of Kobalt, reportedly for around $1.5 billion. The publisher known for transparent admin now belongs to a company whose main business is buying song catalogues, and that changes the questions Kobalt's clients should be asking. Tue, 07 Jul 2026 04:30:00 GMT We are the music makers industrypublishingkobaltprimary-waveacquisitions https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/02/universal-owns-cd-baby-fuga-songtrust-downtown-deal-closed https://wearethemusicmakers.co/news/2026/02/universal-owns-cd-baby-fuga-songtrust-downtown-deal-closed Virgin Music Group, part of Universal, completed its $775 million purchase of Downtown on 20 Feb 2026, a week after EU regulators cleared it on condition that one unit, the Curve royalty platform, be sold. CD Baby, FUGA and Songtrust now belong to a major label group, and the regulator's scrutiny of data stopped at Curve. Fri, 20 Feb 2026 04:30:00 GMT We are the music makers industrydistributionpublishinguniversal-music-groupcd-baby