We meet with many musicians who ask how to copyright music. Music can mean many things. Music may refer to the lyrics, music videos, the music recorded by a sound recording, the musical composition and arrangement, or it may mean the live performance of the music. As the musician, singer, songwriter or performer, you own the work you create, absent an agreement otherwise. That means under copyright law, you have the exclusive right to make and sell copies, distribute those copies, make new copies based on your work and with some limited exceptions, publicly perform and display the work.
Steps for Copyright Protection
The first step in answering the question, how to copyight music, or any work of art, is to determine what exactly is to be protected with a copyright. Genrally, there are two types of copyright protection for music, a sound recording copyright or a musical work copyright. A musical work is a song’s underlying composition along with any accompanying lyrics. Musical works are usually created by a songwriter or composer. A sound recording is a series of musical, spoken, or other sounds fixed in a recording medium, such as a CD or digital file, called a “phonorecord.” Sound recordings can be created by the recording’s performer, the producer, or others. Note that there is no public display right for sound recordings and the public performance right is limited to “digital audio transmissions,” for example, digital streaming.
Once the particular type of music you want to protect is identified, then we need to look at how it was recorded. To be copyrighted, a musical work an original work which is fixed in a tangible form or expression. If the musical expression is a video, then the video is to be protected. If the music is on sheet music, then sheet music must be copyrighted.
Process of Registering Music for Copyright Protection
The answer to how to copyright music can be simply answered, play music. While copyright protection exists the moment a work is created, the process for actually registering the music for copyright protection requires filing something with the Library of Congress. If you hire an attorney, the process can be as easy as meeting with a Copyright Attorney who knows how to copyright music. The Copyright Attorney will will then ask for a copy of the music to be protected and ask a series of questions related to who owns various copyrights in the music and who will be the owner of the copyright registration.
Benefits of Registering your Music
Registering your music with the U.S. Copyright Office provides several benefits, including:
Registrations provides a public record of your copyright claim, provides an ability to file an suit in federal court against anyone who infringes your rights, if done timely, provides for statutory damages and attorney’s fees in successful litigation and the registration certificate can serve as prima facie evidence of validity of your copyright in federal court
A musical copyright requires payment to the copyright office for a nominal filing fee. A copyright registration for music can be very valuable to help stop someone from stealing your music. If done correctly, the law provides for statutory damages of up to $150,000 per musical work infringed.
Copyrighting your music is a crucial step to protecting your creativity and ensuring you can benefit from its use. While the process may seem complex, hiring an attorney can help and the legal protections it offers are invaluable for any serious musician or songwriter. While hiring an attorney to copyright music is not cheap, in contrast to the amount of damages you could recover if someone steals your music, it is a small investment for potentially a very large award. Please contact on of our Copyright attorneys to discuss how to Copyright music.