the following is a guide on how to decide if you need to negotiate a royalty: remember that this is about
business, not about being a nice guy
two questions determine the answer to this
1) did you pay them to perform for the recording? (i.e. work for hire)?
2) did they perform a pre-written part (I don't mean the lyrics)?
Question | Yes | No |
1 | No royalty - they have already been compensated | They are permitted to claim Performance rights in the amount you agree |
2 | They are permitted to claim Performance rights in the amount you agree | They are permitted to part of the composition royalties and the performance royalties as you agree |
Combining the responses we then end up with a slightly more complex arrangement
Question | 2 | | |
| Answer | yes | no |
1 | yes | Performance rights only | Performance rights only |
| no | Performance rights only | They are permitted to part of the composition royalties and the performance royalties as you agree |
As to the actual royalty amount to agree it comes down to what contribution to the final product the singer is making.
When it comes to
performance royalties these are fixed numbers and an agreed percentage should be set down to reflect the overall
performance contribution
- do not allow yourself to be conned into giving 50% if the only other performer is you
-- define what roles you performed in the creation of the backing
--- drums
--- bass
--- chords/keys
--- sweeteners (strings, brass, etc)
--- guitar
-- each part is equal weighting so give the vocalist a share equal to their contribution. In my scenario above that would mean that they receive a 1/6 share or 16.67% or
the performance royalties
When it comes to composition royalties, you need to be honest about the musical contribution they have made to the track
- if they are rapping their is little to none, as they have not contributed to the musical aspects of the track
- if they create a melody that makes or break the recording then give a fair % but no more than 50% of the music credits
- if they contributed lyrics then they get the lyricists share, split with the other lyricists