I have a couple questions about ASCAP.

D

datboysc

New member
Hey I just had a couple of questions about ASCAP. I registered as a writer last year and a couple days as a publisher. I make beats and I sell them non-exclusively and exclusively and wanted to know how do I go about registering the song in ASCAP.

Do I register a song in ASCAP even if an artist performs on my beat non-exclusively and exclusively?

I heard the rule of thumb is registering if the song is getting ready to get in the media radio, internet, etc.

Should I be copyrighting every beat?

I'm new to a lot of this but really want to understand the business side of all this.

Thank you!
 
always register every version that is made including the split between music and lyrics and performance splits also

the music may not change but because the words do they are separate versions requiring separate registration to protect your intellectual property rights

in fact I would go one step further and register the music separately at the start and then reference that registration for each new version

note that this is, whilst similar, not the same as issuing an isrc for each version: the isrc is about the specific recording, whereas the copyright is about the specific version of the song - you could have a dozen or more recorded versions of one instance of the music and lyrics
 
I appreciate the quick response. So let me get this straight.

I have a non-exclusive beat and I sell it five times. So as a publisher I can register the five different versions and when you say reference you mean like a number or the artist name.

On top of that register the instrumental plus copyright it as well.

I'm new to a lot of this as you can see. Could you give me an example of ISRC?

Thanks again!
 
ISRC Home — International Standard Recording Code

registering each version is normal as the publishing, writing and performance splits will be different each time, plus as the lyrics are distinctly different the resulting song is different. Registering each secures your part of the publishing, writing and performance royalties, as well as that of each artist. You would need to ensure that they do not have their own publishing or if they do jointly register the publishing.
 
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