Legal side of a mixtape

tuneitdown

New member
Just making sure, if I use beats I got from youtube I can distribute them and put it up online/do shows as long as I don't make money off it right? Since I dont have the rights to the music..? Thanks, I'm making a mixtape.
 
No, the original owners can still force the whole thing to be removed. DJs have been having this exact issue with sound cloud.
 
making money or not making is not the issue; it is whether the original owners/publishers want you to use their material at all, usually resulting in the take-down notices that carnage mentions, not only at soundcloud but also at youtube, vimeo and any other on-line distribution services
 
making money or not making is not the issue; it is whether the original owners/publishers want you to use their material at all, usually resulting in the take-down notices that carnage mentions, not only at soundcloud but also at youtube, vimeo and any other on-line distribution services

Spot on
 
I see. But they wouldn't be able to sue me for using it since I didn't make money off it right? How I understand it they would only be able to go so far as simply bringing it down due to copyright and nothing more. And the beats I'm using are re-makes of the original beat I find on youtube, would these re-makes also count as copyright?
 
I see. But they wouldn't be able to sue me for using it since I didn't make money off it right? How I understand it they would only be able to go so far as simply bringing it down due to copyright and nothing more. And the beats I'm using are re-makes of the original beat I find on youtube, would these re-makes also count as copyright?

This question has been answered by 'Bandcoach' already. It doesn't matter if you make money or not, you can still be sued. What you understand about the legality of using people product without clearance is incorrect.

If you don't own it or have the right to use it, you can be sued.
 
I see. But they wouldn't be able to sue me for using it since I didn't make money off it right? How I understand it they would only be able to go so far as simply bringing it down due to copyright and nothing more. And the beats I'm using are re-makes of the original beat I find on youtube, would these re-makes also count as copyright?

a remake still requires a license to create it, especially if you intend to distribute it. however this license does not allow you to add new original lyrics etc, just to make a cover of the original song....

As cyko notes, there is no correlation between money made from exploiting someone else's intellectual property and whether you can be sued for using that intellectual property

The law is plain and has not significantly changed since the time that Benjamin Franklin first drafted it: it is aimed at providing an individual or corporation the right, for a period of time, to exclusively exploit their ideas, creations and inventions. The only changes that have been made to the law has been the time frames, which have gotten longer not shorter.

One aspect of exclusively exploit means the ability to license others the right to use the idea, i.e. ask for a fee or other consideration in exchange for the right to use the idea/creation/invention
 
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You can make your mixtape using whoever beats you want, even from famous songs. And you can put it up for ppl to download it for FREE. But you're not allowed to distribute it and gain any revenue or perform the songs live unless you get the permission. Yet even though you're allowed to go ahead and stream your songs online and let ppl download your mixtape, the producer has all rights to say hey i want that song down (which doesn't happen often because they know you won't make any revenue) but yes technically its legal and all fine to put it out for free. Oh and monetization isn't allowed.
 
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You can make your mixtape using whoever beats you want, even from famous songs. And you can put it up for ppl to download it for FREE.

Yet even though you're allowed to go ahead and stream your songs online and let ppl download your mixtape, the producer has all rights to say hey i want that song down (which doesn't happen often because they know you won't make any revenue) but yes technically its legal and all fine to put it out for free. Oh and monetization isn't allowed.

You sure? Below is the exact wording that sound cloud have sent in emails:


Hi there,

We have received a second notification from a copyright owner regarding infringing content appearing in your account.

We take copyright infringement very seriously. SoundCloud is a place for people to share their originally-created sounds and we require all users to respect other people's copyright. Uploading content that you do not own represents a serious breach of copyright law as well as our Terms of Use and Community Guidelines.

As a result of this second notification, you are now at risk of having your SoundCloud account terminated.

If we receive another notification, your account will be removed and you will be banned from returning to SoundCloud. PLEASE NOTE: If you are a paying user, we will not refund your subscription fee if your account is terminated.

To prevent this from happening, please do not upload any content for which you do not own or control all relevant rights. If there is any other content on your profile that you do not own, please remove it immediately.

For further information about copyright, please visit our Copyright Information pages and consult our help center articles.

Best regards,
SoundCloud Copyright Team.
 
Yes i'm sure. Different platforms have their own terms about what you can post ofcourse and obviously this content owner wanted the song down and just like youtube, soundcloud has content ID that will detect all copyrighted music and automatically send out the e-mail, so there shouldn't be a surprise if your song gets taken down assuming the person who got this e-mail actually did any change like recorded their own verse on someone elses beat or something instead of stealing the original and uploading as if its theirs. But this doesn't change the fact that u can legally make your mixtape with beats that aren't yours and let ppl download it for free without profiting. That is kind of how every artist starts before releasing singles/EPs/Albums. I learned alot when i got this course about breaking into music industry and it had every legal aspect explained. Normally you'd choose datpiff for that not SoundCloud. On youtube for instance its cool to stream it without monetization and even if you get a 3rd party claim the owner can just choose to receive all ad revenue that video will generate and still allowing the uploader to keep streaming.
 
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It really depends on what the owner of the song wants to do in the end. Putting a mixtape online for free, that's still a form of distribution. You can put out a mixtape, make no money and still get slapped with law suits and fines. I've seen people pay out 30k and up on mixtapes that didn't make a single dime. They never performed live, but gained a crazy fanbase, that was looked as a form currency and it's debatable on how much a follower or fan is worth. Some will choose reap the payments from monetization others wont.

Some don't care aslong as they get credited others are more anal.

Prince and his camp are great examples.
 
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This just got real, I didnt know they would take it that seriously, its just music comon we're havin fun lol. O well, not sure what to say to that haha. I guess I need to put up only original music now.
 
It really depends on what the owner of the song wants to do in the end. You can put out a mixtape, make no money and still get slapped with law suits and fines. I've seen people pay out 30k and up on mixtapes that didn't make a single dime. Why? Because the right holder had the power, good lawyer and strong case. Some will choose reap the payments from monetization others wont.

Prince and his camp are great examples.

Got u, i guess we just need to be careful on how we do it.
 
This just got real, I didnt know they would take it that seriously, its just music comon we're havin fun lol. O well, not sure what to say to that haha. I guess I need to put up only original music now.

Of course they take it seriously, you're building a buzz using their name. Now smart producers would say "cool, credit me" and when it blows up, they'll reach out and strengthen the business relationship. If it gets performance, they'll file a claim an collect royalties and back pack, it's not hard to do. Some on the other hand, not onboard with that business plan at all.

I have a friend who was sued by Gladys Knight and lost a huge case. He sampled her, gave her credit, listed her as a writer and suppied her IPI# so she would get royalties automatically without fuss. It look like a good plan. He was sued because she did not give him consent. Took her earnings, his earnings sued for damages, and had the project shut down. Why? Because she could. Barry White has done similar things.

Most of the time, it's not worth going after artist for utilizing their material, but when the numbers fit right and they really don't want to use in their shit to begin with it can hit the fan real quick
 
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This just got real, I didnt know they would take it that seriously, its just music comon we're havin fun lol. O well, not sure what to say to that haha. I guess I need to put up only original music now.
In reality if you are not making money off it they won't sue, although they could
 
Most producers allow you to use their beats for free as long as you use them for promotion only. If you are using youtube, I would make sure and contact the producer to find out if the beat he has up is for free otherwise you could get in trouble if he doesnt allow free beat use.
 
Smart Phones & Dumb People

Too many people making up laws and rules on this thread. None of it would stand in court. It is absolutely wrong and illegal what some people are suggesting.
You want a loophole because facing the fact that you will need to do some paperwork for clearances or pay fees for licensing doesn't fit the instant, overnight, me-for-free scheme so many people operate under.

Or because you only read what's on blogs and pages, instead of books. There's entire BOOKS on the subject of copyright - so if you think you've "got it all" from a couple paragraphs on Websites you're wrong.

Here's a good one to read.

"This Business Of Urban Music "
Author: James Walker.

Get it on your tablet or smartphone, iTunes, GooglePlay, Kindle, Amazon etc....

Don't be another dumb person with a smart phone.

Everything Band Coach said is correct. Start there.
 
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The 10 Track Commandments (Copyright Basics)

Copyright.
The RIGHT to make & distribute COPIES.

1. Copyright law does not dictate if you sell it or give it away for free. Your mixtape, soundcloud, youtube etc....is considered a copy. Each disk, each download, and each site that carries, transfers or archives the music is considered a copy. If your beat site got 127 downloads of that track you sampled, you have violated the copyright law 127 times.

2. Only the owner of the work can grant this permission. Sometimes the artist/writer doesn't even own the copyright and the publisher or record label owns it. That party would give permission and no one else. KRS once said I'd let you sample my whole catalog but I don't own all of it.

3. Copyright law doesn't specify a time limit. Your sample could be 2 seconds or 2 minutes. If it is recognized and proven that you didn't create it, you're guilty of violating copyright law.

4. Creative Commons is a rule that some people register their work under, it allows any music, words, art to be used for free without a specific license/contract. But it has certain stipulations for how it's used. The normal categories are Exact Copy, Cover, and Derived Works. Be sure to double check on the requirement. Example...The Pledge Of Alegeince, Presidential Speeches......

5) Copyright law accounts for not only the recording and distribution of works, it also covers the performance of work. That means if you jump on stage at your local club and do your freestyle over Drake 0-100 beat, you are violating copyright. Even if you just use a small sample of it. A COVERAGE is different however.

6. A cover must be extremely close to the original song. You do not need permission before you do it but the copyright owner must be paid royalties and credited at all times.

7. Copyright doesn't give a free pass just because it's an unknown sample or and, and you couldn't find out where it came from. If it was made by a rock band in their garage in 1957 and never released by a label, but somehow you found the mp3 and use it, you are still violating copyright law.

8. To find the copyright holder search "Creative Commons", "Harry Fox Agency", "Sound Exchange" "BMI", ASCAP" or any other PRO Organization (Performance Rights Organization)

9. Replaying a song is called an "Interpolation". Depending on how much the words or music changes from the original it can also be considered a "Derivitve Work". In general if you change something it is no longer your call, and you need permission, also known as a "License".

10. In most cases, individual notes or sounds are not protected by copyright. However a pattern of sounds also known as melodies, and distinct drum tracks are under copyright protection. Perfect example of **Cover vs Sample vs Derived Work** is Pharell and Robin Thicke song "Blurred Lines" lawsuit. They did not sample the song, they didn't exactly replay it either. However too many components were so blatantly similar in multiple parts of the song such as back ground vocals, drum parts, and bass line, that the court verdicts were not in their favor. Even though it wasn't samples/replayed, it was obviously directly inspired by the original, causing a conflict in the same competitive space.

Note: Regarding your own work. The myth is that as soon as you write it, record it, or save it....that it's fully copyright protected. This is true. HOWEVER if you have not registered the music with the Federal Copyright Office, and had an issue with a person using tour work, the courts will allow you to stop them from doing so in the future known as a "cease and desist", meaning you can pull the plug on their operation. However the courts will rarely help you receive financial compensation for the issue. That means that MC123 could have made $2,000 on his mixtape using your beat. He will be ordered to stop selling it and remove it from all places physical and digital that distribute it, but you won't be getting a penny of that $2,000 he made.


There's a bunch more rules that go into copyright. There is no way this post or any other can explain them all. I suggest reading a book and stop making up rumors and half truths based on the internet or what your friend told you. Most books are actually double checked by a lawyer before being published, so they are more accurate than some guy in his bedroom blogging about music industry legal issues. Especially if that person doesn't have high level experience in the industry such as running a serious label or being signed to one. If we're that easy to understand then why would major artists and producers get sued so often? Why do you always see "Unavailable" or "Take Down Due To Copyright" on certain videos on YouTube or other music sites.

A forum or blog can't teach it all. Rumors leave you confused. And both will often contain false information.

Get A Book. That $10 on a iBook, eBook, download could save you $10 thousand later on in your career.
 
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two issues with this

you cannot copyright a chord progression ever - WC Handy tried to copyright the 12 bar blues in the early 1910's and was rejected by every level of the judicial system - otherwise no-one could make new music without becoming extremely avant garde (looking for new and different ways to seek chords)

also the Pharell/Thicke v Gaye decision was not about notes being the same but that the two tracks had the same feel - the musicologists called by the plaintiffs never asserted similarity at the note/rhythmic level beyond feel/groove
 
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