[Urgent Help] Exclusive Rights Advice & Pricing

[zoo]

Hey all,

Looking for some advice on exclusive rights for beats.

I'm working with this rapper who has access to a dropbox folder with four beats on it - I was under the impression I'd give him the beats for free.
Now he wants exclusive rights on one, and I'm not really sure what to do here. He doesn't want anyone else on it...

Any advice/help in this situation is appreciated. I've never sold a beat or dealt in these terms before.

EDIT: I asked would he be willing to pay and he wants to know how much, anyone wanna help me out here on pricing.

 

[bandcoach]

remember that an exclusive is about his right to use it exclusively not that he takes all of the rights to exploit it
- you retain all rights to be known as the composer and majority performer on the track
-- for each instrument on the track you are considered a player of that instrument, so you could well end up with 5 out 6 parts of the performance royalties

get him to put a dollar figure on how much of a down payment on future royalties he thinks it is worth for him to have exclusive use and then double it and then continue to haggle - say something like I was really thinking more along the lines of $xyz

let me clarify that: if he is looking at under $500 then tell him to forget about it

once sales start to roll in you take your normal royalty cuts but refund him 50% until the down payment is recovered

this is the "traditional label" model of advances against future sales with you controlling your destiny not the label

 

[zoo]

Hey bandcoach, good to hear from you again. Could you break that down a little bit for me...I'm completely new to this and I'm confused by the lingo...

I'll throw down some thoughts and questions as I try to summarise what you're advising me to do..

What I'm getting from you is:

Find out exactly what he wants to do with the beat i.e mixtape, album, for profit....(I'd imagine he wouldn't want an exclusive on a beat if he didn't think he could profit from it, right?)

(Just to clarify he was listening to all the beats with the impression they were for free usage, but then he wanted an exclusive on one a day after he had first heard them....this makes me wonder why he suddenly decided he needed an exclusive on the beat....and makes me slightly paranoid about the situation..why the sudden desire for exclusive rights?)

I ended up pricing the beat at $100...I am yet to hear back from him. Do you think I am under pricing my work? An old thread here said between $100-$500 depending on how reputable you are as a producer.

Also, should I be drawing up a contract if he wants to go ahead with it? How do I keep track of what he does with the beat? It's a sample beat, what do I do in this case?

Could you break down royalties for me please..I'm blanking at what you're saying when it comes to them...I understand it's like a commission based on income on intellectual property right?

 

[Jeff Blactracks]

remember that an exclusive is about his right to use it exclusively not that he takes all of the rights to exploit it
- you retain all rights to be known as the composer and majority performer on the track
-- for each instrument on the track you are considered a player of that instrument, so you could well end up with 5 out 6 parts of the performance royalties

get him to put a dollar figure on how much of a down payment on future royalties he thinks it is worth for him to have exclusive use and then double it and then continue to haggle - say something like I was really thinking more along the lines of $xyz

let me clarify that: if he is looking at under $500 then tell him to forget about it

once sales start to roll in you take your normal royalty cuts but refund him 50% until the down payment is recovered

this is the "traditional label" model of advances against future sales with you controlling your destiny not the label

If he's asking for the beats for free you will need to have him sign something on the budget for the project and future royalties. Also to make it exclusive there needs to be some time of fee or at least a co business branding that builds your name. Asking him what's the marketing for the beats, is this going to sold as CD or only as MP3's online. Your name and the name of your company needs to present produced by or the deal is void. There has to be something that builds your brand, so there no free lunch.