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Recently, DJ Akademics posted a Youtube video entitled “Juice Wrld producer complains about STING taking 85% of the Profits for Lucid Dreams” He confuses elements of record sales royalties with publishing royalties (they should never be cross-collateralized), but makes a solid point about missing out on revenue due to using a sample or interpolation when producing a record. This article explains the difference between a sample and an interpolation, the required clearances as well as the cost of using either one when producing a record.
Sampling was an essential part of Hiphop from the beginning. From looped drum breaks to vocal samples and guitar riffs samples were used dating back to the Sugarhill Gang, Grand Master Flash and Run DMC. A sample is the use of a specific performance of a song, this is usually done by taking a record, CD or MP3 and manipulating the music on it. So, in Juice Wrld’s situation, if he took a recording of Sting’s song and looped the guitar, which is not what he did, he’d be sampling Sting’s work. This would require a clearance from the people that own the rights to the master and the publishing rights. In 1992 Biz Markie was hit with a lawsuit for sampling “Alone Again” by Bill O’Sullivan which would put an end to the wild wild west of sampling. Artists would continue to sample and use interpolations, but the sample clearance fees would rise to the point that independent labels couldn’t afford them and only major labels who often already owned the publishing and masters to the works that were being “recreated” could pay the bill.
Since you need to releases to use a sample, a release for both the master and the publishing, people often replay the notes of the song, rather than using the notes that some else has already recorded. This is called interpolating and this is what Juice Wrld did do on “Lucid Dreams”. Using an interpolation only requires a publishing clearance on the song because you are playing the notes of someone else’s song.
Sampling and Interpolating are costly. I’ve had clients go from getting 50% of the total publishing to 10% due to an interpolation and I’ve seen court cases with $50,000 payouts for a moderately successful song so I advise all of my clients to avoid sampling at all costs because it really eats into the revenue that they’ll collect during the life of their song.
Recently, DJ Akademics posted a Youtube video entitled “Juice Wrld producer complains about STING taking 85% of the Profits for Lucid Dreams” He confuses elements of record sales royalties with publishing royalties (they should never be cross-collateralized), but makes a solid point about missing out on revenue due to using a sample or interpolation when producing a record. This article explains the difference between a sample and an interpolation, the required clearances as well as the cost of using either one when producing a record.
Sampling was an essential part of Hiphop from the beginning. From looped drum breaks to vocal samples and guitar riffs samples were used dating back to the Sugarhill Gang, Grand Master Flash and Run DMC. A sample is the use of a specific performance of a song, this is usually done by taking a record, CD or MP3 and manipulating the music on it. So, in Juice Wrld’s situation, if he took a recording of Sting’s song and looped the guitar, which is not what he did, he’d be sampling Sting’s work. This would require a clearance from the people that own the rights to the master and the publishing rights. In 1992 Biz Markie was hit with a lawsuit for sampling “Alone Again” by Bill O’Sullivan which would put an end to the wild wild west of sampling. Artists would continue to sample and use interpolations, but the sample clearance fees would rise to the point that independent labels couldn’t afford them and only major labels who often already owned the publishing and masters to the works that were being “recreated” could pay the bill.
Since you need to releases to use a sample, a release for both the master and the publishing, people often replay the notes of the song, rather than using the notes that some else has already recorded. This is called interpolating and this is what Juice Wrld did do on “Lucid Dreams”. Using an interpolation only requires a publishing clearance on the song because you are playing the notes of someone else’s song.
Sampling and Interpolating are costly. I’ve had clients go from getting 50% of the total publishing to 10% due to an interpolation and I’ve seen court cases with $50,000 payouts for a moderately successful song so I advise all of my clients to avoid sampling at all costs because it really eats into the revenue that they’ll collect during the life of their song.