hiring demo singers on work for hire

[Rossmusic]

NON-LAWYER DISCLAIMER (as always)... Consult a qualified music attorney.

There are 2 different copyrights/ownerships on a recorded piece of music:
(A) The song itself (music and lyrics)
(B) The recording

Thanks Casey. I think I get it now.

I've just reviewed a WFH acknowledgment with a Demo Studio - probably the standard version - and it specifically states that the songwriter owns the Master, and can do whatever they wish with it, with the proviso that they can't use the studio's artists' likenesses or names to promote it. They also confirm that they will make no copyright claims on the music and lyrics, which is a prudent thing to have in writing as well.

A songwriter should be able to prove they own the Master because otherwise all they're entitled to for certain is mechanical royalties as writer and presumably publisher. You wouldn't have to be sued by the Studio to run into problems, you might be subject to hold-backs of royalties for the recording if you couldn't prove that you owned the Master, for example.

[Casey H]

Just to keep it simple and non-legaleeze...

If you have other musicians, vocalists, etc. perform on your recordings and you want to license those recordings for film/TV (which includes placing recordings in music libraries since the purpose is the same), you need proper WFH agreements signed by all performers.

BTW, on occasion, I have been asked by a music library for copies of my WFH agreements.

Going beyond that here, discussing the details of a specific agreement, etc. is too far over the line of giving legal advice.

Best of luck,
Casey

[suzdoyle]

What Casey said!

I would also add that , in addition to having your legal bases covered so the song is free and clear for potential placements, it's a good practice to have clear agreements in writings for anybody involved in writing, co-writing, performing, or recording any of your music. That way there are no misunderstandings.

,
Suz