Song usage Permission

[renips]

Can someone advise what is involved with getting permission to record a remake of another artists song. How and where would I start to seek permission and how does the sale of the song get handled monetarily?

Thanks

[greggo]

You need to obtain a license. There are several different kinds. Most of them are handled through the Harry Fox Agency http://www.harryfox.com/public/licenseHome.jsp. It's been a while since I've done it and I wasn't doing the handling, but I believe I paid something like $25 for the first 300 downloads. It was fairly inexpensive and not that difficult. I suppose it depends on the artist whose rights you're trying to obtain. In my situation, I just went through Harry Fox and didn't need the artists permission.

G

[renips]

You need to obtain a license. There are several different kinds. Most of them are handled through the Harry Fox Agency http://www.harryfox.com/public/licenseHome.jsp. It's been a while since I've done it and I wasn't doing the handling, but I believe I paid something like $25 for the first 300 downloads. It was fairly inexpensive and not that difficult. I suppose it depends on the artist whose rights you're trying to obtain. In my situation, I just went through Harry Fox and didn't need the artists permission.

G

Right on Greggo. I really appreciate the info.

[suzdoyle]

Ditto on Harry Fox.

Keep in mind that you can sell your recording of a cover song FOR PERSONAL USE (as a track on a CD, an MP3 download or a live stream); however, you cannot license it for production use without further permission from the copyright owner of the original song.

So, you can sell your track via CD Baby, iTunes, Amazon etc. (on your CD or as a single MP3/ live audio stream track), but are not allowed to make it available for production licensing via Music libraries.

Hope this helps!
Suz