|
One outlet for marketing your original song material is the traditional
route of submitting your compositions to song publishers. Most publishers
have far more connections in the business than the average songwriter
and are more likely to be able to place your song in a significant
project than if you are marketing it yourself. Some artists who use
outside material never look beyond a few publishers they know for
song material. As you'll see though, not every publishing deal is
a good one. Thanks to Chris Rogers of Troy, Michigan for submitting
the questions. |
| How
difficult is it to get a contract with a music publisher? From what
I've read, it sounds like it is quite difficult and it sounds like
the process is very much slanted in favor of the music publisher. |
| I
would not characterize obtaining a legit publishing contract as extremely
difficult. Most songwriters achieve that goal within a year or two
of starting to seriously market their work if they're persistent and
their work is the type of song a publisher would use. Many songwriters
I've worked with have drawers full of publishing contracts. It's a
matter of quality and persistence. If your material is off-the-wall
stuff, then it may be more advantageous to explore self-publishing. |
| In
general, a new songwriter has little choice but to accept a fairly
standard contract or walk away from a single song deal. If the publisher
wants a particular song bad enough—anything's possible but you
have to remember that only a percentage of songs a publisher contracts
are ever recorded so it's to the songwriter's advantage to have many
songs signed to many publishers. |
| In
entering into a contract with a music publisher, are there certain
common pitfalls that should be avoided? As a practical matter, if
the business is slanted in favor of the publisher, how much real leverage
does a songwriter have? |
| Unless
you have a track record of hits, you have no leverage other than the
strength of the song itself so don't haggle over points like percentages
unless they're seriously out of whack. Most publishers won't put up
with too much hassle over just one song. One point you should negotiate
is a reasonable reversion clause giving the rights back to you if
no recording has been secured (the Songwriter's Guild of Americacontract
has one). Most reversions are from one to five years. If the publisher
has a great track record, I'd be comfortable letting them hold it
for a slightly longer period. |
| Should
a songwriter enter into a publishing contract with a music publisher
who specializes in placing songs in film and TV? Wouldn't entering
into a contract with one of these publishers limit the potential value
that might be realized from a song? |
| Yes,
it could limit the potential earnings. If the publisher handles movies
or TV exclusively the song may only receive one chance, if the movie
flops the publisher owns the publishing rights and may not promote
it any further, especially if the publishing company is a satellite
of a larger company that focuses on movie production. Perhaps investigate
their track record in this area. If it's poor and you think your song
has potential beyond movies, I'd recommend exhausting all other possibilities
first. |
| How
can you tell a good publishing company from a bad one? I've read that
some publishers will sign a contract simply to have more songs in
their catalog and will do nothing with the song once they have the
rights to it. How does one avoid a situation like that? |
Look
for some commitment on their part in the form of a small advance and/or
re-demoing and/or an agreement to promote the song in terms of the
number of contacts they'll make. Basically, you're looking for them
to put some of their time or money into your song, which practically
guarantees they're interested in getting the song cut, not just expanding
their catalog. If you can get any of those things in writing, that
would be a sign they're serious.
 |
As
the owner of Play It Again Demos and Listen Again Music, Bill Watson's
experience in publishing and marketing songs spans 15 years. For more
tips visit www.BillWatson.net
where you'll find reports and free articles of interest to songwriters.
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