I was just wondering if somebody could explain to me how bands get their royalty payments. I've always wondered about this. Does the band get the
money and split it? What about a band like Agnostic Front or Murphy's Law who've had numerous people in the band over the years. Do the payments go
to the people who played on a specific album? I've always wondered how this works as it seems like it could be very complicated.JawnDiablo - 11-24-2005 at 07:03 PM
im sure rev paulie could add something to this post if hes lurking...newbreedbrian - 11-24-2005 at 11:13 PM
royalties in general go the writer of a song (or at least the person credited with writing a song) but you're correct that it is fairly complicated.clevohardcore - 11-25-2005 at 12:29 AM
I heard after a while companies may send checks for like 3 dollars and shit if a record is old and only has a few purchases from recent customers.
Like say SOIA had a few buys in ohio on scratch the surface(94) because of a recent tour but they have a new record out called yours truely(2001) on
another label.jonnynewbreed - 11-25-2005 at 11:09 AM
Usually for bands regardless of songwriting credits the album royalties are split up between the band members just like a live show. The record label
has recoupable costs that they are intitled to take before a band gets paid royalties (usually around a buck a copy sold).
The songwriting royalties really only come into play when something is being played on the radio or TV or Movies, video games etc. There are re
numeration non profit companies like SOCAN in canada, ASCAP or BMI in the usa, GEMA in germany and around a thousand more. You have to register your
songs with these companies before you will see any royalties out of airplay.
A top 10 song in canada will bring in around 35,000 bux in royalties, where as a top 10 song in the usa will bring in around 350,000 bux in royalties
for the songwriter(s). (licensing a song to film or tv can bring in much much more but thats something totally different)
I was glad to see that thorp has started to license music out (video games) as it can be a bigger revenue source than record sales for both the artist
and label/publisher.gavin - 11-25-2005 at 04:25 PM
so, how do i make $ off my crappy band?XHonusWagnerX - 11-25-2005 at 04:42 PM
Not all bands actually split it evenly. I know some bands where the songs were written musically and lyrically by one person and that person earns all
the royalties. As far as I have seen that is where the money goes for performances also. Even though the entire band performs the song live, only the
writer(s) get royalties for it being performed live. That also carries true when a band covers a song performed by another band, only the writer(s)
get any money out of that.
For example.... The Bosstones covered 'Whats at Stake'. the song was originally recorded by Slapshot (a 5 member band at the time) However, only the
song writer receives any royalties.
I also know that the Offspring songs are written musically by Noodle and lyrically by Dexter. Those 2 members of the band have earned ALOT more money
then the other members.clevohardcore - 11-25-2005 at 04:43 PM
Noodle and Dexter??? HAHAHAHAHA THats some of the memebers names?jonnynewbreed - 11-25-2005 at 05:20 PM
Yes for performance royalties only the songwriters get the moola. And there are bands that have a varying pay scale for the members.JawnDiablo - 11-25-2005 at 06:20 PM
i think i need to write some potentially trendy songs, market them correctly and make like a master p and pimp it till retirement....JUICE MAYNE MSHC - 11-25-2005 at 07:03 PM
To answer your question way more accurately...most hardcore band royalties amount up to enough money to buy some gum. That's it.jason kills - 11-25-2005 at 07:10 PM
yep...i'm livin large on mine....
hahahahaXHonusWagnerX - 11-25-2005 at 07:18 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by JUICE MAYNE MSHC
To answer your question way more accurately...most hardcore band royalties amount up to enough money to buy some gum. That's it.
well said! Its really all about having a long lasting career and be well known/cool enough that some other bands want to cover your crap. Then if even
one of those bands get big you can make money that way.
Hell I wish I wrote songs that got covered by Dinosaur Jr., The Bosstones & the Dropkick Murphys!Discipline - 11-25-2005 at 11:27 PM
I know a lot of hardcore bands get little or no royalties, I just wondered how it works. I've just always wondered how it works that have had untold
numbers of people in the band. My next question was gonna be about the publishing rights. Is that separate from what the bands get for album sales,
or is it all the same thing?jonnynewbreed - 11-26-2005 at 10:04 AM
Publishing rights is completley different. You have to break it down into groups:
1. Album Sales - Usually a buck a record after label recoups their costs ( thorp actually has a better system for smaller bands)
2. Radio Play - Songwriters recieve royalties on songs that are played on T.V or Radio that have been registered with a renumeration company.
3. Publishing Rights - Bands maintain their own publishing until they sign it to someone else. That 3rd party is supposed to make them more money by
promoting thier music to film and T.V. as well as trying to sell thier songs to other artists.
4. Live Performance - You know how that works. You pay 10 bux to see a band and the venue takes a cut, the booking agent takes a cut, and the
management of the band takes a cut.
these are how bands make money from performance. they are all completley different areas of the industry and most DIY bands take care of all of these
things themselves and don't make much money outside of live shows. Getting on the radio is costly and not viable for indie bands (unless its
satillite radio which is much better). Signing a publishing deal can be good as the publishing company only takes a cut on what they produce for you
and if there was nothing before then you're ahead.Barnesey - 12-5-2005 at 04:29 PM
My label & the labels I work with generally split everything 50/50 after recouping the cost they've put into the release. As far as who gets paid,
whoever is on the contract gets paid.
