If you “borrow” a beat from another artist, you need to work with a music layer in order to make sure you have covered all of your bases – otherwise you could be facing severe copyright violations.
Sampling is where you take a pre-existing recording or a musical composition and use it within your own new piece. It may sound almost recognizable, but it is still someone else’s recording or composition that you are borrowing and therefore you need to clear the sample licenses.
There are two different copyrights that take place with music. You’ve got one for the sound recording, which is usually owned by the record label and you’ve got one for the actual music composition or sound, which is usually owned by the publisher. If you wish to sample music, then you need to clear copyrights for both of these –which involves obtaining permission.
If you fail to clear the sample licenses and you go on to make music using these samplings within your songs, it may be fine for now. If your music makes it onto the radio, however, all it takes is one person to recognize the sample for you to be in big trouble. You have infringed upon copyright law and the record label and publisher may decide to go after you in order to teach you a lesson – and protect their own intellectual property.
The fines and penalties that you would face against the infringement of copyrights have everything to do with the size of the label and how well-known the publisher is. Some are going to go after you harder than others would. In order to avoid these kinds of problems entirely, it’s best to avoid it – and get the permissions from the very beginning.
You will need to figure out what you are sampling from. This includes learning who the composer is, where the usage is, who the record label is and begin engaging in clearance correspondence where you can get the permission. You need to determine whether you are sampling from the master recording or just the composition. This will help you to identify where you need the permissions.
Agreements and negotiations will need to take place to allow you to sample the music in your own recordings. This may include a simple document to be drafted and signed by all parties and it may require that you pay for rights to sample – and this could include the original record label or publisher gaining rights to continue to profit from your music for as long as you continue to profit from the music using their sample.
Recording industry contracts and audio license rights can be extremely complicated, which is why it’s best to contact a music layer before you do anything. No matter how much you want a particular sample of music from a particular band, you may have to wait to get the permissions before you start stealing the guitar solo or the sound of the drums found in the chorus of a favorite song.
A music lawyer will be able to provide you with the representation you need to make sure that you have thought of everything. Even if you are a small band that has no record deal, all it takes is one good song to send you into the spotlight. And if that one song that’s sending you from the spotlight features sampling without the proper clearance, you are going to be finished before you had a chance to get started.
Clearing sample licenses is a necessary legal action to take. While it may be a little complicated to do on your own, it shouldn’t stop you from sampling music that you want to incorporate into your own. There is simply a right way and a wrong way to go about everything. Take the time to understand where your music is coming from so you can make the necessary requests.
You never have to contact the record labels and publishers on your own. It will be easier to get an entertainment lawyer to handle the contact so everything can be done properly from the very beginning. This will not only speed up the process but protect you moving forward so you never have to worry about someone coming after you for copyright infringement.
About the Author
Corey Andalus is the President of Article Composers, a blog posting service. Learn more by visiting his website at ArticleComposers.com.
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