Music Publishing & Songwriting

I’m not big on scare tactics.

But every once in a while, it’s not bad to get a sudden glimpse of the darkside– just enough to jolt you from the stupor of complacency with the sudden realization that “Hey, it’s a jungle out here!” Yup. Always was, always will be.

In the middle of the flurry of holiday merry-making that constitutes the last month of work (?) in the music industry calendar year, I received one of those jolts of reality– from a songwriter friend of mine just recently returned from a sudden plunge into the abyss. As we caught up on the year’s activities at the BMI Holiday party, he recounted to me a horror tale that served to remind me that some of those music business weasels surrounding us that evening, as charming and harmless as they might appear (which was not all that charming or harmless really), were still predatory and dangerous beasts.

Two years ago, my friend had a song on an album that became a sizeable UK hit– needless to say, it promised a significant windfall for a songwriter who had achieved some success, but never quite had the good fortune to score a major US single. (Obviously, the names here have been omitted, to protect the innocent, and the not-so innocent). As he was signed to a US publishing company, my friend assumed that his publisher, obviously aware of the success of the album, would take the necessary steps to collect the money earned by the song. So he waited. And waited.

As a year went by and earnings failed to materialize, he became concerned (that’s an understatement). Finally, he began to do his own research as to what had happened to the pot of gold that was supposed to be at the end of his rainbow. It had vanished into thin air.

Well, not exactly. It had vanished into someone else’s pocket. It seems that my friend’s publisher, mired in paperwork as most publishers are, had failed to properly register the song with MCPS-PRS in the UK (their version of Harry Fox). Consequently, the money that had been earned by the writer fell into the vast pit of unclaimed earnings. That’s a big, ugly cauldron where confusion reigns supreme, and nothing and no one is safe.

How big is it? You can’t imagine. As a member of MCPS-PRS, our publishing company receives a document semi-annually that lists the unclaimed monies, with song titles and often with the names of the writers. The document is well over fifty pages long. Some titles are well-known hits, by superstar artists. The fact that a writer’s money falls into the unclaimed file doesn’t mean that the writer or the artist is obscure or unknown. It merely means that the song has not been properly registered, and therefore, the society has no place to send the money. It’s a very educational list.

Therein lies the problem. For an unscrupulous publisher, such a list is an invitation to treachery. After all, here is a list of titles, many of them recognizable from successful albums, representing money that the true writers and publishers don’t even know exists. What’s to stop another publisher from forging a contract, and claiming that money on behalf of the writer? Not much it seems. This is what seems to have happened to my friend.

But that’s stealing, right? Uh, yes. Surely one can take legal action to reclaim the money that was taken illegally. Well, sort of. My friend could have hired a lawyer in the UK (not all that easy, and definitely not cheap) to sue the other publishing company. It’s a pretty good strategy, if there’s over several hundred thousand dollars at stake. But when one calculates the costs of a two-year legal wrangle in a foreign country, it’s not a a very practical undertaking for any amount under $200,000. Keep in mind that there is no way to know exactly how much may have been stolen, until you launch an investigation, an audit, etc. More importantly, remember that most of the money on the Unclaimed Income list is money that the writer and publishers don’t even know is out there. Nine times out of ten, no one will ever find out that it’s gone.

So what’s the moral of this sordid little tale? What can a writer do to protect him or herself in the Darwinian world of the music biz? Start by obeying the first law of the jungle: Don’t leave money lying around.

1. Check your registrations. Then check them again. BMI, ASCAP, and Harry Fox all have systems that allow you to check that your song is registered correctly. Even if you’re signed to a publishing company, you still need to check and re-check those registrations. A publisher has a responsibility, but in many cases not a legal requirement to register your songs. This is not an area for blind faith. Trust, but verify.

2. Make some friends. Get to know your ASCAP, BMI, or SESAC representatives. If you do a lot of business in the UK, then make some contacts at MCPS/PRS. You need to know people, and just as importantly they need to know you. Low profile is no profile.

3. Act fast. I’m amazed at how many writers have a hit, then spend a year or two trying to decide if they want a publishing deal, who they should sign to, what society they want to affiliate with, etc. All the while, the money being earned by the song is languishing in “copyright control” or “unclaimed earnings”. If you put a $1000 on the sidewalk, would you expect it to be there a year later? Time is of the essence.

This is not a happy story. It’s unfortunate that the industry has people who will rip-off songwriters and others in the creative community. These “take the money and run” types are not the majority, but they’re not rare birds either. The reality is that they prey on the ignorance or inattention or complacency of legitimate writers and publishers. That’s the value of the wake-up call. Lost money will not find its own way home. Nor will it remain lost forever. If it’s yours, you have to go out and get it.