How to Protect Your Music
Most music gets lost through paperwork nobody did, not through theft. Splits nobody wrote down, samples nobody cleared, files nobody controlled. Here is how to fix each one.
Agree Songwriting Splits in the Room
A split sheet records who wrote what percentage of a song. It is the single highest-value piece of paper in independent music, and it takes about five minutes.
Without one, co-writers are often presumed to be equal co-owners, and each co-owner may be able to license the song non-exclusively without the others' permission. That is fine until it isn't.
A split sheet should capture:
- Song title, date, and where it was written
- Every writer's legal name, contact, PRO affiliation, and IPI/CAE number
- Each writer's percentage — totalling 100%
- Any publisher for each writer
- Signatures or a clear written confirmation from everyone
Three questions to settle up front
- Does producing or arranging earn a writing share in your band, or not?
- Who owns the master recording — the band, or whoever paid for the session?
- What happens to the songs, the name, and the masters if a member leaves?
Band agreements are a bigger conversation than a split sheet and genuinely worth an attorney's time — especially the leaving-member question, which is where most band disputes actually start.
Clear Samples Before You Release
Because a song carries two copyrights, sampling a record usually needs two clearances: one from the owner of the master recording (often a label), and one from the publisher of the underlying composition.
- Length is not a defence. There is no number of seconds that is automatically safe.
- Interpolation still needs clearance. Replaying a part yourself avoids the master clearance, but the composition is still someone else's.
- Royalty-free libraries have licences. Read them. Many restrict commercial release, sync use, or resale, and the terms can change between the free and paid tiers.
- Cover songs are different. Recording someone else's song for release generally runs through a mechanical licence, which is a routine, priced process — not the negotiation that sample clearance is.
An uncleared sample can mean a takedown, withheld royalties, or a claim on the entire song. Clear it before release day, not after it charts.
Keep Unreleased Work Contained
Demos leak through convenience: an open shared-drive link, a public download, a WAV emailed to a dozen people. Tighten distribution and most of the risk disappears.
- Send private, expiring streaming links instead of downloadable files
- Share the specific track a collaborator needs, not the whole session folder
- Watermark or uniquely name files sent to press and playlisters, so a leak is traceable
- Keep dated backups of stems and session files — timestamps are evidence
- Revoke access when someone leaves the project, rather than assuming they will delete it
When you pitch unreleased music to press or curators, a private page on your own site with an expiring link beats a public file host: you keep the record of who you sent it to, and you can take it down.
Handle Infringement Calmly
If your music turns up somewhere you did not authorise, the usual route is a takedown notice to the platform — not a fight with the uploader.
- 1Document it. Screenshot the page, save the URL, and note the date before anything changes.
- 2Check whether it is actually unauthorised. Distributors place your music on services you may not have expected, and fan-uploaded content is sometimes covered by a platform licence.
- 3Use the platform's copyright form. Every major service has one. It will ask you to identify the work, the infringing URL, and to state under penalty of perjury that your claim is accurate.
- 4Only claim what you own. A knowingly false or careless takedown can expose you to liability. If ownership is shared or unclear, sort that out first.
- 5Escalate deliberately. If the upload is commercial, repeated, or the counter-notice route gets used against you, that is the point to bring in an attorney — and the point where having registered the work starts to matter.
Your Own Site Is Part of the Protection
Almost every step above depends on records: what you released, when, who wrote it, and who you sent it to. Platforms you do not control can change terms, lose your history, or disappear.
GigPro gives you a website you own with dated release pages and credits, an EPK that lists your writers and rights-holders, and contact records of who you have pitched — the paper trail, in one place you control.
Frequently Asked Questions
- When should we agree on songwriting splits?
- In the room, on the day you write it. Splits are easy to agree while everyone is happy and nearly impossible to renegotiate once a song makes money. Write them down and have everyone confirm in writing before you leave the session.
- Do I need to clear a sample if it is only two seconds?
- There is no safe-harbour duration. Sampling a recording generally requires permission from both the master owner and the publisher of the composition, regardless of length. Recreating the part yourself avoids the master clearance but not the composition clearance.
- Someone re-uploaded my song. What do I do?
- Most platforms have a copyright takedown form. A DMCA notice must be accurate and made in good faith — misrepresenting a claim carries its own liability. Send it to the platform, not to the uploader, and keep a copy of everything.
- How do I stop demos from leaking?
- Control distribution. Use private, expiring links rather than public downloads, watermark or tag files you send out, keep unreleased material off shared drives with open links, and send collaborators the specific track they need rather than the whole session folder.
- Does a band name need trademark protection?
- Copyright does not cover names. A name is trademark territory, and rights generally come from actual use in commerce. Search thoroughly before committing to a name, and talk to an attorney if you are investing heavily in one.
Keep Your Records Straight
Release pages, credits, EPK, and contacts — on a site you own, not a platform that can change the rules.