The Importance of Copyright Law to Musicians

 

Copyright Law and Musicians

Copyright law exists to protect and promote education and creative works. It extends to all forms of original work fixed in a tangible medium. For musicians, copyright law protects their rights as a creator to have exclusive rights and control over their music. All copyrights are valid until 70 years after the death of the last surviving author/creator. After its expiration, the work becomes part of the public domain and can be used without a license or permission. While copyrights are active, there are six exclusive rights that a musician and/or copyright owner has: 

    1. To reproduce the copyrighted work in copies or phonorecords (physical or digital); 

    2. To prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work; 

    3. To distribute copies or phonorecords of the copyrighted work to the public;

    4. To perform the copyrighted work publicly; 

    5. To display the copyrighted work publicly; 

    6. To perform the copyrighted work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission.

For general copyright information, click the link to visit the website for the U.S. Copyright Office

How can I get permission to use a song?

In order to legally use a song for any and all exclusive rights granted to the copyright owner, the user must get the proper license. There are a variety of licenses the user can acquire for general use or individual projects. For a list of the six major licenses, visit my third Blog Post.

There are also a number of songs in the public domain. The public domain is all creative works that are not protected with a copyright and can be used by anyone without permission/licensing. These works are free to the user and can be used for whatever purpose the user chooses.

Music in Political Campaigns: 

Political campaigns are filled with music. It can be heard in the background of ads and throughout rallies. Although, these events are inherently different from other ads or public performances. When a song is utilized to promote a candidate, it becomes a part of their political movement. Without proper licensing and additional permission from the copyright owner, it not only affects their profit, but their intention and meaning of their art. That meaning is entirely up to the artists discretion. For this type of use, it can be granted with the appropriate licensing and artists permission. 

Why it is important: 

For any creator, it is important to have legal protection to prevent your work from being misused or stolen. Every time a copyright is infringed upon that directly affects the owner or creator. This result can be monetary loss, or in some cases, a misuse of the work without permission from. 

In today’s current climate, it is easier than ever to infringe on a musician or songwriter’s copyright for their song. Music is easily accessible on any device that can connect to the internet. Any platform that you can freely access music on, there is a potential to download and use that music for personal projects or other uses. Copyright protection is essential for musicians to chose exactly how their work is being used and get paid properly for it.