Can you still use your own music in your own content after selling to a library?

[ceoofrock]

It would certainly suck to get a copyright strike for using your own music.
My situation is I’ve written about 9 music tracks worthy of submitting to libraries since getting started in December, almost 3 months ago. While I want to submit to libraries and register the songs with BMI and AdRev, I also don’t want to get copyright struck if I use some of the songs for some audiobooks I want to produce (stories written by myself).

For those who have been learning about music business for a long time, what would you do as a musician and content creator who wanted to use their own music for their content and also sell it? Do you make a contract with yourself for the songs you are going to use or are you automatically protected? Can you still make an exclusive deal on a song you already used in a project?

[Art Munson]

While I want to submit to libraries and register the songs with BMI and AdRev, I also don’t want to get copyright struck if I use some of the songs for some audiobooks I want to produce (stories written by myself).

If not signed to a library you own all rights to the songs and can do whatever you want to them. A copyright strike would not happen with an audio book if not on YouTube. With AdRev you just whitelist your channel.

Once you get into the world of placing your music with libraries, it all depends on the contract. You will most likely have a freer hand with non-exclusive. Exclusive would most likely be more restrictive. Every library contract is different so read the fine print.

[DavidM]

I always ask the libraries I’m with if it’s ok to use some of my signed work for self promotion of myself to other libraries, and they’re fine with that.

[MaxPower]

As soon as I have written any exclusive work and the contract is signed I consider it gone. I don’t send it to anyone or sample it or rework it or try to use it in any way. The library will send it where they want to and do with it what they will – I just move on to the next project.

[ceoofrock]

Okay, I think I’ll go non-excl first and see if the free market responds well to the 7 synthwave tracks I’ve made. If so, I’ll make some more. If not, I’ll try another genre for a while to improve my skills.

If an exclusive deal comes up, I’ll simply include as a stipulation that I can use my own work for self-promotion purposes (and a revision clause – no sense them holding onto something they can’t or wont sell). If I can get agreement on those two things, it’s more likely to work for me.

Or just get good enough at composing and workflow to write songs for myself as needed. Right now it takes like one week per track which is slow going.

Thanks for your help.

[Madeline Preisner]

I am very interested in this question and for the same reason. I have also thought of publishing or just posting my book of songs with the thoughts that inspired them. Also, that it would be a good format to showcase the music for potential licensors. I wouldn’t think there would be a conflict unless their usage was an ebook or iiBook.
I am curious, what software or format are you using to create your book?
I started putting something together in iBook but didn’t want to limit it to Apple products so then started building in HTML but I would like to incorporate Art, Video & Animation so a Software that had a nice interface would be really lovely.

[Xave Ryan]

My understanding of exclusive is it’s in the name. The library wants exclusive rights to your music, So perhaps in your case a non exclusive might be the answer. But is it true that non excl are on the way out? Again, from my what I’ve read there seems to a problem with non excl because of this practice of renaming tracks. This can cause problem of payment when a track shows up in the same place but under two different names. I suppose at the end of the day a good music lawyer is the way to go when looking at a contract. And yes a revision clause is a must. I was watching a webinar recently of a convention for music licencing. A woman on the panel said her company only works in “in perpetuity”. So never sign one of those.

[Author]

Posts