If I wanted to use a tiny (5 words) acapella sample from a major hip hop album released in 2002, is this basically a non-starter if I plan to try and do anything with the track when it’s finished?
I’m pretty sure copyright lasts for 50+ years but then I’ve heard loads of house tracks with samples from ~20 year old hip hop tracks.
Basically it would seem petty to care about it because it’s a tiny insignificant part of an old track, but I know that major labels can be fussy about this..
If the sample is that “petty” and “tiny” and “insignificant”…then dump it and use something else in your track.
If, on the other hand, the sample is part of the glue that binds your track together…then pursue the clearances to use that sample. As you lack any distribution at this point, the odds are good that the rights owner will not even want to talk to you…but you never know, they might have some “take it or leave it” license for under 5k copies.
Maybe “petty” and “insignificant” are the wrong words… what I mean is that it’s 5 words out of many hundreds in the original song. But of course I know that it’s still part of their original work so I don’t want to take the piss.
Thinking this is going to be a minefield from this and what I’ve already looked up. Thanks for the advice!
It’s unfinished and I don’t want to put a lot of work into it if it’s going to end up unusable.. sort of a catch 22. Shame because the sample works well!
Well…they were the words you picked out to describe the sample.
I applaud you for taking steps to “do the right thing.”
Finish the song regardless. Finish it. You can always play it live under the normal ASCAP/BMI license (in the US…I do NOT know what the EU laws are like…but you should be able to play the song live with few/no issues).
I have made dozens of mashups and remixes that I have and play live. I haven’t cleared the rights, so I’m not going to put them out anywhere…but it is still a TON of fun for me to keep making more.
You will only run into an issue if you want/need “mechanical rights” to reproduce the track and/or allow downloading of the track. If/when you decide you need the mechanical rights…you have two choices:
Get the rights.
Replace the sample.
If the track is otherwise solid…both paths are reasonable options.
I would focus more on finishing the song and not legalities. Kinda confuses me a bit that you’re looking at it backwards. From what I recall you’re a fairly new producer, this would be a perfect song to send out to other artists and ask for feedback, etc. A few will reply, most won’t… But that in my opinion is the best method of approach for this. If major artists like your tracks, you’ll score a huge connect.. If not then it’s time to archive it and move on to the next one. Maybe I come off as an ass but I don’ mean to, I just know how I was when I started out and I wish I had been more patient and laid back about releases.
Makes sense. I guess it’s because I spend a lot of time doing a day job and not producing, so I don’t want to spend a lot of the little time I have working on something that cold get me sued for whatever reason! Honestly I’m not that fussed about releases… my comment about major labels was referring to the owner of the sample.
I know the feeling dude. I work full time and then have to worry about producing and it eats at me knowing I could probably be 1000% better if I could just focus on this alone. But then I think about guys who are at the top, and how old they are, and how long they’ve been doing it… Then it kinda mellows me back out and I can hit the studio with a clear mind and a bit of motivation.
But on point, I would still finish the track, and if it’s good then send it out to artists to play! I honestly wouldn’t rush a release. Plus, what could be cooler than having someone you like tell you that your song is awesome, and to send them more lol.
I personally release anything for free that potentially has any copyright issues associated. If its only 5 words its probably a lot cheaper to buy a good mic and record something similar and use that instead.
find the artist in question on twitter and ask them directly. they normally know the quickest and correct route to getting clearance. you could also put it on Soundcloud and let them block you, you will deffinately find out who owns the rigts LOL
Pretty much every modern distributor will review tracks before release to check for any copyright discrepancies. This protects the distributor if you are self releasing. If you are releasing through a label, it depends on your contract with the label. We take all responsibility of copyright in our contracts for Bassline Syndicate. This does take creative control away from the artist, but protects them.
If it is an artist that was ever famous whatsoever, take the extra ten minutes to find the copyright owner and at least reach out to them. If they refuse to respond, save the correspondence for future protection to yourself. You should use something similar to Sidekick to track your e-mails.
Good luck and happy producing.
That’s not ridiculous at all. It could actually be worse. If the artist blows up, or even just does well. They can go after him for the sales, rights for the tune, pull it altogether, sue him for any profit he may have made off of any performance, etc. Always get your samples cleared. It’s safe practice that will protect you in the future. You would be surprised how often you will get an e-mail stating that you can just use it for free.
