Have you ever wondered how is it that an artist could not sell a lot of records and yet still have a jaguar in their driveway? Expensive car and a house to match. Must be the life. Either their going to be really broke in the near future, or their really smart when it came to their business in music.
Today I’m going to tell you a secret that’s been under everyone’s noses for a very long time and the only people who know about it are the one’s actually doing it. What is this all mighty secret you ask? Music publishing. That’s right. One song could make you hundreds of thousands of dollars. If it’s big enough, maybe even millions. Don’t believe me? Ask Usher Raymond how much money he’s STILL making off of “Yea.” You know that hot joint produced by Lil’ Jon featuring Ludacris off of “Confessions?” It’s not getting as many radio plays as it was, but I’m sure every once in a while you hear it some time or another. So what does this have to do with publishing you ask? Well, I’m about to tell you.
No fat all, beef here so we won’t waste each others’ time. Every time “Yea” by Usher Raymond was played, he was paid. Seriously, if you know at least a little about the music business, you know that there is a such thing as PROs (Performance Rights Organizations) whose jobs are to make sure artists are paid for their music used whenever the general public is involved. Now the fee depends on where and how the music is used. The bigger the broadcast, the bigger the payment. The larger the usage volume, the bigger the payment. For example, if Hot 97 used the song for an average of ten times a day, then you’re looking at a pretty heavy payment after a few months(we’re talking five to six figures). Thing is, that is only one radio station. With thousands in the country who knows how much someone could make. Oh, this goldmine doesn’t stop there. Publishing spans to commercials, television shows, and movies. On top of that, everything mentioned will also includes the internet(internet radio, internet sitcoms, etc). Anytime your music is used you’re entitled to compensation.
Publishing is so big, I can’t believe more people don’t know about it. It’s so much money to be made that your losing out by not, at least, dipping in it a little bit while working on your career. Don’t sell yourself short by not trying it out. With publishing, you could actually have the money needed to do whatever there is that is needed to be done as far as your artist development is concerned. Just Google “music publishing” and you’ll find tons of music publishing companies and information. I highly recommend “Making Music Make Money.” This was the book that really opened my eyes to the publishing aspect of the music industry and I guarantee you that you won’t regret spending your time to read it. You can find a link to the book on my blog page on my website presented below in the reference box. Don’t sell yourself short; research, study, then apply. You won’t regret it.
