What Is a Music Publisher?
A music publisher manages and exploits the rights in a composition — the melody and lyrics, not the recording. It registers your works with collecting societies, collects publishing royalties worldwide, grants licenses for film and advertising, for example, and actively looks for new uses. In return, it receives a share of the income from the composition. The label takes care of the master; the publisher takes care of the song behind it.
What exactly does a music publisher do?
A publisher’s work has three parts. First, administration: registering works, documenting every co-writer’s share, and consolidating and checking income from many countries and sources. Second, exploitation: granting licenses for film, TV, advertising or games, approving cover versions, licensing sheet music and lyrics. Third, development: connecting songwriters with other artists, pitching songs for sync placements and opening doors. How much of this a publisher actually delivers depends heavily on the individual contract.
Publishing vs. master — the key distinction
Every released song generates two kinds of income. The recording, the master, earns master royalties — paid out by your distributor or label. The composition earns publishing royalties: performance royalties, mechanical royalties and sync fees. These flow through collecting societies and publishers. If you write songs and release them yourself, you often own both sides — and have to look after both so no money gets left behind.
What kinds of publishing deals are there?
In a traditional publishing deal, the songwriter assigns the publishing rights in their works to the publisher long-term, and the publisher keeps part of the income in return. In a co-publishing deal, songwriter and publisher share the publishing side, and the songwriter remains a co-owner. In an administration deal (admin deal), the rights stay with the songwriter; the publisher only handles registration and collection for a commission, usually for a shorter term. An advance is often part of the deal and is offset against future income — see recoupment.
Do I need a publisher as an independent artist?
Not necessarily. You can join a collecting society and register your works yourself; this is called self-publishing. A publisher is mainly worth it if your songs are used internationally, you regularly work with co-writers, or you’re actively going after sync placements. Before you sign anything, check the term, the reversion of rights, the publisher’s share and whether the publisher actually exploits your songs or merely administers them.
Sync: where publishing and master meet
For a sync license, a film or ad producer needs clearance from both sides: the composition from the publisher and the recording from the master owner. If you control both yourself, you’re especially attractive to music supervisors, because a single yes is enough. That’s exactly what the OGRECORDS™ sync marketplace is for: you list tracks with a complete rights profile, and license requests come straight to you.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the difference between a label and a publisher?
The label exploits the recording (the master); the publisher exploits the composition (melody and lyrics). A song can be signed to a label and a publisher that have nothing to do with each other.
What percentage does a music publisher take?
That depends on the type of deal: an admin deal usually costs only a commission on the income collected, while a traditional publishing deal or co-publishing deal splits the publishing side. Always compare offers by share, term and reversion of rights.
What does self-publishing mean in music?
You keep the publishing rights yourself, register your works directly with your collecting society and collect both the writer’s and the publisher’s share. The trade-off: you have to handle registration, tracking and license requests yourself.
Does my music distributor handle publishing?
No. A distributor delivers recordings and pays out the master side. Publishing royalties come through collecting societies or a publisher.
How do I find a reputable music publisher?
Ask for references and recent placements, have them show you which countries they collect in themselves or through partners, and check the term and reversion of rights. A reputable publisher explains its statements clearly and never charges you a fee for signing you.
Get your music into film, ads and games.
List tracks with a complete rights profile on the sync marketplace and receive license requests directly.