Music publishing companies involve the following jobs; finding songwriters/composers and A&R promotion. This is an important role as some artists do not compose their own songs, and for big record companies where there are many artists, composers and songwriters are needed. They are the core reason music can be made in the first place to be manufactured and distributed out there.
The music publisher is responsible for the payments to these songwriters and composers. They maintain the contracts made to them, which are referred to as the ‘publishing’ contracts. When the song writer assigns the copyright of a composition to a company, in return the company licenses that piece of composition and distributes royalties collected to the composers. They are another form of promoting the music to get it ‘out there’ on things like TV, radio and films. They create contracts to give permission for the artists and the compositions made to perform at many venues.
The songwriter writes the lyrics of a song. They sometimes write the music as well as the song, but that is mostly the composer’s job. However, nowadays songs are usually written by staff writers who are paid by and work under the music publisher. In the olden times a songwriter needed to be working under a record label to be able to write songs, but as technology has improved many do not need a record label as they can record at home, studio time is not needed for the writing process. However, even though the songwriter is not under the record label he/she still needs to sign a contract and follow the terms and conditions of the company they have written that song for.
A composer does similar things to that of a songwriter. They create music for performance but can write the lyrics if they feel the need to or are asked by the record label they are working for. Composers also do not need to have a record label as they can get a mixing table and create a home studio to be able to work and compose their music on. They also get paid royalties compared to how well the record sells and if they have or have not written the lyrics for that composition.
A&R, Artists and repertoire, is a very important element that has a big role in the whole sound and music industry. It is the pure reason artists are found as it is responsible for talent scouting and keeping track of artist development. It helps maintain the relationship between the record label and artist.
When scouting for new artists they need to know what is ‘in’ and what will sell. If they cannot perform live and fill the venue, then they will not be picked. This is one of the reason most A&R people are young, record producers, musicians who have been in the industry for a while or even music journalists. They are people who know what they are looking for and know how to get it. They often offer the record contract to the scouted artists. This contract explains the relationship between the artist and the record company the artist will be entering. However, most contracts will be carried out by entertainment lawyers that are hired by the musician’s manager or the A&R’s record company.
The A&R are in charge of overlooking the development of the artists. This includes seeing the recording process, which includes helping the artist find the right record producer, scheduling for studio time and promotion.
The A&R play a very big role in the development, promotion and creation of an artist. It also is the biggest role in the music publishing company and links very well with songwriter and composer as they have to find good songwriters and composers if the artist does not write his/her own songs.
Music publishing companies are very important and have a lot of power when it comes to looking for new and ‘raw’ talent. The jobs it involves are big and have a major impact on the sound and music industry.
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