Reply To: How can a newbie producer copyright their music?
Sam, thank-you so much for joining my platform to learn FL Studio!
As I am not a lawyer, my advice should not be taken as legal advice, and you should hire a professional regarding your situation.
Copyright is a very intense subject, but here’s some things that will help you get your answer faster.
First is supposedly whenever we make our music, it is “immediately copyrighted” by those creating it. This is why working by yourself is such a powerful choice, as you are the only copyright holder (unless you’ve signed an agreement, or did not carefully read your sound’s licensing, as sometimes they sneak in clauses regarding that they are part copyright owner – so make sure you’re using 100% royalty free copyright sounds).
Next, stealing is something that will happen even if you have big lawyers and lots of money, because people often “bite” or “mimic” someone’s style because they like their music, brand, etc.
At your early stages, this is not something to be concerned about.
Ways to mitigate “theft” is to voice tag the beat, so that someone can’t just record over your music without your voice tag being played. (Make sure your voice tag is audible so people know where to find you @ your website, and honestly, voice tagging is mainly just a way to brand your music, as people can slice/chop the music if they REALLY wanted to steal it).
Now if someone were to steal and use it publicly, without your knowledge, or consent, most often it is an artist with a smaller audience/budget. If it is a big time artist, then this would be up to you to see if you’d like to take legal action.
What I’ve come to understand is that.. nowadays, there is A LOT of music out there, and it’s more important that someone hears your music, and becomes aware of your brand. If theft becomes an issue, then I’d say look into it then!
But what I’ve read is that “copyright” immediately starts when you start making the music. That saved project is your evidence (.flp). Additionally, there are other tactics like “burning a CD with the song, and mailing yourself a copy”, but like I said, if you are new with a small audience, worrying about copyright is going to restrict you from learning how to make beats, build your brand and momentum, and is very little in the large scheme of things.
If things start happening on a large scale, then I’d look into it!
Hope that helps..