IAR Owner and Founder, Erin M. Jacobson, Esq. will be speaking at the 2017 Taxi Road Rally, November 3-4, 2017! Here is her schedule: Friday, November 3, 2017 from 2:45-4:15 pm / La Guardia Room (Mezzanine Level / 2nd Floor) Don’t Get Screwed! How to Protect Yourself as an Independent Musician with Erin…
All music starts with a composition, which is one of the reasons why I love the area of music publishing. Despite the low streaming rates, there is still a lot of activity and money to be made on the publishing side of music. Whether you are a writer signing with…
Musicians often ask me when they need to “get it in writing” as opposed to just having a verbal agreement or handshake deal. The real answer to that question is that you should always get agreements in writing, but there are three frequently occurring scenarios where it’s essential. Doing so will provide you with much…
In the last set of articles regarding management agreements, I have explained the term, commissions, and sunset commissions. In this article, I will explain what is known in the industry as the “key man clause.” What happens if you sign with a management company and then your manager leaves the company? What if…
What are Masters? Throughout the music business, master recordings or “masters” are typically regarded as to as the original or official recording of a performance fixed in a tangible medium like tape, ProTools file, or even mp3, from which copies can be made. Masters are usually recorded in a recording…
In a recent article I explained the term of a management agreement, and in this article I’ll discuss management commissions; arguably the other most important clause of a management agreement. The commission is the amount of money the artist will pay the manager under the contract. This is usually done as…
I talk numbers with you here.
The artist-manager relationship is one of the most important relationships in an artist’s career. The manager has to “get” the artist and the artist’s artistic vision, but also needs to have the knowledge on how to translate that vision into something that will generate mass appeal and profits. The manager…
By: Erin M. Jacobson, Esq. I often am asked for my thoughts on Spotify and whether artists need it. Adele and Taylor Swift are not on Spotify and sell millions of albums. These artists are already big enough that they will sell albums regardless of whether they are on Spotify.…
Music libraries have exploded in popularity since musicians and composers discovered synchronization (“sync”) placements as an opportunity to make money and gain exposure in the music business. However, songwriters are often confused about the differences between music libraries and music publishers, especially because many libraries are trying to cross over…
