8
votes
Why do artists not release backing tracks, instrumentals, and acapellas in their singles?
I like the way you think. It makes perfect sense on the surface. But the music industry and legalities surrounding it are complex. There are a few reasons why this practice has not become common in ...
- 324
7
votes
What digital medium should I choose when buying music to maximize artists' profits?
Spotify is notorious for underpaying artists. The margins for the artists are better when you purchase the music on iTunes or Amazon, but the best margins are on services specifically designed to ...
- 15.3k
7
votes
What digital medium should I choose when buying music to maximize artists' profits?
Whenever I really like an artist, I'll make sure I buy the album (usually off iTunes), although I'll still listen to them on Spotify. I think the best thing you can do in this situation is buy the ...
6
votes
Accepted
Does it matter when an album is purchased?
This Fusion.net article answers your question better than I ever could (and also probably in more words than a StackExchange post would allow), but I'll summarize it here.
It doesn't really matter ...
- 4,325
6
votes
Accepted
How are band names protected?
Legally, band names are pretty much like... brand names (no pun intended).
First of all a technicality, names are not copyrighted, they are trademarked and can also be registered.
Legal details of ...
- 1,712
6
votes
Accepted
Lead artist and featured artist of a song - how are they determined?
When supportive artists are invited to work on an album they are featured on the record. It is more like a description of what happened rather than a status. The lead artist is the one responsible for ...
- 231
5
votes
How are band names protected?
This is pretty anecdotal & I have no hard references for some of the examples, however...
Usually the first one to get a recognisable hit can force or even just persuade any others to change ...
- 7,685
5
votes
Accepted
Why are there so many "featurings" in released singles nowadays?
This is a mix of my humble opinion and the result of some research:
During the 80s decade the boundaries between pop, R&B, rock and rap started to be less strict, for example:
A R&B and ...
- 361
5
votes
Publishing agreement around Beyoncé's song "Sandcastles"
The typical publishing agreement contract works like this (exact numbers may vary):
The overall benefits of the song are split in two:
50% writer's income
50% publishing income
Most often, the ...
- 7,274
4
votes
How can Ed Sheeran's Thinking Out Loud be nominated for 2016 Grammys?
Eligibility requirements for the US Grammys 2016 were…
What are the eligibility requirements?
For the 58th Annual GRAMMY Awards, albums must be released between Oct. 1, 2014 and Sept. 30, ...
- 7,685
4
votes
Accepted
Will song composers ever run out of melodies for songs?
I saw a YouTube video, I think Vsauce, where he crunched the numbers. I also just googled it and found this guy https://plus.maths.org/content/how-many-melodies-are-there. According to these numbers ...
- 429
4
votes
Why is it so hard to identify Library music?
It is the library which owns the publishing rights and agrees the any terms with the production. It will be in the library's own interests to gain a production credit as they are competing against ...
- 659
4
votes
Accepted
What is the role of a distribution company?
Distribution companies can't get you on the radio. Traditionally, radio play is controlled by big labels with a lot of resources. Local, independent stations will often "break" new artists ...
- 15.3k
4
votes
Accepted
What is the role of an A&R credit in an album?
From Wikipedia:
Artists and repertoire (colloquially abbreviated to A&R) is the division of a record label or music publishing company that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the ...
- 56
3
votes
Are "We are the World" incomes still sent to Africa?
No, not any more
According to this Michael Jackson fan website http://www.mjjcollectors.com, this topic was specified in an agreement dated March 4th 1985. This letter signed by Michael Jackson ...
- 7,274
3
votes
Accepted
Is there any particular reason why songs with Spanish lyrics are taking over?
I can think of two reasons, 1) demographics and 2) culture.
First is sheer numbers. The number of Hispanic-Americans has risen from 10 million in 1970 to 50 million in 2010. In percentage terms, that'...
- 178
3
votes
Why are female singers criticised when singing live more than male singers?
In specific genres, this may be true. However, in genres where the singer is mostly acting as a host - such as in vaudeville or in hiphop - the female singer won't be judged as much. In others where ...
- 1,789
3
votes
Why are female singers criticised when singing live more than male singers?
The term "diva" is really a descendant of the prima donna ("first lady" = lead female role) in opera. Prima uomo means "first man," but this term is very rarely used compared to prima donna.
I can't ...
- 1,990
3
votes
If a song was released in 2014 as a single, and released the following year (2015) on an album, what's the true release date of the song?
My opinion is a song's true release date is the date it was published, not the date of it being played live on album or introduced as a single live. The true date is the date when it appears on CD or ...
- 450
3
votes
Accepted
What's the difference between o/b/o and c/o
I'm not sure about any possible technical usage in publishing credits, but typically "A in care of B" just means that B is doing nothing but passing it along to A, whereas "A on behalf of B" means ...
- 15.3k
3
votes
Accepted
Is there a kind of certificate for those who have listened to a lot of music?
If you take a course in music appreciation you'll probably get some kind of certificate of participation. That's probably the closest you'll get to what you're looking for.
- 6,023
3
votes
Accepted
Does the artist name need to be on an album cover?
Does the artist['s] name need to be on an album cover?
No.
Is there a rule that governs this?
Sure. Some form of some name should be on the cover or spine or people won't know what they're buying; ...
- 193
2
votes
Why do artists not release backing tracks, instrumentals, and acapellas in their singles?
Actually, in jamaican reggae music, they do release the instrumental!
Tradition, in jamaican reggae music, is mainly backing bands (e.g. Roots Radics, Sly & Robbie, The Skatalites, The ...
- 7,274
2
votes
Does it follow industry practice to use the term "mix" to refer to a different version of a song?
The concept of a mix comes from the days of dub and disco when songs would be edited using mixing boards and tape to change the pace (especially in dub) or to change the length and ideal for mixing (...
- 1,789
2
votes
Why is it so hard to identify Library music?
It seems that there are a misconception from people, that think that every song in a soundtrack (movie, documentary, commercial...) as a real name, a disclosed artist and can be found in an album or ...
- 7,274
2
votes
Will song composers ever run out of melodies for songs?
Music is a continuous remixing of the same concepts, people gets something that they listened in the past, and applying changes they can create something new.
You can't think in terms of notes. Music ...
- 361
2
votes
If a song was released in 2014 as a single, and released the following year (2015) on an album, what's the true release date of the song?
If a song is released as a single, that is its release date. Subsequent inclusion on an album does not change that date.
For example, Blur released She's So High as a single in 1990; it was then ...
- 21
2
votes
Why are there so many "featurings" in released singles nowadays?
jcbermu's detailed answer seems pretty definitive to me but I'd like to add a touch of cynicism to something which seems, and probably is for the most part, a generally inclusive and valuable ...
- 21
2
votes
Accepted
Are "We are the World" incomes still sent to Africa?
Yes, very much so.
I don't think that the previous answer is totally correct. The statement posted is valid enough, but it only extends to Jackson's own royalties due to him as a songwriter. It does ...
- 659
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible