Blog

Have you ever wondered how to protect the copyright of your songs? Where do you begin to understand what it means to actually “publish” songs and how to work with music companies or to be your own publisher? What should you expect if you assign publishing to a music company? Is it enough to mail your songs to yourself anymore or is that just an old wives’ tale?

In this fun and informative episode, John visits with Susan Fontaine Godwin, Founder/Chief Vision Officer for Christian Copyright Solutions, a company established to provide licensing solutions for the Christian community, including songwriters, artists, and churches. If you are currently writing and releasing your songs on YouTube, Soundcloud, or any social media, this episode will help you learn how to protect your songs and sound recording copyrights.

In-between all the laughter and fun, John and Susan discuss many helpful guidelines to demystify the copyright process, including:

• Registering your copyrights and what a “tangible method of expression” is
• Affiliating with a PRO (Performing Rights Organization) and why/when you should do this
• How CCLI (Christian Copyright Licensing International) works and how to get started registering your songs for church usage (important for worship songwriters)
• The eight types of intellectual properties that can be copyrighted
• What’s happening with digital streaming licenses and royalties
• Avoiding infringement of your copyrights
• What to look for in publishing deals
• Becoming a good steward of your creative works
• Educating yourself on the business side of songwriting
• How CCS is making a difference for independent artists and songwriters
• And much more!

You can contact Susan Fontaine Godwin at @christiancopyrightsolutions.com, follow her on Twitter at @doingmusicright, and on Instagram at @christiancopyrightsolutions.