• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

I wrote the music and she wrote the lyrics and melody..

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

uriahsmusic

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Texas and NY
I have seen multiple posts that don't quite get to this exact question and the answer has always been that everyone involved owns an equal part of the copyright as long as there is nothing against that premise in writing.
The reason I ask this over is because I have always been told that you can only copyright the lyrics and the melody!
Not the chords or the that funky music track that the song was written to...Just the melody and the lyrics...

What is the real deal?
example is...Sally says lets hit the studio to write!...I show up...I throw down this slammin track (drums, piano guitar etc) she starts putting this melody an lyrics to it...
I wrote the music that she wrote the lyrics and melody to...do we split the copyright?

Once again ...I was told only the lyrics and melody can be copyrighted...

thanx fo answering
 


divgradcurl

Senior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Texas and NY
I have seen multiple posts that don't quite get to this exact question and the answer has always been that everyone involved owns an equal part of the copyright as long as there is nothing against that premise in writing.
The reason I ask this over is because I have always been told that you can only copyright the lyrics and the melody!
Not the chords or the that funky music track that the song was written to...Just the melody and the lyrics...

What is the real deal?
example is...Sally says lets hit the studio to write!...I show up...I throw down this slammin track (drums, piano guitar etc) she starts putting this melody an lyrics to it...
I wrote the music that she wrote the lyrics and melody to...do we split the copyright?

Once again ...I was told only the lyrics and melody can be copyrighted...

thanx fo answering
Your understanding is incorrect. The "song" is copyrighted -- the whole thing, not the individual parts. There is one copyright for the entire song, that's it. There may also be a separate copyright for the recording of the song, but there are not separate copyrights for individual pieces of a song, at least in a collaboration like you describe.
 

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top