Rules For Labeling Mp3's

I thought it would be a great idea to iron out a simple format, so whenever you send a track to some A&R, artist, manager, etc, you will make it as simple as possible for them to track you down when they want your music… Believe it or not, a good percentage of producers/artists/managers send out mp3′s that make it very difficult to track them down. So with no further delay, The OFFICIAL Rules Of Labeling Mp3′s!


Rule #1:

Include your name

Whatever name you want to be in the credits of whatever album you want to get on, should be in the file name.


Rule #2:

Include Your e-mail

Just because you emailed the beat to whoever, it doesn’t mean that they didn’t go into their gmail and just download 1000 beats and dump them into an ipod. Don’t make them go through all of those gmails just to find your track!


Rule #3:

Include Your Phone Number

It’s great getting phone calls from people that want your music. Give them that opportunity. Don’t forget the area code…


Rule #4:

Include Something To Identify That Particular Beat/Song

It helps to name your tracks, just so moving forward there is something that can be used to identify the track. Otherwise whoever wants the track is going to have to beatbox it to you, which can be entertaining but is a nuisance.

Here is an example of a perfectly formated mp3 file…



So there it is. Simple, short and to the point. There is no doubt in my mind that over the years, people have lost out on placements, money and deals just because they didn’t properly label their music and could never be tracked down. If you follow these rules, that will never happen to you.

The Government Giveth, The Government Taketh Away

Over the course of history`8, it was decided that people who made their ideas tangible –like songwriters– should make money. So they made up a bunch of really esoteric, hard to understand rules­ (aka laws) on how it should all work. The foundation for these laws can actually be found in the United States Constitution. The rules built on this concept get updated from time to time, but ultimately the foundation of the six legal rights that a person gets when he or she creates a copyrighted work, by making a song tangible (meaning it’s recorded or written down) are the basis for all the rules, laws and money made in the music industry.

Which, if you think about it, is a bit weird, because, what is it that is actually being sold when someone buys “music?” A buyer walks out of the store with some sort of device (like a vinyl record, CD or digital download) and plops it onto a machine. That machine “plays” the device, causing a speaker to vibrate in such a way that sound waves move through the air to our ears. Our ears detect these sound waves, and transmit them to our brains as electrical impulses. Our brains interpret these impulses and we “hear” the music.

In other words, unlike food or clothes, there is nothing tangible to a song beyond the intangible memory of what you just heard. The sound of music always lives in the past.

And yet, the governments of the world (acting on behalf of their constituents; in theory at least) decided that these transmissions of sound waves, and the people who wrote the songs, are so valuable and important, that they created a complex set of laws and regulations. These laws require that licenses be granted and payments be made to the people/entities controlling the rights to the recordings of the songs (usually called a “record label”) and the lyrics and melody of the song (usually called the “songwriter” or “music publisher”).

These rules and regulations tie together, regulate, and give basis for a global consortium of tens of millions of record labels, artists, songwriters, music publishers, performing rights organizations, and mechanical royalty collection agencies, to generate and collect and administer over $23 billion dollars.

And the governments of the world take this stuff very, very seriously. So much so, that there is an entire shadow economy built around an infrastructure of copyright boards, judges, copyright police, congressional committees, and teams of lawyers that are supposed to be the experts in knowing all the rules, and, in some cases, set royalty rates as to what these innovative creators should be paid.

However, in a move that could be construed as paradoxical (or, at the very least a “head scratcher”) these very same governments that created a way to assure that artists, songwriters and record labels can make money also decided that a songwriter/lable only gets these rights for 70 years after the death of the last surviving person who wrote the song (or ninety-five years from the date of publication in the case of a work for hire), after which point, all of the author’s rights get taken away, and the song becomes a “public domain” work, This means it’s available for anyone to use in any way they like without having to pay or negotiate anything with anyone.

Or put another way, 69 years and 364 days after the death of the last surviving writer, the people who control the rights to the song (like someone’s child or grandchildren) get to make money from the use of that song. The next day they don’t; one hell of a Monday to a Tuesday.

Which brings up the question as to why. Why give all of these rights and all of these rules for a set period of time? What is the reason that on that last magical day the very same hand that gave these rights decides it’s enough and takes them all away?

After all, when a song’s rights are stripped away from the person who wrote it, and the copyrights expire, many other people can make money off the recording and song. For example, at some point in time, the Beatles’ recordings and songs will enter the public domain, and when they do, anyone can release a Beatles album or cover Paul/John’s song without paying them. If someone buys that song or album physically from Amazon, a slew of people make money off the Beatles: Amazon makes money, the person who sold it makes money, the entity that made the cardboard box that the CD ships in makes money, the U.S. postal service makes money. The Beatles’ label, their estate, and John and Paul’s estates don’t make money from the sale.

Hardly seems fair.

On the other hand, what happens if Dr. Evil comes to life, only this time he has a trillion dollars at his disposal (don’t laugh too hard, there was a moment not too long ago when Bill Gates was worth a trillion dollars), and he decides he is going to buy the copyrights to all the recordings and songs in the world. Without a reversion of copyright, the world would be denied access to these creations. Corporations could hoard them forever, and perpetually deny or grant access at their whim. Put another way, corporations would have a complete and total stranglehold on culture (one could argue they already do, but that’s a different topic).

And thus the tension between the public good vs. copyright holders and creators comes to play with the government standing in between them, trying to come up with a solution that does not tip the scales too far on way or another.

The question I have relates to technology opening the flood gates to more creators: should there be a re-evaluation of this tension? I honestly don’t have the answer, and I truly can argue both sides of this equation. If it were me, and I wrote and recorded the song “Paperback Writer,” why the hell should I not be entitled to make money off the thing I created? Who the hell is the government to interfere with my rights and decide it’s been long enough for me, or my children, or their children’s children to make money off my creation. If I build a house, the government doesn’t get to take it away from me after a period of time and say it is “public domain.” Why is my song, my creation, thought less of than a house?

On the other hand, somehow it would just not feel right to me if Mozart’s great-great-great-great-great (not sure how many greats should go here) grandchildren got paid each and every time his Flute Concerto No. 2 In D Major – K. 314 was played and sold.

In other words, what is the place of public domain and the reversion of copyright in the new emerging digital music industry?

My concern is not over what the answer is, but instead who gets to shape the discussion. To this point in time, the creators themselves are the minority voice. The multi-national corporations that have gobbled up and/or “own” all of these songs and copyrights are the ones pulling the strings, lobbying for changes to the law. This would be fine if the creators of culture–aka artists–and corporations were in step with one another, but this is hardly the case.

Today’s world has allowed musicians and artists to break free of a system requiring them to relinquish their copyrights to pursue their dreams and ambitions. Together they are louder than any other music entity. The trick is allowing their voice to be heard. Connected Music Group is simply a megaphone, you are the voice.

5 Things Songwriters Can Do To Move Their Careers Forward

As a new songwriter, you may be overwhelmed by all there is to do when it comes to moving forward in your career. I’d compare the approach of this article to eating the elephant one tiny bite at a time. In other words, by being patient, organized and methodical in your daily work as a songwriter, you’re guaranteed to make steady progress in your career. If you follow the suggestions below, the results won’t be immediate, but when you look back after six months or a year, I think you’ll be amazed at how much you’ve accomplished.



1. Do One “Business” Thing Every Day. This is the musical equivalent of eating your vegetables. They may not taste great but they’re good for you. It’s the same with the business side of music. We all know how much more fun it is to play the guitar, sing and even write compared to making phone calls, sending emails or following up on something you’ve already submitted, but if you’re hoping to have financial success with your music, then they’re all equally important. By making the rule that you’ll do one business thing every day means that at the end of a year, you’ll have done 365 things to further your career above and beyond your songwriting. I guarantee that’s more than most.

2. Join/Start A Songwriting Group. Getting yourself to write on a consistent basis can be a real struggle. Writing is emotionally draining and tough for most of us to do in a vacuum. Ironically, I’ve found that even we creative types like assignments when it comes to our writing. By joining a songwriting group where you’re required to bring in a new song or a rewrite of an old song every week, you’ll have the additional motivation of being held accountable by more than just yourself. It really does work. If you’re not aware of any existing songwriting groups in your area, make it a point to get to local writer’s nights and reach out to other writers about starting a group. By simply showing up every week and doing the work, you’ll find your songwriting muscles getting stronger no matter whether you agree with all the group’s suggestions or not.

3. Don’t Wait For A Publishing Deal To Act Like You Have One. If you find yourself thinking that if only you had a publishing deal then you could write every day, get great demos and have your songs pitched, then I’d humbly suggest that you’ve got it backwards. In order to get a publisher interested in what you’re doing, you need to behave like you’ve already got a publishing deal. This means you’ll be infinitely more attractive to a publisher if you can show them a body of work that’s well written, well recorded and maybe even includes a cut or two. Don’t wait around for the affirmation of a publisher to get up every day and do the work. In fact, if you get to the point where you can do all of the above on your own, you might look up to find you don’t need a publisher after all.

4. Make One Song Pitch Every Week. Having exceptional songs and beautiful recordings of those songs is a great start but in terms of getting them recorded by other artists or placed in a film or TV show, they might as well not exist if you haven’t shown them to anyone. I know this sounds obvious, but, as songwriters, we get so wrapped up in the creative process that we somehow, amazingly, seem to forget that until someone in the industry has heard our songs, they can’t do anything with them. This means you need to begin your search for outlets for your music. There are industry pitch sheets and organizations out there that can help put songwriters together with industry folks looking for songs. Make it your business (see #1 above) to find out about these pitch sheets and begin the process of submitting your songs when you see an appropriate opportunity. If you do this once a week, you’ll have pitched to 52 separate opportunities by the end of a year. That’s a significant number.

5. Reply Promptly To Any Opportunity, No Matter How Small. The likelihood of Faith Hill calling you to ask if you’ve got a song for her is small but you should treat every email or voicemail from someone regarding your music as that kind of top priority. If another songwriter reaches out to say they liked one of your songs they heard you perform at a writer’s night, reply quickly, even if it’s just to say thanks. You never know when a causal contact could turn into something more significant. Our industry is full of stories of songwriters getting their material cut in the least likely of circumstances. All this is to say, there’s no percentage in ignoring or putting off any opportunity no matter how small it may seem at the time. By acting professionally and responding promptly to anyone and everyone who reaches out about your music, you’ll be sure not to miss something huge that might appear insignificant at first glance.

As I’m sure you know, there’s no one way to have success as a songwriter. That being said, you can certainly improve your odds by staying patient, working consistently and treating your career with the respect it deserves