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I am glad I found your video. Your instructions were clear and to the point without fluff. I truly appreciate it. I have been dabbling in AI for music in which I own the rights to after purchasing a paid plan through the service I use. I have always wanted to be a musician but never had the talent or patience. I uploaded 8 pieces of work this morning without issue and minimal costs instead of adding all each one at a time.

@johnferrellesq.

3 ай бұрын

That is so great to hear. I am glad my videos are helpful. Do you have a link to your music that you could post here so that we can listen to your music? Warmest wishes, -john

John, Thank you again for explaining the mystery and mystique of song copyrighting. I was able to use your youtube video as a template to guide me through the process. The additional information you provided was of great help. "Lux Fiat" you are indeed a keeper of the flame who is guiding us from the darkness to the light. Cheers mate,

@johnferrellesq.

Ай бұрын

Thank you for the kind comment. I am so happy that you are finding these videos useful. I am curious what other types of videos you watch. Are there other creator topics I could address that you would be interested in watching? Warmest wishes, -john

This is a great tutorial ! Very clear, concise, organized, and point to point regarding electronic submission of copyright! This info is a godsend for folks who are just starting to understand how and why to submit a copyright. Please listen and just don't point and click quickly , understand the concept and BENEFITS, protection of why copyrights protect creators. Also, check his video for "work for hire" for more depth of a copyright. Thanks John !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@johnferrellesq.

3 ай бұрын

Thank you for your comment. I am so grateful to have you on my channel. Warmest wishes. 😊 -john

very helpful and extremely good vibes! Thanks!!

@johnferrellesq.

25 күн бұрын

Thank you for the kind comment. I am so happy that you are finding these videos useful. I am curious what other types of videos you watch. Are there other entrepreneur topics I could address that you would be interested in watching? Warmest regards, -john

Thank you for this most excellent and informative video..."TWO THUMBS UP". I have the following questions: 1. Does the electronic copyright form offer any provision for pseudonym registration? 2. The older "PA" copyright form allowed song ownership to be transferred to your publishing company "By Assignment". Is that option still available with electronic registration? 3. Approximately how long does it take The Library Of Congress to process your electronic copyright registration form? Cheers mate,

@johnferrellesq.

2 ай бұрын

Thank you so much for watching my video and leaving your comment. I am very grateful to have you here 😊 Answers to your questions: 1. Does the electronic copyright form offer any provision for pseudonym registration? Yes, the electronic form allows a pseudonym to be used when registering a claim to copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office. Only check the Pseudonymous box if the pseudonym, not the author’s real name, appears on the copies or phonorecords, including the copyright notice. Note that the name of a performing group is not a pseudonym. 2. The older "PA" copyright form allowed song ownership to be transferred to your publishing company "By Assignment". Is that option still available with electronic registration? The electronic form allows you to register a claimant who is not an author of the work. If a claimant is not an author, the registration must include a transfer statement showing how the claimant obtained the copyright. If the publishing company obtained the copyright by assignment, then the publishing company may be named a claimant by “By written agreement.” Note, however, that the electronic copyright registration form does not create or constitute an assignment. The assignment must be executed separately. 3. Approximately how long does it take The Library of Congress to process your electronic copyright registration form? According to the Copyright Office, the current average processing time for all claims is 2.1 months. Most claims are processed in 1.2 to 3.5 months. The Copyright Office publishes up-to-date processing time data on its website at Registration Processing Times (copyright.gov).

@guymars4789

2 ай бұрын

@@johnferrellesq. Again, thank you for sharing your knowledge and information...Cheers mate

John, I don't mean to impose on your kindness: however, I have one further question. I did a google search of my name and found that there is a musical celebrity who has incorporated my name into his stage name. To avoid any conflict down the road, I have elected to use a pseudonym as the author name of several new songs I have created. Would the box under "NOTE TO COPYRIGHT OFFICE" at the bottom "CERTIFICATION" page (13.02 min of your video) be where I could say that (e.g.)"Starboy"" and "John Doe" are the same person? Thanks again for the informative and thought-provoking video presentation.

@johnferrellesq.

2 ай бұрын

If you have selected to use a pseudonym as the author (refer to video at 9:43), you will include that in the Author section when registering. Please see the link to the United States Copyright Office, specifically page 2, which shows when and how to use a pseudonym when registering (copyright.gov/circs/circ32.pdf). The answer will depend on whether you are submitting your work as a pseudonymous work. I hope this helps you! -john

Amazing video, I do have one question: How do I copyright the beat/instrument ?

@johnferrellesq.

Ай бұрын

Thank you for your question. Drum notation or drum tab can be copyrighted the same as any other music. You can register both the musical work (the written notation) or the recorded performance of the drum music. 'Hope this helps. Warmest regards, -john

Thank you for your video… It was extremely helpful. Question; I have about 150 songs that I want to release to performing artist. Can I copyright multiple songs at a time (like an album of 12 or 15 songs) with the same registration, or does it need to be one by one?

@johnferrellesq.

6 ай бұрын

You can register album by album and save a lot of money, registering multiple works using a single registration and fee. Go to 6:40 in the video. 'Hope this helps. Warmest wishes, -john

@Sully22768

6 ай бұрын

Thank you so much. Yes, I found that option. Thank you for your response!

Thanks for the video. It´s enought to present the lirycs, the chord chart and the recording, without the score of the melody? Would the melody recorded be protected by copyright only with audio? Thanks!

@johnferrellesq.

2 ай бұрын

Question: It’s enough to present the lyrics, the chord chart and the recording, without the score of the melody? Would the melody recorded be protected by copyright only with audio? If you register a musical work consisting of lyrics and a chord chart, your copyright will protect only the lyrics and chord arrangement. If the registered work does not contain the melody, the melody would not be protected by that registration. If the sound recording of the musical work contains a performance of the melody, copyright will protect that recording of the melody. However, the musical composition underlying the recorded melody would not be protected by the sound recording’s copyright registration. If you register a musical composition with no melody, you should register the melody as a separate composition or consult with a copyright attorney. Question: I did a google search of my name and found that there is a musical celebrity who has incorporated my name into his stage name. To avoid any conflict down the road, I have elected to use a pseudonym as the author name of several new songs I have created. Would the box under "NOTE TO COPYRIGHT OFFICE" at the bottom "CERTIFICATION" page (13.02 min of your video) be where I could say that (e.g.)"Starboy"" and "John Doe" are the same person? No, you do not need to enter a “Note to Copyright Office.” If you are registering a pseudonymous work but wish to reveal the author’s real name, you should enter the author’s full name in the Individual Author field in addition to checking the box marked Pseudonymous and completing the Pseudonym field. If you have registered the work as pseudonymous and revealed your real name in the Individual Author field, then you should sign the Certification field with your real name. However, if you have not revealed your real name anywhere in the application, you may sign the Certification with your pseudonym. A musician who works full-time under a professional pseudonym should work closely with copyright counsel when producing pseudonymous material for commercial sale. Warmest regards, -john

@miguelmiralles1815

Ай бұрын

Thanks John!

Hi John. I'd like to put as many unpublished works on one for as possible to save money but some of the works were written from a few years ago to 30 years ago and you can only pick one year as dates to copyright. what would you recommend?

@johnferrellesq.

4 ай бұрын

Hi Dave, it sounds like you are super-productive. Congratulations for creating so much music. This is so fact specific that I can't properly advise you in an open forum. I suggest you consider a short consultation with a Copyright attorney to discuss your specific case. I would be happy to put you in touch with one of our attorneys if you would like to hire them for 30 minutes or so to review this with you. (email me at jsferrell@carrferrell.com and I will make the introduction). Wishing you all the best! -john

Hello! What is the difference between Sound recording and Work of the Performing Arts? Actually both suitable for music track?. If the track is written in DAW without recording, for example on stage, should I select Work of the Performing Arts or Sounf Recording?

@johnferrellesq.

6 ай бұрын

Hi Oracle, I am so sorry but I am just not understanding your question well enough to give you a precise answer. Generally, however, if you have created a musical work using a digital audio workstation, the notes or programming code you wrote using the DAW are protectable as a musical work. If your workstation interprets the notes or code and plays the song, the recording of that played song is a sound recording. 'Hope this helps. -john

@OracleParadiser

6 ай бұрын

@@johnferrellesq.Hi, In the demo video on the website Eservice was selected Type of works: "Work of the Performing Arts". According to the description on the website, both types of work: (“Sound Recording” and "Work of the Performing Arts" ) can be selected for Musical work. But I'm not sure I understand the difference correctly. Fom descrioption: "To register both the sound recordings and the musical (or other) works contained on the sound recordings, select “Sound Recording”. To register only the musical works, select “Work of the Performing Arts.” Based on this, I'm not sure what to choose and what exactly is being registered. Music (like notes) and/or How the track sounds.

@johnferrellesq.

6 ай бұрын

Hi Oracle, I may have accidentally responded from a different KZread account, and wanted to repeat my answer to you so you know the response is legitimate. When you write a song and record that song in a tangible median (e.g. writing the song down on paper or recording the notes and lyrics in a computer file) you've created a copyright in the musical work. You have the option of registering the copyright with the copyright office, as I described in my video. The registration of the copyright in the musical works (notes and music) falls under the category of “work at the performing arts.” A separate work is created. If you or someone else sings or performs your song and records that performance. This is called a “sound recording.” If you both write the music and sing or perform the song, you can register both types of works and you can receive separate copyright protection for each of these works. If someone else sings your song, they can register their performance of your song as a “sound recording”, preventing others from playing or distributing their performance. They cannot register your notes and lyrics - only you the author can register the musical work. When registering your song, you need to designate which type of work you are registering. If you are just registering the musical work (notes and/or lyrics), then select “work of the performing arts” as the type of work. If you are registering only the sound recording (the recorded performance), then select “sound recording” as the type of work. If you are registering both the musical work and the recorded performance, then select “sound recording” as the type of work. ‘Hope this helps. I would love to hear your sound recording if you would like to share your link in this comment section. Good luck with your music!! -john

@lleevveell66

2 ай бұрын

I believe that I understand this question. I am only guessing, here, coming from Akai MPC platform... I actually create/mix/master everything on the MPC, which is just a dedicated hardware DAW. I have the option of either rendering the final song to a sound file (WAV, etc.) which I do not usually do, or playing with track muting live and recording through my mixer up into computer (just using dumb ol' Audacity, usually.) I believe all of my works would be definitely be considered "recordings" because I actually do hit the "Record" button in Audacity, right. But, if I understand, you are asking whether the act of rendering a song straight to sound file on disk (WAV or MP3) considered a "recording". It's an excellent question. My very uneducated guess would be, "yes". I mean, does it matter if that sound was produced on one end of some chain, traveling through cables, and captured at another end... or whether it was produced in the DAW, traveling through the computer RAM and motherboard traces, and "captured" (rendered) directly into a WAV representation of that sound? Feels like the same thing, to me.

If I register my song or instrumental there’s a way to in the future modified the song or Instrumental even if I already registered and upload it but different ? Thanks for the video

@johnferrellesq.

Ай бұрын

Yes, your are free to register all future revisions or performances of your music. -john

Holy cow, what a great video chock full of answers, but then also SO much more great info in the comment section! Like'd/Subscribe'd/Bell'ed and commenting for the algorithm. If this video were monetized with "Super Thanks", I'd've tossed $25 at you for all your effort. Thank you for helping so many people! I am sill slighly uncertain about one concept - the "lyrics and music" part. I totally understand how this would apply to most traditional songwriters/musicians, but what about those of us just coming up with unique "electronica" works in a DAW? I use only Akai MPC platform to create/mix/master every song. It is basically a dedicated hardware DAW. There is no way I can imagine getting all of the sequences out of this machine and onto proper staff paper. Would guys like me need to go through every track on every song and transcribe by hand every note placed? I don't even know how to properly build a score on staff sheets, really. It'd take me forever to Every-Good-Boy-Does-Fine and F-A-C-E my way through that.... then, the drums... ug. Is all hope lost for guys like me copywriting the actual music we built up into the song recording, even though each and every note was placed real-time with finger pads?

@johnferrellesq.

2 ай бұрын

Holy cow to you, too! Thank you for the kind words. -john

Can we just submit singing vocals without any music instrumental accompaniment? Thanks.

@johnferrellesq.

4 ай бұрын

Yes. That is music. 😊

2:55 To be clear, creatives, authors, musicians/songwriters can pursue statutory damages (from $750 to $30,000 and up to $150,000 for willful copyright infringement, and possibly their attorney fees & legal costs - at the court’s discretion) if they “timely” register their works, EITHER *before* the infringement takes place OR registered *within three-months of its first-date of publication.*

@johnferrellesq.

8 ай бұрын

Thank you for the added detail. --john

Question. Can you copyright the sound recording. Than copyright the lyrics separately? If ones already filed. And the other one isn't

@johnferrellesq.

21 күн бұрын

Yes. For example if the sound recording is already registered and you want to copyright the music or lyrics, you will just need to file a separate registration as shown in the video. I hope this helps. Warmest regards, -john

@evolm.c.f

21 күн бұрын

@johnferrellesq. thank you uncle john! Going to get on that today!

What is considered published work? I have several songs published on streaming platforms and some on youtube. Can I copyright those all together as "a certain group of published works"?

@johnferrellesq.

4 ай бұрын

A work is published when you distribute copies of the work to the public either by sale, transfer of owner, or rental/lease. It is also considered a publication for a musician to distribute a copy of a song to a radio station or streaming service for them to publicly transmit the song. However, a musician's performance of the song at a live concert is not a publication. For music, the ability to register up to 20 works under a group registration only applies to works published on the same album. 'Hope this helps! 😊 -john

@joelremiel

4 ай бұрын

Thank you, John. It does help.@@johnferrellesq.

Can anyone from anywhere in the world register copyright with the US copyright office? Or must they register within their own countries? And what about the claiming of damages and Attorney fees? Are these available to anyone or only citizens of the USA?

@johnferrellesq.

8 ай бұрын

Anyone can register and enforce a U.S. copyright. Thanks for your question?

Hello what additional steps are there if registering on behalf of someone?

@johnferrellesq.

Ай бұрын

An authorized agent only has to follow the same steps shown in the video to register a copyright with the Copyright Office. The Copyright Office allows the copyright owner's authorized agent to register a work. A copyright owner can appoint anyone to be an authorized agent. Generally, the Copyright Office accepts the statement in the application certifying that the agent is authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner, so there are no additional steps required. However, in special circumstances, the Copyright Office may ask for additional evidence to prove the agent was acting with the copyright owner's permission. U.S. Copyright Office, Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices § 101, Chapter 400, pages 3, 7-8 (3d ed. 2021). www.copyright.gov/comp3/chap400/ch400-application.pdf 'Hope this helps. Warmest wishes, -john

Thanks!

@johnferrellesq.

9 ай бұрын

Welcome! -john

@majovanelli8388

9 ай бұрын

What if the process regarding "unpublished" works is taking about 6 months & I decide to distribute my music all over the streaming platforms before its completion? Do I have to request a special handling for the copyright to be effective before I hit the distributor? Thanks. Max.@@johnferrellesq.

@johnferrellesq.

9 ай бұрын

Hi Max, your copyright is effective as soon as you record your music in a tangible medium. So as soon as you record your song, for example, your copyright is effective. The reason for the registration is to create a record of your ownership and to have the right to stop others from using your work. Hope this helps. Good luck with your Music!!!! -john

@majovanelli8388

9 ай бұрын

Thank you! That's correct, but I was wondering if the registration in and of itself may be cancelled and rejected because of the "published" nature of my works before the Office even have the time to consider my application. I mean, would it still be valid? Or should I publish my songs anyway after the day of my request on their website?@@johnferrellesq.

@cnlicnli

6 ай бұрын

@@majovanelli8388 wrote, “What if the process regarding ‘unpublished’ works is taking about 6 months & I decide to distribute my music all over the streaming platforms before its completion?” The day the US Copyright Office (USCO) *“RECEIVES”* your completed (un-published) copyright registration application + your deposit (the un-published music you’re registering) + your filing fee, is the day it’s been officially *“REGISTERED,”* even though it may take the USCO a few weeks to a couple of months to mail your “Certificate of Registration” to you. Your Certificate’s “effective date of registration” will be back-dated to when the USCO received all three components of your application. As of December 2023, it’s taking on-average about six-weeks to clear your application: You could receive your Certificate before or after that timeframe. If you don’t receive it after three-months, contact the USCO. I’ve had my Certificates lost in the mail a couple of times. @majovanelli8388 wrote, “Do I have to request a special handling for the copyright to be effective before I hit the distributor?” You’re fine to start distributing, licensing, selling, and/or sharing your music while the USCO processes your (un-published) music application, and you certainly do NOT have to pay $800 for a Special Handling rush charge. *HOWEVER,* if you, say, are registering your UN-published musical work on a Monday, do NOT “publish” your work on that very same Monday. Ideally, wait a full 24-hours, and preferably, two-full days, before you start distributing your work (aka, “published” status); otherwise, you may have a defective (un-published) registration on file at the USCO.

Can i copyright just my vocals with the lyrics no instrumental?

@johnferrellesq.

Ай бұрын

Yes, of course. Music performed a cappella (words only) can be copyrighted as a performance. Warmest regards, -john

as an African indie artist would love to know how one can afford your fees for future projects and guidance and thank you so much this was helpful.

@johnferrellesq.

2 ай бұрын

Use the free help on KZread to get your business started. With good products and services you will soon have the funds you need to afford help and support so that you can grow. Warmest wishes, -john

@KSACTV

2 ай бұрын

@@johnferrellesq. thanks appreciate

I am ready to register my work as a recording artist, I already have the sound recording and lyrics of my work, but after watching your useful video I noticed that I do not have the tablature. Should I register my songs without it?

@johnferrellesq.

2 ай бұрын

Hi Eddie, If you register the sound recording, then the performance but not the musical composition will be registered. If you also register the lyrics, then the words of the song will be copyrighted but not the underlying music itself. ‘Hope this helps. --john

@eddiedivocce5176

2 ай бұрын

@@johnferrellesq. It does. I appreciate it

is a recording on my phone good enough for my SR when I submit a song for a copyright?

@johnferrellesq.

3 ай бұрын

Yes. Good luck with your recording! Warmest wishes, -john

@johnferrellesq.

3 ай бұрын

Yes. Good luck with your recording!! -john

Does the song have to be the mastered version

@johnferrellesq.

Ай бұрын

Nope. Any performance of the song can be registered. Warmest regards, -john

1:27 Bro said this line in ALL seriousness but is funny AF

@johnferrellesq.

Ай бұрын

Thank you for watching!! Warmest wishes, --john

If I misspelled a word when I submitted lyrics with my SR, do I need to reregister the claim and pay another $65 or is it an easy fix?

@johnferrellesq.

3 ай бұрын

No. A single misspelled word in your copyright registration does not need to be corrected. Warmest wishes, -john

@hey-its-me-bobby-D

3 ай бұрын

@johnferrellesq. Thank you, John.

Do I need to pay for every registration or it’s just one pay?

@johnferrellesq.

6 ай бұрын

You can register multiple works using a single registration and fee. Go to 6:40 in the video. 'Hope this helps. Warmest wishes, -john

Can you use US copy right if you are in a different country?

@johnferrellesq.

3 ай бұрын

Yes. Most commercially important countries of the world share a common set of Copryright Laws referred to as the Berne Convention. -john

When you say tablature what do you mean?

@johnferrellesq.

5 ай бұрын

Tablature is a form of musical notation indicating instrument fingering or the location of the played notes rather than musical pitches. I played banjo and guitar for instance and rather than exchanging music with others guitar players as musical pitch notation, we would commonly write down and share our music as tablature. -john

Is it safe to enter all your info when registering?

@johnferrellesq.

12 күн бұрын

Thank you for your message. This is a government website. If the government can't protect our information then we probably have not privacy at all, since they already know everything about us. 😊 Good luck with your copyright! What genre of music do you create? -john

I have a question but I think I know the answer possibly.. if I have unlimited rights to use a beat but it is not mine do I only copyright the lyrics I wrote to the beat and I can not include the copyright of the beat itself right? Being I did not create the beat but I only used it for my song ( I have permission to do this) but the lyrics are 100% my own.

@johnferrellesq.

6 ай бұрын

You are correct. You can copyright your lyrics but not the other author's beat. Do you have a channel with you music? I would love to hear it. 😊. -john

@authorfrancesmarie8242

6 ай бұрын

@@johnferrellesq. thank you so much your answer I also asked the beat maker today and he said I can indeed copy right my song using his beat (he messaged me and agreed via Instagram) I am going to also list him in the copy right too. Is that ok? That he said it is ok? Also I will have my song up soon on apple music and Spotify and I will comment back with a link to it thank you 😊

@jfyoutube9337

6 ай бұрын

@@authorfrancesmarie8242 If you are registering the lyrics, it sounds like you are the sole author. If you are registering the sheet music, then you and the beat author would be joint authors, if the words are included in the sheet music. If this is a registration in the sound recording - with you rapping or singing - then it sounds like you would be the sole performance author, unless others are playing on the track. 'Hope this helps. -john

@johnferrellesq.

6 ай бұрын

@@authorfrancesmarie8242 If you are registering the lyrics, it sounds like you are the sole author. If you are registering the sheet music, then you and the beat author would be joint authors, if the words are included in the sheet music. If this is a registration in the sound recording - with you rapping or singing - then it sounds like you would be the sole performance author, unless others are playing on the track. 'Hope this helps. -john

@authorfrancesmarie8242

6 ай бұрын

@@johnferrellesq. thank you it does John! I am planning on registering my lyrics and my song so that would be the sound recording right? According to Copy right it seems like it is and I would be the author and the beat producer be an author too because of their work of making the beat?

How would you copyright a song under a llc?

@johnferrellesq.

3 ай бұрын

The author would either be the song writer or the performer (depending on the type of registration) or the author would be the LLC if the song was written by an employee as part of their job or as a work made for hire by a contractor. Warmest regards, -john

@rendumbeatz

3 ай бұрын

@@johnferrellesq. thanks

Hi, so it is $65 for just one song?

@johnferrellesq.

10 күн бұрын

For a single song, the standard filing fee is $65 for an online application using the Standard Application. However, there are circumstances under which multiple songs can be registered together for a single fee. These include: 1. Group Registration of Unpublished Works (GRUW): This allows for the registration of up to 10 unpublished songs as a collection for a single filing fee of $85. 2. Group Registration for Published Works (GRMPH): If the songs are published together as part of a compilation, you can register them as a group for a single $65 filing fee, but this is typically more applicable to album registrations. The Group Registration for Musical Works Published (GRMPH) fee is $65. This fee allows you to register multiple musical works that have been published together as part of a unit of publication, such as an album. This registration type is designed for cases where you want to register all the songs on a published album as a single group.To qualify for this type of registration, the musical works must meet specific criteria, such as being published together as a unit (e.g., on the same album) and all the works must share the same publication date. The group registration process simplifies the registration of multiple published works and allows for a more cost-effective way to secure copyright protection for an entire album of songs. 3. Registering a Compilation: If the songs are part of a published album or collection, they can be registered as a single work (a compilation), and the $65 fee for registering the compilation would apply. Thank you so much for watching my video and leaving your comment. I am very grateful to have you here 😊 -john

What about a album? $65 per song?

@johnferrellesq.

4 ай бұрын

No. You can register the entire album at once. Here is a link: www.copyright.gov/eco/gram-pa/getting-started-musical-works.pdf. Good luck with your music! --john

why didn't you just register your video as an example lol

@johnferrellesq.

3 ай бұрын

Great idea! 😊 -john

The background music distracts many people from listening. Your video will be more successful if you remove it

@johnferrellesq.

Ай бұрын

Thank you for the comment - I agree with you on the background music. I can't go back and change this video made nearly a year ago, but I am trying hard to make each video better than the last. Please don't give up on me yet; I'm working hard to improve our content. BTW, I am curious what other types of videos you watch. Are there other entrepreneur topics I could address that you would be interested in seeing? Thank you again for your helpful input. Warmest regards, -john