Preparing Your Professional Song Catalog
Selling a song to an artist requires presenting a finished product that is immediately ready for consideration by their team. A professional song catalog moves far beyond a simple rough track, presenting material that sounds like a potential hit from the first listen. The goal is to deliver a mix-ready demo, which is a fully produced version of the song that requires minimal imaginative effort from the listener to envision on the radio. This polished presentation signals professionalism and respect for the time of the artist’s A&R or publisher.
A key difference between a rough track and a finished demo is the quality of the production and the performance, which should be flawless, particularly the lead vocal. The demo needs to clearly convey the song’s commercial potential, ensuring the emotional arc and lyrical content are front and center. While a simpler acoustic demo may suffice for a ballad, an uptempo track often requires a full-band demo that includes all the elements a listener would expect from a finished record.
The material must also align with current market trends or the specific aesthetic of the target artist. Songwriters should research the sound of the genre they are writing for, paying attention to production styles and lyrical themes that are popular now. A strong catalog should offer variety in subject matter, tempo, and emotion, creating a collection that can be pitched successfully in diverse situations. Creating a song with an artist in mind increases the likelihood of a “cut,” as the song is tailored to their unique style and voice.
Establishing Legal Ownership and Protection
Before any song is pitched for potential placement, the underlying legal rights must be clearly established and protected. The first step is formally registering the composition’s copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office, which is necessary before you can file a lawsuit for infringement. While copyright technically exists the moment a song is fixed in a tangible medium, registration provides a public record of ownership and grants access to statutory damages in a legal dispute. A single application can register up to ten unpublished songs, lyrics, or musical works, simplifying the process of protecting a growing catalog.
Songwriters must also affiliate with a Performing Rights Organization (PRO), such as ASCAP or BMI, to ensure the collection of performance royalties when the song is publicly performed. PROs collect and distribute the revenue generated from radio play, streaming, and live venues, among other public uses. When registering with a PRO, a songwriter typically affiliates as both a writer and a publisher, since performance royalties are divided into a 50% writer’s share and a 50% publisher’s share.
The ownership percentages for any co-written song must be documented on a “split sheet,” signed by all contributors. This document defines how the song’s royalties will be divided, with the total ownership percentage always equaling 100%. Without a signed split sheet, U.S. copyright law defaults to an equal division of ownership among all co-writers, which can cause payment delays if a dispute arises. Defining these splits before pitching avoids conflicts that can halt the collection of royalties.
Building Essential Industry Relationships
Selling a song to a major artist rarely happens through a cold submission; it typically requires the infrastructure of established industry contacts. Songwriters need to focus on building a professional network that includes music publishers, A&R representatives, and managers who have direct access to artists. Cold-calling or emailing a major publisher is generally ineffective, making a professional recommendation from a trusted source the preferred path to get a song heard.
Co-writing serves as one of the most effective networking tools, allowing a songwriter to expand their network exponentially with each new collaborator. Writing a song with an artist who is signed to a publishing company, for instance, significantly increases the chance that the publisher will hear the song and potentially seek out the co-writer for future sessions. Furthermore, PROs like ASCAP and BMI host workshops and provide writer representatives who can sometimes recommend promising new writers to publishing houses.
A strong professional presence is anchored by an Electronic Press Kit (EPK), which functions as a songwriter’s digital business card and resume. The EPK should be a single, organized page containing a concise biography, high-quality promotional photos, all relevant contact information, and streaming links to the best material. This ready-to-go package demonstrates preparedness and allows industry professionals to quickly assess the writer’s style and experience. Building these relationships is a long-term strategy centered on providing value and demonstrating professionalism before asking for an opportunity.
Strategic Targeting and Pitching Methods
The act of pitching a song must be highly targeted and personalized, moving beyond indiscriminate mass emailing. Researching the artist is essential, requiring a deep understanding of their current style, lyrical themes, and the sound of their recent releases. It is more productive to target mid-level artists (generally those with 10,000 to one million monthly listeners on Spotify), as they are actively seeking material and are more receptive to pitches than global superstars.
Pitching etiquette must be followed precisely to ensure the song is even opened. The email should be concise, ideally limited to two or three sentences, and must be highly personalized by addressing the recipient and stating the specific artist or project the song is intended for. Attachments must never be included, as they can trigger spam filters or pose a security risk; instead, include a private streaming link, such as a secure SoundCloud or private Dropbox link.
If a song is explicitly written for an artist, the email should immediately draw a connection between the song and the artist’s brand to capture the attention of a busy executive. Platforms like Instagram DMs can sometimes be a direct route to managers or A&R personnel who list their contact information publicly for submissions. Some professional organizations and publishers use official submission portals or tip sheets, such as RowFax or SongLink, which provide specific song needs and a direct channel for submission.
Negotiating and Understanding Royalty Structures
Once an artist accepts a song, the financial negotiation begins, which centers on licensing the composition rather than selling it outright. A publishing deal grants the publisher the right to administer and exploit the composition for a negotiated term, typically in exchange for a share of the resulting royalties. The traditional publishing split divides all income from the composition into a 50% writer’s share, which always belongs to the songwriter, and a 50% publisher’s share.
The deal terms define how the publisher’s share is split. A common arrangement, especially for established writers, is a co-publishing agreement, where the writer retains their full writer’s share and half of the publisher’s share, resulting in a 75/25 split in the writer’s favor. The publisher may offer an advance, which is an upfront payment against future royalties earned by the song. This advance must be fully recouped by the publisher from the song’s earnings before the songwriter receives any further royalty payments.
The song generates three primary types of royalties. Mechanical royalties are paid for the reproduction and distribution of the song, including physical sales and digital streams. Performance royalties are generated when the song is publicly broadcast or performed and are collected by a PRO. Sync fees (synchronization royalties) are negotiated upfront payments for the use of the song in visual media like film, television, or advertisements, often followed by performance royalties when the media is broadcast.