I missed Thanksgiving and the Friday after, so I am catching up posts today. I wanted to explain work for hire and joint works. I feel like companies frequently use these to take advantage of new artist, who may lack experience with these terms.

First, a work for hire is a work prepared by an employee, but the employer retains the ownership and right to control. For DJ, this is like being hired to perform, but the singer or the label keep the recording and the profits. For a song writer, it’s like writing the song, which you’re paid for, but you have no rights or protections to the song.

I have seen label contracts where this is hidden in fine print. Some put this clause right out in the open because the drafters of the contract thought the artists would not know what it meant. Later, when the artist realizes they aren’t being paid much, they ask if they can leave or self-promote their song or album, only to find out, it never was their song or album.

Next, I wanted to explain joint works. Joint works are works prepared by two or more authors with the intention that their contributions merge into a inseparable whole. They can’t divide the work into each person’s part or contribution, it only  exists as one unitary work. However, both authors enjoy he rights of authorship, like right to make copies and sell or perform the work.

The biggest dispute with joint works is when the two or more authors actually decided to join their ideas into one work. The group must decide to work together from the beginning. Many people want to add on to a work created by one artist and claim that they have equal rights to the final product. I have even seen where these “coat-tailing” contributors ask the artist to rewrite or re-record the song. This way, they could argue that the two intended on working together from the beginning and both have equal rights.

My advice to artist: Read the contract, and ask for explanations about things not understood. If the other person wants you to sign it, they will explain. If the explanation sounds too good to be true, get a second opinion. Your signature is yours alone and if someone wants it, they can earn it.