Clearing a cover song license can take 3-5 business days. To make sure your release doesn't take longer than that, use the following tips when filling out your licensing request.
1.) Original Title:
- When entering the original song title, make sure you're using the title listed on the original work.
- Example: “Ganondorf” has 7 named tracks on the “Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time” Soundtrack. If you enter the original title as “Ganondorf,” our licensing team won't know which track to pick.
- Pro Tip! If you're not sure what the original song was titled, www.vgmdb.net and Wikipedia are great resources.
- Example: “Ganondorf” has 7 named tracks on the “Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time” Soundtrack. If you enter the original title as “Ganondorf,” our licensing team won't know which track to pick.
- Always enter the original work title in English characters. This allows our song licensing team to easily look up a song in their database.
2.) Original Artist:
- Enter the name of the original recording artist listed on the original release.
- Example: If you're covering "Give Peace a Chance" you'll want to enter John Lennon, not Plastic Ono Band.
- Pro Tip! A digital release should have an artist listed, even if it's various artists. If it doesn't, you can always use the composer's name.
- Example: If you're covering "Give Peace a Chance" you'll want to enter John Lennon, not Plastic Ono Band.
3.) Optional Sections
Filling out these sections does make a difference! Below are the most important fields and how to fill them out.
- Original songwriter/composer(s)
- This section is referring to the songwriters/composers of the piece you are covering:
- Pro Tip! If the release is on Spotify, right-click the track you are covering and click "View Credits.” That should give you all the writer info. If that doesn't work, you can try searching Wikipedia or a PRO's public repertoire search.
- You can access the repertoire search for ASCAP here: https://www.ascap.com/repertory and BMI here: http://repertoire.bmi.com/StartPage.aspx
- Pro Tip! If the release is on Spotify, right-click the track you are covering and click "View Credits.” That should give you all the writer info. If that doesn't work, you can try searching Wikipedia or a PRO's public repertoire search.
- This section is referring to the songwriters/composers of the piece you are covering:
- Title of Original Album:
- This one is pretty easy! Just enter the name of the release where you found the track you are covering!
- Link to the original song:
- You'll want to link to where you found the original release. Avoid entering unofficial releases in this section.
- YouTube links are not eligible.
- Pro Tip! If you can, find a link to a digital release in a US store, that's the most helpful.
- You'll want to link to where you found the original release. Avoid entering unofficial releases in this section.
- Title of Original Material:
- In this section, enter the specific name of the source material
- Ex. Instead of "Movie" enter "The Lion King"
- In this section, enter the specific name of the source material
- Notes to help identify the original:
- In this section, you can enter any relevant info that may be helpful in licensing the work! For example:
- Publisher Name
- Original release date
- A link to a wiki page about the release
- Notes about where the album is available to purchase in the US. Examples:
- Original Soundtrack available with game preorder
- Soundtrack was released in the US in 1994, but is now out of print
- In this section, you can enter any relevant info that may be helpful in licensing the work! For example:
That's it! And remember, the more detail you give us the better! For additional tips, click here.