What is music publishing?  Don't be embarrassed if you don't know that answer to that question.  Hardly anyone outside of the music industry knows.  Truth be told, there are a lot of people in the music industry that don't know!  Publishing is a very important element of the music business.  In fact, it's where most of the money is.

Do I have your attention?  Good.  Here's a quick tutorial:

Let's say you write a song titled I Like Cookies.  In this case "writing" a song means that you have come up with original lyrics and an original melody, both of which you have written down or recorded in some fashion.  (Actual sheet music is not required.)  Once you've written that song, you own it.  It belongs to you and no one else.  As the owner/creator of I Like Cookies, you are entitled to certain rights, including the right to be paid whenever anybody uses it.

For example, let's say I decide to record I Like Cookies and release it on one of my CD's.  For every CD that I sell with your song on it, you get a little money.   Every time my recording of your song is used publicly (it's played on the radio or used as background music in a movie, for example) you get some money!

This is money that you are entitled to, but I am not.  Why?  Because it's your song, remember?  You created it.  You own it.  I'm just some mook who recorded it.  And if some other artist decides to record their own version of it too - well, it's still your song.  All those payments still go to you.  Not me, not this other artist, just you.

Are you beginnning to see why this could be very profitable for you and your little cookie song?

Now it's important to remember that all of this still applies even if the writer of the song and artist recording it are the same person.  A recording artist who writes his/her own songs is technically two separate entities with very different rights and responsibilities.  That's why it is so important to be careful when signing a record deal.  Some record labels will try to bury language in their contracts that limits or even takes away your right to collect royalties as a songwriter.  This could end up costing you a lifetime's worth of income.  So please be careful, okay?  DON'T EVER sign a contract that does not respect your rights as a songwriter.

So what then is music publishing?  Simply put, it is the business side of songwriting.  It is the practice of using your musical creations to earn income.  You can do this yourself, or you can do this with the help of a music publishing company.  If you had a contract with a music publisher, it would be their job take I Like Cookies and find as many ways as possible to help you make money with it.  It would also be their job to help protect you from anyone who might try to steal your song or use it in ways that you don't want it to be used.  In exhange for all that, the publisher gets a percentage of the royalties.

What then is Larpin Lane Publishing?  For the moment, it's just my own little port in the storm.  It's a business name under which I can collect royalties for the songs that I write.  But I hope that with time it will grow into something more than that.  I would like it to evolve into a company that helps independent songwriters make the most of their creations.  I would like to use it as a tool for educating songwriters about the often confusing laws and business practices of the music industry, so that they can avoid the pitfalls and find the buried treasures.

Now, who else could go for a cookie right now!

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