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Let Me Build Your Music Empire
Unlock Your Potential: How Music Publishing Can Be Your Gateway to Success in the Music Industry
Dennis Sinnott
April 08, 2025
MaurosArt
If you’ve ever had a passion for making it big time in the music industry – the one area that may just manifest for you, is music publishing.
Having success in one or two songs – is a great feeling – especially when you and your songwriters are making income regularly.
Now, imagine having success – not just in one or two songs – but many thousand. You see, while managers and record companies focus primarily on making artists famous, music publishers – focus on making songs famous.
Succeeding in music publishing comes down to three things:
(1) making sure you have a thorough knowledge of all the intricate rights given to you in a song, and exploiting those rights to the fullest. You will be amazed how many don’t. More about this is a bit further down.
(2) Familiarize yourself with all areas of licensing. In short, become a licensing specialist. In my experience, licensing is where the real money is. Make it your business to know the different types of deals – domestic and overseas licensing – such as exclusive development agreements, overrides, back-to-backs, grand rights, royalty pools, etc. As a skilled licensing specialist, there is nothing you can’t achieve in this industry.
(3) Build catalogs – huge catalogs. In this world of digital, anyone with ambition can build a music empire from this business. I’ll show you how!
“…record companies focus primarily on making artists famous, music publishers – focus on making songs famous.”
One area for building super large catalogs is public domain music. Here, there are hundreds of thousands of some of the greatest songs that were ever written – in areas such as Jazz, Ragtime, Swing, Blues, Country, early Beale Street, Classical and many others. Check the copyright status carefully before doing an arrangement.
If you have any questions, feel free to drop me a line. You can start with a catalog of orchestrations, and sell the printed scores and parts over and over, to thousands of brass bands, military bands, college bands, and symphony orchestras around the world. Those buying the parts will perform your music – generating public performances, television, radio broadcasts, film synchronization – and yes, streaming and downloading.
Next, you can build your own mood (sound recorded) library, where your music can be used in films for features, background, and incidental music – there are hundreds of new films and television productions, coming out in the next two years alone – with producers screaming out for great music. Grand rights for musicals, is another huge area – of which rights you can own.
If you have questions send email to [email protected]
Your friend and mentor,
Dennis R. Sinnott
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Take The R ’n R Music Quiz!
Answers will be revealed in the next issue of Rhythm ‘n Role. Good luck!
1. Which guitarist is known for his work with the band ZZ Top?
A) Eric Clapton B) Jimmy Page C) Billy Gibbons D) Jeff Beck E) Pete Townshend
2. Who is the guitarist for the band Red Hot Chili Peppers?
A) Mike McCready B) Jimmy Page C) Eric Clapton D) Kurt Cobain E) John Frusciante
3. Which guitarist is famous for his work with the band Nirvana?
A) Pete Townshend B) Jimmy Page C) Eric Clapton D) Kurt Cobain E) Duane Allman
4. Who is the guitarist for the band Pearl Jam?
A) Mike McCready B) Jeff Beck C) Eric Clapton D) Jimmy Page E) Pete Townshend
5. Which guitarist is known for his work with the band The Allman Brothers Band?
A) Duane Allman B) Jimmy Page C) Eric Clapton D) Jeff Beck E) Pete Townshend
Answers to last R ’n R issues Music Quiz: 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a
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