how do you get samples "cleared"

God

Creator of the Universe
ill o.g.
Dear J-Malice:

Your record company, if you are clearing a sample, has an "Artist Resources" Department. Here, you have a liason that works with you and subcontracted organisations that only clear samples.

However, you have to work with people that are middlemen, like sample clearing organisations that the record company works with. These people clear the samples of individuals they can represent.

If I am an artist, I want sample royalties to take out as little as possible from my overall royalty pie in a song or album. Maybe 20% of a song would go to the owner of the sample. But, the people clearing the samples also represent the owner of the samples, so they want to "sell" you the sample at the highest royalty rate, and usually ask between 80-100% of your song's royalties.

In a way, the people that work for you, also work against you. You want the sample, but then you have to play hardball to get the right royalty rate you want.

That's when you call Artist Resources back and have them transfer you to Legal. They always have the nicest way of skirting a sample royalty rate legally. Like rerecording an interpolation, which usually is 20-25% of the rate.

DON'T DO THIS...CONSULT A LAWYER... THIS IS WRONG! I AM DISCLAIMING THIS!
Or, Legal tells you to leave the actual sample in, and you have a friend's studio make a receipt showing date/time/money paid to prove that an interpolation was actually recorded.
DO NOT DO WHAT WAS JUST WRITTEN, IT IS WRONG, AND CONSULT A LAWYER ON ANYTHING YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND.

Now that's how underhanded the music biz is!

Sincerely,
God
 

bigdmakintrax

BeatKreatoR
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 123
Me I am just the average human producer not the Music God LOL I don't have enuff balls and experience to call myself that for fear of a lightning bolt from the real one..hahaha, But I have gotten lots of advice and been to sample clearance workshops and asked the people that work within these kinds of departments questions and they educate you......basically in the case you had that if the person was dead then it goes to the benificiary of the deceased Estate which in many cases if these people don't have good lawyers they might not have a clue of what a sample is or the song you want....but most of the time unless you are signed to a major label you won't have to worry because this will be a very expensive venture, you will also need a license from the author and if it was recorded the record label to use it.....
 
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