Let’s kick things off with four questions that often come my way, that have to do with leased beats.
- What happens if I lease a beat and the song I create goes viral and becomes a HIT?
- How does it impact others who licensed the same beat?
- What if I lease a beat today and the producer sells exclusive rights tomorrow. How will that impact me and my song?
- I’ve leased a beat, and my song became viral, but another artist now owns the exclusive rights.
Questions 1, 2, and 3 consistently rank among the top 10 most frequently asked questions I receive.
As for question 4, it represents what I believe to be the “ultimate goal + worst-case scenario” an artist might envision.
The likelihood of this situation happening is quite low if you manage your affairs correctly, I will get into the details because you’d undoubtedly like to have answers to these questions.
As we move ahead in this article, I’ll provide thorough responses to all the frequently asked questions listed above.
Question 1:
"What happens if I lease a beat and the song I create goes viral becomes a HIT?"
First and foremost, if you’re using one of my beats, the likelihood of this scenario is quite low.
And I'm not referring to the part where your song becomes a "HIT" 😊
When you lease a beat from my website, I always make it a point to follow up with you after your purchase. I genuinely have a keen interest in the music you’re creating, and you can expect emails from me, eager to listen to the final outcome of your song.
This also serves another purpose – to spot potential hit records. If something catches my ear, I keep a close watch and monitor the song’s progress after its release.
In other words, if a song is on the verge of exploding, I’ll be well aware of it, and we can kickstart negotiations.
But here’s the thing – not every (online) producer takes the initiative to follow up with their customers. If a producer doesn’t reach out after you’ve obtained a beat from their store, don’t hesitate to initiate the conversation.
Share your song with them and keep them in the loop about everything related to the song’s release.
So, ‘what happens when I lease a beat, and it takes off?’
YOU PURCHASE THE EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS AND ENGAGE IN NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE PRODUCER!
Chances are you’ll need to, as you’ll be approaching the limits of your non-exclusive license agreement.
Otherwise, the utilization of the song remains restricted to the user rights granted in your beat lease. To fully unleash its potential, you’ll require the complete exclusive rights without any restrictions.
Reach out to the producer at your earliest convenience and present a compelling offer for those exclusive rig
Question 2:
How does it impact others who licensed the same beat?
Your song has exploded, congratulations!
Have you secured the exclusive rights from the producer? Fantastic!
“What about other artists that have a license for that same beat, What happens to them?”
Here is the short answer: Nothing…
Their licenses will remain valid until they’ve reached their sales limit or until the contract term expires. Non-exclusive licenses come with specific user rights limitations and are only valid for a set number of years.
Question 3:
"What if I lease a beat today and the producer sells exclusive rights tomorrow. How will that impact me and my song?"
It won't have any impact on you!
When a beat you’ve previously licensed non-exclusively is later sold exclusively, there’s no need for concern.
The exclusive buyer is fully informed about the artists who licensed the beat before them.
In fact, there is a clause in the Exclusive contract, known as a “Notice of Outstanding Clients“.
It's there to protect artists who have non-exclusive licenses from any problems caused by the buyer who gets exclusive rights.
If you’re currently in this situation, there’s no need to worry. You already know your song’s potential the moment you obtained the license.
The user-rights outlined in the license agreement explain in detail what you can and cannot do. Be sure to thoroughly review your licenses and ensure you comprehend the user rights.
The scenario changes when you exceed the song’s potential (exhaust the user-rights).
In that case, we’ll address the next question ⬇⬇⬇⬇.
Question 4:
I've leased a beat, and my song became viral, but another artist now owns the exclusive rights.
I won’t try to sugarcoat this. If this situation happened to me,
I'd be so frustrated I'd probably feel like banging my head against the wall until I blacked out, then doing it all over again until I forgot what happened... 😅
But honestly, I don’t expect this to happen because I maintain a close relationship with my customers, especially in terms of following up on all their purchases from my site.
I’m not the type of guy who sells exclusive rights to just anyone with a fat wallet. I need to see (or rather, hear) the potential in the artist first.
Similar situations have occurred with artists like Trey Songz, T.I., and Slim Jesus, and I imagine it was a real headache to sort out.
While I haven’t dealt with these situations personally, I can offer advice on how to best avoid them:
- Purchase exclusive rights! (–Not Available if you don’t have the funds).
- Purchase a non-exclusive license of the beat to catch the producer’s attention.
- If you’re short on cash, contact the producer and ask about a payment plan and offer a down payment.
- Build a strong relationship with the producer, stay in touch, and provide updates about the song and its performance – this will show the song’s potential to the producer.
- Ask if they’d be willing to hold on to the rights instead of a big upfront payment (BUT be prepared to offer something more than just “credit” 😑).
On a side note: You don’t have to make a purchase from my site to get my attention. However, it might help you get noticed by other producers who might have that ‘about-to-blow-up’ beat in their hands.
If you’re reading this to determine whether to lease a beat or buy the exclusive rights
This might be a reality check for some, and it might burst a few bubbles, but take a look at your current status as an artist and
ask yourself if your music is at a level where it could actually go "VIRAL" and become a "HIT".
For most artists, leasing beats can be a much wiser choice.
Don’t let the “Dream” lead you on and trick you into spending too much money on the wrong things.
ORGANISATION IS KEY!
Trust me, there’s a lot of times when you might think something is essential to your craft or to you as an artist, but when you get organised, you’ll realise it was much much lower on your priority list.
Prioritize your decisions and re-evaluate your recent releases.
Focus on honing your skills, creating new music consistently, and building a genuine fan base. When that ‘big break’ is approaching, you’ll sense it. Trust me!”
Did you come here to determine which license to buy from my store?
If you came here trying to figure out which license to select from my store, I hope I’ve provided the answers you needed.
If you still have questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out anytime using the contact page on my website.
