Is it legal if a singer makes a demo pays studio time not musicians doesn't copyright demo but later a musician puts it on CD for sale worldwide with voice and name of singer not listed as main artist?

That depends

Was it original material? If the singer wrote the tune and or the lyrics, he's the copyright holder, unless he sold it or transferred it somehow. Publishing the tunes without the author's permission is illegal. If they were cover tunes, then whoever published the CD is on the hook to pay royalties to the copyright holder, but the publisher was really under no obligation to give credit to the players, although he should have. I'm not sure whether any of the players, including the vocalist, are entitled to any residuals from the sale of the CD. That may be a contractual thing, but since it doesn't appear that any contract was signed, the answer is probably no.

Sound recordings, joint ownership, joint profits

"...doesn't copyright the demo..." is a false premise. It was copyrighted the moment it was recorded. The question is: Who owns the copyright in the demo and do all of the owners share in the profits made? The following analysis pertains to U.S. law and may vary according to interpretations of the relevant treaties in other countries.

Ownership of the underlying music is usually beside the point, once a compulsory (mechanical) license is available and notice of use has been filed. Copyright of the underlying composition, lyrics, or arrangement, may be technically owned by others, but a compulsory recording license can be easily obtained for about nine cents per copy (unless the composer NEVER released or authorized a record in the U.S.).

The copyright of a sound recording (after 1972) is jointly owned by all of the independent performers and the producer who created it (unless otherwise agreed in writing). Therefore, an independent musician may be a joint owner of the sound recording, if nothing else was stated in writing; it may be legal for any one of them to reproduce the demo and sell copies. They just need to pay the 9-cent mechanical royalty and account to the other owners for any profits they made from the joint work so the profits can be shared by all of the joint owners. Yet another reason to have it in writing.

Also, if the singer's voice is recognizably famous, there may be a claim for misappropriation of the singer's fame for a commercial purpose without proper license.

First answer by Schnazola. Last edit by Wutzyerproblem. Contributor trust: 359 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 55 [recommend question]

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