All Questions
18
questions
-4
votes
2
answers
160
views
Is looking up the lyrics for a song illegal?
I was dumbstruck when I found out today that apparently posting the lyrics to a song is copyright infringement. I literally asked ChatGPT for the lyrics to "Around the World" by Daft Punk, ...
- 17.7k
10
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Legality of busking a song with copyrighted melody but using different lyrics to deliver a message
Are there any legal impediments to busking a song with melody and lyrics copyrighted in the United States---with the same melody but with different lyrics---on U.S. streets?
Does it matter if the song ...
- 5,935
1
vote
1
answer
155
views
How similar should a tune be to constitute theft of someone else's tune?
i am a composer of hip hop songs. As opposed to rap songs, hip hop songs are very melodic by nature. now sometimes i get inspired by someone else's tune, or write my own tune and then find out ...
- 60.8k
5
votes
1
answer
240
views
Would I be violating copyright by transcribing music that was written over 100 years ago, but published in 1992?
A particular set of piano rolls were recorded before 1913, but to my knowledge were not published until 1989. The recordings are piano transcriptions of symphonic works, performed by their composer/...
- 21.9k
0
votes
1
answer
187
views
In the US, is it legal to download mashup songs from YouTube for personal use?
Let's take for example the song Viva la Pompeii, a mashup of Pompeii by Bastille and Viva La Vida by Coldplay, both copyrighted songs. As far as I can tell, the mashup itself is not copyrighted.
If I ...
- 215k
2
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Creating a cover song for a video game
Based on some cursory internet searches, I understand the following:
If you create a cover song, you still need a license for it from whoever owns the original song.
If you want to put a song in a ...
- 114k
1
vote
1
answer
248
views
Playing copyrighted music legally -> personal and small group usage
I play guitar. I just want to know what is legal or not regarding my playing copyrighted music. I understand that performing in public (whatever that means!? Formal event? More than just me? Other?))...
- 4,951
2
votes
2
answers
120
views
Can music publishers/agents demand service fees for compulsory copyright licenses
By my reading of the compulsory copyright licensing rules, if I want to record a cover of a song and sell one copy of it, I would need to obtain a license, but if I send in a proper notice along with ...
- 215k
1
vote
2
answers
2k
views
copyrighted midi files vs public domain midi files under public domain or creative commons
Here's a scenario. Let's say I use the public domain midi files to make professionally produced sheet music/tablature for teaching purposes.
I know I can sell these because I can do whatever with ...
- 21
0
votes
1
answer
115
views
Using recorded music for a light show
I'm in a band and we have a concert coming up. We play our own music, and even though we include some covers in our performances, I'm aware of venue blanket licenses and that I should not worry about ...
- 224k
2
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Legality of Music Transcription Service
I'm considering creating a music transcription service as a side hobby project. With this service, clients could request that I transcribe a song (or parts of a song) for them in exchange for a fee. I ...
- 1
1
vote
1
answer
458
views
How do I copyright a song with my lyrics but a public domain melody?
I used a melody from an old Eastern European folk song and my own lyrics to record myself singing and playing the guitar.
Do I copyright just the lyrics and just the performance or copyright the ...
CommunityBot
- 1
1
vote
1
answer
151
views
Who is owed royalties when a song samples a song that has sampled another song?
When I first heard Alessia Cara's song "Here" I thought she had directly sampled Portishead's "Glory Box" which in turn samples Isaac Hayes' "Ike's Rap II". I later found this was not true, but this ...
CommunityBot
- 1
2
votes
1
answer
156
views
Can I be liable for copyright infringement if I allow users to create and share drumpad rhythms?
I've been tossing around the possibility of making something like the Beatnik Rhythmic Analyzer. From scratch. The idea I have is that people will enter in rhythms in the form of actual music notation,...
- 195
5
votes
1
answer
298
views
What prevents me from making a derivative of a work never fixed in a tangible medium?
Suppose I'm a singer-songwriter in the United States, and at one of my concerts, I perform a previously unreleased (and in fact never-before-recorded) song. I play this song from memory and by ear; I ...
CommunityBot
- 1