The Art of Clearing A Sample: Deciding If It’s Worth It and How To Actually Do It.
Hip hop and samples go hand in hand, for better or worse. We have seen samples become the core element in some of the greatest records ever. We have also seen samples hinder the release of a record because the copyright owners refuse to offer clearance. That's the paradox when deciding to use a sample. It’s a cost/benefit analysis every time. Is the upfront fee and publishing/royalty you’re giving up worth using the sample? Additionally, if you are a producer using a sample on an instrumental, just know that this will likely affect your payout and publishing split. Regardless, always be transparent to the artists and labels involved if you have used a sample as litigation in copyright suits involving a sample could lead to years of battle and millions in expenses.
Sampling is rooted in understanding the copyright associated with music. There are two distinct copyrights in each song. There is the sound recording (master)copyright which is the recorded version of a song. Then there is the composition copyright which is the underlying melody, beat and lyrics of a song. For further clarity, the composition copyright consists of the music and lyrics and the sound recording copyright is the performed and recorded version of the underlying music and lyrics.
