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Royalties

The Royalty Registration Checklist

A complete checklist to global rights administration, metadata accuracy, and capturing 100% of your master and publishing royalties.

,   and  Not Another Record Label

The Royalty Registration Checklist

By Guillermo Pino Cruz of Not Another Record Label

*This post is presented in full for free on Hypebot, please subscribe to Not Another Record Label on Substack for more articles.

In the modern music industry, your music can be played millions of times. Still, if your administrative foundation isn’t solid, that revenue either stays in the platform's hands or gets lost in “black box” accounts.

If you are not correctly registered with the appropriate organizations, the money your music generates remains “unclaimed.” Without the right digital paper trail, you cannot claim what you are rightfully owed.

Use this checklist before your next release goes live to claim every dollar that rightfully belongs to you.

1. Performance Royalties (PRO / CMO)

Collects money when your song is played publicly — radio, streaming, live sets, TV, background music in venues.

Examples:

If you’re signed to a publisher, confirm they’ve registered the split correctly on their end too.

2. Mechanical Royalties

Paid out for reproduction of a composition — streams, downloads, physical sales (vinyl, CD, cassette).

  • US: Register with The MLC (Mechanical Licensing Collective) — mandatory for US streaming mechanicals.
  • UK/EU: Usually collected via your PRO/CMO or a publishing administrator (SACEM, GEMA, and PRS all handle mechanicals alongside performance).
  • If you self-publish, confirm your distributor isn’t quietly absorbing mechanicals you’re owed directly.

3. Neighboring Rights and Master Royalties

Separate from songwriter royalties — this pays the performer and rights holder of the actual recording, not just the composition.

  • US: Register with SoundExchange (covers non-interactive digital platforms such as SiriusXM, Pandora, and online radio stations).
  • UK: Register with PPL
  • France: Register with SPPF or SPEDIDAM (depending on your role — label/producer vs. performer)
  • Germany: Register with GVL
  • If you’re both the artist and the label, you may need to register in both capacities separately.

This category is the one most self-released artists skip entirely — and it’s often the largest unclaimed pool.

+Read more: "Streams Don’t Build Careers: Fans Do"

4. Publishing Administration

If you write your own music and don’t have a publisher, someone still needs to actively chase royalties across territories and DSPs on the composition side.

  • Decide: self-administer or use an admin service (there are several — compare fees and territory coverage before picking one).
  • Confirm your publishing entity is registered with your PRO/CMO as both writer and publisher, if applicable.
  • Set a calendar reminder to audit unclaimed/unmatched royalties every quarter.

5. Double-Check Your Metadata

Bad metadata = royalties sitting unclaimed in a black box, sometimes indefinitely.

  • ISRC: assigned to every recording (unique per version. Don’t reuse across remixes, edits or distinct remasters).
  • ISWC: assigned to every composition.
  • All songwriters, producers, and publishers are listed correctly, with correct splits.
  • IPI/CAE numbers are attached for every writer (get this from your PRO after registering).
  • Cross-check everything: Ensure your distributor, PRO, and MLC/CMO details are identical. Data mismatches are the #1 cause of unmatched royalties.

6. Platform and Content ID

  • Claim your artist profiles: Spotify for Artists, Apple Music for Artists, YouTube, TikTok.
  • Enable YouTube Content ID (via your distributor or directly, if eligible) to monetize UGC using your music.
  • Set up audio fingerprinting through your distributor to catch unauthorized use.

7. After Every Release

  • Double-check that credits are live and correct on all platforms within 2 weeks of release.
  • Cross-check that PRO, MLC/CMO, and distributor metadata all match.
  • Log the release in your own royalty-tracking sheet — don’t rely on memory across a growing catalog.
  • Revisit unclaimed/unmatched royalty portals (MLC, SoundExchange, PRS, GEMA all have these) every few months.

None of these registrations are automatic. Take the necessary time to research which entities apply to your territory and learn exactly how to register.

Protecting your catalog is worth the effort.

+Read more: "You Don’t Need to Be Famous to Sell Your Music Catalog Anymore"

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