Outcome. Obtain your identifiers and write a split sheet before the session ends rather than after the song succeeds.

Four identifiers matter. IPI identifies songwriters, publishers and administrators and comes from your PRO. ISWC identifies the musical work and is assigned by PROs. ISRC identifies a sound recording or music video and comes from your distributor or the national agency. ISNI identifies contributors more broadly and comes from agencies including SoundExchange.

To get an ISWC you supply the title, whether the work is derivative, the work classification code from your PRO, and every composer, author and arranger with their IPI codes. A writer using several pseudonyms will hold several IPI codes.

A split sheet records who wrote what share, signed on the day, before anyone knows whether the song matters. Splits agreed after success are negotiations. Splits agreed in the room are paperwork.

If your song uses preexisting music, the sampling, interpolation, cover and remix rules decide which copyrights you must clear. A sample touches both the recording and the work. An interpolation usually touches only the work. A cover needs a mechanical licence but not the original recording.

What you will produce

Your IPI on file, ISWCs requested for your works, ISRCs for your recordings, and a signed split sheet for your most recent song.