What Are "Mechanicals" in Music?

I Keep Hearing "Mechanicals"...

Generally speaking, if a musician or music industry professional is talking "Mechanicals" they are discussing mechanical royalties. Mechanical royalties are earned whenever a musical composition is reproduced in an audio-only format, regardless of if it is a physical format (i.e. CDs, Vinyl, etc...) or a digital format (i.e. Digital Downloads, Streams, etc...).

Copyright Law protects the right to reproduce creative works and reserves that right (along with others) to the copyright holder. This is typically the composer or their publisher. 

How Do I Collect My Mechanical Royalties?

In order to collect your mechanical royalties, you will need a publisher or publishing administrator to work on your behalf. They will register your compositions in various databases and organizations, and will administer your exclusive rights to license out your songs and generate you money through mechanical licenses. Some musicians choose to self-publish by registering their own personal publishing entity, but it is understandably an extra time commitment that not all musicians can afford and may lead to missed royalties if you are building your network from the ground up. For assistance with publishing administration, you can call or email us and speak with any of our experts to learn more about collecting your royalties worldwide through Easy Song's Publishing service.