TIDAL launches new tools for US songwriters to manage royalties

TIDAL has unveiled a new suite of tools that allows US-based songwriters to claim and manage their works catalog, ensuring proper identification, attribution, and collection of royalties, including mechanical royalties. This marks a significant step toward supporting songwriters, who often struggle with the complexities of royalty management across multiple platforms.

Songwriter and producer Sabrina Song praised the new tools, saying, "The new TIDAL songwriter tool makes a noticeable difference by giving me a straight-forward look at my catalog to make sure I'm getting accurate royalties. The ability to manage my works in one place really allows me to focus more on making music."

Traditionally, songwriters have had to navigate a maze of collection societies, publishing platforms, royalty management services, and more to manage their royalties and careers. TIDAL's new tools streamline this process by allowing songwriters to organize their IPI, PRO, and publisher information within the TIDAL Artist Home platform. The platform also encourages sign-ups for the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) and AllTrack, a performing rights organization (PRO) for those registering for the first time.

AllTrack Founder and CEO Hayden Bower commented, "To begin collecting royalties on their songs, creators need to sign up with the proper rights organizations -- altogether a confusing process for most. We are proud to partner with TIDAL to introduce new AllTrack technology that makes registering for performing rights and getting paid as simple as possible for creators."

The works registration process on TIDAL categorizes songwriters' works into Completed Works, Works Without Recordings, and Unmatched Recordings. The platform also offers collaborative split sheets for better rightsholder tracking and allows songwriters to invite collaborators to sign off on their shares, improving documentation of ownership. Additionally, songwriters can invite managers and publishers to assist with catalog management using the team roles tool.

Music metadata, which determines who gets credited and paid for a track or album, has historically been a complicated and often inaccurate process. TIDAL's tools enable songwriters to easily manage their credits and metadata within the platform, ensuring that their works are correctly matched and registered, ultimately helping them earn their rightful royalties.

"Creating music sustainably in today’s world is difficult, especially for songwriters who need to establish and manage their identities in order to receive recognition and fulfill their earning potential," said Agustina Sacerdote, Global Head of Product at TIDAL. "At TIDAL we’re committed to supporting early stage and self-managed songwriters with handling their careers independently."

US-based songwriters can claim their songwriter profile and start managing their works at tidal.com/forsongwriters.