Music Royalties Explained: How to Ensure You Aren’t Losing Money From Global Streams

As an independent artist, your music is your intellectual property. However, many artists—especially those transitioning between the African and European markets—leave thousands of dollars on the table because they don’t understand the "plumbing" of music royalties.

Streaming on Spotify or Boomplay is only one part of the paycheck. If you aren't registered with the right bodies, you are essentially working for free. Here is the Scorti-Samuel breakdown of the royalties you should be collecting.

1. The Two Sides of Every Song

Every track has two separate "rights" that earn money:

The Master (Sound Recording): This belongs to the person who paid for the studio session (usually you, the indie artist).

The Composition (Songwriting): This belongs to the person who wrote the lyrics and the melody.

2. Digital Distribution Royalties

When a fan streams your song on Boomplay or Apple Music, your distributor (e.g., DistroKid or Africori) collects the "Master" royalty. This is the most common way indie artists get paid, but it is not the only way.

3. Performance Royalties (The PROs)

Whenever your song is played in a public space—radio stations like BBC 1Xtra, clubs in Lagos, or even a gym in London—you earn a performance royalty.

In the UK: You must register with PRS for Music.

In Nigeria: You should look into MCSN (Musical Copyright Society Nigeria).

The Scorti Tip: If you are an artist based in the UK but your music is blowing up in Nigeria, ensure your PRO has a "reciprocal agreement" so they can collect your money from overseas.

4. Mechanical Royalties

Mechanicals are earned when your music is "reproduced" digitally or physically. This includes every time someone hits "play" on a streaming service. Distributors often do not collect these. You need a Publishing Administrator like Songtrust or Sentric Music to find this money for you across the globe.

5. Neighboring Rights (Digital Performance)

If your music is played on non-interactive digital radio (like Pandora or iHeartRadio), you earn "Neighboring Rights" royalties. To collect these, artists often register with PPL (Phonographic Performance Limited) in the UK. This is separate from your songwriting money—this is for your performance as a singer or instrumentalist.

6. The Checklist for 2026

To ensure your "Scorti-Samuel" level of professional standards, follow this checklist for every release:

Distributor: Is the song on all platforms?

PRO: Is the work registered on PRS or MCSN?

Publishing: Do you have an admin collecting global mechanicals?

Metadata: Are your "splits" (who owns what % of the song) agreed upon with your producer before the song drops?

Final Thought

Being "grounded and humble" doesn't mean being financially illiterate. In 2026, the successful artist is the one who treats their catalog like a real estate portfolio. Every stream is a brick; make sure you own the land it's built on.

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