When you write a Song, and put it in 'fixed form', your 'right' to 'copy' your Intellectual Property (IP) is 'bestowed' on you by Federal Law.
You 'own' that 'property' just as you own a pair of shoes, an acre of land, a painting, or the manuscript to a novel you wrote.
What you own gives you the 'right' to decide who will get to use your property. If you give someone the right to 'cut' (record) and release (put out on the public market) your Song, you, and they, should be interested in a formal contract, delineating what everyone expects to get out of the deal.
As the owner you may want to Register your Song with the Register of Copyrights of the Library of Congress. That Registration, dated the day they receive your application, affirms that you are the owner. If you are giving people 'access' to your IP there is always the chance someone unscrupulous could seize that opportunity to rob you. A Song can be worth a fortune. Copyright Registration is fairly inexpensive, and even easy in the electronic age. Copyright Law is Federal Law, and so, if you can prove 'access' and 'infringement', and you have a formal Registration, a Federal Judge will let your complaint onto his docket for hearing your case.

If you sign a contract with a Publishing Company they want to 'own' part of the Song, and the 'right' to collect Publishing Royalties.
You own those Publishing Royalty Rights.
You own Songwriting Royalty Rights too.
If you contract to 'assign' those Publishing Rights to a Publisher, a Publishing Company, the earning of those Royalties is what they are working for, their motive to 'Publish' the Song, pitching it to 'consumers', maybe Record Labels or other Industry organizations, maybe other Publishers, maybe artists or their management. That's the leg work they are offering as 'consideration' in a contract, what they are willing to do to earn those Publishing Royalties. Odds are they'll want 100% of those Publishing Royalty Rights. You might negotiate a different percentage, but odds are they're going to start at 100%, and may stay at 100%.

You own 100% of the Publishing Royalties Rights, and 100% of the Songwriting Royalties Rights.
Sometimes someone in the mix wants a piece of the Songwriting Royalties Rights too. They may ask you for a percentage. They may ask to change a word or two in the Song, making them a co-writer, gaining a 50% share of the Songwriting Royalties Rights.

The Publisher may not include a 'Reversion Clause' in the contract they offer you, specifying how long they have to get the Song 'cut' and 'released' before the contract ends and Publishing Rights 'revert' back to you, freeing you to contract with another Publisher. You should be sure there is a Reversion Clause. Otherwise, their 'right' to be paid if you ever do get the Song cut and released and it earns Royalties goes on forever.

As an adult you are 'bound' to whatever is specified in the contract you sign your name to. Since they write the contract, and they're in the business they're in, they're likely to make the terms favorable to them. An Entertainment Lawyer, well-versed in the nuances of that type of law, which may be different from commercial or criminal law, can be a good investment, to look over the contract, see that the Reversion Clause in in there and reasonable, and evaluate the 'reasonableness' of any and all other 'nuances' of your and their contractual agreements and obligations.

A Song used in a Movie or TV show is generally 'contracted' as a Synchronization License. A Christmas Song, popularized in a Movie, or TV show, might become a perennial favorite, playing every Christmas, and, depending on what the contract you sign says, may earn you a License fee every time it plays, year after year. If it pops out of the show and into perennial play on terrestrial radio, along with "White Christmas" and "Rudolf The Red-Nosed Reindeer", that 'Synch' License can be very lucrative.

So, it is in your interest to find people who can 'Publish' your Song, putting it into the market to see if someone will cut it, release it, and get it played in revenue-generating venues. Not getting robbed of your 'ownership' is a matter worthy of your caution and legal representation.
A 'contract' can tie a Song up for the period specified in the Reversion Clause. If they're just playing the odds, contracting and hoping you somehow get the Song to market while they're contractually in line for a share of the profits, the period may pass and the Song reverts to you, and you've lost that time. So you need to know who you're dealing with, how to read the contract they write, and something about their track record.

This is something we generally have not studied. We start out as hobbyists, tinkering with Songwriting for fun and personal fulfillment. Transitioning into a 'company' engaging in 'commerce' with other companies, other people, is a new area of study for us. If we're uneducated we can sign our names to contracts and undo all the pleasant prospects we've been looking forward to, sometimes with permanent damage and no 'recourse' to rectify the situation.

If the contract is reasonable, and the contracting partner has a reasonable reputation, and you feel your Song truly has merit, it may be worth taking a chance, but that doesn't mean go blindly into it. If you're a legitimate 'company' you keep good records. Who did you give 'access'? When? Where? Details, documented contemporaneously, at the time, play very well in court, if you end up there.
You consult among your team. You let the lawyer look it over. You study the business you're getting into. It makes the difference of whether you're taking the 10% chance or the 50% chance or some other percentage, higher or lower.

Last edited by Gary E. Andrews; 07/27/20 10:24 PM.
There will always be another song to be written. Someone will write it. Why not you? www.garyeandrews.com