For Songwriters

Is Your Back Catalog Ready to License? A Five-Question Rights Check

By the Starchild Music team · October 27, 2026 · 6 min read

Three shallow wooden trays on a sunlit desk, one holding cassette tapes tied with a green ribbon, one with tapes tied with a yellow ribbon, and one with a closed lid, with a magnifying glass resting beside them

The short answer

Before you list an older song, answer five questions: who wrote it, who owns the recording, whether it is promised elsewhere, whether anything borrowed is in it, and whether you can prove each answer on paper. Then sort your songs into ready now, fix first and hold, and list them in that order.

Older songs come with history. A co-writer who moved away, a producer who 'just helped', a deal you signed years ago and half remember. None of it matters until a buyer asks a simple question: can you license this?

This guide is for songwriters and catalog owners getting older songs ready. It is a five-question check you can run on one song at a time, starting with your best five. It is general information, not legal advice.

Two copyrights, two sets of owners

A recorded song holds two separate works. The U.S. Copyright Office calls them the musical composition, meaning the music and any words, and the sound recording, meaning the fixed performance. Its guidance says the author of a composition is generally the composer and the lyricist, if any. The author of a sound recording is the performer whose performance is fixed, or the record producer who processes the sounds and fixes them in the final recording, or both.

That last line is the one catalog owners miss. You can write every note and still not own the recording if someone else's performance or production is in it. Starchild produces every accepted song in several styles around your original vocal, so the recording you upload needs clear ownership too.

Question 1: Who wrote it, and is that on paper?

List everyone who wrote words or music. The Copyright Act says the authors of a joint work are co-owners of the copyright. Songtrust describes a split sheet as a written agreement that identifies each collaborator's percentage, and says to sign it once everyone agrees the song is finished. Without one, it warns, your PRO, publisher or administrator cannot confirm your ownership percentage if there is a conflict.

If a co-writer is hard to reach, start with our guide to listing a co-written song. If you hold songs on behalf of other writers, keep the agreement that gives you the right to license them.

Question 2: Who owns the recording?

Think back to how it was made. Did you record it yourself, or did a producer, a studio or a band? Did you hire a session singer or a mixing engineer?

Paying for a recording does not automatically make you its owner. The Copyright Office's circular on works made for hire says a work counts as made for hire when an employee makes it as part of the job, or when it is specially commissioned in one of nine listed categories and both sides sign a written agreement saying so. If a requirement is missing, the circular says, it is not a work made for hire.

The fix is paper. Look for a producer agreement, a signed note or an invoice that states the terms. The Copyright Act says a transfer of copyright ownership is generally not valid unless an instrument of conveyance, or a note or memorandum of the transfer, is in writing and signed by the owner of the rights. If nothing exists, ask the people involved to sign a short written confirmation, and have a lawyer word it.

Question 3: Is any of it promised elsewhere?

Old deals can limit what you may license today. Read your agreements with publishers, administrators, libraries, labels and distributors. If a song is promised elsewhere, hold it back until the term ends or the rights come back.

Library deals. CD Baby's DIY Musician guide explains that an exclusive library agreement makes the library the only company allowed to represent your content for sync licensing. It adds that you may get only a small window every one to two years to give notice, and it advises having an attorney experienced in music law review the agreement.
Publishing and administration deals. Songtrust says a publishing administrator doesn't take any ownership or control of your copyright, and that the fee is paid for a set time limit. Check what the administrator handles and when the term ends. The MLC adds that if you have a publisher or administrator, they work with The MLC on your behalf.
Label, studio or distributor terms. Did anyone else get rights in the recording when it was made or released? If you cannot say, treat that as an open question.

Question 4: Is anything borrowed in the song?

Look for a sample, a loop from a library, a guest part or a lyric line from another writer. Songtrust says a split sheet should name any songs that were sampled, so keep that note with the song. If you cannot say where a part came from, keep the song out of your listing until you can.

Be clear about how much of the song people made, too. Starchild labels every song as human-made, hybrid or AI-generated, based on the writer's own disclosure. In its January 2025 report, the Copyright Office concluded that copyright does not extend to purely AI-generated material, or material where there is insufficient human control over the expressive elements. It also said that using AI tools to assist, rather than stand in for, human creativity does not affect the availability of protection. Describe your process honestly.

Question 5: Can you prove it?

Keep one folder per song: the split sheet, signed agreements, receipts for recording work, the lyric sheet, your PRO and MLC registration details, and the original session files. Copyright exists from the moment a work is created, and registration with the Copyright Office is voluntary. The Office does say you must register to bring a lawsuit for infringement of a U.S. work.

Recording a transfer of ownership with the Office is also voluntary. Its circular says the law gives recorded documents certain advantages, including priority between conflicting transfers. Ask a lawyer whether recording makes sense for songs that have changed hands.

Sort the catalog into three piles

Start with your five strongest songs, then work through the rest.

Ready now: writers, splits, recording and prior deals are clear and documented. List these first.
Fix first: one gap, such as a missing split sheet or an unsigned producer note. Write down the fix, who has to sign, and a date.
Hold: unclear ownership, a deal that still runs, or a sample you cannot place. Leave these unlisted until you have an answer.

What to hand a buyer

A clean record shortens every conversation. On Starchild, every license comes with a certificate that names the writers, and anyone can check a license at /verify, so the details you enter now are the ones a buyer will see. Keep a one-page summary for each song with these lines. Our metadata checklist covers every field.

Title, and any alternate titles.
Writers, splits, and each writer's PRO and IPI.
Who owns the recording, and where the agreement is.
Any other deal that touches the song.
Samples or borrowed parts: none, or a list.
How the song was made, in plain words, including any AI tools.
Which versions exist.

Then start listing

Partners keep their copyright and earn 50% of each sale, minus the payment fee. Once the paperwork is in order, listing is the easy part. See how to become a content partner.

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