What Happens To Your Music When You Die?

Taking the time to sort out your musical affairs now means your musical legacy will continue even when you’re no longer here. In part two of our series on the importance of an estate plan for producers, we look at copyrights and sound recordings.

When Prince died unexpectedly in 2016, his musical affairs were thrown into chaos. Without a will, and according to local state law, his immediate family – a sister and five half-siblings – had a claim to his estate. This included his musical copyrights and sound recordings along with his personal possessions. Ultimately, more than 700 people claimed to be relatives. Finally, in August 2022 – six years later – the estate had been settled.  

This is a sadly common occurrence in the world of music. Similar things happened with the estates of Tupac and Amy Winehouse. When you’re busy making music, you don’t think about what could happen if it all suddenly ended. 

Of course, not all of us have the kinds of assets that Prince and Amy Winehouse did but we’re still musicians, producers and beatmakers with a body of work out there in some capacity, physical or digital. If it were to suddenly end, is the continuation of your musical legacy ensured?

“Most musicians know of at least one famous artists who died without a plan,” warned Patricia De Fonte, JD, L.LM, the founder of De Fonte Law PC, an estate-planning firm in California that focuses on musicians and artists. “Don’t let that happen to your music!”

What Happens To Your Music When You Die: You Need an Estate Plan

The key element that artists like Prince and Tupac didn’t have when they passed was a will, otherwise known as an estate plan. Essentially, it’s a set of documents that acts as legally binding instructions over how you want your assets handled after you die. ‘Assets’ here includes your possessions, of course, such as your musical equipment, as well as your copyrights. 

In part one of this story, we talked about how to set up an estate plan to take care of your gear, such as your studio and vintage synthesizers. Musical copyrights need to be included too. 

We won’t go too deep into the nuts and bolts of creating an estate plan as we outlined it in the previous story, but in short, you need to:

1. Create a plan and state who you want to receive your possessions, including copyrights.
2. List those copyrights in detail.
3. Include some language related to your right to publicity (more on this later).
4. Choose an executor, a trusted person to carry out your wishes.

You’ll need to do this in a legally binding way, such as at a law firm that specializes in estate planning. There may be other options open to you if cost is an issue. “Your local arts council or lawyers association or legal aid societies may have resources,” suggested Patricia. 

Not just any lawyer will do. Make sure that the firm or lawyer you go with understands the intricacies of copyright laws. “Most estate planning lawyers do not understand copyright laws,” said Patricia. “You will have to do some research to find a lawyer who understands copyright or is willing to do the work to educate themselves on a musician or songwriter’s unique rights.”

Most estate planning lawyers do not understand copyright laws...find a lawyer who understands copyright or is willing to do the work to educate themselves on a musician or songwriter’s unique rights.

What Happens To Your Music When You Die: More Than Just Copyrights

Something that we hadn’t considered about ‘copyrights’ is all that the word entails. You may have some singles and EPs out, and maybe an album. Isn’t it enough to just declare that? No, apparently, as Patricia explained. “You have written the music, you have recorded the album, and you have a stack of physical albums. You have quite a few potential gifts to make.” 

Copyrights, then, include any physical media such as records or cassettes, the right to reproduce or license your sound recordings plus the right to license or assign the publishing rights. You can also restrict the use of your music as well, such as requesting that it never be uploaded to streaming.

What Happens To Your Music When You Die: Get Your House In Order

As mentioned, you’ll need to make a list of all of the copyrights that you hold. This includes music and sound recordings plus copyrights, both registered and unregistered. However, to save your beneficiaries a headache in the long run (and benefit you in the short run – you want to get paid for your music, don’t you?), it’s best to register your works now. 

“By registering,” said intellectual property and entertainment attorney Reshaun Finkley on Hypebot, “artists allow these organizations to track all uses of their music and collect and pay the royalties. By not registering, artists leave a huge opening for legal claims, counterclaims and large legal bills – so don’t skip this step.”

You can register with a performing rights organization like BMI or ASCAP, or a non-profit group such as The MLC or SoundExchange.

What Happens To Your Music When You Die: Leave A Legacy

Something else to consider is who is hosting your music on streaming. Companies like DistroKid upload your music to streaming sites like Spotify and Apple Music and keep it there as long as you continue to pay them. What happens when you die though? You can’t keep paying if you’re no longer here.

Thankfully, many digital distributors have provisions set up for this, such as DistroKid’s Leave a Legacy and CD Baby’s Transfer of Account Ownership. Either take care of this yourself now or leave instructions for the beneficiary or executor to do it later.

What Happens To Your Music When You Die: Right of Publicity

You may have a right of publicity to consider. Also known as ‘personality rights’ or ‘rights of persona,’ the right of publicity is, according to the International Trademark Association, “an intellectual property right that protects against the misappropriation of a person’s name, likeness, or other indicia of personal identity – such as nickname, pseudonym, voice, signature, likeness, or photograph – for commercial benefit.”

With the rise of AI, voice cloning and other new technologies, this may be something to consider if where you live supports it. “You may wish to include language in your estate plan that includes restrictions on (how) your name, face or voice can be used after you have passed away,” said Patricia.

“If you are in a band...estate planning protects your bandmates, because without a plan suddenly your bandmates might own songs and recordings with your parents, spouse or minor children!

What Happens To Your Music When You Die: Worst Case Scenario

As mentioned in part one of this series, if you don’t make an estate plan, the law will decide who gets your possessions – including your musical copyrights. This process is called intestate succession. It varies depending on where you live but, as with the case of Prince’s estate, intestate succession usually comes down to your closest relatives inheriting your belongings and rights. 

“This might not align with your wishes,” said Patricia, “so it’s better to make an estate plan to have control over who gets what. Without an estate plan, your music and sound recordings might not be managed the way you want, potentially affecting how they are used or who profits from them in the future.”

Something else to consider is any joint copyrights that you may hold with musical partners or bandmates. “If you are in a band,” commented Patria, “estate planning protects your bandmates, because without a plan suddenly your bandmates might own songs and recordings with your parents, spouse or minor children!”

Contrast this to the late Frankie Knuckles, whose legacy is being handled by the Frankie Knuckles Association. “If there’s a request to use his name or likeness or anything like that – for instance, there’s a request for an award to be named in his honor – the foundation will approve it,” executive director Frederick Dunson said in an interview with 5Mag.net. 

Avoiding intestate succession means keeping your legacy as you would wish it to be.

What Happens To Your Music When You Die: The Last Word

“Establishing an estate plan is a crucial step for musicians and artists of all ages,” summed up Patricia. “Often, musicians own recordings and compositions with other people and in that case, everyone should have a plan. It not only protects your valuable music gear and copyrights but also provides clarity and direction for your loved ones. By planning ahead and making your wishes known, you can ensure that your creative legacy continues to inspire and bring joy to others.”

Thank you to Patricia De Fonte, JD, L.LM, Founder of De Fonte Law PC for the invaluable assistance with this story. 

Find Part 1 of this series “What Happens To Your Studio When You Die”.

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