Music nft Q&A
When I first heard about NFTs, I didn’t even connect it to music. The implications came later, and now that art NFTs have a lot of lessons learned available, the music industry is catching up with every opportunity to make it even more useful for musicians than it was for artists. As a musician new to Web3, you may have a reasonable number of concerns with NFTs, and questions about how to act in the Web3 environment, and whether it’s any different than SoundCloud, Spotify, and other Web2 platforms. Below is the list of common music NFT concerns (some valid, some not) I had as a music producer before joining the Web3 scene. I managed to get answers throughout my journey. 10 questions and answers about music NFTs that every artist should read, and 3 bonus DOs and DON’Ts to consolidate!
ATTENTION:
THIS IS NOT A LEGAL OR FINANCIAL ADVICE, DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH
1. Can I create NFTs out of music that I have released previously?
- YES
You may, and we’ve seen many examples of great artists tokenizing the tracks that have been on YouTube for a couple of years. New releases are likely to generate more hype, but there’s nothing wrong with giving a second breath to tracks that didn’t catch as much attention as they deserve.
2. Do copyright laws apply to music NFTs?
- YES
You must have heard “NFTs are scam” and “This is all BS” comments. Those are coming from trolls, and not from the actual folks with music NFT concerns. Copyright laws are absolutely applicable to music NFTs, which means that legally nobody can claim any rights to your music without your consent. The same goes for you – just because it’s on Web3, doesn’t mean you can claim it yours, use it, and benefit from it.
3. Can I make NFTs out of remixes or cover songs I made?
- NO
Continuing the answer above, unless you have figured out the licensing for the work you are remixing or covering, do not touch other artists’ music. Easy. There are amazing services like EasySong.com that will help you legalize your brilliant cover so that you can mint it as NFT.
4. Can I mint the same song NFT on different platforms?
- NOT ADVISABLE
Short answer – you should not do it. This may easily damage your reputation, and it’s violating most of the Web3 music platforms’ terms of service. So, it will not be easy to come back from the ban.
5. Can I mint multiple editions of a track on the same platform or marketplace?
- YES
There are multiple platforms, including the major marketplaces, that allow you to mint as many editions as you want. Unless you release it as 1/1 or create it on a 1/1 NFT music platform (such as Catalog), minting editions of the same track is not an issue.
6. Can I mint the same track multiple times?
- NOT ADVISABLE
Sounds almost the same as the two previous music NFT concerns, but it’s not when you know the nature of NFTs. You should not create an NFT out of a track, sell it, and then create more NFTs from the same track. Again, it’s likely to cause reputational damage to you at a minimum. This should make you strategize, and think twice about how many editions you are minting.
7. What if somebody mints my music without my permission?
- FLAG or REPORT
Just like people taking screenshots of art NFTs, and trying to sell non-original pieces, uploading pirated mp3s is one of the valid music NFT concerns. Luckily most music NFT platforms have flagging and reporting mechanisms. We should expect more automation in this space, such as automatic detection of copyright violations as YouTube does for videos.
8. Do I have to pay taxes if my music NFTs sell?
- YES
Gains in cryptocurrencies are subject to taxation. Even when they remain in crypto, i.e. not converted back to fiat.
9. Does the owner of my music NFT have the right to distribute my music?
- NO
Nobody has the right to distribute your music unless you explicitly sold that right or gave it up. This is not a music NFT concern, it’s a general problem in the music industry. It should not stop you from entering the Web3 music space if you are already in Web2.
10. Can the owner of my music NFT re-sell it to somebody?
- YES
That’s the whole point, right?! Most Web3 music platforms provide ways for you to collect royalties, and even set your own rates. Additionally, splits are way more intuitive if you collaborate with someone. This is a great example of how Web3.0 turns a problem into an advantage.
DOs and DON’Ts
- DON’T mint anything you don’t own the copyrights for
- DO check whether the song name (and your artist name) is trademarked at sites like https://www.uspto.gov/
- DO use the Description field for Terms & Conditions, eg. commercial usage, responsibility after the purchase
Happy? Now What?
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