Course Description: Our current digital economy presents various options for aspiring songwriters and musical artist to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ through song. The Bible declares that those who proclaim the Gospel should also receive their living from the Gospel. In this session, we will discuss the fundamental basics of music distribution and licensing and the various options available to independent recording artist. Course Outline I. Copyrights A. What are copyrights? B. Why are they important? C. How do I obtain copyrights? D. Who controls their use? II. Recording Artist Revenue Streams A. “80/20” Rule B. Record Sales C. Public Performances/Radio D. Sound Recording Exploitation E. Publishing F. Gospel Music “Blackhole” III Streaming Royalties A. Slowly becoming the dominant revenue source B. U.S. Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) January 27, 2018 ruling C. Sound Exchange D. Songtrust IV. Who needs a major label? A. Independent distribution options (digital, CD, vinyl, videos/YouTube) B. Reasons why major labels are still necessary V. Collaborations - Joint Works A. Default rule B. Importance of split sheets C. Ability to license joint works D. Adapting joint works E. Co-administration agreements