Guides / Composition vs master
Every song is two copyrights
Last reviewed 22 October 2026
When you release a track, two separate things are protected: the song itself, and the recording of it. They can belong to different people, they last for different lengths of time, and different organisations pay out on each. Almost everything else in the music business follows from this one split.
1. The composition: the song
The composition is the song as something you could write down or play again: the melody, the harmony, the structure, and the lyrics. In UK law the music is a musical work and the words are a literary work. People in the industry call this side the publishing.
Who owns it at the start: the people who wrote it. How that works depends on how you wrote it:
- If one person wrote the music and another wrote the words, UK law treats them as two works written to be used together, each with its own author.
- If you wrote it together and your contributions can't be separated, for example you both shaped the melody in the room, it is a work of joint authorship and you own it together.
One exception: if you wrote it as part of your job, your employer usually owns it.
How long it lasts: 70 years after the death of the writer. For a co-written song, it runs from the death of the last surviving writer.
Where its money comes from: the songwriting societies and publishers. In the UK, PRS for Music collects for two societies: PRS for when the song is performed or broadcast, and MCPS for when it is copied or reproduced. A stream counts as both. Its identifying code is the ISWC.
2. The master: the recording
The master is one particular recording of the song: the actual audio file. In UK law it is a sound recording. The same song can have any number of masters: your version, a live version, someone else's cover.
Who owns it at the start: the law calls this person the producer, but it does not mean the person who made the beat. It means whoever made the arrangements needed for the recording to happen, which often means whoever organised and paid for the session. On a self-funded release that is usually the artist. On a label deal it is usually the label.
That is why it matters to agree who owns the master in writing. The person credited as producer can easily not be the legal owner, and the other way round.
How long it lasts: 70 years from when it is first released. A recording that is never released is protected for 50 years from when it was made.
Where its money comes from: sales and streams through your distributor or label, and PPL for radio, TV and music played in public. Its identifying code is the ISRC.
Key takeawayWriting a song and owning a recording of it are separate. You can own one, both, or a share of either, and each pays out through different channels.
3. Side by side
| Composition | Master | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | The song: melody, harmony, lyrics | One recording of the song |
| Also called | The publishing, the work | The recording, the sound recording |
| First owner | The writers | Whoever arranged the recording, often the artist or label |
| Lasts | Life of the last writer + 70 years | 70 years from release |
| UK collection | PRS for Music and MCPS, and publishers | Distributor or label, and PPL |
| Code | ISWC | ISRC |
You do not register copyright in the UK. There is no official register. Both copyrights exist automatically as soon as the song is written down or recorded. What you do register, with PRS and PPL, are the details they need to pay you (how royalties work covers who registers what). That is a different thing from claiming copyright.
4. Performers have rights too
Anyone who performs on a recording, a session vocalist, a guitarist, a featured rapper, has rights in that performance even if they own neither copyright. Their consent is needed to record it and to put the recording online. When a released recording is played on the radio or in public, they are entitled to a share of what the master owner earns from it, and in the UK that share is paid through PPL.
That right to a share cannot be signed away in a contract. A performer can only hand it to a collecting society, such as PPL, to collect on their behalf.
5. What this means when you collaborate
Every collaboration has two conversations in it, not one:
- Who wrote what? That decides the composition shares, the songwriting split.
- Who owns the recording? That decides the master shares, which are often split differently.
A producer who built the track might take a share of the master and a share of the writing. A topliner might take writing only. A session player usually takes a fee and neither, but keeps their performer rights. None of these is a rule. They are things you agree.
Agree it before release, and in writing. In the UK, transferring copyright to someone only works if it is in writing and signed by the person giving it up, so a voice note or a message saying "you can have 20%" is weak ground if you ever disagree.
On Collabspot, credits are agreed by both people before they count. Nobody can add themselves to your work, and everyone sees what was signed.
Try Collabspot freeSources
- GOV.UK, How copyright protects your work
- GOV.UK, How long copyright lasts
- GOV.UK, Copyright notice: duration of copyright
- Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, s.9 (authorship), s.10 (joint authorship), s.10A (co-authorship), s.11 (first ownership), s.90 (assignment), s.182D (performers' remuneration)
This guide explains how copyright generally works in the UK. It is not legal advice, and your own situation may differ. For a contract or a dispute, talk to a music solicitor.