‘Claiming copyright The copyright for a song's composition is automatic, and belongs to the writer or writers of the song as soon as it comes out of their head and is put into some kind of recorded form. This could be recording it on tape, CD, minidisk ete, or it could be writing out the lyrics and mus on paper. Many people talk of ‘copyrighting’ a song but this isn’t really accurate. Copyright is a thing you have, not a thir you do - and you have it from the moment you've writte the music. In the UK, music copyright lasts for 70 years after the death of the writer, so it's something you can pass on to your grandchildren. You may need to prove you are the copyright owner if there's a dispute over the ownership of a song. For example, if in @ few years someone releases a song with lyrics that are extremely similar te yours, and you believ that they've actually nicked them, you will need to prove that you wrote them first. The easiest way to protect your copyright is to send yourself a copy of your material by recorded delivery. Remembering to do the following: 1. Put a note inside of when and where the material ¥ recorded. If it is not a recording but a manuscript ¢ the music with a lyric sheet date, then note when i where it was written 2. Include a list of performers on any recording, and names of writers of the song. Include their addresses. 3. Make sure that you write the name of the song on the outside of the package - you may have more than one package so need to know which song is where. 4. Get the post office to date stamp across the seal. 5. Don't open the package when it arrives, just put it somewhere safe.