On 3121 I read that Prince ownes is publishing (for all his music). What is the differance between the publishing and masters ... or I should ask... What is it for Prince? What power does he have? Does this mean when WB lends his music out (Lil' Wayne Diamonds and Girls ) and he gets paid or does he have some say in what goes where?

I read a long time ago that starting in 1999 he gets 1 master back per year starting with "FOR YOU".

starting in 1999? hmmm, we'll have to wait for borisfishpaw on this one, but that doesn't sound right.

prime said:

If that were true, he´d own the masters to all the albums up until SOTT or even Lovesexy. Then again, I vaguely recall reading something along those lines around the time he started using his name again.

He starts getting legal ownership of his masters in 2013 ... which is 35 years after For You came out. Then he gets 1 back a year in the order they came out.

I say legal ownership because he most surely has physical ownership. He just can't do anything with them legally. He can't reissue them on his own in their current configuration, which is why he was going to rerecord all of his albums.

Prince still gets royalties, and he also has a say in how his songs are used. How much he gets (vs. how much WB gets) I don't know.

Prince owns all the music he releases today. I believe that @ the end of 1999 Prince regained control of his name and Publishing. As far as his WB catalogue, he will get an album back a year, starting in 2013 with For You.

this is some str8 bulls$*%. 2013?!? i HATE the industry. they're on some corporate plantation sh#*. F*#$ em all! no wonder he's playing the game on his terms now. i hope his antics with PE kills this industry whore cow all the quicker.

what album did he stop with WB? was it Emancipation? if so, not counting the Hits/B-sides releases that'll be 19 albums and he'll be about 67 when he's REALLY free.

2013 ... first I have heard that ... WOW

I wonder what was going on at the time he signed this becaus ehe signed the contract...did he need money (no -he was #5 on the money list wit $49 million in 1992) ... so what the heck...

I am surprised he hasn't been able to get enough $$$ to buy them back.

prime said:

Who says they are for sale?

Plus he might not feel too positive
about paying for music he created.

Publishing refers to the songwriting. His publishing deal expired in 1999. His publishing is now handled through Universal.

The master is the physical recording of the song in the mix that appeared on a release.

datdude said:

ignorant...

FlamingRaindrop said:

Prince's last few original albums for WB were Come, The Gold Experience, Chaos & Disorder and The Vault: Old Friends 4 Sale.

Emancipation was his first full-length album of new material (3-disc album BTW) that was free from WB involvement.

There were also 2 greatest hits packages released "recently" (The Very Best Of Prince and Ultimate), which fulfill that part of WB's contract with Prince.

The 2 sides have been playing nice lately. Examples: Prince has a song on the WB soundtrack for Happy Feet, and WB worked with Prince on the Ultimate song selections (for cursing and content that conflict with P's beliefs now).

thanks Seven for the clarity. i stopped counting at Emancipation, so if my math is correct, he'd own everything up to that point when he's 67.

given this highly public past history, with the one album deals he's done with Arista (Rave) and Columbia (PE) and 3121 (?), i trust he'll own those masters too.

Se7en said:

side note: The Gold Experience has weird ownership issues. I think it's the one that they *jointly* own. Which explains why it's out of print.

Kiss written by Prince (publishing)

Kiss recorded by Prince/Tom Jones/Dollar/Kevin Taylor/Westlife (master recordings)

Using the above as an example...Prince owns the publishing of Kiss and receives money every time it's released/performed regardless of who recorded it; however he doesn't own his recording (master) of Kiss.

blacksweat said:

Performed??? I don't believe he gets paid for someone performing it LIVE... Prince (or anyone else) only gets paid if the person is making money off of it.

prime said:

if it's performed live in front of a paying audience, he gets paid for it. theoretically. a big act performing in front a large crowd? he definitely gets paid. some local band in a bar? i doubt it.

prime said:

In most countries, venues which have live music also must pay fees to organizations like ASCAP. When they have live acts, they are required to list the songs the performer played. This list then gets sent to local agencies that protect song writers/pay royalties. If any song titles/composers match those that have been registered, the songwriter does get a very small amount of money from that performance of his song. All this to say, that it's possible for Prince to also get paid when others perform his music live. And especially if it's being broadcast on television/radio.

Prince receives performance income in the UK and other countries every time a song he has written is played. Whether that be on TV/Radio/Concert/Football Pitch/Ice Cream Van/Local School/DVD etc....he earns a great deal every year just on the back of Nothing Compares 2 U and Manic Monday.

Paul McCartney brings in £500,000 a year just on performance income from 'Yesterday'.