How to Register Your Songs and Collect Royalties

Step-by-step guide to registering with ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, the Copyright Office, and the MLC.

Most Independent Artists Are Leaving Money on the Table

If you've released music without registering your songs with a performing rights organization (PRO) and the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC), you are leaving real money uncollected right now. Streams are generating royalties. Radio plays are generating royalties. Live performances are generating royalties. And those royalties are sitting in an account waiting for someone to claim them.

That someone should be you.

Step 1: Join a Performing Rights Organization (PRO)

A PRO collects performance royalties every time your song is publicly performed — on streaming platforms, on the radio, at venues, on TV, and more. In the United States, the three main PROs are:

ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers):

Membership fee: $50 one-time for writers
Run as a not-for-profit, owned by its members
Apply at ascap.com

BMI (Broadcast Music, Inc.):

Membership: Free for songwriters
Largest PRO by catalog size
Apply at bmi.com

SESAC:

Invite-only — you must apply and be accepted
Known for strong representation of gospel and country, but accepts hip-hop artists
sesac.com

Pick one — you can only be a member of one PRO at a time as a songwriter. ASCAP and BMI are the most common for hip-hop and urban artists.

Step 2: Register Your Songs With Your PRO

After joining, log in to your PRO portal and register each song:

Song title
Co-writers and their PRO affiliations
Publishing company name (or your own name if you're self-published)
ISRC code (if available — your distributor generates these automatically)

This is how your PRO knows which songs to pay royalties on when they collect from streaming platforms, radio, and venues.

Step 3: Register With the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC)

The MLC collects mechanical royalties from US digital streaming services (Spotify, Apple Music, etc.) and distributes them to songwriters and publishers. It is separate from your PRO.

Register at themlc.com. The process is free. You'll need to register your works there separately from your PRO registration. Many artists don't know the MLC exists — which means millions of dollars in mechanical royalties go unclaimed each year.

Step 4: Register Your Copyright (Optional but Recommended)

Registering your song with the US Copyright Office (copyright.gov) costs $45–$65 per work and establishes a legal record of your ownership and creation date. While copyright is automatic upon creation, registration gives you the ability to sue for statutory damages (up to $150,000 per work) and attorney's fees if someone infringes your work — which you cannot collect without registration.

For a songwriter releasing multiple songs, consider filing a "group registration" for unpublished works, which allows you to register up to 10 songs for one fee.

Step 5: Consider a Publishing Administrator

A publishing administrator (Songtrust, TuneCore Publishing, CD Baby Pro) registers your songs internationally and collects publishing royalties from countries where your PRO doesn't have collection agreements. This is important if your music streams globally — because royalties earned in Germany, Japan, and Brazil may not flow back to you without international registration.

Publishing admins take 10–20% of what they collect and don't take ownership of your songs.

Putting It All Together

You should complete these registrations before or immediately after releasing any music:

Join ASCAP or BMI (free–$50)
Register songs in your PRO portal (free)
Register works with the MLC (free)
Register copyright for major releases ($45–$65)
Sign up for a publishing administrator for international collection ($0 upfront, 15–20% of collected royalties)

Key Takeaways

Joining a PRO (ASCAP or BMI) and registering your songs is how you collect performance royalties
The MLC collects US mechanical royalties from streaming — register there separately for free
Copyright registration is not automatic protection — you must register at copyright.gov to sue for statutory damages
A publishing administrator handles international royalty collection that your PRO may miss
All of these registrations should happen before or right when you release music

Glossary

PRO (Performing Rights Organization): An organization like ASCAP or BMI that licenses public performances of music and distributes collected royalties to songwriters and publishers.
MLC (Mechanical Licensing Collective): The US organization designated by the Copyright Office to collect and pay out mechanical royalties from digital streaming services.
ISRC Code: International Standard Recording Code — a unique identifier for a sound recording, assigned by your distributor and used to track streams and royalties.
Statutory Damages: A range of damages ($750–$150,000 per infringement) available to copyright holders who have registered their work before an infringement occurs.
Publishing Administrator: A company that registers songs and collects royalties internationally on behalf of songwriters without taking ownership of the compositions.