A music collaboration agreement is a short written record of what everyone on a song has agreed: who wrote what, how the song and the recording are split, how everyone is credited, who can release it, and what happens with any samples. It does not need to be long or written by a lawyer to be useful. It needs to exist, and everyone needs to have agreed to it before the song starts earning anything.
Most collaborations never write one down. The session goes well, everyone is excited, and talking about ownership feels like it would spoil the mood. Then the song gets picked up, or someone wants to put it out on their own, and nobody can remember what was said. This guide explains what goes in a collaboration agreement, in plain terms, and gives you a simple template to work from.
One thing first: this is general information to help you have the conversation, not legal advice. If a lot of money is involved, or a label, publisher or manager is part of the deal, it is worth paying a music lawyer to look over what you have agreed.
Collaboration agreement or split sheet?
You will see both terms, and they overlap.
A split sheet is usually one page. It lists everyone who contributed to a song and the percentage of the song each person owns. It is the bare minimum for any song with more than one writer, and it is what publishers and collection societies will ask for.
A collaboration agreement covers the split and everything around it: the recording, credits, who can release the track, money, samples and what happens if things go wrong. Think of the split sheet as the most important page of the agreement.
For a quick session between two friends, a signed split sheet plus a few lines on release and credits is often enough. For a bigger project, or one with several people and some money involved, it is worth covering everything below. You can make a split sheet in a couple of minutes with our free split sheet maker. For a deeper look at what a split sheet should cover, Chartlex has a good guide to split sheets for musicians.
What goes in a music collaboration agreement
Who is involved
Every contributor's full legal name, their artist or producer name, and how to contact them. If anyone is a member of a performing rights organisation, such as PRS for Music in the UK or ASCAP or BMI in the US, include their details and their publisher if they have one. Legal names matter, because that is who gets paid.
The song and the recording are two separate things
This is the part people most often get wrong. A track is really two pieces of property.
- The composition, often called the publishing, is the song itself: melody, lyrics and the musical ideas. Songwriters own this.
- The master is the particular recording. Whoever owns the master controls that audio file, and it earns money every time the recording is streamed, sold or licensed.
The two can be split differently. A producer might own most or all of the master because they made and paid for the recording, while the composition is split between everyone who wrote. Or the people involved might simply split both the same way. Your agreement should say clearly how each one is divided, rather than one number that is meant to cover everything.
The splits
For the composition, list each writer and their percentage. For the master, list each owner and their percentage. Each list should add up to exactly 100. If you are not sure how to split it, an equal split between the people who actually wrote the song is the usual starting point. We go into the reasoning in how to split royalties on a song.
Also write down what does not earn a share. Mixing and mastering engineers are usually paid a fee rather than taking a writing split, and someone who gave feedback in the room has not written the song. Saying this out loud now avoids the awkward version later.
Credits
Agree exactly how everyone is named on streaming services and anywhere else the song appears. Whose name goes first as the main artist? Is the vocalist a featured artist? How is the producer credited? What about the engineer, the mix and any extra musicians? Write the credits out in full, spelled the way each person wants them.
Who can release it, and where
Only one person should upload the song to a distributor. Agree who that is, which distributor, and roughly when. Then agree what each person is allowed to do with the song on their own. Can either of you put it on a project or an album? Can anyone release a remix, a sped-up version or an instrumental? Can the producer sell the beat to someone else afterwards?
It also helps to agree who has to say yes before the song is licensed, for example to a film, advert or game. Many collaborators agree that everyone who owns part of the master has to approve any licence.
Money
Write down any fees being paid, who pays them and when. Then agree how income is shared: who receives it from the distributor, how often they pay everyone else, and whether any costs, such as mixing, mastering or artwork, come out before the split. A line saying that whoever collects will share statements with everyone keeps things open and saves suspicion later.
Samples
If the song uses a sample of someone else's recording, you need permission before you release it. That normally means clearing it with whoever owns the original recording and whoever owns the original song, and either can say no or ask for a share. Your agreement should say who is responsible for clearing samples, who pays for it, and what happens if a sample cannot be cleared, such as replacing it or not releasing the track.
Royalty-free sample packs usually come with a licence that allows use in released music, but read the terms of the pack you used. And be honest with each other about where every sound came from.
If someone leaves, or the song stalls
Agree what happens if a collaborator drops out before the song is finished, or the song is never released. Can the others use the parts already recorded? Does someone who leaves keep their share? Do the rights go back to each person if nothing comes out within a year? None of these are pleasant to talk about, but they are the questions that cause the biggest arguments when they have not been answered.
Signatures and date
Everyone signs and dates it. A typed name in an email or a message everyone replies to agreeing is far better than nothing, but a signed document is clearer. Keep a copy each.
A simple collaboration agreement template
Use this as a checklist. Copy it into a document, fill it in together and sign it.
- Song title and the date the agreement was made.
- Contributors: legal name, artist name, role, contact details, PRO and publisher for each person.
- Composition split: each writer and their percentage, adding up to 100.
- Master split: each owner and their percentage, adding up to 100.
- Credits: main artist, featured artists, producer, writers, engineers, exactly as they should appear.
- Release: who distributes it, through which service, and the planned release date.
- Use by each person: what anyone may or may not do with the song on their own, including remixes and alternative versions.
- Licensing: who must approve a licence for film, TV, games or adverts.
- Money: any fees, who collects income, how and when it is shared, and which costs come out first.
- Samples: what was sampled, who clears it and who pays.
- If things change: what happens if someone leaves or the song is not released.
- Signatures and dates from everyone.
When to have the conversation
Early. The best time is at the start of the session or straight after the first idea, when nobody knows whether the song will go anywhere. People are generous when there is nothing to divide yet. Leave it until the song is getting attention and the same conversation becomes tense, because now everyone is guarding something real.
If you are working with people online, it is even more important, because you may never meet and messages get lost. Agree the basics before files start moving back and forth. How to collaborate on music remotely covers the other things worth agreeing at the start, and how to ask someone to collaborate on a song shows how to bring up terms in a first message without it feeling heavy.
And if you are still looking for people to make music with, Tonivo is a free network where producers, rappers, singers and engineers find each other. Once you have found someone, our split sheet maker is there to get the most important part written down.
Common questions
Do I need a contract to collaborate on a song?
You do not need a formal contract written by a lawyer, but you should have something in writing. At the very least, a split sheet that lists everyone who contributed and their percentage, signed by everyone. For bigger projects, a fuller collaboration agreement that also covers the master, credits, release and samples is worth the extra half an hour.
What is the difference between a split sheet and a collaboration agreement?
A split sheet records who wrote the song and what percentage each person owns. A collaboration agreement includes that and also covers the recording, credits, who can release the song, how money is shared, samples and what happens if someone leaves. A split sheet is the minimum, and a collaboration agreement is the fuller version.
Who owns the master in a collaboration?
Whoever you agree owns it. Often it is the person or people who made and paid for the recording, which may be the producer, the artist or both. The master is separate from the song itself, so it can be split differently from the writing. Write down how it is split so there is no doubt later.
Is a collaboration agreement legally binding?
A written agreement that everyone has signed is generally much stronger than a verbal one, but whether a particular agreement holds up depends on what it says and where you are. This guide is not legal advice. If there is significant money involved, ask a music lawyer to check it.
What should a collaboration agreement say about samples?
It should list any samples used, say who is responsible for clearing them and who pays, and say what happens if a sample cannot be cleared. Uncleared samples can stop a song being released or lead to it being taken down, so agree this before release rather than after.