Songs are protected by copyright. Each element of a song is subject to protection, namely, the music, the lyrics, and the sound recording. There are also neighbouring rights that protect the performer. These various elements of the song can be owned by different persons. It is important to ensure that any licence (permission to use the song or a part of it) is sought from the correct person(s) to avoid copyright infringement.

Let us break down the anatomy of a song using the example of the 2025 road march winner, ‘Pardy’ by Machel Montano:

1. The music – the catchy melody that you find yourself humming was composed by Mevon Soodeen, Kyle Phillips, Andre Jeffers & Machel Montano.

2. The lyrics – ‘we work so hard, we deserve a pardy’, the words that made this song resonate with the public, were crafted by Andre Jeffers and Machel Montano.

3. The sound recording – the recording of the song is a separate right under copyright. Unlike the music and lyrics that must meet the originality standard (copyright works must constitute the author’s own intellectual creation or labour, skill and judgement – it must not be copied from another source) for copyright to subsist, the sound recording is protected as an entrepreneurial work without the need to establish originality. The entrepreneurial work is owned by the person that made the recording, often the record label or production company, unless the copyright is assigned (transferred) to someone else. 1^st Klase is listed as recording the vocals for ‘Pardy’.

So far, 5 persons have been identified as having a potential ownership stake in ‘Pardy’. Song ownership is further complicated by the practice of crediting producers since they have become integral to the recording process as compared to their traditional role of completing the song. Pardy was produced by Xplicit Mevon(Soodeen) and Badjohn Republic (Phillips), and mixed and mastered by Precision Productions.

In addition to the owners of the song (music and lyrics) and sound recording, the performer, Machel Montano, has rights in his performance.

Therefore, any use of the song ‘Pardy’ will require permission from multiple persons to be cleared.

The difference between copyright ownership and authorship

All the individuals mentioned thus far may have an authorship claim if they contributed to the original elements of the song. While authors can be the owners of the song, ownership can be transferred to someone else by an assignment. It is important to note that a copyright licence must be entered into with the owner of the copyright, rather than the author. This is because the owner has the ability to exercise the exclusive rights provided under the Copyright Act.

Music copyright can be complex. Clover® Makes IP Accessible®. In the words of Yung Bredda, take it easy and we will do the [intellectual property] work.

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