Performance Royalties
Category: Music Business
What is Performance Royalties?
Performance royalties are paid to songwriters and publishers whenever music is publicly performed, broadcast, or streamed.
Performance Royalties explained
Performance royalties compensate songwriters and publishers for public performances of their compositions. This includes radio airplay, live venue performances, streaming on Spotify/Apple Music, TV broadcasts, and background music in retail spaces. These royalties are collected by Performance Rights Organizations (PROs) like ASCAP, BMI, PRS, and GEMA. Streaming generates both performance royalties (for the composition) and mechanical royalties (for reproduction)—many artists miss the performance side. To collect, register your songs with a PRO as both writer and publisher. Performance royalties typically represent 20-30% of total streaming income for self-published artists.
Why Performance Royalties matters for independent artists
Understanding Performance Royalties helps you make better promotion decisions on SoundCloud and other streaming platforms. On Reposter Network, artists apply concepts like this every day when they trade real plays, likes and reposts with other musicians instead of buying fake engagement.
Related terms
- Royalties: Royalties are payments made to rights holders whenever their music is played, performed, reproduced, or licensed commercially.
- PRO (Performance Rights Organization): A PRO collects performance royalties on behalf of songwriters and publishers when music is played on radio, TV, venues, or streaming platforms.
- Mechanical Royalties: Mechanical royalties are paid each time a song is reproduced—whether through streaming, downloads, CDs, or vinyl pressings.
- Music Publishing: Music publishing manages the rights to musical compositions (lyrics and melody), collecting royalties and pursuing licensing opportunities on behalf of songwriters.
Browse the full music marketing glossary or read the guide on SoundCloud repost networks.