Ghost Writing question????

[JaQsonA1]

Well i know what a ghost writer is but i want to know how that works. i know that they get no credit on the cd but does that mean they get no royalites? also is ghost writing considered selling the song for one flat fee? has anyone ever done this before? what is the average price to quote to someone for a song? thanks for any assistance! Thanks!

[mikeh]

If I writer is not credited on the copywrite and is not registered with BMI, ASCAP etc, they recieve no royalties.

Traditionally, the term ghost writer is used for someone who writes a book. An author has a story to tell but no writing skills - so the author hires a ghost writer for a set fee to actually put the author's thoughts into written word.

When it comes to songwriting I've never seen or heard of a "ghost writing" situtation. I have written songs and sold then for a flat fee (giving up my rights to publishing, etc. - both that is not really the same as a ghost writer.

In music, people contribute words, melody, harmony and arrangements to songs and recorded material all the time with no formal credit (and no royalties) - but again that is not "ghost writing".

Regarding the price to quote for a song - it depends how good the song is who the buyer is and how bad you need money. I've sold songs for as little as $10 (cause I needed to eat) although that was many, many years ago.. Many people would argue that you should never "sell a song" (meaning giving up rights to the song) but I think you sometimes have to give up a song to establish a track record, get in with a publisher or maybe simply to eat.

[JaQsonA1]

i hadnt heard of that term used regarding songwriting until Kanye West said that he ghost wrote several songs for artist such as Jay-Z, Ludacris and others. But I didnt know that it was a term specifically used for writers of books. Thanks for all of your assistance!

[ethos]

its an insult if someone accuses you of having a ghostwritter in hip-hop.

[JaQsonA1]

well dear heart that maybe fact but the truth is kanye did it and did it for a lot of artist so what????? i m just telling you what i heard come out of his mouth and i m just asking about it thats all.

[NickSpringfield]

In any other genre besides rap, this is a very common thing. Very rarely does the singer of a song actually write the material, especially a new act. I.E. when Britney Spears first cam onto the scene, those songs were all written by other songwriters. After she got famous and people would buy anything she put out, the label actually allowed her to write some of her own songs (with help, I would assume). You always hear big names singers (especially in pop music) say in interviews right before their new album is about to drop that they actually wrote a few songs on the disc. Most likely those said songs are not the biggest draws (singles) because the majority of pop artists are in it because they can sing. And they'll sing whatever the label provides them with.

In hip-hop it is also very common, but more so for producers trying to rap, such as like P-Diddy (or whatever he calls himself now), Dr. Dre and so forth. With Dre you can kind of tell what artists he's working with at the time by his own lyrics...why? Because they are the ones writing his material. During the original Chronic record, it was Snoop that was writing a lot of his material, and for the second one, probably Eminem. I know Royce Da 5'9" did "The Message" off of the chronic. If you look in the liner notes, you can usually tell by seeing who the publishing belongs to. There were a handful of songs off the latter Chronic (2001) album that had publishing go to Eminem even though he didn't apprear on the track.

As for Kanye ghostwriting for Jay-Z??? I just can't see it. Those two are like apples and oranges. But if it's true, it's true. I don't know.

Hope this helps.

-Springfield

[JaQsonA1]

thanks it does help i think i understand a little more how it works i will continue on doing some research on the matter. i know jay suppose to be the best rapper alive but i m sure he's had some help along the way.