I should have probably posted this in OT:Studio Tech Talk but whatever.

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I was just wondering what the deal is with taking vocal samples from places and putting them in music. I wanted to take one from a movie but i don't know if theres copyright issue or anything. I want to use one in a song I made but i need some help. Please!

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Thanks in advance. prochem

***Disclaimer***

Nothing you read here should be taken as legal advice. Should you have anything that needs clarification,please consult an attorney.

No, really, I'm a paralegal and I just know what to expect.

There is, indeed, a copyright issue. You'll need to ask yourself a few questions: How recognizable is the sample you're going to use? How widespread will your creation be? Are you going to profit off the creation?

The first two are more important than the last, because it doesn't matter if you infringe on someone's copyright if they don't find out. If you're just making a mix or a track for fun, go for it. If you're trying to create an album to sell to the general public, try writing to the owner of the copyright. (Search for them on this website)

Ninety-nine percent of the time you're not going to run into legal trouble if you don't make a lot of money off the copyrighted material. It costs a LOT of money to pursue a case for copyright infringement ($15,000 retainers are common), so you're going to need to be making at least enough to cover the cost of the lawsuit, if not making it worth their time and effort to file the suit.

With all that said, what probably will happen if you decide to just make whatever you'd like and the copyright owner finds out, they'll send you a cease and desist letter, which you respond to immediately. You take out the sample, everyone is happy.

For further questions, try some more educational material.

cool, thanks

Well stated, MadPooter.

Great reply madpooter.

A certain well regarded french dance music label owned by a legendary french techno artist wanted to license an album from a certain Australian live breaks act on a certain boutique Australian label. It fell through because of certain samples that were unlicensed. It certainly avoided certain legal actions ;)

Rule of thumb i go by is expect any sample to be noticed and chased, and decide whether you really need it from there if its a release. If its for the live set or something not being released, then we sample like crazy. If you need to use it and cant afford to clear it, then consider a "replay" service. Cool companies that hire in session musos to recreate per your needs.

Sometimes asking for a sample clearance gets you it for free. I was lucky enough to get some a few years back because the artist was just so pleased to know i was so into their music and their culture (was from some records from the Balkans). If you dont ask.... :)