Cover Song Royalties in Canada vs the US
A cover separates the existing composition from your new recording. Songwriters and their publishers receive composition royalties. The owners and performers of your new master receive recording-side income under their agreements. For licensed interactive streaming in Canada and the US, the service handles the platform mechanical licence rather than the cover artist paying it upfront.
Lead visual
Rights live in lanes
01
Composition
writers, publishers, PROs
02
Master
artist, label, recording owner
03
License
use, territory, term, fee
Rights · Covers
Rights clearance map
Decision
Know who owns what before the song, cover, sample, or claim goes public.
Evidence
Writers, publishers, master owners, licenses, notices, registrations, and takedown proof.
Risk
A missing clearance or ownership record can block monetization or create a dispute after traction starts.
Good outcome
A defensible rights trail before money, platforms, or third parties are involved.
Key takeaways
- A cover uses an existing composition but creates a new sound recording.
- Composition royalties follow the song's writers, publishers, and controlled shares.
- Recording-side income follows the ownership and performer agreements for the new master.
- Licensed interactive services handle platform mechanical licensing in Canada and the US.
- Physical products, video, samples, or changed lyrics require their own rights check.
Who gets paid from a streamed cover song?
The composition and the new recording travel on separate rights paths. The writers and publishers of the composition can receive publishing royalties. The parties entitled to the new master can receive recording royalties under their distributor, label, producer, and performer agreements. The original recording is not used, so its master owner does not automatically participate.
| Composition side | New recording side | |
|---|---|---|
| Protected subject | Lyrics, melody, and musical work | Your recorded performance |
| Typical claimant | Writer, publisher, or administrator | Master owner and eligible performers |
| Registration | Only shares actually controlled | Release metadata and recording-side claims |
| Agreement to keep | Song ownership and publishing authority | Master ownership and participant splits |
Who handles cover mechanical royalties in Canada and the US?
In the US, the Music Modernization Act created a blanket section 115 licence for eligible digital music providers covering interactive streams, limited downloads, and permanent downloads. The provider reports usage and pays the mechanical royalties through The MLC. If you only performed the cover, The MLC says not to register the work as your composition.
In Canada, CMRRA says services it licenses, including Spotify, Apple services, YouTube, Meta, and TikTok, report and pay under their agreements for repertoire CMRRA represents. That does not mean every use is cleared. Confirm that the service, territory, use, and composition are within the relevant licence.
| United States | Canada | |
|---|---|---|
| Licensed interactive stream | Provider's section 115 blanket route | Licensed platform reports under its agreement |
| Cover performer registration | Do not register a work you did not write | Do not claim composition shares you do not control |
| Physical copies | Secure the applicable mechanical authority | CMRRA Pay-As-You-Press may apply |
| Video or changed song | Separate permission may be required | Separate permission may be required |
A streaming route is not universal clearance
A platform licence does not clear a music video, a sample from the original master, or a rewrite that changes the underlying work. It also does not settle who owns your new recording.
What should you document before releasing the cover?
Record the composition title and writers exactly, identify the new recording with its own ISRC, and document the master owner, featured artists, producers, and any recording splits. Then classify the use: licensed audio stream, download, physical product, video, or a version that changes the song. That classification decides which additional permissions need to be checked.
What does Velveteen's search evidence say?
This guide received 514 impressions and 3 clicks in Velveteen's Google Search Console export for June 19 through July 16, 2026, at an average position of 7.71. No exact Canada-versus-US cover mechanical query appeared. The established payment guide therefore owns this comparison instead of a second URL. Query absence describes current Velveteen visibility, not total demand.
Where do the cover royalty rules come from?
Frequently asked questions
Does the original artist get paid when my cover streams?+
Only through rights they actually hold. If the original artist wrote or owns part of the composition, that share can earn composition royalties. Performing on the famous recording does not by itself give that artist ownership of your new master or a composition share in the song.
Do I pay a mechanical licence before putting a cover on Spotify?+
Not for an eligible interactive stream handled under the platform's licence. In the US, qualifying digital music providers operate under the section 115 blanket licence. CMRRA says licensed Canadian services report usage and pay under their agreements. Physical copies, downloads outside a covered service, video, and changed lyrics can require separate clearance.
Should I register my cover with The MLC?+
Not as though you wrote it. The MLC says a performer who did not write or compose the musical work should not register the cover and cannot collect its digital audio mechanical royalties. Register only composition shares you actually control.
Do I automatically own the master recording of my cover?+
Do not assume that. Your recording is separate from the original master, but ownership and payment can depend on agreements with performers, producers, a label, or another funder. Put the new master ownership and revenue splits in writing before release.
Does a streaming mechanical licence cover a music video?+
No. Pairing a composition with visual images generally requires synchronization permission from the composition rightsholder. A compulsory audio mechanical route does not clear video, samples, or a materially changed song. Treat those as separate permissions.
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Keep reading
Pillar guide
Covers & sampling guide
The core distinction: a cover is covered by a compulsory mechanical license, a sample needs two direct clearances that can be refused. What you can do freely and what you can't.
Related guide
Release a cover legally
The mechanical license that lets you release an audio cover: how to get it through a service or distributor add-on, and why distributors won't deliver a cover without proof.
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Why sampling has no compulsory route: clearing the master and the composition directly, both refusable, and interpolation as the way to avoid the master clearance.
Related guide
Mechanical Royalties
Mechanical royalties are paid when your composition is reproduced, including every stream.
Settle your splits before release day
Drop in your collaborators and their shares and get a plain-language split sheet that separates master from publishing and flags the gaps before the song earns anything.