Music Industry Terms Every Artist Should Know
by September 20, 2026The music business has its own language. Understanding key terms helps you communicate with professionals, read agreements, and make better decisions.
RMG Empire note: The business side decides who gets paid. Roots Music Group helps artists understand ownership, splits, and strategy as part of our artist development services.
Key Terms
- Master: The original sound recording of a song.
- Composition: The underlying song, meaning lyrics and melody.
- Publishing: The business of managing and earning from compositions.
- PRO: A performing rights organization that collects performance royalties for songwriters.
- Mechanical royalties: Royalties paid for reproducing a composition, including through streams and downloads.
- ISRC: A unique code that identifies a specific recording.
- UPC: A code that identifies a release as a product.
- Distributor: A company that delivers music to streaming platforms and stores.
- Split sheet: A document showing ownership percentages of a song among writers.
- Advance: Money paid up front, usually recoupable from future earnings.
- Recoupment: When a company recovers costs or an advance from your earnings before paying you.
- Sync: Licensing music for use with visual media.
- A&R: Artists and repertoire, the team that finds and develops talent.
- EPK: An electronic press kit.
- 360 deal: An agreement where a company shares in several income streams beyond recorded music.
Keep Learning
Read music royalties explained and contract red flags.
How RMG Empire Can Help
You do not have to figure this out by yourself. With the RMG Artist Development & Release Partnership, RMG Empire works with you on:
- Publishing education and business guidance
- Career planning with a team that explains every step
- Release strategy and distribution setup
- Guidance before you sign any agreement
Learn more about working with RMG Empire.
Build Your Career With RMG Empire
Knowing the language of the industry helps you make smarter moves. RMG Empire is the artist family of Roots Music Group Inc., built to help independent artists grow with professional structure while keeping their voice and ownership at the center.
Ready when you are. Submit your music today.
RMG EMPIRE STAFF
RMG Empire Staff is the editorial team at Roots Music Group Inc., an independent record label and artist-services company rooted in Los Angeles with a creative network across Miami, Atlanta, and New York. The team shares practical guidance on artist development, release strategy, marketing, publishing, and booking for independent artists.
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