Claim Your Hidden Royalties: PROs vs. The MLC
Thousands of indie artists leave this revenue stream uncollected. Claim your hidden royalties today, here is how to use PROs and The MLC to get paid.
You finally dropped your new track, the Spotify and Apple Music streams are ticking up and the hard work is officially paying off. Time to sit back and collect your check, right?
The trap most independent artists fall into is assuming that standard music distributors like DistroKid, CD Baby, or TuneCore collect everything. They don’t. Distributors only collect your master royalties, the payout for the actual audio recording. But if you wrote the lyrics, hummed the melody, or structured the track, you are a songwriter. Standard distribution packages leave your publishing royalties completely on the table.
To claim every single cent you're legally owed from streaming, you have to bypass your distributor and register your songs with two completely separate entities: a PRO (Performance Rights Organization) and The MLC (The Mechanical Licensing Collective).
If those acronyms look like total alphabet soup, don't sweat it. Let’s break down exactly how these organizations work, how they differ, and how to claim your hidden music royalties.
What is a PRO (and What Money Do They Collect?)
A PRO stands for Performance Rights Organization and their primary job is to collect your public performance royalties. Every single time your song is broadcast, streamed or played in a public space, you are legally owed money. Keep in mind that every country has its own specific PRO, so you will need to look up the organization that operates where you live to register properly.
👉🏼 Click here to see all PRO's for each country.
A PRO only collects half of the publishing pie. When a song is streamed or broadcast, it generates a performance royalty, which goes to your PRO. But streaming also generates a completely different type of royalty called a mechanical royalty. Your PRO will never touch that money.
The MLC: The Mechanical Licensing Collective
For years, millions of dollars in digital mechanical royalties went completely unclaimed because there wasn't a centralized system to track them down. Streaming platforms didn't know who wrote the songs, so the money just sat around.
To fix this, the US government helped establish The MLC (The Mechanical Licensing Collective). The MLC's sole job is to collect digital mechanical royalties from streaming services (like Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music) and pay them out to songwriters and publishers.
👉🏼 Click here to register for MLC.
What is a Mechanical Royalty?
In the old days, a mechanical royalty was paid whenever a physical CD or vinyl record was pressed (or "mechanically" reproduced). In the streaming era, a mechanical royalty is generated every single time someone hits play and a digital copy of your song is reproduced on their phone or computer screen.
If your songs are getting streams and you are only registered with ASCAP or BMI, The MLC is holding onto your mechanical royalties right now.
PROs vs. The MLC: A Quick Comparison
To make sure you don't leave any money on the table, think of them as two separate workers collecting two different bags of cash for the exact same stream.
Feature | PROs (ASCAP, BMI, PRS) | The MLC |
|---|---|---|
Royalty Type | Performance Royalties | Digital Mechanical Royalties |
Trigger Event | Streams, Radio, TV, Live Venues, Public Places | Interactive Digital Streams & Downloads |
Cost to Join | Usually free or a small one time fee | 100% Free |
Who it's for | Songwriters, Composers & Publishers | Songwriters, Topliners, & Self-Published Artists |
The Common Mistake: "Doesn't my distributor handle this?"
This is easily the biggest mistake indie artists make. It’s so easy to assume that because you paid a company like DistroKid or CD Baby to put your track on Spotify and Apple Music, they're automatically gathering up all your cash, they aren't.
Standard distributors only collect your master royalties which is the money generated by the actual audio file itself. If you wrote the lyrics or came up with the melody, you are legally a songwriter and basic distribution packages don't touch that side of the pie. You have to register with a PRO and The MLC yourself to bridge that gap and get paid. The good news? It only takes a few minutes, and joining is completely free.
The Bottom Line
Once your back end is set up, the next step is creating music that’s worth streaming. The right pop instrumental can make the difference between a song that’s overlooked and one that connects with listeners.
That’s why we create premium pop beats designed for today’s streaming platforms. Pair your track with our professional mixing and mastering services, and you’ll have everything you need to release music with the polished, commercial sound that helps independent artists grow their audience and earn more streams.
👉🏼 Click here to browse our catalog of modern pop beats ready for you to write on!
Claim Your Hidden Royalties: PROs vs. The MLC
Thousands of indie artists leave this revenue stream uncollected. Claim your hidden royalties today, here is how to use PROs and The MLC to get paid.
You finally dropped your new track, the Spotify and Apple Music streams are ticking up and the hard work is officially paying off. Time to sit back and collect your check, right?
The trap most independent artists fall into is assuming that standard music distributors like DistroKid, CD Baby, or TuneCore collect everything. They don’t. Distributors only collect your master royalties, the payout for the actual audio recording. But if you wrote the lyrics, hummed the melody, or structured the track, you are a songwriter. Standard distribution packages leave your publishing royalties completely on the table.
To claim every single cent you're legally owed from streaming, you have to bypass your distributor and register your songs with two completely separate entities: a PRO (Performance Rights Organization) and The MLC (The Mechanical Licensing Collective).
If those acronyms look like total alphabet soup, don't sweat it. Let’s break down exactly how these organizations work, how they differ, and how to claim your hidden music royalties.
What is a PRO (and What Money Do They Collect?)
A PRO stands for Performance Rights Organization and their primary job is to collect your public performance royalties. Every single time your song is broadcast, streamed or played in a public space, you are legally owed money. Keep in mind that every country has its own specific PRO, so you will need to look up the organization that operates where you live to register properly.
👉🏼 Click here to see all PRO's for each country.
A PRO only collects half of the publishing pie. When a song is streamed or broadcast, it generates a performance royalty, which goes to your PRO. But streaming also generates a completely different type of royalty called a mechanical royalty. Your PRO will never touch that money.
The MLC: The Mechanical Licensing Collective
For years, millions of dollars in digital mechanical royalties went completely unclaimed because there wasn't a centralized system to track them down. Streaming platforms didn't know who wrote the songs, so the money just sat around.
To fix this, the US government helped establish The MLC (The Mechanical Licensing Collective). The MLC's sole job is to collect digital mechanical royalties from streaming services (like Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music) and pay them out to songwriters and publishers.
👉🏼 Click here to register for MLC.
What is a Mechanical Royalty?
In the old days, a mechanical royalty was paid whenever a physical CD or vinyl record was pressed (or "mechanically" reproduced). In the streaming era, a mechanical royalty is generated every single time someone hits play and a digital copy of your song is reproduced on their phone or computer screen.
If your songs are getting streams and you are only registered with ASCAP or BMI, The MLC is holding onto your mechanical royalties right now.
PROs vs. The MLC: A Quick Comparison
To make sure you don't leave any money on the table, think of them as two separate workers collecting two different bags of cash for the exact same stream.
Feature | PROs (ASCAP, BMI, PRS) | The MLC |
|---|---|---|
Royalty Type | Performance Royalties | Digital Mechanical Royalties |
Trigger Event | Streams, Radio, TV, Live Venues, Public Places | Interactive Digital Streams & Downloads |
Cost to Join | Usually free or a small one time fee | 100% Free |
Who it's for | Songwriters, Composers & Publishers | Songwriters, Topliners, & Self-Published Artists |
The Common Mistake: "Doesn't my distributor handle this?"
This is easily the biggest mistake indie artists make. It’s so easy to assume that because you paid a company like DistroKid or CD Baby to put your track on Spotify and Apple Music, they're automatically gathering up all your cash, they aren't.
Standard distributors only collect your master royalties which is the money generated by the actual audio file itself. If you wrote the lyrics or came up with the melody, you are legally a songwriter and basic distribution packages don't touch that side of the pie. You have to register with a PRO and The MLC yourself to bridge that gap and get paid. The good news? It only takes a few minutes, and joining is completely free.
The Bottom Line
Once your back end is set up, the next step is creating music that’s worth streaming. The right pop instrumental can make the difference between a song that’s overlooked and one that connects with listeners.
That’s why we create premium pop beats designed for today’s streaming platforms. Pair your track with our professional mixing and mastering services, and you’ll have everything you need to release music with the polished, commercial sound that helps independent artists grow their audience and earn more streams.
👉🏼 Click here to browse our catalog of modern pop beats ready for you to write on!
Claim Your Hidden Royalties: PROs vs. The MLC
Thousands of indie artists leave this revenue stream uncollected. Claim your hidden royalties today, here is how to use PROs and The MLC to get paid.
You finally dropped your new track, the Spotify and Apple Music streams are ticking up and the hard work is officially paying off. Time to sit back and collect your check, right?
The trap most independent artists fall into is assuming that standard music distributors like DistroKid, CD Baby, or TuneCore collect everything. They don’t. Distributors only collect your master royalties, the payout for the actual audio recording. But if you wrote the lyrics, hummed the melody, or structured the track, you are a songwriter. Standard distribution packages leave your publishing royalties completely on the table.
To claim every single cent you're legally owed from streaming, you have to bypass your distributor and register your songs with two completely separate entities: a PRO (Performance Rights Organization) and The MLC (The Mechanical Licensing Collective).
If those acronyms look like total alphabet soup, don't sweat it. Let’s break down exactly how these organizations work, how they differ, and how to claim your hidden music royalties.
What is a PRO (and What Money Do They Collect?)
A PRO stands for Performance Rights Organization and their primary job is to collect your public performance royalties. Every single time your song is broadcast, streamed or played in a public space, you are legally owed money. Keep in mind that every country has its own specific PRO, so you will need to look up the organization that operates where you live to register properly.
👉🏼 Click here to see all PRO's for each country.
A PRO only collects half of the publishing pie. When a song is streamed or broadcast, it generates a performance royalty, which goes to your PRO. But streaming also generates a completely different type of royalty called a mechanical royalty. Your PRO will never touch that money.
The MLC: The Mechanical Licensing Collective
For years, millions of dollars in digital mechanical royalties went completely unclaimed because there wasn't a centralized system to track them down. Streaming platforms didn't know who wrote the songs, so the money just sat around.
To fix this, the US government helped establish The MLC (The Mechanical Licensing Collective). The MLC's sole job is to collect digital mechanical royalties from streaming services (like Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music) and pay them out to songwriters and publishers.
👉🏼 Click here to register for MLC.
What is a Mechanical Royalty?
In the old days, a mechanical royalty was paid whenever a physical CD or vinyl record was pressed (or "mechanically" reproduced). In the streaming era, a mechanical royalty is generated every single time someone hits play and a digital copy of your song is reproduced on their phone or computer screen.
If your songs are getting streams and you are only registered with ASCAP or BMI, The MLC is holding onto your mechanical royalties right now.
PROs vs. The MLC: A Quick Comparison
To make sure you don't leave any money on the table, think of them as two separate workers collecting two different bags of cash for the exact same stream.
Feature | PROs (ASCAP, BMI, PRS) | The MLC |
|---|---|---|
Royalty Type | Performance Royalties | Digital Mechanical Royalties |
Trigger Event | Streams, Radio, TV, Live Venues, Public Places | Interactive Digital Streams & Downloads |
Cost to Join | Usually free or a small one time fee | 100% Free |
Who it's for | Songwriters, Composers & Publishers | Songwriters, Topliners, & Self-Published Artists |
The Common Mistake: "Doesn't my distributor handle this?"
This is easily the biggest mistake indie artists make. It’s so easy to assume that because you paid a company like DistroKid or CD Baby to put your track on Spotify and Apple Music, they're automatically gathering up all your cash, they aren't.
Standard distributors only collect your master royalties which is the money generated by the actual audio file itself. If you wrote the lyrics or came up with the melody, you are legally a songwriter and basic distribution packages don't touch that side of the pie. You have to register with a PRO and The MLC yourself to bridge that gap and get paid. The good news? It only takes a few minutes, and joining is completely free.
The Bottom Line
Once your back end is set up, the next step is creating music that’s worth streaming. The right pop instrumental can make the difference between a song that’s overlooked and one that connects with listeners.
That’s why we create premium pop beats designed for today’s streaming platforms. Pair your track with our professional mixing and mastering services, and you’ll have everything you need to release music with the polished, commercial sound that helps independent artists grow their audience and earn more streams.
👉🏼 Click here to browse our catalog of modern pop beats ready for you to write on!