A Crash Course in Music Publishing Administration
For any songwriter, producer, or artist serious about monetizing their music, understanding music publishing administration is essential. While the concept may seem complicated at first, this crash course will break it down step-by-step—clarifying what publishing administration is, why it matters, and most importantly, why Elizabeth Music Group should be your go-to partner in managing it all.
What Is Music Publishing Administration?
At its core, music publishing administration is the process of managing, registering, collecting, and distributing the royalties generated by your music. These royalties come from various sources every time your song is:
Played on the radio
Streamed on Spotify or Apple Music
Used in a TV show or film
Performed live
Covered by another artist
Synced in a YouTube video or TikTok
A publishing administrator ensures that you receive every dollar owed to you from these global revenue streams.
To understand publishing administration, you must understand that every song has two halves:
The Master Recording – The actual recorded version (usually owned by a record label or the artist).
The Composition (Publishing) – The song’s lyrics, melody, and structure (owned or co-owned by the songwriter or publisher).
If you're a songwriter, composer, or producer contributing to the underlying composition, you are entitled to publishing royalties—and that’s where administration becomes crucial.
Types of Publishing Royalties
A good publishing administrator collects royalties from multiple income streams, including:
Performance Royalties: From radio, live performances, and streaming platforms.
Mechanical Royalties: From downloads and physical copies.
Sync Licensing: From placements in TV, film, video games, and advertisements.
Micro-sync: From platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram.
Print Royalties: From sheet music and lyric reprints (less common, but important for some genres).
Many creators miss out on these because they don’t have the infrastructure to collect globally. That’s why publishing administration is not just helpful—it’s necessary.
Why Most Independent Artists Miss Out
Without a knowledgeable team tracking and collecting these royalties, a lot of money is left on the table. DIY tools like PROs (ASCAP, BMI, SESAC) are important, but they only collect a portion of what's owed. For example:
BMI and ASCAP only collect performance royalties in the U.S.
They don’t collect from YouTube or international sources unless you manually register everything—correctly—in every country.
You need someone proactively registering your songs in 200+ territories, issuing sync licenses, issuing splits, matching ISRCs to ISWCs, and chasing unpaid royalties.
That’s what Elizabeth Music Group does at the highest level.
What Makes Elizabeth Music Group the Best?
1. Global Registration Without the Confusion
EMG ensures your songs are correctly registered in every major collection society around the world. No guesswork. No DIY dashboards. Just results.
“With Elizabeth Music Group, my song wasn’t just registered—it was tracked, matched, and monetized in countries I didn’t even know I had listeners in.” - a direct quote from a musician signed to EMG
2. Sync Licensing Opportunities
Elizabeth Music Group is not just a passive administrator. The EMG team is actively involved in pitching songs for sync to film, TV, games, and branded content. Every artist in the catalog gets access to:
A private Discord server with new sync briefs added frequently
A beat and loop exchange
Live voice support to review submissions and offer feedback
Strategic pitching of new and old catalog songs
Your music is not just managed—it's pushed.
3. Real Human Support
Unlike many “admin publishing” platforms that offer vague FAQ sections and slow customer service, EMG takes a boutique, artist-first approach. Artists can speak directly with a real team member who knows their catalog and cares about their growth. We handle your song registrations and ensure accurate metadata.
4. Education Built-In
The EMG team believes in empowering creators with knowledge, not gatekeeping it. From breakdowns on royalties to guidance on split negotiation, EMG artists are consistently better informed and more financially empowered than their peers.
EMG doesn’t just do the work for you—they teach you how it works, so you’re never in the dark about your money.
Who Needs Publishing Administration?
You might benefit from a publishing admin deal with Elizabeth Music Group if:
You’ve released at least one original song
You’ve produced or written for other artists
Your music is being streamed, used in videos, or performed live
You want access to sync licensing opportunities
You want someone to proactively grow your catalog’s value
You want to build generational wealth from your music
Final Takeaways
Music publishing administration is not just a backend task—it’s a vital pillar of your music career. If you’re not collecting your publishing royalties, you’re losing money every day your music exists in the world.
And when it comes to publishing administration, Elizabeth Music Group is a leader, not a follower.
With transparent deals, human support, sync access, educational resources, and global royalty collection, EMG is redefining what publishing admin should look like in the 2020s.
Ready to Collect What You’re Owed?
Explore your publishing options with Elizabeth Music Group and make sure every play, stream, sync, and performance is working for your future.
