Quote:
Originally Posted by Tony Shepperd  That's kinda funny. 5 years ago I got a P.O. from Warner Bros., for a project.
45 days later I called to check on when the check was going to be sent out.
She then proceeded to tell me, "just because you have P.O. from Warner Bros., doesn't mean you are going to get paid".
I was incredulous!
So I said, what's the purpose of getting a P.O. from you all anymore?
She said, "we'll, I'm just telling you what our new policy is".
Every year the major labels have changed their payment schedule.
Now major labels are telling producers there is no back end if your song doesn't go on the record.
It doesn't matter that you've already done the work.
If they choose not to put it on the record, no back end. |
Yup, I just mixed a fancy pants record last year on said label and got the run around for the balance (half!) for OVER 120 days! Seriously. There are all kinds of things you can try that you do with indie clients such as "no delivery til pmt in full, net 30" yada yada, but good luck. By the time you hit them with a collection agency and get the process started, you've probably finally gotten paid, though way late. There are some majors that have paid me in pretty good time as of late but in all truth, it seems sometimes the more money/budget a client has, the longer it takes them to pay! Why is that? When I was doing lots of local stuff, people working 3 minimum wage jobs would pay in advance! It's all backwards.
Heck, in theory mixing rates seem backwards. Many of us charge an "indie" rate to mix a song for unsigned or indie artists with much less budget, promo and marketing behind them, meaning that maybe only 4 people will ever hear the record. Then we charge several times that amount for a major label project that may have a much bigger chance of "being a hit" and pushing our names even more (and career). I think the reason for this in part is BECAUSE of the drama labels have caused in the past for many engineers/producers in getting paid. There are several other factors that go along with a major label rate such as additional studio(s) if needed, gear rentals if needed, yada yada but it's an interesting angle to inspect :-)
The good news is that on this particular record I mixed last year, I got asked to mix 4 additional songs months later and did make them promise, double pinky swear that they wouldn't take so long to pay me. It's weird, they actually did pay promptly. Huh, musta been the pinky thing. Gotta remember that next time.