Music Associations

Music associations for songwriting like Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) and TAXI are very helpful. Each provides support to novice and experienced songwriters as well as publishers, record companies and Artist & Repertoire (A&R) people. NSAI and TAXI provide very different services. A songwriter association is something you should consider joining.

The Mission statement of NSAI is - NSAI consists of a body of creative minds, including songwriters from all genres of music, professional and amateur, who are committed to protecting the rights and future of the profession of songwriting, and to educate, elevate, and celebrate the songwriter and to act as a unifying force within the music community and the community at large.

TAXI states it’s the world's leading Independent A&R Company. I believe it, they are very strong organization. They claim to have invented independent A&R in 1992, They specialized in giving artists, bands, and songwriters opportunities to access the music business players who are able to sign songwriters.

If you have any kind of commercial success you need to consider joining a performing rights organizations to collect you royalties.

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Performing rights organizations monitor, collect royalties from uses of music such an as record companies and radio stations and distribute royalties to the songwriters.

The US organizations are the American Society of Composers And Publishers (ASCAP), and BMI and SESAC.

In Canada it’s The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN). There are other organizations around the world that provide this service for other countries.

ASCAP and SOCAN are non profit societies and BMI and SESAC are private companies. There are various reasons to choose which association to join. It has to do with opportunity, who you know and how comfortable you feel with any particular one.

ASCAP has produced a Bill Of Rights for Songwriters and Composers and its worth reading if you are concerned about protecting your copyright.

CCMA
Canadian Country Music Association