The moment a song has more than one person behind it, you need to agree who owns what — before it earns a cent. A clear split, written down and signed, is what prevents the awkward conversation (or the legal mess) six months later when the royalties start landing. Here's how music splits actually work, and how to put one on paper in a couple of minutes.
A song earns money from two separate places, and they're split independently. The master is the recording itself — the actual audio file — and it's paid by your distributor (DistroKid, TuneCore…). The publishing is the composition — the melody and lyrics — and it's paid by a collection society (ASCAP, BMI, SACEM…). Because the money comes from two different pots, you split each one on its own. A producer might own 50% of the master but none of the publishing; a topliner might own none of the master but half the publishing. Each side has to total 100% by itself.
Splits are easy to agree when nobody's been paid yet and hard to renegotiate once a song takes off. Lock it in while everyone's still friends.
When you register your song with a collection society or publisher, they'll ask who wrote what. A signed split sheet is the document that answers it.
Splitting them separately on paper avoids the classic confusion where a producer assumes their master share also gives them publishing — it doesn't, unless you agree it.
Enter a revenue amount and the calculator turns the percentages into real figures per person — so the split isn't an abstraction, it's "you get €1,200, they get €300".
Estimate that revenue first with the streaming royalty calculator.
Get a tidy PDF with the track details, the full breakdown and a signature line for each collaborator — ready to print, sign or send.
Collaborators — “Polaroids”
| Name | Role | Master % | Publishing % |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Abakan | Artist | 80 | 100 |
| Goldey Simon | Featuring | 20 | 0 |
A split sheet is a simple document that records who owns what percentage of a song — both the recording (master) and the composition (publishing) — signed by everyone who contributed. It's the proof of agreement you'll need when the song earns money or gets registered with a collection society.
They're paid by different sources. The master (the recording) is paid by your distributor; the publishing (the composition — melody and lyrics) is paid by a collection society like ASCAP, BMI or SACEM. Because the money comes from two separate pots, each side is split on its own and must total 100% independently.
Yes. The master shares must total 100%, and the publishing shares must total 100% — separately. A producer might have 50% of the master but 0% of the publishing, or a topliner 0% of the master but 50% of the publishing. AudioKit checks both totals live and only turns them green at exactly 100%.
A split sheet signed by all contributors is widely used as evidence of an agreement, but AudioKit isn't a law firm and this isn't legal advice. For high-stakes releases, have a music lawyer review your arrangement. The tool gives you a clean, signable document to start from.