For musicians and songwriters
How does a prenup treat a music catalog and its royalties?
Carefully, because one song is really several rights at once. The composition, the master recording, and the royalty streams they produce are separate things under the law, and owning a copyright is not the same as receiving the money it earns. A prenup lets you address each of them, and the income that keeps arriving for years, in advance. Neptune is the lawyer-led online prenup service: both partners get their own lawyer for one flat fee.
Flat fee of $5,000 per couple. No payment to get started.
One song, several rights
A single song is really a bundle of separate rights
The biggest mistake in planning around music is treating the song, the recording, and the royalties as one asset. The law and the music business usually treat them as separate rights, each earning income on its own terms.
The composition
The words and music themselves are one copyright, usually held by the songwriter and often administered by a publisher. It earns performance royalties through organizations such as ASCAP, BMI, or SESAC, and mechanical royalties from streaming and sales.
The master recording
The specific recording of a composition is a separate copyright, and who owns it depends on how the recording was funded and what the deal says. Masters earn their own royalties, on a different legal footing than the composition.
The royalty streams
Performance, mechanical, and sync income each flow from these rights on their own terms. A sync placement in a film or ad can arrive years after a song was written, and its timing rarely lines up with when the work was made.
The distinction that matters
Owning the copyright is not the same as receiving the royalties
Courts often separate two things that sound identical. One is ownership and control of a copyright: the right to license it, sell it, and approve how it is used. The other is the economic interest, the right to receive the money it earns. A partner can end up holding one without the other.
That gap is where vague agreements cause trouble. Language that mentions intellectual property without saying who owns what has led to long fights over whether a spouse received a share of income or a share of ownership. A prenup can keep control of your catalog with you while addressing income directly, so it is not argued from scratch later. Your attorney can review how these lines are drawn where you live.
Timing matters
When a song was made can decide how it is treated
Work you created before the marriage is often your separate property. Work created during the marriage, through your skill and effort, can be treated as marital in many places, and the same can apply to the royalties it earns.
The timing of the income does not always line up with the timing of the work, which is what makes music unusual. A sync fee earned three years into a marriage from a song written long before still needs to be characterized clearly. A prenup can set these rules in advance instead of leaving a court to sort out which years and which songs count.
What a prenup can address
Six places a music career meets prenup planning
A catalog built before the wedding
Compositions and recordings you made before the marriage can be confirmed as your separate property, along with the royalty streams they generate, so the work you arrived with is clearly accounted for.
Work created during the marriage
Songs written or recorded while you are married can be treated as marital by default in many places. A prenup can define how compositions and recordings made during the marriage, and their income, are handled instead of leaving it to a court.
Ownership versus the right to income
A prenup can separate who owns and controls a copyright from who receives the money it produces. That lets you keep control of licensing and catalog decisions while addressing how income is shared, if at all.
Touring, merchandise, and brand income
Live performance, merchandise, and brand deals usually come from personal work during the marriage rather than from the catalog, so a catalog clause does not cover them. A prenup can address these income streams on their own.
Rights that come back later
Copyright termination rights can return valuable rights to a songwriter years after an early deal. A prenup cannot waive those rights in advance, but it can describe how recaptured rights and their income are treated if they return during the marriage.
Privacy and valuation
Catalog value is hard to pin down and can swing with a single placement. A prenup can set how value and income are handled in advance, and can include confidentiality terms so a split does not put your finances on public display.
A clear comparison
Template platform vs lawyer-led prenup
A fill-in-the-blank form treats music as a single line item. It cannot separate a composition from a master, split control from income, or handle touring revenue. Here is how a template compares with a lawyer-led prenup for a music career.
| Feature | Template platform | Lawyer-led prenup (Neptune) |
|---|---|---|
| Separates composition, master, and royalties | One generic royalty clause | Each right addressed on its own |
| Splits control from the right to income | Not distinguished | Defined in the agreement |
| Covers touring and merchandise income | Rarely handled | Addressed separately |
| Independent counsel for each partner | None | A separate attorney for each of you |
| Cost | Low upfront, unclear if it holds up | $5,000 flat, both attorneys included |
How Neptune works
Three steps to a prenup built around your catalog
Guided intake for your catalog
Neptune’s AI-guided intake asks about your compositions, recordings, publishing and label deals, and how you earn, in plain language. No legal jargon required.
A consultation with your own attorney
Each partner is connected with a separate, experienced family law attorney who can review how compositions, masters, and royalty streams should be handled. Consultations are free.
An agreement built around your rights
Your attorneys draft terms that keep the different rights and income streams clear rather than lumped together. Turnaround is typically around 3 to 4 weeks when both partners use Neptune attorneys.
Transparent pricing
One flat fee. Two independent attorneys.
Each partner gets their own licensed attorney. One drafts the agreement; the other reviews it on behalf of the second partner.
$5,000
per couple, total
Rush pricing applies when the wedding is within 45 days. No payment required to get started.
Guides for you
Guides on assets, debt, and equity
Start with the guides other couples read before they begin, then take the next step when you are ready.
Common questions from musicians and songwriters
Do musicians and songwriters need a prenup?
For many, it is worth considering, because a music career is built on rights and income streams that most standard planning does not handle well. Compositions, master recordings, and the royalties they produce are separate things under the law, and income can keep arriving for years, often long after a song was written. A prenup lets you and your partner agree in advance how a catalog and its income are treated. It is planning, not a prediction that the marriage will fail.
How is a music catalog treated if we divorce?
It depends on when the work was created and how the rights and income are held. Compositions and recordings made before the marriage are often separate property, while work created during the marriage can be treated as marital in many places. Rules for dividing property differ from state to state, and your attorney can review what applies where you live. A prenup can define how a catalog, and the income it generates, are handled rather than leaving it to be argued later.
What is the difference between owning the copyright and getting the royalties?
They are not the same thing, and courts often treat them separately. One partner can hold the ownership and control of a copyright, meaning the right to license it, sell it, or approve how it is used, while the other holds an economic interest in the money it produces. A prenup can address ownership and control on one hand and the right to income on the other, so you can keep decision-making over your catalog while still settling how income is shared, if at all.
What about touring, merchandise, and sync income?
These are worth addressing on their own. Touring and merchandise income usually comes from personal work during the marriage rather than from owning a catalog, so a clause about your songs may not cover it. Sync fees, from placing music in film, television, or ads, can arrive years after a song was written and may spike unpredictably. A prenup can define how each of these income streams is treated instead of sweeping them into a single royalty clause.
What does it cost and how long does it take?
Neptune charges a flat fee of $5,000 per couple, which covers two independent attorneys, one for each partner. No payment is required to get started. Turnaround is typically around 3 to 4 weeks when both partners use Neptune attorneys. Rush pricing applies when the wedding is within 45 days.