Deals, managers and contracts, in plain words
What the words in a record deal actually mean, what a manager is worth, and how to set yourself up — solo, producer or band — so a fallout doesn't take the name with it.
This is general information, not legal advice. Before you sign anything, get it looked at by a lawyer who knows music. The Arts Law Centre of Australia does exactly this for artists, at low cost.
The vocabulary, quickly
- Advance: money paid up front that you pay back out of your own royalties. It's a loan against your future earnings, not a bonus.
- Recoupable: costs the label can take back out of your share before you see anything. Recording, videos and marketing are usually recoupable.
- Term: how long the deal runs, often expressed in albums or options rather than years.
- Rights granted: what they own or control, for how long, and in what countries.
- Reversion: when, if ever, the masters come back to you.
- 360 deal: the label takes a share of income beyond recordings, such as touring, merch or publishing.
The one-line test
A deal is worth reading closely when it takes something that lasts forever, like your masters, in exchange for something that runs out, like a marketing budget. That's not automatically a bad trade, but you should be able to say out loud what you're getting for it.
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- The clauses that decide whether a deal is survivable: term, rights, recoupment, reversion
- Why an advance is a loan, and what recoupable really costs
- 360 deals and the questions to ask before signing one
- Managers, agents and lawyers: what each does and what they charge
- Setting up as a solo artist, producer or band: ABN, splits, names
- Where an Australian artist gets a contract checked cheaply
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Where this comes from
- Arts Law Centre of Australia
- IP Australia — trade marks
- business.gov.au — business structures
- APRA AMCOS — royalties overview
Facts checked 18 September 2026. General information for independent artists, not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules, prices and deadlines change: check the official pages linked at the end, and get advice for your own situation.