Register with all three mechanical royalty collection societies — The MLC, Music Reports, and Harry Fox — to collect the royalty most artists miss, from streaming, downloads, and social platforms.
📌 Learning Objectives
Explain what mechanical royalties are and why most artists miss them
Collect the three codes (ISRC, ISWC, UPC) required before registering
Register with all three societies IN ORDER — each unlocks the next
Search The MLC for unclaimed royalties
🎹 What Are Mechanical Royalties?
Every time your song is reproduced — streamed, downloaded, or copied — it generates a "mechanical" royalty. The name dates to the 1920s, when songs were reproduced on player-piano rolls and records. Today it's digital, but the idea is the same: you get paid each time a copy of your song is made or served. Even TikTok and Facebook pay this.
✅ YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS
Payment 1 — Master Royalty Spotify → Your distributor → You Most artists know about this one.
💸 THIS WEEK SETS UP THIS
Payment 2 — Mechanical Royalty Spotify → Mechanical agencies → You Most artists MISS this one. The MLC is holding billions in unclaimed royalties right now.
🔑 Codes You Need BEFORE Registering
Code
Identifies
Get It From
One per...
ISRC
Each RECORDING
Your distributor (Week 8)
Recording version
ISWC
Each COMPOSITION
Your PRO (Week 11)
Song (all versions)
UPC
Each RELEASE/ALBUM
Your distributor
Album or EP
UPC = ISBN of the album · ISWC = catalog number for the composition · ISRC = serial number for each recording.
🔐 Why Order Matters: Each Account Unlocks the Next
Publisher IPI (Week 11)
The MLC (get Publisher #)
Music Reports
Harry Fox (needs MLC #)
Your Publisher IPI unlocks The MLC → The MLC gives you a Publisher Number → that unlocks Harry Fox.
⚙️ The MLC — "The New Kid" (2021)
FREE · Priority 1
US streaming mechanicals, mandated by the Music Modernization Act. Pays monthly.
Create your account at TheMLC.com — personal name, DOB, address, business phone/email (personal info is required for anti-money-laundering rules)
Create the member — select "I work for a publishing company"; "No" other collectors; one payee
Register the member — member name = your LLC; enter your Publisher IPI from Week 11 (NOT the writer IPI!); leave the HFA number blank — you'll get one here
Financial info — direct deposit + upload your W-9 (Week 7 template!). Approval can take up to 10 days
🔑 After approval, find your MLC Publisher Number under Member Settings (starts with "P") — you need it for Harry Fox
Search for unclaimed royalties — The MLC holds billions; search your songs and claim what's yours
📝 Part B: Music Reports
Fill out the form at MusicReports.com — company = your LLC; society = your PRO; IPI = your Publisher IPI; role = Managing Member; business contact info
Complete approval — they'll email requesting a scanned W-9; direct deposit is set up after approval
📝 Part C: Harry Fox Agency
Confirm you have your MLC Publisher Number first (starts with "P")
Sign up as an Affiliated Publisher at HarryFox.com — publisher name = your LLC; enter the HFA publisher number FROM YOUR MLC ACCOUNT. ⚠️ Do NOT let them create a new profile for you!
Payment info — select Single Member LLC and enter your EIN (note: HFA uses EIN here, unlike the others!); name on tax return = company name; pay the ~$100 fee (up to 14 days to complete)
🎉 You Did It!
Once all three accounts are set up, you have officially built a complete record label and publishing company capable of collecting every type of royalty your music generates — the same way a major label would. You've essentially built your own publishing administrator — but you keep 100% and get paid faster.