Frequently asked questions
- How do I find a song’s publisher?
- Search the song or artist. The song page lists every publisher and administrator with their share, as registered at The MLC.
- How do I find out who owns a song?
- Each song page shows its writers, publishers and splits from The MLC’s public database, plus any share that is unclaimed or in dispute.
- What is The MLC?
- The Mechanical Licensing Collective, set up under the US Music Modernization Act to license and pay mechanical royalties for streaming and downloads. Its public database lists who owns each song.
- What does “unclaimed” mean?
- The part of a song that no writer or publisher has registered at The MLC. Royalties for that share can go uncollected.
- What are ISRC, ISWC and IPI?
- An ISRC identifies a recording, an ISWC identifies the song (the composition), and an IPI identifies a writer or publisher. You can search by any of them.
- Is this data official?
- It comes from The MLC’s public data and covers US mechanical rights only. Spot an error? Email support@usethirdchair.com.
- Who runs this site?
- Third Chair, a music IP monitoring and copyright enforcement company. The lookup is free and needs no sign-up.
Search a song or read about Metadata.