Question:
My church has the CCLI license and I thought that, with that, we were copyright compliant. Now I’m hearing about other licenses. Why can’t we just get one to cover everything and how do we know what we need?

Answer:
Unfortunately, there is not a single license that covers all of a church’s copyright compliance needs. The good news is that there are several blanket licenses that simplify the process of obtaining copyright coverage, so that a church does not have to go to each individual copyright owner for permission.

A blanket license allows licensees to use a catalog of copyrighted works for specified activities for one annual fee. Several blanket licenses have been created to meet the need of churches and ministries. The best known of these are:

• CCLI church copyright license
• CCLI church streaming and podcast license
• CCLI rehearsal copy license
• CopyrightSolver’s PERFORMmusic
• CopyrightSolver’s WORSHIPcast
• CVLI
• LicenseSing
• LifeWay Worship Track Streaming License
• OneLicense

These licenses provide a mosaic of licensing, with very little overlap between their coverage. The first step in determining which of these licenses to purchase is understanding what they cover and what they do not cover.

Each blanket license provides coverage for specific types of copyrights (music, video, etc.) and specific rights (performance, reproduction, adaptation) for a specific catalog of works and period of time. So you need to look at four elements of your license(s):

1. Type of copyright; is it music, sound recording or audiovisual (films)?
2. The catalog of copyrights; e.g. is it a specific group of song publishers or film producers?
3. The types of rights covered; e.g., is it performance, reproduction, derivative?
4. The specific activities authorized; e.g.,  is it for congregationl singing use only, on-site performances or internet streaming?

Churches should analyze how they’re using copyrighted material and put together the combination of available licenses that provides the most comprehensive coverage. Otherwise, they may find that they are compliant in one area, but leaving themselves wide open to a lawsuit in other areas.

There are eight works of authorship that can be copyrighted: 1) music 2) sound recordings 3) literary works 4) audiovisual 5) visual images 6) dance 7) dramas 8 ) architecture. US Copyright law gives copyright owners six exclusive rights of rights. These include the rights to:

• Reproduce
• Make Derivative Works
• Distribute
• Perform
• Publicly Display
• Perform Digital Sound Recordings

If you use copyrighted materials in any of these ways, in most cases, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. The CCLI license only addresses the rights to reproduce and distribute, in most cases print reproduction music for congregational singing and, to a very limited extent, some rights to audio reproduction and making derivative works under very special circumstances. It covers 200,000 Christian songs.

The CCLI License is a wonderful license for most churches to have because it does allow you to make copies of music and lyrics for congregational singing with some limited CD and DVD recording rights. However, the CCLI License does NOT authorize you to:

• Make photocopies
• Perform or play songs outside of a worship service
• Post any songs to the internet
• Use any type of copyright besides music
• Use songs that are not in the CCLI song catalog
• Do anything else that’s not explicitly covered in their terms of service.

The licenses offered by CopyrightSolver were developed to cover activities where churches still need additional coverage.

One important use of copyrights that is NOT covered by CCLI’s license is performance rights. Almost every church needs performance licensing. If your church performs music at all outside of worship services—any activities ranging from youth events to singing before a potluck to your phone system’s music on-hold. To be legally compliant, your church should have performance licensing. CopyrightSolver’s PERFORMmuisc License covers over 16 million songs in the ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC catalogs for one year and requires no reporting.

If your church streams your worship services online, you’ll need a streaming license to cover any copyrighted songs that are included in the stream. CopyrightSolver’s WORSHIPcast License covers over 16 million songs in the ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC catalogs for one year and requires no reporting for churches with less than 5,000 members.

There are some other licenses available with coverage that is limited to specific, catalogs such as LicenSing and One License. You can find an extensive fact sheet about blanket licenses for churches at CopyrightSolver’s Learning Center.

For any other licensing needs you may have that are not covered by a blanket license (such as a CD or DVD project) CopyrightSolver can assist you with our PERMISSIONSplus Service. Through this service you can work with one of our Copyright Solvers to secure the permissions you need to make your project run smoothly.

It is very important to remember that one license does not meet all needs; most churches need several blanket licenses to be fully copyright compliant.

The CopyrightSolver answers provided are information, not legal advice. For more information and resources, including fact sheets, videos and idea kits, visit www.copyrightsolver.com. Use promo code “ABOUTWORSHIP” to receive 10% off the PERFORMmusic and WORSHIPcast licenses and the PERMISSIONSplus service.

Related posts:

1. Step-By-Step Copyright Compliance
2. Copyright Q&A for 3/1/12
3. Copyright Q&A for 4/26/12

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The words of the Psalmist bring us to the conclusion that worship is meant to be corporate. Some of the most powerful worship songs out there are being produced by collectives and co-writers alike, which leads us nicely to People & Songs Vol. 1, a collection of songs co-written by Jennie Riddle & a host of others. Chris Olson & Ed Rotheram have put together their thoughts on the album – let’s take a look.

Ed: Right from the introduction, the opening song “Waking up the Dawn” had me hooked. There is a really organic feel to this – the sort of sound you might expect from a group of passionate worshippers meeting up to have a jam and sing their hearts out. The underlying drum/clap rhythm binds this song together and gives it a strong undercurrent, and Michael Farren’s powerful yet sensitive vocal line sits in just right over the top of the mix. There is a strong feeling of expectancy in the opening sections, with a melody that really builds in the “with a yearning for our King to come” section that follows on. A very strong opener, this is my pick of the album.

Chris: For me, track four is the highlight of the album.  This song is entitled “When the Stars Burn Down”.  Featuring Jonathan Lee on vocals, this song has it all.  A great arrangement, wonderful lyrics of high praise, and a killer melody.  The bridge is a special thing – wonderful proclamation of God’s majesty.  This song will no doubt find its way into the congregations of many churches, and will be a blessing to all as we join in, singing “Blessing and honor, glory and power, forever to our God.”

Ed: My second pick is “When Love was Slain”. The introduction is sublime – a beautiful picked mandolin, backed up by solid, well placed piano chords set the song’s reflective feel right into context from the outset. The vocals (provided by New Nation Music (Jennie, Crystal Yates, and Will Yates)) are well arranged, with some superb harmonies – the 3 part in the chorus is particularly pleasing. Lyrically, I really like the section that starts “soon Lord, and very soon” – as with a lot of the rest of the album, the feel of expectancy of a move of the Lord is very apparent here. I can really see this song working well as a Communion song – the pictures that are painted by the lyrics make this a great song for reflection.

Chris: While the album as a whole has a pretty mellow vibe, with a heavy country accent, “O Come Divine Messiah” provides a nice, upbeat kick to the midpoint of the album.  This is another congregation-friendly worship song (with vocals from Jennie & Robbie Seay) that is pushed forward by a driving bassline that really adds to the overall dynamic of the song.  To find out more about this great song, check out our friend Joe Brookhouse’s review of this song, as the released single, HERE.

Ed: As with my previous pick, “Glory Fall” is a song featuring the amazing vocals of New Nation Music. The vocal lines that these guys bring give their songs an added dimension of texture that really lifts the songs. The simple nature of this chorus had me picturing the image of this song being led in our church in a worship time, and I could see the Lord’s Glory falling on the faces of His people, their hearts given over in worship to Him. To me, it was a great reminder of the privilege that we get as worshippers – we can enter in to the presence of the Creator of the World, and meet face to face with the Son who set us free, feeling the Glory of His Holy Spirit falling down like rain.

Chris: If you are reading this, then you likely have heard the song, “Revelation Song”.  Heck, you probably have heard numerous versions of this song!  As one of the most widely known worship songs being sung in churches today, this album brings us another version. Featuring guest backing vocals from Emily Riddle (Jennie’s daughter, backing Jennie on lead vocals), this version may not be what you expect to hear.  This song has a soft vibe to it, very reflective in nature. This song sounds about as intimate as a song can sound – a personal conversation between a child of God and her creator.

We had the opportunity to ask Jennie about the song. Here’s what she had to say about it: “I sang it the way I wrote it…It was a peaceful moment full of the rest of the Lord in the middle of an otherwise not awesome mom day. I sang it like a lullaby… and I got to sing it with my daughter…such an honor!”

Compared to the more “power ballad” style renditions of this song you have likely heard, you may, at first, find it a little hard to grasp onto.  But trust me, when you give it another listen or two, and really hone in on what is being sung, it’ll speak to you in another wonderful way.

So, these are our thoughts on just a handful of the tracks on this album.  This collaborative effort – 15 songs featuring 12 different vocalists (including Jennie herself) – delivers some of the most profound lyrics in modern worship music.

While only some may be fitting for a congregational application, every song can, should, and hopefully will, minister to the hearts of anyone who listens.  While there is a strong country/folk feel to the album, anyone who appreciates praising our King will find this album to be a must-have, and a must-listen. Jennie is most known for the widely popular song “Revelation Song” . . . after this album, I expect that more songs will be added to that list.

-Review by Chris Olson and Ed Rotheram
(review copy provided by artist) 

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That’s for sure a legitimate take on the passage, but there’s another angle to the story, a subplot if you will. And although Old Testament “strip dancing” is tough to beat when it comes to compelling reading, this subplot just might have what it takes. It’s introduced in the form of David’s wife.

If my title hasn’t given it away already, enter Michal, the daughter of the former King Saul and first wife to King David. You know the story…

Watching the procession in the distance as the army of 30,000 strong returns victorious from battle, the ark in hand, Michal is disgusted by her husband’s display of emotion as he worships God.

Now, he wasn’t “jay-bird” naked… But he was down to his priestly apron, aka “ephod.” And it was more than his wife could take as she watched from the palace window. Her response:

2 Samuel 6:20 “How wonderfully the king has distinguished himself today (Hint o’ sarcasm) exposing himself to the eyes of the servants’ maids like some burlesque street dancer!” (MSG)

We could go a lot of directions from here, but one thing especially stands out to me. I think Michal is a picture of The Church. What exactly do I mean?

Speaking from personal experience… I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen a ministry, a church, even a worship leader (from my palace window so to speak) and formed an unfair opinion from a distance of their way of doing things, their worship.

“That’s weird.” “That’s just too much.” “That’s not enough.” “How can they do it that way?” And before I know it… I’ve fallen victim to the “Michal Mishap.”

It’s interesting to me how this passage ends in verse 23, “And Michal daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death.”

So what’s the connection? I’m convinced that people who shut down moves of God simply because they make them feel uncomfortable or they don’t understand them… are unable to give birth to anything significant in their own lives.

Now, I’m not suggesting that we stop using God’s word as the standard, but more often than not, I’m convinced that my issue has less to do with what I don’t agree with, and more to do with what I don’t understand.

In other words… if we’re not careful, we can become so consumed with speaking death into other people’s situation that we become incapable of producing any life in our own.

Think about it… what if we put one tenth of the energy we invest into divisive, pointless “doctrinal discussion” and redirected it towards finding the areas we agree in? Again, from personal experience, there’s life in that!

Pastor Steven Furtick of Elevation Church says it this way, “I want to build a generation that is known for what we are for and not what we are against.”

And sometimes it’s so helpful to just ask ourselves, where is this person coming from? I mean, why was David so jacked? His people had literally been separated from the presence of God for 100 years, and it took an insane amount of sacrifice to make it right! I’m not much of a dancer, but I’m guessing I would have been leading the way with some “fiddler on the roof” moves right into the streets of J-town!

There’s just something about a heart that is open to worshiping God regardless of the difference in style or preference. When we can learn to see others from that perspective, we become a life-giving force for the Kingdom of God. And life starts flowing right back in our direction!

-Joe Cameneti, Jr.

Joe is a member of the All About Worship leadership team and the Director of Connections at Believers Church in Warren, OH.

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I stumbled upon hearing God’s heart on the matter through the following instance:

My colleague & I were going to watch a DVD on the subject. A boring DVD. A very expensive, boring DVD. And then we were going to show it to our team for instruction, he made a copy for me which I promptly lost, then he lost his original copy, hmm..mysterious…so I had to actually seek God and see what He has to say about it all, perhaps this was what He wanted all along?

I shall start out with a few stage presence stereotypes that we are all familiar with & if some are humble enough to admit, also guilty of (please note, this particular section was not from the Lord, and I admit my guilt on several of these!):

• Nervous Nancy: white knuckles gripping the microphone, you end up being so distracted by how nervous she is; wondering if she is going to pass out, heck- I’ve even prayed for them while they were up there “Lord please let ____ not puke on me, oh & give them strength to make it thru this song!”
• Rock Star: basically if the WL looks & acts like he’s a part of U2 and not leading people into God’s presence.
• Diva: this is the counterpart of the ‘Rockstar’, very Broadway theatrical, dramatic, and looks like a Spice Girl.
• Ugly Face: scrunching of face as if in pain, ‘I’m so holy it hurts!’
• Nauseous: holding stomach frequently.
• Narcolepsy: eyes closed constantly as if one were sleeping through the set.
• Cheerleader: the over happy perma grin “if I don’t smile, I will hear it from my pastor” face.

1.  Stage presence vs performance

• Performance is what you do
• Presence is who you are

Actors will immerse themselves in research for a role so that they nearly become who they are acting or pretending to be for a more believable performance.

How much more, if we ‘practice His presence’ will our stage presence flow naturally without trying to be or act or look a certain way.

2.  Drop the act

• What we want to do is move away from theatrics & performance and actually project a genuine presence that is authentic & inviting for others to worship.
• Presence is not something you conjure up, it’s who you are.

Being immersed in His presence is where our stage presence flows out of.

“They look to Him and their faces were radiant” ~ Psalm 34:5

3.  His presence becomes your presence

I was recently in a class taught by Bob Hamp and he had asked, “What is the opposite of worship?” And, of course in my head I’m like “Devil worship!” But his answer took me by surprise and was something very profound that has revolutionized some of my thoughts! “The opposite of worship is self-consciousness.”

1. The less you are aware of yourself, the more aware you are of Jesus.
2. Self awareness is the opposite of worship

A few practical things to help us become less aware of ourselves:

• The more comfortable we are, the less distracted we are. So get comfy! If it means having a mic stand or not, wearing comfortable clothing, ladies this means wearing something that you don’t have to ‘think about’ or be conscience about.
• Stand firmly planted feet hip width apart without locking your knees, this is what wedding planners tell the wedding party, it helps you not appear and feel stiff or awkward. Locking your knees cuts off circulation and can make you feel lightheaded which can lead to nervousness paired with an unstable footing could lead to mega self-awareness!
• Worship wherever you are, wherever you go, whatever you do.
• Don’t compare yourself to the next person or try to be them.
• Don’t worry about screwing up or forgetting the words, YOU WILL STILL LIVE if that happens.
• Please do not ‘practice’ in the mirror unless you are going to be on American Idol or Broadway. However, watching a video of your team with your team periodically can be a beneficial thing to work out distractions etc…

Your stage presence is perfected when it becomes about His presence and not ours.

I really wish we could have our singers & band all off to the sides and have the center of the stage clear because it is Jesus who is really the focus, the ‘center stage’…the main event. Keep the main thing the main thing: JESUS.

Now, I wonder where HE hid our DVD’s? : )

-Julie Terwilliger

Julie is a part of the All About Worship leadership team.

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Question:
My ministry leaders want to show slide shows with songs. I understand that, if we put it all together on a DVD, we’ll need sync licensing for each song and, if we use master recordings, master sync licenses. Does the same hold true if we simply provide an MP3 of the song to be played at the same time the slides are shown?

Answer:
When you create a video that synchronizes visuals with copyrighted audio content, synchronization licenses should be obtained from the owners of all copyrighted content in your video. However, if you play the visual and audio content simultaneously but separately, a synchronization license is not required. Keep in mind though, it is still important to have the proper performance licenses for the copyrighted music content that you play as your visuals are presented. For non-profit religious organizations, you can secure the performance licensing you need using CopyrightSolver’s PERFORMmusic License.

The CopyrightSolver answers provided are information, not legal advice. For more information and resources, including fact sheets, videos and idea kits, visit www.CopyrightSolver.com. Use promo code “ABOUTWORSHIP” to receive 10% off the PERFORMmusic and WORSHIPcast licenses and the PERMISSIONSplus service.

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