Can You Release a Cover Song? A Cover Song Copyright Guide
A cover song is someone else's song played or recorded in your own version. For copyright there are two separate layers: the song itself, meaning the composition and lyrics, and any existing sound recording of it. With a cover you use the song but make your own recording. Which permission matters depends on where you play or release it.
You played a bar on Friday, someone filmed it, and on Saturday morning the group chat lights up: "Should we put this on YouTube? Maybe Spotify too?" That's three questions in one message, and each one has a different answer. Below we go through them one by one, based on what official sources actually say. Everything here is current as of September 2026.
What rights are involved in a cover song?
In Turkey, songwriters' rights are licensed through collecting societies, two of which are MESAM and MSG. MSG's licensing page bases the songwriter's right on Turkey's Law No. 5846 on Intellectual and Artistic Works, and splits licensing into areas: radio and TV, public venues, live performance and concerts, and digital. Copying onto recordings and physical formats is handled separately, under mechanical licensing.
YouTube's help pages draw the same line: for cover videos, the claim comes from the music publisher that owns the composition, while using the original sound recording is treated as a separate matter. Keep that split in mind and the rest gets easier.
What do you need to play covers live?
The official pages we found put this on the venue and the organizer. Here's how it works in Turkey:
- Venues: MESAM's music use license page says venues open to the public, paid entry or free, need to sign a license agreement with the collecting societies to use music. The license covers live and recorded music on the premises.
- Concerts and events: MSG says it signs agreements with concert organizers based on yearly tariffs. Its concert reporting page says fees are collected from the venue or organizer, and the organizer sends the society a list of the works performed.
The practical step for a band: ask the venue or organizer about their license and hand over your song list if they ask. If you already have a setlist, that takes minutes. If you're putting on the show yourselves, ask MESAM and MSG directly what that means for you. Outside Turkey, check with your local collecting society.
What happens when you upload a cover to YouTube?
Cover videos on YouTube can run into Content ID. When an upload matches content in the Content ID system, a claim can be generated automatically. According to YouTube's page on copyright claims, depending on the rights holder's settings, a claim can:
- block the video from being viewed,
- monetize it by running ads, sometimes sharing the revenue,
- or just track its viewership stats.
The same page makes clear that a claim isn't the same as a copyright strike. On the money side, YouTube's page on monetizing cover videos says creators in the YouTube Partner Program can share revenue from eligible covers once the music publisher claims the video through Content ID and chooses to monetize it. You'll see a "Sharing ad earnings" notice, and payment is pro rata.
Does singing over the original track count as a cover?
This one trips people up. YouTube's monetization rules say using any commercial sound recording, such as an instrumental, a karaoke track or the artist's live performance, isn't eligible for monetization. So by that page, a video of you singing over the original record, or its instrumental version, isn't eligible for monetization.
Spotify's copyright article for artists adds that even if you change the tempo or sing it in a different style, if you're performing someone else's tune, it's a cover. By that definition, rearranging a song doesn't stop it being a cover.
What do you need to release a cover on Spotify and other streaming services?
Music gets onto Spotify through distributors, and Spotify's help page says distributors handle delivery and royalty payments. The Spotify for Artists article says you don't need permission from the songwriter or original performer to cover a track, but you do need to credit the songwriter as the composer when you upload it. The article doesn't say which country's rules it's based on.
Other sources say this:
- United States: The US Copyright Office's Circular 73 explains the compulsory mechanical license, which covers making and distributing recordings, including digital deliveries. One condition is that the song has already been distributed to the public in the US with the owner's permission. You also can't change the basic melody or fundamental character of the work.
- Turkey, physical releases: MESAM's mechanical licensing page lists formats like cassette, CD, vinyl, DVD, SD and USB, and says domestic albums need written consent from the songwriters or their publishers. MSG's mechanical licensing page lists similar formats and what that consent document must include.
- Turkey, digital releases: MSG says it licenses digital platforms. But we found no official page that walks an independent band through releasing a cover via digital distribution, step by step.
So before you release, ask your distributor what they need for covers, and ask your collecting society who owns the song and what permission applies.
What do you need where, and who do you ask?
| Where | What the sources say | Who to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Bar, wedding or concert stage | Public venues license music from collecting societies; for concerts the organizer has an agreement and reports the works played | Venue or organizer, your collecting society (MESAM, MSG in Turkey) |
| YouTube video | A Content ID claim may apply; revenue sharing is possible if the publisher claims and monetizes; commercial backing tracks aren't eligible | YouTube Help Center |
| Spotify and other streaming | Uploads go through a distributor; credit the songwriter as composer | Your distributor, your collecting society |
| CD, vinyl, USB | Mechanical license; in Turkey, written consent from the songwriter for domestic albums | Mechanical licensing teams at MESAM and MSG |
How can a cover band stay organized?
For every song, note the composer and lyricist. When a distributor, a collecting society or a venue asks, it's right there. Starting that list when you pick your repertoire saves a lot of digging later. For tips on choosing songs, see our guide on how to choose cover band songs.
Note: This article reports what official pages said as of September 2026 and isn't legal advice. For your own situation, check with the relevant collecting society or a copyright lawyer.