I field a lot of questions about posting videos of my concerts on YouTube, using my music for various projects, and so on. These days the term “fair use” seems to be as nebulous as “pop rock”.

So a while back I set up a Terms of Service page (just like a real company) that specifically deals with my music and how my fans should treat it. This isn’t a legal document and shouldn’t be considered as such- I just want to clarify my position on some really confusing issues. Honestly, I’m surprised more artists haven’t already set up something similar.

Here’s the current version, though the full TOS will always be available at www.matthewebel.com/tos

Rules of Thumb

Here are some basic guidelines to follow when considering using my music. These rules supersede all the others, so take them to heart:

If you’re going to be making money off of my music, I should too.

For example, if you’ve got a podcast with sponsors, a music-playing website with Google Adwords, or you’re making a video that’s promoting a product, do the right thing and contact me about licensing.

If you’re doing it for the right reasons, do it.

You’ve got a conscience, you know if you’re being cool or being a schmuck. The RIAA will not notice if you rip off an indie artist, but I will.

Keep politics out of this.

I am very careful about which politicians, groups, and causes I support, so if you’re thinking of using my music to support a candidate or cause, please ask me first.

Post links back to www.matthewebel.com

Should be self-explanatory: Send people to this site whenever you can, please!

Read More…

I’ve been getting all kinds of email asking for permission to use my music in videos, post photos of me online, or for clarification on what my bootleg policies are. Maybe this is a good time to address this…

• If you want to post photos of me at a performance or convention, I strongly encourage it. All I ask is that you let people know who that guy in the photo is.
• If you’re videotaping or recording one of my live shows, I would love to see those recordings spread around. Just do me a favor- try to remind folks that they can get professionally-recorded live music at matthewebel.net. If you want more concerts, I need to keep paying my bills- subscriptions are the best way for me to do that.
• If you want to use my music in your project, just bear in mind whether or not it’s a money-making project. You want to put Everybody Needs A Ninja behind your kids’ martial arts tournament video? Awesome. Want to use it on a site that’s bringing in Google Adwords or affiliate link revenue? Talk to me first. I want to make things easy for you, but again… I have bills to pay. If I’m helping you pay yours, I’d appreciate some assistance.
• For anything you post online, try to tag things with either Matthew Ebel or matthewebel so Google and I can find it. And whenever possible, I always appreciate a link back to matthewebel.com as high up on the page as possible.

So there are some official policies straight from the musician’s mouth. Er, blog. The point is that I’m not some RIAA stooge, I’m not commuting to gigs in a private jet, and I’m not trying to break anyone. I want to see my fans get as excited about the music as I do, so if there’s anything I can do to help (or if you have any questions), just email me!