I’ve been formulating this thought, say, for instance a small garage band writes a good song. You being the annoyed neighbor decides to take the intellectual approach, you record the song, write out the lyrics, and copyright them. If that band became big, and you had the copyright to the song, would you have legal right to all royalties to that song after a major record label had already signed them?
It probably depends on what country you’re in. Here in Australia, you don’t have to apply to copyright a work - once it’s written, it’s copyright. If someone steals your work it helps to keep your rough drafts on hand to prove the song is yours.
In America, I think you have to apply to copyright a work. The sneaky little scheme you talked about might sound good in theory but they could sue the heck out of you if they have proof they wrote the song. And if they can prove it YOU would owe THEM royalties for recording the song.
I really hope you’re not contemplating actually doing this - it’s a lose/lose situation.
No, it’s the same deal as you, more or less. You can register your copyright, which gives you greater protection, however, all intellectual property is copyrighted from the moment it is created in a tangible form–such as filming, writing or recording.
Copyright is assumed upon the creation of a work. However, filing with the Library of Congress is a useful thing to do before you get litigious.