# What's the legal status of websites dedicated to song lyrics? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 9, 2014, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-status-of-websites-dedicated-to-song-lyrics/690399 "2014-06-09T11:19:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-status-of-websites-dedicated-to-song-lyrics/690399/1 "2014-06-09T11:19:25Z")
This is sort of in reference to the long-running [Conversation in Song Lyrics](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=691117) thread in TGR, which was recently shut down. While there’s no argument here that song lyrics are copyrighted material, there are hundreds of websites out there which are solely dedicated to listing complete lyrics of songs. A Google search for any song you can think of will turn up dozens of examples, even more depending on how popular the song is. I’ve been using several of those sites as reference for years, and never once have I noticed any of them being served with legal notice from any copyright holder, even from highly litigious artists such as The Beatles or Prince. So I’m wondering, is there some legal loophole, such as “Fair Use”, that allows these websites to exist? ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-status-of-websites-dedicated-to-song-lyrics/690399/2 "2014-06-09T13:39:28Z")
Here’s [a story from last year](http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/legal-and-management/5785701/nmpa-targets-unlicensed-lyric-sites-rap-genius-among) that has the NMPA going after such. If the sites aren’t paying a license to do so, they’re on the list, especially if they’re commercial ventures. There’s some wiggle room in the story for fans posting lyrics and such, but sites that publish lyrics wholesale without any form of license are going to be targetted over the long haul. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-status-of-websites-dedicated-to-song-lyrics/690399/3 "2014-06-09T13:52:57Z")
Essentially, there is no fair use for song lyrics. Any recognizable snippet is a potential copyright violation. It depends on how strongly the copyright holder wants to pursue a lyric site. The Beatles may be litigious, but, remember, they put all the lyrics to **Sgt. Pepper** on the album sleeve. I doubt they’re bothered by having lyrics on the Internet. Also, the sites means that bands play their songs, which means more royalties for them (any public venue pays ASCAP fees to the songwriters). You are not required to sue copyright violators to keep your copyright, so it’s smart business to leave the sites alone. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-status-of-websites-dedicated-to-song-lyrics/690399/4 "2014-06-09T19:04:41Z")
> [@Jonathan\_Chance](#): > > Here’s [a story from last year](http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/legal-and-management/5785701/nmpa-targets-unlicensed-lyric-sites-rap-genius-among) that has the NMPA going after such. Interesting how my two favorite lyrics sites aren’t even on that list, although one is technically a fansite. But many of the lyrics sites which _are_ listed are still in business and haven’t taken down anything, as far as I know. Hmm. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-status-of-websites-dedicated-to-song-lyrics/690399/5 "2014-06-09T19:56:26Z")
All steps in the chain. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2014, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-status-of-websites-dedicated-to-song-lyrics/690399/6 "2014-06-10T00:08:52Z")
There are a number of lyrics sites that are legal because they pay license fees. Bobby Owsinski mentioned several of them in [this blog post](http://music3point0.blogspot.com/2012/10/lyric-sites-now-target-for-music.html) a couple of years ago.