Track Signed to a Label but Not Released? When and How You Can Get It Back

You sent the demo, the label said yes, you signed the agreement and sent the WAVs. That was a year ago. There is no release date, the label manager answers every second message, and the track you were proudest of is getting older on someone else's hard drive. Meanwhile a bigger label has heard it and asked whether it is still available.

This is one of the most common questions producers ask and one of the worst answered. Search it and you get forum threads, old news about legacy house catalogues and a lot of "ask a lawyer". This guide explains what actually decides whether you can take an unreleased track back, what Dutch and EU law add on top of your contract, and how to get the track back in a way that does not cost you the relationship.

Why do labels sign tracks and then not release them?

Most of the time it is not bad faith. Small electronic labels run on one or two people with day jobs. A release schedule slips, a distributor change takes months, the label waits for a remix that never arrives, or the owner simply signs more music than they can put out. Some labels also sign tracks to keep them away from rivals, or to hold a strong record for a better moment that never comes.

Knowing which of these you are dealing with matters, because it decides your tone. A disorganised label that likes your music will often agree to a new date or give the track back if you ask clearly. A label that is stockpiling music, or one that has stopped operating, needs a firmer approach.

• Overloaded schedule: the label still wants the track but cannot fit it in.
• Stalled label: no releases from anyone on the label for months, no news, slow replies.
• Strategic hold: the label wants to keep the track exclusive but has no plan for it.
• Folded label: the company or eenmanszaak behind it has stopped trading.

What does your contract say about a release date?

Start with the paperwork, because it usually settles the question before any law does. Find the signed agreement, not the email where the label said yes, and look for five things.

• Licence or assignment. With a licence you still own the recording and the label has permission to use it. With an assignment the label owns it. Getting a licensed track back is far easier.
• Term. Many small label deals license a track for a fixed number of years, with rights going back to you at the end. Some never end, or run until the label stops trading.
• Release commitment. Look for wording such as "the label will release the track within" a set number of months. If it is there and the date has passed, you are in a strong position.
• Reversion or termination clause. Some contracts say rights return if the track is not released by a date, or if the label breaches the agreement and does not fix it after notice.
• Exclusivity. Check whether you are barred from releasing the track yourself or elsewhere while the deal runs, and whether that bar covers edits, remixes and radio rips.

If the contract has a release commitment or a reversion clause, your route is simple: follow it to the letter, especially any notice requirement. If there is no written contract at all, only an email or a chat message, the position is murky, which can work for you or against you, so get advice before you release the track elsewhere.

Can Dutch or EU law help you get an unreleased track back?

Yes, and this is the part most guides skip. The EU copyright directive of 2019, known as the DSM Directive, requires every member state to give authors and performers a right to revoke an exclusive licence or transfer when the work is not being exploited. The other party must first be notified and given a reasonable deadline to start using it.

The Netherlands already had a version of this rule. Since 1 July 2015 the Dutch Copyright Act has let a maker end the agreement if the label or publisher does not exploit the work sufficiently within a reasonable period after signing, or stops exploiting it after an initial release. Before ending it, the maker has to give the label a reasonable period in writing to put things right, unless exploitation has become permanently impossible. Dutch neighbouring rights law applies the same protection to performers.

Two details make the Dutch rule stronger than people expect:

• A maker cannot waive these protections, so a clause saying you give up the right to end the deal for non-release does not hold.
• They apply whatever law the contract names, if Dutch law would apply without that choice or if the exploitation mostly takes place in the Netherlands.

There are limits. The right falls away if the lack of release is mainly your fault, for example because you never delivered the final master or the artwork you promised, or if the label has a weighty interest in keeping the deal that outweighs yours. The rules protect authors and performers. If you also transferred your rights as the owner of the master, which some labels ask for, the picture is less clear-cut and worth checking with a music lawyer.

Plenty of techno labels are German. German copyright law has its own version: you cannot use it until two years after you granted the rights or delivered the track, you must set a reasonable final deadline and announce the recall, and a contract can only cut it down through a collective agreement. UK labels sit outside the EU directive, so with a British label the contract is almost the whole story.

How do you ask a label to release or return a track without burning the bridge?

The legal route exists, but you rarely need to use it. The aim is to get either a real release date or your track back, in writing, without a fight. Work through it in steps.

• Step one, the friendly check-in. Ask for a status update and a release date. Keep it short and assume good intent.
• Step two, the clear question. If the answer is vague, ask directly: do you still plan to release this, and when? Mention that you have interest from elsewhere only if it is true.
• Step three, the proposal. Offer two options: a confirmed release date within a set number of months, or a written release of the track back to you.
• Step four, the formal notice. If nothing moves, send a letter by email and registered post. Name the agreement and the track, say it has not been released, and give the label a reasonable deadline to release it. Say that you will end the agreement for that track if it does not.
• Step five, the termination. If the deadline passes, confirm in writing that the agreement has ended for that track and ask the label to remove it from its systems and its distributor.

What counts as reasonable depends on the situation. BumaStemra's own procedure for ending publishing deals on these grounds notes that in practice the period is often three months. That gives you a useful reference point, but it is not a fixed rule for master licences.

Keep every message. If you ever need to show that you gave the label a fair chance, a tidy email trail is worth more than any argument.

What if the label has gone quiet or folded?

Silence is frustrating, but it is not the end. Check the KVK register to see whether the business behind the label still exists, and look at the label's Beatport, Bandcamp and distributor pages for recent releases. A label with no activity for a long time and no answers is close to a textbook case of a work not being exploited.

If the label has stopped trading, find out who now holds its rights. A bankrupt company's assets, including signed music, can be handled by a curator, the Dutch insolvency administrator, and that is who you write to. If the label owner simply walked away, send your formal notice to the last known address and email anyway, so you have a record.

• Do not upload the track yourself while the deal may still be live. A duplicate on a store can trigger takedowns, ownership claims and Content ID disputes.
• Check whether the label ever registered the track with Sena or gave it an ISRC. If it did, you will need a new ISRC for your own release and the old registration corrected.
• If you are a BumaStemra member, check that the label did not add a publisher to your work registration without your agreement.

What should your next label contract say about release dates?

The cheapest fix is the one you sign at the start. Most small electronic labels will accept fair terms if you ask before signing, because it costs them nothing if they release on time.

• A release commitment: the label releases the track within a fixed number of months of receiving the final master.
• Automatic reversion: if it does not, all rights in that track go back to you without any further steps.
• A fixed licence term with a clear end date, rather than a deal that runs for ever.
• A clause covering what happens if the label stops trading or changes owner.
• Delivery obligations on your side written down too, so nobody can blame a missing file for a missed date.

If a label refuses any release commitment at all, treat that as information. A label that wants your music but will not say when it will come out is asking you to carry all the risk.

What to do this week

If you have a track sitting at a label, you can move it forward in a few hours.

• Find the signed agreement and note the type of deal, the term, any release commitment and any reversion clause.
• Check the label's recent release activity and its KVK registration.
• Send a short, friendly message asking for a release date by a specific day.
• If the reply is vague or never comes, draft the formal notice with a reasonable deadline and keep it ready to send.
• Do not release the track anywhere else until you have the rights back in writing.
• Add a release commitment and reversion clause to the template you use for every future signing.

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