Music is more than a commercial asset, it reflects the creator's identity - Moral Rights.

Disclaimer: This Article is for general informational purposes only and does not replace legal advice for specific situations.

TL; DR

Music is an expression of the creator's personality and soul, but what happens when a creator signs away the copyright to their life's work? Although discussions of copyright often emphasize economic rights, moral rights address a core principle of authorship: the enduring connection between creator and creation. The concept of "moral rights" in intellectual property law, particularly in relation to songs, provides a vital layer of protection for creators by safeguarding interests that extend beyond financial considerations.

What is Moral Rights in Music?

Rather than focusing on economic exploitation, moral rights protect the personal and reputational bond between artists and their works. In many jurisdictions, moral rights last at least as long as the economic copyright term, and in some countries certain moral rights may be perpetual and cannot be transferred, sold, or waived, even if a company "buys out" your song entirely, they generally cannot strip your name from the credits or mutilate the work without your permission, depending on local laws. However, depending on whether you are operating under international frameworks or the U.S. legal system, the very existence of these rights can vanish behind a complex maze of contracts and corporate ownership.

Why must we thoroughly understand Moral Rights?

When licensing international catalogs in the music industry, we must respect strict, non-transferable moral rights (like in Vietnam or Europe) to avoid lawsuits over unauthorized remixes or uncredited uses. Conversely, when dealing with U.S. repertoire, it is important to understand that U.S. copyright law does not explicitly recognize broad moral rights for musical compositions or songwriters. Recognizing this disparity allows us to negotiate smarter contracts, protect composers and artists' reputations, and navigate the severe limitations of U.S. law regarding artistic integrity.

The Moral Rights of authors

Under the Berne Convention [1], to which 173 countries are signatories, authors are guaranteed minimum moral rights standards independent of their economic rights:

The right of attribution:

The right to claim authorship of a work and ensure proper credit is given across every medium, regardless of who holds the economic copyright.

The right of integrity:

The right to object to any distortion, mutilation, or derogatory action in relation to the work that prejudices the author's honor or reputation.

In jurisdictions like France, Germany, and Vietnam, these rights are deeply embedded in the law to protect the "creative soul". Even if a company "buys out" a song entirely, the core moral rights of attribution and integrity cannot be assigned. Furthermore, in many countries, these rights are perpetual; even after a song enters the Public Domain and is free for economic use, users must still respect the deceased author's moral rights.

See more about Vietnam's approach: "Quyền nhân thân trong môi trường âm nhạc của Tác giả và Người biểu diễn".

The United States's approach

The U.S. government insists it complies with the Berne Convention's moral rights requirements. To do so, it enacted the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990 (VARA) [2]. However, VARA strictly limits moral rights exclusively to visual arts (produced in 200 copies or fewer) and explicitly excludes Compositions.

This demonstrates that true moral rights do not exist for music in the U.S., so, authors must rely exclusively on Contract Law to protect their integrity and attribution. If an U.S. composer does not have the leverage to negotiate specific approval rights into their publishing deal, they have no legal remedy if their publisher authorizes a derogatory remix.

Furthermore, under U.S. law, if a song is created as a work for hire, the employer/commissioning party is legally considered the "author" from inception. This may strip the actual human creator of any underlying moral or economic protections. In contrast: when operating in countries like Vietnam, France, or Germany, "Work Made for Hire" does not extinguish the human creator's moral rights.

As a result, U.S. Copyright Law approaches musical compositions primarily through an economic rights framework rather than a personality-based model. By limiting statutory moral rights exclusively to certain works of visual art under VARA, this system favors corporate copyright owners, employers, and commercial realities over individual authors.