Before You Sign Anything: Guide for Indian Hip-Hop Artists

In Indian hip-hop, talent has never been the issue.
The issue is information — who has it, who shares it, and who benefits when you don’t.

A&R calls, manager messages, booking offers: these appear quietly, sometimes suddenly. And because most artists have built everything alone up to that point, the moment someone from “the industry” reaches out can feel life-changing.

There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be seen.
But the industry, as it exists today, runs on leverage, ownership, and narrative control — not emotion.

This guide is not anti-label, anti-manager, or anti-system.
It is simply a handbook to ensure the artist does not lose themselves in the process of rising.

Because the goal is not to avoid the industry, it is to enter it with clarity.

The Landscape Right Now

Indian hip-hop is still building its infrastructure.
Which means everything — labels, management, booking, media — is developing in real time.

• Labels are content platforms now, not just music companies.
• Managers are often learning on the job.
• Booking agents do not create demand, they capitalize on demand once it appears.
• The scene itself is spread across regional communities, online ecosystems, and festival circuits that don’t always overlap.

So the first truth is: No one is “the system.” Everyone is trying to look like the system.

This means everyone is improvising. And when everyone is improvising, the artist is usually the one betting the most.

Understanding incentives becomes survival.

What Each Player Actually Needs to Survive

These motivations are not wrong. They just need to be aligned with the artist’s identity and direction.

Because the artist’s incentive is simple:

To build a sustainable career without being reshaped into something they are not.

A Common Scenario

A breakout single catches momentum.
And suddenly a label reaches out, small advance, playlist placements, maybe a video budget.
It feels like the window might close if the artist waits.

The contract is signed quickly.

Two years later, the artist grows — their voice deepens, their direction sharpens.
But the early songs that no longer represent them cannot be edited, removed, or re-recorded.
Not out of malice, simply because ownership was never discussed.

This is how identity slips quietly. Not through pressure, but through not knowing.

The Contract Clauses That Shape Your Future

This is where most careers are protected, or lost.

1. Master Rights

Whoever owns the masters owns the song.

If the label owns the masters:

• They control usage.
• They earn from the track forever.
• The artist cannot re-release or remove it.

Healthiest strategy:

• Keep your masters wherever possible.
• If not: ensure a Reversion Clause (masters return after 5–10 years).

2. Publishing

Publishing = lyrics + composition.
This is where long-term money comes from (films, ads, OTT syncs).

Ideal: Artist retains 100% publishing.
If a split is required: 50/50 minimum, and registered with IPRS.

Mistakes here show up 10+ years later.

3. Royalties & Recoup

“15% royalties” means nothing without knowing what the label will recoup first.

Music videos, ads, studio bills, PR (even flights) can be deducted before royalties are paid.

Protection:

• Cap recoup.
• Demand quarterly cost reporting.
• Keep the Right to Audit clause.

This is not about distrust, but having a bit of transparency.

4. Creative Approval

This decides whether the artist remains themselves.

One line must be clearly written:

“The artist retains final approval over lyrics, composition, artwork, collaborators, and release timeline.”

If this cannot be agreed to, the conflict later will be far greater than the excitement now.

5. Exclusivity

Avoid:

“The artist may only release through the label for X years.”

Use:

Project-based exclusivity, covers specific bodies of work, not the artist’s entire output.

This keeps room for:

• EPs
• Collaborative tapes
• Regional explorations
• Lo-fi experiments

Growth needs space, and if there is none you would start feeling claustrophobic.