[Swrbassamp]

Hi! I'm about to finish and publish  record in a short time and I was wondering is it legal to put a dedication to an artist on the record sleeve, that being a using of that person´s name, which could be considered a violation of some copyright laws. This is the case: I have a song, my own original, that I've written a few years ago, being inspired by a well known artist. I always mention it during my gigs and I wonder what would happen if I simply put that dedication on my records' sleeve. Is it possible to get some kind of legal permission for such a thing and would it be necessary at all?

[Boydie]

I am not a lawyer so don't take this as legal advice but...

I would say you would not need permission at all to mention an artist in your sleeve notes

The only potential "legal" issue would be if you said anything libellous or defamatory about the artist, which I assume you wouldn't in a dedication

It may be different if you were to use their "image" (eg a photo) or brand/logo

I would also be careful to ensure that you don't imply that the artist is "endorsing" you or your music

Other than that I think it is a great thing to do and you may even want to send a copy to the artist - you never know...

[Swrbassamp]

Thanks, I'd most definitely send even a physical copy/vinyl to the artist. I was just assuming it might get complicated if I had no previous communication and then putting her name on the sleeve, bit I found on her web site the e-mail of a person responsible for her press contacts, who should be contacted in case anyone wanted to do an interview, and I wrote her an e-mail explaining my situation, so now I'm waiting for her reply