How Songs Make Money is a podcast series about music rights and the income streams associated with songwriting and composition, hosted by Dr Ellis Jones, Lecturer in Music and Management at the University of Leeds.

This week's episode is produced by Yuejing Li, a member of the 2024/25 cohort on our Music Management MA course. Yuejing uses Beethoven as a starting point for exploring the world of classical music copyright, outlining the difference between recording and publishing copyright, and then considering the consequences of this distinction for classical music. This episode also contains excerpts of Yuejing’s interview with independent musician Xin Jia, who reflects on the challenges of utilising classical music recordings in his production of new songs. This interview was recorded in May 2025.

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All views expressed on this podcast are those of the speakers, and do not necessarily represent the views of the University of Leeds, the School of Music, or any other organisation. Nothing in this podcast should be interpreted as business or legal advice.

How Songs Make Money is created and assembled by Ellis Jones, with contributions from students on the University of Leeds, Music Management MA course. This series is edited by Nikolai Klimanski. Our theme music is also written and produced by Nik Klimanski, and is included with permission. This series of How Songs Make Money is supported by ‘Research Boost’ funding from the Leeds Arts and Humanities Research Institute, and enabled by Digital Education Service’s Podcasting Pilot. Special thanks to Sam Wyman for their support, as well as to Angela Hulme, Mia Windsor, Liev Cherry, and Michelle Schneider.