Prepare a lyric sheet or sheet music that is performance ready (i.e., musicians and singers can perform your song by looking at your sheet music alone).
Review the ASCAP website. Major benefits of membership include group insurance plans for life, medical and dental coverage. You can also find out ASCAP’s royalty rates that it pays to its members. Royalties are computed using a formula unique to each performance category; type of music (e.g., classical), length and type of performance (e.g., television, radio, or live) and broadcast market size are some of the factors that determine the royalty amount.
Obtain an ASCAP membership application from ASCAP headquarters or by downloading the form online. You need to provide basic personal information, Social Security number, names of your songs that have been recorded and commercially released, artists who have performed your song, your membership history and contact information for any publishers of your song.
Complete the ASCAP membership application online or by submitting a hard copy to ASCAP’s membership department. Include a completed W-9 IRS form and payment of ASCAP’s small one-time membership fee.
Complete an ASCAP clearance form for each composition. Clearance forms solicit information about each song (including musical genre, length of the song, names and contact information for the song’s music publisher(s), pseudonyms (if any) and description of any past live or broadcast performances). After opening your online ASCAP account, you will be able to start receiving royalties.