📉 Why is my balance negative?

Don't worry! Seeing a negative balance on your statement is a very common occurrence in the music industry. Here are the most likely reasons why your account might show a negative figure.

🔄 Unrecouped Balances

The most common reason for a negative balance is that your contract is currently "unrecouped." * What it means: Your label is still recovering their initial investment in your work. This includes things like your initial signing advance or specific costs associated with your contract (e.g., recording, marketing, or distribution). You can scroll down in your statement to the Costs section to view more details on these.

• Track your progress: You can click into your statement to see a percentage bar. This shows exactly how close you are to being 100% recouped. Once you hit that mark, your balance will turn positive!

⚖️ Statement Adjustments

Another possibility is that an adjustment was made based on a previous period. This usually happens in two scenarios:

• Previous Overpayment: A miscalculation in a prior royalty run was identified and corrected.
• Delayed Costs: A recoupable cost (like a travel expense or a late invoice) wasn't included in an earlier statement and has been applied now. You can scroll down in your statement to the Other Transactions section to see more information on these.

🧾 Summary Statements

If you have more than one contract with your label (for example, one per album or project), your label may group them under a summary contract. When that happens, you'll see a statement for each individual contract plus a Summary statement that combines them.

• The Summary statement is the one that shows what you're owed. Each individual statement's closing balance is transferred into the Summary, so an individual statement can close at $0 even while the Summary is still negative.
• Recoupment happens across all your contracts together. Earnings from one project can go toward recouping advances or costs on another. So even if a single song or project looks fully recouped on its own, the Summary balance may still be negative because of what's owed on your other contracts.
• You're not starting over. Moving to a summary contract doesn't restart your recoupment — the Summary's opening balance carries over what was already owed. If the numbers don't match what you expected from your earlier statements, ask your label to walk you through how the balance was carried into the Summary.