Trying to form a music duo

[james_laverc]

I've been playing in rock bands since my early teens, but eventually gave up because of how difficult it is to keep a band together nowadays, especially when multiple people are involved and the focus is on original material.

I then moved on and started composing on my own using DAWs, synthesizers, and the like. I've always been passionate about new wave, but I never really had the opportunity to create that kind of music in a band setting. Now I finally do.

I can write full songs, but the problem is that I'm not really a singer, so I've been thinking about how to solve that. One idea was to process my voice with AI, but before going down that road, I'd like to keep things as authentic as possible. So I started considering finding a vocalist online.

That brings me to my question: How practical and viable is this nowadays? Has anyone here successfully started a musical project with someone they met online who lived far away, maybe even in another country?

[Benedict]

Technically, it is stupid easy - so long as both of you behave professionally, which means all the usual stuff about who owns what, along with good etiquette around sending files etc. (the latter is a real problem - odd but true)

In practice, it is often not so easy as people tend to say they will do stuff then not do it, or my least fave collab where the person knew our militant anti-AI stance then insisted he was going to use AI in the song being redone (and impossible to sing, seeing as he used AI Disney Princess Mode to 'sing' it as the guide). At the end, he didn't even share that we did the thing. A-hole who will live a life as invisible.

This was the last collab I was in, and as you can see, it broke too: https://benedictroffmarsh.com/2026/02/2 ... tic-voice/
If I hadn't pushed, it would have been shelved - all that time and effort wasted. Thankfully I was able to negotiate finishing and removing the name - a result of a good relationship, but it could have broken that totally. This will not always happen; work is commonly wasted in failed collabs (a thing never on the posters for collabbing).

The other thing to be aware of is that many want the glory but will not do the work, so at the end you can find anything from: a) not even posting on their socials, b) personal abuse, out to z) them removing your name so it looks like they did it all. Yup, had em all: Crushing.

I am not saying not to do it as some do well that way, but really take care with who you take on board, as vague promises and claims will not meet reality. My thing is that before doing anything, I check their track record. If they have nothing, show nothing (or worse AI), I will move along as they are not ready for the bigs, let alone a collab.

My advice: As soon as you decide to give it a go, SHOW YOUR WARES.
Requests to collab or anything like that without proof of what the person has done so far is a sure-fire way to immediately chase away all the best people because you offered nothing. Even if your history was in Death Metal supporting Dave Mustaine, and now wanting to do Spice Girls covers with a VL-Tone down the boozer, show what you have achieved. Prove that you are a safe person to work with.

[james_laverc]

Technically, it is stupid easy - so long as both of you behave professionally, which means all the usual stuff about who owns what, along with good etiquette around sending files etc. (the latter is a real problem - odd but true)

In practice, it is often not so easy as people tend to say they will do stuff then not do it, or my least fave collab where the person knew our militant anti-AI stance then insisted he was going to use AI in the song being redone (and impossible to sing, seeing as he used AI Disney Princess Mode to 'sing' it as the guide). At the end, he didn't even share that we did the thing. A-hole who will live a life as invisible.

This was the last collab I was in, and as you can see, it broke too: https://benedictroffmarsh.com/2026/02/2 ... tic-voice/
If I hadn't pushed, it would have been shelved - all that time and effort wasted. Thankfully I was able to negotiate finishing and removing the name - a result of a good relationship, but it could have broken that totally. This will not always happen; work is commonly wasted in failed collabs (a thing never on the posters for collabbing).

The other thing to be aware of is that many want the glory but will not do the work, so at the end you can find anything from: a) not even posting on their socials, b) personal abuse, out to z) them removing your name so it looks like they did it all. Yup, had em all: Crushing.

I am not saying not to do it as some do well that way, but really take care with who you take on board, as vague promises and claims will not meet reality. My thing is that before doing anything, I check their track record. If they have nothing, show nothing (or worse AI), I will move along as they are not ready for the bigs, let alone a collab.

My advice: As soon as you decide to give it a go, SHOW YOUR WARES.
Requests to collab or anything like that without proof of what the person has done so far is a sure-fire way to immediately chase away all the best people because you offered nothing. Even if your history was in Death Metal supporting Dave Mustaine, and now wanting to do Spice Girls covers with a VL-Tone down the boozer, show what you have achieved. Prove that you are a safe person to work with.

Thanks for the detailed response. I think your point about checking someone's track record is particularly important. Finding someone seems relatively easy; finding someone reliable, willing to put in the work and actually finish things, is probably the real challenge.

The ownership issue is also something I've been thinking about. How have you handled the rights to your work when collaborating online, by the way? In my case, I have the original DAW project files and recordings, and I might upload some songs (in instrumental form) to YouTube. Would that generally be enough to establish that I created the material first if a dispute ever arose?

And yes, I already have some finished material available at this point.

[ksandvik]

Yep, disputes royalties and who earns what is a good way to split a group. Best is to make a binding contract, and I recommend 50/50 on anything. Some of the bigger bands have this arrangement. And frankly speaking, the early day earnings are a pittance, not worth fighting about.

[Benedict]

I generally work on a combo of Trust and the classic Nashville approach: 50:50 being the core starting point.

People get all greebly about posting things to themselves and all that silliness about Copyright, but seeing you have DAW files, comms on Messenger (which are archived close to forever), and of course your posts on social media etc, timelines are hard to deny.

However, seeing most projects will never turn more than $5, visible Credit is more important than anything, so I make sure that I show who did what and expect the same in return. Mostly, that is a lot of things when I work on a project, but I have the discussion and say what I want/expect, which depends on my input. Being a Mix Engineer & Record Producer, those are mostly what I want visible, but Music, Lyrics, and Vocals are not uncommon extras. Cover Art and Video can be me too. Completely consistent with the back of any commercial record. Eg (give or take a fact):

All songs written by Gary & Ade, except "Peace Sells" by Dave Mustaine
Gary Numan: Vocals, Guitars, Synths
Ade Fenton: Synths, Programming, Mixing, Backing Vocals
Bob Ludwig: Mastering

The other thing that should never be ignored is linking. I expect links back to my Official Site on the Bandcamp page, and at least links to the project page on socials esp on YouTube videos, in the Info box. (Often I have that page on my site, which is better than nothing). Not supporting your Backline (see my 4-Pillars of Success) is just death for the future of collabs and even solo success.



Oh and be aware that in the real music world, there is a real difference between a Composer and a Producer, so I do not appreciate when someone who moused a few 909 samples demands Production credits when they deserve Composer (at best). The Producer's job is handling all the details: steering the project, making all the decisions that need to be made yet either have not been made or have been made unwisely (like distorting those 909s past Skinny Puppy territory in a Celine cover - which probably was not wise either). It is better to be credited credibly than for ego alone. Real people know the difference; when they see wacky credits, they swerve. If you are 'just the singer' in Your project, credits should still read (again with loose facts):

Sylvester: Vocals
Patrick Cowley: Music, Synths
Marty Blecman: Producer, Synths, Vocals
Song by Blecman & Cowley

Sylvester is the star of this show and everyone knows this as his name & pic is on the front of the record. If the back has him being everything, it sends a very poor message. If not convinced, check the back of Michael Jackson, Sting, Prince records. This is the standard for professionals (who want to make another record with good people).