By Isabelle Speerin
From a Montréal college radio station to a 30-year career in copyright, David Murphy is on a mission to ensure Canadian songwriters get their dues, one royalty cheque at a time. And while the origins of his career go back to his college days, it’s his deep curiosity and aptitude for calculated risks that forms the backbone of his success today.
Murphy’s path to copyright administration started in the early-90s at his first full-time job with the Society for Reproduction Rights of Authors, Composers, and Publishers in Canada (SODRAC). SODRAC introduced him to the mechanics of rights collection and tracking royalties with foreign societies. “This is where I developed a love for copyright,” he said. “And why I still work in copyright today.”
Keen for record label experience, Murphy left SODRAC to head up the publishing arm of francophone record label Musi-Art. When financial troubles arose in the late 90s, he offered to take over the publishing business with a pay-later deal. He was only 25 at the time, newly married, and with a baby on the way. “It was a huge risk but one of the best decisions of my life,” he recalls. “My company has been going for 27 years now.”
In the early 2000s, Murphy spent five years as the Assistant General Manager of SOPROQ, a not-for-profit collective rights management organization for makers of sound recordings and music videos. He balanced both roles with the support of his wife and business partner, Mélanie. “I was 30 and full of energy,” he laughs. “But I knew it would be a great experience to work on the first distribution of neighbouring rights in Canada and the U.S.”
In 2005, Murphy and his family moved out of Montréal to the picturesque tourist town of Magog in Québec’s Eastern Townships and decided to focus on growing their company. ”I am very proud to have built a successful small business in the country with a great team who love to work together and have fun,” he said.
Today, Murphy’s company is focused solely on copyright administration for artists, songwriters, and composers. He and a team of seven full-time employees manage over 100 different catalogues, and the rights and royalties of francophone creators including Gilles Vigneault, Marie Mai, Vincent Vallières, Louis-Jean Cormier, Anik Jean, Jean-Michel Blais, Marjo, Marc Chabot, and Richard Séguin. He also works with music and audiovisual publishers, including Cirque du Soleil, Bravo, and Bonsound.
Transparency is a key pillar of Murphy’s business philosophy and an important consideration when he developed a proprietary copyright administration platform for his clients to track royalty payments in real-time. It also allows him to be agile in a fast-changing landscape. “It’s imperative our clients do business with partners that are transparent,” he noted. “And it’s even more necessary now with the development of generative AI.”
Last year, Murphy moved several of the copyrights he manages over to CMRRA, including his own company. “I’m very happy I came to CMRRA, and I plan to switch more companies in the very near future,” he said. “CMRRA has clearly invested in the technology and the team shares a common culture. The music publishing business is so complicated and it’s cool to do business with easygoing and responsive staff.”
Murphy has even more passion for copyright today than when he started. For over 15 years, he taught administration and publishing agreement classes and workshops at the Professional Music Publishers’ Association, known in Québec as APEM, which represents francophone music publishers across Canada. He also served as APEM’s President for four years and continues to actively support the association and encourages those seeking career opportunities to join and expand their networks.
His advice to individuals early in their careers is to work for a music publisher first before considering setting up a business. “Copyright administration is rooted in knowledge, and it’s important to gain hands-on experience with the challenges publishers face early on.” He also recommends studying the topics and preparing questions before attending any industry workshops and conferences. “You’ll learn by attending,” he said. “But you will learn much more if you come prepared.”
When asked to share a meaningful moment in his career to date, Murphy points to how he discovered neo-classical composer and pianist, Alexandra Stréliski. A true Québec and Canadian phenomenon, she was recently dubbed “one of the foremost new stars in modern classical” by Billboard magazine, and her meteoric rise is showing no signs of slowing down. “I was the first one who believed in her and signed a publishing agreement with her,” he noted with pride.
In 2015, Murphy received APEM’s Christopher-J.-Reed Award, which honors individuals who show a deep respect for creators and copyright, and whose contributions highlight the importance of music publishers. “I was humbled to be acknowledged by my colleagues for my contribution to the industry,” he said. Four years later he was recognized as SOCAN Publisher of the Year for his contribution to Canada’s music ecosystem. Murphy lives in the Eastern Townships, Québec with his wife. He is a proud father of two “sky is the limit” young adults. To learn more about his company, David Murphy et Cie, visit www.davidmurphy.ca.
