There's a simple negotiating trick that can save you from devaluing your work as a freelance music producer. Even if you never see a penny in royalties...Producers working with indie artists sometimes get confused about whether or not they should ask for royalties. I've seen a few different approaches... Some producers opt to only do "work for hire" when working with independent artists. They just get a fee for their work and no royalties on the back-end. The reasoning is that they feel it...