The partnership is usually required to register the partnership name and existence with the proper governmental offices in the county where the band primarily conducts its business. Other business license and tax issues vary depending upon local laws. A federal tax identification number is typically required in order to establish a bank account for the partnership. The partnership can be formed for any legal purpose and it is not necessary to state a specific purpose. However, for purposes of clarity it is a good idea to state that the partnership is formed, for example, for the purposes of exploiting recordings, performing personal appearances, exploiting and merchandising the names, likenesses and biographical materials of each member as members of the group, and the group name.
Publishing rights are typically the wildcard in the band partnership.
It depends who writes the songs. If all of the band members contribute to the songwriting in a more or less equal manner, it is possible to include publishing activities and revenues in the partnership entity. However, if one or two band members compose a disproportionate amount of the songs, it can get complicated. In that case, it is often agreed that the copyrighting and exploiting of original musical compositions composed by any partner individually or jointly with any other person shall not be within the scope of the partnership agreement, and a separate business entity may be established to administer the publishing. Each of the partners acknowledges that the group name is an asset of the partnership.