HITS and the TAXMAN

 

podcast

Scroll to bottom for tips on how to timestamp proof of costs for the IRS

sources

• Musicians Tax Guide: 11 Common Mistakes Musicians Make on their Taxes
• What is the HITS Act?
• Concert Tours and Taxes (Taylor’s Version)
• The HITS Act: A Financial Boost for Independent Artists
• Big News for Indies: HITS Act Signed Into Law
• US HR1945 HITS Act Help Independent Tracks Succeed Act
• HITS Act Helps Songwriters
• Making a Scene Presents – THE HITS ACT EXPLAINED FOR INDIE MUSICIANS (NO LAW DEGREE REQUIRED)
• HITS Act: New Tax Law Will Benefit Independent Musicians and Producers

• The HITS Act Explained: A Game-Changer for Independent Music Creators

• H.R.1259 - HITS Act
• HITS ACT BECOMES LAW
• The HITS Act Is Reintroduced in Congress: A Vital Step Forward For Music Creators
• HITS Act Tax Breaks For Recording Music Finally Law With ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ Passage

Practical timestamp methods that hold up:

Use multiple overlapping sources so no single timestamp has to “carry” the proof:

• Cloud documents with version history

• Keep your production log in Google Sheets, Excel Online, Notion, or similar, where edits are automatically time‑stamped and versioned.

• Do not wipe and recreate; create new tabs or versions so the history remains intact.

• Bank / payment records

• Pay studios, producers, and session players through traceable channels (bank transfers, PayPal, Wise, etc.).

• The transaction date/time serves as a third‑party timestamp that can corroborate your log entry.

• Invoices and receipts

• Ask studios and contractors to date their invoices and include the service dates (“Session: 2025‑11‑03”).

• Save PDFs immediately and do not alter them; store them in dated folders (e.g.,  2025/11/ProjectName ).

• Calendars and email

• Put sessions in Google/Outlook calendars, then keep the calendar as‑is; the calendar entry creation/modification history is additional evidence.

• Confirm sessions by email or messaging where possible; those messages will carry server timestamps.

File metadata

• DAW sessions, stems, and bounced refs naturally carry “created” and “modified” timestamps.

• Avoid batch‑copying everything to a new drive in ways that reset those dates; use backups that preserve metadata.

Inside the production log itself:

• Use ISO‑style dates ( YYYY‑MM‑DD ) for each entry.

• For time, either record a start/end window ( 14:00–18:00 ) or the time the session began, being consistent across the log.

• Add a column that links each entry to specific external evidence:

• Inv #2025‑11‑03‑StudioA ,  PayPal TXN ID ,  Email “Session Confirmed 11/3” , etc.

• If you correct an entry, do not delete the original; add a new line marked as a correction with its own date of entry.