Music licensing and sync licensing have been around for a long time now, but more recently these terms have been coming into prominence thanks largely to the internet and many more people having the software, equipment and ability to make their own films and videos. It’s no longer a case of only the big Hollywood studios having the budget to create a film or video. These days just about everyone has access to the tools and it can all be done a lot cheaper than in days gone by. So, what are the scenarios or situations when it will be necessary to purchase a music sync license?

Let’s list a few”

• Music for a film or trailer
• Background or foreground music for videos (business or personal)
• Wedding videos
• Online and TV advertising and commercials
• Radio advertising
• Corporate and business presentations
• Video and computer games and trailers
• Network TV and television shows
• Apps

This is not a comprehensive list. There will be other occasions where a music license is required to legally be able to use a song or piece of music within a project.

What Does a Music Sync License Allow You to Do?

It gives you the legal right to be able to use an artist’s music in your project – movie, game, video – without any legal repercussions or any chance of getting sued. When you purchase a sync license for music all the rights have been cleared with the rights holders and, once you pay the appropriate fee, the music will be released to you (along with a license) to be able to legally use it for the specified purpose.

No one can legally hijack a music track from the internet or a CD or whatever and legally use it for any other purpose than personal listening pleasure. When you purchase music from iTunes or the CD store, that’s all you’re buying the rights to – being able to freely listen to the music. You never technically own the music, the creator or rights holder does. This only changes if someone sells the copyright to a song or music track to you, where you then become the rightful owner; in which case you can do whatever you want with it then. But that’s costly and usually not necessary to try and obtain the copyright to someone’s music, just to use it in a project.

That’s Why Music Sync Licensing Exists

So that music can be used for projects without the need for a copyright buyout, sync licensing allows this to take place, enabling music to be used while the creators and rights holders still receive financial compensation.

Some music licenses can be quite cheap. It really depends on the artist – how well known they are – and where you purchase the license. Prices will often vary according to the intended use of the music. For example, the price for a sync license for a personal video will be considerably lower than that for a license to feature music in a film or advertising.

Where to Buy a Music Sync License

These days the process can be quite easy and seamless. Unless you are trying to land a sync license from a famous artist.

Many artists, composers and producers specifically create instrumental music tracks for the music licensing market. I do this myself, creating cinematic production music as well as dance tracks and EDMs.

The web is full of sites that specialise in music licensing. Some are better than others and some have much more accurate search functionality so you don’t spend days and days, wasting precious time looking for the kind of music you want.

I like Songtradr, a newish music licensing company. They have one of the most accurate search functions of all the sites, and licenses are tiered in pricing depending on the intended use. Licenses can start as low as $25 or so for personal videos. Songtradr is definitely worth checking out and their current catalogue has hundreds of thousands of tracks suitable for any purpose or project.

Just click on the logo below and be taken to their website to check it out. It’s free to look around and have a listen to some tunes.