How to make money with stock music libraries

M ost people know you can earn money from posting videos and images on the likes of YouTube and Instagram. They specialise in creating music that can be licensed for use in everything from YouTube videos, computer games and movie trailers to TV adverts, corporate promotional videos and PowerPoint slideshows. Stock music can pop up everywhere — you might hear it playing when you are in a shop or waiting to be put through on the phone, or listening to your favourite podcast or meditation CD. It might be a short clip or a long piece, or take the form of a simple keyboard motif, an epic orchestral track or anything in. Businesses and individuals looking for the right piece of music to underscore a particular shot or moment will often approach a music library — and this is where people such as Elliot Middleton come in. Middleton is one of a number of UK contributors signed up to the US company Shutterstockwhich specialises in providing licensed imagery and music to businesses, and its Canada-based music library arm PremiumBeat. He has been producing and recording bands and creating his own music for the past decade, but early last year started taking a closer interest in the world of music licensing. So how do people make money — and how much can you earn? There are lots of music libraries out there — Pond5The Music CaseProductiontrax and Audio Network are just a few of the bigger names — many of which say they are looking for composers. How much you get will vary. How it typically works is that the company will commission a contributor to compose a track, based on the types of music that its clients — which range from creative agencies to individual YouTubers — are looking. It has popped up in real estate videos, wedding videos. He works in a number of genres, including electronic, folk, rock and hip-hop, and has built his own studio in west London. Occasionally, however, they will stumble upon something they wrote.

Create Multiple Cutdowns:

Home News Features News. Advertisements, TV shows, podcasts, shops, apps, YouTube videos, customer service phone calls on hold — whatever you are listening to, it will likely have music in it. The reason this music is untraceable, and the reason this music finds its way to wherever it is you heard it, is usually that it was placed in a stock music library. Individuals and businesses of all stripes turn to stock music libraries to score their projects, for convenience and to save money. For the thousands of musicians that create it, this anonymous background music is a reliable income stream, sometimes even enough to make a full time job. Should the thousands, if not millions, of struggling musicians and producers around the world abandon the more conventional pathways to success in the music industry gigs, records deals, etc and try to tap the apparent goldmine that is the stock music library? There are several popular stock music libraries on the internet, and even more unpopular ones. These libraries allow users to download music to use, royalty-free, in their creations — be they films, TV shows, adverts or podcasts. Getting permission to use popular music can be a drawn-out process and it often ends in failure. All of the music on stock music libraries is royalty-free, and the services offer simple, straightforward licensing arrangements which minimise the time spent securing permission, and the likelihood of an artist complaining about the use of their work, which sometimes happens when brands use music without the correct permissions. Unlike the Beastie Boys, the musicians who contribute to stock music libraries explicitly do want their music to be used for advertisements and a variety of other purposes. So how do these stock music libraries work for the musicians on the other side of the process, and is it an area worth exploring for someone who wants to make money from music without hitting the grueling gig circuit and releasing music commercially? For those putting music onto the services, the process can simple enough. Each stock music library has a slightly different submissions process but the gist of it is that you simply send your songs to the library, sometimes customising your permissions and adding relevant tags, then you wait for it to become available on the library and for people to start using it. Once a musician builds up a reputation they might get commissions from stock music libraries to make certain kinds of songs for specific clients who have requested them. One of his top tips for doing just that is to get music onto podcasts. This can actually make good business sense; if your song is used as the theme for a hit podcast and you also happen to put it on iTunes, you could be looking at some serious income from fans of that podcast tracking your song down online and downloading it for themselves. Perhaps this is the answer to our question. Music libraries can be a fantastic way for musicians to make money from their passion, but there is nothing stopping them from taking the more conventional route to music industry success at the same time. In some cases, it might be a big help to cover all the bases. It has been a busy here at MN2S. Following the successful opening of our new Miami office this summer, we launched…. Latin genres like reggaeton, cumbia, bachata, and merengue have fused with North American trap and urban music to dominate the global pop…. About News Contact. Home News Features News Are stock music libraries the best way to make a living from music? Making money from music is a lifelong dream for many. Do stock music libraries offer an easier way to do it?

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Imagine if you could get your music heard by tons of people, placed in TV shows, and paid thousands of dollars, all without having to do any promotion or build a fanbase! These are just some of the many benefits of stock music licensing. So sit back, relax, and let me show you how you can get started licensing your music! In short, stock music licensing involves selling the right to use pre-recorded songs to customers through online marketplaces. The website takes care of all of the hassle — they market the songs, process the payments, and deliver the downloads — for a fee.

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Are you a musician? A composer? Working with a Royalty Free stock music library may be the best, most efficient way of making money as a musician, creating and selling stock music. Composing for production music libraries requires a fairly specific way of working in order to stand out. Take a bit of time to learn what producers and content creators are looking for so you can deliver great results every time, and grow your business as a composer. Probably the most important lesson here is that when writing music for a stock library, you should plan for the edit. Essentially, no editor is going to be able to just drop your track directly onto their project without changing it. They will want to extend sections, reduce sections, make sure the logo comes in at the right moment, and ensure the crescendo or key change hits the video at a relevant time. Make it easy for them to do this by including easily repeatable phrases that can be removed or looped without issue in the edit. Make more than one version of your track. To maximize your chances of having your music licensed, create several different mixes of the same track. For example, you would create a full version, a second version, a second version, a five-second sting, and so on. Many producers searching through music libraries will be looking for background music for a video project which will have dialogue in it. Although vocals have a place in some projects, the majority of creatives will be looking for a track without vocals. Give them what they want by creating versions with different combinations of instruments.

Composing for the Edit:

Are you a musician? A composer? Working with a Royalty Free stock music library may be the best, most efficient way of making money as a musician, creating and selling stock music. Composing for production music libraries requires a fairly specific way of working in order to stand.

Take a bit of time to learn what producers and content creators are looking for so witj can deliver great results every time, and grow your business as a composer. Probably the most important lesson how to make money with stock music libraries is that when writing music for a stock library, you should plan for the edit. Essentially, no editor is going to be able to ,ibraries drop your track directly onto their project without changing it.

They will want to extend sections, reduce sections, make sure the logo comes in at the right moment, and ensure the crescendo or key change hits the video at a relevant time. Make it easy for them to do this by including easily repeatable phrases that can be removed or looped without issue in the edit.

Make more than one version of your track. To maximize your chances of having your music licensed, create several different mixes of the same track. For example, you would create a full version, a second version, a second version, a five-second sting, and so on. Many producers searching through music libraries will be looking for background music for a video project which will have dialogue in it.

Although vocals have a place in some projects, the majority of creatives will be looking for a track without vocals. Give them what they want by creating versions with different combinations of instruments.

If your track librarise vocals, create a mix without them. If your wtock has a prominent high hat or some other instrument that stands out, create versions without them to give editors plenty of options and increase your chances of getting licensed. Most music libraries will stipulate exactly what kind of file types they need you to upload but export a few versions anyway to be sure.

Ultimately, competition librarifs music libraries can be very high. That includes labeling your music correctly when you upload it, as well as naming it something memorable and descriptive. Ensure you are using the correct tags and the appropriate meta-data in order to relate to a theme, emotion, instruments, BPM, genre, and all the other aspects that content creators will be livraries by in their searches.

The main takeaway here is to help content creators. As a composer, it can be easy to fall into the trap of creating music that you like and leaving it at.

Consider what is marketable in the music library and stock music space. Create different versions of the same track, make it loopable, compose music with the edit in mind, and you will find your tracks are licensed by producers much more often than if you were to just post up your masterpiece and call it a day. The RaveRunner by GenZ is a revolutionary, new hydration pack with all the essential features needed by witn modern raver and festivalgoer.

One tip overlooked by some producers is the frequent use of gain staging in their tracks. What is gain staging and how can it effect the outcome of your track? Music Releases. Composing for the Edit: Probably the most important lesson here is that when writing music for a stock library, you should plan for the edit. Create Multiple Cutdowns: Make more than one version of your track.

Avoid Conflict of Vocals: Many producers searching through music libraries will be looking for background music for a video project which will have dialogue in it.

Provide Multiple File Types: Most music libraries will stipulate exactly what kind of file types they need you to upload but export a few versions anyway to be sure. Optimize Your Content: Ultimately, competition in music libraries can be very high.

Putting you in the picture: yes, you can earn a living on Instagram

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