Think you can buy a CD and play it anywhere? Think again.
If you want to use music outside of your private living room or car, you are likely walking into a legal minefield. The industry has strict rules. Ignoring them isn’t just a slap on the wrist. Penalties can drain your budget.
This is not just a problem for big companies. This applies to you. your small business. Your high school cheerleading squad. your wedding video. There’s a line here, and here’s how you can cross it without getting sued.
Samples and New Releases
Let’s start with music production. You want to make a new track. You sample a few notes from existing hit songs. Maybe it’s just a drum loop. Maybe this is a vocal chop.
You still need a license.
Using someone else’s work even for a few seconds requires permission. Organizations like LicenseMusicNow.com handle these licenses. If you skip this step, you’re in trouble. If the track is played publicly, the fine is much higher than the licensing fee. Don’t play with intellectual property.
Background Music for Your Business
Playing music in the lobby, elevators and bathrooms? This is a public performance. You need a license from ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) or BMI (Broadcast Music Incorporated).
Alternatively, you can use a service like Muzak. They put it all together for you. It’s easier, but it costs money.
If you have a small restaurant, you have three options:
- **** Play the radio. in the sense that it forces customers to listen to ads. they don’t appreciate it.
- Play CD/tape. Requires full ASCAP license and BMI. You pay for the music and they write the report for you.
- **Use commercial services. ** For example Muzak. Again, convenience comes at a price.
Videos, Yearbooks, and Weddings
This is where people stumble. You are making a yearbook DVD. Or maybe a wedding video. You want background music.
You cannot legally rip songs from CDs. It doesn’t work.
You have to production music. This is music created specifically for licensing videos, commercials and presentations. Companies like Music Box offer complete songs in different styles. It’s the same model as buying sound effects files. You pay once. You get the right to use it.
The Cheerleading Trap
To understand how confusing this is, look at the high school cheerleading situation.
You buy a CD from Power Music for practice sessions. Fine. Now you want to perform at a basketball game. Schools can be completely exempt from ASCAP and BMI. Check it out.
But wait. A local TV station wants to broadcast the game. Now you have a retransmission problem. Broadcasting music owned by others without specific permission.
And if you video tape the performance to sell? This is also a retransmission problem.
Power Music actually has an FAQ that addresses this issue. They note that their writers own both the recordings and the compositions. This allows them to grant you a license to manufacture videos using their music. This is a rare convenience. Most artists don’t hold both rights so cleanly.
The only free zone
There is only one time you don’t pay to use music.
You sit at home. Or in the car. Listen to the radio with your family.
The radio station paid for you. They have blanket licenses from ASCAP and BMI. You can pay indirectly by listening to ads.
Every other use? You pay.
Music is licensed by streaming services such as Spotify and SiriusXM. The radio station licenses the music. If you want to use music in your video, you need to get the rights from the publisher (and often the record label).
The Cost of Doing Business
How much does it cost?
It varies greatly. One song by a great artist can span thousands of songs. An unknown independent artist license costs only $100.
Do you want to avoid payments completely? Use classical music (be careful with certain recordings), radio (as background music in public spaces where the station is licensed) or original music.
Otherwise, create a license budget. This is the cost of doing business in the creative world.
“Over the years, our writers and producers have created hundreds of songs that are available for video licensing. Because we own the recordings and productions, we can license you to create videos using the music in our catalog.”
— Power Music FAQ
The rules are complicated. The penalties are real. However, with the right license, you can use music without worry. Don’t think that by buying a CD you are buying the rights. This rarely happens.
