THANK YOU for saying that maybe we should be moving away from using trending audios. I am so tired of seeing/hearing social media “gurus” emphasise using trending audios to get results.
definitely - just had this discussion today. We have a creative team for a reason - to be creative and think beyond what's trending. Obviously within reason but this was a great point here.
lol I'm also SO TIRED of chill lofi beats. As someone who has been fatigued from scrolling through endless royalty free libraries without finding anything that sounds pleasant, I appreciate the call for better commercial sounds!
Better yet, work music costs into your advertising budget, and hire a music supervisor to clear it for you. That way you can get great music, legally, which saves $$ and headaches in the long-run.
THANK YOU! All the advice for succeeding in video is to use the trending audio, without any discussion of the repercussions for doing so. I'm in nonprofit comms and well acquainted with the chill beats. I would *love* better commercial options.
Is there a difference between using a trending sound/song, unedited, versus something that's been mashed up? I also work for a nonprofit in comms and made sure we had a business account so we only have access to commercial sounds (which yes are very boring, especially on IG) and thought we could use what's in that library, as long as it's not a blatantly uploaded by a brand to use the latest Miley Cyrus song.
On IG "original sounds" will sometimes show up in their library. While you can technically use them, you legally shouldn't. If the song and artist are properly attributed (looks like a song in the library vs original sound), you are good to go. It's confusing.
I also wonder if there'll ever be a point where influencers are held to the same standards that brands are. Technically they're their own brand - they make money from the content they create and profit from trending audio. Is there a difference?
This article is amazing!!! I've been looking for clarity on this matter for so long and no one is really being transparent about it. As a one woman show in the early stage of growing my brand this literally covered everything I needed to know on this subject. I actually did speak to a attorney about this and they advised me not to use music while marketing on social media but I was under the impression that I would need it and was wondering how all these brands we're using it like it was fine. This gave me more context and now I can really can modify my marketing plan and protect my brand thank you!
Any info about Instagram reels’ music library? There isn’t a differentiation between what is commercial audio and what is not, compared to TikTok. I don’t know what’s brand-safe.
On IG "original sounds" will sometimes show up in their library. While you can technically use them, you legally shouldn't. If the song and artist are properly attributed (looks like a song in the library vs original sound), you are good to go.
As a lawyer who works in social media, can't thank you enough for this FYI! I predict there will be some licensing rev/share in social media (YT is just starting to roll this out for their creator audio library) because the music industry and social does have an unhealthy high-school-romance relationship. I've heard firsthand from talent managers that labels want songs to go viral and will purposely seed music to creators as part of their music marketing strategy, but they also don't want to close the doors on commercial licenses the next time an energy drink company wants a fun bop. The synch license tech will eventually catch up to make that possible (INHO).
THANK YOU for saying that maybe we should be moving away from using trending audios. I am so tired of seeing/hearing social media “gurus” emphasise using trending audios to get results.
It works but won't work forever, IMO.
definitely - just had this discussion today. We have a creative team for a reason - to be creative and think beyond what's trending. Obviously within reason but this was a great point here.
lol I'm also SO TIRED of chill lofi beats. As someone who has been fatigued from scrolling through endless royalty free libraries without finding anything that sounds pleasant, I appreciate the call for better commercial sounds!
Lol exactly!!!!
Better yet, work music costs into your advertising budget, and hire a music supervisor to clear it for you. That way you can get great music, legally, which saves $$ and headaches in the long-run.
THANK YOU! All the advice for succeeding in video is to use the trending audio, without any discussion of the repercussions for doing so. I'm in nonprofit comms and well acquainted with the chill beats. I would *love* better commercial options.
Yep!!!
All. Of. This.
“... move in the direction of figuring out how to rely less on trends as your core strategy.”
Found this super helpful!
Is there a difference between using a trending sound/song, unedited, versus something that's been mashed up? I also work for a nonprofit in comms and made sure we had a business account so we only have access to commercial sounds (which yes are very boring, especially on IG) and thought we could use what's in that library, as long as it's not a blatantly uploaded by a brand to use the latest Miley Cyrus song.
On IG "original sounds" will sometimes show up in their library. While you can technically use them, you legally shouldn't. If the song and artist are properly attributed (looks like a song in the library vs original sound), you are good to go. It's confusing.
ooof confusing is right! Welp time to get creative :)
I also wonder if there'll ever be a point where influencers are held to the same standards that brands are. Technically they're their own brand - they make money from the content they create and profit from trending audio. Is there a difference?
Appreciate this perspective very much and think more brands and creators should adopt this approach when considering how to be relevant on social.
Can I frame this and hang it on my newsrooms walls?
Do it!!!
This article is amazing!!! I've been looking for clarity on this matter for so long and no one is really being transparent about it. As a one woman show in the early stage of growing my brand this literally covered everything I needed to know on this subject. I actually did speak to a attorney about this and they advised me not to use music while marketing on social media but I was under the impression that I would need it and was wondering how all these brands we're using it like it was fine. This gave me more context and now I can really can modify my marketing plan and protect my brand thank you!
so glad it was helpful!
Any info about Instagram reels’ music library? There isn’t a differentiation between what is commercial audio and what is not, compared to TikTok. I don’t know what’s brand-safe.
On IG "original sounds" will sometimes show up in their library. While you can technically use them, you legally shouldn't. If the song and artist are properly attributed (looks like a song in the library vs original sound), you are good to go.
As a lawyer who works in social media, can't thank you enough for this FYI! I predict there will be some licensing rev/share in social media (YT is just starting to roll this out for their creator audio library) because the music industry and social does have an unhealthy high-school-romance relationship. I've heard firsthand from talent managers that labels want songs to go viral and will purposely seed music to creators as part of their music marketing strategy, but they also don't want to close the doors on commercial licenses the next time an energy drink company wants a fun bop. The synch license tech will eventually catch up to make that possible (INHO).