After all, you don't want Prince coming after you, right? :)
Why Using the Right Music Matters
Although a lot of people on Youtube use commercial music in their videos, this doesn't mean that what they're doing is necessarily legal. And, if you want to become a successful Youtuber, it's essential that you follow all of Youtube's guidelines--including using music you're legally able to use.If you don't, here's what can happen:
1) You won't be able to monetize your videos. Youtube won't allow you to monetize videos containing anything that you don't have the rights to. In some rare instances, Youtube may be lazy and accidentally monetize videos that skimp on these guidelines, but in most scenarios it's not a good idea.
2) Networks are unlikely to partner with someone who doesn't follow the rules. After all, the network doesn't want to get into hot water--nor do they want to associate with someone who doesn't follow the rules either.
3) There is a chance you could get a strike against your Youtube account. That's obviously something you don't want.
But If I Say I Don't Own the Song, I Can Still Use It, Right?
Wrong. Posting a video containing a song that is not properly licensed to you is copyright infringement. This is a serious deal; I recently worked with a client who was being sued for around $2000 for using material he didn't have the license to, so yeah...pretty big deal!Saying "I don't own the copyright to this" or "I don't own this" doesn't mean you can't be sued for copyright infringement. So if you don't own the license to the song or have permission to use it...just don't use the song. That includes songs that come with your video editing program, songs on your computer, and songs you ripped from a CD.
So What Can I Use?
For music, you have three options:
2) Look for music licensed under something called a Creative Commons License. Some Creative Commons licenses allow other people to use music in videos, provided the person follow the instructions given under the Creative Commons license. For example, the Creative Commons Attribution license allows you to use music in a video provided you give attribution to the original artist. Other licenses may have more restrictions, which I will discuss in another blog post.
3) Look for public domain music. Public domain music is music that doesn't have a copyright, so you can use the music freely to your own desire--such as inserting it into your videos, modifying it, or distributing it elsewhere. For Youtubers, this is probably the ideal sort of music to look for, since there are no serious restrictions placed on these songs.
How Do I Find "Safe" Music to Use?
For most Youtubers, they've probably heard of Kevin MacLeod or DanoSongs, arguably the two most popular sources of Creative Commons Attribution licensed music. Here are the links to their websites below:If you're looking for more options, however, here's what I recommend:
1) GiveLifeBacktoMusic.com: This is actually a public domain record label. Every song listed on this site is in the public domain! Thanks to Kevin MacLeod for initially alerting me to this site; he also has some songs on here that aren't on Incompetech.com.
2) Jason Shaw: if you're looking for more Creative Commons music, Jason Shaw also has a wide selection of music to choose from, spanning many genres.
3) TeknoAxe: This is a music artist who creates Creative Commons music mainly on Youtube, although he also has a personal website. He is insanely popular on Youtube, and for good reason; his songs are perfect for many types of videos, which span many genres.
4) CCMIXTER.org: This website hosts a variety of songs from multiple artists licensed under various Creative Commons licenses. Be warned that not all licenses can be used by Youtubers, so you need to make sure the music you find is under a Creative Commons Attirbution license or in the public domain. For instance, some songs are under a noncommercial Creative Commons license, which means you cannot use the music in monetized videos.
5) SoundCloud: Some songs on SoundCloud are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license, which you can use in your videos. But be warned--some "artists" upload songs that actually don't belong to them, so it may actually be copyrighted (meaning you can't use it). I've run into this problem a few times, so you have to be really careful with this site.
Note that this doesn't include every single website or artist; I'll add to this list in the future.
Questions, comments? Please leave them in the comment box below.
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