How To Use Copyrighted Music on YouTube: Detailed Guide

Creators use music in their YouTube videos to set the right mood and keep viewers engaged. Finding the right piece of music for a video can be difficult, though — especially when considering usage limitations due to copyright. YouTube’s monitoring system safeguards against unauthorized use, protecting musicians by quickly flagging any content that violates copyrights.

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YouTube’s response to violations might range from blocking or demonetizing a video to banning repeat offenders. Fortunately, though, there are several ways to use the music you want in your posts without repercussions. Read on to learn how to use copyrighted music on YouTube.

Understanding Copyrighted and Non-Copyrighted Music

Understanding the difference between copyrighted and non-copyrighted music is essential to keeping your YouTube channel in good standing. Below are the key differences. 

Copyrighted Music

Copyright law protects musicians' ownership rights to the music they write. They can sell or share this ownership however they like, but anyone using music without the owners' permission violates the law, leaving unauthorized users liable for damages.

Songs remain in copyright for a long time, generally the creator’s life plus 70 years (with exceptions). Once a copyright of music for videos expires, the music enters the public domain and becomes available for everyone to use — think “Happy Birthday” or “Oh! Susanna.”

Non-Copyrighted Music

Non-copyrighted music refers to anything that’s in the public domain, whether that’s because the copyright expired or the original creator made the song free for public use. 

Copyright owners might also formally release their rights by putting a song into the public domain through a Creative Commons license. Depending on the terms of the license, other creators could use or adapt the work however they like.

How Does YouTube Copyright Work? 

YouTube takes copyright enforcement seriously. As a platform, they actively work to identify violators who upload copyrighted music without permission. 

YouTube’s Content ID tool automatically scans all new video uploads for matches with its extensive audio library of copyrighted music, which song owners can access and update continually with new material.

When YouTube finds violations, they might mute the song, remove the video, or run ads on it, with proceeds compensating the copyright holder. In extreme cases, they ban accounts and channels, making all videos inaccessible.

3 Types of Copyrighted Music on YouTube 

Large quantities of copyrighted music remain on the platform, often because the rights holders have allowed it. There are three ways this can happen, which we’ll cover below.

1. Creative Commons Music 

Copyright holders sometimes release their works to the public via a Creative Commons license. This allows people to use or sometimes adapt a copyrighted work under specific conditions. Attribution is often required, and commercial use is frequently not allowed. Always check the terms before using music under a Creative Commons License.

2. Licensed Music 

Licensing a song requires permission from the rights holders, which can be a time-consuming process. A single song can have multiple rights holders, such as songwriters, publishers, and recording owners. Finding all these parties and negotiating fees with each takes time and money. For popular music, the cost often rises to thousands of dollars.

Some third-party platforms prepay the license fees for a massive list of songs, and you can send them a subscription fee to access these tunes. While convenient, these sites may not include major-label hits. 

To get the best tunes for your project and license them legally — especially for commercial projects — directly contacting the song’s publishing companies remains the most reliable method.

3. Ad-Supported Music

When a copyright holder receives notification of a violation involving their music, they can choose to let the song remain in the video. In that case, YouTube might run ads on the content. The ad revenue then goes to the copyright holder as compensation for allowing the use of their song.

How To Legally Use Copyrighted Music on YouTube 

You have to comply with YouTube’s music copyright rules to keep your account in good standing. The last thing you want is a banned account because of a thoughtless background track. If you’re wondering how to get copyright permission for music on YouTube, you have a few options.

Get a Sync License

A sync license lets you use copyrighted songs in your visual content. Obtaining one is challenging, as all copyright holders — including any songwriters, musicians, record labels, and publishers — must approve your use of the song. 

This method is time-consuming and expensive, making it impractical for most YouTube creators.

Commission a Musician

A simpler option involves hiring a musician to create something just for you. If you don’t know any musicians, try services like Fiverr or Upwork to find someone who can write and record a custom composition — even selling you the copyright. 

This is certainly easier than obtaining a license for existing music, but cost, deadlines, and music quality can all vary widely. 

Utilize Paid Music Licensing Platforms

Third-party platforms make it easier to license copyrighted music for more reasonable prices. Musicians write songs for these sites in all genres, and users can browse music and purchase or subscribe to usage rights. 

Although the rights are easier to get, songs on these services generally come from aspiring musicians rather than established, recognizable artists.

Create Royalty-Free Music for Your YouTube Videos: 3 Steps

 Perhaps the easiest way to avoid violating YouTube music copyright rules involves using AI-generated music. Captions seamlessly integrates music generation into the video production process, giving you the perfect backing track for your project and eliminating the worry about copyright violations. 

Even without musical expertise, you can create custom, studio-quality tracks simply by describing what you want. Here’s how.

1. Open Your Project

Open an existing Captions project or start a new one by importing a video into your dashboard. Select “Music” from the sidebar, then choose an AI model.

2. Input Your Prompt

Type a description of the type of music you want to generate. You can input a genre, mood, or even an artistic style. Captions will generate your soundtrack, which you can regenerate as often as you like until you have one that suits your project. If necessary, you can also rewrite your prompt so the output is closer to what you envisioned.

3. Customize and Save Your Project

After inserting the track into your timeline, adjust the sliders or click and drag to change the length and location of the music within the project. When you’ve chosen and placed the music, download the video to share it across your social platforms.

Advice To Avoid Copyright Infringement on YouTube

While selecting audio tracks for your footage, keep the following tips in mind to avoid any copyright violations. 

Don’t Use Music Without Proper Licensing

The licensing system protects musicians, ensuring they receive proper compensation for their work. If you want to use a copyrighted piece in your own project, you must obtain an appropriate license and use the music only according to agreed-upon terms.

Don’t Ignore YouTube’s Copyright Strike System

When a song rights holder files a copyright claim against a video you posted, YouTube checks their audio library to confirm. If they determine that you used the music without authorization, they’ll remove your video and ask you to complete YouTube’s Copyright School. Once you complete the program, the strike will fall off of your account after 90 days. 

Don’t ignore a copyright strike. If you receive three strikes within a 90-day period, YouTube may terminate your account and all your channels.

Don’t Forget to Credit the Artist

When using copyrighted material with a license, you may be asked to credit the original artist. Always do so, as this is part of your licensing agreement.

Use AI to Generate Your Own Tracks

Using AI-generated music saves you the hassle of complying with copyright, as these songs can’t be copyrighted. You’re free to use them in your projects without licensing and fear of copyright strikes.

Elevate Your YouTube Content with Captions

Finding the right songs for your videos and obtaining permission to use them presents challenges. You want to abide by copyright requirements, but using licensed music on YouTube involves tracking down a song’s rights owners, negotiating a license to avoid copyright claims, and paying fees. Often, this takes more work and money than the average content creator can afford.

If you’re looking to add music to your posts without handling copyright negotiations, try Captions. Our AI music tool makes it easy to create unique, royalty-free soundtracks for your projects. Simply describe what you’re looking for, and Captions instantly creates an instrumental track matching your description.

AI music generation is a perfect supplement to the rest of Captions’ tools, which include an AI YouTube Video Maker and AI Music Video Generator — just two of many features for optimizing your YouTube content creation process.

Check out Captions today. 

FAQ

Can You Use Music in YouTube Videos?

Yes — and in fact, music makes most YouTube videos more immersive and engaging. The platform has a built-in library of royalty-free tracks you can choose from, although they may be more generic than popular copyrighted tunes.

Can You Use Copyrighted Music on YouTube?

Yes — follow the above methods to access copyrighted songs for your YouTube videos. To avoid the hassle altogether, simply generate your own backing tracks with Captions.