Music Licensing

Music licensing is the granting of permission to use a piece of music under defined terms, and it is the legal mechanism that allows recordings and compositions to appear in media.^[1] Because a song typically involves separate rights in the composition and in the master recording, using existing music often requires more than one license.

Licenses specify how, where, and for how long music may be used, and they carry fees that reflect that scope. Clear licensing protects both the rights holders and the production, and it is essential whenever music is synchronized to visual media, distributed, or performed publicly.^[2]