Can I make money licensing music?

This is one of my favorite questions because I could talk about it for days. You know by now that I like to keep these tips short so lets make this a 2 part question and change it a bit. How about Part #1 “Can I make money licensing music” and then Part #2 “Who is licensing music, what are they licensing it for and for how much?”

Lets take the “who” first. Think for a moment about everywhere that you hear music and then write it down. Your list might look something like this:

TV
Radio
Movies
Advertising
Documentaries
Internet Programming
Web casts Podcasts
Internet ads
Feature films
Corporate marketing videos
Wedding videos
Conventions
On, and On, and On…  

The great news here is that both background and foreground music is used much more than you might imagine. The not so great news is that there are lots of music suppliers trying to make music available to these users so competition is pretty fierce.

That’s why MyMusicSource.com is a sync license distributor to many suppliers. If we can get your music in front of many buyers/licensor's and in many ways we have a much greater chance of placing your music. The important thing to remember is that although some of these potential uses of your music are more sexy than others, they all pay and 100 placements in conventions might make you more money that 1 great placement in a feature film. The bragging rights are not as cool, but the power company, or restaurant does not care where your money comes from.

Remember that licensing music for a living is a long term commitment and don't expect to start going the mailbox to collect your checks right yet. I won't fill you full of success stories, but I can tell you first hand that I have made enough money to live comfortably from performance royalties alone and you can too. I still receive checks for music I wrote 15 years ago. Its not much but over time it adds up.

So my recommendation is license your music anywhere and everywhere you can if you are looking at your long term return. If you have hopes (like we all do, or did) of having the elusive hit in a series, or film then go the route of limiting exposure of your music. If you choose this method be honest with yourself and set a date in the future to let it loose and see if you can make money with your music in a more open forum like a music licensing company. 

Please feel free to comment, ask questions, or share your experiences.

Submit specific questions to info@mymusicsource.com

There will be much more to come on this subject so stay tuned!

Michael Redman
mymusicsource.com