Sync licensing your music for TV, film, ads and video games

Post by Nick Venturella

There are about as many movies, TV shows, ads and video games out there as there are interests that people have.

That’s good for musician’s because all those TV shows, films, ads, and video games need music to help their stories come alive to convey and connect the emotion of what’s on screen with the viewer.

All that is to say, there is plenty of opportunity for musicians to get their music (really whatever kind of music you create in whatever genre) into various moving visual media projects. That’s because so many TV and film projects have such a variety of scenes and stories being told that require the right music to help it all gel and emote the way the director wants.

This is why music supervisors (those who typically help identify the right songs for each scene of a movie, ad, game, or show) comb through tons of music searching for the right fit, with the right tempo, lyric, instrumentation, vibe, and feel to help drive the scene forward.

As exciting as it is to hear your song as part of a TV show or movie, the promotional boost for your music and brand along with the licensing fee payout, and ongoing (backend) royalty payments is why sync licensing of music is a desirable part of musician entrepreneurship.

Sync provides music creators with a substantial revenue stream among the many revenue streams a musician has to piece together to make up their entire income.
Most musicians have several income streams that when cobbled together make up their entire annual earnings (what might be an annual salary for others in a regular consistent job). 

Because musicians’ income streams often vary in terms of when they pay and how much they pay, sync licensing deals can provide some income stability compared to other music-related income streams. 

This is often due to upfront licensing fees paid for permission to use your music in a film or on a TV show as well as the backend royalties that your Performing Rights Organization (PRO), like ASCAP or BMI, will collect from streaming. 

These streaming royalties often increase when your song is placed in TV or film because most productions like a movie will create streaming playlists of the music in the movie to help with the film’s promotional campaign to market the movie. 

This marketing boost, which is simply a byproduct of your song being licensed, helps promote your music to a much larger audience than you might have been able to reach on your own. That leads to many more people discovering your music and streaming it, which adds to your backend royalty revenue.

Want to get even more in-depth knowledge about how sync licensing works? 

Apply to enroll in Ari’s Take Academy’s Sync Licensing course. (affiliate link)

Musician/Author/Ari's Take Academy creator - Ari Herstand

​I took this course myself. It provides a lot of detail about all aspects of sync taught by Vo Williams who is a veteran in the sync world with literally thousands of placements under his belt.

Plus, you get access to a great community of other music creators, and you’ll have the opportunity to pitch your songs to real sync agencies and production houses seeking licensable songs for projects.