What is stock music? | Beatoven.ai

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What is stock music

What is stock music?

Stock music, also called library or production music, is recorded for licensing. It is not created for a single use case but for different projects wherever it fits the best. These versatile music pieces suit different moods and scenes in audiovisual projects, movies, YouTube videos, social media reels, shorts, ads, and presentations.

Musicians and composers create it to license the rights to music libraries. These libraries then license the music to clients for use in their projects. Licensing terms dictate usage, frequency, and platforms for each music piece. To obtain a license, clients typically need to contact the music library, negotiate the terms, and make a payment. But with stock music, this process becomes a few-step process where clients buy and use the license from the stock music library.

Stock music is economical for content creators or filmmakers/ video producers who require high-quality music without spending money on creating original music through composers. Another advantage of stock music libraries is that they curate a wide range of styles, genres, and mood-based music, allowing clients to choose per their needs.

Types of stock music

There are two basic types of stock music: licensed and royalty-free.

Licensed

Licensed stock music has limited uses and requires a license for a specific project or duration. The license terms depend on factors like intended use, project type, distribution channel, advertising budget, and company size.

You can only use the music for the agreed purpose and timeframe. Depending on the license terms, you might also have to pay royalties for using the music every time.

This makes licensed music expensive with limited usage rights. For example, if you buy a license for music for your short film, you cannot use the music or parts of it during the premiere or showcase. A classic example of licensed music is the F.R.I.E.N.D.S theme song ‘I’ll be there for you’, owned by Warner Bros., which restricts its use without permission anywhere.

Royalty-free music

Royalty-free music is stock music that has no associated royalty fees. You buy the license once and use the music unlimited times with no usage restrictions. The use of music multiple times without additional fees makes it cost-effective for projects needing frequent music use.

How to find stock music

Here are a few authentic sources to find high-quality music for your projects.

1. YouTube Audio Library


YouTube audio library is another good option for creators seeking high-quality, royalty-free music. It offers a diverse collection of music in different categories and genres that can be downloaded and used without a license. Each track includes license guidelines for permitted use.

Features

  • Wide range of music and sound effects
  • One-click download and use
  • Search filters like attribution not required, attribution required, artist name, and track title

    • 2. Epidemic Sound


    Epidemic Sound is a paid, royalty-free music library offering various music and sound effects. Its subscription includes all rights and allows monetization on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok based on the subscription terms and conditions. It gives music suggestions based on video and offers an Adobe Premier Pro plugin and search filter to find similar-sounding music.

    Features

  • Platform-specific music categories
  • Exclusive tracks by global artists
  • Sound effects for every type of category like aircraft, crashes, fire, laser, machine, and many more

    • Looking for an Epidemic Sound alternative? Read more.

    3. Artlist


    Artlist offers a royalty-free music library for filmmakers, video creators, and YouTubers. It provides a wide range of video creation features, like royalty-free music and SFX, footage and templates, plugins, and editing software, creating a complete ecosystem.

    Features

  • Comprehensive set of creative assets for video creation
  • Advanced search capabilities, easy-to-use assets, and theme collections
  • 40+ professional plugins


    • Wave.video is another comprehensive tool offering stock music licensing and features that help create visually appealing videos. It provides a vast audio collection, an audio editing tool, and a video maker with a wide range of graphics and animations.

    Features

  • Live streaming studio
  • Templates for live streaming, videos, social media, ads and promos
  • Video marketing and hosting tools

    • 4. Premium Beat


    Premium Beat is a stock music source that offers royalty-free music curated by content creators. Owned by Shutter Stock, it has a vast collection of music tracks in various genres, moods, and styles. It offers browsing by instruments and artists with 100% copyright clearance.

    Features

  • Wide range of curated music collection categories
  • Unlimited downloads of watermarked tracks
  • Option to create a custom playlist of favorite tracks

    • Looking for something more unique than stock music? Our recommendation is – Beatoven.ai

    Beatoven.ai


    Beatoven.ai generates 100% original, royalty-free music using AI. Using advanced music theory and artist collaboration, it generates mood-based music across genres like rock, pop, electronic, classical, etc.

    It offers a perpetual license with customization options for production-ready, AI-generated music and extensive customization options to add your personal touch to fit your creative style. Beatoven.ai also has a Fairly Trained Certification for its ethical AI application and AI model training using licensed data, making it one of the best choices for royalty-free, unique music.

    Some key features of Beatoven.ai include:

  • Text-to-music for generating music using text prompts. The more descriptive your prompt is, the better the music it generates
  • Personalization options in the free plan, like changing instruments, changing the mood and theme of the track
  • Section preferences with the option to change the instruments and moods of the selected section of the track
  • Video sync option to check visual and AI-generated track compatibility
  • Version history tracking for going back and forth to changes in music track

    • Benefits of stock music

  • Cost and time-saving: Stock music is more economical than custom music production. Pre-produced stock music also saves you time compared to creating original music from scratch. It is handy for projects with tight budgets and deadlines.
  • Versatile: Stock libraries offer diverse music styles and moods to complement projects. You can quickly find music to suit your content’s tone, whether for presentations or social media.
  • Ease of access: Stock music libraries are convenient sources for finding or generating music. For instance, Beatoven.ai offers an easy 5-step process for developing unique music. It has an intuitive interface requiring no prior music generation knowledge. Similarly, YouTube offers music search options with easy filters on the YouTube audio library, enhancing your control and ease of use.
  • Easy licensing: Traditional licensing involves hassles and negotiations. Stock music licensing is a straightforward process with clear licensing terms.
  • Global music exposure: Stock music libraries offer music in collaboration with artists and creators worldwide. This allows you to learn and experience world music influenced by different cultures and styles, enriching your and your viewers’ music experience.
  • Assured quality: Stock music libraries provide production-ready, high-quality music that meets the professional standards required by creators for various projects.

    • Where can you use stock music?

    Stock music can be used for various projects and platforms. Here are some ways you can use stock music.

  • Short films and movies: You can use stock music in your short films to heighten tension or convey sadness. For example, tense or dramatic music can build tension for climactic scenes. Or horror music to build a scary scene.
  • YouTube videos: YouTube is a creator’s paradise. Stock music can enhance YouTube videos’ impact, help them stand out, and effectively engage viewers. For instance, if you are a travel vlogger, use inspirational, calming music for serene destinations. You can use upbeat, exciting, or thrilling music for adventure sports. Similarly, if you make videos on yoga or self-improvement, use meditational sounds. Regional music suits food channels cooking regional cuisine.
  • Podcasts: Creating podcasts is a challenging art. It requires a symphony of verbal conversation with background music. You can use stock music in intros or to introduce segments in podcasts. You can add background music throughout your podcast, like calming music in a meditation podcast. But remember to adjust the volume and tempo when using music in podcasts to not overshadow the core content. With Beatoven.ai, you can create music easily and adjust the tempo/volume for podcasts.
  • Social media: Creative visuals and music drive Instagram Reels, TikTok videos, Facebook posts, and Twitter videos. With stock music, you can add trendy music to your social media posts and make them memorable and catchy. For example, use upbeat music for a TikTok dance video or inspirational music for a home organization reel on Instagram to make it more relatable.
  • Video games: Music creates an immersive gaming experience. For example, using intense music for a battle sequence improves the gameplay experience manifolds.
  • Advertisements and commercials: Music is essential to evoking emotions and reinforcing the brand message. It enhances storytelling and conveys excitement or sentiments. For example, the music in this Apple advertisement evokes excitement for the new iPhone. Meanwhile, the music in the UNICEF ad evokes emotions and hope.