On February 1st, TikTok users lost access to tracks from some of the world’s most popular musicians, thanks to a rights dispute between UMG and TikTok.
The news that Universal Music Group removed songs from TikTok because they couldn’t work out a new deal has hit the TikTok community hard. That means no more jams from Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, or Bad Bunny for TikTok users. It’s a major bummer for the platform since a lot of its trends revolve around popular music.
Tuesday, 30 January 2024.
It is sad and disappointing that Universal Music Group has put their own greed above the interests of their artists and songwriters.
Despite Universal’s false narrative and rhetoric, the fact is they have chosen to walk away from the powerful support of a platform with well over a billion users that serves as a free promotional and discovery vehicle for their talent.
TikTok has been able to reach ‘artist-first’ agreements with every other label and publisher. Clearly, Universal’s self-serving actions are not in the best interests of artists, songwriters and fans.
TikTok statement in response to Universal Music Group
What it means for content creators now that UMG removed songs from tiktok?
Already, there are TikTokers out there crafting videos about the narrowed-down music choices. However, businesses using TikTok likely won’t feel the impact because TikTok business accounts typically don’t get access to the majority of tracks by famous artists. This precaution helps shield both brands and musicians from any copyright hiccups that might pop up if a song is featured in an advertisement.
But for influencers and creators, the showdown between TikTok and Universal sparked some, well, let’s say, extra creative content.
What TikTok is not telling you about song removals?
Remix is the way to go
Now that your favorite songs are removed from tiktok, you can still use them for your content but only as remixes, and there are plenty uploaded already that are growing each day or you can make your own.
Have in mind there are two copyrights for every piece of recorded music: one for the songwriter’s composition (the music and lyrics), the other for an artist’s recording of that composition. If you record a cover version or create a remix of a song, then you’re using the songwriter’s copyright on that composition.
The problem is that it’s considerably harder to detect remixes or covers of compositions automatically than it is to detect matches to sound recordings.
There are various gray areas in which a sound recording may or may not embody a certain musical composition or may “transform” it in ways that might be considered fair use in law so if you are using the remixes already uploaded on titkok that passed the “check” you will not likely to get it removed from your video .
There are more songs in the world
Fact that Universal Music Group removed songs from TikTok hit creators hard, but let’s be honest, there are so many other amazing songs and artists that can help enhance your creative storytelling on the platform. Explore and support some new artists, new tunes and who knows, maybe you will find some new favorites as well.
Grow with the new artists
Some new up and coming artists’ original audios are getting more attention now on the TikTok platform and you can use them to go viral as well. There are new trends emerging now with these songs you can hop on them.
It is your time to shine
Imagine like this is a fresh start on TikTok, like it is 2020 all over again and you are making original content. Whether it’s showcasing your own music, creating unique or funny sounds, or crafting original songs and remixes, creators now have an opportunity to showcase their talents and build a following based on their own creativity with way less competition. Click here to see 50 engaging content ideas for TikTok we covered recently.
Ultimately, while the absence of Universal Music tracks presents a hurdle for TikTok creators, it also opens up new avenues for experimentation and innovation. By embracing alternative music options, focusing on original content, and leveraging TikTok’s creative tools, creators can continue to thrive and captivate audiences on the platform.
And of course, Storybeat is always here as you allay in content creation, we are tacking all the new trends for you and making it easy for you to make stunning content in Storybeat app as well import your music. All it takes is just a few taps 😉
