What are beats licenses and how do they work?

The music industry has evolved a lot over the years, largely thanks to technology, and from my perspective, in a very positive way.

Where we most notice this change is in the economic aspect, since years ago large investments of money were necessary to get a decent home studio, the promotion of a brand or product could be expensive since there was no internet in the same way as we know him today. Now it is easier to launch a musical career, the offer has increased a lot, but the demand has not increased in the same way, so the prices of instrumentals are more affordable and accessible for many artists, who without a record company behind, would be forced to resign to his dream of creating music for not being able to afford large financial investments.

This is where the sale of instrumental licenses come into play and that is why you must know what they are, how they work and how they differ from each other.

I want to emphasize that this guide is made based on my licensing business and that many other producers license their instrumentals differently, so what I am going to explain here is only a guide to help you understand concepts and definitions, so I always recommend that before buying an instrumental, you read the use licenses and find out about the conditions that the producer imposes on the use of their music.

1. What is an instrument license?

In the presentation of this guide, I have told you that the producer imposes a series of conditions on the use of his music. I highlight this because it is crucial to understand that, when a producer puts his beats on sale and you pay money to download that beat, what you are paying is the price to acquire a license of use, at no time are you or will you be the owner of that rhythm. The beat always belongs to the producer (there are situations where this is not the case and that I will comment briefly later) and what you are paying is the price to be able to use that beat in a certain context and under the conditions described in the license.

That is why it is crucial to read the user licenses and understand them before buying Beats online.

2. Differences between leasing licenses and exclusive licenses.

-Leasing licenses (non-exclusive) are licenses where the producer offers the artist the use of that beat with a series of limited conditions regarding the number of plays, monetization, upload platforms, … For example, based on my licensing system, a Premium leasing license allows you a maximum of 50,000 streaming plays, monetizing on 3 platforms of your choice (Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube for example).

It should be noted that there are many producers who sell their licenses with time limitations, that is, they allow you, for example, to use the beat for 5 years from when the license payment was made. I do not include any time limitations in any of my licenses, they are only limited to the conditions of use.
Something crucial to keep in mind in leasing licenses is that they are not exclusive, so after being sold once, the beat will continue for sale and other artists will be able to continue buying it.

For this reason, it is totally forbidden to make Content ID to the songs that you have made with instrumentals in which you have only acquired a leasing license.

– Exclusive licenses are licenses where the producer offers the artist the use of this beat without any limitation, using the beat in as many projects as he wishes and without any limit of plays or monetization. Exclusive licenses offer the artist the exclusive right to use that beat but in no case exclusive property, that is, the beat continues to belong to the producer. This type of license is where the artist gets the most benefits from her music, and this is one of the reasons why they are the most expensive.

Unlike leasing licenses, an exclusive license can only be sold once to 1 artist and will immediately be withdrawn from sale. In the same way, a beat that has already been sold with a leasing license can no longer be sold with an exclusive license, since exclusivity no longer exists in this case. There are producers who after selling a leasing license continue to allow the sale of the exclusive license of that beat, it is something that I do not particularly do because I understand that if a beat has already been sold only once (even with a leasing license), it automatically loses its exclusivity.

If you buy the exclusive license of an instrumental, the logical thing would be to think that with the song you make if you can do Content ID, but this is not always the case. Because to be able to make Content ID on a musical work you have to be the owner of the exclusive property and as I have already mentioned, you buy the exclusive rights of the instrumental but the exclusive property of the beat still belongs to the producer. So if you want to make Content ID to your songs, you will have to reach an agreement with the producer.

There are exceptions where the producer can sell the exclusive property of a beat, but in these cases, the price of the beat is usually much more expensive. This is something that I never do and I recommend not doing it because I want to avoid losing the rights to my music and I want my authorship to always be recognized.

3. Conditions and sections of a license.

I am going to explain the different sections that we can find in the description of any license. This applies to both leasing licenses and exclusive licenses. Keep in mind that what we are going to see now is based on my licensing system and it is very likely that other producers do not include the same sections or do so in a different order than what we are going to see here:

-Price: here you can check the price of the license. In general, it is usually given in dollars, since it is the currency in which the vast majority of beatmarkets work (Beatstars, Airbit, Soundclick, …).

-Files: what files and in what formats will you receive the instruments. The MP3 version of the instrumental is always included and depending on the license you choose, you will also receive a WAV file and / or the Trackout. The Trackout (also known as stems) are the instrument tracks of the instrumental, this option is the most suitable to achieve a professional sound, since it will allow the mixing technician to process each instrument separately to achieve a more cohesive and professional result along with the voice.

-Free downloads: here you specify the number of free downloads that can be made of the song from platforms such as Soundcloud or from your download links. In my case, there is no free download limit on any of my licenses.

-Streams: maximum number of plays that your song can accumulate on streaming platforms. It is also usually indicated whether these streams can be monetized or not.

-Sale of copies: maximum number of copies that you can sell, both physical and digital.

-Music videos: maximum number of music videos allowed. A music video is understood not only as video clips, but also as videolirycs or promotional videos for social networks.

-Monetization: here you specify if the monetization of the song is allowed and in which channels.

-Paid performances: here you can check whether paid performances (concerts) are allowed and, if so, the number of performances. In my case, all kinds of free performances are allowed with any license and without limit.

-Retransmission in radios: if it is allowed or not, the retransmission in radios and in how many stations.

-Content ID: here you can know if you can make Content ID or not to the song you make with the instrumental.

-Credits: here you will be specified how you have to credit the producer of the song (Prod. Cutty Referenz). Remember that accreditation is mandatory, that is, when you share your song on the internet you must indicate who the producer of the music is. Failure to do so would mean that you are not complying with the license agreement, so the producer could even request that the song be removed from that platform.

-Exclusivity: here you can check if you have the exclusive rights to the beat or if on the contrary it is a leasing license.

4. Different types of leasing licenses.

Now that you know the differences between leasing and exclusive licenses, and you also know what each section of the conditions means, let’s see what types of leasing licenses (non-exclusive) you can find and what advantages and disadvantages each one offers you.

-Basic: as its name suggests, it is usually the most basic and the cheapest of all. This license is intended for beginning artists who are looking for promotion on the internet but are not yet monetizing their music. With this license, you will receive a single MP3 file of the instrumental, you can get up to 5,000 streams and monetization or sale of copies will not be allowed since the main objective is to seek promotion to make yourself known.

-Standard: this license offers you more audio quality, since together with the MP3 file you will also receive the instrumental in WAV version. The objective of this license continues to be to seek promotion, as in the previous one, but at a higher level, being able to reach up to 15,000 streams. Monetization is also not allowed with this license.

-Premium: with this license, you can start earning money. In addition to allowing you to monetize and publish 1 music video, with this license you can reach up to 50,000 monetized streams. It also offers you a better sound quality, since apart from receiving the MP3 and WAV files, you will also receive the Trackout. This license is ideal for artists who are beginning to make a profit from their music.

-Unlimited: this is usually the most popular license, since despite being a non-exclusive license, it has many of the benefits of an exclusive at a much lower price. With this license, you will not have any kind of limit when it comes to sharing or selling your music. It has unlimited streams, unlimited sales, unlimited videos, and unlimited monetization. This license is ideal for semi-professional artists who already have a loyal following and who want to achieve all the economic benefits that their music can offer them.
Despite not being a leasing license, I will briefly mention the exclusive license. With it, you will have all the benefits of an Unlimited license, but with the difference that only you will be the owner of that beat. This license is intended for professional artists who need their music to be exclusive.

5. What license is best for me?

Now that you know everything related to instrumental licenses, you just have to choose the one that best suits your needs. Ask yourself the following questions and depending on your answer, you will know which license is best for you:

1. Is music my main source of income?
-If the answer is YES, don’t think about it, an Exclusive license is the best for you.
-If the answer is NO, a leasing license will suit you better.

2. Do I get financial benefit from my music?
-If the answer is YES, you must choose a Premium or Unlimited license.
-If the answer is NO, but you want to start monetizing, a Premium license allows it.
-If the answer is directly NO, the best thing for you would be a Basic or Standard license.

3. Premium or Unlimited?
-If in your previous projects you did not have more than 50,000 plays and you do not need to be on all digital platforms, choose a Premium license.
-If in your previous projects you got a good response from the public and you want to know how far your music can go without putting limitations, choose an Unlimited license.

4. Basic or Standard?
-If it is your first musical project, the most advisable thing is that you start with a Basic license.
-If it is not your first project, but you want to continue gaining followers, a Standard license gives you what you need.

With all this information, you already know the criteria to choose the license you need depending on what your needs are. Remember to always read the license of use before buying a beat because the moment you confirm the payment, it means that you have read and agree with the license of use. When in doubt, contact the producer and ask him.

I hope I have been helpful, if you have any questions, comments or something has not been completely clear to you, contact me through info@cuttyreferenzbeats.com and I will be happy to answer you.