The Studio · Sync licensing
Sync licensing for independent artists
Sync is when your music is paired with pictures: a scene in a drama, an advert, a trailer, a game, a video online. Here is what it means in plain words, why it matters for an independent artist, and how we get your songs ready and pitch them with you. Nothing is licensed without your say-so.
The basics
What is sync licensing?
Sync is short for synchronisation: putting a piece of music together with moving pictures. Whenever you hear a song in a TV episode, a film, an advert, a trailer, a video game or a brand’s video online, somebody asked permission to use it. That permission is a sync licence.
Every recorded song has two sides, and a sync licence needs both. There is the recording itself (the master) and there is the song underneath it, the melody and the words (the publishing). The person choosing the music for a production needs a yes for both before the song can go in.
In return the production pays a fee for that use, agreed up front, and a broadcast use can earn performance royalties afterwards too. The terms set out where the music can be used, for how long and in which countries.
The lingo
The words you will hear, explained
Sync has its own vocabulary. You do not need to learn it to work with us, but it helps to know what people mean.
- Sync licence
- Permission to use a piece of music with pictures, for a set use, place and length of time. Nothing is sold: the song is licensed for that one use.
- Sync fee
- The one-off payment for that licence, agreed before the music is used. It depends on the kind of production, how the music is used, where it is shown and for how long.
- Master side
- The recording: the actual audio of your performance that ends up in the scene.
- Publishing side
- The song as written: the melody, chords and lyrics. It needs its own permission, separate from the recording.
- One-stop
- A song where both sides can be cleared in one conversation and one licence. Productions work to tight deadlines, so one-stop songs are much easier to say yes to.
- Music supervisor
- The person who finds and clears music for a film, series, advert or game. They are the people we pitch to.
- Brief
- A request from a supervisor describing what they need: a mood, a tempo, a genre, sometimes a reference track, and usually a deadline.
- Placement
- When a song is actually licensed and used in a production. Sometimes called a “sync”.
- Cue sheet
- The paperwork a production files listing every piece of music it used, for how long and how. It is what makes the royalties after broadcast possible.
- Backend (performance royalties)
- Money that can come in after the fee, when the production is broadcast or shown. It is paid to the songwriters and publishers, and it relies on the cue sheet and the song being registered properly.
- Stems
- The mix split into its parts (drums, bass, vocals and so on), so an editor can drop the vocal under dialogue or build the track up with the picture.
- Exclusive or non-exclusive
- An exclusive licence stops the song being used by anyone else for a while (often in a certain category or country). A non-exclusive one does not.
Not sure what any of this means? Talk to us. No jargon, no pressure.
Why it matters
Why sync matters for an independent artist
For an artist without a major label behind them, sync is one of the few ways a song can reach a large audience at once, and be paid for doing it.
New listeners, all at once
A song in the right scene reaches people who would never have found it in a playlist, and some of them go looking for who made it.
Income that does not rely on streams
The fee is agreed up front, and a broadcast use can earn performance royalties after it airs. It sits alongside what your music earns elsewhere.
Your catalogue keeps working
Sync is not only for new releases. A supervisor looking for a certain feeling does not mind when a song came out, so every song you have finished stays in the running.
Now and then, a turning point
A single placement has changed the direction of some artists’ careers. It is rare, it cannot be planned for, and nobody can promise it. It is still one of the reasons we pitch.
How we do it
How we get your music ready and pitch it with you
Most of the work in sync happens before a supervisor ever hears the song: being ready when a brief lands. This is what we do with you, as part of making and releasing your music.
One-stop-ready masters
Your songs are recorded, mixed and mastered here, and the paperwork is set up so a supervisor can clear both the recording and the song with us in one go. That is what makes a song one-stop.
The versions supervisors ask for
Alongside the main mix we prepare the instrumental, a clean version where the lyrics need one, an a cappella, stems and shorter cut-downs. Editors often use an instrumental under dialogue, so having one ready matters.
Metadata that gets found
Each song is tagged with the details supervisors search by: writers, tempo, key, mood, whether it has a vocal, whether the lyrics are explicit, and codes that identify the recording. Good metadata is also how the royalties after broadcast find their way home.
Uses you would never want
We ask you up front about the kinds of use you would never want your music linked with, and we keep a record of every licence so nothing clashes with a deal already made.
Pitching to briefs from our catalogue
Your songs sit in our private sync catalogue. When a brief fits, we send supervisors a link where they can listen, download the versions they need and ask for a quote.
Your say-so, then the licence
When someone wants to use your song, we bring you the details: who, what for, where and for how long. Nothing is licensed until you have said yes in writing.
Your say
Nothing is placed without your written say-so
You decide what your music is used for. No sync licence of your music, for film, TV, adverts, games or anything else, and no exclusive or restrictive deal, goes ahead without your written approval. An email is enough.
Briefs often move quickly, so we will ask you promptly and give you what you need to decide: the production, how your song would be used, where and for how long. If a use does not feel right, you can say no, and that is the end of it.
Common questions
What is sync licensing, in one sentence?
It is permission for a film, TV show, advert, game or online video to use your music with its pictures, for an agreed use, place and length of time, in return for a fee.
Can independent artists in the UK get sync placements?
Yes. Supervisors choose songs for how they fit the scene, not for who released them, and a song that can be cleared quickly is easy to say yes to. It is competitive, so being one-stop and having instrumentals, clean versions and stems ready makes a real difference.
What does one-stop mean, and why does it matter?
A one-stop song can have both its recording and its songwriting cleared in one conversation and one licence. Productions often have tight deadlines, so a supervisor will usually pick the song they can clear quickly over one that needs several people chasing.
Do I get a say in where my music is used?
Always. No sync licence and no exclusive or restrictive deal goes ahead without your written approval, and an email is enough. We tell you who wants the song, how they want to use it, where and for how long, and you decide.
What versions of my songs do supervisors need?
Usually the full mix plus an instrumental, and often a clean version, an a cappella, stems and shorter cut-downs. We prepare these with you at the studio, so they are ready before a brief arrives.
What are backend performance royalties?
When a production with your music is broadcast or shown, the songwriters and publishers can be paid performance royalties on top of the sync fee. They depend on the production filing a cue sheet and the song being registered properly, which is why we look after the metadata.
Can you guarantee a placement?
No, and nobody honestly can. Most pitches do not end in a placement. We make your songs easy to say yes to, pitch them where they fit, and keep you informed.
Do my songs have to be new releases?
No. Supervisors look for the right feeling, not the newest release, so any finished song can be pitched once it has its versions and metadata ready.
Not sure what any of this means? Talk to us. No jargon, no pressure.
Want your music ready for sync?
Getting songs ready for sync is part of how we make and release music with the artists we work with. Send us one to three songs and a few lines about what you want to make.