I used to come here to participate in the forum to see what composers were thinking about the music licensing business. I remember conversations about ADP (author driven pricing), the search engine algorithm, subscription services, PRO registration, etc. Now, a LOT of the authors I used to see here seem to be gone, your prices have plummeted with many of the popular tracks being offered with single digit prices (as I suspected would happen) , and much of the conversation here is about getting rejected.
To be honest, I thought AJ would be gone by now but I guess it’s still in the “dead man walking” phase. Was it the rise of the subscription services? The rise of “no copyright” YouTube channels with free music? The continued market saturation? All of the above and more?
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Hello, you are absolutely right. It’s all that killed the market. I am new. I took the time to read your previous comments. You talk about working with the big musical libraries, but they still have to accept you. In France, I have been trying to join Universal or Cezame Music Agency for years without success. If we don’t have relationships, it’s impossible. Or else my music sucks, besides I would like your opinion and I would like to listen to the music you produce. Good day.
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Hey ED,
You’re right. It’s difficult to get into the major libraries without knowing someone or being part of a smaller library with major distribution. I’ve heard quite a bit of average music in major libraries, so it’s defintiely not talent that will hold you back. It’s usually connections.
I think your music is good and original. Never change yourself to fit the needs of an audience. Instead, find a different audience. There are plenty of ways to make money with music. I think a lot of composers looking to have their music licensed believe that they have to write music that sounds trendy or has very specific production elements that sound like what they think people want. That same attitude is often shared by music libraries. The thing is that if you only give people bread and water, that’s all they can eat and they will think that’s all there is. If you love serving bread and water and you’re good at it, by all means continue and serve the masses. But trust me, there are other people who pay well for orginal music that doesn’t come from a library.
I sit in Zoom sessions with people talking about getting “creative” with the search engine. I help make suggestions, but seriously… What are we actually talking about when we say “creative”? Wouldn’t it be more creative to abandond the search engine all together? There is no automated search engine that will beat an “ecosystem”. All I can say here is that a change is coming and that change will take a large number of composers and “marketplaces” out of the equation. I know how that sounds, but we’re at critical mass. Something has to change.
As for my music, here’s a link to a video with a couple of songs I wrote several years ago when I still wrote for music libraries. What I write now is considerably different.
Thank you for answering. I listened carefully to the entire video, very good work. Indeed it is not stock music.
human nature video is this your youtube channel? I am primarily a live musician but have been practicing computer music for a long time.
I have accompanied many foreign artists and recorded albums such as gordon goodwin (composer for pixar and disney), james morrisson australian jazz musician, and many more.
But selling your music is quite another thing. I hope to get there one day before the approaching retreat. lol.
have a good day.
Yes, Human Nature Music Videos is one of my channels. That channel was created last year, but I only recently started posting videos there regularly.
Selling music these days is becoming less and less valuable. For the last maybe five years or so, I’ve been doing works for hire and only keep the songwriter’s share of performance royalties. I’ve always earned more from royalties than licensing shares. And now with subscriptions, I don’t see the point in struggling to write enough stock music to be heard and get meaningful licensing fees. That would be difficult since I don’t really have much of an interest in writing what a lot of libraries are looking for.
Good luck!
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