Having a record deal use to be the way to get your music
into Film or TV, but in today music industry musicians are getting placements
through music licensing that provide a steady income. There are many ways to license
music and many sites available that will license your songs, but you need to
know which ones will give you a fair deal and which one won’t. There are many
companies that will take a major percentage and pay you less than what is fair
but most will enter into a 50/50 split.
The music licensing business is very tricky so you have to
be careful; you need to know whom you are dealing with. For many musicians they
seek out Music supervisors and some look for Music Libraries to place their
songs. Making contact with music supervisors usually means
going to film festivals or other networking events, but make sure you have done
your homework first.
This is a great time for independent musicians to get
placements for their music, and the pay can be pretty good depending on if it’s
a background track or main theme song. Remember
to never send MP3’s or CD’S without first getting permission, you could send a
email if you have the contacts info and make sure you add a link to your music
from your Soundcloud or Reverbnation profile.
Never forget that music licensing is very competitive and
you need to send the right music that fits the film or TV show you’re pitching
to. Make sure that you first find out what films or shows are looking for music
and that you have the right song style that they need. You can make a generous
income from music licensing and start to build a list of contacts to pitch your
music.
