Guides
Music and creator rights, in plain English
Short answers for brand, social and partnerships teams on what you can post, what you can boost, and what’s getting brands sued.
Complete guides 5
Start with the big picture, then go deeper.
TikTok music for brands: what you can use, boost and get sued for
Everything brand and social teams need to know about music on TikTok: the business library, trending sounds, Spark Ads, affiliates, mutes and lawsuits.
Read →Instagram, Facebook and YouTube music for brands
What brands can use for music in Instagram Reels and Stories, Facebook Reels, partnership ads and YouTube Shorts, and where the licensing gaps are.
Read →Creator and affiliate rights: using other people’s content safely
How long you can run creator content, what whitelisting and partnership ads allow, UGC rights, reposts and duets, contracts, and agency liability.
Read →Music licensing for brands, in plain English
How music licensing works for brand videos: sync and master licenses, costs, royalty-free libraries, covers, fair-use myths, AI music, policies and checklists.
Read →Lawsuit tracker: brands sued over music in social posts
Every brand we know of that’s been sued over music in social posts, with damages claimed.
Read →Start here 5
The questions brands ask most.
Can brands use trending sounds on TikTok?
Usually not. Why trending songs aren’t cleared for brand marketing, and what to use instead.
Read →TikTok Shop sellers and affiliates: the music risk
When affiliate videos with trending songs come back on the seller.
Read →TikTok Commercial Music Library explained
What TikTok’s business music covers, and where brands still get caught.
Read →Instagram Reels music for brands
What business accounts, creator partnerships and ads can use on Instagram.
Read →Creator usage rights: when a license expires
What happens when you keep running creator content after the license ends.
Read →Guides 30
Plain-English answers on music, creators and ads.
Is the agency liable for music in client content?
How copyright liability can reach agencies, what your contracts should say, and how to stay out of the middle.
Read →The music clause every influencer contract needs
Plain-English contract language for music: what creators can use, what they confirm, and who fixes it.
Read →Fair use myths in brand videos
The seven things marketers believe make a song safe, and why none of them work for brand content.
Read →Facebook Reels and the Meta Sound Collection
What Meta's free commercial music library covers, where it stops, and how brands misuse it.
Read →Instagram Stories and Reels music for business accounts
What business accounts can use in Stories and Reels, and what changes when you boost.
Read →What it costs to license a song for a TikTok or Instagram ad
Realistic price ranges for hits, indie tracks and libraries, and what pushes a quote up or down.
Read →How to license a song for an ad
The two licenses you need, who to ask, what they'll want to know, and how long it takes.
Read →Reposting, stitching and duetting creator videos as a brand
When platform features like stitch, duet and repost are fine for a brand, and when the music turns them into risk.
Read →TikTok Spark Ads authorization codes explained
How creators generate codes, how long they last, and what a code doesn't cover.
Read →Statutory damages for music copyright, explained
How US copyright damages are counted, why it's per song not per post, and what willful means.
Read →UGC rights: using customer videos in your ads
What you need before reposting or advertising with a customer's video, including the music in it.
Read →Whitelisting and partnership ads: usage rights explained
Platform permission vs contract rights, how long each lasts, and the music question nobody asks.
Read →YouTube Shorts music for brands
How the Shorts audio library, Content ID and ads interact when a brand reposts TikToks to YouTube.
Read →Can brands use AI-generated music in ads?
Suno, Udio and the rest: what the lawsuits and the Copyright Office mean for AI tracks in brand content.
Read →How to audit your TikTok for copyright music (step by step)
A DIY audit of your brand's TikTok in an afternoon: what to check, in what order, and what to fix first.
Read →Background music filmed in your store: is it a copyright problem?
The song playing in your store isn't licensed for your videos. Why “it was just in the background” rarely holds up.
Read →DMCA takedown vs copyright claim vs lawsuit: what's the difference?
Muted, claimed, taken down or sued: what each one means for your brand, and how worried to be.
Read →Music copyright in Indonesia: what brands need to know
UU Hak Cipta, LMKN, WAMI and somasi letters: music rules for brands selling and posting in Indonesia.
Read →Can you use trending sounds on a personal account to promote products?
The personal-account workaround: why switching account types changes the menu, not the license.
Read →Royalty-free vs copyright-free vs licensed music: what brands need to know
Royalty-free isn't free, and it isn't unlimited. What your music subscription actually covers.
Read →Can stock music companies sue you?
Production music libraries have sued MLS, Johnson & Johnson and the AHL. Why library music still needs a license.
Read →TikTok LIVE music rules for sellers and brands
Playing music during a TikTok Shop LIVE: what's risky, what happens when you get caught, and what to use instead.
Read →Do covers need a license for brand videos?
A creator singing a hit still uses the song. Why covers need a sync license from the publisher.
Read →Got a music copyright letter? What to do next
A label or publisher says you used their songs. What to do in the first 48 hours, and what not to do.
Read →Creator content license agreement template
A plain-English, fill-in-the-blanks license for creator content, with a music clause most templates leave out.
Read →My TikTok video got muted. What now?
Why TikTok mutes brand videos, why a mute isn’t the end of it, and what to do in the next hour.
Read →Is “original sound” safe for brands?
The label only means someone uploaded the audio. What’s often hiding inside, and how to check.
Read →Can I use a song in a Spark Ad?
Boosting a post turns it into an ad. Why the creator’s trending song usually isn’t cleared for that.
Read →Is a sped-up or remixed song safe to use?
Changing the speed doesn’t change the owner. Why sped-up and remixed hits are still a risk for brands.
Read →Creator usage rights: how long can you run a creator’s video?
Typical usage terms, organic vs paid rights, and how to plan renewals before an ad outlives its license.
Read →Lawsuits 9
What happened, what was claimed, and what other brands should learn.
Lawsuit tracker: brands sued over music in social posts
Every brand we know of that’s been sued over music in social posts, with damages claimed.
Read →Sony v. Bang Energy: the ruling that made brands liable for influencer videos
The 2022 ruling that held a brand vicariously liable for music in its influencers' videos. Required reading for creator programs.
Read →Warner Music v. Crumbl: the TikTok lawsuit, explained
159+ songs, a joke about trending audio, and a settlement in 2026. What the Crumbl case teaches brands.
Read →Sony Music v. Kroger: 392 alleged uses across 19 banners
392 alleged uses, 19 banners, an expired 2020 license and influencer ads. The most detailed brand complaint yet.
Read →Warner Music v. Luxottica: 427 works across Ray-Ban, Oakley and more
Warner's biggest brand suit yet: 427+ works across an eyewear group's brand accounts. Filed October 2026.
Read →Sony Music v. Marriott: what happened and what brands should learn
931 alleged uses across hotel accounts and paid influencers. The case that showed location accounts are the brand's problem.
Read →Music publishers v. 14 NBA teams: what happened and what it means
14 NBA teams sued by music publishers over highlight videos in 2024. All settled by May 2025.
Read →Warner Music v. PacSun: 290 works and a letter that came first
290+ works and a cease-and-desist sent 21 months before the suit. What fashion retailers should take from PacSun.
Read →UMG and Concord v. Quince: creators, reposts and a swapped song
A creator's video, reposted with a hit song swapped in. The Quince case and what it means for creator programs.
Read →Templates and checklists 3
Copy, fill in and use.
Music copyright checklist: 12 questions before you post
Twelve questions to answer before any brand or creator video goes live. Copy it into your workflow.
Read →Creator brief template: music rules for sponsored content
Music rules to paste into every influencer, UGC and affiliate brief, written so creators actually follow them.
Read →Brand music policy template for social media
A one-page music policy your social, creator and agency teams can actually follow. Copy and adapt.
Read →By industry 12
The music risks specific to your category.
Your install ads run on trending sounds. Labels have noticed apps before.
App install ads and gaming creators run on trending music. Check your app's posts, creator videos and ads for songs that aren't cleared, before a label does.
Read →Your creators make the routine videos. The songs come back to you.
Beauty runs on creator videos and trending sounds. Find out which of your posts, creator videos and ads use songs that aren't cleared, before a label does.
Read →Try-on hauls sell clothes. The songs can sell you a lawsuit.
Quince, PacSun and DSW were all sued over music in social videos. Find out which of your posts, creator try-ons and ads use songs that aren't cleared.
Read →The taste test went viral. The song wasn't licensed.
Drinks and snack brands run on creator videos and trending sounds. Bang Energy lost on key claims. Find out which of your videos need a fix, before a label does.
Read →Your class playlist is licensed. Your class videos probably aren't.
Your class music license doesn't cover TikTok. Check your studio's posts, instructor videos and ads for songs that aren't cleared, before a label does.
Read →Room makeovers sell. The soundtrack can cost you.
Room makeovers, cleaning videos and DIY content run on music. Behr Paint and J&J faced music claims. Check your posts, creators and ads before a rights owner does.
Read →The Marriott claim came from the properties, not head office.
Sony's 2024 claim against Marriott centered on property-level social posts. Check every property's TikTok and Instagram for music that isn't cleared.
Read →Fifty locations, fifty social accounts, one brand on the lawsuit.
Crumbl and Chili's both faced music claims over social videos. Check every location's TikTok and Instagram for songs that aren't cleared, before a label does.
Read →Kroger, DSW, PacSun. Retail is on the lawsuit list.
Kroger, DSW and PacSun were all sued over music in social posts. Check your brand, store and creator videos for songs that aren't cleared, before a label does.
Read →Fourteen NBA teams learned this one the hard way.
Fourteen NBA teams, MLS and the AHL faced music claims over social videos. Check your team's highlights, hype videos and player content before a rights owner does.
Read →Your gym creators pick the songs. The claim names your brand.
Supplement brands live on creator videos, affiliates and paid boosts. Find out which videos use songs that aren't cleared for marketing, before a label does.
Read →Sony sued USC over athletics videos. Your teams post the same way.
Sony sued USC in 2025 over songs in athletics social posts. Check your university, athletics and team accounts for music that isn't cleared, before a label does.
Read →By role 5
What it means for your job.
Know every post is safe before your boss or a record label asks.
Record labels are suing brands for millions over social posts. Know your exposure, fix it fast and show the board you checked. Independent, human-reviewed.
Read →Fifty locations posting. One brand getting sued.
Every location posting its own TikToks multiplies your music risk. Check franchise and location accounts in one pass and give every manager the same simple rules.
Read →Know your company's music exposure before a label sends the list.
An independent inventory of music and creator-rights issues across your company's TikTok, Instagram, creator and ad content. Built for in-house legal teams.
Read →Your creators pick the songs. Your brand carries the risk.
Creators pick the songs. Your brand carries the risk, and the usage rights you paid for run out. Check both before you repost, boost or renew.
Read →You picked the sound. You'll be asked about it.
You post daily, pick trending audio and boost what works. Know which posts use music your brand isn't cleared to use, before your boss or a label asks.
Read →Tools and services 5
Free checks and trackers.
When a client gets a label letter, they call you first.
When a client gets a label letter, the first question is who approved the song. Check creator content before delivery and offer clients an independent check.
Read →See how many red posts you have
Type your TikTok or Instagram handle and see how many of your recent posts use music you’re not allowed to use. Free, no login, results in about a minute.
Read →Your Reels sell. Make sure the songs in them are allowed to.
Check your Reels, creator partnership posts and Meta ads for songs that aren't cleared for brand use and creator content past its license.
Read →Never run a creator’s video past its rights again
Track every creator’s usage rights in one place: paid or organic, platforms, start and end dates. Get emails 30 and 7 days before rights run out. Free.
Read →Your affiliates pick the songs. You carry the risk.
Your affiliates pick the songs. You boost the videos. Find out which affiliate videos and Spark Ads use music that isn't cleared, before a label does.
Read →General information, not legal advice. Platform rules and licenses change; check the current terms or ask your lawyer about your situation. Lawsuit figures are as reported and represent claims, not findings, unless noted.