7 Overused Royalty-Free Songs (and how to use them)

There's absolutely no shame in using stock music. The trick is in the sourcing. Buddy – iMovie. Buddy is an excellent example of how a song can ... HomePodcastReviewsBestPodcastsof2020BestPodcastsof2019BestPodcastsof2018PodcastRecommendationsbyGenreArtPodcastsAudioDramaFictionPodcastsBusinessPodcastsComedyPodcastsEducationalPodcastsHealth&FitnessPodcastsHistoryPodcastsHorrorPodcastsKids&FamilyPodcastsMoviePodcastsNews&PoliticsPodcastsSciencePodcastsSci-FiPodcastsSportsPodcastsTechPodcastsTravelPodcastsTrueCrimePodcastsTVPodcastsPodcastRecommendationsbyEpisodeBestNPRPodcastsCallHerDaddyEpisodesCriminalEpisodesHiddenBrainEpisodesHowIBuiltThisEpisodesJoeRoganExperiencePodcastEpisodesLastPodcastontheLeftEpisodesPlanetMoneyEpisodesRadiolabEpisodesStuffYouShouldKnowEpisodesThisAmericanLifeEpisodesReplyAllEpisodesWTFwithMarcMaronEpisodesPodcasterResourcesPodcastEquipmentBestPodcastMicrophonesCheapUSBMicrophonesBestPodcastHeadphonesBestUSBMixersBestiPhoneMicsBestXLRCablesBestPopFiltersStartaPodcastPodcastHostsBestPodcastHostingServicesLibsynvs.PodbeanPodcastHostReviewPodbeanvs.BlubrryPodcastHostReviewBestFreePodcastHostingBuzzsproutvs.Libsynvs.PodbeanPodcastHostReviewBuzzsproutvs.Libsynvs.SpreakerPodcastHostReviewPodcastStatistics&Figures2020GrowYourPodcastAboutSubmitforaPodcastSpotlightSubmitforthePodcastoftheDayBecomeaContributorDiscoverPodAuthorsAffiliateDisclosureDiscoverPodsAwardsContact7QualityPodcastAppsonAndroidYouNeedtoTry(AndOneYouShouldn’t)2hoursagoTheBestTechPodcastsforCoolNerdsApr26,2022OurFavoriteHorrorAudioDramaPodcastsApr19,202215AudioDramaPodcaststoGetYouHookedonFictionApr14,2022The25BestJoeRoganExperiencePodcastEpisodesApr7,2022HomePodcastReviewsBestPodcastsof2020BestPodcastsof2019BestPodcastsof2018PodcastRecommendationsbyGenreArtPodcastsAudioDramaFictionPodcastsBusinessPodcastsComedyPodcastsEducationalPodcastsHealth&FitnessPodcastsHistoryPodcastsHorrorPodcastsKids&FamilyPodcastsMoviePodcastsNews&PoliticsPodcastsSciencePodcastsSci-FiPodcastsSportsPodcastsTechPodcastsTravelPodcastsTrueCrimePodcastsTVPodcastsPodcastRecommendationsbyEpisodeBestNPRPodcastsCallHerDaddyEpisodesCriminalEpisodesHiddenBrainEpisodesHowIBuiltThisEpisodesJoeRoganExperiencePodcastEpisodesLastPodcastontheLeftEpisodesPlanetMoneyEpisodesRadiolabEpisodesStuffYouShouldKnowEpisodesThisAmericanLifeEpisodesReplyAllEpisodesWTFwithMarcMaronEpisodesPodcasterResourcesPodcastEquipmentBestPodcastMicrophonesCheapUSBMicrophonesBestPodcastHeadphonesBestUSBMixersBestiPhoneMicsBestXLRCablesBestPopFiltersStartaPodcastPodcastHostsBestPodcastHostingServicesLibsynvs.PodbeanPodcastHostReviewPodbeanvs.BlubrryPodcastHostReviewBestFreePodcastHostingBuzzsproutvs.Libsynvs.PodbeanPodcastHostReviewBuzzsproutvs.Libsynvs.SpreakerPodcastHostReviewPodcastStatistics&Figures2020GrowYourPodcastAboutSubmitforaPodcastSpotlightSubmitforthePodcastoftheDayBecomeaContributorDiscoverPodAuthorsAffiliateDisclosureDiscoverPodsAwardsContact+1Tosaylicensingmusicforpodcastsis“tricky”wouldbeanunderstatement.Whetheranepisodeisgettingmillionsofdownloadsorthree,itcountsasabroadcastthatcanbeaccessedtheworldover,openingtheuploadertotheterrifyinglytangledspaghettimessofinternationalcopyrightlaw.It’senoughtosendapodcasterrunningforthedeepforest,resignedtoalifeofbuildingmicrophonesoutofstickstointerviewwoodlandcreatures.Squirrelscan’tfilecopyrightcease-and-desistletters(yet).Fortunatelyforuspodcasters,theworldhaskind-heartedmusicianswho’vebeengraciousenoughtomakehundredsofhoursworthofmusicavailableroyaltyfreewithproperattribution.Unfortunately,themorenewmediamatures,themoreofachanceaneasily-discoveredtrackissomethingthatother,farmorepopularcreatorsgottofirst. Thisdoesn’tmeanthosetracksareentirelyoffthetable,mindyou,butitdoesmeanthere’samuchhigherchanceyourtargetaudiencealreadyhasamemoryassociatedwiththatsong.It’snolongergenericbackgroundmusic,it’s“thatsongfrom____.”Congratulations,you’vebeenbamboozledintoadiscussiondisguisedasalisticle!We’reallusingthesamebuildingblockstomakepodcasts!Joinmeonthisadventure. BrokeforFree–AddAndWestartwithalittleice-breakerdemonstrationthatfreemusiccanbefoundanywhere,includingcontentcreatorswho’rerackingupmajorcash.Withmillionsofsubscribersandfrequentguestspotsonhugechannels/televisionshows,BingingwithBabishisacookingjuggernautonYouTube.Hisoutro?BrokeForFreebyAddAnd.That’sright,herocksaroyalty-freeoutro(afterditchinglegally-dubiousFrasierandRatatatclipsfromhisearlyvideos,atleast).There’sabsolutelynoshameinusingstockmusic.Thetrickisinthesourcing.Buddy–iMovieBuddyisanexcellentexampleofhowasongcanbothbeusedwithinaninchofitslifeandstillhavesomeuseleft…ifoneiswillingtoputtheworkin.BeingastocksongthatcamewithApple’svideoeditoriMovie,Buddyhasbeenaroundsince2006.TheopeningtensecondsofthesonghasbeenimprintedonYouTubeaudiencememberstheworldover.It’sastapleofRedLetterMedia’spopularHalfintheBagseries,aswellastheintroductiontoChefJohn’sFoodWishesrecipevideosforthepast13years. Ifonescrubspastthosefirsttenseconds,though,there’ssectionsofthesongonewouldbehard-pressedtoidentifyasbeingfromBuddy.Smarthistory’svideos,forexample,selectaslicefromnearthemiddleofthetrackthat,dodgingthosewell-treadsecondsandaccidentallyevokingmemoriesofsnarkymoviereviewsorwholesomepun-filledrecipes. BroadcastNews–iMovieForthesakeofbrevityI’mgoingtopackageinBroadcastNewswiththeKevinMacLeodtrackNewsSting.Theybothservethesamepurposeasasongandservethelargerpointofthispiece.Whetheryou’reavideoeditortryingtocreatea“breakingnews”skitorapodcastertryingtoapeanewsbroadcastinyournextaudiodrama,thesearethefirsttwomusicstingsyou’remostlikelytofind.Which,byextension,meansthey’vealsobeenusedhundredsoftimesbythispoint.JustlikeBuddy,bothsongshavebeenaroundforthebetterpartoftwodecades.Carefree–KevinMacLeodOhboy,Carefree.Thesongthatlaunchedathousandvlogs.It’simpossibletoknowforsurehowmanytimesthischeeryxylophoneandukelelecombohasbeenusedacrosstheinternet,butit’scertainlybeenusedsomuchit’softenmocked.Whiletherearehundredsofroyaltyfreesongsfeaturingukulele,Carefreehasbeenusedtothepointwheremostcommentarychannelsusetheterm“royaltyfreeukelele”theymeanCarefree.It’sbeenusedsomuchit’sbecomeanironicjoketodeploythesong,awaytoquicklycommunicate“thisisaparodyofcheesycontent.”There’sanargumenttobemadeCarefreemightbethemost-heardroyalty-freesong.LocalForecast–KevinMacLeodDoyouneedelevatormusic?DoIhavethesongforyou,butit’salsobeenaroundtheblockquiteafewtimes.It’sbeenacerbicmediacommentarychannelIHateEverything’sthemeforthebetterpartoffouryearsnow,butwith2-ishmillionsubscribersandaspecificaudienceit’snotaslikelypeopleassociateitwithbeinghistheme.Thissongismoreknownasthesongchosenifapersoninapodcastcomeswithinfiftyfeetofawaitingroom,elevator,ormall.SlapsomereverbandEQonitforthat“distantspeaker”vibeandboom:freemuzak.MonkeysSpinningMonkeys–KevinMacLeodMuchlikeLocalForecast,thishasn’tnecessarilybecomethesongof[insertinternetpersonality]butitdoesgettonsofairtime.It’salsowhereIrevealabigreasonwhyKevinMacLeodissoprominentonthislist:hiswebsiteallowsuserstosearchbymood.Incompetech’seasy-to-usecheckboxsystemallowsincrediblygranularcontrolofwhatoneisshowninasearchreturn.PluginthetermsBouncy,Bright,Humorous,andUplifting,usersgotashortlistofsongswithMonkeysSpinningMonkeysnearthetop.Incompetech’smusicispopularforgoodreason!MacLeod’sstuff isawesomeandroyalty-free.Thatsaid,it’seasytotraceagooddealoftheseoften-usedsongstoaneditorwhodidn’tgopastthatfirstbroadsearch.MonkeySpinningMonkeysis,inavacuum,anexcellentsongforamischievousorbrightscene.Outsideofthatvacuumit’sasongthat’sbeenusedtothepointofmeme-dom.Asofthiswritingit’sbeenmakingtheroundsasapopularsoundonTikTok.ForthepastfewyearsDanBellhasuseditandseveralotherMacLeodtracksintheseriesAnAnotherDirtyRoom,ashowinwhichfourfriendsgototheworsthotelsanddodeepinspectionstoshowjusthowfilthytheycanget.Happyflutestakeonadifferentcontextwhenyourfirstexposuretothemisfootageofslimybathroomsandcockroaches.DreamyFlashback–KevinMacLeodThisoneisabitofacheat,asI’mnotjusttalkingaboutDreamyFlashback,I’malsotalkingaboutnineothersongsusedinthesoundtrackofthespaceship-buildingsimulatorKerbalSpaceProgram.Likealotofindiedevelopers,SquadmadeliberaluseofMacLeod’slibrarytofillgapsleftbytheirin-houseproducedtracks.WhetherSquadintendedtoswapoutthesoundtracklaterorleaveitas-is,thesongshavebecome“thesongsfromKSP”formillionsofplayersandpeoplewatchingonYouTube.Ifavarietygamingchannelexistedbetween2013and,well,now,it’slikelythey’vetakenaswingatbuilding(andblowingup)arocketfullofKerbins.KerbalSpaceProgramisaprimeexampleofhowstockmusiccanbeaneffectivetoolwhendeployedwell.MacLeod’sBrittleRillehadbeenusedbeforeandhasbeenusedsince,butputinthecontextofbeingbackgroundmusicwhiletheplayerdesignstheirnextrocket…itfeelsright.DreamyFlashbackisintherotationofsongsthatplayoncearockethassuccessfullyenteredorbit,amomentofreliefandsuccessthat’sdifficultforbeginnerstoachieve.MacLeod’sfloatyharpfeelsintrinsicallylinkedtoseeingouterspace.—————–Theaboveisbynomeansanexhaustivelistofroyalty-freemusicthat’sgainedwidespreaduse,IbarelyscratchedthesurfaceofMacLeod’sofferingsalone,buttheyareagoodstartingpoint.Oneoftheoldestlessonsincreativewritingis“goodwritersread.”Thatmindsetcarriesoverintonewmedia.Inthesamewayfictionwriterscanevolveorbuildonthesametoolseveryoneelsehasusedfordecades(e.g.Vonnegut’sstoryshapes),streamers,videographers,andpodcasterscanbringtheirowntwiststotheparty. I’vedoneitmyself!Wheneditingasceneinwhichsomeoneseesspaceforthefirsttime,IendedupusingDreamyFlashbackknowingfullwellsomelistenersofasci-fiaudiodramaaremostlikelygoingtobefamiliarwithKerbalSpaceProgram.Evenifitdoesenduppiggybackingofftheaudience’sfamiliaritywithanotherthing,they’reboththesamevibeofwonderandexcitement. Bygoingbeyondthatfirstsearchterm,diggingalittlefurtherpastthefirstfewresults,askingfellowcreatorswhattools/sitestheyuseintheirownworks,andpayingattentiontohowpeoplecreatingthemediaweenjoyuseroyalty-freeassets,podcasterscandodge(orknowinglyembrace)widely-knownsongsusedforaspecificpurpose.Goodluckoutthere. And,mostimportantly:makesuretoproperlycreditandthankthefolksprovidinguntoldhoursofmusicforfree! PreviousStoryBestpopfiltersforpodcastsNextStoryPodcastSpotlight:Dumbgeons&DragonsGavinGaddishttp://gavingaddis.comGavingottheirstartinjournalismrevivingalong-deadnewspapertheirfreshmanyearofcollegeandhasn'tstoppedwritingsince.Thepodcastingbugbitin2017andnow,whennotproducingpodcasts,hewritesabout'em.Trainsalsoseemtobearecurringthemeforhim,nobodyknowswhy.RelatedPosts7QualityPodcastAppsonAndroidYouNeedtoTry(AndOneYouShouldn’t)2hoursagoTheBestTechPodcastsforCoolNerdsApr26,2022OurFavoriteHorrorAudioDramaPodcastsApr19,20221commentPingbackSpotifyDemosShareable‘VisualQuoteCards’forPodcasts-Podcasts.MarketingCommentsareclosed.