Music is a very powerful tool that can be used to build and change the atmosphere in an instant. It can make your stream feel relaxed, fill up the void when you’re tired of constant talking, or it can bring much-needed tension to your YouTube stream recap.
Since music gives creators a lot to work with, a lot of streamers use it without thinking and get in trouble for incorporating tracks protected by copyright into their work. This can result in numerous consequences, from getting your stream silenced or your video demonetized to being served a DMCA copyright claim by the musician. None of which are particularly pleasant and can be super stressful to deal with.
It’s not always easy to check the license of every song you would like to use.
To make your life easier and give you peace of mind, we compiled a list of handy copyright free music sources that can be your go-to places when putting together new content. In no particular order:
By far the most popular, accessible, and easy to use website with copyright free music. Since this app was tailor-made for live streamers, you can trust it to be stable and not too heavy on your internet connection.
It’s big, it’s bold, and it’s continuously growing. NCS is a huge library of no-copyright songs that you can use for your streams and videos, just don’t forget to read the small print here.
Massive YouTube channel filled to brim with copyright free music. Check out their About tab for all the details on use and credits.
A fantastic place if you are looking for variety. You can search the song library by genre and mood, and if you click any track, you can download it and see the license straight away.
This website deals mostly with sound effects, but they do have a vast collection of music, which is ok for both commercial and non-commercial use.
A great little collection of tracks across different styles and genres. Make sure to check out the license here.
Handy channel with clear guidelines and an impressive library of songs to choose from. They even provide you with a quick license cheat-sheet on how to credit them depending on the platform that you use.
Machinimasound is a tricky one – the new tracks are far from free, but they do have a collection of legacy music released before 2015 that you can freely use in your content.
If your platform of choice is Youtube, they also have their own music library. Easy to access, search and use, and convenient if you need something with that cinematic feeling to it.
Twitch Music Library, on the other hand, disappeared some time ago, and there is no news whether they plan to reinstate it in any way.
When using any kind of extra music in your streams, make sure that whatever you do, you don’t interfere too much with the in-game sounds. Blasting songs over the content won’t make your streams any more attractive if no one can hear you or your gameplay.
The golden rule is to have something in the background, just loud enough to fill in space between the silence, but not to take over the atmosphere.
And for all of you take are looking for free notification sounds, here are some great sources:
We did mention them before, but apart from a royalty-free music collection, they have a humongous selection of free sound effects. Feel free to browse; you will definitely find something interesting here.
A real goldmine. Thousands of free sounds that you can use as long as you credit the authors.
Frequently updated, transparent, and huge, FreeSound is one of the best free music sources out there. You can check the specific license in the lower right corner of each sample.
As long as you are careful, get your music from trusted and checked sources, it should keep you going for a good while.
But as your channel grows and you get more subscribers, you
may consider paid music options for that extra security and peace of mind. This extra professional touch and a guarantee of zero problems along the way can really be worth the price tag sometimes. Music artists need your support and giving back while promoting great music on your stream can be a very satisfying thing.