đŦ Guide
Where should video background music come from?
AI generation vs stock libraries
The thing you most want to avoid when using background music on YouTube or client work is a copyright claim. Here are the "generate it on the spot with AI" and "borrow from a library of professionally made tracks" approaches, compared on how certain the licensing is.
| Service | Type | How the licence works | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| SOUNDRAW | AI generation | You can generate a fresh track per video, so the same recording is unlikely to appear in someone else's (per the provider). But the licence is non-exclusive, SOUNDRAW retains the rights to the recording, and Content ID registration is prohibited by the terms | Producing a lot of background music that fits each video (using it strictly as background music) |
| Artlist | Stock library (includes AI-generated material) | Projects published while subscribed stay cleared after you cancel. Distributing a track on its own, presenting it as your own work, or registering it with Content ID are all disallowed | Professional-sounding tracks for film work and client deliverables |
| Epidemic Sound | Stock library | Epidemic holds the rights and exempts your channel from claims (a safelist). Videos published while subscribed stay cleared after you cancel | Creators working mainly on YouTube |
First: "AI generated it, so the track is mine" does not follow
"The AI generates it on the spot, so it won't clash with another video" is genuinely a point in its favour when picking background music. What you cannot derive from it is "therefore I own it" or "therefore I can distribute it or register it with Content ID". Whether the audio is unique, whether copyright subsists, whether you are the rights holder, whether you hold exclusivity, and whether Content ID will take it are five separate questions â and all three services above are non-exclusive material you are borrowing. Distributing a track on its own to Spotify as your own release, or registering it with Content ID, breaches the terms of all three (SOUNDRAW permits distribution only on its Artist Plan, and only where the track has been substantially altered).
Which to choose
- If you need many tracks that suit each video individually, SOUNDRAW â it is unlikely to overlap with other videos and the length is flexible (though the use is limited to background music)
- Artlist where the finish matters as film work, or where you are delivering to a client
- If YouTube is your main platform, Epidemic Sound's safelist approach is the steadier hedge against claims
Points common to all three â missing these leads straight to rights trouble
- None of the three permits distributing a track on its own, or registering it with Content ID or Rights Manager
- What happens after you cancel differs by service. "Videos published while subscribed remain valid" is the usual shape, but as a rule you cannot take a track you merely downloaded and use it in a new video after cancelling
- For client work, always confirm how "commercial use" is defined
- Licensing terms are revised frequently. Re-check the current terms before anything that matters
âģ Information reflects the last verified date above.