For artists
Does the Instagram or TikTok music library cover brand use?
No. The Instagram and TikTok music libraries are licensed for personal use, so a brand’s own posts and ads need their own sync license. If a brand used your song from the library, you’re usually owed the license fee.
Updated
Start your free checkWhat the library covers
- Personal posts by individual users: covered.
- A brand’s own posts, paid ads, boosted posts and influencer content made for a brand: commercial use, which needs a sync license.
TikTok runs a separate Commercial Music Library for business accounts, because brands need cleared music.
Why brands get it wrong
Social teams see a song in the app and assume it’s cleared. Marketers ask this on Reddit every week. That confusion is where most unlicensed brand use comes from.
What to do now
- Save the post. Keep the link, the account name and the date.
- Note who posted it. A brand account, or an influencer posting for a brand.
- Run a free check. We confirm whether it’s commercial use and what the license fee would have been.
Questions
Does the Instagram or TikTok music library cover brand use?
No. The libraries are licensed for personal use. Brand posts and ads need their own sync license.
What is TikTok’s Commercial Music Library?
It’s TikTok’s separate library for business accounts. TikTok runs it because brands need cleared music.
Does this apply to a business account using an “original sound”?
A sound made from your song is still your song. Brand use still needs a license.
Can I get paid if a brand used my song from the library?
Usually, yes. Brand use needs its own license, so the brand owes the fee it skipped. A free check shows what that fee would have been.