Hello Mo Folk,

I have a music licensing question for any and all who would like to chime in. I have set a personal goal to license at least 40 tracks to 5 different companies between now and the end of March. I am currently doing research on licensing agencies. I wanted to know which ones have worked for mo’ folk on this forum. I know Johnny Boy is signed up with a few. I have been accepted by the Pump Audio website and am also looking at Musicsupervisor.com. Any suggestions on these sites or others? Please start the discussion. Thanks!.....

(Keyfax, please go back to the previous setup for this website. I don’t even like signing on anymore. LOL)....

Have you looked at TAXI?

Thanks for the reply TonyPhillips. I have looked at Taxi, but in today’s economy I do not have the $300 to spare just to join. Are you having much success with it?…

Here is the story on submissions for TV and film. Music supervisors
for tv and film rely on “screeners” to submit songs and tracks to them. They never visit the online sites like Pump Audio - never.
They don’t have the time to wade through that stuff.

The screeners accept “some” submissions, but mostly rely on word of mouth from people they know - sometimes they see someone playing locally and get impressed, or they contact artists that have a buzz going on. Some screeners use Taxi, it’s true. How do you know who
is a screener? You don’t, they don’t advertise. Many of them don’t
list themselves in music resource guides at all.

Your best bet is to get the 2009 Musicians Atlas (available from Amazon.com), and go through the list of TV and Film Music Supervisors and also Music Publishers. Checkmark the ones that DON’T have “no unsolicited material” included in their info.
This will narrow your list down substantially. Then follow the
instructions for submitting material for each entity. All of them
have different requirements. Many still want a full CD (with nice
packaging). Some will ask for a contact letter of introduction first.

It’s REALLY helpful to have a website of your own up. Much better
than posting on any of these sites like Pump Audio. The number one
help to my own music has been my own website. You can list your
website in a letter or an e-mail, and people can go right to it and listen to what you post there immediately. They don’t have
to enter a password or search through menus and pages of other
artists, or become members of the website in order to use it.

Keep in mind that your tracks have to be master quality, which means they have to be as good as what you currently hear on TV and in film. If you don’t know how to arrange, mix, and master you need
to start learning that now. Remember you are up against successful
people who have loads of talent and in many cases have already had placements. Your family and friends’ opinions of your music don’t count. Be ruthless in your objective analysis of your tracks. If you didn’t “know you”, would you buy the music you are submitting?

On the positive side, bear in mind that out of all the music out there, only about 10% of it is really commercially viable. The rest
is delusional crap. The good stuff will find a home, but only if it is relentlessly promoted. Submit your stuff and then forget about who you submitted it to. If they hear it and like it they will contact you. Keep writing and submitting. Music is like athletics - the more you “work out” at it, the better you’ll get.
Word - what there is still a lack of these days are great SONGS.
There’s tons of “background tracks”, beats, soundscapes, what have you. You can buy pre-programmed stuff like that anywhere. But great songs are still hard to come by.

Excellent advice Dave!