As of January 31, 2024, if you are a fan of Stonebwoy and a content creator on TikTok, you might not be allowed to use any song that is listed under the Universal Music Group. Any existing videos with UMG’s music will be muted or removed. Below is why.
Three key issues prevented the two companies from reaching a new agreement on how much TikTok should pay UMG for using its music, so UMG decided to remove the entire song catalog from TikTok:
- Appropriate compensation for their artists and songwriters,
- Protecting human artists from the harmful effects of AI, and
- Online safety for TikTok’s users
DTS Africa says it is exhausting to build a music-based company on TikTok without paying songwriters and artists fairly, and UMG says TikTok is not paying enough for music.
Furthermore, UMG accuses TikTok of violating their copyright and trying to intimidate and threaten them into accepting a bad deal. Essentially, they claim that TikTok only contributes around 1% of its overall income, demonstrating how little money the platform pays for music.
TikTok disputes UMG’s accusations and expresses dismay and disappointment at UMG’s preference for its greed over the needs of its songwriters and artists. With every other label and publisher, TikTok has artist-first agreements in place, so it claimed that UMG’s actions are not in the best interests of songwriters, artists, and fans.
TikTok argues in its defense that it has a billion users who adore music and that it serves as a free platform for UMG artists to promote and be discovered.
In short, there will be fewer music options available to content creators when making videos. You will also be left out of some viral challenges and trends that revolve around UMG songs like “Apotheke” and “Into the Future.” Furthermore, there is a chance that some of your favorite UMG-musical videos will be muted or disappear from TikTok.
