Getting your music placed in a movie, video game, or TV show could make your career, but it takes some steps to get there. Here are 4 steps for getting your music out of the this industry and into another.

by Rebecca of Reverbnation Blog

Landing a big sync placement can give you much needed financial support and exposure for your music as an artist, but it’s not easy. These opportunities are usually hard to come by because of the overwhelming amount of music that’s out there coupled with how many artists there are with the same goals as you. But this doesn’t mean all hope is lost when it comes to finding opportunities to get your music licensed.

Don’t forget about smaller placements, especially if you’re developing your experience

Not all sync placements are the same, especially in 2022. Getting a song picked up for a car commercial can be career-changing for an artist, but it’s an extremely rare occurrence. Smaller placements and micro-licensing opportunities won’t provide massive amounts of money or exposure, but they can help fund your career and bring your music attention in smaller ways. Also, making your songs available for small companies and independent content creators is helpful for showing music supervisors who might be in charge of bigger placements what your music looks and sounds like in media contexts. If you’ve never had your music licensed before, working with a micro-licensing company is a good place to start.

Make sure your sound has an intentional mood and direction

In 2022, your music does not have to be recorded and produced in a multi-million dollar studio in order to be licensed. But creating music with a clear direction in mood, production style, and genre will increase your chances at finding sync opportunities in a big way. Choose a sound and deliver it consistently to the best of your ability, whether it’s something radio-friendly or more lofi. A consistent approach will help curators know how to categorize your music and envision how it best fits with their projects. Your latest single might not be a good fit for someone’s upcoming placement, but if someone likes what you’re doing, they’ll consider you for upcoming opportunities.

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Take an active approach to pitching (Don’t assume music supervisors will find you)

If you wait for music supervisors and sync placement agencies to find you, your music may never get licensed. Similar to pitching to blogs, it might seem like sharing your music for music placement consideration is a waste of time, but it’s not. If your work is good enough, someone will eventually listen and choose to work with you. Keep in mind that doing this takes a lot of time, research, and follow up, but it’s worth it.

Think about the needs of content creators, but don’t come off as inauthentic

Doing this requires a delicate balancing act. You don’t want to force yourself to sound a certain way, but creating music that’s obscure, cryptic, and self-indulgent will be a lot harder to sync than music that’s accessible. If finding opportunities for your music to be featured in commercials, TV, and movies is a big priority, listen closely to the songs that you hear in the media you consume. This will give you an idea of what’s being chosen and the function songs provide for music supervisors.

Sync opportunities are hard for many musicians to get, but they aren’t impossible to find. This is an area of music that rewards independent musicians for making as much great, consistent music as they can and doing the tireless work of getting it heard by the right people.