How Much TV Royalties Pay For Sync Placements

[@Sypooda]

Thank you for the knowledge brother. I’ve been able to live full time off of music for a few years now through beat sales and mixing/mastering. This industry has its ups and downs so it’s definitely smart to have multiple streams of income once another slows up. One day I’ll get my foot in the door with sync placements. Truly appreciate the guys like you giving out free information! 💯

[@lindabrittain4392]

Thanks for sharing this Jesse. It is good to see the realism in the numbers and the fact that in comparison we are not performing quite as badly as we might have imagined!

[@JhayCMusic]

Always appreciate your transparency and wisdom in the biz Jesse. Thank you

[@fretnoize]

I hit a prime time CBS sitcom coming out the gate at the start after my first album was submitted, so I was like "wow, this is easy!" Hahaha... nope, I just got lucky. Thrilled to have that placement and all the smaller ones I've since got, but it really set up my expectations too high. Without much of a catalog to pull in more placements, it didn't really grow. My catalog is larger now, so I'm hoping it's gonna turn around soon, in the meantime, just gotta keep making tracks. Also trying to branch out revenue paths. The streaming payouts are the same for me, so much lower. Streaming seems so popular, and it's so convenient it's hard to imagine it's still beat out by broadcasting. Goes to show we all live different lives, guess there are still tons of people that love to sit on their couch flipping channels.

[@samueltenahu6066]

First of all congratulations on all your sync license success thus far 🙌🏽 that's real inspiring 🙏🏽 I have wondered though, have you synced up music that you've already released on streaming platforms? if so was there any issues? It's a side hustle I'm looking at pursuing as a producer and indie artist myself. appreciate any feedback 🙏🏽 thank you

[@fretnoize]

@@samueltenahu6066 I'm pretty sure if you own the publishing rights, you're good to do whatever you like with the music...

[@samueltenahu6066]

Yeh bro thought that! I own all my publishing and masters so that's no stress 🤙🏽

[@dn-anonymous]

Streaming means lots of weaker shows.

[@fretnoize]

@@dn-anonymous I think I'll have to concede that to you. Assuming by "weaker" you mean smaller audiences, because as a viewer I love having tons of options. But, the CBS show I mentioned was recently brought to Netflix and my last statement showed it earned just about the same as I did from syndicated TBS broadcasts that quarter. Most I've earned in any quarter on a show from streaming. Even though it's been on other services, it did like 6 or 7x more than on anything else. I guess that's why they say "netflix and chill" and not "hulu and chill" haha. I'm curious to see how much those numbers might drop from the initial introduction of the show on netflix, we'll see what happens next quarter...

[@Winfree]

Thank you so much for sharing this information with us! I've been receiving radio royalties for some of my works, for about 15 years or more, and I have seen the up and down of the pay scale. It is a mystery, as you've shared, how they calculate their rate of pay, but it's been a great experience with BMI. I'm going to continue building up my library as well!

[@prodcountryjames]

Hey thanks for sharing in detail. I recently got my first placement with Bravo "Summer House, Martha's Vineyard' the excitement was a different high lol.. I feel like this is a investment so over time you will see a nice return on everything you put into this. Thanks again!!

[@SyncMyMusic]

Congrats!

[@rogocomposer]

Suddenly I feel like what I'm seeing on my royalty statements is pretty normal. I was always imagining SOME of these numbers you have up were low. Thanks for sharing!

[@SyncMyMusic]

Glad it helped!

[@Naundros]

Working with someone who get a lot of syncs t finally get my first after years of thinking about it this is exciting to think about thanks

[@Dabaldi69]

Thanks, definitley motivation for my 13 year old grandson who's really taken a real interest in sync placements. Appreciate the info!

[@SyncMyMusic]

Glad to help and cool to hear of a young person getting serious about his career!

[@jithendravs]

Thank you so much for sharing these realistic numbers!

[@curtisguyer3917]

love your transparency here. it's a breathe of fresh air. thanks for all your information man, really appreciate it!

[@shaggydogrecords6003]

Thank you for your transparency, Jesse. It's good to see the real numbers.

[@SamuelJohnson-jr1bx]

Thank you this was very informative and you gave some great information & tips

[@audiowithinmusic7274]

Thanks for sharing!

[@lovemusic8405]

very encouraging. Because it lets us know exactly what we are aiming for, and helps set healthy expectations. . Transparency and light on this are amazing. Thank you. I am really looking forward to getting started, personally.

[@EtherealLifeRecords]

This IS encouraging because of the multiple sources of income, not just one, and the various formats (TV, film, internet, etc.) that use your music! The way you explained it makes sense over time: the compounding interest effect. The pennies and nickels all add up. Thanks again, Jesse, for this great video! Btw, would you know of any good exclusive libraries that specialize in or have prime openings for 1) old school synth-based Hip-Hop/Rap 2) classic (80's/90's) video game (plus some cinematic) Chiptune-esque styles or 3) IDM and semi-experimental electronic genres? In my research so far, I don't yet know how niche these would be considered, and thus how to search for them, so the discovery process is difficult in that respect.

[@SyncMyMusic]

Glad you found it motivational! And those genres are pretty niche - it would be tough to find a Library that needs those specific types of sounds. I'm sure they exist, but the amount of time it would take to find them might not be worth the effort.

[@annastasiayoder5605]

So grateful for the transparency, thank you!

[@jasonlucero]

Thank you for your transparency 🙏🏽

[@l3official691]

what platforms were the shows streamed on?

[@ROBBIEP]

great video. i would say its worth looking into the sync licence agreements tiktok, meta ect have made with PRO's. some of these licences were done prior 2020 however now with the tech advancements and how people use social media now i've been getting decent royalty payments altho a ways to go before it covers my costs

[@SyncMyMusic]

I will certainly be more open to those sources of income as the economy and people's behaviors change.

[@sweetersongs5219]

Congrats Jesse! Fab stuff!

[@Snax_Musician]

Can‘t you look at TuneSat to find the show in Germany that your music was featured on? Also are the shows listed on your BMI statement?

[@scottaumann]

Thanks for the breakdown. I agree that you need many little income streams to add up to make it worth while. But it is doable.

[@clintmillent]

So what would you say you may annually min and max?

[@KIJAI]

Thank you🙏🏿

[@brettclarinmusic]

Thanks for sharing this. Very informative. I think I may sign up 😊

[@supatrav9250]

Very informative! Thank you!

[@JureJerebic]

Here in Europe, we're paying around 12 EUR a month for TV licenses (as users / viewers of TV and radio). So the fact that a music producer could not even cover THOSE costs is truly depressing. But true, consistency and quality will produce results.

[@TrawaazRecords]

yo what best website for sync licensing?

[@dailyexpresso8316]

Do you think discovery channel, internationally aired, 12 eps, 12 weeks could pay well ? 5 cues per episode

[@clivesweet]

I'm curious what kind of time frame these amounts are coming in over. Is this over the course of a month? A week? A year? Great info though, thank you for sharing this!

[@olobeatz9404]

I feel very motivated now thanks

[@wan]

Thanks for the insight! Do you get sync fees along with all of these placements? If so, how does those look, are they bigger/smaller?

[@SyncMyMusic]

In my career I've only received a handful of Sync Fees (literally maybe 15-20 times total). Mine have ranged from about $1K to 7K each. They're not super common when working with Production Libraries, but they're a nice cherry on top of your performing rights royalties.

[@wan]

@@SyncMyMusic Thank you for the info 🙏

[@MaPa60]

Tnx for showing the reel deal!

[@dthemanager]

I have a question my producer just landed a back ground beat instrumental in a film but we are wondering how much we should charge them per play ? It’s a indie movie that’s hitting film festivals. I’m a manager by the way , this is our first movie sync placement.

[@dn-anonymous]

Fascinating, but all of it feeds into a funnel i call the “formula” - for X plays of Y seconds of BI (background instrumental) you get $Z. How is that handled? Is it separate contracts, and who negotiates? (Sorry if you gave that info and I missed it).

[@SyncMyMusic]

BMI and ASCAP just set those rates themselves, based on their own internal formulas and the total amount of blanket fees they have collected from the TV and cable networks. There's no transparency on any of that for us unfortunately.

[@elliottmatenge2128]

thank you for sharing brotha!!

[@adeolabigleaf]

Good day, please I have registered my songs on BMI and I have received all my checks for 2022 but I haven't received any retroactive royalties for 2021 please someone help me with information on what to do?

[@WillyJunior]

Great info as always. Do you know how much jingles pay vs background instrumentals?

[@SyncMyMusic]

Can't give you specific numbers, but in general jingles and themes pay WAY MORE than background cues. They just provide way more value.

[@WillyJunior]

@@SyncMyMusic Nice! I guess it massively depends on what time of day and what show as well. I hate asking for numbers but let's say someone had a track on a 15 second commercial during Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC, to choose a popular show... What kind of ballpark figure might we be looking at?

[@SyncMyMusic]

@@WillyJunior Well one individual airing could be anywhere from a few bucks to thousands and it's mostly impossible to accurately predict. My highest single track placement was $1,700 for an Al Jazeera promo (go figure). I've also had tracks placed in national ads that earned maybe a couple hundred bucks. One major downside ot this business is the lack of transparency from the PROs in terms of why we earn what we do.

[@WillyJunior]

@@SyncMyMusic Thanks! I appreciate the info

[@markrushtongallery]

What explains the difference between broadcast (OTA + cable/satellite) TV sync royalties vs subscription TV sync royalties? I'm going to guess that the biggest difference is the lack of ad dollars on subscription services. You are absolutely correct about "the numbers game" aspect and to not get married to any particular track, placement, or library.

[@SyncMyMusic]

Yeah that's my suspicion too. Not enough ad dollars there...yet.

[@SimonePhoenix]

Besides your complete honesty about this business, the other MAJOR reason I appreciate you, Sir Jesse, is you’re a POSSIBILITY thinker! I see what you did there with that “yet”. 😉 Respect!

[@infinitemelodiesmusic]

Thanks for this!

[@ivantorrent495]

Hey! Do you use Songtrust or other publisher administrator? Is it necessary for the musician?

[@SyncMyMusic]

No I don't. I've only collected royalties through BMI w/ TV/Film Sync licensing.

[@KeithHutchinsonYT]

Thankyou very much for the insight, for sharing this info, very helpful indeed.

[@dafingaz]

Thanks for sharing! Let’s go!

[@clintmillent]

So i have a kardashians placement but whats that number under the word that 6 digit number?

[@chrisdunnettmusic]

It's honestly a bit depressing and not the video per se'...just how little Sync pays these days. I had a track on America's Got Talent shortly after the show first starting airing and my total then would have bought a fairly decent brand new car. I had a Christmas song on The Young and Restless Dec. of 2021 and got no Sync fee and have yet to see $200 in back end...I think I'm at around $184 currently for that one. When I started in Sync all the Musician had to do was write and Produce great quality music...the libraries took care of all the Metadata etc...now we have to do that. So we are working twice as hard for half as much.

[@BangerangBeats]

I just signed up for the free course.. but (?) Im a BMI member also should I register my tracks before submitting to libraries

[@libertas5005]

I think the library you submit to will register to BMI for you. But make sure you're sending it to a legitimate library, don't blindly send to everyone. Do some research before submitting just so you don't get scammed.

[@SyncMyMusic]

@@libertas5005 This is correct. Thanks for answering!

[@DoomYourGameAndMusicDeveloper]

as a producer would love too do this for playstation games and anime shows

[@IMDbStudio]

#Producers appreciates your insight Thank you

[@akidd7082]

How do you specifically pitch to film and tv series?

[@SyncMyMusic]

My method was to go though production music libraries: www.syncmymusic.com

[@marioptoledo]

Mr, what is this remix contest? is open to the public?

[@SyncMyMusic]

It's a licensing opportunity ONLY available to Sync Academy members.

[@supersporttheveteranmixer6289]

How do you go about getting recognized?

[@SyncMyMusic]

By who?

[@supersporttheveteranmixer6289]

@@SyncMyMusic how did you get your B.I. Recognized by any of the companies you mentioned in your video

[@JEHOVASAVES010]

How long should a track be to be considered licensable?

[@SyncMyMusic]

Normally 2-3 minutes, but it depends on the Library's needs.

[@danieldavismusic]

"Not more eyeballs on streaming"?? I don't know a single person who pays for cable. Everyone in my family and extended friends network subscribes to at least a few of the following: Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max, Paramount +, Netflix, Peacock, etc. Our PRO's need to be held to a higher standard and be transparent and pay fair rates to composers who are fueling the content that 95% of people are wathcing.

[@Crazysteve0017]

How I submit my songs to these types of placements ?

[@SyncMyMusic]

You would pitch your music to Production Music Libraries to represent you to the TV/Film industry.

[@Crazysteve0017]

@@SyncMyMusic any recommendations ?

[@SyncMyMusic]

@@Crazysteve0017 yep we offer many recommendations in our service: www.syncedge.me

[@Crazysteve0017]

Can I just buy the list without the subscription ?

[@SyncMyMusic]

@@Crazysteve0017 Yep: www.syncmymusic.com/musicdirectory

[@jaimegutierrez8457]

what about consideration fees or sync fees? are those what make up for the bulk of your salary?

[@SyncMyMusic]

In my case, neither of those make up the majority of my income. I'd say about 80% of my income comes from royalties while 20% comes from consideration fees and Sync Fees.

[@jonesy5185]

I wonder Jesse, whether or not you have considered starting your own library, pitching members work?

[@SyncMyMusic]

Considered it many times and decided it's not for me. Too much "desk work" - just not worth it for me.

[@BLSDENT]

you the 🐐for this

[@borisre]

Hi Jesse, thanks for your kinda courageous "getting out" here. If I understood it correctly, the last sheet from 2022 was in total about $1K for a quarter? Isn't that quite discouraging in terms of sticking to this business model? I've been in the music as a pro for some decades (managed a well paid alternative career though) and all I can say, it's become a really cruel market there. How it is to be expected that new generations of creatives take that (or similar) path in the future? All the best to you...

[@SyncMyMusic]

That's just the totals for THAT page, not my total royalties that quarter. What you see on that sheet is just a partial listing of my international placements (from Romania to the UK). It doesn't show any of my US royalties, which is where I earn most of my royalties. My income is much larger than 1K per quarter, but I don't share my exact income numbers for personal reasons.

[@borisre]

@@SyncMyMusic Thanks Goodness...that would have been unsustainable in any sense.

[@borisre]

@@SyncMyMusic If you don't mind reacting to all the comments (although the social media is one of the pillars of the contemporary promoting strategy), I would ask/comment as follows: I use(d) to play/compose/produce/mix/teach music for living and there is one unavoidable fact in the life of any musician (artist, that is). You have to make your product digestible to (at least) a necessary minimum of consumers in order to survive. How does that affect your creativity, or better said the inner surge to reach the hights of music creation, tat incomparable joy? For me, those"deals" were always a kind of...a thrift store, marketplace feeling. I spent much time in my life (66 now) on contemplating about that handicraft aspect of making music. Any thoughts?

[@SyncMyMusic]

Sync is all about making the client happy, so this may not be the right endeavor for you. There are times when your creativity will directly match up with a gig, but often times you're requested to make music to ensure a project works for the client - your creative needs aren't at the top of the list. @@borisre

[@borisre]

Actually, it is somethig like composing/producing music & SFX for theaters. I used to do this things some years ago. Although, one was a bit more a part of the project, some times even in the early stages. And despite the last decision been made by the director, it could have been satisfying, besides the money thing. Anyways, interesting channel here, triggered some reminiscent life episodes for me. Keep the good work))))

[@charliemcgrain]

I can't work out what this all adds up to across a year. What is the time frame? How much average per year? Also, I dropped a note on another video of yours, it would be great to hear a little of the track you made 500 bucks from the Kardashians, for example. Surely you can play sections of your own music on your own channel?

[@SyncMyMusic]

It takes about 2-5 years to see enough income that you can rely on it. There's really no "average", but I say that $20-50K/year is possible with solid, consistent work. You can get way above that range if you're able to secure jingle and theme placements.

[@dailyexpresso8316]

@@SyncMyMusic I have theme placements, are you sure they will be much higher? 1 minute of theme each episode on discovery channel. Show aired for 12 weeks, once a week, 100+ countries.

[@nopenada3449]

I'm 60. I have an incurable disease (from birth), so I have maybe ten years left (20 if I'm damn lucky). I have what it takes to be successful in this industry, but I don't know if I have the TIME necessary to make it happen. I have 8 successful albums in the ambient electronic genre. I'm with a BIG label (at least for this genre) and I'm getting about 26,000 streams per month in 138 countries. Not huge numbers, but not terrible either. The money is just not there yet, with regard to making a living, but I know that there's plenty of money in sync licensing if you're good. I just don't know if I can get to a level of income with the time that I have left. Of course, the decision is mine and I don't ask for advice there, but given my situation, I'm inclined to go for it, even knowing it might not pan out. I just want you to know, Jesse, that you're an inspiration and your knowledge is a Godsend. Whatever decision I do make, it will be based largely on the knowledge I have gleaned from you. Many thanks for sharing. I'm building a body of work geared specifically for sync licensing, some of which I will share with you when I sign up for your profeedback stuff. Thanks again for all you do, brother.🙏

[@SyncMyMusic]

Thanks for sharing your situation as that is not an easy decision to make given what you're facing. I did make this video last year which breaks down the main 4 reasons why I feel some producers should NOT pursue Sync Licensing. I encourage you watch it before you make your final choice: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bGOXqZKLaKqDars

[@tommody]

Appreciate the transparency as always. This reflects the quarterly PRO statements but were there initially up front sync fees for many of these placements? And did your libraries pay without issue? A friend has had a recent issue where he's starting to see PRO royalties then having to go back and inform the Library/Agent as no sync fees were received to date.

[@SyncMyMusic]

No, none of these had upfront Sync payments.

[@wickedmelodiesent.2051]

Awesome 😆!!!

[@klaatuklaatu1]

Thanks for the info man... After hearing this info, the odds are going down year by year that you can make a full time income since eventually everyone will be streaming. Its true as you say that streaming royalties will go up when more people stream. To me it is not worth quitting a day time job and spending hours and hours producing sync albums and end up getting 25 cents an hour when you finally get placements .. This is still such a cool hobby to make some extra cash but I don't see earning full time income long term.. What's full time income? 20K? 40?, 60k?, 100k?...

[@SyncMyMusic]

Totally understand your point of view and it might not be your full-time focus. "Full-time" income is a subjective number for everyone - for younger producers $20K could get them by. For older producers with families or higher expenses, 50K might be a minimum number to shoot for. It all depends on what your needs are vs. how bad you're willing to work for it.

[@dailyexpresso8316]

205 airings seems unlikely in a quarter, are you sure those 200 numbers don't mean something else ?

[@Bass_Estrada]

you have 4k bmi works, thats a big number! i have only 1.2k 😃

[@KWANTlZE]

what was the total amount

[@SyncMyMusic]

I don't share my income levels publicly (for personal and legal reasons), but my royalties were enough to cover all of my living expenses.

[@libertas5005]

@@SyncMyMusic What state are you in? Just curious so I can get a rough estimate in my head.

[@SyncMyMusic]

@@libertas5005 California now, but I was in Vegas for 4 years from 2013-2017

[@damonsummers]

Wow you need a better publisher and/or label I don’t think any of the companies I am a direct of have received anything less than ££100 for a Tv programme! Films are normally £500+ including other incentives !

[@DarrenCampbellmusic]

I've found royalties from KZbin to be not too bad

[@SyncMyMusic]

That's great to hear!

[@Pamelabono]

Thx for all of your great info! Are you submitting full length songs to the libraries? Also the income that you are receiving..is it generated from all new music consistently or prior submissions? Thx!

[@SyncMyMusic]

Yes my tracks are normally 2-3 minutes long and the royalties are always a mix of previous music I've created and the most recent stuff I've done.

[@Pamelabono]

Thank you!

[@jaimegutierrez8457]

From your royalties, have you made close to six figures?

[@SyncMyMusic]

I don't share my income levels publicly (for personal and legal reasons), but my royalties were enough to cover all of my living expenses (I live in CA).

[@LenGreenblat]

A few pennies or a few thousand dollars for just 10 seconds of my life's work? Makes it all worthwhile. 🙃

[@mareDBS]

What about AI in sync music?

[@SyncMyMusic]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZpbWYaurZbyGh5I

[@ChadLaniewski]

My royalties suck every quarter on cable reality shows. $30-$60. Mostly reruns

[@SyncMyMusic]

It took a long time before my royalties grew to the point where they paid my bills. It's a marathon, not a sprint. Hope yours picks up soon!

[@ChadLaniewski]

@@SyncMyMusic I’ve been doing it since 2014. So it depends on the publishers and libraries you work with.

[@itsrelativ3967]

Wow!!

[@aarongrubbmusic]

RE: Disney plus: Yikes!

[@aarongrubbmusic]

I spoke too soon. I should have said "RE: streaming"

[@brandona230]

7:20

[@JureJerebic]

"Not enough eyeballs on the streaming" HAHA. Yeah right. I would bet that there are way more people streaming rather than usual TV watchers. Wouldn't you say?

[@SyncMyMusic]

I have no way of knowing, but my hunch is that there's still A LOT of the older generation that's watching cable. I've often made the mistake of assuming most people consume like I do, but it's likely not the case.

[@JureJerebic]

@@SyncMyMusic Good point, my parents do the same

[@nicksaya]

A theme will buy you a house

[@akidd7082]

Woooow streaming is robbing people…

[@ILLGOOD]

Go back to my time. Play or debuted music on the radio or XM radio ONLY. No online play ever and if played online it becomes cryptic and you are sued. It has a code where it can't be copied and heard clearly. Sue anyone that takes the music outside of Radio play. Go back to the 1970's way things were done. People go back to buying and making a living. Artists should stop making music until we do all that I just said. STRIKE against online exposure. New artists can use ONLINE to come up and be heard but to release their finished song can be announced but not heard but on RADIO.

[@SyncMyMusic]

Has that suggestion (going back in time) ever worked out for anything, ever?

[@ILLGOOD]

@@SyncMyMusic We did it like that in my time. Social Media did NOT exist then.

[@SyncMyMusic]

@@ILLGOOD Both of those are true and irrelevant to my question.

[@libertas5005]

They're flat out lying that streaming has 'less eyeballs'. Who the hell pays attention to TV channels in 2023? I don't even have cable. My in-laws who are 65+ don't have cable TV. Everyone I know is watching streaming platforms. The only "TV" I'm watching is the weather channel and even that is being streamed through my Roku TV. What the heck??

[@SyncMyMusic]

Remember that the Baby Boomers are the largest generation and they have been the slowest to switch to streaming services. Yes the change is happening, but TV will be around for a long time to come due to the older generations being unwilling to switch over.