{"id":2428731,"date":"2026-05-22T22:58:29","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T22:58:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2428731"},"modified":"2026-05-22T22:58:29","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T22:58:29","slug":"universal-music-and-tiktok-ink-new-multi-year-licensing-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/universal-music-and-tiktok-ink-new-multi-year-licensing-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"Universal Music and TikTok Ink New Multi-Year Licensing Deal"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Photo Credit: Jonathan Kemper<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Universal Music Group\u2019s inked a fresh multi-year licensing deal with TikTok, which is teeing up expanded marketing campaigns and doubling down on efforts to decommission AI deepfakes.<\/h2>\n

UMG and the self-described \u201cbest platform for music discovery and promotion\u201d unveiled their latest partnership agreement today. As usual, the companies opted against shedding light on the payout particulars and other hard numbers at hand.<\/p>\n

But to put it one way, many are aware that the video-sharing app\u2019s promo capabilities are more valuable than its straight licensing payments.<\/p>\n

Upon disclosing that his own business had reupped with TikTok, Warner Music head Robert Kyncl in February touted<\/a> the pact\u2019s inclusion of \u201cstructural changes that better reflect the value of music\u201d \u2013 albeit while acknowledging TikTok revenue\u2019s being \u201cin the lower single digits for the company.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bearing as much in mind, Universal Music and TikTok touched on plans to spearhead bolstered \u201ccreative and commercial opportunities for UMG\u2019s\u201d roster, besides expanding the aforementioned marketing campaigns and access to ecommerce tools.<\/p>\n

Of course, we aren\u2019t without indications of what the campaigns might look like in practice; Olivia Rodrigo\u2019s \u201cdrop dead\u201d last month benefited from \u201ca global karaoke experience\u201d<\/a> push on TikTok, where Paul McCartney is set to promote his forthcoming The Boys of Dungeon Lane <\/em>album with a May 27th TikTok Live premiere event.<\/p>\n

The remainder of the UMG-TikTok release is similarly light on concrete details; the entities noted their plans to \u201cunlock new opportunities across discovery, fandom and digital experiences\u201d under the tie-up, for instance.<\/p>\n

Back to the artificial intelligence side, the companies intend to \u201cwork together to remove unauthorized AI-generated music from the platform, while further improving artist and songwriter attribution.\u201d <\/strong><\/h4>\n

Time will tell what this entails, though more of the same \u2013 identifying and then axing a quick-growing number of deepfake uploads \u2013 seems like a distinct possibility. To be sure, the above AI quote is nearly identical to that which appeared in the release announcing the 2024 UMG-TikTok reconciliation on the heels of a licensing showdown.<\/p>\n

That said, the 2024 deal\u2019s announcement made no mention of \u201cartist development initiatives.\u201d Now, however, the app and the major are poised to plug \u201cemerging artists from all over the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a statement, UMG EVP and chief digital officer Michael Nash highlighted plans to drive \u201cinnovative new fan experiences, while further improving social media monetization, and protecting and amplifying human artistry.\u201d<\/p>\n

And in remarks of her own, TikTok global head of music business development Tracy Gardner indicated that \u201cthis agreement will help create even more opportunities for artists and songwriters to engage audiences, grow their communities and achieve career success on a global scale.\u201d<\/p>\n

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