UMG-TikTok Music Ban

Event
Event:	UMG Music Ban on TikTok
Participants:	TikTok
Date(s):	January 30, 2024-May 2024
Type:
Fandom:	Multifandom
URL:
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In January 2024, Universal Music Group (UMG) announced they would not be renewing their contract with TikTok, citing issues with artist compensation and AI. In February, all music licensed by UMG would be removed from the platform, and videos which included UMG songs would have their audio muted. Attempting to upload a video which included these songs would result in an almost immediate copyright take-down and muting. Because of this, TikTok users quickly began referring to the decision as a 'ban'.

Build-Up

When news of the ban reached TikTok in late January, fans were extremely concerned about the muting of thousands of fannish videos, including edits, cosplays, skits, and animatics. Many users thought this would be the end of the platform, and began making and sharing accounts on alternate apps. Others suggested 'returning to their roots' and using nightcore covers, glee cast covers, or slowed versions of songs.

For many fans, the largest concern was loosing edits, a genre of video which dominated fandom spaces on the platform. Fans primarily saved and cataloged edits using the 'favorite' button, an in-app function which allowed users to save videos to specific collections on their profile. These collections could have hundreds of edits saved to them, often being curated for years. Widespread anxiety about the muting of edits' audios lead some to begin downloading or archiving these videos, a practice which was relatively uncommon before this point.

Examples

• Realizing edits are going to be muted by @sstrawberrylemonade on Jan. 31
• Saving edits before they're muted by @thisloveisours28 on Jan. 31

Ban

The removal of music began on February 1st, with the in-app audio library losing all official versions of UMG songs. User-uploaded audios containing these songs would be slowly taken down throughout the beginning of the month, likely due to the extra work associated with identifying each individual audio. Some edits which contained dialogue clips playing over music were not muted, though this was not a hard-and-fast rule.

This lead to an atmosphere of suspense, as fans waited for edits to be muted, and attempted to download any which survived the first day. Some found ways to download muted videos with the audio intact by using third-party apps. Fans began posting tutorials for identifying which artists were signed to UMG, so editors could avoid using their music in future videos.

Many editors were upset by the ban, and posted memes and videos that resonated with the community.

Examples

• 'how life feels after our edits get muted just because tiktok is having a beef' , UMG edit by @ourmbb on Feb. 1, 2
• were you silent or silenced by @jcomer.vsp on Feb. 1
• An edit about the ban by @fores.tfire on Feb. 2
• Meme about the Josh Hutcherson edit being muted by @chaotic_disaster on Feb. 1
• Editors after surviving the ban by @moonknightsaturn on Feb. 1
• Half my saved edits are muted by @alexandraguvi on Feb. 1
• Saving edits by @lauryn_rydell1617 on Feb. 2
• Meme by @69sly_ on Feb. 1

Fan Response & Editing Trend

Main article: Non-Copyright Music Edit Trend

Despite the catastrophic mood of posts following the announcement, editors largely took the ban in stride. Almost immediately after the removal on February 1st, fans began devising ways to circumvent the copyright strikes, including using song covers, pitched-up versions, audio effects, parodies, and nightcore covers. Some users even recorded themselves singing banned songs, which editors used to replace their lost audio.

The most famous response, however, was the trend of not using UMG music at all; many editors didn't bother trying to get around the ban, instead opting to use a variety on non-traditional audios for their edits, usually for comedic affect. This trend was largely embraced by fans, who built a sense of community around the absurdity of the trend, and the collective loss of fanworks.

Examples:

• Satirical 'audios for edits' post by @relaxingdarkness on Feb. 3
• Editors are taking the ban better than imagined by @aryanna.bradley on Feb. 2
• Audios after the ban meme by @melodify47 on Feb. 3

Aftermath

Many editors deleted videos which had been muted, causing a larger loss of content than initially imposed by the ban. Some fans stopped posting edits altogether, or moved to other platforms, but the majority continued their fandom activities as normal. The music ban did not spell the end of TikTok, like many feared, and was largely regarded as a poor business decision on Universal's part.

Restoration

On May 1, Universal Music and TikTok announced they had reached a new deal, and UMG music would soon return to the app. Muted videos would begin to slowly regain their audio, and many editors began reposting their deleted edits, now that the ban was over.