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On Friday (May 22), Universal Music Group (UMG) and TikTok announced a new multiyear strategic licensing agreement which will benefit artists such as Drake, Lady Gaga and covers new developments such as AI.
“We’re proud of the pioneering work we’ve done with TikTok to create wide-ranging benefits for our artists and songwriters,” said UMG Executive Vice-President & Chief Michael Nash in the press release. “With this new agreement, we look forward to driving innovative new fan experiences, while further improving social media monetization, and protecting and amplifying human artistry.”
The new agreement builds upon the initial deal between the music label and the global social media giant that was announced in 2024 that allowed artists and songwriters to gain greater royalties from TikTok. Before, UMG had issues with TikTok’s payments, claiming it was “trying to build a music-based business, without paying fair value for the music.”
In the new deal, both companies committed to furthering their involvement in artificial intelligence (AI) development opportunities, adding “protections that promote human artistry and ensure platform economics effectively flow through to artists and songwriters.”
The agreement for UMG and TikTok also states that the two will “work together to remove unauthorized AI-generated music,” and strenghten artist and songwriter attribution on the social media platform. It builds on earlier partnerships that UMG has struck with Udio, Splice and Nvidia.
“We’re excited to take our partnership with UMG to the next level, and build on the strong foundation we’ve already created together for artists, songwriters and fans,” said TikTok Global Head of Music Business and Development Tracy Gardner in the press statement. “TikTok is a unique platform where music discovery, culture and fandom intersect, and this 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.”
