As the music industry continues to enforce the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) across all video sharing platforms, creators have to use music that won’t get their content flagged. Most of these platforms have their own audio library full of music that’s DMCA-compliant. To expand its library, Facebook announced the Independent Artist Program.

The Independent Artist Program is a new initiative from Facebook to expand its audio library by featuring more indie artists. In a deal with DistroKid and Tunecore, Facebook will add new indie artists to their music library and allow them for usage in videos on Instagram Stories and Reels. To get your music into the library, you must apply on either DistroKid and Tunecore’s website and not be signed to a label. Since all the music featured in the library is free to use, using unsigned creators means Facebook won’t have to deal with record labels.

Overall, the Independent Artist Program seems like it will benefit both indie musicians and creators. Here’s how:

Indie artists will receive money for their work

While it’ll be free to use all of the new tracks added, musicians will receive money every time their song is in a video on Instagram Stories and Reels. In addition, musicians contributing to the program have access to analytics to see how many people are using their songs. According to Facebook, the amount musicians receive depends on the distributor’s terms.

Helps artists get their name out

Exposure can go a long way. We’ve seen artists blow up on platforms like TikTok when their songs are in a viral video. Musicians in Facebook’s program have an opportunity to get their name out there and have their songs reach a larger audience. They can track how many people are using their songs to determine just how many people they’re reaching.

Expands Facebook’s DMCA-compliant library

With copyrighted music pretty much out of the picture, the more free music that creators have access to the better. Creators are free to use the music included in Facebook’s audio library however they want in their videos without fear of being flagged. While the program helps musicians, it also helps out the creator community on Facebook and Instagram by protecting them from DMCA infringement.

If you are interested, you can apply for the program on DistroKid and Tunecore’s websites.