YouTube Adds New Crediting Feature For Songwriters, Labels And Publishers

May 16, 2018

YouTube is now live with their newest feature which credits songwriters, labels and publishers on premium music videos as well as fan-uploaded content. The new section titled “Music in this Video” can be found by clicking the ‘show more’ button which drops down into a list of credits for the appropriate people, as well as links to the official artist channel and official music video when available.

This means that if you are watching anything from a makeup tutorial, travel vlog, instructive videos, to comedy skits, and you like the song that’s playing in the background, you can now access the song and see who created it.

The company made a heartfelt statement in their most recent blog about the feature launch:

“YouTube is committed to providing recognition to all of the people who contribute to the creative process, and this is just the beginning. Through our industry partnerships we will expand the scope and quality of data to ensure all creators are credited as completely and accurately as possible”.

Despite how much and often they are used, online streaming platforms lack in providing creator credibility apart from only the artist, continuing the pattern of keeping the “back-of-house” creators in the shadows behind the artists’ spotlight. This is due to the overall lack of online data, but new partnerships between labels, streaming services, publishers, and licensing societies are helping alleviate this. Spotify added a similar feature to their platform earlier this year, which eventually led to the creation of ‘Music in this Video’ for YouTube.

Elton John commented, “songwriters are the heart and the soul of songs, so it’s wonderful seeing them get the credit they deserve. There is so much more we can do to establish a better situation for music creators and this is a great step forward.” We couldn’t agree more- this is a substantial stride towards a more immersive and knowledgeable music experience for everyone. Accessing this information is now easier than ever, skyrocketing new possibilities of discoverability for consumers. The “Music in this Video” feature is live now, go check it out and see who has been making your favorite songs.