How do you plan ads on music YouTube channels?
Part of YouTube channel planning
The short answer
Plan music YouTube channels by who runs them. Official Artist Channels and label channels carry licensed releases; Topic channels are generated by YouTube; lyric and re-upload channels are run by third parties. Read titles and thumbnails for profanity before lyrics, keep collections of other artists' songs off the plan, and choose genres by market with YouTube Charts.
Key takeaways
- An Official Artist Channel needs at least one official release delivered by a music distributor or label, and merges the artist's Topic and Vevo subscribers.
- YouTube says Topic channels can contain user generated content and convey no editorial opinion from YouTube.
- Under YouTube's guidelines, profanity inside a song can still earn ad revenue, while profanity in a music video's title or thumbnail earns limited ads.
- YouTube's reused content rules list collections of songs from different artists as not monetizable, even with the artists' permission.
Which music channels are safe for advertisers?
Safety on music YouTube depends less on the genre than on who operates the channel. The same song can appear on the artist's official channel, on a label's channel, on an automatically generated Topic channel, on a fan's lyric channel and on an anonymous upload of a full album. Those are five different placements with different owners, different rights and different risks. A music plan names the operator for each channel before it judges fit. The YouTube channel planning guide covers the plan structure; this page covers what music adds.
| Channel type | Who runs it | Planning view | Main thing to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Official Artist Channel | The artist, with label or distributor releases | Strong fit, judged release by release | Explicit titles and thumbnails on new releases |
| Label and distributor channels | A record company or distributor | Good fit for genre wide reach | Mix of artists, some outside the brand's tolerance |
| Topic channels | Generated by YouTube | Usable, with care | User generated uploads collected alongside official ones |
| Lyric video channels | Official artists, or third parties | Official lyric videos fit; third party ones need review | Whether the channel has the rights it claims |
| Covers and original musicians | Independent creators | Good fit for discovery and personality | Claimed covers and inconsistent upload quality |
| Full album and playlist uploads | Anonymous accounts | Leave out | Reused songs with nothing added |
How do lyric channels differ from official artist channels?
Definition
- Official Artist Channel
- A YouTube channel that brings an artist's content and subscribers together. YouTube says it merges "subscribers from your topic channel, Vevo channel (if available), and your existing channel", and requires "at least 1 official music release on YouTube that has been delivered and distributed by a Music Distributor or Label."
The Official Artist Channel help page (opens in a new tab) ties the status to an official release, which gives a buyer a clear test of who controls the content. Topic channels are a different thing. YouTube's guide to finding artists (opens in a new tab) says a Topic channel is one "YouTube auto-generates", titled with the artist's name followed by "Topic", that "Topic channels can contain content from an artist channel, as well as user-generated content", and that they "don't convey any editorial opinion on the part of YouTube." A Topic channel is a collection, not a curator.
Lyric channels split in two. An official lyric video sits on the artist's or label's channel and inherits that channel's status. A third party lyric channel posts words over a recording it does not own, and its value to a brand depends on whether the upload is licensed, claimed or simply unchecked. YouTube's Charts and Insights help (opens in a new tab) counts lyric videos and "User-generated content that uses the official song" toward Top Songs, so a song's popularity says nothing about which channel carries it.
Checks that confirm a music channel is official
- The channel is the artist's Official Artist Channel or belongs to the label or distributor named on the release.
- The channel's recent uploads are the artist's own releases, performances or behind the scenes videos, not other artists' songs.
- Lyric videos on the channel come from the artist or label, or the third party uploader names its license.
- The About section of any Topic channel has been read, and the channel is planned knowing it may include user uploads.
- Where ownership is unclear, the channel goes to the client with sample videos rather than onto the plan.
How should explicit lyrics be handled?
YouTube's advertiser friendly guidelines (opens in a new tab) treat music as a special case. They say "context is very important" and that music videos "may contain elements such as inappropriate language, references to soft drug use, or non-explicit sexual themes, and still be suitable for advertising." "Most profanity used within music or stand-up comedy video content" can earn ad revenue. "Profanity used in the title or thumbnail of music or stand up comedy content" receives limited ads, and stronger profanity in titles or thumbnails, or slurs anywhere, earns none.
Account settings move the line further. Google's content suitability help (opens in a new tab) says Limited inventory "excludes moderate profanity and sexually suggestive themes, even in mainstream content like music videos or makeup tutorials", and that it "may limit your reach and performance." A brand that picks Limited gives up music videos with moderate profanity by design, so the choice belongs in the brief, not in a setting changed after launch.
How do re-upload music channels show up?
Re-upload channels can surface in searches for popular songs, and they can carry ads. YouTube's Content ID help (opens in a new tab) says a match lets the rights holder block, monetize or track the upload, and that "any of these actions can be geography-specific", so a re-upload can carry ads in Canada and be blocked in the United States. The copyright claims guide covers how claims work.
Whether an ad can run there is a separate question from whether the channel belongs on a plan. YouTube's channel monetization policies (opens in a new tab) list "Collections of songs from different artists (even if you have their permission)" among reused content, which the policy describes as material repurposed "without adding significant original commentary, substantive modifications, or educational or entertainment value." Slowed, sped up and looped versions with a static image sit close to that line. A channel built that way adds nothing the official channel does not already offer.
| Upload type | What it is | Planning view |
|---|---|---|
| Full album or playlist uploads | Complete releases posted by an account that does not own them | Leave out; the official channel carries the same songs |
| Slowed, sped up or looped versions | An existing recording altered in speed or repeated over a still image | Leave out unless the channel shows real production work of its own |
| Fan concert recordings | Phone footage of a live show | Review by hand; sound, crowd language and rights vary by video |
| Genre mixes by named curators | Sequenced sets with transitions by a known DJ or curator | Client decision, with proof the mixes are licensed |
How do you plan music channels by genre and market?
Five steps to a genre and market music pool
- Start from the charts for the country. YouTube's Charts help says music charts are "available in 61 countries or regions", with Canada and the United States among them, and Music Insights "shows you what's popular in cities and regions around the world."
- Turn chart artists into channels. Chart rankings combine official videos, lyric videos and user uploads, so map each artist back to the Official Artist Channel and label channel before adding anything.
- Search creators by genre. Google's Creator search help (opens in a new tab) recommends "1-3 keywords", such as a genre plus "covers" or "producer", to find independent musicians with their own audiences.
- Ask the right party for audience data. YouTube's insights sharing setting (opens in a new tab) is available to Partner Program creators "with the exception of Official Artist Channels", so audience geographies for artist channels come from the label or the artist's team.
- Plan Quebec in French. A Canadian plan that includes Quebec needs French language artists and channels, found through Canadian charts and French search terms.
What does a music channel plan look like on a real brief?
Fictional example
Music channels for a wireless earbuds maker in Tennessee
An unnamed wireless earbuds maker wants YouTube ads in English for adults 18 to 34 in Nashville, Memphis and Knoxville, Tennessee, beside country, Americana and hip hop music. The client accepts explicit lyrics in songs but refuses profanity in titles and thumbnails.
The planner reads the United States charts and Music Insights for the three cities, maps chart artists to their Official Artist Channels and label channels, and adds independent musicians found by genre and city searches, for a pool of 58 channels. Eleven lyric and album upload channels without a named license leave the plan. Two hip hop artist channels move to single video placements, keeping clean releases and dropping videos with profane titles. One Topic channel stays after a review of its uploads. Audience data for the artist channels is requested from the labels.
How does PlacementGraph help plan music YouTube channels?
Frequently asked questions
Are cover song channels a good fit for brands?
They can be, when the musician performs and the channel shows a steady audience of its own. Covers use someone else's song, so some uploads may be claimed by the rights holder and earn for them instead. Sample recent covers for sound quality, profanity in titles and whether the creator's original songs appear too.
Do Shorts that use a song count in YouTube Charts?
In a chart of their own. YouTube's Charts help describes Daily and Weekly Top Songs on Shorts charts ranked by the number of Shorts that feature a song, and says Shorts views are excluded from Music Insights totals. A song that trends on Shorts may have little long form presence, so plan Shorts and long form music separately.
Should a brand avoid a whole genre because of explicit lyrics?
No. YouTube's guidelines grade music by each video's title, thumbnail and content, and a single artist can release explicit and clean versions of the same song. Set the line on titles, thumbnails and lyrics, then apply it to each channel. Excluding a genre outright also removes artists whose catalogs sit well inside the brand's tolerance.
Do a campaign's own ad views push songs up YouTube Charts?
No. YouTube's Charts help says "Paid advertising views on YouTube don't count toward YouTube Charts." A label promoting a release with ads does not move its chart position through those paid views, so a chart rank reflects organic viewing of official videos, lyric videos and user uploads that use the song.
Sources
- Introduction to Official Artist Channels (opens in a new tab)YouTube Help
- Find music from artists you like (opens in a new tab)YouTube Help
- YouTube Charts and Insights (opens in a new tab)YouTube Help
- Advertiser-friendly content guidelines (opens in a new tab)YouTube Help
- About content suitability (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Help
- How Content ID works (opens in a new tab)YouTube Help
- YouTube channel monetization policies (opens in a new tab)YouTube Help
- How to navigate and use the Creator search tab in YouTube Creator Partnerships (opens in a new tab)Google Ads Help
- Manage channel insights sharing with third-party advertisers, brands, and platforms (opens in a new tab)YouTube Help
Researched and written by PlacementGraph Research. Read how we research, source and update these pages. Corrections: diana@placementgraph.com.