3 Minutes of Music Knowledge: How To Use Music Feature on Instagram.

Instagram recently introduced the ability to add songs to photos and videos in Instagram Stories. Part of this feature is a new “Music Sticker” that can be placed on top of photos and videos before they’re shared.

It is important to note that the Instagram and Facebook music feature includes licensed and monetized tracks. If you use your own music in a post, or encourage your fans to do the same, this revenue will be paid to you through you streaming distributor.

Let’s state the obvious, Instagram and Facebook are massive music discovery tools. The ability to use licensed music in your stories and posts means you can use your own tracks in your Call To Action posts (CTA) and drive ticket sales, merch sales, new releases and other project related announcements using your music and even better, encourage your fans to do the same.

In subsequent posts, we will discuss how to boost and promote these posts using paid engagements, below are steps to using music on Instagram Stories.

Step 1: Once you’ve taken or imported a photo or video into Instagram Stories, tap the sticker button in the screen in RED BELOW.

Step 2: Tap the Music sticker to open Search Music function.

Step 3: Scroll through the list of songs Instagram presents you with, or tap “Search Music” at the top of the screen to search for a song manually.

If you tap “Moods” and “Genres” near the top of the screen, you can browse songs split into different moods, like “Love” and “Sleepy,” or genres “Hip Hop” and “Country.”

Step 4: By default, the sticker will begin playing at the very beginning of the song. If you want to select a different portion of the song to play, say a specific lyric or the chorus, drag the slider horizontally to select a new portion.

To preview the portion you’ve selected, lift your finger from the screen. Select Done.

See additional Instagram Music info here.

PRO TIP: It is up to you to check with your distributor and see of they deliver to Facebook and Instagram. This is a new feature and not all distributors currently provide, some distributors use a third party to deliver to Facebook and Instagram thus increasing timelines.

It’s time to get serious about the business of music.