Music is half of a video. It can make it or break it, helping it either become an immersive, engaging experience or a distracting annoyance. Using the right music is just as important as using the right visuals in a YouTube video, so let’s take a look at how to add music to a YouTube video.

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How music can benefit your video

Music taste is, of course, subjective, but it shouldn’t be considered separately from video. Music and video complement each other, and when paired correctly music can elevate your videos to a whole other level.

Using music in videos is all about supporting the tone and the pacing. With a thousand different types and genres available it can be difficult to know what to use for your video, so take the time to see what other creators are doing. What’s in fashion at the moment in videos in your niche? Is it ambient synth or is it smooth jazz?

Just remember that the music should complement what is happening in the video. You wouldn’t pair a calming, ethereal orchestral piece over a fast-paced extreme sports video, and heavy metal music probably won’t work too well for a calming video about nature.

Whatever you choose, don’t expect to get it totally correct the first time. Pick a few tracks from a royalty-free library and experiment to see what works for you.

How to add music to a YouTube video

There are two ways to add music to a YouTube video. You can either use YouTube’s built-in music library feature, or you can use your own video editing software.

YouTube’s library is useful if you are in a hurry to upload something like a quick vlog update. You can upload a video to YouTube, pick a track from the selection, and post it. The downside is that you won’t have much control over it to adjust volume or edit certain sections. To retain complete control over your content you should edit it in software like VideoStudio Pro.

Use VideoStudio Pro to edit your videos

VideoStudio Pro is an all-in-one editing suite for creating YouTube videos and professional video productions. One of the key features is the audio editing tool, which lets you mix music perfectly with dialogue to make sure the settings and levels are just right. You can trim sections, remove sections, fade in and out, and generally customize the way your music interacts with the video.

By doing this you will be able to create something which much more closely reflects your original vision for the content, and you won’t be restricted by YouTube’s own tools.

Use YouTube's music tools carefully

Music can make or break a video, so it’s important to take your time with finding the right track and experimenting with what works and what doesn’t. Research what other creators are doing and decide for yourself what the best approach is for your own videos. Although YouTube does offer a limited library of royalty-free stock music, use software like VideoStudio Pro to add royalty-free tracks and edit them to work with the visuals. Download your free trial today!

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