TikTok will lose even more songs over its dispute with Universal Music Group. The video-sharing platform shared the news that it is starting to remove the songs published by UMG.
Earlier, we reported that UMG announced that they failed to reach a deal with TikTok’s parent company over royalties. As a result, the platform had to remove all the songs distributed by UMG.
But now, TikTok will have to remove all the songs written or co-written by artists signed to Universal Music Group as well.
TikTok released a statement stating, “We are in the process of carrying out Universal Music Group’s requirement to remove all songs that have been written (or co-written) by a songwriter signed to Universal Music Publishing Group, based on information they have provided. Their actions not only affect the songwriters and artists that they represent, but now also impact many artists and songwriters not signed to Universal.”
This will impact a lot of artists who are not signed to UMG but have publishing deals with the label. These artists include Harry Styles, Steve Lacy, and SZA, according to a report from Rolling Stone.
Earlier this month TikTok started removing songs from UMG artists like Taylor Swift, Drake, and Olivia Rodrigo, after the fallout between the two companies. This has resulted in many TikTok videos with UMG music silent.
TikTok emphasized that they are committed to reaching an equitable agreement with UMG. TikTok quotes, “In the meantime, music lovers can continue to enjoy, discover and share millions of tracks from artists, songwriters and labels on TikTok, and we will continue to connect all artists – including those whose music is not currently available on our platform – with their fans.”
