A recurrent challenge for labels is a lack of transcribed lyrics in their catalogs; some report lyric coverage as low as 1%. But this is changing. What AI can do in combination with lyrics is a huge win for sync, licensing and overall catalog potential — which is why the topic took center stage at this year’s Music Tectonics.
On October 23, Music Tectonics held a panel to discuss real-world examples of labels using AI to tackle pitching music, compliance with DSPs, discoverability and more.
The panel was called “AI is for Labels, too” and speakers were AIMS co-founder Einar Helde, AudioShake co-founder Jessica Powell, Nettwerk Director of Sync & Microlicensing Joey Goldberger and music industry executive Jason Feinberg.
During their conversation, one opportunity stood out: the often overlooked power of lyrics.
For some labels, up to 90% of music searches have a lyric component. Often, a request is tied to a topic, theme or sentiment. With advanced transcription and AI searches, asking for “a track about togetherness” is enough to find every relevant track in a catalog of millions.
This makes lyrics a fundamental part of the actual music delivery process, as it opens up 100% of a catalog with each search — and drastically increases the catalog’s value.
There’s a lot more to the impact of AI on labels, so let’s get into specifics.
Accurate lyrics & AI search crucial for sync professionals
During the discussion, Joey said he’s always seen accurate lyrics as a crucial asset for any sort of music delivery — and he’s happy to see the industry coming to a similar conclusion.
“I have an ego, I do want to be thought of as the catalog expert,” Joey said. “But ultimately, I want to get the artists I work with more placements, and the best way to do that is to be able to pitch the right songs for the right scenes — and the best way to do that is to use these AI tools that will enable me to find the right song.”
The way he sees it, not having to rely on memory or things he’s worked on in the past is a win. He gets to explore “treasure trove assets” that haven’t been fully exploited, either because they’ve been forgotten or they’re buried under tens of thousands of songs.
“These tools make my job easier, and make me someone who music supervisors say, ‘He was pitching some good songs. Where’d he find them?!'”
Lyrics help with DSPs, fan engagement & interaction
Known as the most accurate lyric transcription service, AudioShake has worked with tons of labels. Jessica has seen lyric coverage as low as 1% — but even more surprisingly, the highest has been 35%. Those who are improving their numbers are getting ahead, fast.
Right now, labels are tapping into a well of creative opportunities by working with lyrics. That includes lyric videos, social media, fan-made content and marketing. AI can also isolate elements from old audio formats to make them usable in new productions, which is invaluable to both legacy labels and new artists.
But according to Jessica, an even bigger boom is under way.
“There’s a huge opportunity for labels to think about different ways that fans can interact with music. I’ve seen a sea of change in terms of how labels have thought about that in the past 18 months, and I’m really excited to see what’s going to launch in the next two years.”
Lyrics also play a significant role when distributing to DSPs. Compliance with requirements involves not only delivering lyrics but also ensuring they are time-stamped word by word and formatted to meet the specific needs of each platform.
But to be clear, the issue isn’t just that lyrics are missing. Many are also wrong. One reason is that lyrics change during the creative process, and rewriting them at the end of an arduous recording session isn’t particularly fun. Which is why what AudioShake does “certainly fits into the bucket of getting rid of super tedious human tasks.”
AI lyrics search is the answer to ~90% of requests
AIMS has been providing AI music searches based on similarity and natural language for years, and there’s one thing the world’s leading labels asked for most: a lyric-based search.
“80–90% of their searches have a lyric component,” Einar explained. “So we decided to create something where you can search for topics, themes and sentiment based on lyrics.”
AIMS delivered a Lyrics Search deemed a goldmine for labels with massive catalogs. It has a profound understanding of what lyrics suggest, not just what they say. But to use it, labels must have lyrics. For that, AIMS turned to AudioShake and a partnership was born.
Once a catalog or library has lyrics in place, it can leverage Lyrics Search to find music about something, like a Spanish song about love or even platonic love (like friendship). Results aren’t tied to the word love; it’s about the sentiment, not the word.
“Because our search understands any language, topic or theme, you can dig deep into a catalog and find things that you've never found before,” Einar said.
One of its many use cases is creating topical playlists. For example, searching for Christmas gets results that can be about snow, winter or a holiday atmosphere — a process that activates the entire catalog and finds music that hasn’t been heard in years.
A reminder to always partner with the right providers
While AI significantly enhances workflows, all speakers agreed that it does not replace human touch and understanding. The AI tools discussed during the panel support rather than replace — enabling professionals to focus on high-value, creative tasks.
Advice to all labels boiled down to two parts: leverage AI tools to do your job as best as you can, and partner with AI tech providers committed to the same values as you.