Continuing its challenge to TikTok, YouTube is introducing the ability for users to incorporate, or “remix,” music videos into short-form videos called Shorts. Given that YouTube has a vast library of official music videos that TikTok doesn't have, it makes sense for the platform to leverage that to advance its short-form video ambitions.
The move comes weeks after Universal Music Group removed its song catalog from TikTok and removed the ability for users to add music from popular artists like Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish and Ariana Grande to their videos. It is particularly important because it was carried out.
There are four tools Shorts creators can use to remix music videos on YouTube. The Collaborate tool allows you to display music videos next to your own videos. For example, you can use this tool to create a short video where you dance to the music video's choreography while the music video plays alongside your own video.
The “green screen” tool allows you to use your music video as the background for your short video. This format can be used for reaction videos. Many people upload videos reacting to new music videos for the first time, and this format makes that process easier. The “Cut” tool allows him to take a 5-second clip from the music video and add it to his short video. The Sounds tool, on the other hand, allows creators to extract sounds from music videos and use them in short videos.
Image credits: YouTube
To start this feature, you need to go to the music video you want to remix to Short, tap the “Remix” button, and select one of the four tools. Not just any music video can be remixed, as YouTube notes that in some cases, artists or music labels may not allow shortcut creators to remix their music videos.
“On YouTube, you can watch a music video over and over again, check out other short videos your fellow fans have made from the same song, discover detailed catalog cuts from your favorite artists, and remix them as your own to capture the moment. ,” Sarah Ali, senior director of product management at YouTube, said in a blog post. “All of that in one place with her, and only YouTube can do that.”
Ali outlines that Shorts offers features not available in competing products such as TikTok and Meta's Reels, giving it an advantage over its competitors.
Today's announcement comes months after Google revealed that YouTube Shorts now receive over 70 billion views per day. The company previously reported that his daily views were 50 billion in February 2023. Although the difference in numbers indicates healthy growth, his daily views on short videos still lags behind Reels. Meta revealed in October last year that Reels received 140 billion daily views on both social networks.
Meanwhile, YouTube Shorts is still trailing TikTok, perhaps the most popular short-form video platform.