Kevin MacLeod (/məˈklaʊd/mə-KLOWD; born September 28, 1972) is an American composer and music producer.[1][2] MacLeod has composed over 2,000 pieces of royalty-free library music[3] and made them available under a Creative Commons copyright license.[4][5] This licensing allows anyone to use his music for free, as long as he receives credit for the song,[3] and has led to his music being used in thousands of films, millions of videos on YouTube,[6][7][8] and in video games such as Kerbal Space Program.[9] As of 2017, his music is featured on one of the live feeds from the International Space Station, Earth From Space.[5] One of his compositions, "Monkeys Spinning Monkeys", is among the most-played on TikTok; from January through June 2021 it was played over 31.6 billion times.[10][11]
MacLeod states that he releases his music under Creative Commons licenses to maximize the number of people who can use his music.[13] On his website's FAQ, he expressed disdain for the current state of copyright; he hopes to create "an alternate body of works that is able to compete with them".[13][14]
MacLeod's most popular license is the Creative Commons Attribution copyright license; his music is free to use but must be credited.[15] A no-attribution license is also available for people who are unwilling or unable to provide credit to MacLeod; the license costs $30 for one song, $50 for two songs, and $20 per song for three or more songs.[15]
MacLeod has also created FreePD.com, which collects new public domain sound recordings by various artists. Rather than waiting for old copyrights to expire, he hopes to provide a quality library of modern recorded works by artists who explicitly release their music into the public domain.[16] Some of MacLeod's own music is available on the website as well; he explains that these songs are "not commercially viable in the traditional sense, and just add clutter [on his primary website] which hinders people in finding the pieces that they may want."[17]
Documentaryedit
MacLeod is the subject of a documentary film titled Royalty Free: The Music of Kevin MacLeod.[18] The film had a limited release in October 2020. Ryan Camarda, the film's director and producer, ran a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter with a goal of $30,000; by the end of the campaign, 524 backers had pledged a total of $30,608.[19] According to the Kickstarter page, the amount was needed for transportation in order to conduct in-person interviews with the various subjects featured in the film.[19] The documentary has received positive reviews from critics.[20]
Awards and accoladesedit
In 2015, MacLeod was awarded the International Honorary Web Video Award at the 2015 German Web Video Awards by the European Web Video Academy for his lifetime achievement in influencing the German web video community.[21][22]
Discographyedit
Albumsedit
2006: Dorney Rock
2006: Missing Hits 2
2012: Cuentos de Recuperación (with Sonia Echezuria)
2014: Horror Soundscapes
2014: Highland Strands
2014: Ghostpocalypse
2014: Calming
2014: Hard Electronic
2014: Madness and Paranoia
2014: PsychoKiller
2014: Supernatural Haunting
2014: The Ambient
2014: Cephalopod
2014: Dark World
2014: Disco Ultralounge
2014: Polka! Polka! Polka!
2014: Primal Drive
2014: Sadness
2014: The Descent
2014: Dark Continent
2014: Wonders
2014: Action Cuts
2014: Aspiring
2014: Light Electronic
2014: Medium Electronic
2014: Mystery
2014: Tenebrous Brothers Carnival
2014: Atlantean Twilight
2014: Healing
2014: Latinesque
2014: Take the Lead
2014: Thatched Villagers
2014: Happyrock
2014: Music to Delight
2014: Silent Film: Light Collection
2014: Vadodara
2014: Bitter Suite
2014: Comedy Scoring
2014: Double Drift
2014: Reunited
2014: Funkorama
2014: Oddities
2014: Silent Film: Dark Collection
2015: Christmas!
2015: Darkness
2015: Exhilarate
2015: Film Noire
2015: Fluidscape
2015: Netherworld Shanty
2015: Romance
2015: Video Classica
2015: Virtutes Instrumenti
2015: Ossuary
2015: Pixelland
2016: Maccary Bay
2016: Mystic Force
2016: Anamalie
2016: Final Battle
2016: Carpe Diem
2016: Groovy
2016: Mesmerize
2016: Traveller
2017: Shadowlands
2017: Destruction Device
2017: Spirit
2017: Ferret
2017: Teh Jazzes
2017: Miami Nights
2018: Spring Chicken
2018. Sheep Reliability
2019: Meditation
2019: Epic
2019: The Complete Game Music Bundle
2019: Complete Collection (Creative Commons)
2020: SCP-XXX
2020: Relaxx
2021: Missing Hits
2021: The Waltzes
2021: Missing Hits C to E
2021: Missing Hits N to R
2021: Missing Hits Calmness
2021: Missing Hits F to J
2021: Missing Hits K to M
2021: Missing Hits A to B
2021: Missing Hits S to T
2021: Missing Hits U to Z
2023: Over The Moon
2023: Changes (with ON THE TRACK)
2023: Robotik Party
Singles and EPsedit
2011: The Cannery
2013: Happy Bee
2014: Tranquility 5
2014: Sneaky Snitch
2014: Fluffing a Duck
2014: Orrganic Meditation
2014: Touching Moments
2014: Impact
2015: Guts and Bourbon
2015: Somewhere Sunny
2015: Garden Music
2016: Vicious
2017: Ever Mindful
2018: Magic Scout: A Calm Experience
2018: Laserpack
2019: Dream Catcher
2019: Flying Kerfufle
2019: Le Grand Chase
2019: Crusade: Heavy Industry
2019: OnionCapers
2019: Envision
2019: Glitter Blast
2019: Leaving Home
2019: Magistar
2019: Midnight Tale
2019: River Flute
2019: Symmetry
2019: Sovereign
2019: Hustle Hard
2019: Almost Bliss
2019: Beauty Flow
2019: Half Mystery
2019: Past Sadness
2019: Raving Energy
2019: Rising Tide
2019: Tyrant
2019: Sincerely
2019: Celebration
2019: Deep and Dirty
2019: Fuzzball Parade
2019: Lotus
2019: Realizer
2019: Stay the Course
2019: Verano Sensual
2019: Wholesome
2019: Farting Around
2019: Aquarium
2019: Monkeys Spinning Monkeys
2019: A Kevin MacLeod Xmas
2019: Folk?
2019: Menagerie
2020: Worldish
2019: Scheming Weasel (Peukie Remix)
2020: What You Want
2020: Island Music
2020: On Hold for You
2020: Canons in D
2020: Project 80s
2021: World
2021: Now That's Now!
2021: Night in the Castle
2021: Adventures in Adventureland
2021: WOTSITS!!!!
2021: Space Jazz
2021: Ethereal Relaxation
2022: Journey to Ascend
2022: Boogie Party
2023: Paradise Found
2023: Goblin Tinker Soldier Spy
2023: The August Album
2023: Brain Dance
2023: Cloud Dancer
2023: Equatorial Complex
2023: Galactic Rap
2023: Lord of the Rangs
2023: Mesmerizing Galaxy
2023: Sergio's Magic Dustbin
2024: That Zen Moment
2024: 90mh (Sped Up)
Referencesedit
^Hoffberger, Chase (March 3, 2020). "Royalty Free: Why YouTube and Creative Commons can't coexist". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved August 30, 2015.
^Pollari, Niina. "Free Music – Kevin MacLeod Composes for the Internet". Kickstarter. Archived from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved August 30, 2015.
^ abGutelle, Sam (December 2, 2016). "Kevin MacLeod Is The King Of Royalty-Free Music, And Millions Are Listening". Tubefilter. Archived from the original on November 10, 2021. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
^"Case Studies/Kevin MacLeod". creativecommons.org. Archived from the original on October 8, 2014. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
^ abTyler, Aaron (May 30, 2017). "Earth From Space & Kevin MacLeod Music". On Stage Magazine. Archived from the original on September 29, 2023. Retrieved September 9, 2020.
^"I am Kevin MacLeod, the composer in millions of YouTube videos, and thousands of films. AMA! : IAmA". Reddit. September 17, 2013. Archived from the original on December 11, 2014. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
^Silverman, Matt (October 19, 2018). "How the internet's most prolific composer makes a living by giving his music away for free". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on September 29, 2023. Retrieved September 9, 2020.
^Duenas, Ulises (December 16, 2020). "'Royalty Free' Tells the Story of the Most Selfless Man in Music". High Brow Magazine. Archived from the original on September 29, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
^"Soundtrack from Kerbal Space Program!". incompetech.com. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved July 25, 2022.
^Steele, Chandra (August 25, 2021). "These TikTok Songs Have Earned the Most Money in 2021". PCMAG. Archived from the original on September 29, 2023. Retrieved May 3, 2022.
^Peirson-Hagger, Ellen (April 29, 2021). "How composer Kevin MacLeod became the king of royalty-free music". New Statesman. Archived from the original on October 5, 2022. Retrieved May 3, 2022.
^Gutelle, Sam (December 2, 2016). "Kevin MacLeod Is The King Of Royalty-Free Music, And Millions Are Listening". Tubefilter. Archived from the original on November 10, 2021. Retrieved September 9, 2020.
^ abMacLeod, Kevin. "Free downloads – Royalty Free Music". Incompetech. Archived from the original on March 23, 2015. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
^Camarda, Ryan (January 1, 2000), Royalty Free: The Music of Kevin MacLeod, archived from the original on March 12, 2017, retrieved March 12, 2017
^ abMacLeod, Kevin. "Music License Forms". Incompetech. Archived from the original on July 29, 2016. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
^MacLeod, Kevin. "Public Domain Music Downloads". FreePD. Archived from the original on March 23, 2015. Retrieved March 26, 2015.
^MacLeod, Kevin. "FreePD FAQ". FreePD. Archived from the original on August 16, 2016. Retrieved March 26, 2015.
^Spacek, Nick (December 2, 2020). "Director Ryan Camarda on Royalty Free, his new doc on composer Kevin Macleod". The Pitch. Archived from the original on September 29, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
^ ab"Royalty Free: The Music of Kevin MacLeod by Ryan Camarda". Kickstarter.com. Archived from the original on October 30, 2014. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
^"Royalty Free: The Music of Kevin MacLeod". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on February 27, 2021. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
^"German Web Video Award Page". Archived from the original on October 30, 2019. Retrieved June 14, 2015.
^"Kevin MacLeod gewinnt den Ehrenpreis international" [Kevin MacLeod wins the honorary award internationally]. YouTube (in German). Webvideopreis Deutschland. June 14, 2015. Archived from the original on June 23, 2015. Retrieved June 14, 2015.
External linksedit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kevin MacLeod (composer).
Wikiquote has quotations related to Kevin MacLeod.