FreeMix License Framework

The FreeMix License Framework is a purpose-built licensing system for music. Six tiers, four modifiers — all machine-readable and built into the protocol. When you upload to FreeMix, you choose a license that tells the world exactly what others can do with your music. When you download or remix, you agree to the license terms attached to that content. Licenses are irrevocable and follow the work — they do not expire when content leaves FreeMix.

License Tiers at a Glance

Detailed License Tiers

FM:OPENOpen

• Full stems available (if provided by the artist)
• Remix, sample, redistribute — anything goes
• Commercial use allowed
• No attribution required
• No modifiers allowed — this is the most permissive tier
• The DJ/Performance right is included (use in mixes and live performance)
• The public domain equivalent for music
• Best for: Anyone who wants maximum reach and zero restrictions

FM:REMIXRemix

• Remix, sample, and create derivative works from the track
• Full track may be redistributed
• Stems available if provided by the artist
• Commercial use of derivatives is allowed (unless restricted by modifiers)
• The DJ/Performance right is included (use in mixes and live performance)
• The most common tier for electronic music producers
• Best for: Producers who want their music used and built upon, with optional controls via modifiers

FM:STEMSStems

• Individual stems are available for creative use
• The full original track may not be redistributed
• Stems can be used in new compositions, remixes, or productions
• The resulting derivative work is a new composition (not a redistribution of the original)
• Also applies to standalone stems (stem packs, construction kits, individual bounces shared without a parent track)
• The DJ/Performance right allows the stems to be used in a mix or live performance.
• Best for: Producers and labels who want to share building blocks while keeping the finished mix exclusive

FM:DJDJ Friendly

• The performance-only tier: the DJ/Performance right and nothing else — no derivatives, no redistribution.
• DJ-specific edits are permitted: extended intros/outros, instrumentals, acapellas, re-edits, transitions
• Public performance is allowed (club play, radio, streams, live sets)
• Source files may not be redistributed — the DJ edit itself can be performed but not shared as a downloadable file
• The distinction: A DJ edit primarily preserves the original composition's structure and intent. A remix creates a substantially new arrangement or composition. Adding new musical elements (new bassline, new melody) crosses from edit into remix territory.
• Compatible modifiers: Credit and NoAI only. ShareAlike and Royalty are not available — both presuppose derivatives, which this tier does not permit.
• Best for: Producers releasing club-ready tracks who want DJs to play them out

FM:SAMPLESSamples

• Creative building blocks — one-shots, loops, snippets, and any reusable audio
• Free to use in new compositions without restriction
• 0% royalty — no exceptions, no caps. Samples are building blocks; the creative value is in what the producer builds with them, not in the sample itself.
• Three sample categories (for classification and display only — they carry no differing license terms):
  • One-shot: Single hit, no rhythmic/melodic content over time (typically <2 seconds)
  • Loop: Repeating musical phrase (typically 2–30 seconds)
  • Snippet: Longer musical excerpt (typically 10–60 seconds)
• The DJ/Performance right allows use of the samples in a mix or live performance.
• FM:Samples is a bare tier — it takes no modifiers. Attribution is a built-in property of the tier (samples are always creditable to their uploader), so there is no separate Credit modifier to add. ShareAlike, Royalty, and NoAI are all unavailable. This mirrors FM:Open, the other bare tier.
• The AI declaration still applies. Although NoAI is not a selectable modifier here, every upload — samples included — carries the universal AI-declaration obligation. "No NoAI modifier" does not mean "no disclosure."
• Best for: Sound designers, sample pack creators, and anyone sharing reusable audio

FM:NCNon-Commercial

• Remix, sample, and create derivative works
• Commercial use is not permitted — this includes selling derivatives, using in monetized content (YouTube, Twitch, Spotify), or sync licensing
• Non-commercial uses allowed: DJ sets (non-ticketed), mixtapes (free), personal projects, educational use
• The DJ/Performance right is included — but subject to this tier's non-commercial terms (a monetized or ticketed set is a commercial use and requires separate negotiation)
• Commercial use requires separate negotiation directly with the creator (outside the FreeMix license)
• Incompatible with the Royalty modifier (no sales = no royalties)
• Best for: Anyone who wants to share freely but retain commercial control

Modifiers

Modifiers add requirements or restrictions on top of the base tier. There are four modifiers. When multiple are present, they appear in canonical order: Credit → Royalty → ShareAlike → NoAI.

Availability at a glance: the two bare tiers, FM:Open and FM:Samples, take no modifiers. FM:DJ takes Credit and NoAI only. FM:Remix, FM:Stems, and FM:NC take modifiers per the rules below (FM:NC excludes Royalty).

Credit

• The original creator(s) must be attributed in any use or derivative work
• Attribution must include at minimum: artist name and original track title
• Attribution should be "reasonable to the medium" — liner notes for a release, description for a stream, tracklist for a DJ set
• If multiple sources are used (mashup), all credited sources must be attributed
• Credit cascades through the full remix chain. If the original license includes Credit, every downstream derivative must attribute the original creator — regardless of how many generations deep the chain goes.
• Credit flows downstream from the point it was introduced, not retroactively upstream.

Royalty

• The original creator receives a specified percentage (1%–50%) of gross revenue from any downstream sales of derivative works
• The percentage is set by the creator at the time of licensing and is immutable for that grant
• Royalties are calculated on the gross sale price before any other deductions
• Royalties only apply when money changes hands — free distribution of derivatives incurs no royalty obligation
• The royalty cascade uses a halving rule: each generation in the remix chain receives 50% of their direct parent's actual set rate, ensuring fair compensation across deep remix trees while preventing runaway accumulation
• Incompatible with the NonCommercial tier
• Not available with FM:DJ — royalties cascade on derivative sales, and FM:DJ permits no derivatives to cascade from
• Not available with FM:Samples — it is a bare tier and carries no royalty concept at all
• Current status: Live. Set a royalty rate on your license — you'll earn a share automatically each time your track is sold or remixed into a sale.

ShareAlike

• ShareAlike is a lock on derivatives of this work: any remix, edit, or mashup must also be released under a FreeMix license. You can add it even if the track you built on didn't carry it — the lock can begin anywhere in the tree, and no one downstream can remove it.
• Derivatives can tighten these terms, never loosen them: a derivative must carry the same tier or a more restrictive one, and must preserve ShareAlike itself.
• The FreeMix-license requirement is the one term that reaches beyond FreeMix's own systems — it keeps a downstream work licensed even when it's released elsewhere, like Bandcamp or SoundCloud. It's enforced by the license terms, not by a technical lockout.
• What carries down the chain differs by modifier: NoAI is preserved when it travels with ShareAlike; Credit cascades on its own, with or without ShareAlike; Royalty is not preserved — it is halved at each generation under the cascade's halving rule.
• ShareAlike With Stems goes one step further: remixes must also share their stems. Those stems seed new works, which share their stems in turn — ShareAlike is a forward ratchet, and the stems layer makes it a cycle.
• This keeps derivatives within the FreeMix ecosystem while letting creators add their own terms on top.
• Not available with FM:DJ (which forbids derivative redistribution, so there is nothing for ShareAlike to attach to) or FM:Samples (a bare tier that takes no modifiers).

NoAI

• The licensed material may not be used for machine learning model training, AI-generated content, or any automated content synthesis
• This applies to the audio content, stems, and metadata
• Does not restrict AI-assisted tools used by humans in the creative process — a producer using AI-powered mastering on their remix is fine; a company feeding stems into a training dataset is not
• AI-powered search/recommendation of NoAI-licensed tracks (metadata use, not audio training) is permitted
• Not available with FM:Open or FM:Samples (both are bare tiers). This is separate from the AI declaration, which applies to every upload regardless of tier.