Frequenty Asked Questions

For Listeners

Who even ARE you?

I'm a dude from Ann Arbor, Michigan who makes a lot of songs. You've probably heard them and had no idea it was me. They're all free to download and use in your videos and stuff.

I'm just a human who wants to listen to your music. It's really free to download?

You bet! It's all completely free to download. Enjoy!

The website asks for your email address to join my email list when you download your first song. I promise not to spam you; I send out updates with new songs every month or two, and you can unsubscribe anytime.

Can I download everything all at once? And can I get FLACs?

Sadly, my bandwidth bill is already insane and it'd be way worse if I offered FLAC files or a ginormous ZIP file to everyone. That said, if you want to be amazing and help support my music, I do offer an Epic Bundle, which includes a link to download MP3s and FLACs of all of my songs in one ZIP file.

What do I get with the Epic Bundle?

After paying the $40 via PayPal, you'll get an email with several download links to download ZIP files all of my songs in different formats (vocal MP3 and FLAC, instrumental MP3 and FLAC, and bonus material MP3 and FLAC). The FLAC files are full CD-quality uncompressed versions which sound better, especially if you're using them in projects. The bonus material includes gobs of goodies, including some alternate mixes, 15/30/60 second cuts, loops, stems, unmastered mixes, and instrumentals with instruments replacing the vocal line. You can see the alternate versions available from the song pages. A few very old unreleased tracks are missing the FLAC and/or instrumental versions, but all of my CD tracks and most of my unreleased tracks are covered. 

Using My Music in Projects

Can I use your music in my project?

Absolutely, all of my original music is licensed as Creative Commons 4.0 Attribution. That means you can use it in your projects with a single small requirement: you need to list me in the credits. 

Creative Commons License
All songs licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
How do I use it in my video?

Just list me in the credits anywhere the video can be seen. Specifically, on YouTube, please give attribution in the description box. You're completely safe from Content ID claims as long as you give proper attribution as you're uploading it. In non-YouTube videos, the credits section at the end of the video itself is fine. 

What should I put in the attribution?

Here's the format I prefer for attribution:

Music - "SONG TITLE HERE" by Josh Woodward. Free download: https://www.joshwoodward.com/

If you need to tweak the layout to fit the format of other attributed works, that's fine, as long as you keep my name, the song title, and website URL. 

What about using it in a non-video project?

Go nuts! Use it in your podcasts, karaoke, video games, whatever - as long as you give attribution, you're golden. 

Some guidelines for attribution in specific cases:

  • For advertisements, in-store music or on-hold music, you'll need a traditional license since proper attribution isn't usually possible.
  • For movies, TV shows and other films, ending credits are fine.
  • For website background music, the attribution should be by the play/pause/etc controls, or somewhere else which makes sense in your design.
  • For video game music, it can either be in the starting credits or the game itself as the music plays. The key is that it must show every session where the music is used (ie, not in the closing credits). Note that "Let's Play"-style videos must give credit as well, to avoid Content ID claims!
  • For live streams, the credit must be spoken or shown on-screen as the song is playing.
  • For podcasts, attribution in the podcast itself or the show notes are fine. 

Contact me if you have a different situation or any questions.

My project is commercial. Can I still use it?

Yes! I have no restrictions about using my music in commercial projects as long as proper attribution is given.

I can't give attribution. Can I buy a royalty-free license?

If attribution isn't practical, I also sell traditional licenses. It's $20 per song, and it gives you eternal rights to use the song royalty-free with no attribution requirement. This includes downloads for uncompressed FLACs and all alternate version files for the song.

I also sell a blanket license for $200, which grants a license for all 250+ songs in my catalog.

Can I modify the music to fit my needs?

Yes, you can hack apart the music as needed to suit your needs. Some of my newer songs even have the individual instrument stems available in the epic bundle and licenses, so you can create your own mixes and make cleaner edits.

Can I cover or remix your songs?

Yes, with some major caveats. For recorded cover songs, remixes, or other derivative works:

  • Make sure the attribution is listed anywhere the song is used. I don't require ShareAlike, but you'll want to make sure anyone who uses your work knows that attribution to me is required for any derivitives of your work.
  • You may not list the song for sale through iTunes/Amazon MP3/etc, as their services are incompatible with the CC Attribution license.
  • You may not submit the song to any YouTube Content ID matching services.

Please drop me a line if you make something, I love hearing these!

Random Stuff

Why in the world do you give your music away for free?

I'm able to make a living making music full-time based in part from the generosity of those of you reading this site, and in part from licenses for non-attribution uses. If you want to help out, you can buy the epic bundle, send a PayPal donation or a Bitcoin donation, or just drop me a line with a few words of encouragement if you can't afford those.

Philosophically, I've always been a strong believer in the open source and free culture movements. The world is a better place when we're free to use and build upon the work of others in an open way, so I'm trying to be the change I want to see. It's all been worth it, with all of the people I've met along the way, and the amazing works built using my music. 

Can you write a custom song for my project?

It depends on how busy I am, and how well I think the project would fit my style, but I do sometimes do paid commissioned songs. Drop me a line if you're interested!

Where can I see you live?

Sad to say, I gave up live gigs many years ago. It takes a ton of time and energy to tour, and for me, that time is better spent creating new music rather than regurgitating old music. 

What instruments and software do you use to create your music?

I have a page which talks about my production notes