Three months after being pulled down from TikTok, Rema’s songs have made their return to the platform.
This follows the resolution of hostilities between music corporation giant Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) and ByteDance’s TikTok, who struck a new licensing agreement on May 1, 2024.
The new agreement aims to explore monetization opportunities leveraging TikTok’s expanding e-commerce features and collaborate on global campaigns to promote UMG’s diverse lineup of artists.
Readers may recall that UMPG announced the removal of all its songs from TikTok on January 31 after failing to reach a license agreement. UMPG claimed the proposed compensations to pay artists and songwriters represented an unfair “fraction of the rate that similarly situated major social platforms pay.”
As the world’s second-largest music publisher, UMPG’s decision had a pronounced effect on the platform, where about a quarter of the popular songs fall under its representation, primarily affecting songwriters and co-songwriters signed to the company.
The resolution holds significant importance following UMPG’s February acquisition of a majority stake in Nigeria’s Mavin Records, a move touted as hugely beneficial to the Afrobeats movement.
With the renewed partnership, tracks from headline artists like Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, Demi Lovato, Metallica, Metro Boomin, Post Malone, Noah Kahan, Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj, and Rema, all signed to UMPG, will be reintroduced to the platform.
Notably, Rema’s “Calm Down,” one of 2023’s biggest songs, can once more circulate freely on TikTok.