Music Licensing & Acceptable Content Policy

The Jammin' Review — Site-Specific Policy

Effective date: April 28, 2026 Version: 1.0 Last updated: April 28, 2026

Site-specific policy: This Music Licensing & Acceptable Content Policy applies to content uploaded to The Jammin' Review (jamminreview.com). It supplements the Uploader Terms, the DMCA Policy, and the Content Moderation Policy. The Music Hall of Fame Club Terms of Use at musichofc.com/policies/terms controls in case of any inconsistency.

Introduction

Music is the most heavily licensed creative category on the internet. A single song can involve multiple layers of rights — composition copyright, sound recording copyright, performance rights, publicity rights of performers, venue policies, and more. To keep The Jammin' Review available, useful, and legally sound for everyone, we have specific rules about what kinds of music content can be uploaded.

This policy explains what's welcome, what's not, and how to think about edge cases. The Jammin' Review is operated by Jammin' Alpacas™ LLC, a Delaware limited liability company located at 120 Eagle Rock Avenue, Suite 155, East Hanover, NJ 07936.

The short version: upload music you have the right to upload. If you're not sure, don't.

1. Categories of Acceptable Content

The Jammin' Review accepts uploads in the following categories.

1.1 Original Compositions Performed by the Uploader

Music you wrote and performed yourself. This is the simplest case and what the platform is most fundamentally designed for.

Examples:

A singer-songwriter performing their own song
A guitarist performing a solo composition
A producer performing or showcasing their own beats and instrumentals
A band performing a song the band wrote

For uploads in this category, you confirm that you wrote the composition (or jointly wrote it with co-authors who consent to the upload) and that you performed it.

1.2 Original Performances of Music You Are Licensed to Perform

You can upload a recording of yourself performing a song you didn't write, provided you have the necessary licenses or the use clearly qualifies as fair use under U.S. copyright law.

For most cover-song uploads, this means:

The composition copyright is owned by someone else
You need a mechanical license or sync license (depending on the platform and use) to record and distribute a performance of that composition
Some compositions are in the public domain (typically published before 1929 in the United States) and can be performed without a license

We do not provide cover-song licensing services. If you are uploading a cover song, you are responsible for ensuring you have the necessary licenses. This is rarely cleanly true for casual uploads, which is why many cover videos elsewhere on the internet end up with copyright claims, demonetization, or removal.

1.3 Band, Group, or Project Content

Recordings of music by a band, group, ensemble, or musical project — uploaded by an authorized representative of the band/group/project.

Examples:

A drummer uploading the band's official recording, with the band's authorization
A band's manager uploading a live performance video, with the band's authorization
A producer uploading a session with the artist's authorization

For these uploads, you confirm that:

The band, group, or project consents to the upload
You are authorized to act on behalf of the band/group/project
The content depicts work by the band/group/project itself (not their performance of someone else's copyrighted material without license)

1.4 Partner Content

Content uploaded by, or with the explicit authorization of, a music industry partner organization. This is the category that covers content from instrument makers, labels, publishers, music schools, and other Music Hall of Fame Club partner organizations.

Examples:

An instrument maker uploading product demonstrations and artist sessions filmed at their facility
A label uploading an artist video with the label's and the artist's authorization
A music school uploading student showcase footage with appropriate releases
A guitar store uploading in-store performance series content

For partner-content uploads, you confirm that you are authorized to upload on behalf of the partner organization and that all necessary rights and releases are in place.

1.5 Audience Recordings of Taping-Friendly Artists

Live audience recordings of artists who have publicly opted into audience recording. This is a long-established music tradition — bands like the Grateful Dead, Phish, Goose, String Cheese Incident, Umphrey's McGee, Trey Anastasio Band, and many others have explicit tapers' policies welcoming audience recording.

We support this tradition with specific care.

Two paths under this category:

Path A: Curated Taping-Friendly Artist List

We maintain a curated list of artists who have publicly confirmed audience recording is permitted. The list is published on The Jammin' Review (typically at jamminreview.com/about/taping-friendly) and updated as artists are added or as their policies change.

For uploads of artists on this list, you only need the standard upload-time representations described in the Uploader Terms. The artist's published taping policy controls; you must comply with that policy (which may, for example, limit the audio source to audience recordings rather than soundboards, or restrict commercial use).

[Operational item: the curated taping-friendly artist list needs to be built and maintained. At launch, it can start with a small number of well-known taper-welcoming bands and grow over time as we confirm policies. Bands' tapers' policies are typically published on their official website or via their fan-club resources.]

Path B: Off-List Artist with Specific Permission

For audience recordings of artists not on the curated list, you must specifically attest that you have the artist's permission for the recording and the upload. This attestation is a stronger representation than the standard upload-time rights check; we may verify it before publishing the upload, and we may decline to publish the upload if we cannot verify the permission.

If you have written permission from the artist or the artist's management, attaching it to the upload (or referencing it in a way we can verify) significantly increases the likelihood of timely publication.

1.6 Educational, Demonstration, and Discussion Content

Content where you are teaching, demonstrating, discussing, or analyzing music. This includes:

Teaching videos (e.g., guitar lessons, vocal warm-ups, music theory explanations)
Gear demonstrations (e.g., demoing a pedal, an amp, a mic, a piece of software)
Music criticism, review, or commentary
Behind-the-scenes content about the music-making process

For these uploads, you confirm that any musical content used in the demonstration falls within fair use principles or that you have appropriate licenses. Brief musical excerpts used for educational or critical purposes are generally protected under fair use, but the analysis is fact-specific.

1.7 Other Content with Full Rights

Any other category of content where you can confirm, in good faith, that you have all necessary rights. Reach out to us at help@jamminreview.com if you have questions about a specific scenario.

2. Prohibited Content Categories

The following categories are prohibited regardless of any other consideration.

2.1 Copyrighted Recordings You Don't Own or License

You cannot upload commercial sound recordings (the actual master recordings released by labels and artists) that you don't own and don't have a license to upload. This is the most common form of music copyright infringement on the internet.

Examples of what this prohibits:

Re-uploading a song from Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, etc.
Uploading a music video you don't own
Re-uploading content from another music platform without permission
Uploading a "fan-made" video that uses an unlicensed commercial recording as the audio track

2.2 Lip-Syncs to Commercial Recordings

Performances where you sing or play along to a commercial sound recording you don't own — particularly when presented as if it were your performance. These are prohibited.

This is distinct from genuine cover-song performances (where you play the music yourself, not sing along to a recording), which are addressed in Section 1.2.

2.3 Recordings of Artists Who Haven't Opted Into Taping

Live audience recordings of artists who have not publicly opted into audience recording. The default assumption is that artists do not allow audience recording unless they have publicly confirmed otherwise.

Examples of what this prohibits:

Recording a major-label pop artist's concert and uploading it
Recording an artist whose tapers' policy explicitly prohibits audience recording (some artists allow taping at certain shows but prohibit it at others)
Recording an artist who has an unclear or unconfirmed policy on taping
Recording a private event or ticketed performance where filming was not authorized

When in doubt about a specific artist's policy: don't upload.

2.4 Concert Footage in Violation of Venue Policy

Even if the artist permits audience recording, the venue may prohibit filming. Concert footage filmed in violation of a venue's policy is prohibited.

2.5 AI-Generated Content Misrepresented as Human Work

Content created by AI music generation tools (Suno, Udio, similar) that is presented as human-performed work, without clear disclosure. AI-generated content is not categorically prohibited, but it must be clearly labeled as AI-generated. Using AI to imitate a specific artist's voice or style without their authorization is prohibited regardless of disclosure.

2.6 Deepfake Performances

Content that depicts a real person performing music they did not actually perform — typically created using AI voice cloning or face-swapping technology — is prohibited unless you have explicit authorization from the depicted person.

2.7 Scams, Manipulation, and Spam

Content designed to deceive, scam, or manipulate viewers — fake giveaways, phishing schemes, content designed to drive traffic to malicious sites, repetitive spam uploads, etc. — is prohibited.

2.8 Content That Violates the Community Guidelines

Content that violates the Music Hall of Fame Club Community Guidelines (hate speech, harassment, threats of violence, sexual content, content that depicts or sexualizes minors, illegal activity, etc.) is prohibited regardless of its musical merit.

2.9 Content Subject to Active Disputes

Content that is the subject of an unresolved DMCA takedown notice, an active legal dispute, or other formal challenge will be removed pending resolution.

2.10 Other Categories We May Add

We may add other prohibited categories over time based on what we learn from operating the platform, changes in law, or specific issues we encounter. Material changes to the prohibited list will be communicated through The Jammin' Review.

3. Edge Cases and Common Questions

3.1 "I covered a song but I didn't get a license. What about fair use?"

Fair use under U.S. copyright law is fact-specific and depends on factors including the purpose of the use, the nature of the work, the amount used, and the effect on the market for the original. A casual cover song upload is rarely a clean fair-use case. Educational, transformative, or critical uses are stronger fair-use claims; straightforward performances of the original composition typically aren't.

We do not provide fair-use determinations. If you believe your use qualifies as fair use, you make that determination at your own risk and assume the legal exposure if a rights holder disagrees.

3.2 "I'm performing a song that's in the public domain."

Compositions published before January 1, 1929 are generally in the U.S. public domain (this date moves forward annually). Public domain compositions can be freely performed and recorded.

Be careful: a public domain composition recorded by a specific performer creates a new sound recording copyright in that performance. Performing a public domain composition yourself is fine; uploading someone else's recorded performance of a public domain composition is not.

3.3 "My band's recording features a sample from another song."

If your composition incorporates a sample, loop, or other portion of a copyrighted recording, you need a license for that sample (or it must clearly qualify as fair use, which sample-based use rarely does cleanly). Uploading sample-heavy work without licenses is prohibited.

3.4 "I'm not sure whether the artist has a tapers' policy."

If you can't find a published tapers' policy on the artist's website, fan club resources, or other authoritative source, the default assumption is no taping permitted. Don't upload audience recordings of artists with unclear policies.

3.5 "The venue confiscated phones at the door but I recorded anyway."

If the venue had a no-filming policy that you violated, the upload is prohibited under Section 2.4 regardless of any other consideration.

3.6 "I have permission from the artist's friend / cousin / fan-club moderator."

Permission from someone who isn't authorized to grant the relevant rights is not permission. The artist themselves, or their authorized management, label, or rights administrator, must grant the permission for it to count.

3.7 "What about live performances I do at open mics, coffee shops, or restaurants?"

If you're performing your own original compositions, you can upload your performance regardless of the venue (subject to the venue's filming policy, if any). If you're performing cover songs at the venue, the cover-song licensing analysis in Section 1.2 applies.

4. The Curated Taping-Friendly Artist List

4.1 How Artists Are Added

Artists are added to the curated taping-friendly list based on:

A publicly available, current taping policy from the artist or their authorized management
Verification by our team that the policy is current and applies to the type of recording in question
Confirmation of any specific limitations the artist's policy imposes (audio source, commercial use, redistribution, etc.)

4.2 How Artists Are Removed

Artists may be removed from the list if:

The artist publishes a revised policy that prohibits or restricts taping
The artist's representative requests removal
We discover that an artist on the list never actually had a public taping policy and was added in error

When an artist is removed, existing uploads of their work are reviewed; uploads that no longer comply with the artist's current policy are removed.

4.3 Currently Listed Artists

The current list is published at jamminreview.com/about/taping-friendly. The list will grow as we confirm policies and as more artists join the practice.

5. Reporting Concerns

If you believe content on The Jammin' Review violates this Music Licensing & Acceptable Content Policy:

For copyright infringement claims: Use the formal DMCA process described in our DMCA Policy. Submit notices to the Designated Agent.
For other licensing or content concerns (e.g., an artist's policy was not followed, a venue's filming policy was violated, an AI-generated upload is undisclosed): Contact help@jamminreview.com with details. Our moderation team reviews these reports under the Content Moderation Policy.

6. Disclaimer

This policy is intended to help you understand what content is welcome on The Jammin' Review and what is not. It is not legal advice. Music licensing is complex and fact-specific. If you are unsure whether you have the rights to upload specific content, consult an attorney qualified in music or copyright law in your jurisdiction.

7. Updates to This Policy

We may update this Music Licensing & Acceptable Content Policy from time to time. The "Last updated" date at the top reflects the most recent revision. Material updates will be communicated through The Jammin' Review.

8. Contact

For questions about whether specific content is acceptable, the curated taping-friendly artist list, or other licensing-related concerns:

The Jammin' Review — Licensing & Content Team Email: help@jamminreview.com

For copyright takedown notices: see the DMCA Policy.

For policy questions: Jammin' Alpacas™ LLC Attn: The Jammin' Review — Policy 120 Eagle Rock Avenue, Suite 155 East Hanover, NJ 07936 United States Email: policies@mhofc.com

This site-specific policy applies to The Jammin' Review at jamminreview.com.

Music Hall of Fame Club™ and Jammin' Alpacas™ are trademarks of Jammin' Alpacas™ LLC.