Hear how your video can benefit from great intro music, then take a listen to our curated list of royalty-free intro music tracks.
The obvious benefits of thoughtfully selected intro music are, well, obvious. Intro music helps your work register as more professional. It catches your viewers’ attention and tells them it’s time to settle in.
But the most important benefit of intro music involves storytelling: the music you lead with provides one of the very first hints about the narrative experience you’re sharing. Visionary director David Lynch explains it best:
What do the musings of a surrealist auteur have to do with your next two-minute video game review clip? Everything. Specifically the part about “making the mood,” which is just a Lynchian way of saying “pick the right intro music.” You’ve got to ask yourself how your intro music supports what’s about to unfold on the screen. How do you want your viewer to feel? What mood will you create in your video’s opening moments to ensure you hook your audience?
When it comes time to choose your intro music, there are a couple of approaches you can take. The first is dropping an audio logo into the opening of your clip. These short, snappy tunes can act as your aural signature, and they’re concise and catchy enough to instantly lodge themselves into your viewer’s head.
You can explore the second approach in the curated royalty free intro music playlist below. These tracks are longer and offer more use cases, as each comes with loops and short clips. That means you can find your intro music and soundtrack within a single song.
Plus, with a $49 Standard License, you can use one track in as many of your videos as you want. (Pro tip: Maintaining the same intro music across a series of videos is top-notch branding.)
Just remember: conventional wisdom suggests that GoPro footage from the helmet of a motocross racer demands extreme music, and softly lit yoga footage calls for something with a little more pan flute. While YouTube is crowded with videos that trot out these genre tropes, your video doesn’t have to. Treat the act of selecting your intro music as one more chance to push yourself creatively by marrying sound, picture, and idea in an unexpected way.
- Cover image via Jacob Lund.
- Header image via Golubovy.
- Playlist header image via Dean Drobot.
Looking for more royalty-free playlists? Check these out:
- Fresh Tracks: Hear June’s Best New Royalty Free Music
- Rococo Romance: Give Your Video a Classical Cinematic Sound
- In the Shadows: The Changing Nature of Horror Music
- Royalty-free Music to Power Your Sports Videos
- Level-Up Your Gaming Videos with the Perfect Royalty-Free Soundtrack
- Our Block Party By Reaktor Productions
- Bright and fun, featuring uplifting piano, funky horns, and big percussion creating a proud, celebratory mood.
- Nonstop By Harrison Amer
- Bouncy and groovy, with R&B funk and neo-soul elements featuring enthusiastic electric guitar and vocal oohs aahs to create a playful and positive mood.
- Blacklight By Oliver Lyu
- Punchy and edgy, with dance / techno industrial elements featuring pulsing synthesizer, electric guitar, and piano to create a sinister and menacing mood.
- War on Goods By Midway Music
- Mellow and warm, with indie rock elements featuring laidback electric guitar to create a chill and positive mood.
- Hot Hip By Trending Music
- Hypnotic and bouncy, with electronic trip-hop elements featuring laidback keyboard, synthesizer, and synth drums to create a content and smooth mood.
- She Bad By Luciano Music Co.
- Slick and mellow, with hip hop trap elements featuring proud synthesizer, vocal samples, and synth drums to create a tough and cool mood.
- Orchestral Cycles By Evan MacDonald
- Lush and determined, featuring piano, strings, woodwinds, and percussion creating a bold, epic mood.
- Caribbean Charm By Flashing Lights
- Punchy and bouncy, with dance / techno house elements featuring celebratory synthesizer and vocal samples to create an enthusiastic and exciting mood.
- Swimming in the Pool By Krisztian Vass
- Radiant and shimmering, with pop rock elements featuring joyful electric guitar, male aahs, and synthesize to create a soaring and euphoric mood.
- Over By Origami Pigeon
- Sunny and shimmering, with electronic chill out elements featuring mellow synthesizer and vocal samples to create a euphoric and satisfied mood.
- Sunset Dive By Black Rhomb
- Bright and driving, featuring encouraging strings, synthesizer, and electric guitar to create a positive and joyful mood.
- Powershot By LATG Music
- Bouncy and fun in the style of Chiptune, featuring synthesizers and drums that create a bold, energetic mood.
- Forest Walk By Studio Le Bus
- Light and positive, featuring pizzicato strings, marimba, lap steel guitar, and drums that create a hopeful, curious mood.
- Wind It Up By Gyom
- Heavy and punchy, with rock alternative-grunge elements featuring pumped up electric guitar, drums, and male aahs to create an exciting and lively mood.
- Nostalgic By Dr. Hollywood
- Funky and hypnotic, with electronic trip-hop elements featuring smooth synthesizer, piano, electric guitar, and saxophone to create a sexy and dreamy mood.
- Surfing the Midnight Waves By Jericho Studio
- Bouncy and breezy, with R&B-pop elements featuring groovy electric guitar, keyboard, and synthesizer to create a carefree and feel-good mood.
- Poppin Bottles By Wolves
- Punchy and groovy, featuring rhythmic synth drums and vocal samples to create a determined and encouraging mood.
- Orange Dream By Magnetize Music
- Bright and dreamy, with new age ethereal elements featuring blissful piano, female oohs aahs, and strings to create a euphoric and heavenly mood.
- We Go High By Grace Mesa
- Edgy and slick, with indie rock elements featuring gritty electric guitar and female vocal to create a confident and fist-pumping mood.
- Hipster Trends By Delicate Beats
- Pulsing and bouncy, with electro pop elements featuring funky synthesizer, electric guitar, and horns to create a sunny and exciting mood.