Universal opens the door to licensed remixes with ElevenLabs

Universal Music Group and ElevenLabs are developing a platform that will allow users to remix tracks from participating artists, but its catalog, pricing, and compensation model have yet to be specified.

Officially turning a well-known song into a remix, mashup, or new interpretation without negotiating the required rights independently. That is the service Universal Music Group and ElevenLabs plan to offer fans under a multi-year agreement combining music licensing and product development.

Announced on September 10, 2026, the collaboration is ElevenLabs’ first agreement with a major record company. The two companies plan to jointly develop audio tools for artists and songwriters, along with a new music creation platform aimed directly at fans.

The platform is not yet available. ElevenLabs is expected to launch it at an undisclosed date. The idea is to make licensed recordings available to users so they can produce remixes, combine them into mashups, reinterpret them, or take part in “personalized vocal experiences.”

The announcement does not, however, provide access to Universal’s entire catalog. It refers only to tracks from participating artists and songwriters. The Verge reports that artists will be able to choose whether to join the program, suggesting an opt-in system rather than the automatic inclusion of every work administered by the company.

That distinction is essential. Universal represents or distributes a very large number of artists, but an agreement with the record company may not be enough to authorize every possible use of every track. A song involves several categories of rights that may belong to different parties.

The sound recording, sometimes called the master, may be controlled by a label. The composition has its own songwriters, publishers, and collecting societies. A performer’s voice, name, and likeness may also be covered by contractual rights or rules governing identity and personality. A mashup combining several songs introduces even more rights holders into the chain.

UMG operates in both recorded music and publishing, giving it significant capacity to coordinate these permissions. However, the release issued by the company does not specify which subsidiaries will participate, which territories will be covered, or whether each track will require a separate agreement.

An artist’s participation does not necessarily mean that every songwriter behind a track has already agreed. One song may have several writers, sometimes represented by different publishers. The platform’s practical operation will therefore depend on its ability to verify permissions and restrict available features based on the rights that have actually been secured.

The term “mashup” raises the same issue. Combining two recordings requires identifying and compensating the rights holders behind each source. The platform will probably have to limit possible combinations to a set of preapproved tracks or check permissions when a user prepares a creation.

The companies promise that artists and songwriters will share in the value created. No payment structure has been released. The announcement does not say whether compensation will depend on the number of creations, how often they are played or shared, a subscription, or a payment made to access a particular song.

It also provides no details about how revenue will be divided among performers, songwriters, producers, publishers, and musicians who contributed to the recording. The principle of compensation appears in the announcement, but its amount and calculation method remain unknown.

The future platform could adopt several business models. Users might pay for each remix, subscribe to the service, or purchase additional rights to export a creation. Part of that revenue could then be distributed to the rights holders behind the material used. For now, these are only possibilities: ElevenLabs and UMG have disclosed neither pricing nor a commercial plan.

What users will be allowed to do with their creations is another central question. Producing a remix for playback inside an app does not necessarily include the right to download it, publish it elsewhere, use it in a video, or sell it. Each level of distribution may require a different license.

One precedent shows how much this distinction can reshape the user experience. Following its agreement with UMG, Udio restricted some download capabilities while preparing a new licensed platform, a decision that frustrated some of its users. The Associated Press noted at the time that the shift toward a more controlled environment significantly changed the uses subscribers had come to expect.

ElevenLabs has not said whether creations will be allowed to leave the future service. There is no information about publishing, monetization, retention, or the ability to edit them in other software. The word “creation” could therefore refer to either a temporary experience or an actual reusable audio file.

The promised “personalized vocal experiences” are equally vague. They could make it possible to adapt a performance, produce a sung dedication, or vary certain elements of a recording with the artist’s approval. They should not be interpreted as blanket permission to reproduce the voices of every star in Universal’s catalog.

ElevenLabs has extensive experience in voice synthesis and transformation. That expertise helps explain the record company’s interest, but it also makes consent particularly important. A recognizable voice may still be associated with an artist even when the lyrics, context, or message were produced by a user.

The future platform will therefore have to determine what fans can do creatively without suggesting that an artist personally recorded or approved every result. Possible measures include restrictions on lyrics, moderation of sensitive uses, visible disclosures, information embedded in the audio file, or limits on publishing. The announcement describes none of these safeguards in detail.

The service will be separate from the two music products ElevenLabs already offers. The first, ElevenMusic, generates and edits original songs from instructions. The second, Music API, allows companies and developers to