Pick the Perfect Podcast Theme Song: 10 Royalty Free Music Tracks for Podcasts and Tips to Set the Right Mood
Jourdan Aldredge
Oct 17, 2024
We know it’s almost a cliche these days to start a podcast. It seems like for every popular and successful podcast out there, there are several thousand new ones launched each week. And while your neighbor and his buddies might not always be the most interesting sports podcasters in the world, podcasts are still very much a thing and still very much a great way to launch, grow, and market a brand.
If you are looking to launch a podcast for the first time or simply looking for helpful tips and tricks to improve your podcast and reach more listeners, then we’re here to help. Along with our full guide on how to launch a podcast, we also have plenty of resources to help you with perhaps the most important (but often overlooked) part of your podcast—the music.
In particular, a good podcast needs a good theme song. This theme song can become the hallmark of your pod and a great way to show that your podcast is professional, serious, and important. So, to help you find (and use) this podcast theme music, we have these royalty free track recommendations, playlists, and tips to share with you.
The best royalty free music for podcast theme songs
Now, while we’ll get into some advice, tips, and tricks for working with royalty free music for podcasts a bit below, let’s start by giving you some musical inspiration and track recommendations. Keep in mind that there’s no right or wrong answer about what song could make a good podcast theme song.
However, you’ll want to look for music for your podcast that matches its theme. Whether that be series or comedic, there are many genres and styles to explore. Still, to give you an idea of what we’re working with here in the Soundstripe library, here are some top tracks that we feel would be great for a podcast theme song.
Description: A low-energy pop song that is best described as reflective and hopeful. Percussion and xylophone/mallets are the primary instruments in this track.
BPM: 120
Key: Eb/D# Major
Description: A medium-energy rock song that is best described as fun and happy. The guitar and electric guitar are the primary instruments on this track.
BPM: 170
Key: E Major
Description: A high-energy, electronic song that is best described as fun and happy. Drums and electronic drums are the primary instruments in this track.
BPM: 120
Key: A Minor
Description: A medium-energy pop song that is best described as hopeful and inspiring. Guitar and acoustic guitar are the primary instruments in this track.
BPM: 76
Key: B Major
Description: A low-energy, hip-hop song that is best described as angry and scary. Bass and synth bass are the primary instruments in this track.
BPM: 76
Key: G Minor
Description: A high-energy rock song that is best described as angry and suspenseful. Bass and bass guitar are the primary instruments in this track.
BPM: 145
Key: Db/C# Minor
Description: A medium-energy, corporate song that is best described as fun and happy. Bass and bass guitar are the primary instruments in this track.
BPM: 100
Key: F Minor
Description: A medium-energy pop song that is best described as quirky. Guitar and acoustic guitar are the primary instruments in this track.
BPM: 120
Key: Gb/F# Major
Description: A low-energy, electronic song that is best described as chill and reflective. Bass and synth bass are the primary instruments in this track.
BPM: 125
Key: A Minor
Description: A low-energy, electronic song that is best described as suspenseful and sad. Synth and ambient tones are the primary instruments in this track.
BPM: 134
Key: Ab/G# Minor
We’ll give some more playlists below too, but if you’re interested in diving deeper into our music library right now, here’s a link to our full royalty free music catalog.
What is royalty free music?
When searching for a theme song for your podcast, it’s also important to consider how you plan to license the music for your podcast. For those learning how to podcast and create content, you should also know that you can’t just use any song you hear on the radio as your podcast jingle.
That’s because all music has copyrights associated with it. These copyrights extend both to the music composers and the performers, and if you’d like to use music from these artists, you’ll need to license the music for your projects. If you’re unfamiliar with this term, here’s a great primer on what royalty free music means.
To help with this process, we here at Soundstripe offer fully licensed and cleared music for subscribers to use in their videos and content. The artists have been compensated, and as a Soundstripe subscriber, you can use any song or sound effect in our libraries in your videos without paying additional royalties or fees—hence the “royalty free” term.
Royalty free music can be a great option for your podcast’s theme song simply because it’s easy to find and use. Soundstripe’s music is composed and recorded by Grammy-winning artists who know how to make great music for all types of films and video content.
Top playlists for royalty free music for podcast theme songs
Along with the recommended podcast theme song tracks shared above, there are also some other places to look for quality podcast music. We actually have some curated playlists in our Soundstripe app that feature lots of podcast-worthy music, which can work for theme songs or even as background music to give your podcast episodes an extra level of listenability.
Here are some playlists that you should consider checking out for more podcast theme song inspiration.
Description: Top trending tracks downloaded by podcasters.
Description: Energetic and upbeat tracks to kick off any video, podcast, or live stream.
Description: Non-distracting tracks to add a vibe to your interviews.
Description: Intro music for sports talk podcasts and radio featuring Rock and Hip-Hop
Description: Top corporate tracks trending among podcasters.
Description: Top electronic tracks trending among podcasters.
Description: Modern electronic that takes influences from 1980s pop music and cinematic soundtracks.
If you’d like to explore even more music, we have additional playlists you can listen to here.
Tips for picking (and using) a podcast theme song
Even with all the track and playlist suggestions shared above, it can still be a bit daunting to select the perfect podcast theme song. There is, after all, a lot to consider. Not only do you need to find a song that fits into the theme of your podcast, but you also want something that can help hook your listeners.
To help you in your podcast theme song selection journey, here are some additional tips to keep in mind as you search and use this theme song for your podcast.
- Look for music that is within the same genre as your podcast.
- Consider songs with lyrics for a podcast theme song.
- Consider songs without lyrics for the background music of your podcasts.
- To better grab the attention of your listeners, listen for podcast intro music that starts quickly and has a hook element early on.
- Consider using multiple songs from the same artist throughout your podcast to better create a consistent theme.
Follow the tips above and pick some of the quality royalty free music offered here at Soundstripe. Your podcast should be in a great position to succeed with a catchy theme song ready to invite your listeners into your awesome content.