The ROTTEN Issue: Kevin MacLeod
Words BY IAN HOFFMAN
For decades, billions have heard his songs in the periphery of their online media, from Minecraft videos they binge on YouTube to the ads they skip by without a second thought.
Kevin MacLeod is the sole creator of hits like “Sneaky Snitch” and “Monkeys Spinning Monkeys” that have played an instrumental role in the sound of the internet. That’s because all of his music is provided free on his website Incompetech.com. This website sees millions of visitors each day and is one of the longest standing sites on the internet.
MacLeod may even be the most listened to artist of all time, yet few know his name. MacLeod sat down with EMMIE to unravel the secrets to his ubiquity.
Despite the unbelievable numbers MacLeod has pulled (upwards of 20 billion plays on TikTok), when asked about fame he responded, “If I wanted fame, I would have taken steps to be more present and taken credit for it. I don’t, I don’t want fame.” As a graduate from UW-Green Bay, MacLeod didn’t expect this kind of success: he was originally an electrical engineer before moving to New York to compose movie scores.
In 2001, the Creative Commons Corporation released a series of licenses that allow creators to give full permission to use their work, while still retaining copyright. MacLeod saw the new license as perfect for the songs he had made as a film composer which hadn’t made the final film score. He began uploading these tracks online to his website, and soon his music found its way into everything.
“Are you going to get paid? Probably not. That’s okay. But you’ve contributed to the world. And that’s where I’ve always come from,” MacLeod said.
MacLeod’s ethos towards the use of his work puts accessibility above all. MacLeod’s belief is that art is for the greater good, and believes his responsibility in making that art shouldn’t be hindered by copyright protection. This adoption of such an open license is undoubtedly a large part in the success of his music worldwide.
At the same time, this has led to MacLeod’s songs appearing in all sorts of unfavorable places. Just because one of MacLeod’s songs is used in content, doesn’t mean that he approves of it. “Has my music been used in things where I don’t like it? Yes. Do I care? No,” MacLeod said.
Now, MacLeod’s music is distributed under the CC BY 4.0 license, which only requires that users provide appropriate credit. He made this change because under previous licensing other users had claimed ownership of MacLeod’s songs and enforced copyright to profit off of them. “I don’t want other people making it harder to use the music,” MacLeod said.
In 2011, Martin Scorsese included MacLeod’s “Friendly Day” in his film “Hugo.” When the production team contacted MacLeod to negotiate rights for using the song without attribution, he charged only thirty dollars for it, the same price for any project looking to use his music. Despite his low prices for standard licenses, MacLeod doesn’t currently feature ads on his website — although he once did. MacLeod used the income to fundraise for the local Green Bay Fringe Theater Festival, providing over $5,000 to the arts.
“It takes about an hour per minute to make a very-well made piece,” he said. Most of MacLeod’s music is made digitally, allowing him to use a massive array of instruments. His songs on Incompetech feature didgeridoo, cimbasso, celesta and plenty of other instruments.
Making music is both emotional and exploratory for MacLeod. Directors often ask him to make unfamiliar music from different cultures, leading MacLeod to spend time listening to “music that [he] doesn’t understand; that [he’s] never had formal schooling in.”
When asked if he’s ever tried making more experimental tracks, MacLeod said that he remembers “a time when [he] was really into Cryptopsy.” Although he hasn’t gone so dark as to follow in the footsteps of the classic death metal band, he added that some genres are less popular: “nobody asks me for country music.”
The same desire for accessibility that motivated the licensing of MacLeod’s songs has led him to advocate for artificial intelligence (AI), putting him at odds with a significant part of the creative industry. While many artists fear the encroachment of AI on human creativity, MacLeod remains an advocate for its potential to increase accessibility. He views AI as an option for creators who lack the massive budgets required by major record labels, “If you’re a creator and you don’t have $15,000 to pay Warner or Sony… you just type it in,” he said. No music created by AI is currently available on Incompetech.
Despite his immersion in digital music production, MacLeod maintains a profound respect for live performance. He recently moved to Florida and said he enjoys hearing live musicians multiple times per week.
“Live music is what people need,” he said, arguing that while recording has only existed for a century, the practice of live performance has been constant for thousands of years. He sees large-scale music festivals and local DIY basement shows as the true future (and past) of the medium.
MacLeod admitted he wasn’t prepared for the impact of his music, despite being pivotal in the lives of an entire generation on the internet. He noted how he receives emails from listeners who used his music to navigate everything from mundane life to profound grief. Despite many not knowing the name of the man imbuing emotions into the backgrounds of their games, videos and movies, the fact that his legacy echoes through billions of speakers for free is bigger than a single name.