Exclusive Licensing
3, 6 or 12 Months: Matching an Exclusive Term to Your Plan
By the Starchild Music team · October 18, 2026 · 5 min read
The short answer
Pick the shortest term that covers your whole plan. Three months ($60) fits one single with a firm date, six months ($100) fits a release plus follow-ups, and twelve months ($150) fits a year-long campaign or a project with a long runway. The longer terms cost less per month, but only if you use the time.
Starchild exclusives come in three lengths: 3 months for $60, 6 months for $100 and 12 months for $150. The song is withdrawn from the marketplace during the term.
It is tempting to choose by price or by the monthly rate. A better method is to map your plan onto a calendar and see which term it fits.
Three months at $60 is $20 a month. Six months at $100 is about $16.67 a month. Twelve months at $150 is $12.50 a month.
The longer terms are cheaper per month, but you only save money if you need the extra time. A $150 term you use for four months costs more than a $60 term you use fully.
Three months: one single, one clear date
A single follows a rhythm: upload to a distributor three to four weeks early, release, then weeks of promotion. Our guide to timing an exclusive around your release lays that out.
Spotify's release guide reports that "on average, 75% of a release's first-year streams happen after the first month." That means you want a few weeks of coverage after release day. Three months usually holds all of it with room to spare.
Think of the three months as a frame around one release: a few weeks of setup, the release itself, and a stretch of follow-through. If your plan does not stretch past that, you have found your term.
Six or twelve months: longer plans
Six months suits a plan with more than one beat. Maybe you release the song, then a live session, then an acoustic version. Or you stagger the single and a music video.
Waterfall releases are one example of this style. Revelator describes the approach as releasing singles that stack into a growing project, with "two to four weeks between releases." Whatever your shape, if your calendar holds several dated steps tied to this one song, six months gives you breathing room.
A full year makes sense when the song anchors something bigger. Examples are an album campaign where it is the title track, a touring season that builds around it, or a release you want to hold until the right moment.
It also suits a plan where you are not sure of the date yet. If you may need more time, the longest term removes the risk of the exclusive ending before you release. Our piece on exclusive licenses in an album campaign looks at that case in detail.
A quick decision test
If a term ends and you want more time, our guide to renewing an exclusive license explains your options.
- Do you have a release date within the next two months? Start with 3 months.
- Do you plan two or more dated steps for the song, spread over a season? Look at 6 months.
- Is the song central to a project that runs most of a year? Consider 12 months.
- Is your date still unknown? Lean longer, because a term that ends early can leave a gap in your plan.
- Is this your first exclusive? Choose the shorter term. You can see how it goes before committing to more.
What happens in the gap
When the term ends, the exclusivity ends. Your own license is perpetual, so your recording stays licensed for the uses it covers: releasing it on streaming platforms and stores, performing it live, and using it in your own music video and lyric video.
What changes is that other artists may license the song again. If that matters to your plan, choose the term with that date in mind. Read about what happens when an exclusive license expires for the full picture.
If you are weighing a renewal, remember it is a choice you make near the end, not one you must make today. Buying the shorter term now keeps your options open, and the renewal guide linked above explains what that looks like.
Three plans, three picks
Maya is releasing one ballad on a Friday in six weeks. She uploads four weeks ahead, pitches Spotify, and plans a lyric video for the week after. She picks 3 months for $60 and finishes with weeks to spare.
Jonas wants to release a song, then a stripped-down version, then a live session across the spring. He picks 6 months for $100, so the song stays his through all three steps.
Priya is building a project around one song, with a tour leg and a video series planned over the year. She picks 12 months for $150, and does not need to think about renewal in the middle of the campaign.
These are made-up examples, but the logic is real. Each person looked at their dated steps, and picked the term that covered the last one.
If your own plan sits between two of these, start from the date of your last planned step and add a few weeks of slack. Pick the shortest term that still covers it.
Mistakes to avoid
- Buying a long term for a single with no plan beyond release day. You pay for months you will not use.
- Buying a short term, then adding a surprise second release that falls outside it.
- Starting the term long before you are ready to record. The clock runs while you wait.
- Forgetting that other artists can license the song again once the term ends.
- Choosing only on price. The cheapest term that does not cover your plan is the expensive one.