TikTok could pull music from Phoebe Bridgers, Mitski, and Nirvana from the platform — here's why

Negotiations between Merlin and TikTok have reportedly soured, and Merlin is threatening to remove a large portion of indie music from the platform.

Merlin represents over 30,000 independent record labels, and their previous agreement with TikTok expires on Oct. 31. According to Billboard, TikTok "walked away" from "negotiations before they even began." In a letter published by Billboard, Merlin explained to its members that the social media company does not want to renew its deal; it intends to license Merlin members directly, minimizing the group's collective power.

"Their approach [to pursue direct deals with Merlin members] suggests that [TikTok] believe[s] their objectives can be better served by fragmenting the Merlin membership, in order, we believe, to minimize their payout," reads the letter. "As you know, Merlin was founded to stand up for and champion its members. We will not support an approach that devalues our community."

A TikTok spokesperson told Billboard, "TikTok would like to offer all of the world’s music to our users. We are committed to working with the independent sector as well as the major labels and publishers. We know that our community of over a billion music fans value the diversity and richness that independent music brings to our platform. We are committed to entering into direct deals with Merlin members in order to keep their music on TikTok."

Without the collective bargaining power under Merlin, each record label would have to negotiate a new licensing deal by the end of October. This is similar to when TikTok's licensing deal with the National Music Publishers Association expired earlier this year; TikTok negotiated direct deals with NMPA members. If a deal isn't reached between Merlin and TikTok, artists' catalogs under its labels will be removed from the app. Artists currently under Merlin include Phoebe Bridgers, Mitski, Mac Demarco, Nirvana, and Thundercat.

Merlin's letter to artists also explained that TikTok claims it won't negotiate with the music company due to alleged fraud committed by Merlin members. According to TikTok, some members have posted songs or remixes that aren't owned by the label. Since the issue is only with some members it seeks to negotiate with individual labels. However, Merlin contends that the real reason behind the move is to secure cheaper deals than Merlin would allow for.

This comes after Universal Music Group (UMG) struggled to reach a licensing agreement with TikTok in January. In UMG's case, it pulled its catalog for nearly four months over disputes with the social media company over protecting artists from the threat of AI, ensuring online safety, and delivering appropriate compensation for artists and songwriters. Its music returned to the platform in May.