Samples, beats, and stems each carry distinct legal and crediting requirements. Apple's 2025 update added a precise framework distinguishing them.
2.17.1 Definitions
**Sample:** only a portion of an existing recording used within a new track — Apple's own example: "Mo Money Mo Problems" uses the vocals and guitar intro from Diana Ross's "I'm Coming Out" without using the entire song. **Beat:** recorded elements typically available to license, rent, purchase, or borrow — most have non-exclusive licence agreements, though they can be exclusive. **Stem:** a section of a track (vocals, drums, bass) that, combined with the others, reproduces the full song.
2.17.2 The legal distinction
Sampling an existing commercial recording without clearance infringes both the master recording copyright and the composition copyright — clearance is required from both rights holders before distribution. Licensing a beat, by contrast, is a contractual arrangement where the rights granted depend entirely on the specific licence terms offered by the producer (exclusive vs non-exclusive).
2.17.3 Correct credit roles
- Licensed Beat — producer of a beat you licensed or purchased. Not Featured Artist or Songwriter.
- Licensed Verse — artist whose verse you licensed.
- Sampled Artist — artist whose free or licensable recording you sampled, with clearance.
- Uncleared samples of commercial recordings are rejected. Non-exclusive beats can also conflict with YouTube Content ID.
2.17.4 Non-exclusive beats and Content ID
When multiple artists release music built on the same non-exclusive beat, YouTube Content ID can generate conflicts between those releases. Madverse reserves the right to remove Content ID coverage from releases using non-exclusive licensed beats specifically to prevent these conflicts.
2.17.5 Undisclosed samples and infringement
Spotify's Prohibited Content policy is explicit on this point: content provided without rightsholder permission may be removed, and the same applies to content infringing on others' trademarks — Spotify's guidance is direct: "if you use samples in your music, make sure they're cleared with the owner first." Undisclosed samples that reach a DSP are subject to rights holder infringement claims, takedowns, and potential royalty withholding.
Source: MadDesk article 2.17 (2-17)