UPDATED: June 2018
Whether you are teaching Zumba, Cycling, Strength training, Kickboxing or Yoga, music is a vital part of any group fitness class. As instructors we are constantly searching for great new songs to add to our class playlists and motivate our participants to new levels. But as fit pros, it’s not always as easy as just going to iTunes or Spotify to download a new song – we have to ensure we are following proper music licensing laws and not setting ourselves up to get fined simply for having great music.
Did you know that pulling up your playlist on Spotify or Google Play does NOT protect you against music licensing laws and in turn is ILLEGAL. Yup, that’s right, using or sharing your playlist on Spotify is actual an illegal form of music streaming and could cause both the instructor and/or facility to get sued.
Using licensed, edited, and group ex class ready music from any of the below companies is your best bet to get high quality music AND avoid any music piracy issues for you and your club.
Group Fitness Music Producers
These companies have been in the group fitness music production space for years. They have mastered the art of blending songs into high quality 32-count continuous soundtracks. They offer both digital and CD based mixes.
Fitness: Monthly Subscription Streaming Services
If you’re ready to go all digital, then subscribe to one of these platforms. While you will not own the music, you will be able to play any song or album in their music library for the length of your membership. Plus, you can adjust tempo and create your own mixes, all on the fly! This is a great way to always have fresh and new music without taking up valuable space. Think of these link Netflix for group fitness music. (Note, these do typical require some sort of network connection.)
Custom Music Mixes
If you like to be in charge of your music, the tempo, and overall song selection, then these companies are for you. These custom built services allow you to completely build your own playlist using their wide range of songs.
Other Music Providers
The below websites also provide licensed music for group fitness professionals, but are not as highly recognized (for you hipster instructors who like to go against the norm – these guys are for you!).
- 32mix.com
- Cardio Mixes
- Exercise Music Shop
- Fit Beat Music
- Fit Mix Pro
- Instructor Music (formally John Sines)
- Jumpy Bumpy
- Mix Meister
- Multi Trax Music
- My Group Fit
- Workout Music
While not specifically music, the below apps have simplified the life for group fitness professionals. From stopwatches to class builders and tempo changes, these apps have been built specifically for our needs. (Note, apps may not be available on all operating systems).
- Mix and Mash: auto-fade any music on your phone
- Press Play Go: add breaks or timed pauses between songs
- Tempo magic: change the BPM of your music
Music is a vital tool for group fitness instructors and it’s important that we are providing the highest quality music possible for our participants. But just like you want to get paid for your work, musicians want to get paid for their work, so make sure you are abiding by music licensing laws and not infringing on copywrite laws. Read more on music licensing laws.
