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The TikTok wars continue!

Snapchat just rolled out a feature called Sounds, which lets users add music to Snaps from the app’s catalog of music. According the AdWeek, the advantage Snapchat has added to this popular TikTok feature is that on TikTok you can only add music post-capture (after you’ve recorded video) but on Snapchat you can add music either pre- or post-capture.

The new feature launched with the exclusive release of a new song (“Lonely”) by Justin Bieber and Benny Blanco.

The catalog of music available for Sounds is curated by Snap and will rotate overtime to feature new and emerging artists.

How to add Sounds to a Snap

Adding sounds is easy!

1. Tap the Sounds icon (a music note) on the side of the screen

2. Choose a song from the Featured Sounds list (note: Snap is also rolling out a feature where you can create your own sound by recording up to 60 seconds; you can even make it public afterward)

3. Choose the portion of the song you want to use

4. Feel free to rotate, move or resize the sticker that pops up with the song’s title and artist name

Note: Sounds are rolling out slowly and may not be available to you just yet!

To learn more, visit the help center.

Why it matters

Snapchat is staying busy keeping up with features offered by rival TikTok.

And while Snap may be paying licensing fees for the music they are featuring, this could also be a savvy way that Snap can monetize their service through music promotion, if labels are willing to pay to have their music featured in the Sounds library.

Related News

This month, we’ve also got you covered on these important social media news items:

Blog

New “Sounds” feature for adding music to Snaps

New Facebook Business Suite debuted globally

Instagram is integrating directly with FB messenger

LinkedIn has officially joined the Stories club

More noteworthy news items from this month:

• Twitter Adds New Prompts to Alert Users Before Sharing Any Tweet Flagged for Misinformation (Social Media Today)

• Twitter plans to change how image cropping works following concerns over racial bias (The Verge)

• Automatically share a WordPress blog post as a Twitter Thread (TechRadar)

• Our letter to creators: Inspire the world to act, not just double-tap (Pinterest Business Blog)

• Pinterest Integrates With Microsoft Edge Browser (AdWeek)

• Snapchat: How to Add Sounds to a Snap (AdWeek)

• Nextdoor’s Treat Map is Back with New Features for a Safe Halloween (Nextdoor Blog)

• Twitter updates policy on sharing hacked data after 'NY Post' mess (Mashable)

• YouTube Hashtags and How to Increase Video Views (Sprout Social)

• A Brand's Guide to Unsplash: How to Unlock the Next Big Visual Marketing Channel (Buffer)

• Google Officially Releases Its Web Stories for WordPress Plugin (WPTavern)

• Paid Online Events for Small Business Recovery (FB news)

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