Karaoke Music Licensing for UK Venues and Event Hosts

Karaoke music licensing usually involves two separate questions: permission to perform music at the venue and permission to use the karaoke tracks themselves. A pub, hotel or event host needs to account for both before the first singer takes the microphone.

Buying a track or hiring a karaoke host doesn’t automatically settle every right. The arrangements also differ between a commercial event and a private gathering at home.

Start with the rights involved, then match them to your venue and playback setup.

What rights does a karaoke night involve?

A typical karaoke performance combines a live vocal with a recorded backing track. The song and the recording can have different owners, so more than one set of rights may apply.

PRS for Music and the song

PRS for Music represents rights in musical works on behalf of songwriters, composers and publishers. Those rights matter when a guest sings a protected song, even if the performance uses a newly made backing track rather than the original artist’s recording.

A live vocal doesn’t remove copyright in the melody or lyrics. Likewise, paying a karaoke host for their performance doesn’t replace the permissions needed for the songs.

PPL and the recording

PPL represents rights associated with recorded music on behalf of recording rightsholders and performers. A karaoke backing track is a recording, even when it contains no lead vocal.

The owner of that recording may differ from the publisher of the song. Permission relating to one therefore doesn’t necessarily cover the other.

How TheMusicLicence fits a karaoke venue

PPL PRS Ltd issues TheMusicLicence for many UK businesses that play recorded music or host live performances. It brings together relevant PPL and PRS for Music permissions for the licensed activities and repertoire.

For a pub or restaurant, the licence may address music heard by customers in the premises. Karaoke should be included in the description of the venue’s music use, alongside activities such as background playlists or live bands.

A background-music arrangement shouldn’t be assumed to cover every entertainment event. Karaoke can be a featured activity, and the applicable charges or terms may differ from those for music playing behind the bar.

The licence also has a distinct purpose: it addresses covered public music use. It doesn’t automatically give a supplier permission to manufacture karaoke discs, make copies of tracks or provide a commercial karaoke service.

Our guide to UK business music licensing requirements explains how venue activities affect the arrangement.

Who handles licensing at an event?

Responsibility depends on the premises, the event and the agreements between the people involved. A venue’s existing licence can be relevant, but the booking paperwork should identify which activities it covers and who handles any additional arrangements.

A regular venue karaoke night

For a pub running its own weekly karaoke, the operator is in a position to describe the activity as part of the venue’s music use. The agreement with the karaoke host can separately address the tracks and equipment the host supplies.

Write down the frequency of the event, where it takes place and who supplies the music. If the venue adds karaoke to an existing background-music arrangement, its documentation should reflect that change.

A hired room or external event

A hotel function room, community hall or temporary event space may have different arrangements. The venue agreement and the organiser’s paperwork should state who is responsible for public music licensing for the event.

PPL PRS guidance distinguishes performances within already licensed premises from events in spaces that aren’t normally licensed. PRS also recognises that organisers and promoters have responsibilities around event licensing. Neither point makes a karaoke host’s fee proof that the venue or event has the necessary permission.

Free entry, a private invitation list or a fundraising purpose doesn’t automatically settle the licensing position for a commercial or organised event.

What does karaoke licensing cost?

There isn’t one karaoke fee that applies to every UK venue. PPL PRS pricing depends on the applicable tariffs and the way a business uses music. Venue type, attendance and entertainment activity can affect the assessment.

For a specific example, the 2026 PPLPP299 tariff lists £1.41 per hour for its first band of 1 to 25 attendees. That figure relates to the PPL sound-recording element for the tariff, not a combined karaoke price for every venue. PRS charges and other applicable terms may also matter.

Keep the venue’s actual music activities in the licensing record. A background playlist during opening hours and a featured karaoke night are different uses, and treating them as identical can leave the budget incomplete.

Where do karaoke tracks come from?

The track supplier has its own rights responsibilities. The venue or host also needs terms that permit the intended use of the supplied tracks.

Supply and product rights

PRS for Music offers a Music Services B2B, or MSB2B, licence for qualifying companies that supply music and karaoke services to business locations. That supply-side arrangement is separate from the customer’s public-performance permission.

There is also a PRS karaoke product licence, known as KAR, for manufacturing and distributing products such as CDG and DVD. It addresses specified mechanical and synchronisation rights, as well as reproduction of on-screen lyrics.

A venue doesn’t acquire either supplier permission by holding TheMusicLicence. Equally, a supplier’s rights don’t automatically replace the venue or event’s public-performance arrangements.

What the track terms need to cover

Keep the supplier’s written terms with the event records. They should identify the catalogue and permit the commercial karaoke use you plan, including the relevant location, playback method and any device limits.

Lyrics displayed on a screen are part of the karaoke product, not proof that every use of those lyrics is permitted. The source and its terms matter, whether the host uses discs, downloads or a subscription service.

For individual tracks, retain the title, version and supplier details. Different recordings of the same song aren’t interchangeable when it comes to recording rights.

Match the playback format to the permission

The device on stage is only one part of the setup. How the music reaches that device can introduce separate conditions.

Discs, downloads and copied files

A legitimate CDG or DVD purchase provides a physical product, but possession alone doesn’t establish permission for every commercial use. The same distinction applies to a downloaded karaoke file.

Copying tracks onto a laptop, transferring a collection to another drive or sharing files between hosts can involve rights beyond public playback. The supplier’s terms need to permit the copying and devices involved. Keep purchase records and licence documents together so each version can be traced to its source.

Streaming and subscription services

A personal Spotify, Apple Music or other consumer subscription is intended for listening under that service’s terms. Paying for it doesn’t automatically give a venue permission to use its catalogue for commercial karaoke.

A karaoke service designed for businesses may offer terms for that setting. Its agreement still needs to cover the location and playback method in use. Keep the service account and commercial terms in the event file rather than relying on the fact that a track plays successfully.

Private karaoke and commercial events are different

Singing at home with family is different from offering karaoke as entertainment in a pub or hotel. TheMusicLicence is designed for relevant public music use by businesses and organisations, not ordinary personal listening at home.

The setting matters more than the word “private” on an invitation. A celebration in a hired commercial venue may involve the venue’s music arrangements and the organiser’s agreement, even if guests know one another.

There isn’t a simple guest count in the guidance that settles every situation. Avoid treating free admission or a personal subscription as a substitute for the permissions needed for an organised event.

A private gathering also doesn’t create general permission to upload a video of the singing. Online publication is a separate use of the music.

Filming or streaming karaoke adds another layer

A licence for music heard in the room doesn’t automatically clear a livestream, recording or promotional clip. The online audience is a separate audience, and saving footage creates further uses to consider.

A video can involve the composition, the backing recording and the performers. Depending on the use, permissions may be needed for the song, the recording and music paired with video. A host’s agreement to perform isn’t automatically permission to publish a guest’s performance.

Our guide to music rights for livestreamed events covers the distinction between the room and the stream.

For separate creator projects, our Free Music channel features original British songs. We ask creators using our music to credit Restorm and restormuk.com. Free listening access shouldn’t be treated as permission to use someone else’s karaoke track at a venue.

Prepare a clear record before karaoke night

A short set of records makes it easier for the venue, organiser and host to understand their respective responsibilities:

1. Describe the event, including the venue, date, expected attendance and whether karaoke is regular or occasional.
2. Record who is responsible for the public music licence and how the planned activity fits the venue or event arrangement.
3. List the track source, the service or product used, and the devices involved in playback.
4. Retain the commercial-use terms and any permissions covering downloads, copies or transfers needed for the setup.
5. Document any filming, livestreaming or planned uploads separately, including who handles the necessary permissions.

Keep these records with the booking agreement. If the format changes, such as adding a livestream or moving the event to another room, update the paperwork to reflect the new use.

A smoother start to karaoke night

Karaoke brings people together, but several permissions can sit behind one song. The venue’s public music arrangements and the rights to supply or copy the backing track each have their own role.

Keep the scope of use clear in writing. That gives the venue and host a practical basis for setting up the night and choosing suitable tracks.