Since digital video editing first gained popularity during the digital video revolution of the 2000s and 2010s, the industry has seen several non-linear video editing platforms (NLEs) emerge as the most popular choice for video editors worldwide.
Apple’s Final Cut Pro is in the unique position of being a former top option that lost quite a bit of popularity with higher-level pros over the years. Still, it has slowly (and perhaps quietly) become an excellent and capable option once again.
Regardless of your thoughts on Final Cut Pro in the past, it’s very much a top choice today and still quite popular. Yet, for those who are looking to try out Final Cut Pro for the first time (or the first time in a while), let’s go over some basics to working with Apple’s NLE and specifically look at how to add music in Final Cut Pro.
Getting started with Final Cut Pro
As mentioned above, Final Cut Pro was thought of as the best and most popular video editing option in the mid-2010s. However, once Final Cut Pro X was introduced, the app nerfed a lot of its more advanced features in favor of more beginner-friendly controls.
Many video editors moved over to Adobe Premiere Pro, and now many prefer Blackmagic Design's DaVinci Resolve. All are great options these days, but if you’re looking to get started with Final Cut Pro today, there might be a little bit of a learning curve.
To help you out with a transition to Final Cut Pro, Apple actually offers a tremendous amount of resources to help anyone get started with the app for all manner of video editing.
How to add music in Final Cut Pro
Moving on to explore how to add audio to Final Cut Pro, let’s go over the steps involved in adding music to Final Cut Pro projects using the app’s built-in browser and your own audio files.
- In Final Cut Pro, open the Photos, Videos, and Audio sidebar by doing one of the following:
- Click the Photos, Videos, and Audio button in the top-left corner of the Final Cut Pro window.
- Choose Window > Go To > Photos, Videos, and Audio (or press Shift-Command-1).
- In the sidebar, select the sound category or app you want to browse.
The audio clips in that category, including built-in Final Cut Pro music selections, appear in a list in the browser.
The Photos, Videos, and Audio sidebar includes a Sound Effects category as well as other media libraries, depending on which apps and which version of macOS you’re using. - To find the music or sound you want to use, do any of the following:
- Search and filter the collection: Use the pop-up menu at the top of the browser to filter the items shown in the browser. For example, you could select Sound Effects, then choose Final Cut Pro Sound Effects > Impacts & Crashes.
- Preview an item: Select an item in the list, then click the Play button.
- Select more than one item: Command-click each item.
- If your Music library includes protected files, they are unavailable. (They do not appear in the browser.)
Note: To use a song you purchased from the iTunes Store in your project, you must be the copyright holder of the song or have express permission from the copyright holder. For more information, see the Final Cut Pro software license agreement (choose Final Cut Pro > About Final Cut Pro, then click License Agreement). - When you’ve selected the clip or clips you want to use, do one of the following:
- Drag the sound clip or clips to the timeline.
- Drag the sound clip or clips to the sidebar.
The Photos, Videos, and Audio sidebar changes to the Libraries sidebar, allowing you to add the files to an event or a Keyword Collection. After you drag the files, the Photos, Videos, and Audio sidebar reappears.
Those are just the basic steps to adding music to Final Cut Pro. You can dive deeper into how to add audio to Final Cut Pro and access more official resources on Apple’s website here.
Where to find music for Final Cut Pro
As you can see above, adding music in Final Cut Pro is relatively easy. The real trick is finding the right music to add to your Final Cut Pro projects. As is the case with all video editing software, unless you’re using music and audio that you created yourself, you’re going to want to find music that you’re legally allowed to use for your films, videos, and other projects.
If you’re creating videos for any commercial or for-profit purposes (or even specific non-profit or educational purposes), the safest approach is to use royalty free music for Final Cut Pro from trusted music licensing platforms like Soundstripe.
If you aren’t super familiar with what royalty free music is and how it works, here are some great reads on what royalty free music means and how music rights and royalties work. In short, royalty free music from Soundstripe will be ideal, covering your work to share across all your social channels and be used for all your marketing and promotional purposes.
The 10 best royalty free music tracks for Final Cut Pro
Let’s now go over some of the best royalty free music tracks for Final Cut Pro to give you ample ammunition to give your projects the best soundtrack possible.
1. Faux Cow Chair by Tony Sopiano
- Description: A low-energy, hip-hop song that is best described as chill and inspiring. Synth and bass are the primary instruments in this track.
- BPM: 78
- Key: B Minor
- Listen and license here
- Description: A medium-energy, acoustic song that is best described as inspiring and hopeful. Guitar and acoustic guitar are the primary instruments in this track.
- BPM: 138
- Key: D Major
- Listen and license here
- Description: A low-energy, hip-hop song that is best described as chill and fun. Drums and drum kits are the primary instruments in this track.
- BPM: 90
- Key: E Minor
- Listen and license here
- Description: A high-energy rock song that is best described as fun. Synth and guitar are the primary instruments in this track.
- BPM: 165
- Key: B Major
- Listen and license here
- Description: A high-energy pop song best described as happy and fun. Horns and guitar are the primary instruments in this track.
- BPM: 115
- Key: Bb/A# Major
- Listen and license here
6. Fuel The Fire by Adrian Walther
- Description: A medium-energy rock song that is best described as happy and fun. The guitar and electric guitar are the primary instruments on this track.
- BPM: 142
- Key: B Minor
- Listen and license here
- Description: A medium-energy, classical song that is best described as inspiring and hopeful. Piano and strings are the primary instruments in this track.
- BPM: 200
- Key: Bb/A# Minor
- Listen and license here
- Description: A high-energy rock song that is best described as happy and fun. Horns and drums are the primary instruments in this track.
- BPM: 163
- Key: C Minor
- Listen and license here
9. Reckless Adventure by Lunareh
- Description: A medium-energy pop song that is best described as hopeful and happy. Piano and bass are the primary instruments in this track.
- BPM: 120
- Key: C Minor
- Listen and license here
- Description: A high-energy, pop song that is best described as happy and fun. Whistling and claps / snaps / stomps are the primary instruments in this track.
- BPM: 120
- Key: Ab/G# Major
- Listen and license here
These are just a few top picks from our Soundstripe library. With over 10,000 songs and plenty of additional styles, tones, and genres to explore, you’re always welcome to listen to our full catalog of royalty free music on our Soundstripe app.
Tips for adding music in Final Cut Pro
If you’d like to further explore some tricks for working with music and audio in Final Cut Pro, here are some of the best tutorials for working with Final Cut Pro. We also have a few more helpful tips to share for working with music specifically, including:
- Consider downloading preview tracks to use as placeholders in your edits before deciding if a track is right for your projects.
- Be sure to check out our library of royalty free sound effects to give your videos extra impact.
- Try out Soundstripe’s AI Song Editor to instantly edit your audio track to match the length of your content and campaigns.
Despite its decline in the mid-2010s, Final Cut Pro has returned and is now more powerful and capable than ever before. If you’ve ever been interested in transitioning to Apple’s popular NLE, now is a great time, and we hope that our music can be a massive part of your editing experience.
There are no right or wrong answers for which video editing software is right for you. But with DaVinci Resolve, you’ll have all of the support you need to add music, work with music, and create great projects.
