FAQs
Custom Music
The Basics
What is custom music?
Custom music is original music created specifically for your project, brand, show or campaign. Rather than searching through existing library tracks and trying to find something that almost fits, we start with your brief and create something that belongs to you creatively. That might be a podcast theme, a radio show theme, music for a campaign, a branded content piece, a television format or a complete suite of music built around one central idea. At Hundred Hand Slap, we combine composition with more than 20 years of experience in radio, audio branding and broadcast production, so the music isn't just written to sound great. It's designed to work.
Why commission custom music instead of using production music?
Sometimes a great library track is exactly what you need. Other times, you need something that nobody else has. Custom music gives you much greater control over the creative direction. We can write to a specific duration, structure, mood, tempo or production requirement and create alternative versions, stems, loops, stings and edits around the finished piece. Most importantly, the music is created around your project rather than your project having to fit around the music.
About Us
What kind of custom music does Hundred Hand Slap create?
Pretty much anything that needs an original soundtrack. We create podcast themes, radio show themes, campaign music, branded content, sonic identities, promotional music, television and entertainment themes, event music, underscores, beds, stings and complete musical toolkits. Our work spans everything from huge electronic themes and contemporary pop to grime, indie, orchestral music, ambient soundscapes and intimate podcast underscore. The genre changes. The thinking behind it doesn't.
Who have you created custom music for?
Our work has been heard across some of the biggest broadcasters, brands and audio platforms in the UK and beyond. We've created everything from national radio campaign music and station themes to bespoke podcast identities, sonic branding and original music for individual shows. With more than 20 years of experience in radio, music and audio branding, we understand how to create original music that doesn't just sound great, but works exactly where it's needed.
What We Create
Do you create custom podcast themes?
Absolutely. A great podcast theme should do much more than sit at the beginning and end of an episode. It should immediately tell you something about the world you're entering. We can create an original main theme alongside everything your production team needs to use that identity throughout the show, including loopable underscores, stings, transitions, beds, alternative mixes and sonic branding elements. The result is a musical identity designed to work across the entire production, not just the opening titles.
Do you create custom music for radio?
Yes. Radio is in our DNA. We create bespoke music for radio stations, individual shows, breakfast programmes, promotions, competitions, features, station campaigns and special events. Because we understand how radio is actually produced, we think about talkover points, vocals, structure, energy, duration and editability from the beginning. We can also provide instrumental versions, beds, stems, cutdowns and alternative mixes to give producers maximum flexibility.
Can you create music for advertising and campaigns?
Yes. We can create original music around the creative concept of a campaign, whether you need a single piece or a family of tracks that work across different platforms, audiences or executions. That might mean composing around a particular phrase, matching the energy of a visual treatment, creating multiple musical interpretations of the same idea or building versions specifically for radio, online, social and video.
Can you create a complete sonic identity rather than just one track?
Definitely. Sometimes the main theme is only the beginning. We can take a core musical idea and develop it into a complete sonic toolkit including themes, sonic logos, stings, idents, beds, loops, transitions, alternative versions and sound design. That creates consistency across your project while giving your production team enough flexibility to keep using the identity in different ways.
Can you create music in a specific style or genre?
Yes. You might arrive with a very specific reference or simply an idea of how you want something to feel. We'll help translate that into a musical direction that feels right for your project without simply copying an existing track. From contemporary pop, electronic music and hip hop to indie, rock, orchestral, cinematic and ambient music, we'll find the right composers and musicians for the brief.
Working With Us
What does the custom music process look like?
It starts with a conversation. We'll talk about your project, audience, creative idea and where the music needs to work. References are always useful, whether they're tracks you love, something you've heard elsewhere or even examples of what you don't want.
From there we'll develop the creative direction and start composing. You'll hear work in progress along the way, with feedback and revisions built into the process. Once everything is approved, we'll create the final masters along with any additional versions, stems, loops or edits required for the project.
Can you work directly with our creative or production team?
Absolutely. In fact, we love working that way. Some of our best work comes from collaborating directly with producers, creatives, directors, editors and programme teams throughout the process. We can become an extension of your existing creative team, taking an initial idea and exploring how music can help bring it to life.
Can you provide different versions, edits and stems?
Yes, and we actively encourage it. A piece of custom music becomes far more useful when it can adapt to different situations.
Depending on the project, we can supply full mixes, instrumentals, underscore versions, stems, loops, stings, alternative arrangements and different duration edits. We'll discuss what you'll actually need before delivery so you're not left wishing you'd asked for something six months later.
Who owns the music?
That depends on the project and the licence we agree with you. Every commission is different, so we'll make the usage rights clear from the outset. We can create music for specific campaigns, programmes or platforms and discuss broader usage, exclusivity or buyout requirements where needed. There shouldn't be any surprises buried in the small print.
Pricing & Next Steps
How much does custom music cost?
Every commission is different. The cost depends on what we're creating, how many pieces of music you need, the complexity of the production, the number of versions required and how the finished music will be used. A podcast theme with a handful of supporting elements is a very different project from a multi-track national campaign or complete sonic identity. Tell us what you're working on and we'll give you a clear idea of what's involved and what it will cost.
How long does custom music take?
It depends on the scale of the project, but we're used to working to real-world broadcast and production deadlines.
We'll agree a schedule at the beginning covering first ideas, feedback, revisions and final delivery. If you're working to a particularly tight deadline, tell us. We're very accustomed to projects where the transmission date isn't moving.
How do I get started?
Just get in touch. Tell us what you're making, where the music will be used and what you're hoping it will achieve. If you already have references, a creative brief or even a half-formed idea, send those too. We'll take it from there.