Touch Tones Music

Touch Tones Music is the publishing arm of Tummy Touch Music Group, a London-based group that includes record labels, a music publishing company, a production music company, and an artist and catalogue management division. Touch Tones publishes for independent labels including Aficionado Recordings, Bastard Jazz Recordings, and Claremont 56, and holds a strategic partnership with RAK Music (connected to Mickie Most's RAK Records, RAK Recording Studios, and RAK Mastering). The catalog has been placed in major motion pictures, global brand campaigns, and top-selling video game titles. Best suited for independent labels and artists in electronic, soul, funk, disco, and world music seeking a publisher with international reach.

Submission and Application Details

Touch Tones Music does not run an open submission portal. Artists and labels interested in publishing representation should contact the sync department directly through the Touch Tones website. There is no application fee. You need to demonstrate catalog value, meaning you should have a body of released work with clear copyright ownership.

The company describes itself as having a high ratio of employees per copyright, which means they can focus more time on individual artists. This also means they accept fewer clients.

How Touch Tones Music Works

Touch Tones operates as a pro-active indie publisher within the Tummy Touch Music Group structure. The company manages copyright administration, royalty collection, and sync licensing for its published works.

The process works as follows:

1. Label and artist publishing: Touch Tones publishes music for independent labels and individual artists. The company handles copyright administration, royalty collection, and sync licensing.
2. Sync pitching: The creative sales department places songs with music supervisors, ad agencies, film studios, and game developers. The team pitches for advertisements, films, trailers, and other media.
3. Free music searches: Touch Tones offers free, fast music searches for supervisors. Provide a brief and the sync department will search the catalog and return options.
4. Diverse catalog: The catalog spans electronic, indie, soul, funk, disco, world, and dance music. This diversity comes from representing multiple independent labels with distinct sounds.
5. Group structure: As part of Tummy Touch Music Group, Touch Tones has sister divisions in records, production music, and artist management. This creates cross-divisional opportunities for sync placements.
6. RAK partnership: The strategic partnership with RAK Music gives Touch Tones access to classic 1970s and 1980s repertoire from one of the UK's foremost publishers of that era.

Real-World Example

A music supervisor needs a funk track for a video game soundtrack. They email the Touch Tones sync department with a brief. The team searches the catalog (which includes works from Bastard Jazz Recordings and other labels) and returns 5 funk tracks within 48 hours. The supervisor selects one. The sync fee for a video game use typically ranges from $1,000 to $5,000 depending on the game's budget and distribution. Touch Tones clears the publishing rights, and the label clears the master rights separately if they are not controlled by the same party.

Why It Matters for Independent Artists

• Independent label focus: Touch Tones publishes for independent labels, not major label catalogs. If you run an indie label or release music independently, this publisher understands that world.
• Genre fit: The catalog leans toward electronic, soul, funk, disco, and world music. If you produce in these genres, Touch Tones has relevant supervisor contacts.
• Free search service: The company offers free music searches for supervisors. This lowers the barrier for supervisors to explore the catalog, increasing placement opportunities.
• International publishing partners: Touch Tones has an international network of publishing partners, allowing them to collect royalties globally without relying on a single collection society.
• RAK partnership: Access to RAK's classic 70s and 80s catalogue adds depth and historical repertoire to the publishing offering.

Drawbacks / Things to Consider

• Dissolved UK entity: The UK limited company Touch Tones Music Limited (company number 04448020) was dissolved on July 2, 2019, according to Companies House. The website remains active, suggesting operations continue under a different entity within Tummy Touch Music Group. Verify the current corporate status and which legal entity you would be signing with before entering any agreement.
• No open submissions: Touch Tones does not run a public submission portal. You must contact the sync department directly and demonstrate catalog value.
• Limited public information: The company does not disclose its fee structure, catalog size, or specific placement history in detail. You must request this information directly.
• Niche genre focus: Touch Tones specializes in electronic, soul, funk, disco, and world music. If you produce mainstream pop, rock, or hip-hop, this publisher is not the right fit.
• Small operation: As part of an independent group, Touch Tones has limited bandwidth compared to major publishers. Active pitching capacity is constrained by team size.
• No contact email or phone listed: The company does not publicly list a contact email or phone number. You must use the website contact form, which slows communication.

Company Type and Licensing Model

Touch Tones Music operates as an independent music publisher within the Tummy Touch Music Group structure. The company is not a production music library, a royalty-free platform, or a subscription service. It is a traditional publishing arm that manages copyright administration, royalty collection, and sync licensing for the catalogs it represents.

The licensing model is per-placement negotiation. There are no subscription tiers, no per-use flat fees, and no buyout options. Each sync placement is quoted individually based on the media type (film, TV, advertising, video games), territory, duration of use, and the client's budget. Touch Tones negotiates the sync fee, takes a publishing percentage, and passes the remainder to the writer or label.

The parent group, Tummy Touch Music Group, can clear both publishing and master rights within 24 hours when both sides are controlled internally. When master rights are held externally, the label or master owner must clear separately. The group also offers custom music written to brief within 48 hours, functioning as a small-scale custom scoring service alongside the publishing operation.

Catalog Size and Genre Coverage

Touch Tones Music does not publicly disclose its total catalog size. The catalog is built from the publishing rights of multiple independent labels and individual artists represented by the Tummy Touch Music Group. Based on the labels represented (Aficionado Recordings, Bastard Jazz Recordings, Claremont 56) and the RAK Music partnership, the catalog spans several thousand tracks across the following genres:

• Electronic
• Indie
• Soul
• Funk
• Disco
• World
• Dance

The RAK Music partnership adds classic 1970s and 1980s repertoire, broadening the catalog's temporal range. The catalog does not cover mainstream pop, rock, hip-hop, or classical music in significant depth.

Client Base

Touch Tones Music has placed music with the following client categories:

• Film studios: The Coen brothers used Tummy Touch music for all licensed music in "Burn After Reading." Other film placements include "Un Prophete" (BAFTA winner), "The Fast and the Furious," and "Sex & The City."
• TV networks: Placements include "The OC," "Nip Tuck," "The Mighty Boosh," "Mr Bean," "Underbelly," and "Skins."
• Global brands: VW, Cadillac, Hewlett Packard, American Express, Gordon's Gin, Baileys, Payless Shoes, Target, Bonds, Laughing Cow, and Transport For London.
• Video game developers: Top-selling video game titles (specific titles not publicly disclosed).
• Music supervisors and ad agencies: The sync department handles direct requests from supervisors and agencies for free, fast music searches.

How They Pay Artists

Touch Tones Music operates on a traditional publishing split model:

• Sync fees: Negotiated per placement. The company takes a percentage of the sync fee (typically 25% to 50% depending on the agreement) and pays the remainder to the writer or label.
• Publishing royalties: Touch Tones collects mechanical and performance royalties through its international network of publishing partners. Writers receive their share of royalties on a quarterly accounting basis.
• No upfront fees: The company does not pay upfront fees to sign artists. Revenue is generated from placements and royalty collection, then split according to the publishing agreement.
• No buyouts: Touch Tones does not offer buyout deals. Writers retain their writer's share of royalties.
• Quarterly accounting: The company provides quarterly royalty accounting and ongoing administrative support to ensure all royalties are collected and distributed.

Exact splits vary by agreement and are negotiated individually. The company states that writers should be "justly rewarded for their creative endeavours," but does not publish standard split percentages.

Comparison Table

Videos

Similar Sync Licensing Companies

• Secret Road - Boutique sync agency representing independent artists for film, TV, and brand placements
• Marmoset - Portland-based boutique sync agency with a curated catalog of indie and electronic music
• Felt Music - Production music library with a multi-genre catalog for film, TV, and advertising
• Music House - Independent music publishing and sync licensing company

Related Resources

• Sync Licensing Companies Directory
• How to Get Your First Sync License
• Music Licensing Agreements: Types, Terms, and Red Flags
• Use our Sync Licensing Fee Calculator to evaluate whether a placement offer is fair
• Visit Touch Tones Music for inquiries