CCLI Licensing

CCLI stands for "Christian Copyright Licensing International," and is an organization that enables real-time access to licensed Christian music and media while easing the burden of administration in the many complex issues related to copyright. They provide churches, organizations, and schools with the resources for rehearsing, performing and displaying the most inspiring audio and video, while at the same time, simplifying the costly administrative work involved in copyright licensing. In doing so, they honor the artists, labels, and studios who create and own this work by ensuring fair use receives fair compensation.

CCLI helps churches such as ours honor copyright law and the creative people who author these valuable works.

• Storing Lyrics: Enter and store song lyrics on any computer for visual projection to assist with congregational singing
• Printing Songs: Print songs, hymns and lyrics in bulletins, programs, liturgies and song sheets for congregational singing
• Recording Services: Record and capture your worship services (audio and video), provided you only are recording live music
• Making Custom Arrangements: Arrange, print and copy your own vocal and instrumental arrangements for congregational singing where a published version is not available
• Projection or Display: Make copies, digital or physical, of copyright-protected lyrics for projection or display during congregational singing.
• Translating Songs: Translate song lyrics into any other language for congregational singing where a published version is not accessible or available

When we first launched the new Music Companion website, we included an article on the site that provided important information regarding CCLI (“Christian Copyright Licensing International”). Since then, many of our congregations have requested and obtained a CCLI copyright license. In fact, almost 60 congregations in the USA district now have this license.

There has been some question, however, over whether or not each congregation that currently has a license actually needs the license. Given this, we wanted to take a moment to clarify the reasons why a CCLI copyright license would be needed.

 A CCLI copyright license is needed if your congregation does any of the following:

• Copies copyrighted songs from websites, songbooks, or our hymnals for use in congregational singing.
• Prints copyrighted songs, hymns and/or lyrics in bulletins, programs, and/or song sheets for use in congregational singing.
• Electronically stores, retrieves and utilizes copyrighted song files in computers, presentation software and similar resources to enable the visual projection of copyrighted songs onto screens for use in congregational singing.
• Creates overhead transparencies, slides, computer graphics, or any other format whereby copyrighted song lyrics are visually projected for use in congregational singing.
• Arranges, prints, and/or copies member-constructed arrangements (vocal and instrumental) of copyrighted songs for use in congregational singing, where no published version is available.

In short, if your congregation does not display copyrighted lyrics on screens, include copyrighted lyrics in programs/song sheets, or make copies of copyrighted songs (from our hymnals or found online) for use in congregational singing, then a CCLI copyright license would not be needed. 

If your congregation has a CCLI license but you now realize it is not needed (or, on the contrary, if you now realize that you need a CCLI license), please let us know by emailing us at Music_Worship@nac-usa.org. Please feel free to email us with any questions you may have as well.

Thank you in advance for passing this information along to the appropriate people within your congregation.

We wanted to take a moment to address the posting of copyrighted music to YouTube.

Please note that it is illegal for any of our congregations or members to post any music on YouTube that is under copyright without permission from the copyright holder(s). This also includes arrangements of copyrighted music. In order for copyrighted music to be posted on YouTube, permission must be secured from those who own the copyright, which can be a lengthy and often expensive process. For this reason, if music from our services and programs is posted to YouTube, it must be public domain music.

It is legal, however, to post copyrighted music to Facebook. Because of this, if music from our services and programs is posted to social media, it should be done solely through this platform to protect the church from any litigation or legal issues. Even this should be done with caution and discernment, however. We should give careful thought to the quality of music being included, and we should be very aware of who is being included. Remember that permission must be secured from any member included in these videos, and especially anyone under the age of 18.

As an established, national church, we must take a careful, honest, and legal approach when it comes to matters such as these, making sure that everything is done in accordance with God’s will and to His honor and glory, but also according to the prescribed laws as we state in our 10th article of faith.

Thank you in advance for your understanding and compliance.

The goal with this brief article is to create awareness when it comes to the use of YouTube videos within the divine service experience.

Please note that it is illegal to include YouTube videos (music or otherwise) in religious services, without direct permission from the copyright owner(s).

The following is taken directly from CCLI's website:

YouTube’s terms of service specifies that content on the site should only be accessed for “personal, non-commercial use” except where “YouTube or the respective licensors [the copyright owner] of the content” has given “prior written consent.”

Additionally, no licenses currently exist that cover this type of YouTube-specific use, including CCLI. Just because a congregation has a CCLI license does not mean that they can use these videos without permission.

If you are currently including YouTube videos within the divine service experience, please refrain from doing so moving forward. Where possible, all service music should be live, with the possible exception of those congregations that are lacking accompanists. Where this is the case, please be encouraged to use the accompaniment tracks available.

Thank you in advance for your understanding and compliance.