Instagram stories with audio are taking over feeds nowadays. Adding music, voiceovers or other sounds to your stories is a game-changer for capturing attention and expressing yourself. Whether you're a influencer, brand or everyday user, audio can seriously amplify your Instagram stories game.
Let's break down all the need-to-know details on how to inject audio into Insta stories like a pro. Pull up those fire playlists and get ready to have your followers constantly asking "what song is this?"
Why Add Music to Your Stories?
Before we dig into the how-to, let's explore why you should even bother adding audio to your Instagram stories. Here are some of the key benefits:
- Music and other sounds help your stories stand out in crowded feeds. They add a layer of dynamic sensory experience that flat visuals alone can't provide.
- Audio adds to the vibe and personality you present on Instagram. The songs and sounds you choose reflect your tastes and can engage viewers who vibe with your style.
- Sounds can evoke emotional responses from your audience. Songs can energize, chill out, motivate or amuse. Voice clips also help showcase your raw and candid thoughts.
- Adding music can make your content more entertaining and memorable. Ever come across a reel or story and the song is stuck in your head? That could be you!
- Audio, especially recognizable songs, can significantly increase your Instagram stories engagement. People want to know what tracks you use.
Clearly, audio can tremendously amplify your Instagram stories game. Let's explore exactly how to start incorporating sounds.
Adding Music from Your Library
The simplest way to add music to stories is using songs and audio you already have on your device. Here's how:
Step 1: Open the Instagram story composer. Tap the Music sticker icon at the top.
Step 2: Select "Add from Library" to access your device's audio files.
Step 3: Pick a song or sound from your library to add to the new story. Trim the length if needed.
Step 4: Position the music sticker wherever you like. The sound will automatically play as viewers see that part of your story.
Step 5: Optionally add creative stickers, effects, drawings and captions on top of the music sticker.
Step 6: Share the story or add it to your story queue. The song will play for your followers!
Using your personal music library is a quick and easy way to start pumping up your Insta stories. But for more variety, you'll want to dig into the Instagram music libraries next.
Leveraging Instagram's Music Libraries
Instagram provides two huge libraries of songs and sounds you can freely use in stories:
Music Library
This contains a massive catalog of full songs across tons of genres from rising and major artists. No need to dig through your files when you can search Instagram's music library for the perfect tunes.
To access it, use the same steps as above but select "Add from Library" when adding a music sticker. The key is having an Instagram account registered to a Facebook profile. Licensing restrictions otherwise block using these songs.
Sound Library
Instagram's sound library offers audio clips, movie quotes, viral sounds, voice effects and more. These are shorter audio snippets perfect for memes, highlights, voiceovers, and quick sound bites.
Access this library from the music sticker tool too. Just select "Add from Sound Library" and browse or search the available sounds.
Utilizing Instagram's own massive audio libraries saves you time finding songs and sounds. But for fully personalized music, nothing beats creating your own.
Recording Custom Audio
For truly one-of-a-kind sounds, you can record audio clips right within Instagram Stories:
Step 1: Tap the music sticker icon then select "Record"
Step 2: Hit record and start capturing any audio like a mini podcast, a cappella singing, ambient sounds etc.
Step 3: Stop recording when finished. Trim the length if needed.
Step 4: Add creative stickers, text and drawings over your custom audio.
Step 5: Post the story or add it to your queue.
Making your own audio opens up tons of creative possibilities. Podcast-style updates, voiceovers for tutorials, meme sounds and more can make your stories pop.
Pro tip: For better audio quality, consider recording voiceovers in an external app first, then adding the exported audio file to your story. GarageBand is perfect for iOS users.
Best Practices for Audio Stories
When adding music or other sounds to Instagram Stories, follow these best practices for success:
- Pick songs that complement your brand. Avoid anything too discordant.
- Use sounds relevant to your content. Like a news theme for updates or beach noises for vacation shots.
- Trim audio clips to key segments instead of full songs to better match the content.
- Lower music volume so any voiceovers still stand out.
- Use creative stickers, text and captions that mesh with the vibe of your chosen audio.
- Enable lyrics displays if using popular songs readers might want to sing along to.
- Have a call to action prompting people to ask for song names.
Smoothly mixing audio and visuals together into cohesive stories takes experimentation. But the impact it can have is beyond worth it.
Make Those Stories Sing
Adding audio to your Instagram stories is hugely rewarding when done right. Follow these tips and tricks to become an Instagram stories audio pro:
- Use your personal music library for familiar songs and sounds.
- Take advantage of Instagram's massive free audio libraries available.
- Record custom voiceovers, podcasts and audio memes for unique sounds.
- Pick music and sounds that align with your brand image and content style.
- Blend audio clips seamlessly with engaging visuals for maximum impact.
Soon your stories will be the ones everyone is stopping to enjoy and interact with as they scroll. The dance party is on in your Instagram Stories, so grab the mic and pump up the volume!