YouTube is introducing the feature for users to add or "remix" a music video in their short-form videos, known as Shorts, as the company continues to vie with TikTok. Because YouTube has something that TikTok does not-its library of official music videos-it only makes sense for the platform to capitalize on this to advance its short-form video ambitions.

The decision is particularly important because Universal Music Group had withdrawn its song catalog from TikTok. This means that users could no longer add music by popular artists like Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, and Ariana Grande in their videos.

There are four tools that Shorts creators can use when remixing a music video on YouTube. The "Collab" tool lets you display the music video right alongside your own video. For example, the tool lets you create a Short where you are dancing along to the choreography of a music video while having the music video play alongside your own video.

The "Green Screen" tool lets you apply the music video to become the background of your Short. This format will enable you to create your reaction videos. Many view- ers upload videos showcasing people reacting for the very first time to a recently posted music video, and using this format will make their tasks easier. The "Cut" feature allows a user to take a five-second clip from a music video and place it in their short; the "Sound" feature allows the creator to simply take just the sound of a music video and include it within their Short.

Before actually starting the feature, I have to go to the chosen music video that I need to remix into a Short then tap the "Remix" button and choose among the four tools. Do note that you cannot really remix any music video from YouTube as they have cited that in some cases an artist or music label could have opted out of their right to let Shorts creators do remixes of their songs music videos.

According to Sarah Ali, a senior director of product management at YouTube, you can "watch the music video on repeat, discover other Shorts created from the same song by fellow fans, and discover deep catalog cuts from your favorite artists and relive those moments by remixing them as your own" on YouTube, she wrote in a blog post. "All of that can happen in one place and it's only on YouTube.".

Ali said that Shorts is offering a capability not available on competitors like TikTok and Meta's Reels, which puts it ahead of its competitors.

According to reports, this is now the latest announcement after the release some months ago when Google indicated that YouTube Shorts had clocked 70 billion views per day. The company had reported a number of 50 billion daily views back in February 2023. Of course, the numbers look healthy in terms of growth, with daily views on Shorts continually lagging behind Reels. Last October, Meta reported Reels was clocking 140 billion views across the two social media platforms.

Meanwhile, YouTube Shorts still chases after TikTok, arguably the most popular short-form video platform.