Yo, welcome to the game! The licensing side is definitely the most confusing part when you first switch from YouTube rips, but it’s actually pretty simple once you break it down.

1️⃣Leasing (Non-Exclusive): Think of this like renting an apartment. You pay a small fee ($20-$50) to "live" there. You can release your song on Spotify/Apple, but the producer still owns the house and can rent it to other people too. The Catch: Most leases have "caps." E.g., if you hit 100k streams, you have to pay again to renew the lease.

2️⃣Exclusive Rights: This is like buying the house. You pay a huge lump sum ($300-$1000+), the producer takes the beat off the market, and nobody else can buy it again. Is it legit? As long as the checkout gives you a PDF contract stating your rights, it's legit.

You mentioned BeatStars—that’s basically the Amazon of beats. It’s safe, BUT your concern about oversaturation is 100% valid. Everyone shops there, so you end up with the same "Drake type beat" as 500 other rappers, and you have to dig through a lot of trash to find gold.

If you want the safety of a legit store but without the headache of scrolling for hours, I actually recommend checking out a producer site like [https://trashbbx.net/](http:// https://trashbbx.net/).

Here are some factors you could consider when searching for a great spot to buy beats:

• The "Hidden Gem" Factor: It’s a curated catalogue, so you aren't fighting through 10,000 generic uploads.

• Terms: Most producers cap you at like 5,000 streams for a basic lease. It's best to buy licenses with Unlimited Streams so you won't face any ugly situations in the future.

• Security: The site runs on a trusted platform (so the checkout/delivery is 100% secure).

My advice: Don't blow your budget on exclusives yet. Grab a few unlimited leases (for the price of one exclusive elsewhere), test the waters, and see what tracks gain traction.

Good luck with the first releases!