What the Slipstream MCP is
The Slipstream MCP (Model Context Protocol) is a connection layer that lets AI tools, such as Claude, Cursor, and ChatGPT, search and use the Slipstream catalog through plain-language prompts. Instead of clicking through the site, you describe what you need in a chat window and the AI agent surfaces results and contextual thinking.
Think of it as giving your AI assistant the same access to Slipstream that you have, and letting it act on your instructions. Brief in, cleared-for-use music out.
What you can do with it
What you can do on the Slipstream site, you can do through the MCP. Use the list below as your menu of what to ask for. Each item includes an example of how to phrase the request.
New capabilities are added frequently.
Features | Details |
Find music |
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Build from a brief | Turn a pasted or attached creative brief into curated selections. "Here's the brief for our campaign, build me some options." |
Soundtrack a video |
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Work with playlists | Create, edit, reorder, share, and download playlists. "Make a playlist from these eight tracks and share a link." |
Pull tracks and assets | Download tracks, pull stems, and create clips. "Give me the stems for this one." / "Clip the 15 seconds from 0:30." |
Check rights and protect your channel |
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Manage your library | Like tracks and playlists, and pull up what you've liked. "Save this one." / "Show me my liked tracks." |
Best practices
These patterns help you write better prompts, work more efficiently, and avoid common pitfalls.
Providing context
Best Practices | Details |
Lead with a named track or artist, or a link. | A specific anchor ("something like Jet's Are You Gonna Be My Girl") is far more reliable than a bare adjective ("upbeat"). If you have a reference, give it up front. |
Paste or attach your brief directly. | If you already have a creative brief, whether text or a file, use it as part of the prompt rather than summarizing it from memory. The more of the original direction the AI can see, the closer the first pass will be. |
Attach a rough cut or storyboard when available. | When picture exists, share it. The music decision often depends on pacing and structure that only the video shows. |
Accuracy and efficiency
Best Practices | Details |
Turn off MCPs you aren't using. | It's common to have several MCPs connected at once. The more tools you make available, the less focused the AI is on any one of them. Enable only what you need for the task, and switch the rest back on later. |
Be specific to nail the first result. | Genre, tempo, mood, vocal type, and use case each narrow the field. A request with four or five of those lands a usable shortlist much faster than a one-line vibe. |
For a big project, brief once and iterate. | Give the full brief up front, then refine from the picks ("tighten the tempo," "drop the explicit one") rather than starting a fresh search each time. |
Prompting
Best Practices | Details |
Describe the end result and the story, not the steps | "I'm scoring a 30-second sneaker ad, punchy, and it needs to build to the logo" works better than telling the AI which searches to run. Describe what you want with clear boundaries, then let it figure out how to get there. |
Give a reference track as your example. | One good reference is worth a paragraph of description. It anchors genre, energy, and feel in a single line. |
Name your scope and boundaries. | "Nothing over 120 BPM, need only ex-US composers" prevents surprises and keeps the shortlist on target. |
Workflow
Best Practices | Details |
Ask for options before you commit. | "Give me three different directions" is a good move when you're not sure what you want. The AI can propose routes for you to choose from. |
Save your go-to briefs and preferences. | If your tool supports rules or memory files (such as CLAUDE.md or Cursor Rules), use them to store your common brief formats, licensing preferences, requests, and brand direction so you don't restate them every time. |
How to write a request
Level 1: Bare vibe
Upbeat pop for a sneaker ad.
This works, but it's wide open. Pop covers enormous ground, so expect to iterate several times before you land.
Level 2: Vibe, plus a reference and a use case
Energetic garage-rock for a 30-second running-shoe spot, something like Jet or The Hives. Needs to build to a hit around 0:25.
Much tighter. A named reference and a structural cue give the AI a real target.
Level 3: A full brief (recommended)
US TV ad, 30 seconds, energy drink. Feel: uptempo, defiant, a little unhinged, early-2000s garage-rock energy. References: The Hives "Main Offender," Jet "Are You Gonna Be My Girl," The Vines "Get Free." Lyric themes welcome: go, run, now, unstoppable. Tempo 145 to 165. Male vocals or gang shout-alongs, instrumental is fine if it has attitude. Needs a clear hit at 0:22 for the logo. No explicit lyrics. Three routes if possible: garage rock, modern punk, big-beat electronic.
This is the level that produces the most magical results. Notice how much the AI now has to work with: a medium, a feel, named references, lyric hooks, a tempo range, a vocal preference, a structural moment, and an exclusion.
Anatomy of a strong brief
The strongest requests tend to include most of these:
Medium and length. TV ad, trailer, social spot, film scene, and the duration.
Tonal comp. The overall feel, often described as a scene or a film. "The feel of the opening of Punch Drunk Love, but warmer." This is especially useful when you can't name a track.
Reference tracks. Two or three named songs (artist and title). These anchor genre, energy, and feel more precisely than adjectives.
Lyric or theme hooks. Words or ideas you want in the vocal: countdown, pressure, heroes, in too deep.
Genre lane, or routes. One clear lane, or several. See "Ask for routes" below.
Tempo. A BPM range, or at least fast, mid, or slow.
Vocal direction. Male, female, mixed, instrumental, or non-lyrical vocals.
Structural moments. Where the music needs to change, drop, or land.
Exclusions. Anything to avoid, such as explicit lyrics or a particular tone.
Ask for routes
When you're not locked on a single direction, ask for two or three genre "routes" for the same brief, and the AI will build a separate shortlist for each. For the energy-drink example above, that's a garage-rock route, a modern-punk route, and a big-beat electronic route. Routes let you compare distinct interpretations side by side and steer, rather than picking blind from one list.
A note on honest limits
The catalog is production music. It won't contain recognizable commercial hits. Reference well-known songs for feel, not for a literal match, and the AI will find the nearest neighborhood in the catalog.
FAQs
Question | Answer |
What does the music-rights check actually do? | It identifies the music inside a video and flags licensing risk before you publish, so you can catch a problem ahead of a takedown or a muted stream rather than after. |
Why did I get a copyright claim on music I licensed? | Automated systems like Content ID can flag licensed music. Allowlisting your channel or the specific video resolves it. Ask the MCP to add your channel to the allowlist. |
Is Slipstream music cleared for use? | Yes. Slipstream music is cleared for use under your license. If you're unsure what your specific plan covers, check your account or contact your Slipstream representative. |
How do I report a bug or share feedback on the MCP? | Contact your Slipstream representative. |