Whenever you perform in public a song you did not write, or play recorded music in public, such as at a club, restaurant, concert, on the radio, or streaming online, public performance licenses are required.

A public performance license is required no matter how small a portion of the song you use. There are some exceptions where a public performance license is not required: You don't need a public performance license for songs that you wrote yourself or songs that are in the public domain.