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A curated background music service for gyms, fitness studios, CrossFit boxes and boutique fitness. Built for operators who know that the tempo on the training floor is not a taste decision, it is a performance variable with measurable effects on perceived exertion and member retention.
From £12.99$16.99€14.99 per month.
Billed in GBP.Billed in USD.Billed in EUR. Seven-day free trial. No credit card required.
Single gym or boutique studio? The plan above is ready, activate in two minutes.
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Most operators treat gym music as a matter of personal preference. The research disagrees. In fitness contexts, tempo and rhythmic structure have measurable effects on how hard members feel they are working, on how long they stay, and on whether they come back.
The foundational work in this field belongs to Costas Karageorghis, professor of sport and exercise psychology at Brunel University London and the most-cited researcher in music and exercise science. Across dozens of peer-reviewed papers and his 2017 textbook Applying Music in Exercise and Sport (Human Kinetics), Karageorghis and collaborators have documented that music matched to the target heart rate zone of a workout reduces perceived exertion by 8-12 percent on average, extends time-to-exhaustion in endurance tasks, and improves self-reported enjoyment of the session. The effect is strongest when the tempo is synchronous with the movement, but is still measurable when the music is asynchronous background audio.
The practical implication for a gym operator is uncomfortable: the music playing on the training floor right now is either helping members hit their performance targets or it is dragging those targets down, and most operators have no idea which it is. A generic playlist compiled three years ago from someone personal streaming account, looping regardless of whether it is a 6am cardio window or an 8pm peak class, is statistically more likely to be dragging than helping. The gym manager, whether they recognise the title or not, is a music director; the only question is whether they are a good one.
A simplified reference based on the Karageorghis research and the applied protocols used by performance-oriented fitness operators. These BPM ranges are not absolute rules, they are starting points.
| BPM range | Training context | Effect in the room |
|---|---|---|
| 90-110 | Warm-up, mobility, cool-down, stretch zones | Low perceived exertion, supports gradual heart-rate activation and post-workout recovery. |
| 120-140 | Steady-state cardio, treadmill, bike, rowing | Matches typical target heart rate for aerobic work. Reduces perceived exertion, extends session length. |
| 140-160 | HIIT, interval training, metabolic conditioning | Drives energy on work intervals, supports the psychological push through high-intensity blocks. |
| 160+ | Sprint work, all-out effort, competition prep | Used sparingly. Too sustained becomes exhausting rather than energising. |
Source ranges synthesised from Karageorghis CI, Applying Music in Exercise and Sport, Human Kinetics 2017, and the associated research programme at Brunel University London. Individual response varies; published ranges are population averages used in applied fitness programming.
One of the biggest mistakes in fitness audio is running a single playlist from open to close. Three distinct member populations use the same physical space across the day, and each needs a different sonic environment.
Members who come before the workday want efficiency: get in, get the session done, get to the shower. The floor is quieter, the chatter is minimal, the focus is solo training. Music here needs to energise without demanding attention, support focused steady-state cardio or programmed strength work, and handle the psychological push of an early start.
Typical range: 115-135 BPMRetirees, shift workers, stay-at-home parents, personal training clients. The pace is slower, the use of space is less concentrated, conversations happen more easily. Music here shifts toward warmer mid-tempo programming that accompanies rather than drives. This is also the window where personal trainers work with their clients, and the music needs to allow coaching conversation without members having to shout over it.
Typical range: 105-125 BPMThe gym is full. Group classes are running, the weight room is busy, social connections happen across the floor. Music here is the most recognisable part of the brand experience, the thing members associate with their gym over competitors. Energy is higher, tempo is harder, the room carries the sound rather than absorbing it. This is where the curation matters most.
Typical range: 125-150 BPMThe craft of building a radio programme for a drive-time audience and the craft of programming a gym training floor share more than most people realise.
The five curated stations are editorially supervised by Emanuele Carocci, a radio broadcaster with over 20 years of professional on-air experience. He works as a host on national commercial radio and leads the music curation team at My Corporate Radio.
Radio broadcasting at drive-time faces the same constraints as gym programming: the listener is doing something else that requires physical activation, their attention is partial, and the music must accompany that activation without competing for the attention the listener needs for the primary task. A driver at 7am and a member on a treadmill at 7am are in the same sonic position, and the editorial craft required to serve them is the same.
The difference compared to algorithmic playlists from consumer services like Spotify, Apple Music or YouTube Music is substantial in a fitness context: every track is selected with tempo awareness, dynamic control and mood progression, rather than generated by a recommendation algorithm optimised for at-home streaming behaviour.
Fitness venues are among the most frequently audited commercial environments when it comes to music licensing, because the training floor is unambiguously a public performance space with paying members. Direct licensing removes the exposure entirely.
| Feature | Consumer streaming (Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube) | My Corporate Radio |
|---|---|---|
| Legal for commercial use | No. Terms forbid commercial use. | Yes. Direct license included. |
| PRO fees on catalogue | Separate ASCAP / BMI / PRS / SIAE fees required. | None on the MCR catalogue. |
| Tempo-aware curation | Algorithmic, not BPM-programmed. | Curated with tempo windows in mind. |
| Advertising | Ads between tracks on free plans. | Zero ads, ever. |
| License certificate | Not provided. | Issued in the gym name. |
| True annual cost | Spotify £132/yr + PRS+PPL £300-600/yr = £432-732/yrSpotify $155/yr + ASCAP+BMI+SESAC $350-800/yr = $505-955/yrSpotify €143/yr + SIAE/GEMA/SACEM €250-700/yr = €393-843/yr | £156/yr$204/yr€180/yr — all included |
My Corporate Radio operates as a direct licensor of original AI-crafted music under EU Directive 2014/26/EU and in transparency with EU Regulation 2024/1689. Performing rights organisations such as ASCAP, BMI, PRS for Music, PPL, GEMA, SACEM, SIAE and SCF remain the reference for their own repertoires, which are outside the scope of this catalogue.
Yes. The work of Costas Karageorghis at Brunel University documents that music matched to target heart rate zones reduces perceived exertion by 8-12 percent on average, extends time-to-exhaustion in endurance tasks, and improves session enjoyment. Tempo matching 120-140 BPM for steady cardio and 140-160 BPM for high-intensity work produces the strongest measurable effect.
Yes. The catalogue is proprietary and licensed directly by My Corporate Radio under EU Directive 2014/26/EU. No PRS, PPL, GEMA, SACEM, ASCAP, BMI, SESAC or SoundExchange fee applies. Every customer receives a written direct license certificate in the gym name. This is particularly relevant for fitness venues because gyms are routinely inspected by collecting societies.
£12.99 per month, billed in GBP. Customers in the US pay $16.99, customers in the EU pay €14.99.$16.99 per month, billed in USD. Customers in the UK pay £12.99, customers in the EU pay €14.99.€14.99 per month, billed in EUR. Customers in the UK pay £12.99, customers in the US pay $16.99. Seven-day free trial, no credit card required. Cancel anytime.
No. Consumer streaming terms of service explicitly restrict usage to personal and domestic use and prohibit public broadcasting. The training floor, group class studio and reception area are all commercial environments open to paying members. Consumer streaming in a gym is the single most frequent cause of collecting society inspection disputes in the fitness industry.
Yes. The 6am pre-work window, the afternoon casual hours and the 6pm-10pm peak have different member populations, different training styles and different sonic requirements. Curated stations adapt across these windows rather than looping the same sequence from open to close.
Yes. Each zone has distinct tempo and mood requirements. A single subscription supports multi-zone management: cardio, weight room, group class warm-up/cool-down, reception.
The five stations are curated by Emanuele Carocci, a radio broadcaster with over 20 years of professional on-air experience on national commercial radio. He leads the music curation team at My Corporate Radio.
Yes. No contract, no commitment. Cancel with one click from the link in the confirmation email.
Related guides from the My Corporate Radio editorial catalogue on commercial audio branding across different venue categories.
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