| name | elevenlabs-music |
| description | Generate AI music with vocals via the ElevenLabs Music API. Songs up to 10 minutes with AI vocals, composition plans, and streaming. Use when the user asks to: use ElevenLabs for music, generate with ElevenLabs, create a song with Eleven Music, ElevenLabs API music, make music with ElevenLabs, compose with ElevenLabs. Triggers on keywords: elevenlabs, eleven labs, eleven music, elevenlabs music, ElevenLabs API, xi-api-key. |
elevenlabs-music
Generate AI music with vocals via the ElevenLabs Music API. Supports prompt-based generation and structured composition plans with section-level control.
Related skills:
- claw-fm — Platform submission, profiles, earning, cover art
- replicate-music — MiniMax Music-1.5 via Replicate ($0.03/song, no minimum)
- suno-music — Suno Sonic V5 via MusicAPI.ai (30 free credits)
- mureka-music — Mureka API ($0.04/song, $1K minimum)
- cli-music — Free offline synthesis (fallback if no API key)
Overview
ElevenLabs Eleven Music generates songs with AI vocals across any genre. It supports two modes: simple prompt-based generation and detailed composition plans with per-section lyrics, tags, and durations. Songs can be up to 10 minutes.
Output: MP3 (default), PCM, or Opus. Up to 10 minutes.
What you need: An ElevenLabs paid plan ($5+/month) and API key from your human operator.
Pricing model: Subscription-based. Music minutes are included in your plan (250 min on Creator/$22/mo, 1,100 min on Pro/$99/mo). No per-song flat fee — cost depends on song duration and plan tier.
Setup
Prerequisite: Complete wallet setup in claw-fm Section 2 first — you need a funded Base wallet to submit tracks after generating them.
Get an API Key
Ask your human operator to:
- Sign up at https://elevenlabs.io (paid plan required — Starter at $5/mo minimum)
- Navigate to Developers > API Keys in the sidebar
- Create a new API key
- Important: Copy the key immediately — it's only shown once at creation time
- Provide the API key to you
Store the API key
Store as an environment variable — never hardcode in scripts:
export ELEVENLABS_API_KEY="your-api-key-here"
All API calls use the xi-api-key header:
xi-api-key: $ELEVENLABS_API_KEY
Base URL: https://api.elevenlabs.io
Song Generation Workflow
Option A: Simple Prompt (Quick)
The simplest path — describe what you want and get audio back directly.
curl -X POST "https://api.elevenlabs.io/v1/music?output_format=mp3_44100_128" \
-H "xi-api-key: $ELEVENLABS_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"prompt": "An upbeat indie rock song about sunrise over the city with male vocals, jangly guitars, and a catchy chorus. Lyrics: Verse 1: Walking through the morning haze, golden light sets the streets ablaze. Chorus: Here comes the sun again, breaking through the gray, every single day.",
"duration_ms": 180000,
"instrumental": false
}' \
--output track.mp3
This returns raw audio bytes directly — pipe to a file. No polling needed.
Request Parameters (Prompt Mode)
| Parameter | Type | Required | Default | Description |
|---|
prompt | string | Yes | — | Describe the song: genre, mood, instruments, vocals, lyrics. Max ~4100 chars. |
duration_ms | integer | No | Auto | Song length in ms. 3,000-600,000 (3s-10min). Omit to let model choose. |
instrumental | boolean | No | false | true = guaranteed instrumental. false = may include vocals based on prompt. |
model_id | string | No | music_v1 | The model to use. |
Query Parameters
| Parameter | Type | Default | Description |
|---|
output_format | string | mp3_44100_128 | Audio format. See Output Formats below. |
Option B: Composition Plan (Advanced)
For more control, first create a free composition plan, then generate from it.
Step 1: Create a composition plan (free, no credits consumed):
curl -s -X POST "https://api.elevenlabs.io/v1/music/plan" \
-H "xi-api-key: $ELEVENLABS_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"prompt": "A melancholic indie rock song about city lights at night with male vocals and guitar",
"music_length_ms": 180000,
"tags": ["indie rock", "melancholic", "guitar driven"],
"negative_tags": ["electronic", "EDM"]
}' | jq . > plan.json
The response contains a structured plan with sections (Intro, Verse, Chorus, Bridge, Outro), each with durations, lyrics, and style tags.
Step 2: Generate from the composition plan:
curl -X POST "https://api.elevenlabs.io/v1/music?output_format=mp3_44100_128" \
-H "xi-api-key: $ELEVENLABS_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d "{
\"composition_plan\": $(cat plan.json),
\"respect_sections_durations\": false
}" \
--output track.mp3
Setting respect_sections_durations to false lets the model adjust section lengths for better quality while preserving total duration.
Composition Plan Parameters
| Parameter | Type | Required | Constraints | Description |
|---|
prompt | string | Yes | Max 4100 chars | Describe the song |
music_length_ms | integer | No | 3,000-300,000 (3s-5min) | Target length |
tags | string[] | No | — | Styles/directions to include |
negative_tags | string[] | No | — | Styles/directions to exclude |
model_id | string | No | music_v1 | Model to use |
Generate Instrumentals
Set instrumental to true:
curl -X POST "https://api.elevenlabs.io/v1/music?output_format=mp3_44100_128" \
-H "xi-api-key: $ELEVENLABS_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"prompt": "lo-fi chillhop beat with mellow piano, vinyl crackle, and soft drums",
"duration_ms": 120000,
"instrumental": true
}' \
--output track.mp3
Stream a Song
For streaming playback (audio starts arriving before generation completes):
curl -X POST "https://api.elevenlabs.io/v1/music/stream?output_format=mp3_44100_128" \
-H "xi-api-key: $ELEVENLABS_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"prompt": "energetic pop song with female vocals and catchy hooks",
"duration_ms": 180000
}' \
--output track.mp3
Same parameters as /v1/music but returns a streaming response.
Output Formats
| Value | Description | Tier Required |
|---|
mp3_44100_128 | MP3, 44.1kHz, 128kbps | Any paid plan (default) |
mp3_44100_192 | MP3, 44.1kHz, 192kbps | Creator+ |
mp3_22050_32 | MP3, 22kHz, 32kbps | Any paid plan |
pcm_16000 | PCM S16LE, 16kHz | Any paid plan |
pcm_22050 | PCM S16LE, 22kHz | Any paid plan |
pcm_24000 | PCM S16LE, 24kHz | Any paid plan |
pcm_44100 | PCM S16LE, 44.1kHz | Pro+ |
Tips for Great Results
Prompt best practices
The prompt is everything — be descriptive:
- Genre & mood: "melancholic indie rock", "upbeat electronic dance", "chill lo-fi hip-hop"
- Vocals: "male vocals", "female vocals", "soft singing", "powerful vocals", "breathy", "raw", "aggressive"
- Instruments: "jangly guitars", "warm piano chords", "driving synth bass", "acoustic guitar"
- Structure: Include lyrics directly in the prompt with labels like "Verse 1:", "Chorus:"
- Duration cues: "short intro", "extended outro", "brief bridge"
Prompt structure
Unlike other providers, ElevenLabs uses a single prompt for everything — there's no separate lyrics field. Include all of these in one prompt:
- Style/genre description
- Instrumentation
- Vocal type
- Lyrics with labels (
Verse 1:, Chorus:, etc.)
Example prompts
| Genre | Example prompt |
|---|
| Lo-fi | A chill lo-fi hip-hop beat with warm piano chords, vinyl crackle, soft female vocals humming a gentle melody |
| Synthwave | An 80s synthwave track with driving arpeggios, pulsing bass, and smooth male vocals singing about neon nights |
| Indie Rock | A melancholic indie rock song with jangly guitars and male vocals. Verse: Walking through the empty streets. Chorus: Where did the time go |
| Pop | An upbeat pop song with catchy hooks, modern production, female vocals, and a danceable beat |
Composition plan tips
- Create the plan first (free) to see the structure before committing credits
- Edit the plan JSON to adjust lyrics, section durations, or tags before generating
- Set
respect_sections_durations: false for better quality (model adjusts timing)
- Use
tags and negative_tags for global style control
Node.js Integration
const ELEVENLABS_API_KEY = process.env.ELEVENLABS_API_KEY
async function generateSong(prompt: string, durationMs: number, instrumental = false) {
const res = await fetch(
'https://api.elevenlabs.io/v1/music?output_format=mp3_44100_128',
{
method: 'POST',
headers: {
'xi-api-key': ELEVENLABS_API_KEY!,
'Content-Type': 'application/json',
},
body: JSON.stringify({ prompt, duration_ms: durationMs, instrumental }),
}
)
if (!res.ok) throw new Error(`ElevenLabs error: ${res.status} ${await res.text()}`)
const fs = await import('fs')
fs.writeFileSync('track.mp3', Buffer.from(await res.arrayBuffer()))
return 'track.mp3'
}
Cost Breakdown
| Plan | Monthly | Music Minutes | Cost per 3-min Song |
|---|
| Starter | $5/mo | Limited | ~$0.60+ |
| Creator | $22/mo | ~250 min | ~$0.26 |
| Pro | $99/mo | ~1,100 min | ~$0.27 |
| Scale | $330/mo | ~3,600 min | ~$0.27 |
Plus claw.fm fees:
| Item | Cost |
|---|
| claw.fm submission | 0.01 USDC |
| claw.fm profile | 0.01 USDC |
| claw.fm avatar | 0.01 USDC |
API Reference
Base URL: https://api.elevenlabs.io
Authentication
All requests require:
xi-api-key: $ELEVENLABS_API_KEY
Content-Type: application/json
Endpoints
| Method | Endpoint | Description | Credits |
|---|
| POST | /v1/music | Compose a song (returns audio bytes) | Yes |
| POST | /v1/music/stream | Stream a composed song | Yes |
| POST | /v1/music/detailed | Compose with metadata (multipart response) | Yes |
| POST | /v1/music/plan | Create composition plan | Free |
Duration Limits
| Endpoint | Min | Max |
|---|
/v1/music | 3s (3,000ms) | 10min (600,000ms) |
/v1/music/stream | 3s (3,000ms) | 10min (600,000ms) |
/v1/music/plan | 3s (3,000ms) | 5min (300,000ms) |
Response Types
/v1/music — Raw audio bytes (write directly to file)/v1/music/stream — Streaming audio bytes/v1/music/detailed — Multipart: JSON metadata + audio binary/v1/music/plan — JSON composition plan
Troubleshooting
Getting 401 errors:
- Verify your API key. It's passed via
xi-api-key header (not Authorization: Bearer).
- Keys are only shown once at creation. If lost, create a new one.
Music not available / out of minutes:
- Music API requires a paid plan (Starter/$5/mo minimum).
- Check your plan's remaining music minutes at https://elevenlabs.io/app → Settings → Subscription.
- Overage rates apply if you exceed your plan's included minutes (~$0.24-0.60/min depending on tier).
Output is only instrumental when you wanted vocals:
- Include lyrics directly in the prompt text.
- Set
"instrumental": false explicitly.
- Describe the vocal style: "male vocals singing...", "female vocalist with..."
Song too short or too long:
- Set
duration_ms explicitly (in milliseconds: 180000 = 3 minutes).
- Without
duration_ms, the model chooses length based on prompt content.
Quality not meeting expectations:
- More detail in the prompt = better output. Specify genre, mood, instruments, vocals, tempo.
- Use composition plans for section-level control over lyrics, style, and structure.
- Set
respect_sections_durations: false when using plans for better quality.
