Laws that choke creativity

The idea of read/write culture and the restrictions on writing in the digital age stood out to me. I have a few friends who have YouTube channels, and one of their biggest complaints is not being able to use the songs they want in their videos. I think this is a particularly challenging question in a specific context: when the use of a song, etc., does not directly lead to monetary gain, but still contributes. Every content creator I know has a 'brand' (usually themselves). Is it okay to, for instance, use a song in its entirety behind an original video that does not itself make money, but advertises photography services? These kinds of questions are unique to the Internet age and will need good answers.