Alex Kulak2 said: "Is this a money thing? I can't imagine licensing 15+ hit songs for a show is cheaper than hiring a songwriting team. If anything, I think it'd be more expensive."
Obviously it depends on who the team is. "Names" like Adam Guettel, Ahrens & Flaherty, Yazbeck, etc. don't come cheap! . A couple of kids from the BMI workshop -- not so much.