Music Distribution FAQs

How long does it take for my music to be published?

Most of the time your music will appear within 48 - 72 hours. However, it is recommended that you plan your release date at least 14 days in advance to make sure that it will actually be available everywhere on your desired release date.

If you want your music to be eligible for pitching with the platforms (Spotify playlists, iTunes featured placement, etc), we need the final product uploaded and sent to our retailers at least 6 weeks in advance.

Please take note that during the November/December holidays there may be delays in delivery. So, take precautions!

 

What are the specifications for cover artwork?

• Quality and format

1. Quality of images. The cover art must no be any of the following: blurry, pixelated, mismatched, misaligned, rotated, incorrect, stretched, or have other quality issues.

The information shown in the cover image should always match the information of the metadata as accurately as possible and without any class of abbreviation.

2. Dimensions of the cover art. The cover art of all releases must comply with the following requirements, otherwise it will be rejected.

• Proportion: Exactly squared
• Size: 3000 x 3000 px.
• Accepted format: JPG
• Mode: RGB (CMYK is not accepted)
• Maximum size of file: 10 MB

 

• Must not contain

1. Links and web pages. The cover art can not contain website addresses, websites that sell music, mentions to social media, logos of any stores or services related to entertainment, mentions to physical formats, video formats or any external reference of the digital release.

2. Telephone or email addresses. The cover art can not contain neither telephone numbers nor email addresses.

3. Credits and collaborations. The cover art can include credits or other artists’ names, who are not the primary artists of the release as long as they are justified in the metadata.

The information in the cover will have to reproduce with extreme precision and without abbreviations the information of the metadata.

4. Track listing and illegible texts. The cover art can not contain the track listing.

It is also recommended to use legible fonts in the cover, as the image will be visualized in small formats and it won't be able to appreciate small texts. Texts that are not legible will not be accepted.

5. Descriptions and biographies. The cover art must not include albums descriptions or artists biographies.

6. Digital, physical and video format. The cover art can not include references to it being a digital or physical product (such as “Online”, “CD”, “Compact Disc”, etc.). Mentions to the video format are neither allowed.

Also the cover art must not contain references to contents that are missing in the album, such as “Includes DVD” or “Includes Lyrics”.

Similar expressions like “All Rights Reserved”, “Registered Product”, “Under Copyright”, etc., can not be used. Not even other redundant or unnecessary information.

The release reference number can appear in the cover, but not the UPC or any of the track’s ISRC codes.

7. Pricing. The cover art can not include references to the pricing, or any information with promotional purposes.

8. Pornography and violent contents. The cover art can not include contents that may be racist, pornographic, or glorify or trivialize violence.

9. Offensive symbolism. The cover art must not contain any kind of symbolism that offends a specific group of people or ethnicities, such as Nazi symbolism, restricted by the Strafgesetzbuch section 86a.

10. Misleading information. The cover art must not be misleading. For example, prominently depicting or referencing an artist even though the artist does not perform on the album.

11. Translations and use of special characters. The use of non-occidental or special characters (like Arabic characters, Chinese characters or Greek letters) must be avoided unless they guard an explicit relation with the content.

Side-by-side translations or transliterations of the content are not allowed. The information must be written following the same structure and alphabet as in the metadata.

12. Logos, images and registered brands. All the logos (including the involved texts) must be justified in the metadata. The logos can be related to the artists, producers, labels or other information involved with the musical product.

• Designers, photographers and other mentions to the cover artists are not allowed.
• Registered brands and private or personal images (from people or companies) can not be included in the cover art. The only exceptions are when they are visually irrelevant (being part of the background), they accomplish a relevant role (e.g., in a musical) or are justified in the metadata (for example, as the producer or the publisher).

It may be necessary to report the corresponding documentation to maintain registered brands, private images or references to companies or institutions in order to demonstrate the user is allowed to use them.

 

You can check the official Content Style Guide for more information.

 

What are the audio specifications to distribute my music?

• Audio files requirements

1. Mastering. In order to ensure a good audio quality and meet the standards of today’s music industry, all audio files must have undergone a professional mastering before their distribution.

2. Audio quality. The audio files should not have any sound imperfection. Audio files containing any background noise and other sound imperfections will not be accepted for distribution.

• Format: WAV
• Requirements: 16 bit, 44.1 Khz, stereo

3. Audios and titles. Audio files and track titles must always match. Audios uploaded to non-corresponding tracks are not accepted.

4. Silences, pauses and cuts. Silence, cuts, pauses or extended silences are not allowed. If a song ends with a final silence it should last no longer than ten seconds.

Other kinds of silences, such as cuts or sudden endings, must also be avoided, as they can be misunderstood as audio errors.

5. Silent and hidden tracks. The silent tracks, hidden tracks and ghost tracks should be indicated in the “Version” field. If there is a division between tracks it must follow the silence requirements mentioned above.

A justification may be needed to know the reason why they are included and the duration in relation to the whole content.

 

Can I use samples?

Policy of use of Samples

1. If the Sample was obtained directly from the original owner. The original owner must provide a valid document that expresses his agreement with the obtainment, use and commercialization of his Sample, by the artist who intends to distribute it through the platform.

2. If the Sample was obtained from an instrument, either physical or virtual instrument. The license or any other evidence that can demonstrate that the Sample has been obtained from an instrument must be presented. Similarly, if applicable, you must present the license that is usually available with the instrument.

3. If the Sample was obtained through a payment service (per unit or per subscription). A proof of payment must be presented for the unit, or the registration of the subscription to said service, as well as an evidence that the Sample has been obtained through this specific payment service.

4. If the Sample was obtained through a free legal service. Any valid evidence that could demonstrates that the Sample has been obtained through the free service, must be presented, and also a valid evidence that that could prove that the commercialization of the obtained Sample, is authorized.

5. If the Sample has not been obtained by any of the aforementioned means. It must be justified and in the same way, present a document or any evidence that could prove that:

• The use of the Sample is allowed
• It has been provided by a legal means
• It has been obtained in a legal manner
• It grants permission to the commercialization of the Sample or derivative works

If the provisions of this policy are not met, then the content involved will not be approved, nor will its distribution be accepted.

 

Can I use beats made by someone else?

Yes, but you must provide a way to contact the original creator and a valid document that expresses his agreement with the obtainment, use and commercialization of his beats, by the artist who intends to distribute it through us (That is you). You cannot simply download some beats and use them.

 

Can I publish mix tapes?

Yes, as long as all music is original by you. Under no circumstance will we release music that contains copyrighted content by other artists.

 

If I change distributors, will I lose my streams on Spotify?

Most likely not. The secret to transferring your music from one distributor to another is to use the same ISRCs and the same metadata.

The way to do it is as follows:

 

1. Give us all your files and metadata.
2. We update deliver the music to Spotify and other music stores.
3. Your content will be duplicated for about 24 - 48 hours. After that, Spotify will assimilate an associate the "new" content and will merge it with what you currently have online.
4. After that has been done, you can request a takedown from your music distributor.
5. The old records will disappear and your stream count will remain the same.

 

I want to setup an iTunes pre-order. Can you do that?

Of course. Let us know in advance and we will set it up for you.

Pre-orders require that we receive the material at least 15 days BEFORE the start of the pre-order date.

Please note that pre-orders only work for EPs and Albums. The point of a pre-order is to incentivize your fans to buy your EP or album ahead of time and, in return, you give them one or two instant gratification tracks or "instangrats", as they are known, per week.

iTunes pre-orders work best when scheduled for at least a month before the official release date.

Let's say that you will release a 10-track album on Friday November 29th, 2019.

You start the pre-order period on the first Friday of November 1st, and enable one instangrat. People that order your album on that week would ONLY receive that track at the moment of purchasing.

On November 8th we release the second instantgrat. People who purchased the album the previous week would automatically get access to the second song. People who order the album on the 8th of November or after the two instantgrats have been released, would automatically get both.

On November 15th we would release the third instantgrat.

On November 22th the fourth, and the full album would release on the 29th.

If you are not offering instantgrats, then pre-orders are pretty much pointless. Why would anyone pay in advance for music they cannot listen to right away?

 

I want to release an iTunes booklet. Can you do that?

Yes. Let us know in advance and we will add it to the product.

Here are the specifications for iTunes Booklets.

 

Digital Booklet for iTunes
Format	.pdf
Pages	Four-page minimum
Font	All fonts embedded
Images	All images full bleed
Size	11 x 8.264 inch (28 cm x 21 cm) (10 MB max)
Resolution	300 dpi
Orientation	Landscape

 

These booklets are expressly designed for the iTunes Store format and cannot be reproductions of the liner notes with borders to increase their size.

When saving as PDF, make sure the document opens full screen with no negative space surrounding the document. Printer’s marks are not allowed.

You cannot sell or advertise other products or services. No other promotional sites are allowed.

No links to anything outside of the booklet, except to the artist and/or label website(s).

No time-sensitive information (for example, a promotion or dates for an upcoming tour or concert)

You can download these specifications as PDF here and an example of an iTunes booklet here.