Quick guide: publish the song
From the master to the platforms, step by step: cover art, metadata, distributor, date, pitch, registrations and how to declare AI use.
Your song doesn’t reach Spotify or Apple Music directly: it goes through a distributor. Publishing isn’t hard, and most of the work is having everything ready before uploading.
1. Prepare the material
- Master: 24-bit WAV, at 48 or 44.1 kHz, as the distributor asks.
- Cover art: 3000 × 3000 pixels, square, RGB, JPG or PNG, with no URLs or social handles.
- Metadata: title, artist, composers, producer, genre, language, and whether it has explicit content.
- Lyrics, if you’re going to add them.
- Who gets paid what: if there are other people, agree on it in writing before publishing.
2. Choose a distributor
- Pay per year: worthwhile if you’ll release several songs. Check what happens if you stop paying.
- Pay per release: worthwhile if you release rarely.
- Free with commission: worthwhile for trying it out.
Check that you keep your rights and can leave without losing your music.
3. Upload with time to spare
- Choose a date 3 or 4 weeks ahead, at least 7 days, so the platforms can process it.
- Enter everything carefully: correcting it later is slow.
- ISRC and UPC are usually assigned by the distributor, if you don’t have them.
If you publish with no margin, you miss the pitch to editors and the song reaching your followers' Release Radar. A metadata mistake is also slow to fix after release.
4. Before it comes out
- Claim your profile on Spotify for Artists and Apple Music for Artists.
- Pitch on Spotify at least 7 days ahead.
- If you used AI in an important part, declare it to the distributor.
5. Release day and after
- Check that everything looks right: art, title, credits and profile.
- Share the link. You bring the first audience.
- Beware of anyone selling streams or playlists. Artificial streams can cost you the song.
6. Register to collect everything
The distributor only pays you the recording side. For the rest, register the work and the phonogram with your country’s societies. You can publish without this, but without collecting everything you’re owed.
Checklist
Before uploading
- Final master listened to from start to finish.
- 3000 × 3000 cover art, with the same text as the metadata.
- Artist name the same as on your other releases.
- Composers and producers entered.
- Split agreed in writing, if there are other people.
- Date 3 or 4 weeks ahead.
- AI use declared, if applicable.
Expected result
Expected result
Your song published on the platforms, with the right data and your rights in order. The detail is in choosing a distributor and the sections that follow, and each platform has its page in the platform guide. What matters is that it’s out: you finished a song.