How to release a clean version of a recording

A clean version opens doors for your music that stay closed to the explicit original.

Family profiles, kids’ modes and many playlists filter out explicit content automatically. A cleaned-up version of a song can therefore reach listeners whom the original will never reach.

A clean version is an edited form of an otherwise explicit recording – the objectionable words are bleeped, muted, replaced or re-sung. We cover the difference between the two terms in detail in the article Clean vs. Explicit; here we focus on the practice: How to release a clean version correctly – from editing the audio to the metadata and the form of the release.

Why a clean version is worth it

On the platforms, explicit recordings are automatically excluded from family profiles, kids’ modes and many playlists. On top of that, radio stations usually play only clean versions. So a clean version does not just expand your catalogue – it expands the range of places where your song is allowed to be played at all.

The original stays unchanged. You lose nothing by releasing a clean version – the explicit original continues to exist on the platforms as normal. The clean version complements it; it does not replace it.

Step by step

Create a new audio file
Edit the audio: Bleep, mute, replace or re-sing all the objectionable parts. The result is a new, separate sound recording – not just a renamed copy of the original.

Title it correctly
The clean version carries the title of the original with a label added – e.g. Summer Storm (Clean Version). The title of the original does not change in any way, and the word Explicit does not belong in any title. You will find the details in the article Track title: Dos and don'ts.

Enter it as a separate recording
In Artists Bez Labelu, create it as a new recording with its own audio file. Before filling it in, you will go through the short Track origin guide – answer the same way as for the original. Because it is a different recording from the original, it also gets its own ISRC code – if you do not have your own, we will assign one automatically and free of charge.

Choose the Clean option in the metadata
For the explicit content flag, choose Clean – that is, a cleaned-up version of an otherwise explicit recording. Never Not Explicit; that one belongs to recordings that have never contained objectionable content. The original keeps its Explicit flag. Details in the article When to mark content as explicit.

Choose the form of the release
You can release the clean version as a separate single (its title then matches the recording title, including the Clean Version label), or on one new release together with the explicit original (if the original has already come out, enter it with its original ISRC – see Re-releasing a recording on another release). Bear in mind, though, that recordings cannot be added to albums that are already released – so a clean version always comes out as a new release.

What to watch out for

Clean is not Not Explicit. The Not Explicit flag belongs to recordings that have never contained objectionable content in any form. A cleaned-up version of an explicit song is always flagged Clean – mixing up the two options is the most common mistake when releasing clean versions.

The Clean Version label belongs only to the clean version. Do not add any version label to the title of the original or of other recordings – and the word Explicit never belongs in a title. Explicitness is handled exclusively through the metadata.

Parental Advisory belongs only on explicit releases. Do not put this logo on the cover art of a clean or non-explicit release. When and how to use it correctly is described in the article Parental Advisory: Everything you need to know.

Related articles

→ Clean vs. Explicit – how the two versions differ and why they are not opposites.
→ When to mark content as explicit – the rules for all three flag options.
→ What belongs in a recording title – the correct title format, including versions.
→ Parental Advisory: Everything you need to know – when the logo belongs on the cover art.